I Just Watched...

[CaveGirl]

2 hours ago, LornaHansonForbes said:

Lawrence-

if you are on a Japanese Films of the 1950's kick, may i recommend THE ONIBABA?

I have not seen many foreign films, but this one I like a lot.

Oh, lordie...I own that, and what a movie, Lorna!

I would recommend Onibaba to anyone here, particularly if they like foreign films, or like the work of people like Kurosawa and his contingent. What a great movie! And spellbinding cinematography too.

[CaveGirl]

23 hours ago, LornaHansonForbes said:

I WOKE UP very hungover this morning and watched a fair bit of RAIN (1932)

I sort of dissed this one in the HITS UNDTE MISSES thread yesterday, and while I still don't like it, I don't dislike it at all.

One thing I will immediately say is that if the print of this film was cleaner and- ESPECIALLY- the soundtrack was cleaned up, I might be able to assess it better (it's still an impressive achievement, only four or so years after the introduction of sound recording that they were able to incorporate the rain into the soundtrack as smoothly as they seem to.)

there is a tinny echo to the voices and that "hiss" on the soundtrack which, along with the rain, diminishes the impact that the film had when it was presented in mint condition with clear sound.

it's pretty well-directed, but there are too many really stage-bound scenes where characters talk in a medium shot WITH NO CLOSE-UPS EDITED IN  and REMAIN UTTERLY STILL AND IN THE SAME POSITION ( ie under the boom mic) for the entire scene...

and yet, there are interstitial, transitioning moments where LEWIS MILESTONE does some wonderful things with the camera- i missed the opening of the film, but as  i recall it, it has some really impressive crane work where the camera meanders across the action on the ground and rises up.

this was, i think, the first time CRAWFORD went full-on SEX CLOWN, and she reminds me a little of EUNICE from MAMA'S FAMILY, and yet- she is terrific, especially in the scene where she tells off WALTER HUSTON (miles away from KONGO) and her make-up free scene with her love interest.

this is still a bold film with a rather shocking (but honest) view of religion and religiousity and moral superiority, and the conviction with which it states itself it admirable.

it's not really anyone's fault that this one is **1/2 stars at best...sometimes they just happen that way.

i don't like that white patent leather belt she wore for most of her scenes, but i am sorry that fur stoles with the animal's head still attached have never come back into fashion.

Lorna, anyone can write a boring review just with a synopsis but very few can write about "full-on SEX CLOWN" portrayals that are reminiscent of Eunice from Mama's Family and white patent leather belt fetish wear, that even geriatric male golfers need to divest themselves of. Sorry for ending with a preposition! You deserve a column at Newsweek, and are the female Robert Benchley. Your reviews are so entertaining yet with tongue in cheek tendencies, that often hide your deep understanding of film, literature and life. Having studied Maugham in college and after, your remarks about his tale being quite shocking but honest in its view of religiosity is dead on. Thanks for having such a great sense of humor accompanied with a true literary heart, that you kindly share with your fans here, which includes me.

[LawrenceA]

3 hours ago, LornaHansonForbes said:

Lawrence-

if you are on a Japanese Films of the 1950's kick, may i recommend THE ONIBABA?

I have not seen many foreign films, but this one I like a lot.

It's just Onibaba (no "the"), and it's from 1964. I've seen it, loved it, and have it on DVD. But thanks anyway for the attempted recommendation!

[LornaHansonForbes]

1 minute ago, LawrenceA said:

It's just Onibaba (no "the"), and it's from 1964. I've seen it, loved it, and have it on DVD. But thanks anyway for the attempted recommendation!

I also keep you all on your toes with my near constant boogering of important facts. 

What can I say? I’m too lazy to google. 

[misswonderly3]

On 8/30/2018 at 12:34 PM, CaveGirl said:

Good!

More of Zachary for me...

Oh, I didn't know we could share up classic movie stars. Hey, this presents any number of possibilities !

[CaveGirl]

1 minute ago, misswonderly3 said:

Oh, I didn't know we could share up classic movie stars. Hey, this presents any number of possibilities !

You say Zachary doesn't hit the spot for you, Miss W. but I know you have good taste, so I'm curious. Just who are your male heartthrobs amongst all the movie men you've viewed over the years.

I think it tells a lot about someone, to know their likes. I probably like suave, shallow men being so shallow myself. You seem to be much more grounded and sane, so if you are willing to share some names I would be so thrilled. I promise not to ever tease you if you like someone like Groucho, or Lionel Atwill but I'm guessing it will be a guy more like Robert Ryan or maybe Sterling Hayden. Thanks ahead of time!

[LawrenceA]

1 hour ago, LornaHansonForbes said:

I also keep you all on your toes with my near constant boogering of important facts. 

What can I say? I’m too lazy to google. 

Onibaba was clear in my memory thanks to my mentioning it in the Favorite Foreign Language Films thread over in the Your Favorites section last week.

I can't say that I'm on a Japanese movie kick, necessarily, it's just that several came up in a row alphabetically. I don't think I have another Japanese movie from 1958 for quite a while, just American and British stuff. 

[LawrenceA]

Gang War (1958) - Dopey crime drama from Fox and director Gene Fowler, Jr. School teacher Alan Avery (Charles Bronson) witnesses a gangland hit, and decides to testify against the culprits. This brings him to the attention of gang boss Maxie Meadows (John Doucette), who orders his thugs to menace Avery and his  wife. Meanwhile, Maxie pressures his alcoholic attorney Bryce Barker (Kent Taylor) to get his men out of jail. Also featuring Jennifer Holden, Gloria Henry, Gloria Grey, Ralph Manza, and Barney Phillips.

This low-budget programmer suffers from a half-baked script and some poor performances. Bronson isn't given a lot to do, while character actor Doucette is lousy as the chief hood. Despite the title, there's really no gang war taking place, although Doucette has harsh words with another gangster at one point.    (5/10)

Source: FXM

[CaveGirl]

4 hours ago, LornaHansonForbes said:

I also keep you all on your toes with my near constant boogering of important facts. 

What can I say? I’m too lazy to google. 

Hey, Lorna...if you liked "Onibaba" I'm wondering if you've seen and liked "Woman in the Dunes"?

It is quite perverse. Of course that's why I liked it, but it would make a good companion piece to "Onibaba" I feel.

[LawrenceA]

The Goddess (1958) - Scathing character study from Columbia Pictures, writer Paddy Chayefsky, and director John Cromwell. The story follows the life of Emily Ann Faulkner (Kim Stanley), a small-town girl with a troubled childhood who moves out to Hollywood and eventually becomes a huge movie star. However, she's incapable of maintaining any viable relationships, either with friends or lovers, leading to misery and heartache. Also featuring Lloyd Bridges, Steven Hill, Betty Lou Holland, Bert Freed, Joyce Van Patten, Joanne Linville, Joan Copeland, Elizabeth Wilson, Louise Beavers, and Patty Duke.

This was obviously based on the life of Marilyn Monroe, although there are reportedly elements of Ava Gardner, Joan Crawford and Judy Garland blended into the mix. Anyone who knows anything about Monroe's sad life off the screen won't find a lot of surprises here. That being said, it's worth seeing for Stanley's terrific performance, as well good supporting turns from Elizabeth Wilson and Lloyd Bridges. Steven Hill, the legendary theater "might-have-been", has one of his few major film roles, and while he delivers his lines well, he's also more than a bit wooden. The screenplay earned an Oscar nomination.   (7/10)

Source: TCM

[LsDoorMat]

The Vampire Bat (1933) 5/10

"The Vampire Bat" by small studio Majestic Pictures was a quickie made right after "Mystery of the Wax Museum" by Warner Bros. with two of the same stars - Fay Wray and Lionel Atwill. The townspeople of a German village are being found dead in their beds with two puncture wounds in the neck and their bodies completely drained of blood. The town fathers suspect vampirism. Dr. Otto Von Niemann (Lionel Atwill) is a scientist doubling as a physician for the town and helping in the investigation. No explanation as to why a scientist wants to do research in the middle of nowhere. Karl Brettschneider (Melvyn Douglas) is the police inspector in love with Von Niemann's assistant (Fay Wray). No explanation as to why a man with such a Teutonic sounding surname would have an accent and demeanor as though he just walked out of a corn field in Nebraska.

Dwight Frye plays Herman - his usual creepy character - who likes bats and keeps them as pets. Suspicion slowly begins to settle on him. How much I wonder if Mr. Frye wished he could for once play a dull salesman who wears a tie to work every day. Maude Eburn is supposed to be comic relief as the hypochondriac aunt of Wray's character. Instead she is just annoying.

What is perfect about this film? - The atmosphere. It looks like they borrowed the extras and the settings right out of a Universal horror film of the era. Also, since there are many medium name actors being employed, the acting is quite good for poverty row. And I didn't even recognize George E. Stone as one of the villagers - his makeup and characterization were that good.

But then the last ten minutes just comes at you too quickly and degenerates into nonsense. For example - a bottle of tablets labeled both as poison AND sleeping pills? Will this not make anybody wonder? Faye Wray doesn't give us one dose of that famous scream of hers? And how did just one villain manage to tie up a conscious healthy young woman? There are several physical confrontations the audience is denied seeing and we only see the outcome. Was staging them that big of a bother? And at the end of all of this, the "creature" you are waiting to see is ... a SPONGE???

If you like great atmosphere and good acting ,even if you are denied a satisfactory conclusion, I'd say this is up your alley. I think it really could have used another ten minutes to wrap up loose ends in a satisfying manner.

source - A few days ago I saw an old DVD-R copy from TCM that was not the restored version. I have seen the restored version and so a couple of things made more sense, but not enough to change my rating.

[LawrenceA]

God's Little Acre (1958) - Uneven rural comedy-drama from United Artists and director Anthony Mann. In small-town Georgia, Walden family patriarch Ty Ty (Robert Ryan) spends his days digging for buried gold on his cotton farm gone-to-seed. He's determined to find the loot, even if he wastes 15 years of his and his sons' lives trying to do it. Meanwhile, hot-tempered son-in-law Will Thompson (Aldo Ray) is frustrated due to lack of work since the cotton mill shut down over a labor dispute, so he spends his time drinking and chasing after his sister-in-law Griselda (Tina Louise). Also featuring Buddy Hackett, Jack Lord, Vic Morrow, Michael Landon, Fay Spain, Helen Westcott, Lance Fuller, Russell Collins, and Rex Ingram.

The original novel by Erskine Caldwell was a scandalous sensation back in the 1930s, leading to a much-publicized obscenity trial. The movie also caused quite a commotion due to its boundary-pushing sensuality and unabashed lasciviousness. The first hour+ of the movie is a southern-fried cartoon of outsized characters and broad-as-a-barn performances. Later the movie takes a wrong turn toward social commentary and workers-of-the-world-unite seriousness. Ryan seems to be having the most fun, although a very young Michael Landon as an albino thought to have magical powers is amusing, as well.    (6/10)

Source: TCM

[laffite]

The avatar !!!

*****out of*****

/////

[LawrenceA]

High School Hellcats (1958) - JD exploitation from AIP and director Edward Bernds. Joyce (Yvonne Lime) is the new girl in town, and on her first day in school she learns about the Hellcats, a girl gang led by Connie (Jana Lund) that rules the campus. Joyce reluctantly bows to social pressure and agrees to join, but she has to pass various initiations involving petty crimes. Joyce also finds romance with soda jerk Mike (Brett Halsey). Also featuring Susanne Sidney, Heather Ames, Nancy Kilgas, Viola Harris, Don Shelton, and Robert Anderson.

This rather mild kids-gone-wild flick features such morally-bankrupt behavior as girls wearing slacks to school, and even asking boys out to the big party. There's some unintentional humor in Joyce's strained relationship with her dad (Don Shelton), as he freaks out over his girl growing up, and he doesn't handle the stress well. An odd side note to this movie is that it was executive produced by silent film star Buddy Rogers, and was secretly bankrolled by his wife, Mary Pickford!     (5/10)

Source: TCM

Two Hellcats, Hellcattin' it up:

[Emily Emerac]

The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T, which was on Svengoolie tonight.

What can one say?  One of the most colorful, imaginative, yet bizarre, anti-child, nightmarish and sadistic works of musical cinema I have ever seen.  It's a sort of Dr Seuss, German Expressionist, pornography, snuff film mashup that, I suppose, really does defy description.  I'll never figure out what audience it was intended for.

Every time I see this movie listed, I watch it.  It's like that proverbial horrible accident you can't look away from. At least it has performers who were some of my childhood favorites, like Tommy Rettig, Hans Conried, Peter Lind Hayes and Mary Healy.  But the subject matter, and the execution thereof.  My goodness!

What do you think of this movie?

[cigarjoe]

Manhandled (1949) Screwball Noir

Another of the ensemble/quasi-comedy Noirs.

A small sub genre of  Noir, other films are Deadline at Dawn (1946), His Kind of Woman (1951), Shack Out On 101 (1955), and even Lady In The Lake (1946), has some of this quality, there are probably a few others lurking in the Classic Noirs. Neo Noir contenders are Dr. Strangelove, or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964), Seven Beauties (1977), The Late Show (1977) After Hours (1985), Down By Law (1986), Delicatessen (1991) and The Big Lebowski(1998).

Directed by Lewis R. Foster (Crashout (1955)).The screenplay was by Lewis R. Foster and Whitman Chambers and it is based on the 1945 novel The Man Who Stole a Dream by L. S. Goldsmith. The cinematography was by Ernest Laszlo (D.O.A. (1949), M (1951), The Steel Trap (1952), Kiss Me Deadly (1955))

The story concerns a writer Alton Bennet (Alan Napier), who has a recurrent nightmare of killing his rich, wayward wife, by bludgeoning her repeatedly on the head with a quart bottle of perfume. He goes to a shrink Dr. Redmond (Harold Vermilyea) and relates all this to him and his secretary/transcriptionist Merl Kramer (Dorothy Lamour).

When Alton's wife is actually murdered in exactly the same way as described in the dream, of course Alton is immediately suspected. All her jewelry, insured for $100,000 also happens to be missing. Art Smith is the police officer in charge, Sterling Hayden the insurance investigator, Dan Duryea the sleazy P.I.

This film isn't supposed to succeed very well as a hard core noir but more as light comedy. Manhandled swings a bit to far in the comedy direction for its own good. Deadline At Dawn handles the balance much better, it isn't quite as obvious. It does have some good moments though, and some twists.

Duryea is playing his expected sleazy, slimy, no account, and he does this well to perfection. It's worth a watch but not necessarily a purchase. Screen caps from a TCM presentation. Café au lait Noir 6/10 Full review with some screen caps in Film Noir/Gangster pages.

[TomJH]

7 minutes ago, cigarjoe said:

Manhandled (1949) Screwball Noir

 

Duryea is playing his expected sleazy, slimy, no account, and he does this well to perfection. It's worth a watch but not necessarily a purchase. Screen caps from a TCM presentation. Café au lait Noir 6/10 Full review with some screen caps in Film Noir/Gangster pages.

It's not possible for me to get enough of Dan Duryea when he plays a screen sleaze.

[LornaHansonForbes]

17 hours ago, CaveGirl said:

Hey, Lorna...if you liked "Onibaba" I'm wondering if you've seen and liked "Woman in the Dunes"?

It is quite perverse. Of course that's why I liked it, but it would make a good companion piece to "Onibaba" I feel.

I started reading the book and really liked it, but got distracted... A poster here submitted a review of WOMAN IN THE DUNES, and I don’t recall who it was but I DISTINCTLY recall they really really really really really did NOT like it.

I really envy people who are into foreign films, because by and large I just can’t get into them. This is largely because I have a hard time reading the subtitles and taking in the visuals, my eyes are sensitive and I get headaches easily. One exception has been Japanese foreign films, the few I’ve seen I have liked very very much – in large part because they have extended moments of silence which makes it less of a visual strain for me

[LornaHansonForbes]

It took me like four tries, but I finally made it through GODS LITTLE ACRE the movie

in between between tries number two and three , I read the book.

On both fronts, it’s pretty hard for me to understand just what people got so worked up about, but this was of course before cable tv and internet p or n.

ALDO RAY is a YES tho, I love a chest you can dry your feet on.

[midwestan]

4 minutes ago, LornaHansonForbes said:

I started reading the book and really liked it, but got distracted... A poster here submitted a review of WOMAN IN THE DUNES, and I don’t recall who it was but I DISTINCTLY recall they really really really really really did NOT like it.

I really envy people who are into foreign films, because by and large I just can’t get into them. This is largely because I have a hard time reading the subtitles and taking in the visuals, my eyes are sensitive and I get headaches easily. One exception has been Japanese foreign films, the few I’ve seen I have liked very very much – in large part because they have extended moments of silence which makes it less of a visual strain for me

I get where you're coming from on this LHF.  Subtitled movies can be difficult for some people to follow.  If the story is interesting enough for me, I'll stick with it till the end.  Afterwards, I play a little mental volleyball with the voices in my head weighing the pros and cons about what I've just watched and whether or not it's worth another look if there were parts I didn't understand (just like any other movie I view without subtitles).  Of course, other distractions can make that exercise somewhat pointless!

[TomJH]

Honor Among Lovers (1931)

Interesting drama and with today's "Me Too" movement it's interesting to see, in contrast to today, what passed as normal behaviour in the American office place in films in the early '30s.

Claudette Colbert is the super efficient secretary of stock broker Fredric March. The moustachioed March is charming but playboy inclined but he has a serious case of the hots for Colbert. At one point he impulsively kisses her on the lips and his secretary is flustered. He then offers her a round the world cruise with him but it's apparent he has something other than work on his mind, and marriage is not a part of his plans.

Colbert instead goes out and marries her poor stock broker boyfriend (played by wussy looking Monroe Owsley). So what does March do when he finds out? He fires her, of course!

The marriage, of course, is doomed. Just looking at a weakling like Owsley you know no good can come of it. He will make a bad investment, losing almost everything, plus be an embezzler, to boot. After March has reformed his ways a bit and acts a little more honourable regarding Colbert a jealous Owsley will turn on him with a gun in his hand. Melodrama, my friends, rears its head.

Directed by Dorothy Arzner, with this film's presentation of Colbert as pretty well perfect and the men in her life as anything but it's apparent where this film comes from. But the acting is pretty good, and Colbert and March have a nice chemistry.

This would be one of four films in which they co-starred. Colbert gets top billing here at a point in their careers in which both of their stars were slowly building. March would soon have a hit with Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde so that when they were re-united the following year in The Sign of the Cross he would get top billing, with Colbert listed third in the credits. (Colbert's performance as the seductive but evil Queen Poppaea would be a big success for her with this DeMille extravaganza, though, and her days of getting third or even second billing would largely be behind her).

Prominently featured in the supporting cast of Honor Among Lovers are Charlie Ruggles as a raccoon coat wearing business associate who likes the juice, and Ginger Rogers in a small role as his bubble brained girlfriend. They're there strictly as comic relief. Rogers' makeup, as well as hairstyle, are not particularly complimentary to the lady here but, as we know, far better days lay ahead for the actress.

At that, Honor Among Lovers is perhaps most interesting if seen as an early apprentice work in the careers of Colbert, March and Rogers before becoming major stars. At that, it's not a bad way to waste your time for a reasonably paced hour and a quarter.

This film was recently released on DVD in a nice looking print as part of the Universal Vault Series.

2.5 out of 4

[LawrenceA]

Home Before Dark (1958) - Slow-burn psychological drama from Warner Brothers and director Mervyn LeRoy. Jean Simmons stars as Charlotte, a fragile woman who has just been released from a mental ward after a lengthy treatment for a nervous breakdown. Her husband (Dan O'Herlihy) is nervous and wary about Charlotte's well-being, while boarder Jake (Efrem Zimbalist Jr.) takes a shine to her. Charlotte begins to suspect that her husband may be having an affair with her sister Joan (Rhonda Fleming), but is it real or only in her mind? Also featuring Mabel Albertson, Stephen Dunne, Joan Weldon, Joanna Barnes, Kathryn Card, Marjorie Bennett, Eleanor Audley, and Johnstone White.

This takes a while to get moving, and I found myself getting antsy in the first half-hour, but things start to get livelier and more interesting, and I enjoyed the rest of the film. Simmons is very good, and probably should have been Oscar nominated for her complicated performance. The movie, at 130+ minutes, goes on a bit too long though.    (7/10)

Source: TCM

[midwestan]

10 hours ago, LornaHansonForbes said:

It took me like four tries, but I finally made it through GODS LITTLE ACRE the movie

in between between tries number two and three , I read the book.

On both fronts, it’s pretty hard for me to understand just what people got so worked up about, but this was of course before cable tv and internet p or n.

ALDO RAY is a YES tho, I love a chest you can dry your feet on.

I can see it now.  Some programming genius at Bravo or TLC will come up with a show about men and women with attractive upper torsos.  Wonder what the Nielsen ratings for "Say Yes To The Chest" will be?  ?

[LornaHansonForbes]

30 minutes ago, midwestan said:

I can see it now.  Some programming genius at Bravo or TLC will come up with a show about men and women with attractive upper torsos.  Wonder what the Nielsen ratings for "Say Yes To The Chest" will be?  ?

I’d watch.

[LawrenceA]

The Horse's Mouth (1958) - Very funny British character study from United Artists and director Ronald Neame. Gulley Jimson (Alec Guinness) is an eccentric painter living on the edge of ruination even as his work is gaining more and more critical praise. He resorts to various outlandish tactics to find the money and space he needs for his next masterpiece, leaving chaos in his wake. Also featuring Kay Walsh, Mike Morgan, Renee Houston, Robert Coote, Veronica Turleigh, Arthur Macrae, Michael Gough, Reginald Beckwith, Gillian Vaughan, Peter Bull, Joan Hickson, Clive Revill, and Ernest Thesiger.

This is one of Guinness's best performances, a larger-than-life character that he manages to make real. His grumbly voice and shoddy appearance make this a stark contrast from most of his film portrayals. Guinness himself also wrote the screenplay, which brought him an Oscar nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay. Among the supporting players, Kay Walsh is a clear standout as Gulley's cantankerous friend who tries to help him get his life in order, if only to get repaid for all the money he's borrowed from her over the years. I also liked young Mike Morgan as would-be apprentice to Gulley. Morgan died 10 days after filming completed. I found The Horse's Mouth to be one of the best comedies that I've watched in some time. It's currently scheduled to air on TCM very late on October 1/2, so catch it if you can. Recommended.   (8/10)

Source: FilmStruck