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Reviews
Samson and Delilah (1949)
A hoot !!!
This movie is a kinda of kiss off to the old style of epic or biblical film making.
Visually, the movie is vivid - a special Technicolor delight. Studio filmmaking at the top of its game for the late 40s. Every dollar spent is up on the screen.
Just not in the script.
Everything spoken sounds like silent movie inter titles.
Still, the movie is rather silly and grandiose.
The acting is as over the top, yet stilted in an odd way, probably the result of the pace of the editing.
The acting honors really belong to Angela Lansbury in the first third of the film; George Sanders has rarely done "George Sanders" better than he. The performance is on a par with his Addison DeWitt.
Hedy Lamar is gorgeous but so emotionally blank.
Mention also must be made for the Victor Young score.
It is really standard setting for this style of movie which continued in the early 70s.
It is difficult to watch unless one entirely gives up to the "style" of DeMille. It's more restrained than the late THE TEN COMMANDMENTS, which isn't saying a lot.
It is delirious in a very special way.
Oh yeah, there are also the great special effects of the climax.
The Major and the Minor (1942)
Still a delight
I haven't seen this in a couple of years and it delights me once again.
The script is delicious and the editing is so sharp.
Ginger Rogers nails every scene without breaking into a sweat. Ray Milland shows just the right gullibility and confusion for his feelings towards the so-called juvenile.
The movie could have been just a smarmy joke, like most of Wilder's last comedies.
However, the audience is trusted to share in the joke and ride with it.
One of the greatest delights is Diana Lynn, who is the wisest characters in the film, with a "nail it every time" attitude. She was the real miracle in the Sturges film "The Miracle at Morgan's Creek" and repeats her magic once again.
Lola Montès (1955)
Unique and one of a kind
The influence of Max Ophuls is not to be underestimated.
His cinematography and his understanding of human frailty resonates in all of his movies.
This is especially fascinating as it deals with surfaces beneath surfaces and what might be required to stay alive under the most difficult circumstances.
Martine Carol seems to have been unfairly maligned for her passivity as an actress, but this was necessary for portraying one who had to hide her true feelings.
The supporting cast is magnificent.
Peter Ustinov as the ringmaster is frightening in his coldness.
Anton Walbrook is subtle, as is Oskar Werner with his vulnerability.
The restoration is glorious and thanks go to those who are responsible for retrieving this cinematic treasure.
Man of the West (1958)
Better than one might suspect
I hadn't seen this movie in a few years but was surprised by how good it is.
If you like westerns it is a very good one.
The script is strong and plays well to Cooper's strengths as an actor and an icon.
The rest of the cast is excellent, with Julie London being the bigger surprise. Her performance is subtle and evolves well.
As usual, Lee J. Cobb shows little restraint.
The CinemaScope work by veteran cinematographer Ernest Haller is exceptional, especially in the final scenes of the movie.
Anthony Mann has directed this movie as if it were a noir and ranks as one of the best films of his late period. It is almost as good as "The Naked Spur."
Undercurrent (1946)
Ersatz Hitchcock
This is an anomaly in the Minnelli canon.
Hepburn and this director were not meant for each other.
The idea of Mitchum playing Brahms is laughable.
Marjorie Main land Edmund Gwenn leave the movie way too early.
Robert Taylor's performance is embarrassing, when one looks back on his earlier career. He ought to have left Metro after "Johnny Eager."
Not a melodramatic opera, like "Some Came Running" or "The Bad and the Beautiful."
The script is terrible and the very idea of Hepburn being a "lady in distress" is not worthy of consideration.
There is zero chemistry between any of the leads and Jayne Meadows give the only credible performance in the film.
It's a curiosity but not much more.
Man's Favorite Sport? (1964)
Not quite a tv movie
Like most Universal movie of this period, it looks like it was made for television.
Mancini's score doesn't help at all.
Rock Hudson does a fair Cary Grant imitation..
The real treat in this movie is the performance from Paula Prentiss.
She had sex, humor and a timing that was truly unique.
Though directed as if she were Katharine Hepburn in "Bringing Up Baby", this performance is so off-beat and original. Most likely, it was as misunderstood at the time. There was nothing like her.
She enlivens the mess that is "What's New Pussycat".
She is almost worth watching "Bachelor in Paradise", equaled on Janis Paige.
Accused of Murder (1956)
Surprise !
This is much better than I had any reason to believe it might be.
It is almost a noir, but, aside from Virginia Grey, must of the cast don't really register very well.
A supporting turn by Lee Van Cleve, among others (David Brian, Sidney Blackmer, etc.) keep the movie moving along.
And there is Vera Ralston, singing ersatz cafe songs, and the glory of TruColor.
Still, why Eddie Muller hasn't championed the movie is beyond me, as he has justified far worse.
For some reason, I stumbled across the movie on The Criterion Channel, which keeps surprising me, as one of the best movie streaming services available.
Once Is Not Enough (1975)
Trash
And not very good trash at that.
Some of the cast might be in on the joke, but not enough are.
The Mancini score isn't even suitable for an elevator.
Think of "Valley of the Dolls" without the wit.
The Chase (1966)
A Heady Mess of a Movie
One of the greatest misfires out of a decade full of them.
It is actually better than Preminger's "Hurry Sundown" but not by much.
Actors seem out of control and the post production editing forced many of the creative talents to disown it. But there is no way anything worthwhile could have been made out of Lillian Hellman's fetid script.
It is fun to see some of the actors flailing about, however. Janice Rule is wonderful; Miriam Hopkins reminds what a great actress she once was; Martha Hyer chewing her pearls is unforgettable. Jane Fonda hadn't developed as an actress as yet and Robert Redford seems to be trying to do anything to make something out of nothing. As for Marlon Brando, his performance is even more mind-boggling than in Mutiny On The Bounty. Why Angie Dickinson is married to him is mysterious.
Great John Barry score, however.
The Hindenburg (1975)
It was never meant to fly.
Not one of the better movies directed by Robert Wise, but not the worst either.
Wise seems to have a fondness for bracketing his movies with quasi- or real newsreel footage; this probably stems from working with Orson Welles at RKO.
This is no "The Sound of Music" or even "The San Pebbles", but it is a whole lot funnier, though unintentionally.
It is difficult to believe that this is from the same director of "The Day the Earth Stood Still" and "West Side Story".
The crassness of 197Os Universal hangs over this. Anne Bancroft would probably not have included this in one of her best films, but she is awfully funny in it. George C. Scott was taking just about anything that he was offered at the time.
Showgirls (1995)
Trash On Steroids
There's no way you will find a spoiler in this "review."
Easily, this is one of the funniest and raunchiest Bad Movies that ever escaped from a Major studio.
Vulgar, clumsy and predictable beyond words.
Still, once one allows oneself to give up to it, the lack of pretensions carry you off.
Think "Flashdance" but really dirtier and much more misogynistic.
The Jigsaw Man (1983)
What a waste of talent and time.
The movie is an ineptly produced version of what would have been the perfect airport book (anything to have been bought to pass the time while flying or waiting for a flight). All of the actors appear to be just sliding through their performances and the script pages. No one except Charles Gray appears to be trying to give something resembling a coherent performance.
An unfortunate waste of talent, time and money.
Be forewarned: if you watch this, you will never get the two hours of your life back.
4 for Texas (1963)
Unholy mess
I had hoped that there might be something of interest in this comedy (?) directed by Robert Aldrich, however, there is nothing to be enjoyed here.
The performances of Sinatra and Martin are among the laziest I have ever encountered. It is a totally ugly film, from top to bottom. It's contempt for women is astounding and it's obvious contempt for the audience is even worse. What a complete waste of time.
It is difficult to fathom why it was ever made and even more difficult to understand why it was released in any form.