Track the Films You Watch (2008) - Page 13

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)

I hard for me to express in words how I feel about this movie. It's nothing less than a masterpiece. I can't believe that I've avoided seeing it for all these years.

The movie tells the story of three returning WW2 vets and their troubles adjusting to life after the war. The three men come from different socio-economic backgrounds. Fredrich March plays the banker with a wife and two grown children. Dana Andrews is the drug store worker and soda jerk who is married to an unfaithful party girl. Harold Russell is the sailor who lost his hands during the war and has a hard time dealing with the people that are close to him, especially is loving girlfriend.

All the acting is superb especially Theresa Wright, Cathy O'Donnell and Harold Russell. Harold Russell was a disabled vet in real life and he won an academy award for his efforts. This movie is very manipulative but I loved every single sentimental minute of it. This is another in a long list of masterpieces from William Wyler. Great movie.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

FairyTale: A True Story (1997)

This movie is apparently based on a true story about two young girls in England who claim to have seen fairies and have managed to take photographes of some of these fairies. The photos are sent to Edward Gardner a well known spiritualist who involves Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. They become a media sensation and the toast of London.

Years later the girls admitted that the photos were a hoax. That in no way takes away from the charm of the movie. This is a sweet little movie, suitable for everyone except perhaps cynics who will fail to get the true message of the movie.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Yeah, and really necessary, right? We've already gotten the first film for the 1950s, and then two modernized updates -- one for the 1970s, and another in the 1990s.... this remake thing is just out of control. FOUR versions of the same basic story? Not for me.


Mike, if you hadn't provided a star rating and I'd just read this review, I would never have thought you'd give in THREE stars! It sounds like you were mostly unimpressed with it. I didn't see CLOVERFIELD as being a traditional film which necessarily requires a good story, screenplay or even good dialogue -- it's basically a "reality" movie that puts you right into the heart of the action.


I'm afraid there's a lot of contradiction here I'm not understanding.
Also, if you sort of liked the ending (though you also say it's frustrating) the finish really involves the "love" angle too -- which you thought was downright stupid. So maybe you can help me understand.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Color my cynical then. Yet another example of movie producers dumbing down (otherwise true and fascinating) material for mass consumption. "Looky there! Them fairies wuz real! Toldja them smartypants wuz wrong! Man, them skeptics and scientists sure are dumbasses!" Sorry, but I really find this prevailing attitude offensive.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

"Missionary Man" -


Dolph Lundgren joins the 'mini-comeback for old action guys craze' with a wider publicised and distributed DTV flick than normal.
He directs and co-writes this 'modern day western' take on "Pale Rider"/"Shane"/"High Plains Drifter" and "High Noon".

Dolph is a Bible toting, face punching, shotgun blasting stranger who breezes into a Native American reservation town to tell the children how good The Bible is and to ram sharp objects into eyeballs.

It's overly slow to get to the meat of the matter (but never really dull) and as such the final showdown with the late arriving top bag guys is rather rushed (10 minutes taken from the first 2/3 and put into the last third would have done wonders) but the various punch-ups with the dopey henchman are fun enough (and amusingly revel in the old cliches, we'd actually miss if they were not there) and the deadly serious finale showdown is nicely violent with a delightfully brutal, utterly cold-blooded, crowd pleasing pay-off.

The main problem here is that Dolph seems to have decided he wanted to do a Black and White film but compromised by de-saturating the colour SO MUCH that the entire film (even with the LCD TV colour up to 'max' and the DVD player chroma level up full) is almost sepia tone!
Muddy browns,purples pinks and greens are the order of the day with some darker scenes (or scene only back-lit) being almost gray and with little shadow detail.
Light surfaces also come alive with frantically dancing digital static.

The presentation adds an otherworldly grit to the film, but it's so extreme for so long that it does become rather wearing and any average-strength colour that does manage to make an appearance becomes like an ice cold glass of water to the parched viewer as they stagger through this digitally washed out desert.

The Holy angle of the character is only slightly played with, and is never really explained, but there are moments when it becomes cloying (not least of which is when, in a short and utterly superflorous scene, Dolph sits down some young Indian kids and tells them how the Bible is a guide to leading a good life...Yuk!) and the fact it's involving Native Americans smacks rather too much of real missionary work on behalf of Dolph.

It does provide moments of intentional and (surely) unintentional humour though.
Dolph preaching the error of their ways to bad guys just before pounding their heads in is fun and you have to laugh at this 'Bible is your guide through life' attitude when Dolph's character commits various acts of violence even when not directly threatened himself, goes murderously brutal during the finale and shags a busty Indian woman with not a marriage vow in sight!
Did I miss all this stuff being deemed as Godly?

The slight pacing, weird presentation and occasional crass preaching moment aside though "Missionary Man" is actually a lot of fun that constantly entertains with something going on, plays the action/western cliches well, and has a real kick in the balls and satisfying finale.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

I don't think it was really important whether the fairies where real or not. I had no knowledge of this story until after I saw the movie. I had just assumed it was fiction. Most of these kinds of movies that are supposedly based on fact are dramatized for our benefit with very few actually true facts left. I did research on the net about these facts and the true story is fascinating but that still doesn't take away from the movie. The movie is a cute, mostly fictional story with good special effects (the fairies) which is suitable for family viewing.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Rebecca (1940) 1/2

“Last night I dreamt of Manderlay again…”

Director Alfred Hitchcock’s only Best Picture win came with his first American film, Rebecca, based on the novel by Daphne Du Maurier. Beautifully photographed and acted, Rebecca is an intriguing non-supernatural ghost story, as a widower is haunted by the memory of his late wife, but not in the way we first believe.

Joan Fontaine plays a paid companion on vacation with her employer in Monte Carlo when she sees Maxim de Winter (Laurence Olivier) apparently contemplating suicide. There is a fast courtship and the two are married. Maxim takes his new bride to Manderlay, the glorious estate where he lived with his first wife, Rebecca. But any mention of or reference to her causes Maxim to erupt in anger. Already walking on eggshells, the new Mrs. de Winter meets Mrs. Danvers (Judith Anderson), the housekeeper, who we learn had a most peculiar attachment to Rebecca. But the circumstances surrounding Rebecca’s drowning are soon seen in a new light, when a sudden development shines a dark light on the relationship that existed between Maxim and Rebecca.

Rebecca is for all intents and purposes a ghost story, albeit one without any physical apparition. Rebecca haunts everyone – her husband, her housekeeper and confidant, the new bride, and the man with whom she was having an affair. (As if to emphasize Rebecca’s continued dominance over her husband, Joan Fontaine’s character is not given a name. Maxim calls her “darling” or “you little fool”, while everyone calls her Mrs. de Winter.) They all talk about (at least for the first 90 minutes or so) in the vaguest terms, merely calling her beautiful, as if that was enough. Then a one-two-punch set of plot turns pulls the rug right out from under us, and the film turns even darker.

The film remains fascinating today because of the performances: Joan Fontaine as the mouse who must find her own identity and strength; Laurence Olivier as the tortured Maxim whose miserable marriage masks an even darker secret; George Sanders as the flip and sinister lover of Rebecca; and, most especially, Judith Anderson’s chilling portrayal of the way-too-devoted housekeeper, who, in one terrifying scene, tries to convince Fontaine to commit suicide. All turn in excellent work, guided by a master who had already amassed an impressive body of work, but would make even better films over the next 36 years.

The only quibble this viewer had with the film was the not-entirely-convincing courtship. Maxim is moody, somewhat verbally abusive, and withdrawn. Yet Fontaine’s character falls in love with him within days and agrees to marry him. Perhaps this was because he paid attention to her, took her for drives, and was nice to her. And it is certainly true that courtship was a different ballgame in 1940 than it is today. But the rushed romance feels more like a plot device to set up the events of the film than a genuine “love at first sight” or “he swept me off my feet” type of relationship. Still it’s ultimately a minor point since the film ultimately works very well.

A surprising story, a top notch cast, and solid direction make Rebecca a must-see film.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Well, you always go this route, and I always say I don't consider sequels to be the same thing. I also have said that FRANKENSTEIN, DRACULA, and THE MUMMY have all likewise been done to death. We don't need any more versions of them ever again, either.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

That's fine.


Yadda Yadda Yadda ... I still say a fourth film edition of INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS is not needed. This is my opinion, I have no need for it, and you obviously differ from me on this.

I looked for my SAW IV review and couldn't find it. Could you re-post it here for me?

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

You guess wrong in my case; that is, I pick and choose what I want to see, and why. With your ROCKY and RAMBO references again, these are sequels, not remakes. I'll see a ROCKY 7 or a RAMBO 5, but I'm not interested in seeing someone else do a new remake of ROCKY (1976) or FIRST BLOOD (1982). Sorry, I just don't agree with you that it's the same thing. And even if it was the same principal, it's easier to take when an idea is dull or repetitious when it's just a sequel.


I didn't realize it was in the Horror Thread (I was looking for it in TRACK 2007). Yep, just as I figured from memory -- the main thing I objected to was that the whole thing was an incoherent mess, chiefly.

But this wasn't someone else remaking the original SAW again; it was ajust nother sequel. I don't know what you're hoping to gain in trying to "catch me" on this, as I just don't see it the same as you.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

This is my favourite Hitchcock film from his long list of brilliant films. I think probably she viewed Maxim as a saviour, someone who could take her away from the clutches of her employer Mrs. Van Hopper. I think if I was that woman's companion I would have married the devil himself to get away. Seriously though as you pointed out courtship was different back then. She was young, innocent with no experience in men except her father. Maxim was very handsome, rich and exciting to be with, plus he was a means of escape. I don't think the romance was rushed at all considering the circumstances.


Tarzan's Secret Treasure

A solid entry in my Tarzan movie collection. This time a group of scientist discover gold thanks to Tarzan's young son Boy. What follows is a very familiar formula in all Tarzan movies. Still highly enjoyable.

Maureen O'Sullivan would have only one more Tarzan movie left to do before she left the role. That was a shame because the last six movies in the series are substandard as a result. Both Cheetah and Barry Fitzgerald were the comic relief in the movie. Fitzgerald had many funny scenes as O'Doul the slightly ever intoxicated fool, Tarzan's favourite 'little man'.
It ends with the obligatory capture by natives and rescue by elephants.

Tarzan's New York Adventure (1942)

One of the weaker entries in this series. They could have done so much more with this particular story. The short running time wasn't a help either. There were a few amusing scenes mostly involving cheetah. A bit disappointing but still a worthwhile watch.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Joe said:

I agree, I think Scarlett is one of the great screen villains and one of the more evil women ever seen on screen. I didn't realize until I watched her machinations just why Rhett's final line is the most famous in movie history, because you finally get to hear someone have the first iota of good sense in four hours of story and smack down Scarlett at the same time. It's like giving a man dying of thirst their first sip of water, that "frankly my dear, I don't give a damn" line.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Bad Company (1972)

This is a lesser-known, low-key Western which marked the directorial debut of Robert Benton. It is about a group of young men who travel westward during the Civil War trying to find money and success.

I suppose this film is a Western - the time period and general plot fit the genre. The characters get involved in robbery and other scrapes - the film contains gunplay, horseplay, comedy and tragedy. But somehow it seems too "historical" and "realistic" to belong to the Western genre which is built on mythical archetypes, heroic deeds and epic landscapes. Benton was probably trying to make a "revisionist" Western and it shows. In Bad Company the clothes are tatty, the landscapes ordinary, the gunmen are not that accurate, the leads are not heroic just dim-witted and incompetent, and the characters they encounter are not the normal cliched types.

The tone of the movie is uneven - by turns comedic, dramatic and tragic - and the relationship between the two leads is not always that convincing but its' enjoyable to watch their adventures as they become more criminal in their behavior the further they travel. There is also a theme about the corruption of innocent young men which may have been Benton's sideways nod to Vietnam.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

About a Boy (2002)

I wanted to like this movie but I found most of the characters if not obnoxious, extremely unlikable. We have the strange lonely boy whose desire is to make his mother happy, and hangs out with an adult male. We have a grown-up man who acts like a child. He has no job and is living on the royalties of a famous Christmas song written by his father. This character is very self absorbed and he feels the ideal way to meet women is to pretend he has a child and attend a singles group. A very despicable fellow who is somewhat reformed by the end. Yeah right. We have the crazy hippy mother who is suicidal. Another self-absorbed character. We have a woman and her psycho son who may or may not be interested in our hero. I like Hugh Grant and he does a good job with this character as unsavory as he is. The acting of most of the cast was substandard at best. I found the kid worst of all. I did like this film a bit better the first time around but with repeat viewings, the faults just become more apparent.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Bubba Ho-tep (2002)

Two elderly men one Elvis Presley, the other JFK do battle with a soul-sucking Egyptian mummy in cowboy hat and boots. That is the whole premise of the movie in a nutshell. This has got to be the the most ridiculous, craziest and original movie that I've ever seen. I wanted to give this 5 stars but that would probably be going a bit too far. The movie is a bit slow at times and the final scene with the mummy is a bit of a letdown, but suffice to say this is the most enjoyable movie I've seen in a long time despite the 4 star rating. Seeing this with an open-minded group of friends who can enjoy the absurdity of it all, the movie becomes even more of a hoot.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

02/02/08: THE PHANTOM (Simon Wincer, 1996)

I’ve been on a roll watching adventure/comic-strip films since Christmas, so I decided to check this one out as well: curiously enough, though, I don’t recall it coming out back in the day…unlike, say, THE SHADOW (1994) – which, incidentally, followed in quick succession. For the record, I read Roger Ebert’s surprisingly enthusiastic appraisal of THE PHANTOM (which he called one of the most handsome films ever made!) prior to watching the DVD. While it’s certainly enjoyable and remarkably evocative of Saturday matinee` serials (the character was actually brought to the screen in this form in the 1940s – incidentally, this version is available on DVD through VCI), however, I found this particular film to be too low-key for its own good.

Billy Zane is ideally cast as the athletic Phantom (his alter ego gets surprisingly little exposure), Treat Williams is the suave bordering-on-camp villain (being set in the turbulent late 1930s, he’s depicted as having dictatorial ambitions which he intends to achieve with any means possible), Kristy Swanson provides Zane’s love interest (in both his guises), Catherine Zeta-Jones is one of Williams’ associates who competes with Swanson for The Phantom’s attention and eventually has a change of heart, Patrick McGoohan is Zane’s father and an earlier incarnation of the seemingly undying Phantom (he’s dubbed “The Ghost Who Walks”). Action sequences are well enough handled (particularly when he jumps from an aircraft onto his galloping faithful steed), and modest special effects come into play where the magical skulls (Williams’ ultimate goal) are involved.


02/02/08: THE SHADOW (Russell Mulcahy, 1994)

I found this somewhat meatier than THE PHANTOM (1996), what with the protagonist (Alec Baldwin) – the character originated on radio – having been a warlord in Asia prior to undergoing a spiritual reform and setting himself a new mission in life battling crime in 1930s New York.

I’ve never been impressed much by Baldwin as an actor, but he certainly approaches his role here with gusto (which is closest to Batman in the superhero scale); as was the case with THE PHANTOM, production design, cinematography and wardrobe all have that old-world glamour about them (even if the DVD edition I watched presented the film panned-and-scanned!) – with Jerry Goldsmith’s dynamic score suggesting both the excitement and the danger inherent in such an ambience. John Lone is the villain this time around – interestingly, not only is he the last descendant of Genghis Khan but he’s actually a pupil of Baldwin’s from his ‘evil’ days! Penelope Ann Miller makes for an alluring female lead; again, her character is given added texture by making the girl psychic. Ian McKellen (prior to achieving latter-day stardom with GODS AND MONSTERS [1998]) appears as Miller’s scientist father – whom Lone hypnotizes into building an atom-bomb, with which he intends to bring the world to its feet – and Tim Curry is his lecherous assistant, who is all-too-easily swayed into doing Lone’s nefarious bidding.

As I said, this is a more elaborate venture than THE PHANTOM (suffice to say that Lone’s headquarters is an invisible hotel!) and the end result is no less enjoyable – though, perhaps, just as forgettable…


02/03/08: FANTASIES (John Derek, 1981; shot 1973) BOMB

Bo Derek’s debut film remained unseen for eight years – and that’s how it should stayed! John Derek was a competent actor but, as a director, he’s virtually the Ed Wood of erotic cinema – not that this is especially explicit, considering that Bo (atypically sporting dark hair) was only 16 when the film was made! John also wrote and photographed it; the latter results in some decent footage of the Greek island setting against which the narrative is set – but the plotting is puerile and the dialogue atrocious!

The character played by male lead Peter Hooten has been brought up with Bo’s family: they grew up as brother and sister but, now in their teens, the couple discover they’re attracted to one another (but, as I said, don’t expect any sexual fireworks!). Still, the worst thing about this is the fact that the protagonists each harbor an obsession all through the film which are not only silly in themselves but irritating in their relentlessness – Hooten wants to turn the remote fishing community into a modernized sea-side resort and keeps expecting a cruise-liner to appear into view (which, of course, it does at the finale); Derek’s is even nuttier – she craves possession of a large antique bath-tub!! For the record, the couple are married by the end of the film.

Also involved in the non-events are the female town mayor and a photographer lothario who wants to make a model out of Bo (and who, naturally, incurs the wrath of the jealous Hooten). Occasionally, for no very good reason, we’re even treated to snippets from the screening of old Hollywood classics in an open-air movie house to which the whole town assembles (among the titles shown is THE PUBLIC ENEMY [1931])! At the end of the day, while Bo’s naivete throughout is undeniably charming, it’s not enough to offset the film’s overwhelming dullness and amateurishness.


02/04/08: BOLERO (John Derek, 1984) BOMB

The Dereks’ nadir is this gloriously misconceived, stultifyingly boring (and meaninglessly-titled) erotic adventure – a multiple Razzie award winner and justly considered one of the worst films of all time! Bo’s naivete in sexual matters at least demonstrates a consistency within her husband’s work as a director: in all three films I’ve watched by him (and featuring her) – the others being FANTASIES (1981; see above) and TARZAN, THE APE MAN (1981) – she’s supposedly a virgin!

Bo’s a spoilt rich girl (her first impulse after graduating is to strip naked on the university campus!) who wants to give herself to a man in a big way – infatuated with Rudolph Valentino, she travels to the desert in search of a sheik; when this doesn’t work (under the influence of opium, he goes to sleep on her!), she sets her sights on toreador Andrea Occhipinti. Accompanying her in her sexual odyssey is beefy chauffeur George Kennedy (who looks properly embarrassed throughout) and her best friend, Amy Obregon – the latter yearns for a similar whirlwind romance but keeps any serious attachment at bay…that is, until Derek’s kilt-wearing solicitor comes into her life!

Needless to say, Occhipinti is a veritable stud who has a penchant for making lifelong bedfellows of gypsy-girls; his current lover is, naturally, jealous of Bo but another hopeful – teenager Olivia d’Abo – befriends her and establishes herself in Bo’s sumptuous hacienda. At one point, the jilted sheik turns up in his aeroplane and kidnaps Bo – who promptly leaps out in mid-air to rejoin her true love! Eventually, Occhipinti is gored in the arena – and Bo determines to render him back his manhood, first by practicing bullfighting herself (?!) and then through more obvious means (leading to a stylized finale at the accomplishment of the miracle).

The sex scenes are fairly explicit – including one in which the sheik licks a mixture of milk and honey off of Derek’s throbbing bare chest!; even so, the most unintentionally comical bits involve the characters’ predilection for showing their approval of something by giving it the thumbs up and, especially, Obregon stumbling in one scene – an accident the director perhaps thought of leaving in for the sake of spontaneity…which, therefore, likens him not merely to Ed Wood (see my comments on FANTASIES) but Jess Franco as well!


02/04/08: JOHNNY YUMA (Romolo Guerrieri, 1966)

This is one of several of American actor Mark Damon’s European ventures; he worked in various genres (such as historical epics and horror films) but also did a number of Spaghetti Westerns – including Sergio Corbucci’s light-hearted RINGO AND HIS GOLDEN PISTOL(1966; originally bearing the similar title JOHNNY ORO) and the politicized KILL AND PRAY (1967), where he actually played the villain; even so, I don’t feel he exudes the ruggedness which is part and parcel of this stylized subgenre!

Despite interesting credentials (incidentally, the widescreen German print on the budget DVD I rented omits the opening titles completely…so that the sequence where they ought to be merely shows Johnny Yuma wandering aimlessly on his horse!) – director Guerrieri, co-scriptwriter Fernando Di Leo – this is a minor genre effort, hindered more than anything else by a not very compelling plotline (drifter Damon battles sultry aunt Rosalba Neri and her gunman lover Lawrence Dobkin for an inheritance); unsurprisingly, the latter ends up befriending the hero and is ultimately himself deceived by the femme fatale.

The film is undecided whether it wants to be serious or approach the genre with tongue-in-cheek (hinted at by the presence of a greedy Mexican bum who aids Damon throughout) – though sentimentality over the murder of a child who has harbored the wounded hero (as often happens in this type of film, the latter receives a thorough beating only to re-emerge a stronger person for the finale) suggests something deeper may have been intended. The Mexican pueblo in which the tale unfolds supplies the requisite Western atmosphere, but also proves the ideal setting for the climactic gunfight. The score by Nora Orlando isn’t bad and, yet, the lyrics to the title song seem to have been hastily scribbled down – having little to do with the action proper of the film!


02/06/08: THE PROFESSIONAL (Georges Lautner, 1981)

Despite being one of Jean-Paul Belmondo’s most popular latter-day vehicles, I have to admit outright that I wasn’t really expecting this one (which has been a number of times on late-night Italian TV) to be quite the riveting actioner it turned out to be! The star was almost fifty by this time, with his famous looks already starting to fade (actually, I’d never watched a film of his following the actor’s 1960s and 1970s heyday up till now!) – but, to get an inkling of what THE PROFESSIONAL is like, think of a Charles Bronson vehicle from this same era (with the protagonist proving virtually unstoppable and outwitting his pursuers at every turn)…only this is a relatively more polished product, with an eye less on exploitation than political maneuvering.

The star is a secret agent sent on a mission to assassinate an African tyrant: eventually, the political climate changes and his superiors decide to sell him to the new African regime; escaping after two years of hard labor, he goes back to his homeland – just in time for a state visit from his previous target – letting his agency in on the fact that he intends to accomplish his initial mission regardless! And so starts the manhunt – with Minister, Chief of Police, Military Advisor (who happens to be Belmondo’s ex-tutor), and ruthless Special Squad official all involved. Several women also end up as pawns in the dangerous chess game – including Belmondo’s wife, his mistress (a code-breaker at the agency), and even the African President’s choice hooker!

As I said, the film is action-packed (including a car chase supervised by Remy Julienne and a surprising Western-style showdown between Belmondo and Robert Hossein, the sadistic leader of the Special Squad) yet thoughtful, with numerous ingenious plot twists and a delicious finale (with the various officials, not wanting to lose face after Belmondo’s target has been ‘terminated’, arguing over how they should best tackle the matter – which is then, somewhat inevitably, followed by a downbeat ‘curtain’). Driving the film along is an overpoweringly melancholic main theme which, incidentally, is one of master composer Ennio Morricone’s most popular works; curiously enough, the theatrical trailer for THE PROFESSIONAL features music from another Morricone-scored movie, INVESTIGATION OF A CITIZEN ABOVE SUSPICION (1970)!

Anyhow, a rich vein of tongue-in-cheek humor helps, too (though this is never allowed to take the upper hand): the best line is when Belmondo abducts a member of the Special Squad (with whom he has various run-ins throughout the film) in order to infiltrate the African leader’s heavily-guarded quarters, a country-side chateau, and he tells him “Act stupid as usual” so as not to draw attention to themselves; interestingly, co-screenwriter Michel Audiard disliked the finished film and, subsequently, disowned it! Unfortunately, the version I watched (via a French Box Set comprising three of the star’s 1980s thrillers) was dubbed in English – as the original language, while available, carried no subtitles! I now look forward to these other two films, though I can’t really anticipate whether they’ll be of comparable quality…


02/06/08: WHITE COMANCHE (Jose` Briz Mendez, 1968)

Being a Spanish rather than Italian production, I don’t think this rates as an official Spaghetti Western – yet, it’s been included with a clutch of such efforts in a budget-release Box Set (which I’ve rented and am currently going through); the treatment itself, in fact, isn’t even really evocative of that distinctly baroque style!

The film-makers managed to acquire two American stars for this one: veteran Joseph Cotten and William Shatner (a fashionable commodity at the time thanks to the STAR TREK phenomenon on TV); they actually complement each other quite well, the reliable Cotten being a laid-back yet plain-speaking marshal and Shatner brooding albeit given occasionally to his trademark histrionics – especially since he plays twins, i.e. cowboy hero and the troublesome half-breed of the title!

The narrative also incorporates a subplot involving rival factions fighting for control of the town of Rio Hondo; female interest is provided by lovely blonde Rosanna Yanni (co-star of the two “Red Lips” films by Jess Franco made the previous year), who’s assaulted by one Shatner and loved by the other. Eventually, the two siblings face-off in a duel on horseback – which both undertake bare-chested and wearing a bandana (presumably, to confuse the audience as to the identity of the victor)! At the end of the day, the film proves a tolerable diversion if nothing more – unless one counts Shatner’s almost campy intensity (particularly in his caricatured Indian portrayal) as an added source of gratification! I should also mention here that the terribly inappropriate jazzy score is a pain to listen to and, besides, the pan-and-scan version I watched had an irritating tendency to jump-cutting within the same shot in search of the current speaker's face!!

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

"Sunset Boulevard"

A film worthy of its classic status.
The now classic opening (sometimes test screenings can be a good thing) leads to a fascinating study of dashed young hopes, fading stardom and deluded dreams.

And above all it's a study in blind ambition and a ruthless drive for success.
No one here is pure, everyone (even the wholesome Betty Schaefer) is willing to bend ideals and morals to get that big break and is willing to use duplicity and lies even for what they consider moral causes (like Erich von Stroheim's 'Butler).

Famously it's also an attack on old Hollywood and the way it turns its back on those that help make it.
And it's pretty biting about that.
And the ultimate example of that is Norma Desmond herself, so brilliantly essayed by the then also faded (but not mad) star Gloria Swanson, ironically getting the comeback her character never gets.
Her performance is slyly comic (there is, as it's Billy Wilder, some lovely comedy in the first half of the film), tragic, touching and downright scary.

As the opportunist, ultimately doomed, gigilo the young (but also starting to fade before this revival) William Holden is the lynch pin that holds the film together and he gives a gorgeous performance. Not only in looks but also in the way he perfectly mixes comedy and tragedy in his character.
A character, like them all, who's a genius creation by Wilder and Brackett.

The utterly crazy real-life connections between the actors is the icing on top for movie buffs;

Swanson was a big star who made films with DeMille (who has a cameo playing himself as her character's old director) and who had also faded into the background.
One of Swanson's most troubled films was "Queen Kelly" in which she was being directed by Erich von Stroheim, a film packed away and unreleased after Swanson complained about this "madman" making it. Erich von Stroheim and Swanson basically never talked again.
"Queen Kelly" is used as the film to show her character's old film career!
But Erich von Stroheim himself plays her character's 'Butler' who was also one of her characters early directors before she moved on and left him.

How these mighty egos with such a tangled past managed to work together is testament to how professional and respectful of each other's legacy they were.

A wonderful, classic, movie experience that works as a movie in its own right but is also essential viewing for any movie buffs and lovers of film.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Good review! I liked SUNSET BLVD. a great deal, too.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

01/27/08: THE VENUS OF ILLE (TV)(Mario and Lamberto Bava, 1978)

I came upon this by chance on late-night Italian TV; it was shown unannounced following a screening of the director’s HATCHET FOR THE HONEYMOON (1970)! This rarely-seen (and, consequently, legendary) TV production emerges as a more fitting swan-song for Bava than his last disappointing feature film, SHOCK (1977)!

As in that title, the female lead is played by Dario Argento muse Daria Nicolodi – who, while no great beauty, is very well-cast here as the lookalike/reincarnation of a Greek goddess/femme fatale. On the other hand, in the role of the narrative’s cultured yet bewildered hero appears Lucio Fulci alumnus Marc Porel – who, interestingly, bears an uncanny resemblance to latter-day Hammer Films star Ralph Bates! Similarly, the compactly-told supernatural tale (from Prosper Merimee` and filmed three more times in 1922, 1962 and 1980!) feels like one of Hammer’s TV episodes: it was, in fact, part of a horror series (all of them with a period setting) entitled THE DEVIL’S GAMES – though Bava’s involvement here, naturally, guarantees a more subtly artistic approach. While somewhat talky and languidly-paced, the meticulousness of its detail and the inclusion of a couple of classic Bava moments (the sudden appearance of the statue’s reflection in a window and the eerie, intense climax) makes the film a more than suitable follow-up to the director’s earlier gothics – THE WHIP AND THE BODY (1963) and KILL, BABY…KILL! (1966).

In conclusion, I’d certainly be interested in checking out other episodes in this rather obscure series – not to mention Bava’s other made-for-TV effort, the “Polifemo” episode from the mini-series THE ODYSSEY (1968; which was actually broadcast some years back on early Saturday mornings). As for co-director Lamberto (son and former assistant of the Euro-Cult master), I haven’t been at all impressed with what little I’ve caught of his stand-alone work – though, with four more titles from him that I have lined-up, I’ll do better to reserve a more objective judgment for a later date…


02/05/08: THIS MAN CAN’T DIE (Gianfranco Baldanello, 1967)

Second-tier American leading man Guy Madison plays a character whose notoriety precedes him in this Spaghetti Western – which, having very modest credentials emerges as essentially routine (though featuring a nice enough score). The plot offers some mild interest: the title, incidentally, refers to a wounded man involved in the murderous assault by gun-runners on a ranch – the property of the family of their pursuer, cavalry agent Madison. The latter’s younger siblings are determined that the injured party, now in their charge, lead them to the gang boss responsible; ultimately, the identity of either mystery man proves a surprise – and both, ironically, become involved with one of Madison’s sisters (another is raped during the raid). Euro-Cult starlet Rosalba Neri appears unremarkably as a saloon hostess, and Madison’s ex-flame.


02/05/08: BETWEEN GOD, THE DEVIL AND A WINCHESTER (Marino Girolami, 1968)

While nothing special in itself (and in spite of its portentous title), this one scores a few points for transposing Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic pirate adventure “Treasure Island” to a Spaghetti Western landscape! Folco Lulli plays the Billy Bones figure – who sets the plot in motion; ‘Long John Silver’ is Gilbert Roland, sporting an iron hand instead of a wooden leg! Also involved are preacher Richard Harrison, while ‘Jim Hawkins’ is incarnated by a Mexican boy (who, naturally, befriends the roguish Roland).

Director Girolami (using the pseudonym Dario Silvestri), who dabbled in everything from comedy to action-oriented efforts, is the lesser-known father of cult film-maker Enzo G. Castellari (curiously enough, Roland co-starred in the latter’s debut feature – ANY GUN CAN PLAY [1967] – which, incidentally, is also a Spaghetti Western). The film remains watchable, thanks also to a notable score from Carlo Savina; it does, however, include a couple of almost campy moments – one in which a badman is set on fire when a Mexican girl he has attempted to rape breaks a lantern over his head, but he takes care to repeatedly shoot her prior to expiring himself(!); another is when Roland’s thin cigar is lit by a shot fired from the gun being handled by non-practitioner Harrison!


02/05/08: FIND A PLACE TO DIE (Hugo Fregonese and Giuliano Carnimeo, 1968)

This is not a bad Spaghetti Western, marking one of Jeffrey Hunter’s last roles: he’s a discharged Army officer, slumming it in Mexico trading guns destined to a notorious band of cut-throats, who sees an opportunity to better his prospects when New Orleans belle Pascale Petit turns up with an offer of gold for the man who’ll help save her husband (trapped in a mine cave-in, thus making the film something of a GARDEN OF EVIL [1954] rehash).

Hunter assembles a motley group for the job, which is soon at each other’s throat over both the promise of gold and the shapely lady herself!; one of them even joins the bandits – and usurps their leadership to boot! Also involved is Mexican prostitute Daniela Giordano (who mimics the melancholy title tune – the score for the film, by Gianni Ferrio, is another good one): the stunning-looking actress was a former “Miss Italy” contest winner, whose best opportunity came with her starring role in Mario Bava’s FOUR TIMES THAT NIGHT (1969) – which, incidentally, also featured Petit. Her pimp (the first time I’ve heard a man being referred as such in a Western!) is one of Hunter’s associates, who ultimately turns out to be a good guy. Not so a lecherous and sadistic doctor-cum-priest (Alfredo Lastretti), who’s not even trusted by the traitorous and power-hungry group member when he tries to join his ranks!

The gray-haired Hunter is pretty good in what he has to do (his short-term career didn’t fulfill its initial promise); the action here – supervised by B-movie specialist Hugo Fregonese – is certainly competently handled, and the film itself seems to me to be an underappreciated entry (I, for one, hadn’t heard of it before) in this popular genre…


02/07/08: THE OUTSIDER (Jacques Deray, 1983)

Just as Jean-Paul Belmondo’s THE PROFESSIONAL (1981) recalled the Charles Bronson ‘loner’ action vehicles, this one evokes memories of Clint Eastwood’s “Dirty Harry” cop shows…which, by extension, connects it to the Italian poliziotteschi – of which the American co-star of THE OUTSIDER, Henry Silva, was a regular! Anyway, Belmondo is a maverick cop up against drug kingpin Silva: he intercepts a consignment of heroin (chasing the speedboat transporting it via helicopter), but the criminal’s influence with city officials gets him transferred from Marseille to a low-life district! As was the case with the earlier film, the credits take care to establish the fact that the ageing star performed his own (often dangerous) stunts; in fact, every fifteen minutes or so, he’s seen getting into a scuffle, a chase or a shoot-out – without necessarily advancing the main plot.

Still, in spite of the protagonist’s superficial nonchalance, he’s shown to have a heart: befriending a hooker, saving a convict’s teenage daughter from life as a junkie, and paternally overseeing the ‘legitimate’ activity of a young small-time crook; when the latter opposes Silva’s offer of ‘protection’ and winds up dead, the conflict between policeman and racketeer becomes a personal one. Mind you, the overall handling is anything but subtle – and blatantly commercial (why else would we be treated to the excess of sleaze on display, including an irrelevant excursion at a gay club?)! The film features another Ennio Morricone score which virtually hinges on a single catchy riff, though it’s not quite as haunting as his work on THE PROFESSIONAL. The R2 DVD I rented also featured an Audio Commentary by director Deray which was, unfortunately, unsubtitled and enticing theatrical trailers for two other films Belmondo made for director Philippe De Broca, LE MAGNIFIQUE (1973) and L'INCORRIGIBLE (1975).


02/07/08: BOOT HILL (Giuseppe Colizzi, 1969)

This Spaghetti Western was the third teaming of popular duo Terence Hill and Bud Spencer; the previous two were also in the same genre and directed by Colizzi. Unfortunately, its muddled plotline of gold-prospecting and claim-jumping (shades of the Rex Beach venerable “The Spoilers”) is rendered even less intelligible in the budget DVD edition I watched by the rampant panning-and-scanning throughout – which cramps the onscreen action so much that what remains is virtually a succession of disconnected close-ups! The only original touch here is the fact that the heroes are aided in their struggle against the villainous exploiters by a troupe of traveling circus performers; one other point in its favor is a solid supporting cast, which includes not only familiar genre presences such as George Eastman but a clutch of Hollywood veterans – namely Lionel Stander, Woody Strode, Eduardo Ciannelli and Victor Buono (as the outwardly respectable chief baddie).


02/07/08: SARTANA IN THE VALLEY OF DEATH (Roberto Mauri, 1970)

This is the first entry I’ve watched in a long-running series of Spaghetti Westerns revolving around the titular figure, played here by William Berger; as such, he displays no particular features that would make him stand out from similar anti-heroes (such as The Man With No Name or Django) and, in fact, is never even referred to by that nickname! Incidentally, this seems to have been considerably trimmed for American export – given that the running-time is a mere 79 minutes; what remains is a thinly-plotted affair which virtually resolves itself into one long chase! Incidentally, the R2 C’Est La Vie DVD sports German credit titles and even the first spoken bits of dialogue is in that language!

Sartana springs a trio of no-good brothers from jail intending to cut in on a fortune in gold that awaits them; however, the latter soon double-cross him and he’s stranded on foot and without provisions in Death Valley (hence the title) – they also get even with their former associates (including puppet-maker Luciano Pigozzi) for letting them take the rap. Eventually, of course, Sartana catches up with the gang – taking some time-out to romance a gal who aided in his convalescence…but she too turns out to be harboring ideas above her station! At the finale, the ‘outlaw’ is revealed to be a courier for the American cavalry entrusted with a crucial message – and his reward for the accomplishment of said mission is that he gets to keep the brothers’ gold for himself! For the record, the song playing over the opening credits “King For A Day” is quite decent and is even warbled, for no good reason, by a blonde bar-room chanteuse at one point in the film.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

The Brave One (2007)

Typical revenge movie formula gets elevated due to the introspective performance of Jodie Foster. Though this movie has its moments it's no Death Wish. I had a hard time swallowing the resolution at the end. Worthwhile one time watch with reservations.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

As long as we see justice dodging scumbags getting theirs and that she gets away with it with no punishment...It will work fine by me.
I was thinking if blind buying it.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

I'm sure you would enjoy it. Her acting was superb as well as Terrance Howard.