film lover 293

"People Will Talk" (1951)--Joseph Mankiewisczs' broadside at The House of UnAmerican Activities Committee (HUAC); film is talky, but also funny and doesn't insult its' audience; film assumes audience will get mythological references, etc. Cary Grant & Jeanne Crain star; both have dialogue asserting their favor of free speech. Burgess Meredith is a truly hateful character. In spite of "User Reviews" opinions, I found this a funny, thought provoking film. A good restoration (in spite of # of views) is on YT 8.7/10 stars.

OK: 1.) "Orca" (1977), Rip-Off of "Jaws" (1975)--Momma Killer whale sees baby killed, goes after Richard Harris & Charlotte Rampling in revenge--Bo Dereks' cast encased leg serves as an appetizer. 2.) "King Kong" (1976)--done better in 1933. 3.) "King Solomon's Mines" (1985)--Rip-Off of 1950 & 1937 versions of same name. In the 1985 one, if you look closely, you will see the "Gold" items are spray-painted TupperWare. 4.) "Exorcist II: The Heretic"--I can't think of a worse sequel to a good movie. Linda Blair tap dances to "Lullaby of Broadway" while Richard Burton battles a demon. The mind boggles. 5.) "Mame" (1974)--Painful Rip-Off of "Auntie Mame" (1958) & the Broadway show "Mame" (1966). AM had Rosalind Russell, M had Angela Lansbury--those two stars were capable of keeping their respective shows running and entertaining, Lansbury could sing, Lucille Ball could not.It's a bad sign for a musical when the main preoccupation is to disguise how old & handicapped your Star is (Ball had recently broken a hip while skiing). To those who watch "Mames" Jan. 2016 showing--You Are Warned.

1951: No real surprises. 1.) A Streetcar Named Desire 2.) People Will Talk--Joseph Mankiewiscz's cannon blast at The House of UnAmerican Activities Committee. Cary Grant and Jeanne Crain deserve credit for taking on roles dangerous to their careers (Grants' character openly blasts the HUAC like committee in the film, and so does Crains'). 3.) The African Queen 4.) An American In Paris 5.) "M" 6.) "A Place In The Sun" 7.) "Rawhide"--20th Century Fox western with Susan Hayward & Tyrone Power--better than its' reputation. 8.) "Strangers on a Train" 9.) "Storm Warning"--Not well enough known anti can't say because AutoCensor stars it out drama with Doris Day (her performance in this role reputedly convinced Alfred Hitchcock to cast her in the remake of "The Man Who Knew Too Much" (1956)), Ginger Rogers, and Ronald Reagan (Reagan had a banner year). 10.) "Royal Wedding"--The number where Fred Astaire dances on the walls and ceiling, and Jane Powell debut as a musical comedienne wipe out other faults.

LawrenceA--I saw it more than 20 years ago and am having a dreadful time trying to find it online. It's one of the ten best movies Jean Simmons ever did. It's a British Historical noir.

1950: 1.) "Annie Get Your Gun" 2.) "Gun Crazy" 3.) "Rio Grande" 4,) "Born Yesterday" 5.) "All About Eve" 6,) "Winchester '73" 7.) "Panic In The Streets" 8.) "The Asphalt Jungle" 9.) "So Long At The Fair"--Jean Simmons comes back to her hotel to be told that her brother, who had registered at the same time, doesn't exist. Tied for 10.) "Cinderella" & "King Solomon's Mines" Oddity "Nancy Goes To Rio"--In which Jane Powell grows up & grows *****, which Dress Designer Helen Rose makes obvious by clothing Powell in a hot-pink, low-cut, cocktail dress. Co-stars Carmen Miranda, who is starred in one of MGM's craziest musical numbers of The 50's "Caroon Pa Pa". Miranda tries to pack the madness of "The Gang's All Here" (1943) into a three minute number, and comes close to succeeding. Number had about one third excerpted in "That's Entertainment Part III" (1994). Is worth sitting through the film to see, IMHO. Films to check out: "A Lady Without Passport", "The Baron of Arizona", & "The Toast of New Orleans. The first is a Hedy Lamarr noir; the second is based on fact, about a man who tried to buy up all of Arizona Territory--Vincent Price is fun to watch;the third is the second & final teaming of Mario Lanza & Kathryn Grayson, & is worth watching for the music.

I'm with speedracer5--I rely on memory --And if memory doesn't give me top ten films from a year, I Wiki it and can get the final 2 or 3 films. for a list. speedracer5--the first film I remember seeing in a theatre was "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang", in 1968; I loved the flying car. Great film for the under five set, LOL.

"Fear and Desire" (1953)--Stanley Kubrick's first film. According to the information on the preface to this film, Kubrick tried to have all copies of it destroyed. He missed two copies; a third was found in 2009(?) in Puerto Rico, which was restored in 2010; this version is on YT--search for "So Long at the Fair" and it will be the third result, in a mix of 164 videos, number 75. Film might as well have been called "Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. First twenty minutes is jibber-jabber, Then we get down to business. Film is nearly plotless, but its' theme is about soldiers quietly going mad: One is already there, the others are on the way. The one sane person is a Southerner. Film shows Kubrick's eye for a startling shot, etc. Films' theme comes together After you've seen the film and think back on it. For a 67 minute film, it's Hard to sit through. 5.9/10 stars.

1940's Top Ten Films, in no particular order: The Magnificent Ambersons On The Town The Leopard Man The Pirate Casablanca The Maltese Falcon Notorious Rebecca Lifeboat Double Indemnity Funniest Film(s) of the 40's; Intentional: The Miracle of Morgan's Creek--Betty Hutton & director Preston Sturges at his best; #11 on my list. The Lady Eve--Barbara Stanwyck is brilliant in the Sturges comedy. Funniest Films of the 40's; UNintentional: "The Gang's All Here" (1943)--I nearly laughed myself into an asthma attack; "The Lady in The Tutti-Frutti Hat" has to be seen to be believed; same case with the finale. Cannot recommend this highly enough! "Bride of Vengeance" (1949)--Before seeing, Wikipedia "Lucrezia Borgia"; once there, go directly to "rumours". BOV treats ALL rumors as fact: Cannon making is an important part of the plot. Film plays like "I Love Lucy" in 16th century fancy dress. Is a wonderful restoration of BOV on The Paramount Vault, on YT.

George Cukor, Katharine Hepburn & Bette Davis

SONG OF NORWAY (1970)

NIVEN, DAVID

PURPLE RAIN

1943

LILIES OF THE FIELD

JULIET OF THE SPIRITS

THE ANGEL WORE RED (1960)

1957

KAVNER, JULIE

IF IT'S TUESDAY, THIS MUST BE BELGIUM

GIGI

Lust For GOLD

SansFin--Your recommendations are always appreciated; please know that. If it would take you too much time to research items, that's understood. But you have recommended films to me that I wouldn't have seen otherwise, and each film was good. So if you have favorite foreign (to me, non-Hollywood) films to list, please list them.

1.) "Help!" 2.) "Juliet of the Spirits" 3.) "The Naked Prey" 4.) "Repulsion" 5.) "A Patch of Blue" 6.) "Ship of Fools"--Preachy, I know, but Vivien Leigh's last performance is in the film. 7.) "Major Dundee" 8.) "Cat Ballou" 9.) "The Hallelujah Trail--comedy is inconsistent, but I love the score and film; Burt Lancaster and Lee Remick strike comic sparks. 10.) "Darling"

"Crack In The World" (1965)--Restoration is from The Paramount Vault on YT--has over 50,000 views and is losing clarity. Image is still good enough to enjoy a moderately stupid sci-fi/disaster film. Dana Andrews wants to harness clean power, so he sets off a nuclear bomb in reverse to go through the Earth's crust and hit magma, just like an oil strike. See how many lines you can anticipate and say before the actor/actress in each scene; I got fifteen correct without having seen the film before. 6.8/10 stars

sewhite2000--David Wayne had acting talent that went unused in films. He won two Tonys, one for "Finian's Rainbow" (1947) & one for "The Teahouse of the August Moon" (1954). As you said, Wayne was unafraid to tackle unpleasant roles. Here's a second vote for A David Wayne SUTS day. And thank you, TCM, for showing the remake of "M".