"Mediocre" films that are actually quite good
Films with a significant number of votes and a surprisingly low user rating on IMDB (1 per year).
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- DirectorLarry SemonStarsDorothy DwanCharles MurrayOliver HardyDorothy, heir to the Oz throne, must take it back from the wicked Prime Minister Kruel with the help of three farmhands.Semon displays some wonderful surprising directorial flourishes. Put all thoughts of the 1939 film out of your mind before viewing. The films have virtually nothing in common. Genuinely funny. Oliver Hardy gives a great atypical performance.
- DirectorD.W. GriffithStarsWalter HustonUna MerkelWilliam L. ThorneAn episodic biography of the 16th President of the United States.Has a reputation for being fairly stiff and clunky. I actually found the strange performances and pacing helped the film (it feels like an art house movie). Sure it feels different to much of the fare at the time but is that a bad thing? Surprisingly humorous to boot.
- DirectorWilliam Cameron MenziesMarcel VarnelStarsEdmund LoweIrene WareBela LugosiWhen delusional madman Roxor kidnaps a scientist in hopes of using his death ray to achieve world dominance, he is opposed by Chandu, a powerful hypnotist and yogi.Edmund Lowe admittedly gives a fairly bland leading performance but in every other respect this is a great romp. The plot is completely out there and Bela is firing on all cylinders as the evil Roxor. Bela would take on the hero role of Chandu in the sequels.
- DirectorFrank R. StrayerStarsLionel AtwillFay WrayMelvyn DouglasWhen corpses drained of blood begin to show up in a European village, vampirism is suspected to be responsible.Creepy tale - much recycled. Atwill and Wray are pitch perfect but Frye steals the show as the local misfit that (quite literally) acts as the fall guy for the series of unexplained vampiric attacks on the local populace. Sadly, Frye didn't get too many opportunities to display his acting talents so this sleeper is definitely worth tracking down.
- DirectorGeorge CukorStarsKatharine HepburnCary GrantBrian AherneWhen her father decides to flee to England, young Sylvia Scarlett must become Sylvester Scarlett and protect her father every step of the way, with the questionable help of plenty others.I think you either love or hate Hepburn's mannered screwball comedy performances of the period. I can understand why they grate with people but personally I love them. Perhaps somewhat overshadowed by Bringing Up Baby, this is a real overlooked treat with an interesting feminist sub-text.
- DirectorLambert HillyerStarsOtto KrugerGloria HoldenMarguerite ChurchillWhen Countess Marya Zaleska appears in London, mysterious events occur that lead Dr. Von Helsing to believe that the Countess must be a vampire.
- DirectorEdward SedgwickStarsJack HaleyRosina LawrencePatsy KellyA Cinderella story of a young country girl who comes to Hollywood and achieves movie stardom with the help of a publicity man.Likable variety show. The obvious highlight being Laurel and Hardy's star turn. That said, most of the guest cast give creditable enjoyable turns and the whole 70 minutes passes like it's no more than 1 hour 20 minutes. Hard to imagine a film like this being made nowadays as there just isn't the wealth and quality of character actors around.
- DirectorJohn G. BlystoneHal RoachStarsStan LaurelOliver HardyGrete NatzlerLaurel and Hardy, rat trap salesmen who are unable to do business in Switzerland, having no money to pay for lunch end up working for the hotel where a composer, who has run away from his wife, has taken refuge.Essentially all scenes with L&H are genius. All without are dull, dull , dull. Fortunately there's enough of the former to make the latter bearable. Stan's attempt to trick the St. Bernard into giving up its brandy is amongst the funniest moments in all cinema. And how they trained that ape to act so well! I will never know.
- DirectorWalter SummersStarsBela LugosiHugh WilliamsGreta GyntInsurance agent-physician collects on policies of men murdered by a disfigured resident of the home for the blind where he acts as doctor-on-call.Wonderful cheap and cheerful Dr. Mabuse rip-off. Lugosi excels in a dual role. Maybe I'm stupid but I didn't even spot one of his disguises. Atmospheric, well directed, bizarre with lovely performances from all involved. Track it down now.
- DirectorJean YarbroughStarsBela LugosiSuzanne KaarenDave O'BrienA mad scientist develops an aftershave lotion that causes his gigantic bats to kill anyone who wears it.Knocked together in like 12 minutes or something - yet still more imaginative and enjoyable than your typical Emmerich or Columbus corporate multi-media tie-in tripe. Lugosi may have entered his completely raddled period by this stage but he still manages to turn in some excellent performances (even if he doesn't always necessarily know what film he's actually making).
- DirectorAlbert S. RogellStarsBasil RathboneHugh HerbertBroderick CrawfordElderly Henrietta Winslow lives in an isolated mansion with her housekeeper and beloved cats. As her health fails, her greedy relatives gather in anticipation of her death.If you can look past Borderick Crawford's annoying performance, this is an enjoyably creepy comedy-horror. The horror stalwarts all deliver the goods and the setting, music and camerawork work to effectively create an appropriate atmosphere. If the comedy elements could be retrospectively removed, it would be small masterpiece (a bit like if we could remove the Ritz Brothers from The Gorilla).
- DirectorJohn BrahmStarsJames EllisonHeather AngelJohn HowardSurviving members of an aristocratic English family are threatened by a legendary monster when they venture out on chilly, foggy nights.A real treat for fans of John Brahm's more famous psychological mystery thrillers (The Lodger and Hangover Square). The plot's a bit naff but pretty much all the other elements are already in place. The camerawork is superb. Look at that great tracking shot around the house near the beginning that introduces the basic plot elements.
- DirectorRobert SiodmakStarsLon Chaney Jr.Robert PaigeLouise AllbrittonWhen Katherine, a beautiful Southern girl obsessed with thoughts of eternal life, invites Count Alucard to come to her mansion in the U.S., she unleashes a Pandora's box of horror on unsuspecting relatives and neighbors.On paper, Chaney Jr. seems a poor choice to play Dracula and it takes a while to accept him in the role. Actually though his brutish bullying portrayal is quite unsettling and in a way fits in with the plot of this son of the 'great' Dracula being a pale shadow of his father. The vulnerability that characterizes Chaney's more famous roles works here to make us feel sorry for him despite his horrible deeds. If you ever wondered how Ray Winstone would fare as the count, then look no further.
- DirectorEdward LudwigStarsJohn WayneSusan HaywardDennis O'KeefeDuring WW2, the U.S. Navy implements a new idea of forming construction battalions that also are fighting units, in case of Japanese attack.'Sands of Iwo Jima Lite', this is an interesting propaganda piece. Wayne is good as always in a film that given it's topicality and no doubt rushed production stands up really well. Wayne's Wedge Donovan is fiercely loyal to his men and fights to gain them the appropriate military protection and status to allow them to do their job as safely as possible. Given the modern day image of Wayne, you may be surprised at the somewhat anti-establishment role he takes on this film (and a number of others of the period).
- DirectorJoseph KaneStarsJohn WayneVera RalstonWalter BrennanIn 1871 Dakota, two crooked businessmen oppose the local wheat farmers and the railroad development to control the town of Fargo.A nuanced performance from Wayne in one of his lesser known mid-period westerns. Great fun with good supporting roles from the likes of Brennan, Bond and Mazurki. Ralston is as always good fun, demonstrating dramatic and comedy ability. It's surprising that she never became a big star. Like a number of Wayne films of the period the plotting is erratic, but apart from that thoroughly recommended.
- DirectorPhil KarlsonStarsGale StormPhil ReganMoe HowardA struggling young singer falls for a nightclub owner whose father, a millionaire, is trying to shut it down. Featuring The Three Stooges as waiters.Can you ever have too much of the 3 Stooges? Frankly, yes. Swing Parade very sensibly rations out their appearances into bearable and very funny little chunks, most of which are integrated into the wider narrative and involve fun interplay with the equally funny Edward Brophy. Gale Storm is a very likable lead. Phil Regan is obviously a much more accomplished singer than an actor. Louis Jordan brightens up the film with great renditions of his surreal and no doubt lewd (surely they ain't just talking about a mule) classics Caldonia and Don't Worry About That Mule. Outside of Jordan, some of the songs are a bit dull. It's hard to imagine that Curly can be outdone in a film for total out-there barminess but Windy Cook's last scene has to be seen to be believed.
- DirectorRichard WallaceStarsJohn WayneLaraine DayCedric HardwickeIn South America, an American engineer is asked by his boss to build a mountain railroad tunnel following a shorter but more dangerous route.Very similar to a number of successful Wayne films of the early forties in structure and characterization. The setting and strong performances from Quinn (surprisingly) and especially Hardwicke and Anderson help the film to stand out from the rest. The clash of culture that stands in the way of Wayne's relationship with Day is no doubt mirrored symbolically by the difficulty of building the tunnel through the mountain. But enough of that nonsense the film is exciting Sunday afternoon fare. If you want to see an example of an atrocious updating of the format, look no further than Wayne's own painfully crass The Hellfighters.
- DirectorCharles BartonStarsBud AbbottLou CostelloVirginia GreyTwo con men selling phony stock flee to Mexico ahead of the law, where they run into a woman friend from their earlier days, who is now a bullfighter.Laugh-out-loud funny A&C runaround that is somewhat overshadowed by their career masterpiece 'Meet Frankenstein' from the same year and it's subsequent sequels. Far superior to the better known Hit the Ice or even The Naughty Nineties.
- DirectorGeorge WaggnerStarsJohn WayneVera RalstonPhilip DornIn 1818 Alabama, French settlers are pitted against greedy land-grabber Blake Randolph but Kentucky militiaman John Breen, who's smitten with French gal Fleurette De Marchand, comes to the settlers' aid.It's got Ralston, a scheming Marie Windsor, bad wigs and John Wayne singing a duet with Oliver Hardy. I mean, what more do you want from a film? The plot meanders all over the place but you can't have everything. I hated it at first but it sorts or sneaks up on you. Quite similar in setting and tone to the also neglected The First Rebel.
- DirectorCharles LamontStarsBud AbbottLou CostelloPatricia MedinaTwo Brooklyn wrestling promoters go to French Algeria in search of a famous Algerian wrestler but accidentally end-up in the French Foreign Legion.The last consistently funny A&C film. Lots of witty one-liners and physical knockabout. A highlight in a small but good role is Tor Johnson (admittedly he is playing a hulking wrestler so it's not too much of a stretch).
- DirectorFrederick De CordovaStarsRonald ReaganDiana LynnWalter SlezakA college professor attempts to salvage his personal and professional reputation by using a laboratory chimpanzee to prove that environment trumps heredity in behavioral development.Great little family comedy that's reputation undoubtedly suffers because of it's association with Reagan. In actual fact, Reagan proves to be fairly adept at light comedy as a sort of poor man's Fred MacMurray and is only slightly out acted by Bonzo.
- DirectorRoy Ward BakerStarsRichard WidmarkMarilyn MonroeAnne BancroftAfter being dumped by his girlfriend, an airline pilot pursues a babysitter in his hotel and gradually realizes she's dangerous.Early film from Marilyn Monroe that not only demonstrates her star power and sensuality but also clearly shows what a good actress she was pretty much from the off. Widmark's good as well as are most of the supporting players. The theme of mental illness is dealt with in a fairly bold way for a major Hollywood film of the period.
- DirectorJohn Paddy CarstairsStarsNorman WisdomMargaret RutherfordMoira ListerNorman, a stockroom worker at a London store, aspires to be a window dresser. Pursuing his dream, he falls for a shopgirl and they uncover a robbery plot, miraculously foiling the thieves.The first of a run of brilliant Wisdom comedies lasting a decade. Strangely his work is consistently undervalued. I defy anyone to watch this and not find it funny.
- DirectorEdward D. Wood Jr.StarsLyle TalbotDolores FullerHerbert RawlinsonVic Brady draws young Don Gregor into a life of crime. He then blackmails Gregor's plastic surgeon father into fixing up his face so he can evade the cops.Y'know what? I thought this was a good little film. It's certainly no worse than much of the output of the major studios at the time. I watched this and The Narrow Margin one after the other. The latter is regarded as a taut low-budget noir masterpiece, whilst Jail Bait is seen as a bit of a joke. For my money TMN was fairly po-faced and dull, whilst JB kicked along quite nicely. I know which one I'd rather watch again.
- DirectorJoseph M. NewmanJack ArnoldStarsJeff MorrowFaith DomergueRex ReasonAliens come to Earth seeking scientists to help them in their war.1950's paranoid sci-fi fare, equally enjoyable in either the standard or MSTified versions. The effects are really impressive, particularly once we get to Metaluna and the film doesn't overstay its welcome.