TomJH

"Scout, you can't know how a person feels about someone's performance until you've walked in his movie watching shoes."

I don't know if my favourite epitaph was in the movies but it certainly can be found on some real tombstones - I TOLD YOU I WAS SICK!

Hudson may not have won an Oscar but it looks like someone is giving him a big hand.

The War Wagon (1967) Fun, unpretentious western about the plot to hold up a gold bullion carrying armored coach protected by legions of hired guns as well as a gattling gun. John Wayne recruits the usual motley collection of characters to pull off the scheme. Adding to Wayne's incentive is the fact that the coach is owned and run by Bruce Cabot, a scoundrel who had done him wrong three years before with a frame up which sent him to prison. There are no real surprises here but, as breezily directed by Burt Kennedy, it's a pleasant diversion. Wayne fans will be satisfied with a rather typical late career Wayne performance. But to me the biggest kick of the film came from co-star Kirk Douglas as dead shot Lomax, a renowned gunslinger hired by Cabot to kill Wayne but who joins in on the robbery scheme with the Duke instead. Douglas brings a lot of enjoyable flash and flamboyance to his role, demonstrating in showboat fashion his athletic ability by leaping from the ground into the saddle of his horse numerous times. At one point Douglas even leaps over top of one horse to land in the saddle of the horse beside him. And it is clearly Douglas doing it, too. There is no stunt double. Wayne's character does some ground to horse saddle leaping, too, but I noticed that every time he did it it was at a distance and you couldn't see the actor's face. The leaper also looks thinner than Wayne. Clearly at age 60 the Duke was not nearly as adept at this kind of stunt as was Douglas at 51. And speaking of flash I recall a scene in this film when I originally saw it at the show which got a big laugh from the audience. That occurs when Douglas, a holster strapped to his hips in a medium shot from the waist up, walks away from the camera to revel he's buck naked, with his butt cheeks on display. When watching the DVD of the film last night I was anticipating this scene but was a bit disappointed to see that when Kirk starts to walk away there was a fast cut to the next scene. No Douglas cheeky humour in this version of the film. Other cast members of the film include Howard Keel (the former baritone of Kiss Me Kate and Seven Brides for Seven Brothers rather demeaningly cast as an Indian, even though it's obviously intended as a joke), Robert Walker Jr. and a grizzled, sour tempered Keenan Wynn. Dimitri Tiomkin, an old hand at western musical scores going back to Duel in the Sun and High Noon, provides the score for this one. 3 out of 4

For me seeing the change come over Cruise's character in Rain Main is the primary reason to watch the film.

I enjoyed History of the World, Part 1, largely because I'm into subtle humour So when's Part 2 comin', Mel?

It's lovely watching the jocular chemistry and affection that existed between Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara after 58 years of marriage in this interview. They're together again and I'm sure they have the angels laughing.

"As a Texan who moved to LA, I'd like to confirm that statement."

I just saw Bowfinger last evening for the first time. A very funny film. Martin was great and Eddie Murphy, not one of my favourites, was wonderful in his dual roles. I was breaking up watching Martin as he was trying to clean up his house before the arrival of a sexy young lady for what he hoped would be a hot evening with her. He then spots his dog, lying asleep on the couch, as usual, his two back legs shamelessly spread apart. Steve tries closing the legs together but they pop apart again. He then ties a bandana around the dog's legs to keep the pooch's jewels hidden. All during this, of course, the dog remains fast asleep. Great comedy stuff.

"You're darned right I come from Texas, pardnuh! I'm a cowboy like you never saw before!"

It's been almost four years since this Rathbone thread was last around. Many newer posters would never have seen it. There's quite a bit of info and comments about Basil and his films here. For Rathbone fans, enjoy.

Eddie Murphy in his dual roles in BOWFINGER. He plays an eccentric conspiracy minded action film star on the verge of a breakdown as well as his quiet, nerdy brother, and I thought he was brilliant in both roles. Murphy's brash in-your-face comedy style does not appeal to me (way too much strutting self satisfied ego there for my palate) but he actually managed to make the nerdy brother a rather sweet character. In fact, Murphy was so good in his two roles that there were moments when I wondered if it was the same actor.

I enjoyed Stiller and Meara very much on their many TV appearances over the years and later, of course, enjoyed Jerry's cantankerous solo turn on Seinfeld ("Festivus for the rest of us"). Jerry Stiller had that special gift to make us laugh. We need more of that in this world. R.I.P.

The really gossipy ones can't resist bringing up this rumour, unfortunately. They're drawn to it like flies are to you-know-what..

Just out of curiosity, David, is asking questions your primary purpose on these boards? Here's the link to Movie Collector's database that was supplied to you on your Mel Brooks thread. You can look up the answer yourself. http://www.moviecollectoroh.com/reports/TCM_SCHEDULES_SUMMARY_alpha.htm

Night of the Hunter (1955) A dark childrens' fairy tale, with visually stunning noir overtones, Charles Laughton's sole directorial effort remains a unique and memorable adaption of the Davis Grubb novel. Not to be overlooked is the magnificent contribution made by cinematographer Stanley Cortez. A neophyte film director must have leaned heavily upon this film veteran's advice throughout the production. Much as Laughton is rightfully appreciated for this masterpiece, it would not be the film it is without Cortez's towering contribution. At the same time Walter Shumann's musical score adds tremendously to the fright of this film journey. Robert Mitchum arguably delivers the performance of his career as "Preacher" Harry Powell, a psychopath who travels the American South in a search for widows to seduce and eventually murder for their money. Mitchum, his character in one scene physically resembling the Frankenstein Monster as he chases two children up some stairs, is mesmerizingly charming and frightening. Shelley Winters plays the latest object of his attention in a fine, tortured portrayal (Laughton went through agonies, apparently, trying to get the performance he wanted from the method actress). Billy Chapin and Sally Jane Bruce play her two children who will soon be on the run from the monster. Other memorable contributions to the film are made by Lillian Gish as a protective Mother Goose figure, James Gleason as an old timer who will see a terrible sight in the lake one day when he goes fishing, Peter Graves in a small role as the childrens' father and Evelyn Varden as a folksy, talkative small town resident initially charmed by Mitchum. SPOILER ALERT: Many film buffs understandably love The Night of the Hunter, a film which died at the 1955 box office and was generally dismissed by the critics at the time. Laughton was greatly discouraged by the tepid reception to his film and never directed another one. Impressive as this film is, however, it remains a flawed masterpiece because of its final reels and less than satisfactory resolution. When the Mother Goose character largely takes over the story line 90% of the incredible tension earlier established in the film is lost, with the Preacher only seen fleetingly on screen. He still remains an ominous presence but, at the end, the Monster is suddenly turned into a frightened pussycat by an old woman with a gun. Mitchum's Harry Powell deserved a better finale than that. Nevertheless, The Night of the Hunter remains a memorable film experience all film buffs should undertake. A film can have a serious flaw and still be one of the greats. 3.5 out of 4

My favourite Jimmy Stewart performance, with Kim Novak wonderful too. One of the most memorable final scenes I've ever seen in a film.

Jan Sterling's response when told by Douglas she should be seen going to church: "Kneeling bags my nylons."

I first saw this film years ago and liked it enough that I wrote this review. A Neglected Gem from Raoul Walsh Posted: Dec 16, 2012 5:34 PM Amazing, isn’t it, when you watch a film that you never really even heard of, and find yourself drawn into it right from the beginning. I discovered a little Warner Brothers gem, The Man I Love, filmed in 1945 and held up two years before its eventual release. It’s a difficult film to categorize by genre, part noir (certainly in appearance), part exploration of club life, particularly the jazz scene, part human drama. It was directed by Raoul Walsh in such a smooth, effortless fashion, with his gliding camerawork, that I want to scream out, “Why do people stereotype this man as just an action director?” He could be, on occasions such as this, so much more. It’s a film about lonely people, or at least, those searching for something in the big city, dissatisfied with their existing lot in life. The opening scene alone is worth the price of admission, and it’s got to be something of a classic. Two drunks outside a club, attracted to the music inside, are refused entry through the establishment’s locked doors, told that it’s “crazy” people inside having a good time by themselves. Walsh takes us inside and there it is, a smoke filled jazz-tinged session of the Gershwin title tune. Walsh shows great respect for the jazz musicians performing. As the camera slowly, lovingly explores this group, the director gives a few of them their own brief moment. The sax player with a closeup of his fingers, the coronet player, the drummer, then back to the coronet player, only this time it's a shadowy closeup of his face. The film’s star, Ida Lupino, then starts to sing The Man I Love off screen. Walsh teases the viewers, letting them hear the song’s opening lyrics before allowing them to have their first sighting of Lupino. Even then she has her back partially to the camera as she casually moves to let us see her in profile, a cigarette in her hand, from which she casually flicks an ash. No, it’s not Lupino’s voice. She’s dubbed, but the voice sounds right, like it could be her’s, and Lupino, beautifully attired, then gets her first closeup, as a giant cloud of cigarette smoke escapes her mouth. And you can see it in this actress, you can see it in her eyes, that connection with the song that she’s singing (which will also come to represent her character, as it turns out). “One day he’ll come along, the man I love. “And he’ll be big and strong, the man I love . . .” Lupino brings so much feeling to these lyrics with her expression. You’re already ready to believe in her character at this point before you even get to know her. And you see her comaraderie with the musicians, particularly at that moment in the song in which she lights the pianist’s unlit cigarette with her own. How I wish George Gershwin could have seen this moment that Walsh, Lupino , the cinematographer with that great smoky black-and-white photography, and the set designer, in addition to those real musicians playing there, all bring to his song. This three minute song sequence is a loving tribute to Gershwin’s haunting hurting masterpiece. Even if you don’t care for the rest of the film (which I find impossible to believe) you HAVE to see The Man I Love if only for this opening. All those who love jazz, who appreciate films like Young Man with a Horn or Blues in the Night, will find something to love about this introduction that Walsh gave his film. There are myriad characters in the film, and I don’t want to bog this brief tribute down by listing them all. Lupino’s character travels from New York City to California to see her family but her character is leaving one bad relationship and now drifting. There’s the sleazy night club owner, well played by Robert Alda, who only has opportunism on his mind, be it with a woman for a night or taking over someone else’s nightclub. Alda's character is fairly despicable, putting the obvious charm on one moment, angrily snapping the next when things are not going his way. There’s also Bruce Bennett as a jazz pianist who was ripped apart by a divorce, and remains haunted by that relationship. Lupino, also hurting, finds it easy to make a connection with him but he’s reluctant to commit. Walsh does something with Bennett in this film. Bennett , a big boned former Olympian, who made a career in character support in Hollywood, largely at Warners, will never be on anyone’s list of great actors. But there was always a bit of a hang dog sadness about him, and it works beautifully in this part. You can see the pain in his face as he laments over his lost love from the past. There’s also an essential decency about his character (especially in contrast to the sleazy nightclub owner) by which you can fully understand Lupino being drawn to him and wanting to take a chance. Bennett is quietly wonderful in the part. It has to rank as one of his best performances. And for a film that is about a collection of people dissatisfied with their lives, an extension of that can be found in this most capable cast, none of whom enjoyed satisfactory careers in Hollywood. There was Alda, initially playing, ironically, George Gershwin in a high gloss biopic before Warners then cast him in supporting roles, often of a sleazy nature, such as in this film. Then there was Bruce Bennett, a solid, if somewhat rather dull supporting player for the most part, though effective on occasion, such as in this film, Treasure of Sierra Madre (as Cody) and when playing Mildred Pierce’s former husband. Then look at the rundown of actresses in this film, all briefly appearing in Warners films before largely disappearing, Dolores Moran, effectively cast as a spoiled brat in The Man I Love who falls in with the nightclub owner, Martha Vickers, best remembered today as Lauren Bacall’s thumb-sucking **** sister in The Big Sleep, and Andrea King, leading lady of The Beast with Five Fingers. There’s even Lupino. Strong performer that she was, and briefly viewed as Warner’s chief dramatic studio challenge to Bette Davis, after a strong start the studio seemed to lose interest in her. The Man I Love, released in 1947, would be one of her last effective roles before she would become the only actress I can recall who went behind the camera as director when it was apparent that acting opportunities were no longer coming her way. She was a capable director but what a loss it was for all of us that she could no longer find the right roles as an actress. The Man I Love is not a great film. There is, however, a wistful melancholy about the production, with a moody ambience encompassing its lost characters, that makes it a highly affecting drama. This is a neglected Raoul Walsh melodrama that deserves a look, and then another. If only for that opening scene set in a nightclub late at night. Trust me on this one.

Yes but McElhone is dramatically credible in her role (her growing frustration of losing control during the final car chase is particularly impressive, I thought, adding to the sequence's already remarkable tension). I saw The Seven Ups and I agree with you that the car chase in that film is remarkable, Cigarjoe.

Ronin (1998) Director John Frankenheimer is in peak action form with this hard, no nonsense thriller about a group of former intelligence agents of different nationalities who are recruited to seize a mysterious, heavily guarded box. This thriller was a disappointment at the 1998 box office but has since acquired a growing reputation among action buffs. Certainly the film's two highlights, a pair of mesmerizing, viscerally churning car chase sequences, are among the best ever captured on film. A strong case can be made that they equal or surpass anything to be found in Bullitt or The French Connection. The cast is excellent, headed by Robert De Niro, as the cool, cautious former CIA agent (all their backgrounds remain mysterious) who becomes respected within the recruited group as unofficial leader of it, even though he, like the others, is left in the dark as to the contents of the box. Other solid contributions to the film are made by Jean Reno as a low key French agent, Natasha McElhone as an Irish recruiter who acts as spokesperson for the sources seeking the mysterious box, Sean Bean as an excitable, impulsive agent (with whom De Niro has a great confrontation scene) and Jonathan Pryce as the cold blooded Irish agent behind the box heist operation. While a deadly serious film, it also has the occasional understated sense of humour. At one point, when asked if he had ever killed anyone, De Niro replies, "I hurt someone's feelings once." The main criticism I would have of the film is that the story, at times, remains a little murky (probably deliberately so so that the audience is floundering in the dark at bit, along with the film's characters as to what is going to happen next). But it's not a serious flaw and the incredibly tense action scenes and spectacular stunt work, in particular, the final car chase down small alleys at 100 mph and then against on going highway traffic as vehicles crash around them, more than compensates for it. On location filming in Paris brings great atmospheric authenticity to the production. 3 out of 4

There were actually two Ford brothers involved in shooting Jesse, Bob (who usually gets all the credit/blame, depending upon one's point of view) and Charley. Bob did the actual shooting but it was Charley, whom Jesse regarded as a friend or, at least, someone he could trust (Wrong there, Jesse!) who was able to convince James that his brother was an okay guy to have hang around. Charley was there when Jesse got it in the back while straightening a picture on the wall. Anyone ever notice that when Tyrone's character went to the movies in his last completed film, Witness for the Prosecution, it was to see a Jesse James western? It's never stated which version he went to see but I like to think that it was his own.

I used to think of myself as a fan of swashbucklers, being raised as a kid on the three Flynn films you named, as well as Ty Power's Zorro. As the years rolled by, though, I came to realize that they were pretty much the best films of the genre ever made (those four plus perhaps three or four others). Most swashbucklers leave me a little cold, though I find the very best of the genre among the most enjoyable films I've ever seen. It's a challenge, for starters, to find the right leading man for these films. He must be athletic but at the same time charming and light hearted but without seeming to be laughing at the material. It's tough finding actors who were truly convincing in this genre without seeming a little bit silly in costume attire.

I like Prince of Foxes ("Out pops the jelly!") and Son of Fury, too. This Above All I managed to get through but it comes across to me as a self important message film and the scene in which Joan Fontaine goes on about Britain, while important as propaganda for its time, dates the film today. This was also an attempt at a more serious role for Power as an actor. I can't recall that he made that much of an impression upon me in it, certainly nothing compared to Nightmare Alley.

Well, as you said, it's a matter of taste. I think The Mark of Zorro is one of the great swashbucklers (since you don't care for this film, Swithin, I assume you don't care for swashbucklers as a genre). Power demonstrates a deft, light touch in his scenes posing as as fop, while also looking terrific in the final duel. And I'm a little surprised you also don't like either Nightmare Alley (the first studio "A" production, I believe, to deal with charlatans exploiting man's belief in the hereafter) or Abandon Ship, a grim realistic presentation of survival that poses a moral quandary for the audience, though you acknowledge the high quality of Power's work in both of them. I agree that Kings Row would have been better if Tyrone had played Parris. Cummings gives the one performance in that film that I don't much like.