Track the Films You Watch (2007) (1 Viewer)

[Michael Elliott]

Gotta disagree with you on BIRTH, although I realize that I'm one of the few who enjoyed the film. Without them being "warped" tehre wouldn't be a movie. It's not like you could have both of them "happy" and believe the situation either of them are in. I mean, being depressed over your husbands death and then have a depressed kid saying that he's your husband. Can't really have them happy and pull the story off.

 

[JohnRice]

Michael, clearly you haven't grasped the requirement that any good movie have pleasant characters, (aside from the clearly defined "evil" ones) who have no real problems, least of all emotional ones. If dark and light aren't clearly defined, how can we know what we are supposed to think and believe?


I see my evil twin, Snohn, posted a review of the movie 300, so now that I have seen it, I figured it was time for mine.


300 - :star::star:1/2 / :star::star::star::star::star:

I expected to like this one a lot more than I did. Unfortunately, despite all the action, violence and historical interest (I have always liked these types of legendary stories) the final result is kind of bland. The overblown drama should have been amusing, but it just came off as kind of goofy. Sorry Kissinger, but this is a dud.


Cherry Crush - :star: / :star::star::star::star::star:

I'm being kind with this rating. This movie starts off looking like it might be an enjoyably raunchy sexual thriller with hot young women. It ends up being an extremely mediocre, unimaginative and rather boring retread of all the sexually charged murder mysteries to came before it.

 

[PatW]

Flight Command (1940) :star: 1/2

Fairly boring entry has Robert Taylor as a rookie pilot joining an elite squad of naval pilots. The only character here that was interesting was Shepperd Strudwick who played the heroine's brother. Pretty bland stuff here.

 

[Michael Elliott]

08/01/07

Bronx is Burning, The (Pt. 4) (2007) :star::star::star:

Steinbrenner (Oliver Platt) promises Billy Martin (John Turturro) he won't fire him, the first anniversary of the Son of Sam killing approaches and NYC is hit with a blackout in this fourth part of the mini-series. This was the weakest of the four parts so far but the acting is still top-notch but none of the three main parts are really hammered home like in the previous parts.

Dead Silence (2007) :star:

James Wan (Saw) directs this horror film, which turns out to be one of the worse I've seen in recent years. A man is left in shock when his wife is murdered but he suspects it was the dummy of a murdered ventriloquist. From the opening moments until the end credits this film had me bored to tears and not once did I ever get into the film. The biggest and main reason this film is such a disaster is due to the incredibly stupid story that never grabs the viewer nor does the viewer ever care what's really going on. The direction is also pretty poor as it seems like a director being forced to do a film, which couldn't apply here since Wan did the story. The one saving grace is Donnie Wahlberg who plays the cop investigating the murder.

Sea Wolf, The (1941) :star::star::star::star:

The never given his due Michael Curtiz directs this terrific adaptation of Jack London's story about a evil Captain (Edward G. Robinson) who meets his match with three new members aboard his ship. You've got a writer (Alexander Knox) and two fugitives (John Garfield, Ida Lupino) who start to see through the sadistic Captain. This is a terrific little adventure film from Warner that really packs a punch in various departments. Curtiz handles the story and action very well and it's rather amazing that to this day he's never really gotten the credit that he deserves. I think it's due to the fact that he was a director for hire but just look at how many great films he delivered in so many genres. The greatest thing in the film are the wonderful performances from the four leads as well as the supporting players including Barry Fitzgerald and Gene Lockhart. Robinson gives one of his greatest performances making you hate the Captain with a passion but at the same time feeling sorry for him. Garfield is very powerful in his role and Lupino is terrific as well.

Johnny Belinda (1948) :star::star::star:1/2

A doctor (Lew Ayres) tries to cute a mute woman (Jane Wyman) but when she's raped and ends up pregnant it causes problems in the small town. I really hadn't heard too much about this film except for Wyman winning the Oscar for her performance but it's certainly one of the stronger films of the decade. The only real problem is that it drags near the one hour mark and it's rather predictable but other than that this here is a very strong film. Wyman is terrific in her role and she gives one of the best performances I've seen from any actor playing a deaf person. Ayres is also very good in the film as are Charles Bickford and Agnes Moorehead as the father and aunt to the deaf girl. Stephen McNally nearly steals every scene he's in and certainly ranks as one of the greatest villains in history.

Beast of the City, The (1932) :star::star::star:

MGM gangster film shown from the point of view of the police. Capt. Fitzpatrick (Walter Huston) is out to bring down gangster Sam Belmonte (Jean Hersholt) but is sold out by his brother (Wallace Ford) who has fallen for the gangster's girl (Jean Harlow). This film is certainly a lot different than the Warner gangster pictures as it doesn't glamorize the gangsters but instead puts the spotlight on the public for allowing gangs to rule the streets. Huston is his usual fiery self and both Ford and Harlow shine in their supporting roles. The subplot between Ford and Harlow is a bit weak but it leads to a highly powerful ending, which is among one of the best scenes from all the gangster films from this period.

Finger Points, The (1931) :star::star::star:

Static but entertaining gangster picture has a wet-nosed reporter (Richard Barthelmess) from the South going to the big city to become a star but he soon learns that nothing is easy. After busting a gambling operation and getting nothing out of it, the reporter decides to partner up with a racketeer (Clark Gable) but soon the reporter gets too big for his current situation. This film is based on the life of Chicago Tribute reporter Jake Lingle who got involved with Al Capone and the rest is history. This film version is pretty good, although it's a bit slugish at time but this is due mostly to just how movies were during this early sound era. Barthelmess is hit and miss in his role. He's somewhat shaky during the nervous reporter segments but he settles down once he starts to enter the big shot period. Gable steals the show with his supporting performance and Fay Wray plays the love interest.

Secret Six, The (1931) :star::star:1/2

MGM gangster film should have been better under George Hill's direction with an amazing cast including Wallace Beery, Lewis Stone, Jean Harlow, Clark Gable, Johnny Mack Brown and Ralph Belamy. Mastermind Stone sets up a gang led by Belamy but after a frame up goes wrong Beery takes over with a vengeance taking out anyone who gets in his way. Gable and Brown play reporters wanting to bring the gang down and Harlow is her usual mole sell. The film starts off with a terrific bang and gets off to a great start but things go way off track during the middle act when the gang tries to get elected into office. This here slows the action down and the other problem is that there are just way too many characters doing way too much for a short running time. However, even with all that said, it's impossible not to enjoy the movie due to the terrific cast with Stone stealing the way in a role, which is a lot like we saw from Brando years later in The Godfather.

Baby Face Harrington (1935) :star::star:

Raoul Walsh directed this comedy about a dorky bookkeeper (Charles Butterworth) who gets mistaken for a dangerous gangster. Una Merkel, Eugene Pallette and Donald Meek co-star in this comedy, which only runs 65-minutes yet it takes at least a half an hour to get warned up but by then it's a little too late. The first half has all sorts of stupid jokes, which aren't funny but there are also long scenes where no laughs are even gone after. Once the mistaken identity happens then things pick up with Butterworth being charming in his role. It's rather strange that Walsh would take over the gangster genre from D.W. Griffith with the landmark Regeneration and then make one of the all time great gangster films in White Heat but have this stuck in the middle.

08/02/07

Out of the Darkness (1985) :star::star:1/2

Made for TV movie about Detective Eddie Zigo (Martin Sheen) who is trying to keep his personal life on track while hunting down the Son of Sam killer. This movie left me pretty disappointed because it promised to "tell you new things" but it hardly deals with the actual Son of Sam case. Most of the film deals with Sheen's sick wife, which is fine but it's all very routine. The Son of Sam case is barely talked about and we really don't get too much behind the scenes info on what the police were thinking or doing at the time. Towards the end when they finally capture the guy things really pick up but by then it's too late. Sheen is good in his role as is Hector Elizondo, Robert Trebor and Joe Spinell.

Five Came Back (1939) :star::star:1/2

John Farrow directed this disaster film about a plane with twelve members who crash near the Amazon and must try and fix the plane. I was really, really disappointed in this film after hearing some good things about it. One problem is that the film runs just 75-minutes so you've got twelve characters and none of them get enough screen time to really care about any of them. Another problem is what we do get to know about the characters is nothing special as all are nothing more than predictable stereotypes. The cast, which includes Chester Morris, Lucille Ball, John Carradine, Joseph Calleia, Kent Taylor and Patric Knowles keep things moving but the typical screenplay lets them down.

I Married a Witch (1942) :star::star::star:

A witch is burned at the stake but comes back years later as a beautiful woman (Veronia Lake) to take revenge on a relative (Fredric March) of the man who had her killed in Rene Clair's comedy. I had been meaning to watch this film for several years now but never got around to it until now and I was happy to see it was as cute, charming and sweet as I had hoped. I didn't love the movie as some do but I can see it getting better with new viewings. Both March and Lake are terrific in their roles and come off as a great couple who you would want to see together. Susan Hayward adds nice support but it's Cecil Kellaway who steals the film as Lake's Warlock father.

Just Before Dawn (1946) :star::star:1/2

William Castle directed this 7th entry in the Crime Doctor series. This time out the doctor (Warner Baxter) is called to a house to give insulin to a diabetic but it turns out to be poison so the good guy has to track down the bad guys. This was a pretty good entry but it's also pretty much just like all the rest. The film, and series, is entertaining but it's hard to get too excited about them. Baxter is his usual self but the supporting cast isn't too lively this time out. Director Castle brings some nice touches to the film but the major plot twist at the end is easy to see coming.

Flight (1929) :star::star:

Frank Capra directed this early talkie about two buddies (Jack Holt, Ralph Graves) in the Navy Air Corps who fall in love with the same woman (Lila Lee). This film runs nearly two hours and one of those hours are brilliant but it's spread across the entire running time. The flight and war sequences are simply brilliant with a lot of realistic action and some breathtaking footage of the planes in the air. Had Capra only shown that stuff then this could have been another masterpiece from the director but sadly we get a stupid love story to drag everything down. Jack Holt is brilliant in his role adding a lot of humor to the part but Graves, who co-wrote the story, doesn't fair as well. Lila Lee is cute in her part but she's certainly not the greatest actress out there.

08/03/07

Ed Gein (2000) :star:

Steve Railsback plays the infamous Ed Gein, the man who killed woman so that he could wear their skin, eat them and so on. I've seen a lot of movies based on Gein's life (Deranged) and a lot of films influenced by his story (Psycho, Texas Chainsaw) but this here is without a doubt the worst of the worst. I'm really not sure where to start but I guess I'll go with the screenplay, which seems to think it's a good idea for a horror film to go the first forty-minutes without a drop of gore or violence. When Gein finally gets on his murdering spree nothing is shown but instead we get countless dialogue scenes that are as boring as I'm sure Gein was in real life. Railsback gives a so-so performance, which means he tries hard to get Gein down right but he's just not good enough of an actor to pull it off. Go rent Deranged instead.

September 30, 1955 (1977) :star::star:

Coming of age film about a troubled teen (Richard Thomas) whose life falls apart when he hears that his idol James Dean has been killed. This is a rather nice homage to Dean and it was interesting seeing how some peoples lives were changed by his death but writer/director James Bridges makes one fatal mistake that kills the film and he makes the lead one of the biggest assholes who be in any movie I've seen. The main character played by Thomas thinks he is just like Dean so he tries being a rebel but instead his character comes off as a complete jerk. He's so bad that you can't help but wish someone would just beat the hell out of him. Lisa Blount plays another teen who ties to communicate with Dean through black magic while dressed up as Vampira. Tom Hulce, Susan Tyrrell and Dennis Quaid round out the cast.

Gideon of Scotland Yard (1958) :star:1/2

John Ford directed this disastrous tale of a day in the life of a Scotland Yard Inspector played by Jack Hawkins. Apparently this was originally meant to be the first in a series of films but the movie was blasted by critics and the public so future films were canceled and it's easy to see why. I guess it just goes to show that a legend can deliver a disaster every once in a while, which is what the film is. The comedy doesn't work, the drama doesn't work and the mystery of the killer doesn't work. The movie is incredibly flat from the opening moments to the closing sequence and this is the American version of the movie. I believe the original British cut is thirty-minutes longer so I'd hate to have to sit through that. Hawkins is decent in his role and the cinematography is nice but that's about it.

Jeopardy (1953) :star::star::star:

John Sturges directed this intense thriller about a wife (Barbara Stanwyck) and husband (Barry Sullivan) who take their son on a vacation to Mexico so that they can go fishing but an accident happens and the husband gets his leg caught under a log. With the tide coming in, the wife has to try and get help before it's too late but she gets kidnapped by an escaped murderer (Ralph Meeker). This film seems to get mixed reviews and while it's not classic Sturges I still felt there was enough suspense packed in the 67-minute running time to make the film highly enjoyable. I've never found Stanwyck to be sexy so that takes away from some of her roles for me but she's terrific when playing it tough and that's the case here. She's really good in the tough role and Meeker is the perfect snake to go against her. Sullivan is also very good in his moments with his son played by Lee Aaker. There are a few flaws throughout the film and the ending is pretty weak but there's still plenty to enjoy here. The score by Dimitri Tiomkin also adds to the suspense.

 

[Joe Karlosi]

Queen of Outer Space (1958) :star:

Three Stooges director Edward Bernds was at the helm for this putrid movie which for some needless reason was shot in the extravagant Cinemascope process. It can be summed up in a nutshell: Astronauts in a plastic rocket ship land on Venus which is populated only by luscious females in short skirts and one over-sized rubber spider, and their evil queen hates men. So each male astronaut hooks up with a honey of his choosing and they go find some places to make out. I never could see any appeal in Zsa Zsa Gabor at any phase of her "career," and she doesn't even play the queen in this thing! If I were a space traveler marooned on Venus, it would be Lisa Davis whom I'd choose to suck face with. And that's about all I got out of this turkey.

 

[george kaplan]

It's not that they had to be happy, per se, and I think it could have even worked for me with some of the emotional problems, if there were more to it than that, and if she, in particular, weren't so disturbed. I mean, I bought into her confusion and agony over what this kid was doing. I didn't buy into her believing it, nor her going psychotic at the end. And basically, that's all the story was. This could have been done as a great sci-fi, great comedy, great mystery, or even great drama, but there would have had to have been more to the story than her slowly dissolving into madness.

In the end, of course, it's a matter of personal taste, and there are obviously many here who enjoy such films, but very near the top of my least favorite things in a movie (after racism), is the hysterical, irrational, emotionally disturbed, perhaps psychotic female, something that exists in many, many of my most hated films, and which exists in droves in my least favorite of all time (Cries & Whispers). Not that I'm particularly keen on warped males either (e.g., Taxi Driver).

 

[PatW]

The Apartment (1960) :star: :star: :star: :star: 1/2

A very heartfelt Billy Wilder directed comedy. More a drama than a comedy in my estimation. Probably my favourite Jack Lemmon performance of the movies of his that I've seen up to now. Shirley MacLaine was very believable in the role and lent an air of innocence to the part. The only other character that really shone was the Doctor from down the hall. He was fantastic in the part. The other characters were okay but not much substance there.


Meet the Stewarts (1942) :star: :star: :star: 1/2

Perfectly charming movie about newlyweds William Holden and Frances Dee adjusting to married life both coming from different life experiences. Some hilarious stuff ensues. Loved seeing Margaret Hamilton in something other than commercials or the wicked witch.

 

[george kaplan]

Pat,

You must have watched Meet the Stewarts while it was playing on TCM just now. I've tivo'd it, but haven't yet watched it.

 

[PatW]

Yes, I did. I was going to record it but had a couple hours to kill and it seemed interesting enough.

 

[Adam_S]

For what it's worth, they're worse in real life, particulary in an intimate relationship, than they are in the movies, so I can stand the movie versions cause they're much lighter than the real thing.

 

[Sandro]

This is exactly how I felt about the movie too. If you don't buy into her reaction to the boy then the movie is terrible and that bath scene seems just ridiculous and a little sick.

 

[Adam_S]

Indy Sex - episode 1 - 8 of 10
I can't remember what the first episode was called, but it was sort of a history of nudity and representations of straight sex in the movies. Good interviews, fabulous job covering the 1890s up ino the 2000s. I actually watched this in two parts because I finally sat down to watch last tango in Paris when the doc got to that part of history.

But in a lot of ways this is an excuse to show a lot of nudity--which gets them the ratings they're looking for, I'm sure.

Indy Sex - teens - 6 of 10

A lot of interesting films referenced here, such as Little Darlings, but not as good a presentation or as interesting or varied a subject as the first doc had. The material just isn't as good and it seems they didn't have access to all the films they should have had access to. It seems more cursory and titallating than a strong and focused doc.

Bourne Ultimatum - 9 of 10

Superb action film that improves on both of the previous films. Excellent chases, fight scenes and a clear, coherent focused story that moves very cleanly and logically from one point to the next. Beats the hell out of Transformers or Pirates, both of which I also enjoyed. This has been a hell of a fun summer so far.

Some very good trailers before Bourne, really looking forward to American Gangster and Rendition this fall, both looked outstanding. Lions For Lambs looked like Cra(sh)p.


3:10 to Yuma (2007) - 7 of 10

I don't think I ever posted a review when I saw this several months ago. but it is an excellent Boetticher style western. It's hampered by Phedon Papamichael's photography and Mangold's lack of flair but the performances are strong and the story is good, but this is no Unforgiven or Tombstone, but it is more than a decent western and a great representation of the classic tropes of the genre--it is a lot of fun it's just not hugely compelling.

 

[Ted Lee]

title: the bourne ultimatum
rating: b
comments: i enjoyed this so much, i almost gave it an A. i distinctly remember how much i enjoyed the second one and hearing it's the same director ... i was anxious to see this one. i was not disappointed. what really impressed me was the pacing ... i wish all action movies were like this. it was perfect. damon does a great job, the story is decent enough, the stunts and fighting impressive ... all in all a very good ride.

 

[george kaplan]

Meet the Stewarts

I have to admit I didn't think as highly of this as Pat. It's pleasant enough, but it's basically a one-joke film (inability of a wife to live within her budget). It started out pretty strong with the treehouse scene, but much of the humor after that just didn't work for me, though Holden's charisma comes through in this film early in his career.

 

[JohnRice]

Hot Fuzz - :star::star::star::star:1/2 / :star::star::star::star::star:

Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg's followup to Shaun of the Dead is basically an epic inside joke for movie junkies. Pegg plays a "by-the-rules" police officer who is transferred from London to a small, crimeless village in the outskirts of England due to his habit of making his coworkers look bad with his expectional performance as an officer. The very idea of Simon Pegg playing a "tough as nails, by the book" police officer should pretty much indicate where this movie is coming from.

This is all just a front for Wright and Pegg to pay homage to more movies than I can even list. Don't get the wrong idea though, despite the similar concept, Hot Fuzz is to the Scary Movie franchise what Fawlty Towers is to the average Will Farrell flick. The basic concept of the movie is some bizarre blend of The Star Chamber and Pleasantville, with a bit of slasher flick thrown in, which somehow works, despite dragging a bit around 30 minutes in.

The homages are almost endless, starting with obvious references to Point Break and Bad Boys II, but extends to Baz Luhrmann's Romeo + Juliet, pretty much any Eastwood western, though High Plains Drifter in particular comes to mind, and reaches as far as Godzilla, even referring back to Shaun of the Dead.

This movie became so much fun, not to mention just downright weird, I was laughing so hard there were tears runing down my cheeks. I admit, those with highly refined, discriminating tastes will probably not find this very amusing, plus it is an absolute requirement to be familiar with most of the sources referred to. It also helps to view Michael Bay as not so much an intolerably incompetant filmmaker as a rather silly one.

 

[Pete York]

I see this one apparently had a bit of a tortured production history. Preston Sturges and Joel McCrea (would've been perfect, although perhaps too much of a been there, done that feel) were attached at various points before dropping out, and in Sturges' case having his name removed from the credits, so that it is at least OK is an accomplishment, I suppose. But between this and And Then There Were None, I'm left underwhelmed by René Clair, who by all accounts is a giant in cinema. I'll have to keep trying.

 

[Adam_S]

The Blue Lagoon - 4 of 10

the dvd was full frame which was annoying, but not as annoying as the overall film. It was beautifully shot and quite a touching story. I was surprised it wasn't more exploitative, but I suppose that's because the fillmmakers had to settle for Brooke Shields and her no nudity stipulation.

But it's really kind of laughably bad.

Out of curiosity, could this film even be made today with the preteen nudity it contains? I actually found that more shocking (but very sweet in how it was handled) than anything else in the film, but then this is the internet age and perhaps we're more aware of how that sort of content will inevitably be abused.

and I just checked IMDB and Shields was only fifteen at the time and the filmmakers expected/hoped/wanted her to do full on nudity (according to the commentary)? What a different age.

 

[Michael Elliott]

Brooks was even younger in PRETTY BABY and had quite a bit of nudity. I remember several years ago several films were pulled off store shelves but I guess that "law" was overturned or no one cares any more because there are quite a few movies out there with teen nudity. FAT GIRL comes to mind for a recent film but there are countless Euro films with it.

 

[JohnRice]

I've been told that isn't always the case, however I'll believe it if and when I see it.

 

[Mario Gauci]

07/14/07: HEAD (Bob Rafelson, 1968) :star::star::star:

It seems appropriate that a pop group who had started out on TV should sprinkle various TV clips of Hollywood feature films in their own feature film debut (while an anonymous character is ostensibly channel zapping) and, among the ones I recognized where THE BLACK CAT (1934; the “Supernatural, perhaps…Baloney, perhaps not” exchange), GILDA (1946) and Charles Laughton’s turn as Herod Antipas in SALOME` (1953)! Having said that, I have never watched any of the original TV shows of The Monkees’ myself or, for that matter, listened to any of their albums – although, naturally, I’m familiar with a couple of their hits.

Anyway, this (pardon the pun) heady concoction clearly follows the lead of The Beatles’ own feature films although the template is clearly more the uncontrolled zaniness of HELP! (1965) rather than the freewheeling, pseudo-documentary feel of A HARD DAY’S NIGHT (1964). In fact, our heroes (who, by the way, are also far less endearing and talented than the four British moptops) are first seen disrupting a public ceremony while being chased through the city streets by all and sundry and evading capture by jumping off a bridge; at the end, the film comes full circle as this sequence also concludes the film and both times the chase is accompanied on the soundtrack by perhaps the best tune in the film – the haunting “The Porpoise Song” which, ironically, is not a Monkees original but a Goffin/King composition. The rest of the songs are quite decent actually with “Can You Dig It?” (performed live as part of the specifically shot concert footage) emerging as perhaps their best number here.

But, while this may not have been the intention, the film’s lasting impression is not the band members or their music but the disarming energy and inventiveness with which director Bob Rafelson/co-writer Jack Nicholson (here at the start of their impressive – and subsequently very different - collaboration) infuse the proceedings: The Monkees’ image and music may have been far removed from hippiedom and the drug subculture but the film ironically epitomizes perhaps more than any other of its time the kaleidoscopic feel of psychedelia in which, literally, anything goes. Of course, this makes the end result spotty, uneven and not a little slapdash for those unwilling to succumb to it but, for the rest it’s quite (perhaps mercifully) unique. And so it is that here we find Victor Mature spoofing his “Hunk” image as the gigantic Big Victor(!) and, in one memorably surreal sequence, sporting The Monkees themselves as his dandruff; Timothy Carey hamming it up as a Western badman of the silver screen who storms off the set in relentless pursuit of the band; veteran character actor Percy Helton appearing, for no good reason, in one shot as a messenger boy; The Monkees’ comical stint at war, manning the trenches and meeting surrendering Italian soldier Vito Scotti in the desert; an excursion to a Sheik’s tent; a lengthy and particularly politically incorrect skirmish with a fat barmaid (in which Davy Jones punches her in the face and complains to director Rafelson of how this will adversely affect his clean image with the kids); Jack Nicholson and his pal Dennis Hopper interrupting Bob Rafelson while shooting this movie!; Frank Zappa walking his talking cow around the studio lot; and, also playing themselves are Teri Garr, Annette Funicello and boxer Sonny Liston (who even takes on one of the boys on the ring).

The film originally premiered at 110 minutes but the general release version is only 86 minutes long; however, the former has reportedly just been restored and might perhaps even be released on DVD!


07/20/07: CASTLE KEEP (Sydney Pollack, 1969) :star::star::star:

I had been wanting to check this one out for over 20 years (it used to be available as a VHS rental at the local outlet but I never got around to it) but especially after reading up on the film on the internet since its 2004 DVD release(s) where its unusual “artiness” a`-la Alain Resnais’ LAST YEAR IN MARIENBAD (1961) was played up. Now that I’ve watched CASTLE KEEP for myself, all I can say is that it’s arguably the strangest mainstream war movie ever and decidedly not for all tastes!

The relatively large cast (for what turns out to be an introspective film) is uniformly excellent and is well up to the requirements of the brilliantly surreal, funny and literate script; Burt Lancaster, wearing an eye-patch throughout, has an unsympathetic role as the formidable leader of a group of misfit soldiers taking over a Belgian castle against unseen invading German troops. He is skillfully abetted by Peter Falk (as a soldier who abandons his post to indulge in his vocation as a baker), Jean-Pierre Aumont (as the “degenerate” owner of the titular castle), Patrick O’Neal (as a celebrated art historian all at sea on the battleground but well in his element surrounded by the castle’s objets d’ art), Scott Wilson (as a soldier who gets into quite a unique relationship – more on this later), Tony Bill (as the most spiritual of the men) and, the other side of the coin, Bruce Dern as a Bible-thumping conscientious objector who walks the Belgian rubbles with his ragged band of revivalist deserters-followers. The terrific cinematography of the awesome European locations – courtesy of Henri Decae – is complimented by a fine Michel Legrand score and, when they finally come, spectacular battle sequences.

But it’s the odd, surreal touches – including Scott Wilson falling in love with a Volkswagen, the same car rising from the sea after it has been drowned by his envious companions and floating ashore all by itself, the moving sequence between Tony Bill and an unseen German soldier (subsequently needlessly shot by Peter Falk) where the latter teaches the former how to play the flute correctly, the unusually realistic talk of fornication, sexual organs, impotence, the ambiguous (perhaps ghostly) nature of the characters involved and the events being enacted, etc. – which really make this show stand out from the crowd of WWII spectaculars and stick in one’s memory – not to mention endear it to its legion of fans (who have famously decried online its original abominable pan-and-scan DVD incarnation, forcing Sony to re-release it in the correct Widescreen aspect ratio a mere four months later). The theme of the relevance of art in times of war brings forth comparisons to John Frankenheimer’s THE TRAIN (1964), also starring Burt Lancaster, whose third (and final) collaboration with director Sydney Pollack – after the previous year’s THE SCALPHUNTERS and THE SWIMMER (where Pollack replaced original director Frank Perry but goes uncredited) – this proved to be…perhaps as a result of the critical beating the film received upon its original release!


07/29/07: ONCE A THIEF (Ralph Nelson, 1965) :star::star:1/2

In the wake of having watched Alain Delon in Joseph Losey’s THE ASSASSINATION OF TROTSKY (1972), I decided to check out three other vehicles of his I had taped off TV over the last few months – beginning with this one, which emerges to be just as pretentious as Losey’s film!

Best desribed as a beatnik noir, we’ve seen this film’s story told a million times before – that of a criminal who can’t escape his past, dogged as much by old associates as by an obsessive police nemesis. Consequently, director Nelson and cinematographer Robert Burks (best-known for his longtime collaboration with Alfred Hitchcock) handle the generally cliched material for more than it’s worth – even if my viewing was somewhat compromised by the film being panned-and-scanned.

Delon and Ann-Margret make for a handsome couple - although she occasionally tries too hard and her histrionics seem more at home in a Tennessee Williams melodrama; Van Heflin is appropriately world-weary as the ageing cop, Jack Palance is typically intense as a crime boss and Delon’s elder brother. The rest of Palance’s gang is made up of the odd-looking and memorably creepy John Davis Chandler and Tony Musante – while Jeff Corey appears as Heflin’s irate superior. The film’s screenwriter Zekial Marko (adapting his own novel) is featured in an unintentionally hilarious supporting role as a druggie who shares a cell with Delon – we follow his case intermittently throughout (for no very good reason other than to justify the similarly hapless Delon’s pursuit of crime) via newspaper clippings, denoting Marko’s conviction to the gas chamber and eventually his suicide!

The film is aided by a jazzy score courtesy of Lalo Schifrin, who seemed to specialize in crime/police dramas. The elaborate heist half-way through is an expected highlight, which then leads to a predictably downbeat and body-strewn climax.


07/29/07: THE LAST ADVENTURE (Robert Enrico, 1967) :star::star:1/2

Out of an Alain Delon three-film marathon, this was the one I was most looking forward to but, surprisingly, ended up being the most disappointing. The fact that the Italian TV broadcast suffered from intermittent instances of bad reception had a lot to do with this, I guess, but I also found the film (which was adapted from a novel by crime expert Jose` Giovanni, dealing with a search for treasure lost at sea) rather an inconsequential trifle!

Still, the proceedings are considerably bolstered by attractive locations, the delectable Joanna Shimkus (even if her character, who hitches with stars Delon and Lino Ventura far too quickly, is killed off half-way through) and Francois de Roubaix’s delightful score. Delon – playing a dashing, reckless flier – is his typically inexpressive self, but Ventura is as strong as ever as his inventor/racing-car enthusiast partner; also notable is Serge Reggiani as a nervous yet shifty hanger-on who eventually reveals the exact whereabouts of the crashed airplane in which the loot is stashed. Incidentally, the abandoned fortress in mid-ocean (Shimkus dreams of owning it, but which is eventually purchased by Ventura after her demise with his share of the recovered fortune) is a great setting – which director Enrico ably employs for the film’s action climax (even if the gangsters who assault Ventura and Delon, who are also after the money, make for a bunch of anonymous villains).


07/29/07: TWO MEN IN TOWN (Jose` Giovanni, 1973) :star::star:1/2

Curiously enough, the central plot of this one is quite similar to that of ONCE A THIEF (1965; also strarring Alain Delon and which I watched on the very same day) – though here it's even gloomier (ultimately taking the form of a plea against capital punishment)! Incidentally, co-writer/director Giovanni had been a convict in real-life, and even wrote the novel which inspired Jacques Becker’s marvelous prison-escape drama LE TROU (1960).

Anyway, Delon and Jean Gabin are well-teamed here (this was the last of three films in which they appeared together, following ANY NUMBER CAN WIN [1963] and THE SICILIAN CLAN [1969]): the latter isn’t particularly exerted by his role – being, after all, among his last – but the former is unusually committed and, in fact, he also served as the film’s producer! Mimsy Farmer appears as Delon’s new lover following the tragic death of his wife in a road accident; Michel Bouquet is memorable as the Javert-like police inspector who won’t let Delon go (a slinky but nastier version of the Van Heflin part in ONCE A THIEF); Gerard Depardieu has a brief role at the beginning as a wannabe criminal associate of Delon’s.


08/01/07: LA CAGE AUX FOLLES (Edouard Molinaro, 1978) :star::star::star:

I had never watched this because I only owned it in French without subtitles (though it’s been shown several times on Italian TV over the years) but did catch the inferior first sequel dubbed in English; to be honest, I’m not particularly interested in checking out the Americanized version – even after acquainting myself with the original (soon after co-star Michel Serrault’s passing).

The film is well acted (by Serrault, Ugo Tognazzi and Michel Galabru) and very funny, though no masterpiece; it seems surprising now that a ‘vulgar’ farce would receive an Oscar nomination for Best Direction – that said, there’s no denying its originality and style and, in any case, LA CAGE AUX FOLLES epitomized the 'alternative' gay lifestyle and immediately became the prototype of such films.

To my mind, the two best gags are: Tognazzi showing his manliness by picking on a dwarf for an offence directed at his lover Serrault (with the little man nonchalantly pointing to the big guy behind him as the real culprit), and the homosexual couple’s black manservant (similarly inclined) bursting into laughter at seeing Serrault trying to pass himself off as Tognazzi’s wife: the latter’s son by a chance encounter is getting hitched and has brought his fiancé to meet the ‘family’ – the trouble is that the girl’s father, Galabru, happens to be an MP with a party dedicated to preserving Moral Order! Unfortunately, the film’s ending – the celebration of the wedding (following the fracas at the nightclub which, predictably, sees Galabru in drag) – is rushed and fairly lame when compared to what has gone on before.

I know the last entry in the series wasn’t very good and, really, this should have been left as a one-off; incidentally, Tognazzi made another popular sequence of comedies around this same time (all of which I still have in my 'unwatched VHS' pile) – AMICI MIEI – which Pietro Germi initiated but Mario Monicelli took over after the latter’s death, and with the third and final outing helmed by Nanni Loy.