Mean Girls (2024)

A 16 year old girl (Angourie Rice) returns to the U.S. from Kenya where she lived in the wild with her mother (Jenna Fischer) who homeschooled her. At her new school, she makes friends with two gay "misfits" (Jaquel Spivey, Auli'i Cravalho) but is quickly lured by "the Plastics", a trio of cliquish girls to become one of them. Based on the 2017 Broadway musical which in turned was based on the 2004 film of the same name which was based on the book QUEEN BEES AND WANNABES by Rosalind Wiseman and directed by Samantha Jayne and Arturo Perez Jr. Did we really need a musical remake of MEAN GIRLS? Of course, not. But I'm a sucker for musicals so I thought I'd check it out. The stage musical had a healthy almost two year run until Covid shut down the Broadway theatres. It received 12 Tony nominations including best musical (so much for the snooty attitude of the Tonys). The songs by Jeff Richmond and Neil Benjamin are a mediocre bunch and thankfully much of the show's original song score has been jettisoned. In the end, a pointless film (stick to the 2004 original) made by people who have no comprehension of the movie musical genre. Was the Broadway production this bad? With Renee Rapp, Avantika, Bebe Wood, Tim Meadows, Tina Fey and Lindsay Lohan (looking darn good).

Widows' Peak (1994)

Set in a small Irish village in the 1920s, a glamorous widow (Natasha Richardson) moves into town and immediately charms the village matriarch (Joan Plowright). But one of the townswomen (Mia Farrow) takes an immediate and thorough dislike to the newcomer. Directed by John Irvin (GHOST STORY), this is a delightfully wicked comedy with a bit of mystery to it. The film is fortunate to have three of the best actresses around to play the three leads. Farrow brings an obstinate feracity as the village's "old maid" with a secret past, Richardson brings a sly deviousness as the intruder and Joan Plowright is perfect as the bullying dowager, who controls the women of Widows' Peak (the section of the village where the "right" people live). The original screenplay by Hugh Leonard is witty and pungent and Ashley Rowe's lensing of the Irish landscape is heavenly. There's a lovely score by Carl Davis. With Jim Broadbent and Adrian Dunbar.

The Night Has Eyes (1942)

Two school teachers (Joyce Howard, Tucker McGuire) take a holiday in the Yorkshire Moors where a fellow school teacher mysteriously disappeared the year before. While walking on the moors, a fierce storm forces them to take shelter in a secluded house inhabited by misanthropic recluse. Based on the novel by Alan Kensington and directed by Leslie Arliss (THE WICKED LADY). A limp romantic mystery in the style of JANE EYRE. James Mason was in his brooding phase here and while he makes an acceptable if pallid substitute for Edward Rochester, the rest of the cast range from acceptable (Mary Clare as the housekeeper) to irritating (McGuire's man crazy gal pal). Director Arliss provides a suitable fog shrouded semi Gothic atmosphere that helps the movie hobble along until it reaches its destination. The "surprise" ending is no surprise at all, I saw it coming and I suspect most others will too. With Wilfrid Lawson and John Fernald.

Desperate Characters (1971)

An upper middle class couple, an attorney (Kenneth Mars) and a book translator (Shirley MacLaine) live in Brooklyn. She gets bitten by a stray cat. She worries about rabies. Based on the book by Paula Fox and adapted for the screen and directed by Frank D. Gilroy (FROM NOON TILL THREE). Although he's directed a few films, Gilroy is mostly known as a playwright and won a Tony award and the Pulitzer prize for THE SUBJECT WAS ROSES. Outside of the tenuous cat bite incident, a plot is non existent. Henry David Thoreau said, "the mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation" and that just about sums up the lives of the film's two privileged white protagonists and their crowd. They live in a paranoiac fear of everything from urban crime to the new generation (those hippies). Whether riding the subway or sitting in an emergency room, they act like they're in a third world country! While MacLaine brings a sense of quiet desperation to her part, Mars is just plain annoying. I'll chalk up why MacLaine hadn't left him years ago to her idle ennui. A very effective film that catches America at a certain point in time. With Carol Kane, Sada Thompson, Gerald S. O'Loughlin, Rose Gregorio and Jack Somack.

The Single Standard (1929)

A San Francisco socialite (Greta Garbo)  wants the freedom that men have, to take or leave love where they find it. She causes a scandal in her social circle when she runs off to the South Seas with a boxer turned artist (Nils Asther). When she returns, her reputation is ruined but not to the man (Johnny Mack Brown) who loves her. Based on the novel by Adela Rogers St. John and directed by John S. Robertson (DR. JEKYLL AND MR. HYDE). I'm a fan of Garbo and her work in silent cinema but this one is one of her weakest vehicles. Boy, does this one creak! Not even her magnetism can hold it together. The film was a huge box office hit but its pre feminist doctrine of equality between the sexes caves in by the movie's finale with motherhood and fidelity winning the day. With Dorothy Sebastian and Lane Chandler.

The Bamboo Saucer (1968)

Lead by the U.S. military, a group of scientists secretly parachute into Red China to find the truth amid rumors of  a crashed Unidentified Flying Object. En route to the saucer's location, they encounter a group of Russians also searching for the spacecraft. Directed by Frank Telford, a TV director whose sole feature film this is. A red paranoia science fiction film that seems right out of the 1950s although it was released in 1968. To call it a B movie is an insult to B movies. It's hokey and patronizing and its bonkers plot aside, it's hideously amateurish. The mountainous Lone Pine, California substitutes (poorly) for Red China. There are some good actors like Dan Duryea (in his final film role) and Lois Nettleton in this and one can only wonder how they were roped into a mish mash like this! For connoisseurs of bad sci-fi movies only. With John Ericson, James Hong, Nan Leslie and Bernard Fox.

The Dark Corner (1946)

A private detective (Mark Stevens) has relocated from San Francisco to New York to start a new life. But his past catches up with him when he unknowingly becomes involved in a plot to make him the fall guy in a murder. Based on a serialized magazine story by Leo Rosten and directed by Henry Hathaway (TRUE GRIT). This convoluted example of film noir was well received critically but didn't fare well at the box office. Today, it has a solid reputation among noir fans but honestly, I found it unnecessarily tangled. As the movie's protagonist, Mark Stevens isn't an interesting enough actor to hold our attention but fortunately, he's surrounded by some solid performances. In a dramatic role, Lucille Ball as Stevens' secretary brings some strength to an underwritten role and Clifton Webb brings his trademark waspishness and elegance to his possessive husband. With William Bendix, Cathy Downs, Kurt Kreuger and Constance Collier. 

Lawyer Man (1932)

A lawyer (William Powell) from New York's lower East Side is invited by an established uptown attorney (Alan Dinehart) to become his partner in his law firm. He accepts but soon finds himself mired in unethical situations and corruption. Based on the novel by Max Trell and directed by William Dieterle (DEVIL AND DANIEL WEBSTER). This pre code drama is a predictable hash of cliches. You can guess exactly where it's going. Good hard working lawyer becomes corrupted by ambition and money but eventually realizes the error of his ways and goes back to his roots and goes back to helping the underdog. The End. Yawn! If this movie were done with any kind of style, sincerity or above average acting, there might have been a chance for it. As it is, there's nothing to hold one's attention. I'm a fan of William Powell but his charm can only hold up the film for a little while before it collapses. With Joan Blondell, Helen Vinson, Claire Dodd and Allen Jenkins.

The Man In The Net (1959)

An ex-commercial artist (Alan Ladd) has left his New York life for the Connecticut countryside where he can paint. His alcoholic and promiscuous wife (Carolyn Jones) hates the monotony of country life and wants to move back to New York. When she disappears, her husband is suspected of her murder. Based on the novel by Hugh Wheeler and directed by Michael Curtiz (CASABLANCA). An intriguing premise is sabotaged by a contrived screenplay. For some weird reason, children are dragged into the mixture and become accomplices in Ladd's attempt to prove himself innocent and it all just seems phony and ludicrous. Plus upper class Connecticut suburbanites are portrayed as ignorant vigilantes as much as those superstitious villagers who stormed Frankenstein's castle with torches. I had a certain empathy for Carolyn Jones's unhappy housewife stuck in suburbia and when she disappears, the movie becomes less interesting. With Diane Brewster, Charles McGraw, John Lupton, Susan Gordon, Kathryn Givney and Edward Binns.

Les Trois Mousquetaires: D'Artagnan (2023)

A young man (Francois Civil) from Gascony is on his way to Paris to join the King's Musketeers. He antagonizes the first three musketeers (Vincent Cassel, Romain Duris, Pio Marmai) and challenges all three to a duel. Instead, they bond quickly together as they get involved in both domestic and political matters of King Louis XIII (Louis Garrel). Based on the classic novel by Alexandre Dumas and directed by Martin Bourboulon (DADDY OR MOMMY). Dumas' THREE MUSKETEERS has seen countless film adaptations between 1903 to 2013. The most notable being the 1921 Douglas Fairbanks silent film, the 1948 MGM version and Richard Lester's 1973 two part adaptation. Did we really need another one? Perhaps not but Bourboulon's take on the Dumas novel is darker, grittier, more brutal and violent than any other version I've seen. It dismisses the swashbuckle of the 1921 version, dispenses with the gloss of the MGM version and eliminates the humor of the 1973 Lester film. It also eliminates several characters including Planchet, Bonacieux and Rochefort to make the film tighter as well as beefing up the role of Queen Anne (Vicky Krieps). Like the Lester film, this movie takes the story of the Queen's Diamonds and ends it there. The Milady (TROIS MOUSQUETAIRES: MILADY) story is a separate film. The movie updates the novel a bit, Porthos is now bisexual. If you're a fan of the Dumas novel, by all means, definitely check this one out. With Eva Green, Lyna Khoudri, Jacob Fortune Lloyd and Eric Ruf.

The Prince Of Egypt (2023)

Set in Ancient Egypt, the Pharaoh's wife (Debbie Kurup) finds a baby floating in the Nile and adopts it as her own and raises him with her other son. As young men, Moses (Luke Brady) and Ramses (Liam Tamne) are a rowdy pair of brothers, always getting into mischief but very close. But when Moses discovers he is Hebrew, a rift between the brothers occur as Moses follows his own path. Based on the 1998 Dreamworks animated film and directed by Scott Schwartz and Brett Sullivan. Ghastly! Someone thought it would be a good idea to adapt the 1998 animated film into a stage musical. Well, it had a successful run in London's West End in 2020 until Covid forced the closure of London's theatres. Fortunately (so far), it hasn't been inflicted on Broadway audiences (yet!). The songs by Stephen Schwartz (WICKED, GODSPELL) are a heavy handed collection of power ballads and the choreography by Sean Cheesman substitutes writhing calisthenics for dancing. At 2 1/2 hours, it's a heavy sit through but there is one decent song out of over 20, For The Rest Of My Life (not in the 1998 film) wherein Moses confesses his guilt over his complicity in massacring the children of the Egyptians. If only the rest of Schwartz's songs matched its power, it might have been quite a different show. Some of the stage effects like the parting of the Red Sea are impressive. With Christine Allado, Alexia Khadime and Nardia Ruth.

The Falcon Takes Over (1942)

A brutish hulk of a man by the name of Moose Malloy (Ward Bond) escapes from prison looking for the girl he left behind. But she seems to have disappeared. An amateur detective (George Sanders) takes an interest in the case when his right hand man (Allen Jenkins) becomes a suspect in a murder committed by Malloy. Based on the novel FAREWELL MY LOVELY by Raymond Chandler and directed by Irving Reis (ALL MY SONS). The Chandler source material would later get a proper remake in 1944 under the title MURDER MY SWEET and again in 1975 under its original title. The Chandler novel has Philip Marlowe as its detective hero, here the character of The Falcon is shoehorned in instead. If you can put aside that this movie is a travesty of the Chandler novel, it's actually quite entertaining. The film has comedic elements not in the original book. The supporting cast is good. With Lynn Bari, Anne Revere, James Gleason, Turhan Bey, Helen Gilbert (channeling Veronica Lake) and Hans Conreid.