Re: Track the Films You Watch (2009)
East Side, West Side 
US 1949 108m bw
MGM (Voldemar Voltinguin)
A high society couple's marriage falls apart through their involvement with other parties.
A potentially soapy plot is turned into irresistible entertainment by MGM's typically glossy production values, generally smart dialogue and a splendid cast in good form.
w Isobel Lennart
novel Marcia Davenport
d Mervyn LeRoy
ph Charles Rosher m Miklos Rozsa
Barbara Stanwyck, James Mason, Van Heflin, Ava Gardner, Cyd Charisse,
Gale Sondergaard, Nancy Davis (Reagan), William Conrad, Beverly Michaels
Pandora and the Flying Dutchman
GB 1950 123m Technicolor
Romulus (Albert Lewin)
Pandora, like her counterpart in Greek mythology, has everything at her disposal: much sought-after but unfulfilled, she is intrigued by the legend of the Flying Dutchman - condemned to roam the seas until he is redeemed by a lover's sacrifice - and who may be the brooding captain of a ship that appears mysteriously in port with no other crew.
Pretentious romantic drama with fantasy trimmings, very typical of its maker (especially his Omar Khayyam fixation). Unfortunately, the central relationship does not convince because the actors are clearly overwhelmed by it all; still, the detail is often mesmerizing and the film very good to look at (though, admittedly, not a patch on the similar
Portrait of Jennie).
wd Albert Lewin ph Jack Cardiff m Alan Rawsthorne
pd John Bryan
Ava Gardner (basically a dry run for her role in
The Barefoot Contessa), James Mason, Harold Warrender, Nigel Patrick, Mario Cabre`, Sheila Sim, John Laurie, Marius Goring, Pamela Kellino (Mason)
Taken 
France/US 2008 91m color Panavision
TCF/Europacorp/M6/Grive/Canal Plus/TPS Star/All Pictures Media/Papillon/Wintergreen (Luc Besson)
A retired American secret service man rushes to Paris in pursuit of Albanian human traffickers who have abducted his teenage daughter.
Breathless action thriller with hilariously over-the-top violence and a surprisingly convincing star, marred by gaps in the narrative and intermittent mawkishness.
w Luc Besson, Robert Mark Kamen
d Pierre Morel
ph Michel Abramowicz
m Nathaniel Mechaly
Liam Neeson, Maggie Grace, Famke Janssen, Olivier Rabourdin, Gerard Watkins, Holly Valance
Righteous Kill
US 2008 101m color
Overture/Millennium/Emmett-Furla/Grosvenor Park Media/Righteous/In Venture Entertainment/Nu Image/Papillon (Jon Avnet, Rob Cowan, Randall Emmett, Lati Grobman, Avi Lerner, Alexandra Milchan, Marsha Oglesby, Daniel M. Rosenberg)
A cop is behind the killing of criminals who have escaped justice.
The stars' second official teaming, in which they appear as partners instead of rivals, has been universally panned for not being up to the standard of
Heat. Still, it is hardly a disaster: interesting (if familiar) plot, exemplary (rather than outstanding) performances and a clever (albeit predictable) twist ending.
w Russell Gewirtz
d Jon Avnet
ph Denis Lenoir
m Edward Shearmur
Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Carla Gugino, Curtis Jackson (50 Cent), John Leguizamo, Donnie Wahlberg, Brian Dennehy, Melissa Leo
Rome Against Rome
Italy 1964 85m color Totalscope
AIP/Galatea
original title:
Roma Contro Roma
aka:
War of the Zombies;
Night Star: Goddess of Electra
An evil sorcerer revives dead Romans to fight the current Emperor's legionnaires.
Commendable for its atypical (though ultimately underwhelming) fantasy elements, this regrettably proves to be a very minor
peplum sparked by a florid villain and the occasional atmosphere but undone by a hazy plot, thoroughly routine handling and less-than-special effects.
w Piero Pierotti, Marcello Sartarelli, Ferruccio De Martino, Massimo De Rita
d Giuseppe Vari
ph Gabor Pogany
m Roberto Nicolosi
John Drew Barrymore, Ettore Manni, Susy Anderson, Evelyn Stewart, Philippe Hersent, Andrea Checchi
+ The low rating for this film had a lot to do with one of the messiest soundtracks I have ever heard: the audio level kept fluctuating, the score dropping in and out, the dialogue not only alternating between Italian and English but sometimes running out of order; small wonder, then, that lip-synch issues were a constant during the presentation.
The Upturned Glass
GB 1947 86m bw
GFD/Triton (Sydney Box, James Mason)
A brain surgeon plots an elaborate revenge when the married woman he is involved with is killed by a jealous relative.
A solid example of British post-war gloominess with an unusual and interesting narrative structure but a rather ambiguous moral viewpoint.
w Pamela Kellino, John Monaghan
d Lawrence Huntington
ph Reg Wyer
m Bernard Stevens
James Mason, Pamela Kellino, Rosamund John, Ann Stephens, Brefni O'Rorke, Henry Oscar, Maurice Denham (bit part)
Tropic Thunder
US 2008 106m color Panavision
Dreamworks/Red Hour/Goldcrest/IFSS/Road Rebel (Stuart Cornfield, Eric McLeod, Ben Stiller, Brian Taylor)
Egomaniacal movie stars shooting an expensive war picture on location are harassed as much by their exacting producers as by a band of Vietnamese dope smugglers whose operation they inadvertently interrupt.
This satire about the film-making process has been lauded for its stars' willingness to hide their features behind unappealing make-up; however, the resulting performances are decidedly overrated. The rest is patchy, with amusing and inspired passages too often countered by tastelessness and self-indulgence (which generates embarrassment more than anything else).
w Ben Stiller, Justin Theroux, Etan Cohen
d Ben Stiller
ph John Toll
m Theodore Shapiro
Ben Stiller, Robert Downey Jr., Jack Black, Tom Cruise, Matthew McConaughey, Nick Nolte, Steve Coogan
AAN: Robert Downey Jr.
GGN: Robert Downey Jr.; Tom Cruise
+ Several actors and personalities appear in uncredited cameos as themselves including Tyra Banks, Tobey Maguire and Jon Voight.
++ The film is also available in an "Unrated" version running 121 minutes.
+++
Rain of Madness is a half-hour "mockumentary" about the making of this film.
Barbarian Queen BOMB
US 1985 71m Metrocolor
Concorde/Ares/Rodeo (Frank Isaac, Alex Sessa)
The few women survivors of a massacred barbarian tribe contrive to exact bloody retribution upon their enemy.
Cut-rate but sexed-up female variant on
Conan the Barbarian, one whose sheer incompetence not only elevates the original but even makes the numerous (and otherwise resistible) Italian rip-offs appear in a comparatively good light.
w Howard R. Cohen
d Hector Olivera
ph Rudy Donovan
m Chris Young, James Horner
Lana Clarkson, Frank Zagarino, Katt Shea, Dawn Dunlap
+ A sequel followed in 1989.
The Man Between
GB 1953 101m bw
London (Carol Reed)
Having lived comfortably off the trading of political refugees, an East Berlin operator develops a conscience after getting involved with the idealistic sister-in-law of his former wife in the Western sector.
A follow-up of sorts to the director's previous successes
Odd Man Out and
The Third Man which, while certainly comparable in technique, rather lacks narrative grip and is a bit too glum for its own good despite ideal casting. In retrospect, the film can be seen to have set the template for innumerable dour Cold War thrillers made throughout the 1960s.
w Harry Kurnitz
d Carol Reed ph Desmond Dickinson m John Addison
James Mason, Claire Bloom, Hildergarde Neff, Geoffrey Toone, Ernst Schroeder, Aribert Waechser, Karl John
+ The Region 2 DVD from Optimum wrongly issued the non-widescreen film in a matted version.
Age of Consent
GB/Australia 1969 106m Eastmancolor
Columbia/Nautilus (Michael Powell, James Mason)
A famous painter retreats to a remote island along the Australian coast seeking fresh inspiration, which he finds in the voluptuous form of a spirited waif who dreams of getting away.
Agreeably eccentric comedy-drama, somewhere between mood piece and character study; too slight and low-key for popular success despite the ample nudity involved (mainly for plot purposes) but the incidental detail, notably splendid location work, generally provides sufficient compensation.
w Peter Yeldham
novel Norman Lindsay
d Michael Powell
ph Hannes Staudinger
m Peter Sculthorpe
James Mason, Helen Mirren, Jack MacGowran, Neva Carr-Glynn, Andonia Katsaros, Frank Thring, Clarissa Kaye
+ Originally released at 103 minutes with an entirely different score (composed by Stanley Myers); the above rating applies to the newly restored "Director's Cut" available on DVD.
Vicky Cristina Barcelona
US/Spain 2008 97m color
Weinstein/Mediapro/Gravier/Antena 3 (Letty Aronson, Helen Robin, Stephen Tenenbaum, Gareth Wiley)
Despite their differing standards, two American girl tourists in Barcelona are both involved with a rugged painter; then, the volatile ex-wife he still reveres appears on the scene...
The writer-director's over-familiar neuroses and unlikely central concept are considerably atoned for by the freshness of the setting and an appealing triumvirate of leading ladies.
wd Woody Allen
ph Javier Aguirresarobe
Rebecca Hall, Scarlett Johansson, Javier Bardem,
Penelope Cruz, Chris Messina, Patricia Clarkson
AA/GGA: Penelope Cruz
GGAN: Rebecca Hall; Javier Bardem
