***Official 1st Annual HTF January Winter Crime Challenge*** - Page 2

SteveGon · 01-08-2008, 09:53 AM

The Thin Man (1934)

Viewed 1/7/2008

Revisited this classic mystery/comedy.

out of

Out of the Past (1947)

Viewed 1/7/2008

Revisited this classic noir. Gets better every time I see it.

out of

The Marquise of O (1976)

Viewed 1/7/2008 (first viewing)

Eric Rohmer's period drama set during the Franco-Prussian war. The film chronicles the plight of an Italian noblewoman who is saved from a gang of rapists by a Russian Count. Months later she finds herself inexplicably pregnant and is disowned by her family. But what does the Count know of her condition and why does he insist on marrying her? This may seem like an odd choice for inclusion, and perhaps I am shoehorning it in, but I don't think so. At the heart of the story is a vile crime and stemming from that, a mystery. But more importantly we get to observe how a certain class mindset reacts when a certain type of crime is perpetrated upon it. An interesting film.

out of

John Bryant · 01-10-2008, 08:35 PM

Would you guys say Shooter and/or Timecop would qualify for this, or no?

Russell G · 01-10-2008, 08:47 PM

I don't know Shooter, but TIME COP would qualify as "Future Crime", unless it's too much of an action film.

I was thinking of watching "hard Boiled" and "Face Off".

I am watching the BAsil Rathbone "Sherlock Holmes" series. They fit as detective stories right?

PatW · 01-11-2008, 01:31 AM

G-Men (1935)

Entertaining gangster movie with James Cagney on the right side of the law this time.

Brick Davis (Cagney) has recently opened up a law practice which is unsuccessful. A college buddy of his, tries to recuit him for the FBI.
When his buddy is murdered by local gangster Danny Leggett, Davis decides to join the bureau. A this time there were alot of restrictions including not being able to carry firearms, but an increase in crime prompts the legislation to pass new laws that will make them better able to carry out their job of ridding the states of crime.

Well-done movie with an excellent performance from Cagney. Having never been exposed to much Cagney film material until recently, he is fast becoming one of my favourites. Granted I've seen very few movies so far of his, but I can say that I haven't seen a bad performance yet. Margaret Lindsay was also great as his boss's sister, Kay McCord. She did quite well with the small amount of screen time. The only thing I thought was tacky was the introduction at the beginning of the movie. It looked like they were showing this film to a class of FBI students. Pretty lame.
I enjoyed this movie a great deal.

SteveGon · 01-11-2008, 09:48 AM

3:10 to Yuma (2007)

Viewed 1/10/2008 (first viewing)

The real crime here is that they paid someone to write that shit ending.

out of

Thief (1981)

Viewed 1/10/2008 (first viewing)

Solid crime drama from Michael Mann has professional thief James Caan trying to survive opportunistic crime bosses and dirty cops, all of whom want a piece of his action.

out of

TravisR · 01-11-2008, 10:26 AM

I'm finally getting started.

01/08/08

I watched the director's cut of Zodiac for the first time. For my money, it's the best movie of 2007 and the five minutes added into the director's cut actually enhances the movie (I especially love the music and news montage playing against the black screen to show time passsing) rather than making the movie drag. There's excellent special features and commentaries.

My list
(new titles in bold)

01. Zodiac (Director's Cut)

Russell G · 01-11-2008, 05:26 PM

Got a couple more in last night. I'm watching the Rathbone Sherlock Holmes films.

05 - 01/10 - THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES 4/5
The first of the Basil Rathbone Holmes films, and boy oh boy, was it a good one. Basil was born to play this part, and Nigel Bruce is just as good as the naive as the bumbling Watson. The rest of the cast is rounded with ace character actors. I have never read the Sherlock Holmes books, so the story was new to me. Damn fine mystery shot with plenty of atmosphere. Can't wait to watch some more.

06 - 1/10 - THE ADVENTURES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES 3.5/5
Another great entry in the series. Moriarty makes an appearance, the style and atmosphere are still there... great stuff.

Tally here:
http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htf/3296151-post11.html

Tim Tucker · 01-11-2008, 05:59 PM

Glad to see the participation in this challenge so far.

And now, finally, my first two reviews. First viewing in red.

1. The Violent Years (1956) (MST3K version). Yes, this is the infamous Ed Wood scripted (but William Morgan directed) juvenile delinquency film. Former Playboy Playmate Jean Moorhead stars as Paula Parkins, the neglected daughter of a newspaper publisher and a socialite. She becomes the leader of a tight-sweatered girl gang that has committed a series of stick-up jobs. The most notorious moment comes early in the film, when the girls comes across a couple making out. After robbing the couple, the gang ties up the girl, and take the guy out into the woods and gang rapes him, which must be a first in film history. (You have to love the MST3K response to this scene – “Dr. Forrester has sent us a truly great movie!”) The gang’s downfall begins when their fence hires them to vandalize the local high school (for some implied Communist agents), leading to a high school shootout and an auto accident. Paula, the sole survivor (and now pregnant), is captured, given a life sentence and dies in childbirth (her cynical last words: “So what?”). The movie ends with a long winded judge giving a couple of moralistic lectures advocating religion and “the old-fashioned woodshed” as the cures for juvenile delinquency. The film is competently but indifferently directed and the acting crosses the line between hard-boiled and wooden. As you can see that it’s perfect ’Bot fodder, and it’s one of my all time favorite MST3K episodes. Its release on DVD can’t happen soon enough.

2. Behind That Curtain (1929). When is a Charlie Chan film not a Charlie Chan film? When the script writer inverts the story, turning it from a murder mystery into a romantic melodrama, and relegates Charlie Chan to a cameo role in his own story. (In fact, Chan appears in one scene 75 minutes into a 90 minute film.) That’s not to say that this is a bad film. Once you realize what it is, and make allowances for the movie being from the “dawn of sound,” it is still enjoyable, if slow and talky.

The story deals with the murder of extortioner Hilary Galt, which is filmed very atmospherically. The film then focuses on the love triangle among Eve Mannering, her ne’er-do-well husband Eric Durand, and her true love, the explorer Col. John Beetham, with the investigation by Sir Frederick Bruce taking a backseat. The story spans the globe, moving from London to India, then Persia and finally ending in San Francisco. The most effective scene in the film occurs while in India, when Eve Durand returned to her bedroom from the post office to discover evidence that her husband, Eric, is sleeping with their maid, Nuna, and then opens a letter and learns that Eric is being blackmailed because of the murder. What makes it effective is its ingenious use of sound. It is played wordlessly, but accompanied by the sinuous, repetitive singing of Nuna, who is in the next room fanning Eric.

As a mystery, Behind That Curtain is not that mysterious; it is obvious from the beginning who the murderer is. However if you have a taste for exotic romance in the vein of The Garden of Allah, you will find this worthwhile viewing. 20th Century Fox should be lauded for releasing such an obscurity.

Also, keep an eye out for Boris Karloff in a minor role as Beetham’s Indian servant.

My tally.

SteveGon · 01-12-2008, 09:44 AM

Mario's Story (2006)

Viewed 1/11/2008 (first viewing)

Compelling documentary on Mario Rocha, a young Latino who was sentenced to life in prison for a crime he more than likely had nothing to do with. Mario's family and lawyers struggle year after year to convince the courts that his case was mishandled and that his conviction should be overturned. A sobering study of "the system," judicial egos and hope against all odds.

out of

Cause for Alarm (1951)

Viewed 1/11/2008 (first viewing)

Okay thriller stars Loretta Young as a housewife whose husband has turned paranoid and delusional during a debilitating illness. She finds herself in a jam when he dies after having sent a letter to the D.A. stating that she's trying to kill him!

out of

Sonatine (1993)

Viewed 1/11/2008

Revisited Takeshi Kitano's minimalist yakuza film. Kitano himself stars as a weary crime boss assigned to negotiate a treaty between rival Okinawa gangs. Unfortunately he finds himself under attack and must go into hiding. Can he find out who is behind the attacks before he and his men are decimated?

out of