Dodsworth (1936)
A Woman's Passions Emotionally Undressed So, this is an incredibly depressing movie about an auto maker who retires and takes a vacation to Europe only to find they want very different things out of life. I guess there's supposed to be a love
Miss Sloane (2016)
Machiavelli to Kaiser Soze This was a surprisingly good movie. It reminded me a little of Michael Clayton ...although not quite as good. Jessica Chastain was incredible in this one, incredibly Machiavellian! However, Miss Sloane reminds me of Kaiser Soze in her scheming, planning, cunning and ruthlessness. The movie also had Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Mark Strong, Alison Pill and John Lithgow. Apparently Miss Sloane didn't do well at the box office, and several outlets panned it pretty badly, but hell - I rarely agree with the critics anyway!…
The Damned Don't Cry (1950)
One of my favorite relaxing pastimes is watching old movies. Occasionally, I'll post about one I like. Here's the first on this blog: The Damned Don't Cry is (at this point) my second favorite Joan Crawford movie. Number one will have to wait for another day, but this one really was good. Kind of a Mephistopheles rags-to-riches story - with a price to pay in the end. Now, I don't stand for men hitting women, but one significant scene in the movie involves just that. REVIEWS: Noir of the Week did a great revi…
Across the Pacific (1942)
This was a decent movie, kinda of a Maltese Falcon on the high seas! From Amazon: When disgraced American military officer Rick Leland (Humphrey Bogart) boards a Japanese ship, he is apparently willing to turn his back on his country to become a mercenary. On the vessel, Leland meets a mysterious professor named Dr. Lorenz (Sydney Greenstreet) and the beautiful Alberta Marlow (Mary Astor). Soon Lorenz shows an interest in Leland and recruits him for a dangerous mission. As Lorenz pulls Leland into a web of international espionage, the tru…
Dangerous Crossing (1953)
From Amazon: A recently married heiress, Ruth Stanton (Jeanne Crain), embarks on a honeymoon cruise with her new husband, John Bowman (Carl Betz). However, shortly after getting on board, John disappears. None of the crew remember seeing him, and the ship's manifest has Ruth registered alone and under her maiden name. Ruth wanders the boat in search of John, but soon the captain and crew believe Ruth must be crazy. Only kindly Dr. Manning (Michael Rennie) takes her seriously and helps unravel the mystery. I'm writing this retrospec…
Jennifer (1953)
As a big fan of Ida Lupino , I really enjoyed this movie! From Wikipedia : Down on her luck, Agnes Langley is hired by Lorna Gale ( Mary Shipp ) to replace the "missing" Jennifer as caretaker for the Gale family's currently unoccupied Southern California estate. Agnes is immediately affected by the mysterious house and, after she finds a diary apparently belonging to Jennifer, becomes obsessed with determining the cause of the woman's "disappearance". REVIEWS: Mark, over at the Where Danger Lives …
Strangers on a Train
Strangers On A Train is just flat out a creepy movie. I "enjoyed" it, even though there was just something that kept me antsy and uncomfortable throughout. I think this may also have been the first movie that I actually realized Alfred Hitchcock had a daughter . I think I read somewhere that when Patricia Highsmith wrote the book, her inspiration was the true-life story of Leopold and Loeb. The Smithsonian has a nice piece about these two freaks who killed a kid just to see how it would feel to commit the perfect crime. L&…
Michael Clayton
Michael Clayton is just flat-out a modern film-noir! There's all the elements...crime, murder, coverup, threats, intrigue, mob, loan sharks... heck, even the score has a noir feel to it. The cast is amazing...George Clooney, Tilda Swinton and Tom Wilkinson . Now I know everyone's gaga over Clooney, and the artsy crowd fawns all over Swinton, but for me - Tom Wilkinson stole the show! REVIEWS: Nick's Flick Picks does a masterful review of the movie as does A World to Win . FAVORITE QUOTE: Clayton: "I am not the enemy.&qu…
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I Confess (1953)
I Confess is one of those movies that just gets in your bones. There's something about knowing the awful truth but not being at liberty to say anything! And of course Hitchcock gave it the full treatment. I realize it's completely different than Meryl Streep's " Doubt " but somehow, they just remind me of one another. I think this may have been the first film I saw Montgomery Clift in, and I never forgot it. Great performance! Good reviews can be found at The Hitchcock Report and Derek Winnert . For Christmas I got…
Possessed (1947)
"I've Done Things I'm Ashamed of... But This Isn't One of Them!" Possessed starred Joan Crawford, Van Hefflin and Raymond Massey. At some point in the movie, it occurred to me that Massey was in Arsenic and Old Lace as Johnny, the twisted killer. I don't know - this kind of realization cracks me up - the number of movies I've watched, it's fun to be surprised! Of lakes, boats and houses possessed Anyway, this was a good movie. One of the things I liked was the lake house setting, with the house the Chris…
