Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Man of the Year (2006)

So-so comedy about a talk-show comedian (Robin Williams) who runs for President and wins, courtesy of a computer glitch. Eleanor Green (Laura Linney) a computer programmer knows this and tries to bring it to the president-elect's attention, despite alot of obstacles in her path.

I haven't enjoyed the last few movies that Robin Williams has done. This one is slightly better, but only slightly. Predicable from beginning to end, the movie is made abit more bearable by Williams stand-up comedy act. He is funny but can be tiresome after awhile. There is alot of things in this movie that didn't make sense. For instance, how did Eleanor Green have such easy access to the President-elect? And that's just for starters.
I wanted to like this movie more than I did but I sure was glad when it was over.


Tarzan and His Mate (1934)

My favourite Weissmuller movie, or Tarzan movie for that matter. Though Weissmuller wasn't much of an actor he sure looked good in the role and was adequate for the demands of this character. The one who really shone in this movie was Maureen O'Sullivan as Jane. She was a nice combination of innocence and sexiness that the role required. It's amazing that her skimpy costume got by the censors of the time or was this before they came into effect. I'll have to look it up. It was nice seeing the restored footage of the nude swim that had been cut for broadcast tv.
Though not politically correct, I was alittle surprised at the treatment of the black porters but I'm sure this isn't the first movie that displayed such ill treatment. Some of the stunts were poorly done and get a load of the apes. Realism was not a big factor in the movie but nevertheless still extremely enjoyable.


People Against O'Hara (1951)

Interesting film-noir stars Spencer Tracy as a retired criminal lawyer who defends John O'Hara (James Arness) against a murder charge. Spencer Tracy was great as the lawyer with a drinking problem who botches his clients case. Other good performances were Pat O'Brien who plays Tracy's friend and John Hodiak the Prosecuting Attorney. Not the best courtroom drama around. Check out Adam's Rib and especially the wonderful Inherit the Wind for better Tracy courtroom dramas. Still not a bad watch.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

01/21/08: CARRY ON REGARDLESS (Gerald Thomas, 1961)

For their fifth venture, the usual “Carry On” suspects (Sidney James, Kenneth Connor, Charles Hawtrey. Kenneth Williams, Joan Sims and Hattie Jacques) are joined by other irregular members (Fenella Fielding, Liz Fraser, Esma Cannon, Terence Longdon, Bill Owen, David Lodge and Norman Rossington) and some surprising cameos (Stanley Unwin, Jerry Desmonde, Kynaston Reeves, Howard Marion Crawford and Patrick Cargill) in a frequently hilarious but ultimately patchy and disjointed romp.

James’ Bert Handy heads “Helping Hands”, a well-meaning but hopelessly incompetent firm providing any services the customer may require: and, so it is that James is asked by an eccentric millionaire to take his place in the queue at a hospital’s waiting room and is consequently mistaken for him and waited on by the matron (Jacques, naturally); Connor is in top form here: ostensibly hired as a babysitter, he finds himself acting as Fielding’s lover to arouse her neglectful husband, being a librarian driven to hysterics when attempting to observe a public library’s rule of silence, getting himself all wet when, completely misunderstanding a client’s request, he engages in some Hitchcockian espionage aboard a train full of sinister passengers, getting engulfed by the “Bed of the Century” when attending an Ideal Home exhibition and, best of all perhaps, going “cold turkey” after his sixth attempt to stop smoking; Sims also has a memorable bit when she ends up drunk at a wine-tasting event and makes a shambles of the place to the chagrin of organizer Crawford; Hawtrey goes into the ring against a massive opponent when, acting as his second, he inadvertently injures the challenger!; Williams enjoys a tea party with a group of chimps at the zoo, etc.

The finale shows Cannon’s infallible filing system going bonkers with each member of the group being sent out on the wrong assignment and, afterwards, the whole gang join forces in demolishing a dilapidated building…even if their original task was merely to clean it up a bit! In a notable appearance, celebrated comedian Stanley Unwin speaks his trademark nonsense language and drives the entire crew to distraction during his intermittent visits to their office…before multi-linguist Williams manages to explain that he is their landlord and is about to throw them out!

As one can make out, there are several funny bits in this film but it is also evident that its inherently episodic structure (which entails that some of the gang members are given precedence over others) fails to coalesce into a cohesive and completely satisfying whole.


01/22/08: CARRY ON CRUISING (Gerald Thomas, 1962)

With a story by “Carry On” alumnus Eric Barker, this is a fairly weak entry in the series – and, as I said with respect to ANTS IN THE PANTRY (1936; The Three Stooges short which preceded it), going through a succession of films featuring the same actors, one becomes rather weary of the repetition. In this case, it’s the characterization of individual members which hardly changes from one outing to the next (particularly at this early stage in the series, when the style of comedy more or less followed established rules rather than going all the way for double entendres and general tastelessness)!

For instance, Sid James is once again the flustered authority figure who has to mould his underlings – these are forever eager but incompetent, led by know-it-all Kenneth Williams and nervous Kenneth Connor (who, invariably, is given a hesitant romantic attachment); their effeminate usual cohort, Charles Hawtrey, is absent here but his replacement is the resistibly goofy Lance Percival as the new chef on James’ ship. In fact, what drowns the film (pardon the pun) is the latter’s schtick – as well as the presence of diminutive and dotty old lady Esma Cannon (also seen in CARRY ON REGARDLESS [1961] and CARRY ON CABBY [1963]). It doesn’t help, then, that the most prominent actresses during this early phase of the “Carry Ons” – Hattie Jacques and Joan Sims – are also missing from this one…though it must be said that the two young female leads (Liz Fraser – also from REGARDLESS and CABBY – and Dilys Laye, who proves to be a surprisingly adept comedienne) are highly appealing.

Incidentally, this was the first film in the series to be shot in color and, as such, has added curiosity value – even if the overall quality isn’t really up to the usual standards.


01/23/08: CARRY ON JACK (Gerald Thomas, 1963)

This title – intended as a spoof on the troubled MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY (1962) – emerges as the odd one out in the “Carry On” series: not only do we only find just three regular performers here (Kenneth Williams, Charles Hawtrey and Jim Dale), but there’s little typical material; taken on its merits, however, it isn’t bad at all and not quite the dud described on the series’ official website!

Incidentally, the irregular actors are the ones who score best – particularly Bernard Cribbins as an unlikely but likeable hero (his character is named Poop-Decker!) and Donald Houston, intense as the villain of the piece; on the feminine side, there’s the surprise casting of Juliet Mills (as a floozie who passes off as a midshipman – she sets out in search of her lost love, who turns out to be a pirate leader!). As I said, the “Carry On” stalwarts rather play second-fiddle here (especially Dale, who only gets an inconsequential bit early on), though Williams and Hawtrey manage to assert themselves during the film’s latter half (when Houston and cohort Percy Herbert instigate a mutiny and our heroes are cast off at sea).

While there are obviously a number of laughs scattered throughout, the general tone is atypically serious: Williams – playing the cowardly skipper of the “Venus”, he’s given the unsurprisingly ironic name of Captain Fearless – even loses a leg and, consequently, gets twice the “desk job” he so craved for. Also in the cast is Cecil Parker as the long-suffering Admiral who sets the naïve, bumbling Cribbins off on a naval career and reappears at the end to decorate him and his companions (Houston has blackmailed Spanish Governor Patrick Cargill into yielding his entire fleet and is taking it victoriously back to England, when it’s unwittingly destroyed by Cribbins & Co. – the ship's loaded cannons go off during a deck-fire, with the deed being taken for a successful attempt on their part to repel the oncoming Spanish invasion!).


01/26/08: FANNY HILL [R-Rated Version] (Gerry O’Hara, 1983)

When I chanced upon FANNY HILL at the local DVD rental shop, I only had a vague notion of either this version existing or of what the “classic” novel was about – but since American sexploitation maverick Russ Meyer had made it into a intriguing movie himself back in 1964, I figured it was a bawdy period romp and, since I had been in a costume picture state-of-mind for a while now, I decided to give it a spin.

The presence of three veteran film stars (Oliver Reed, Shelley Winters and Wilfrid Hyde-White) was also enticing but, unsurprisingly, they are only there for marquee value: Reed’s almost incoherent Popeye-ish accent is simply embarrassing, likewise watching flabby madam Winters being surrounded by all that petite naked flesh (not hers, of course, but that of her charges and their consorts) flailing about, but it’s octagenarian Hyde-White (in his last film, no less) who tops both of them by snuggling in bed with the title character…who is all of 19 years of age; I’ve seen Hyde-White in several of his earlier films and I’m positive he never performed a love scene in any of them!

Indeed, it’s gorgeous leading lady Lisa Foster – who, thankfully, indulges in much full-frontal nudity by shedding her clothing completely at every possible opportunity – which, even in the heavily-censored variant I’ve watched, makes this consistently raunchy period piece tolerable; it’s a pity that she didn’t get much ahead in her acting career as one would certainly have liked to see even more of her. Interestingly enough, she later switched to doing animation work and was also involved in the digital restoration of Walt Disney’s SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS (1937)!

The orphaned innocent Fanny Hill soon falls in with some ladies of ill-repute as she reaches London to better her prospects, and is immediately instructed in what is expected of her by a more experienced companion Phoebe (Maria Harper) by jumping into bed with her, and later spying on their fellow co-workers in action through hidden holes in the wall BELLE DE JOUR (1967)-style! In fact, the film’s plotline is very similar to that of Jess Franco’s MARQUIS DE SADE’S JUSTINE (1968) and it’s small wonder that the producer of that one, Harry Alan Towers, is also behind this production but, while I’d say FANNY HILL is a more agreeable picture, ultimately it’s just too blandly made to stick in one’s mind for much longer after it’s finished.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Mario:

It does get forgotten (due to the massive presence he became) how Sid James was very much a straight man in the early 'Carry On' films.
I think because he was one of the few to have any kind of straight acting legacy in the cinema.
Williams' had it on stage (which is probably why he was also straighter than he became) but his far more widely known comedic talents (esp in "Hancock's Half Hour") pretty much dictated the full-on comedy performances after "Sgt".

James in "Cruising" is in fact a total straight man and his turn harks back to the other 'sea' comedy films he did before where he is once again that lovable authority figure.

I have (uncut as far as I know) "Fanny Hill" on a big 'Brit smut' pile of movies to watch.


"Die Hard 4" - (edited cut)

Obviously to get more cash from you (as the uncut version costs more) is the only reason I can see to release the cut version in the UK, as the uncut version gets the same damn rating! So why not just release the uncut version then? *TSK*

Anyway...A lot better than i thought it was going to be (would certainly have been improved by upping the swearing and bloodshed) and it was certainly enjoyable with a nice cocktail of action and humour.

The place it fell down though is the last 15 minutes or so.
Who thought it would be a good idea to have a CGI jet fighter fire at a CGI Bruce Willis in a very silly fashion?
And who thought we wouldn't notice that the moronic pilot causes more damage (and i'd be amazed if not more deaths as well!) by blowing the crap out of an entire elevated bridge roadway?
It looked stupid, it WAS stupid.
Bit of a flat finale as well.

Otherwise not bad and a vast improvement on the truly awful "Die Hard 3".




"Summer Rental" - Who doesn't like this good natured 80's romp!?

A delightfully stressed John Candy takes the family on a seaside vacation and finds more stress and funstuffs in the form of house mix ups, interlopers, boat crashes, breast jobs, floating seafood restaurants, lobsters and a cartoon villain par excellence in the form of Richard Crenna.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Meet the Fockers

One of those sequels that lives up to the original. Very funny.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Not as good as MEET THE PARENTS, but still a decent sequel with star power going for it if not the most clever gag writing.
I enjoyed the first film and yet found myself shifting back and forth during the course of this follow-up; I was chuckling one minute but then shaking my head the next, wondering why too much of the material tended to rely on cheap sex jokes and non-clever toilet humor (I'm no prude but jeez - can anyone write ANYTHING else for a laugh these days?). It also felt as though there were too many obvious references to routines that worked well already in the original, just to let you know the filmmakers didn't forget them.

One thing is for certain -- Dustin Hoffman and Barbra Streisand were ideally cast as Ben Stiller's parents, The Fockers. That in itself makes this sequel worth the watch. At times it was hard to swallow that any married couple could be so irresponsibly perverse and inconsiderate during such a crucial first meeting with their future in-laws, but then again I suppose that's supposed to provide the whole basis for this film's existence. By the time it's all over, most fans who liked PARENTS should come away from FOCKERS feeling that they've had at least some fun with it. Just how "much" fun will vary from viewer to viewer, though.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Murphy's Law (1986)

I revisited this for the first time in several years, and I really enjoyed it. It's got a stronger and different Charles Bronson performance in it as he plays a cop who's one of several targets on an insane woman's hit list as she seeks vengeance after getting out of jail. In addition to the good Bronson perfromance, I thought the female killer (Carrie Snodgress) was a welcome addition and was a fairly formidable villainess. The big problem in the film is the repetitive and childish "potty-mouth" namecalling by the annoying Kathleen Wilhoite; it's not funny especially after a couple dozen times, nor are the names especially creative. She plays a young car thief who gets mixed up with Bronson and comes close to spoiling the movie; thankfully there is still enough action going on that I'm willing to ignore her and call this a good film of its type.


Mr. Majestyk (1974)

Even earlier in his career, Charles Bronson was a guy who just can't get a break. Here all he wants to do is get his melon picking business running right by hiring the people he prefers to work for him, but a lot of other disgruntled folks have different ideas. A pretty good action flick, not much more to say.


The Scarlet Clue (1945)

Last night a friend brought over this entry, one of the Monogram Charlie Chan's from the "Chanthology" DVD set, and I thought it was pretty bad. This is my first exposure to one of these later Chan films, and to Sidney Toler in the lead role as the famous detective. Mostly a 65-minute bore, with the unfunny Mantan Moreland and Chan's #3 Son just taking up too much time together for comical purposes while Chan himself ought to be doing more investigating.

Now for Mr. Toler -- just based on this first impression, I felt he was completely wrong for the part, and couldn't possibly fill Warner Oland's shoes. He looked and sounded completely Non-Asian, and was dull as dishwater. To make matters worse, when checking out the Maltin Guide, it says there that THE SCARLET CLUE is one of the better installments from Monogram's series!?!

What's the consensus here on these films, and Toler in particular? He just seemed way too American for the part (the IMDB says he's of Scottish ancestory, but was born in Missouri).

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

I'd switch the ratings on the two Bronson films but pretty much agree with what you wrote. I noticed you watched ASSASSINATION but I don't think you reviewed it. I think it is the worst Bronson movie of the 80's but it's so damn bad I can't help but be entertained by it.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Same here. And then knock a star and a half off the putrid "Murphy's Law".
"Mr Majestik" is a bona-fide cult classic, such an eccentric film with a great cast.
Melon Farmers!!! Don't fuck with 'em!

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Oh yeah, I forgot. It was another different thing for Bronson to do, I thought, and I liked the whole angle with guarding the First Lady, played by Chuck's wife. Not bad, I didn't think, though nothing special.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

2001: A Space Odyssey

I've never understood those who say this film has no story. Showed this to my 7 year old, and while he didn't grasp all the intricacies, and he had some questions I needed to explain to him, he certainly got the basic idea, and enjoyed the story.

Act of Violence

Above average "stalker after a family man" film. The innocent victim turns out not to be so innocent after all. Pretty good, though it does drag in too many places.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

She's the Man (2006)

Not something I'd watch on my own but not too bad for a teen movie.
The women's soccer team gets cut at Cornwall Prep and in order to join the men's team, Viola pretends to be her brother Sebastian.

Very predicable and we've seen this storyline before but it's not without it's charm and Amanda Byrnes is certainly appealing enough to make this film interesting. There is no way though that I would mistakenly think that Byrnes is a boy. Still I enjoyed this movie.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

The Last Laugh

Posted my thoughts in the S&S thread.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Wild Hogs (2007)

I guess I must be getting jaded in my old age but I just don't find modern domestic comedies all that funny anymore. I much prefer the humour of British comedies or comedies from past eras.

Four friends take a trip to the Pacific on motorbikes. On the way they meet up with a dangerous biker gang, and after one of them burns down their bar, they end up on the run.

This seems like the makings of a great comedy but it fell flat for me. Most of the material was unoriginal. Though there were some funny moments, they were few and far between. I like the four stars of the movie but not in this particular movie. It was nice seeing Peter Fonda though if only briefly.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

September Dawn (2006)

Viewed 1/21/2008 (first viewing)

Fascinating if flawed account of the Mountain Meadows Massacre, the mass killing of a group of emigrant settlers by a Mormon sect in September of 1857. A bit much towards the end, and probably one-sided, but overall a good accounting of a little-known event.

out of


Adam's Apples (2005)

Viewed 1/21/2008 (first viewing)

Danish black comedy cum Job parable. Adam is a neo-Nazi who is released from prison into the custody of a priest. When the priest's optimistic, "turn the other cheek" attitude proves too much for Adam to digest, he sets out to destroy the man's faith. But the priest turns out to have demons of his own and Adam's plan may just be a catalyst for changing himself. A good movie as it is, though I wish the filmmakers had followed through with their film's initial dark vision instead of opting for a happy happy joy joy Hollywood ending. Call me cynical.

out of


Clara (2005)

Viewed 1/21/2008 (first viewing)

Strange claymation short about a little girl who is attacked by flowers and has a corpse in her ant-infested home. Not really sure what the hell this was trying to say.

out of


The V Word (2007)

Viewed 1/22/2008 (first viewing)

Solid Masters of Horror entry about two teen buddies who sneak into a funeral home where they encounter a bloodsucking ghoul. Adept at taking down video game ghouls, they find the real thing to be much deadlier!

out of


Midnight Snack (2004)

Viewed 1/22/2008 (first viewing)

A hungry suburbanite gets up for a midnight snack only to discover that his home has been invaded by an equally peckish vampire. Fairly effective little short, just not much there.

out of


The Locksmith (2005)

Viewed 1/22/2008 (first viewing)

Bloody short about a homely locksmith who sneaks into the home of one of his clients, a beautiful woman with whom he's fallen in love. But this beauty turns out to be a beast!

out of


Susana (1951)

Viewed 1/23/2008 (first viewing)

Minor Bunuel melodrama about a vixenish juvenile delinquent who escapes from a reformatory only to end up at the hacienda of a wealthy Mexican family. There she proceeds to disrupt the order of things by seducing the men, even going so far as to pit father against son!

out of


Dawn of the Dead (1978)

Viewed 1/24/2008

Revisited the U.S. Theatrical Cut in anticipation of the release of Diary of the Dead. The best of the three popular versions.

out of


Days of Darkness (2007)

Viewed 1/24/2008 (first viewing)

A comet dusts the Earth with space parasites that turn humans into flesh-eating zombies. Decent little low-budgeter overdoes it a bit, but remains one of the better genre entries of late.

out of


Die and Let Live (2006)

Viewed 1/24/2008 (first viewing)

Not a zombie Bond parody, but rather a low rent account of partygoers who find themselves surrounded by the hungry living dead. This one at least has an amiable cast and lots of bloodshed.

out of


Oh, No! Zombies! (2003)

Viewed 1/24/2008 (first viewing)

A group of friends fight off zombies in this micro cinema short. Eh, I've seen worse - at least this one didn't take itself too seriously. Cute how all the ghouls wear t-shirts with the word "zombie" written on them!

out of


28 Seconds Later (2007)

Viewed 1/24/2008 (first viewing)

Well done fan homage to 28 Days Later has a soldier fighting the infected. Plays more like a deleted scene from the Danny Boyle film, but still pretty good.

out of


The Iron Horse (1924)

Viewed 1/25/2008 (first vieiwng)

John Ford's silent epic chronicles the attempt of one young man to see his murdered father's vision of the transcontinental railroad come true. Long but engrossing, and interesting to see Ford's mastery of the camera even at this early stage.

out of


An Obsession (1997)

Viewed 1/26/2008 (first viewing)

Moody tale of a cop who is in succession, shot in the line of duty, has his gun stolen, and is threatened with divorce. Can he get his life back together while trying to track down the psychotic thief who took his pistol? Sort of a redo of Stray Dog by way of Godard, slow and brooding, with some surreal flourishes (what was with the jeepload of soldiers in Hazmat suits?).

out of


Stray Dog (1949)

Viewed 1/26/2008

Revisited Akira Kurosawa's early classic. Rookie cop Toshiro Mifune has his gun stolen, setting him on a journey through both the Tokyo underworld and the consciousness of post-war Japan. Great film.

out of


Berlin Alexanderplatz (1931)

Viewed 1/27/2008 (first viewing)

Early film version of Alfred Doblin's novel. Much shorter than Rainer Werner Fassbinder's version (which I'm currently slogging through), leaving out much but still managing to capture the essence of the story.

out of

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

The Awful Truth (1937)

Irene Dunn/Cary Grant vehicle that has the couple divorcing but trying to find a way to get back together before the divorce decree becomes final.

This is the first of three pairings of these two great stars and they have great chemistry together. This is one of the great screwball comedies of the 1930's and Dunn shines in this role. The drunk scene in the car was absolutely hilarious. This is typical, fun material for Grant who is excellent in this kind of zany comedy. Another good performance was one given by that crazy dog from the Thin Man Movies, or I'm assuming so, Asta. The scene with the dog playing hide and seek was just priceless. Though I've seen parts of this before, this is the best comedy I've seen in a long time.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

01/25/08

Up the Creek (1984) Robert Butler

Four bum guys from a low class school enter a white water competition and do battle against four rich preps. This teen sex comedy is best known for teaming up two members of National Lampoon's Animal House (Tim Matheson, Stephen Furst) and Dan Monahan of Porky's fame. The end result has some nice laughs but not nearly enough or as many as those two other classic films. I hadn't watched this in over fifteen years but it really struck me as an effortless film that takes the lazy way out of everything. There's nothing original in the screenplay and most of the charm comes from the three leads but the charm isn't from this film but remember them from their previous work. Of the cast, Matheson comes off the best even though he's character is just a reject from Animal House. The movie is also rather tame in the sex/nudity department especially compared to other films that were out around this period. As I said there are some laughs but not enough to keep the film going. The movie only runs 95-minutes but it feels more like three hours.

Secret of the Whistler, The (1946) George Sherman

The sixth film in Columbia's series and the last to feature Richard Dix. In the film Dix plays an artist who begins dating a younger woman (Leslie Brooks) while waiting for his wife to die. After the wife dies he marries the younger woman but soon she starts to fear that he might have killed the first wife. This is another good entry in the series that manages to build some nice suspense with its very entertaining story and another fine performance by Dix. Not only is Dix very good in his role but the supporting cast is great as well. Brooks turns in a very good performance as the woman who begins to suspect the worst. Michael Duane and Mary Currier co-star as a newspaper man and Dix's first wife. The story goes by at a very fast pace and there's some nice twists and turns along the way. The film focuses on a psychological horror aspect, which is where the suspense comes from.

01/26/08

Marked Woman (1937) Lloyd Bacon

A prosecutor (Humphrey Bogart) tries to get a key witness (Bette Davis) to testify against her gangster boss. The first hour of this film was only so-so but it certainly picked up in the final half hour when the gangsters start going after Davis and her younger sister. I think the story is just standard Warner stuff but the performances by Davis and Bogart makes this a small classic that makes for a good time. Davis is very good in her role, although I felt she came off a tad bit campy whenever she was playing anger. A few of her anger scenes made me smile but for the rest of the time she's on fire. Bogart is also very good in his role and it's always fun seeing him play a clean good guy without any baggage. The supporting cast is also in good form and features nice performances from Lola Lane, Isabel Jewell, Eduardo Ciannelli and Mayo Methot (future Mrs. Bogart). Cagney's buddy Allen Jenkins has a fun cameo. The final courtroom scenes are very well handled with some nice cinematography including a great shot during Bogart's closing statement where the camera swoops down on him.

Manhattan Melodrama (1935) W.S. Van Dyke II

MGM crime drama about two friends who go on the opposite sides of the law. One becomes a gangster (Clark Gable) the other a D.A. (William Powell) and the two's common ground, a woman (Myrna Loy). The story of two friends ending up on opposite sides was warn out by 1935 and this here brings down the film. Both the gangster side and the drama side are pretty bland for the times and this too takes away from the film but there's no doubt that the three leads make it more entertaining than it deserves. Gable is terrific in his role and his scenes with Powell are certainly energetic. Loy steals the show as the woman who loves both men. At 93-minutes the film goes on a bit too long but it's worth at least one viewing for the cast. Mickey Rooney plays Gable's character as a child. This film is a part of American history since it was the movie John Dillinger was watching when the police killed him afterwards.

Nostradamus (1938) David Miller

The first short in MGM's series that a look at the early life of Nostradamus as a scientist and how this led to his predictions of the future including the death of King Henry II. If you're interested in some of the predictions of Nostradamus then you should enjoy this short, which is well made and the footage backing the stories is well done.

More About Nostradamus (1941) David Miller

MGM short tells some more predictions by Nostradamus. Being this film was released during WW2, a lot of the stories told deal with him predicting the current events. As with others in the series, if you're fascinated by Nostradamus then this short should keep you entertained.

Body and Soul (1947) Robert Rossen

John Garfield plays a poor kid from the slums who starts boxing and soon rises to the top where the only place to go is down. This is a highly impressive film that manages to be quite effective even though the story isn't anything original. It's easy to see the influence this film had on Martin Scorsese's Raging Bull and I'd say the Scorsese picture follows this one quite closely. There are also a few more sequences, which were borrowed in Rocky. The most impressive thing about this movie are the boxing scenes, which are the most realistic and violent of any early boxing film I've seen. I'd say they've only been topped by the Scorsese film. Garfield is terrific as usual and really sells his character's many different feelings. Garfield perfectly captures the out of control scenes but he's also very good in the more tender moments involving a used up black boxer. The supporting cast is also very good with Lilli Palmer, Hazel Brooks, William Conrad and Joseph Pevney turning in fine work. The films one weakness is that it drags before the start of the final act but there's still plenty here to enjoy.

Several Friends (1969) Charles Burnett

Student film from director Burnett shows several friends in South Central L.A. sitting around smoking pot and drinking beer. I'm really not sure what point the director was going for but I got very little out of the story. I'm not sure if this is a bash about unemployment or if this is suppose to be fun. The plot never really comes through so it's hard to know how we're suppose to feel about the characters.

Horse, The (1973) Charles Burnett

Strange and surreal short about four white men waiting for a black man to show up so that he can put down an old horse. This is a very strange short but Burnett tells the story in such a way that it kept me interested until the end. I'm not sure what the message was or if there was one but this is certainly a weird little film.

When it rains (1995) Charles Burnett

A musician tries to save a woman and her children from being thrown out of their South Central apartment. Seeing as this short came twenty-plus years after the directors previous films, I was a little shocked to see he hadn't grown much in his directorial style. Perhaps it's unfair to judge him by these shorts but I really haven't been impressed too much.

Two Female Spies with Flowered Panties (1980) Jess Franco

A sexual crazy couple kidnap a young girl (Susan Hemmingway) and begin to sexually torture and rape her but have no fear because two strippers (Lina Romay, Nadine Pascal) are on the case. This is a rather crazy and silly Franco caper that spoofs various genres but mainly the detective films of the 1940s. There's a lot of humor, a lot of sex and of course a whole bunch of naked women running around. If you're offended easily then you'll certainly want to skip this film as the "funny gay man" character is on full blast here. Normally this character is played by Franco but he doesn't do the part this time but that doesn't mean the humor comes any cleaner. The stereotype of this gay character is so outrageous and politically incorrect that you can't help but laugh your ass off. The highlight of the film is a scene where one of the strippers rapes him on a couch. Hearing his scream, in that stereotype voice, is just downright funny even if you're squinting her eyes at the same time. The film also features some of the worst striptease scenes in film history but a couple of these are played as jokes.

01/27/08

Edward Scissorhands (1990) Tim Burton

Johnny Depp plays the title character, a nice man who suffers from having scissors for hands. An Avon lady (Diane Wiest) finds him in an abandoned castle and brings him home where he fits in at first but as time goes on he finds it harder to blend in with the normal people. There are a few problems with the screenplay and there are a few logical problems but this is a fantasy so I try to put them out of my head and just sit back and enjoy this rather bizarre film. I think Burton gets across his message about human nature without beating the viewer over the head and in the end this is certainly one of the more memorable films of the decade. Depp is terrific in his role and really brings a lot of truth and sadness to his character. Winona Ryder (whatever happened to her?) is great as well in her role and I've always believed she was one of the best actresses out there in this time frame. The supporting cast of Wiest, Kathy Baker and Anthony Michael Hall also turn in fine work. I love the way Burton used Vincent Price in this film as it turned out to be a very loving tribute to the horror legend. The film is visually striking and the music score by Danny Elfman is terrific. The ending of the film is very touching as well.

Woman Haters (1934) Archie Gottler

Columbia's first Three Stooges short has the boys joining a women hater's club but things turn bad when Larry marries a girl. This is a rather strange short for the Stooges even though it was their first and their typical style and brand of humor takes a back seat to some singing. The dialogue, all of it rhyming, was a little annoying at first but after a while it didn't bother me. The introduction to the Stooges was great as were the scenes where Larry tries to keep his club joining away from the new wife.

Captains of the Clouds (1943) Michael Curtiz

Extremely exciting actioneer from Warner about a bush pilot (James Cagney) who pisses everyone off and then joins the Canadian Air Force to train pilots for battle in WW2. Top-notch acting, incredibly flight sequences and an all around good story makes this a wonderful little gem that really sticks out from the various war films produced in this era. I've had the chance to see this movie countless times over the years but kept pushing it back and I'm really kicking myself for doing that. The love triangle between Cagney, Dennis Morgan and Brenda Marshall is very well handled and doesn't come off simply as formula melodrama. This mixes in well when we hit the action stuff and the reasoning behind the constant battle between Cagney and Morgan. The entire cast does a great job in their roles and this includes the three leads as well as Alan Hale and George Tobias. The flight sequences are incredibly impressive and the ending is packed with intense action. The Technicolor (Cagney's first) also benefits the film greatly with all the beautiful locations and it really brings the blues out of the skies. The film was certainly made to be patriotic and it pulls that off extremely well with the ending.

Punch Drunks (1934) Lou Breslow

Three Stooges short has the wimpy Curley turning into a mean fighting machine each time he hears Pop Goes the Weasel. This is certainly the best short I've seen from the Stooges and i doubt they made one that was better. The laughs are non-stop from start to finish the violent humor is great throughout as well. The site gags are also pretty good including Larry walking into the bar, pulling his hat off and a part of it remaining on. The boxing match at the end also contains plenty of laughs.

Men in Black (1934) Raymond McCarey

The Three Stooges begin work as doctors even though they know nothing about medicine. This is one of the weaker Stooges shorts that I've seen, although there are a few mild chuckles. The two best scenes are when they go into visit with patients and meets some rather strange people including one guy who sees rats coming out of his button hole. The breaking glass gag doesn't work the first time and we see it over and over.

Three Little Pigskins (1934) Raymond McCarey

Gangster mistake the Three Stooges for professional athletes and get them involved in a football game with big cash on the line. Here's one of the better shorts from the series with non-stop gags, although most of the gags come from the first half of the film and not the second half that deals with the game. The various misadventures inside the girl's apartment are terrific and especially they escape down the shoot.

Horses' Collars (1935) Clyde Bruckman

The Three Stooges are hired as detectives to go out West and get back on IOU, which could cause a girl to lose her ranch. Here's another hilarious entry in the series that manages to be very funny even if the best joke of Curley turning mad fighter is borrowed from Punch Drunks. There's plenty of nice action including a great sequence where Curley fights two men and another sequence on the dance floor where the boys try to pick pockets.

Restless Knights (1935) Charles Lamont

After hearing about a plot to assassinate the Queen, the Three Stooges becomes knights but trouble follows. I think this is one of the weakest shorts that feature the original group of Stooges. I think the writing is pretty lazy, which leads to extended scenes that just aren't very funny. The wrestling matches are deadly dull and pretty much kills everything that follows. Even the slapstick humor is pretty dull.

Pop Goes the Easel (1935) Del Lord

The Three stooges are chased by a cop into an art school where they try their hand at painting. This is a pretty good short that features some nice dialogue as well as plenty of laughs through the fighting. The film ends with a big clay fight but for some reason these type of fights have never made me laugh. The Keystone brand of pie fights never worked for me either.

Uncivil Warriors (1935) ;half: Del Lord

The Three Stooges are fighting for the North in the Civil War but go undercover to spy on the South. This is a short that actually looks better than anything else. The period piece actually looks very realistic with the costumes but there are a few laughs as well. The highlight has to be the scene where the boys eat a cake, which just happens to make them cough up feathers.

Sevimli Frankestayn (Turkish Young Frankenstein) (1975) Nejat Saydam

I guess the Turkish Film Industry frowns that their most popular films are low budget junk, which usually rip off American scenes shot for shot. Star Wars, The Exorcist and Superman are just a few of the titles that have been ripped off and this movie here rips Mel Brooks' Young Frankenstein. This is the first film of this type that I've watched and while it was perfectly awful I must admit that I'm going to start seeking others out. This wasn't a scene for scene rip but it might as well have been. All the famous scenes from the Brooks movie are redone here with incredibly cheap effects. Just one example are whenever the equipment starts to flash. It's done here by cheap fireworks going off. The monster make up is incredibly bad and I'd say that this is the worst looking monster in film history. The film was in Turkish without English subs so I couldn't understand the dialogue but I'm sure it was just as bad as the rest of the film. Fans of Young Frankenstein will certainly want to check this out just to see how incredibly stupid it all really is. The spoof of the hermit/monster scene from Bride of Frankenstein is especially bad.

Pardon My Scotch (1935) Del Lord

The Three Stooges are mistaken for bootleggers due to a special chemical they made up. There are a few dry spots but overall this is another entertaining shorts that has one of their best jokes. The scene where Moe is standing on a table that gets cut in half is priceless as is another scene with the boys mixing up their scotch. Curley does a roll dance ala Chaplin in The Gold Rush but this here certainly doesn't have the same effect.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

According to Moe in his book MOE HOWARD AND THE THREE STOOGES, he actually broke his ribs when he did this shot in one take, but rose up to finish the slap scene before he passed out.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Victim (1961)

Dir: Basil Dearden


Melville Farr (Dirk Bogarde) is a successful, destined for big things, lawyer.
He has a pretty wife (Sylvia Syms) and an unstained reputation.
He’s also a Homosexual and in the UK, in 1961, that means possible prison time if sexually active, a probable loss of job and definite loss of status and a new occupation as social pariah.
All of which makes blackmail almost inevitable.

Barret (an excellent performance by Peter McEnery) is the young man in Farr’s life, but Farr has vowed to fight against his impulses for the sake of his wife and his reputation and so turns his back on Barrett, not knowing that Barrett is being blackmailed over photos of both of them together (of a non-sexual but intimate nature) and has had to rob his employer to get the money to pay the blackmailers, while still trying to protect Farr, the man he loves but who has turned him away.

When tragedy strikes Farr is forced to confront not only his own nature but also his guilt at turning Barrett away when he was desperate for help.
With help from Barrett’s friend Eddy (Donald Churchill) Farr determines to track down the blackmailers and as he embarks on his quest he discovers the true size of the blackmail plot, the damage it has done and the great risk of having everything he’s ever worked for destroyed if he wants to see the guilty brought to justice….



Few films make a real difference in the real world. “Victim” was one of those few though as it's effect on the public was heavily rumoured to have helped get the law of the land changed.
For many in Britain, who at the very least probably shrugged as being no big thing that sexually active Homosexuality was illegal and that men could got to jail for simply living their lives like anyone else, this film must have come as an unexpected shock at what the real effect of such a law has on those who, through no fault of their own, become victims of it.

And let’s not beat around the bush here, Janet Green and John McCormick’s screenplay makes it clear that the many ‘victims’ in the film are not just victims of the blackmailers but victims of the law.
But even that is not enough for them or director Basil Dearden as the wife character played by Syms shows that there are even more victims…those victims who become collateral damage as the loved ones around them are forced to lead shadowy lives at the threat of total social destruction. A destruction that will cause dreadful damage to anyone near them if their Homosexuality comes out.

The makers know that if the film was nothing but a soapbox sermon (there are moments here where this happens, as characters deliver lines that do sound more like a speech than a conversation, but given the time and the subject there was perhaps no other way to get certain vital points across) then people would have tuned out and felt cheated, even angered, as they ultimately came for a night out at the cinema.
But within this plea for justice and change is a genuinely intriguing crime story that plays by old and expected rules to deliver a solid thriller with many a neat twist during the extended finale which any crime movie fan will appreciate.

But above all is the plight of the homosexual for simply existing.
When one old, tired, scared blackmail victim (who does not want to help Farr’s investigation because he just wants to flee abroad ) announces that he has been sent to prison 4 times and simply can’t take it happening again your blood boils at the fact that a man simply being attracted to other men sees him stuck with not only a criminal record for the rest of his life, but thrown into prison with murderers, bank robbers and rapists on a regular basis.
And when shockingly the fear of the law is greater than the fear of the criminal we see the damage that the criminal does, the threat they offer, the havoc their blackmail plays on the victim’s everyday life as he finds himself literally stuck between a rock and a hard place. The fact an otherwise law abiding victim of a crime dare not go to the Police for fear that the Police will be the greater threat to his life and liberty is a shocking indictment of the society that makes such laws the Police have to uphold.
And the fact that their sex life, their love life, is a criminal act sees Homosexuals who have managed to avoid blackmail simply looking over their shoulders, meeting in secret and hoping beyond hope that their friends and employers don’t find out that they are one of ‘those’ who society has deemed legally unacceptable.

You can see why some people criticise the film as showing Homosexuals as victims, but basically all Homosexuals were victims then. Which is the explicit the point the film explicitly has to portray.
Even if Gay men were not blackmail victims, or general victims made to live false lives in fear of the society that criminalizes them, if they were in fact famous and successful say they still had to keep their Homosexuality as a pantomime, a light entertainment front to please film and TV audiences while ensuring that the actual, personal, real life, truth of their sex lives (that people may well guess at but do not want to be made explicit) never escape away from their acts.
People like Kenneth Williams, Frankie Howard and Noel Coward were all suspected or known to be Homosexual and yet were well loved, but none of them could ever have lived an openly Homosexual life that was in completely in the open, just like anyone else.
Just like most of their audiences and fans.
Let us not forget that while people laughed at these ‘camp’ performers, for much of their professional life the actual sex (and as such love) lives of these men, these stars, was still something that could find them arrested and locked up in a prison cell.
So even those Homosexuals popular and powerful enough not to live their lives in the shadows were still victims of a law, a so called morality, that effected no one else in the country.
The final irony is perhaps that Bogarde himself was never able to openly admit to his much rumoured Homosexuality due to the stigma it still carried decades later.

The screenplay deftly tackles anther problem as well. That of misplaced and inappropriate sympathy.
The woman in the local pub, the sympathetic Police Inspector (a nice turn by John Barrie) all feel it unfair that the men are persecuted but at the same time they use descriptions like ‘abnormalities’ and ‘they can’t help it’. The kindness is there but it’s a kindness of the kind shown to a lame dog, a person with a disease. They basically think that the law should not persecuted those afflicted with a harmless abnormality.
The casting of such a strong, respected and popular actor as Dirk Bogarde and the fact he plays a successful, educated, pillar of society means we are shown that there is nothing abnormal, weak or ailing about someone who is Homosexual. No more than any Heterosexual man at least.
Sure this stuff is spread on pretty thick and is at times very melodramatic, but the kid of message the film needed to spread, at such a time to such an amount of ordinary people meant that anything too subtle just wouldn’t work the way it might now.

The only thing that the film doesn’t tackle (for valid reasons) is that perhaps Farr could be Bi-Sexual. His marriage seems to have been as happy as it could be given the circumstances, Farr obviously loves his wife and we have to assume that they had an at least satisfying sex life, as Syms’ gives no signals that the marriage was in any way a failure in bed. But Bi-Sexuality would have weakened and diluted the film’s main purpose so the possibility of it is rightfully ignored.

Using the expert eye of Cinematographer Otto Heller (“Peeping Tom”, “The Lady Killers”) to give his tale a stark black and white look that mixes stark reality with Noirish lighting, Director Dearden (a stalwart of golden era English cinema, “The Blue Lamp”, “The Black Sheep of Whitehall”) expertly utilises his superb cast, all in top form, to put across not just a plea for change but to also make an exciting, moving and dramatic film in its own right.

Another shock for the general Brit cinema goer would have been the popular actor Dirk Bogarde playing the wounded, torn but defiant Farr.
For many Bogarde was two specific, different, but utterly acceptable actors. He was the charming comedy actor from the bonafide English comedy classic “Doctor in the House” (and 2 sequels) and he was the noble Englishman in such fare as the WW2 actioner “They Who Dare” or as the man who bravely makes the ultimate sacrifice in the stunning 1958 adaptation of “A Tale of Two Cities”.
But a look back at a very early Bogarde film, “The Blue Lamp”, shows that there was always a risk taking, deadly serious actor underneath the matinee idol persona.
In this classic 1950 movie he would be the gunman who did one of the most shocking things in the history of British cinema…he cold-bloodedly killed Dixon of Dock Green.
A Policeman character so massively popular that even death could not hold him, and (still essayed by the great Jack Warner) he would come back from the grave to star in an iconic British television series of the same name. But it was Bogarde who was willing to put a bullet hole in him.

But it was perhaps the film’s strongest weapon to have such a popular actor as Bogarde play someone so unpopular in society as a whole (or at least someone so willingly shoved into the sidelines) … that of the Homosexual man. But with Bogarde’s face up there people had to take notice, they had to listen.
And sure enough Bogarde is utterly magnificent. It’s hard to think that this is even the same actor who played broad comedy, as he’s so intense, so genuine in his hurt and anger .
He was fine and memorable in the serious “A Tale of Two Cities”, but until the end he had a roguish, playing to the audience in a way, character to essay, in “Victim” he is just a normal man. A respected, successful man who you may pass in the street on your way to the cinema…and yet he lives a life of utter emotional turmoil surrounded by victims like himself who he tries to ignore. Just as the audience try to ignore.
But you can’t ignore victims forever.
Bogarde would later become one of the world’s most respected serious actors in challenging films that pushed many kinds of boundaries (“The Servant”, “The Night Porter”, “Death in Venice”) and it is here, in “Victim”, where that truly great actor came alive.

The then strikingly beautiful Sylvia Syms ("Ice Cold in Alex", "Asylum"), in an astonishingly complex and difficult role, is also superb and her scenes with Bogarde are fascinating to watch (she always knew of Farr’s Homosexuality, but hoped to do that thing that many real women in love would hope to do,…She vainly hoped to help change him) and her character is obviously meant to represent the humanity and love that the film hopes all relatives and loved ones in real life would offer to their own family members who might be Homosexual and have no one else to turn to or get support from.
But she is no weak and winsome housewife and Syms ensures that we never feel she was blind and powerless as either a wife or a woman.

The support cast are all uniformly excellent and when I say that cast includes Norman Bird (“Hands of the Ripper”), Nigel Stock (“Brighton Rock”), Derren Nesbitt (“Where Eagle’s Dare”, in wonderful form as a ruthless thug), Charles Lloyd Pack (“Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell”) and the troubled Dennis Price (“Kind Hearts and Coronets”, “Twins of Evil”), you can see why Bogarde and Syms are given such strong backup.

So what we have is a fine film, a serious film, a superbly crafted film filled with excellent actors and with a startling lead performance by Dirk Bogarde.

And it’s also thankfully a film that’s now an historical document of how things used to be.
The law that criminalized Homosexuality is long gone, helped into its coffin in a small way by this film (even if it was a slow process, it took another 6 years after the film's release) due to the effect it had.
So it’s history, but it’s a history whose lessons were seemingly forgotten as the 21st century dawned;

With a 300% rise in attacks on Homosexuals in Scotland in 2007, with the main, rabidly homophobic, religions getting more and more powerful and influential in the UK (even Islam, to an hitherto unheard of degree), and given that equally homophobic right wing groups like the ‘British National Party’ are gaining popularity…it seems that the shadow of intolerance is growing in strength in the UK at a rate not seen for decades and as not one of these rising powers would shed a tear if Homosexuality was made illegal again (indeed if they all share a common enemy it is Homosexuality) it could be that the rock and a hard place existence I mentioned above could readily occur again.

“Victim” is a cinematically historical film and a socially historic film…And we should hang our heads in shame if the history it represents ever becomes the present once again.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

1/27/08

Armored Car Robbery (1950) Dir: Richard Fleischer

The title just about says it all, in this yet another tight ‘B’ (about 67 minutes) from RKO and Fleischer. The titular crime, which takes place outside Wrigley Field in Los Angeles, is pulled off by a four-man gang, masterminded by Dave Purvis (William Talman). The first cops on the scene, Lt. Jim Cordell (Charles McGraw) and his partner Lt. Phillips, exchange gun fire with the hoods. Phillips catches a bullet and dies. Bad move nimrods. You may have temporarily escaped, but now you got a pissed-off block of granite named Charles McGraw on your case...and I don’t like your odds.

In Charles McGraw and William Talman the film is lucky enough to have two guys whose faces alone can tell half the story. McGraw is the very model of the hard-boiled cop with his lantern jaw and voice like gargled razor blades. Talman is his equal as a villain, with his bug eyes adding to his nasty allure. He has a couple of moments of standout viciousness. Adele Jergens plays a stripper/whore whose affections bounce between two members of the gang depending on who can throw more money at her.

There are some nice location shots of L.A. as well as the typical noir style high contrast night scenes (particularly in a confrontation between the cops and the gang at their pier hideout). In an odd bit of trivia, the ending to Armored Car Robbery has a very definite resemblance to Kubrick’s The Killing.

Solid, sometimes very good, if straightforward, crime picture not quite in the league of another Fleischer-McGraw picture, The Narrow Margin, but worth a viewing.

out of 4

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Sin City (2005)

Very stylized and extremely violent, I can't help having alot of admiration for this modern day film noir. This movie is told in four separate stories that are somehow connected if only briefly. My favourite story is Marv's the killer with a big heart who sets out to avenge the death of a young prostitute by the name of Goldie, the only girl that would sleep with him. The telling of his story is not without it's humour, black humour mind you and Mickey Rourke gives an outstanding performance and must take credit for bringing this character to life. Marv's story was by far the most interesting of the four tales. The other one, I didn't mind was Dwight's story played by Clive Owen.

Despite all the blood and guts, this is a very pretty movie to watch. The splashes of colour were used quite effectively. Kudos to the art director.
Alot of my friends hated this movie and find my admiration of it alittle hard to take. Each to their own, I always say.


The Red Pony (1949)

I'm a sucker for horse stories and this one is no exception. Based on a book by John Steinbeck the story is about a young boy on a farm who is given a pony to look after. This is a well-acted family drama with good performances from Myrna Loy and Robert Mitchum who plays the farm hand. This quiet role is a change of pace for Mitchum who was quite good in this part. He had good chemistry with the young boy in the movie. Of note, Beau Bridges has a small role in this film playing a young school friend.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

I've finally caught up with this year's thread, so I'm pulling this quote from waaaaaay back on page 2 (from Dave - aka 42nd Street Freak - regarding This Is England):


I haven't listened to Meadows' commentary (so perhaps he expands on his views there), but I didn't get those black and white feelings from the film at all Dave.

Without getting into any of the politics behind immigration, I think that scene shows how the National Front could deliver what might appear to be a non-racist political message and appeal to a wider set of people. But it's not about what he says - it's about what they do. The very next scene (if memory serves) shows the 3 young Muslim boys getting their soccer ball stolen and being threatened by these new Front members.

That's followed shortly by the group of five walking into the store owned by the Pakistani man. They deface the walls outside with racial slurs, they steal from him and threaten him with the machete. But isn't he actually working and trying to add something to the country? Isn't he being a productive member of society? Isn't this counter to what was said in the National Front member's speech? But once young Shaun is pulled in by the message and that community feeling, the real agenda comes out.

I felt Meadows' intent was to show how the Front appealed to young and disenfranchised people with a message that was polished on top, but had a nasty agenda underneath. I thought the scene with that National Front member provided a good way of getting that point across as a general statement - the political message doesn't always match with the actions committed in its name.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

While I'm here, a few comments on other films I've seen this month:

12:08 East Of Bucharest - Through a TV broadcast from a small local station, a village works through what their role really was in the Romanian uprising that led to Ceausescu's fleeing the country. Though slow at the beginning, it really works during the actual TV broadcast (which makes up the majority of the film). It's very funny at times as well putting an interesting spin on how these smaller towns and cities outside the capital felt at the time.

The Trials Of Darryl Hunt - Straightforward documentary on the case of Darryl Hunt - a young black man falsely accused of murder and imprisoned for 20 years. The filmmakers joined the story about 10 years into it, so they cover the initial decade via interviews and old TV reports. But the story is so engaging and filled with moments of "Are you kidding me?!" that the formal aspects of the film don't really matter. It's a helluva thing that this can happen to someone...

Tekkonkinkreet - Along with Paprika, this is one of the more eye-popping visual treats I've had in a while. I preferred Paprika's story overall (and admittedly got a bit lost in some of this film's plot), but they were both very entertaining and quite staggering when you look at the worlds these filmmakers created.

Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film For Theaters - I've never seen the TV show and only vaguely knew about the characters (talking fast food, etc.). Many, many times while I viewed this I thought "What the hell am I watching?" as it just bounced around all over the place (in tone, humour, animation technique, etc.). But it started to work on me...If I didn't laugh so much at some jokes or situations, it didn't take long for something else to happen that would win me back. And the first 3 minutes (a parody of those "Let's all go to the lobby..." cartoons) are very, very funny.

Waitress - I liked a lot of this film...I really did. But there was something lacking...I liked how each of the characters were looking for different outlets for expressing their love or just simply finding the feeling of being loved. Keri Russell is very good in her role and I always like Nathan Fillion. But something is lost in the execution: 1) the music choices just don't work sometimes, 2) the suitor of Adrienne Shelley's character (played by Eddie Jemison) was far too creepy and disturbing, 3) Russell's smile that stays on her face through a few transition scenes (during a revelation for her) is way too broad and almost clownish and I felt cut down what could have been a strong emotional scene, etc. Andy Griffith was really good though.

Carmen - From Carlos Saura's Flamenco Trilogy...I think Blood Wedding is my favourite of the three, but this was terrific as well. The off the stage story parallels the on stage story (during rehearsals) and the dancing and music is just fantastic. I must admit that I was occasionally sorry to get to the off stage story and just wanted them to dance and sing more.

The Siberian Mammoth - A documentary on the making of I Am Cuba - the Russian/Cuban collaboration of the early 60s designed as a piece of propaganda for the revolution. The most interesting aspect of the film is hearing how it was not well received in Cuba OR Russia - the Cubans felt that the film did not capture the emotions of their country very well (people acting in slow deliberate ways, etc.) and the Russians worried that some of the scenes showed too much of the American "opulence". The film made a comeback of sorts in the 90s when Coppola and Scorsese "discovered" it and attached their names to it to get a re-release. Many of the people involved in the making of the film had no idea this happened and were amazed to be handed copies of the DVD with stellar critical quotes adorning the cover.

Blonde Crazy - As charming, beautiful and fun as Joan Blondell was, James Cagney was annoying, irritating and downright painful to watch. His little catch phrase of "HuuuuunnAY!" made me want to reach through the screen and, oh I don't know, rub his face in a grapefruit...Otherwise, the plot was OK, but had some goofy spots. Joan just about makes up for all of it though - she really had a presence about her.

Planet Terror / Death Proof - Unlike most people, I liked both of the Grindhouse films pretty much equally (but for different reasons). I've only seen them on DVD, so I don't know what the shorter theatrical films were like. Both of them though could really have been served better by cutting them down...I can't help but think that if the two directors delivered their films at around the 65 minute marks, then Grindhouse (along with the trailers - the one for "Machete" was very funny) would've been a bigger success. Tarantino in particular goes on waaaay too long in those dialog scenes between the girls (I suppose the DVD version may make them even longer). I know this is closer to the tone and form of many real Grindhouse films, but he just didn't give those girls anything interesting or funny to say. It actually made them much more unlikeable. But there's some great stuff too - the lap dance, Kurt Russell and the whole sequence with Zoe Bell on the hood of the car.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

"Death Proof" has given people totally the wrong idea about Grindhouse films. They are not all talk until the last 10 minutes. No Grindhouse film could survive if it was. It's just not true.
maybe if it was a crap Grindhouse film yes...otherwise the beautifully entertaining madness is almost constant in one form or another.

And when they are dialogue heavy they are still full of bizarre, crazy, utterly mad background events and general styling.
There's nothing remotely normal, dull or would get people thinking "when will the action start" about an Andy Milligan film example, despite them being not that exploitative a lot of the time.
It's everything else around the (still essential) exploitation that the Grindhouse junkie finds brilliant.

In fact it sounds like Tarantino could have really got a lot of lessons in how to deliver dialogue sequences in a Grindhouse flick from watching more Milligan.
As (just like prime era John Waters) some of his dialogue is more entertaining and utterly GLORIOUS than any visual exploitation scene.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

I still think the two halves in DEATH PROOF are the film playing backwards. I'm convinced the second half of DP happens first while the first half happens second.

Dave, we disagreed in last years thread but we'll do it again here in regards to GRINDHOUSE. I don't consider Argento, Bava, Franco, Rollen or any of those guys "grindhouse". I look at grindhouse as those films that played a handful a theaters back in the day and the type of film that gets released by Something Weird Video. I've probably seen over 100 of those films and for the most part they are all talk. There's very little in the ways of action as most of the film is either nudity or talk. I don't think DEATH PROOF is a "grindhouse" film but I've never agreed that the talk keeps it from being one.

I've only seen a handful of Milligan films but thought they were horrid and very hard to get through. I didn't find anything fun in them.

I think a lot of the backlash against this film is because there are women in the leads. I think a lot of guys just couldn't connect with this characters simply because they're women. I'm not putting you in this camp of course but a lot of the reviews I've read didn't like the dialogue yet it was just like any other Tarantino film. Some said these women wouldn't know certain movies that they quote. Perhaps but I doubt Eric Stoltz in PULP FICTION knew his cocaine was named after Mario Bava. I read one review that said "I don't want to hear chicks talking about finding guys to fuck". Okay, but I bet if it were guys sitting around talking about getting laid then they would have been fine with it.

I haven't gotten around to the extended version yet but I'm guessing there's a lot more dialogue in it.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

It! The Terror From Beyond Space (1958)

Extremely cheesy and campy but this film is still fun to watch. I imagine Ridley Scott took a look at this film before starting Alien because it has some similar elements. The special effects are laughingly bad. The man in a monster suit looks 'oh so realistic' and the ship flying is space..... Despite all that, I enjoyed this movie.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Well, I didn't say ALL of them...

As you said though, there are indeed some that have long sequences of talking, exposition or just random dialogue. However, there's usually either a purpose for it all or something else going on. Otherwise, it's just a bad Grindhouse film (and there were plenty of those).

I can't help but think that Tarantino was somewhat inspired by the countless 'bad' Grindhouse films...But he still managed to make it entertaining with set pieces.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Well that's good then as neither do I.
In fact I don't know anyone that would think any of those directors comes close, except for perhaps one or two of the more deranged and exploitative Franco flciks that made their merry way across the pond.


Those are the kind I was talking about.


Nor do I. In fact stated that some of the dialogue is as good, as mad, and as glorious as anything visual that happens.

I simply stated they are not all talk and nothing else until the last 10 minutes...And unless its a bad bad film, thay're not at all like that. You must have just seen a really bad choice of films or simply don't much care for them.
Mad events, insanity, visual mindfucks, blood, violence, sex, sexual violence, gore, depravity are scattered at various intervals throughout any Grindhouse film worth its salt.


But Milligan movies, although more (like John Waters) concerned with characters/character interaction and dialogue than most Grindhouse fare, are some of the finest examples OF the Grindhouse cinema aesthetic.
He is Grindhouse's patron Saint of sickness.

If the distributors had not been so quick with the rating happy scissors they would also have added a much larger helping of bloodshed than they currently have to their utterly perfect Grindhouse dialogue sections as well.
And even then something visual and eventful (i don't like to use the word 'action' really as that smacks of stunts and gun fights) happens every 15 minutes or so. Be it a warped sex scene, a bloody murder or a total psychotic wig-out.

But (to see what i mean about dialogue being so damn good when done right, and I might add there is no place for Tarantino pop culture hipness in a Grindhouse film despite how much I like Qt and his dialogue in his other films) with Milligan at least half the wonderment of his Grindhouse goodies is the talk and the chance to revel in the aural madness, depravity, hate and derangement that comes from the mouths of his characters.

To love the talk in a Milligan flick is to embrace the sweat stinking, cum crinkly, drug coated straight-jacket of Grindhouse cinema at it's roughest and most scratchy and to be thankful of the clammy residue it leaves behind on you.

If you won't have it that talk does not stop a film being a Grindhouse film (I agree, again it was just about its placement)... then how can you not love the talk that Milligan has in his films?
If John Waters is the King of gloriously mad, sad, tragic and depraved dialogue ...Milligan is at least the Prince of it.

This is what Grindhouse cinema is all about when it's not delivering tits 'n' blood;

From "Seeds of Sin"

A conversation between Margaret and Jonathan goes thus:

Another gem is when we learn that their Mother is crippled due to a mysterious fall down the stairs:

Romantic words spill forth during an incest sex scene;

And we have to love how yet again Milligan has his Mother character be so sweet and loving to her kids when they come for dinner (not);


That's just a little sample from just one film! It's utterly marvelous. Grindhouse dialogue is about madness, hate and warped relationships...It's nothing to do with the kind of dailogue Tarantino writes.

And there's nothing boring, dull or dragging about it either, which (along with placement) seems to be where (in so many ways) Tarantino went wrong in what he was trying to do.

If Tarantino had had pearls of wisdom like this, from Milligans take on Sweeney Todd "Bloodthirsty Butchers", things would have been better I'm sure.
Sweeney's take on womankind;

And there IS a lot of other stuff going on in-between the talk in Grindhouse flicks.
I've got at least 45 'Something Weird Video/'SWV' type films reviewed on my site in the mixed 'Grindhouse/Exploitation' section and I would say basically none of them are just talk and nothing else until the end. It's a simple, there in black and white, fact. As what happens is mentioned, discussed and marveled at in the reviews.

A Grindhouse film filled with nothing but talk and worse dull talk at that, is just a bad film.
Perhaps at most a bad Grindhouse film. It's not an example of what makes a Grindhouse film though.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

She was indeed the best thing about the movie.

The Country Girl

This is largely a drama about an alcoholic actor making a comeback (not the only such film that year), and it's pretty good at doing that...until...about 2/3 of the way through, it becomes a soap opera with unmotivated, unbelievable and laughably bad character turnarounds/interactions, etc. The uniformly weak songs throughout don't help matters any.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Really? I found the dialogue to be much worse than other Tarantino films. Maybe I'm just tired of his style, but I thought there was much more cleverness in Reservoir Dogs, Pulp and Jackie Brown. Especially when quoting pop culture - it's incorporated in their speech and flows out. In Death Proof, it gets explicitly stated (I'm not quoting directly here obviously) - "I want a white Charger like Vanishing Point." "What's Vanishing Point?" "Only the best movie of the 70s".

I can only speak for myself, but I thought the former was very laboured and dull. And I'd find the latter even less interesting. Also, when that's ALL you have your characters talk about, it doesn't serve them very well (yeah, I know it's supposed to be a Grindhouse film, but again, it doesn't have to be bad...).

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Bob, I'm kinda curious if a lot of people are getting tired of Tarantino and his dialogue. I guess we'll have to wait for the next film to see but I had a good time in DP due to the dialogue and off the wall action. I should probably watch the extended version before even commenting but I thought another reason for the backlash was the fact that the film played second. PLANET TERROR was pretty much an all out war with non-stop action, gore and violence and then DP came and pretty much put a nail in the action. After your blood pumping for 90-minutes, DP hits the wall and slows everything down. When you do get the first wreck scene you have to start all over again with the dialogue.

BTW, any feelings on the two parts of the movie being shown in reverse order? There was a big debate about this when the film was originally released so I'm always interested in other opinions on it. As I said above, I think the second half of the movie is actually the start of the story and then the first part is the end.


I'll read some of your reviews next week and comment on the ones that I've seen. Have you seen AROUSED or the FLESH trilogy? I hated the FLESH trilogy but really enjoyed AROUSED as it was a clear influence on William Lustig's MANIAC, which is a favorite of mine.

I'm certainly envious of you if you can get some enjoyment out of these films but for me they are just deadly dull. For the most part they always seem like ten minutes worth of story stretched out to eighty-minutes with those extra 70-minutes being nothing more than go-go dancing or stripping. I certainly don't mind nudity but when that's all there is things get boring. In fact, I'd say a lot of porn has more stories going for them.

I really, really wish I could enjoy some of these more than I do but I find a lot of the sexploitation to just be dated and dull. I know most hate Franco but I think when he's on he's really on and can deliver the sex and nudity with the story. He's certainly made some God-awful films and with these films, ala the One Shot years, it seems these are just like the SW titles in that they have ten minutes worth of story and the rest of the running time is nothing but stripping or nudity. I'm not sure if you're a fan of Franco or have even seen anything by him but if you enjoy those SW titles you may enjoy Franco's stuff from the last ten years.