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The History of Mr. Polly (1949)
A superbly crafted film of a man's mid-life crisis
This is a great adaptation of the classic book by HG Wells which I read as a teenager and have since re-read a few times. An earlier adaptation was abandoned by the outbreak of WWII. A later TV adaptation starring Andrew Sachs (of Manuel fame)in the lead role was also lovely but you stand little chance of finding this anywhere on DVD.
Alfred Polly is a timid, daydreamer with an avid appetite for knowledge, mainly gained by reading. He loves to use the vocabulary he has gleaned from his books but often imagines as much of a word as he remembers. After the death of his father he dallies with a beautiful (trully Scrumptious in fact!) schoolgirl but instead marries a more sensible girl rather more of her choosing than his and tries to settle down. 15 years later he is married to an abusive, spiteful wife and is feeling trapped in his tedious life. Plans to burn his shop down and kill himself led him to become a hero and decide to strike out to make a new life for himself.
The film is a very close adaptation of the book (something you rarely see in the modern era, sadly). The film successfully conveys the light comedic feel of the book combined with the true melancholy of Mr Polly. the combination sits well with the subject of a man's life and the journey makes.
Mills is great in the lead.If you cannot sympathise with Polly as he hears the giggles of Christabel's friends or as he is first scooted by Uncle Jim, you probably need to see a counsellor.
The actual moral of the tale is not straightforward and the answers are not black and white. Nor are they in the book, or in real life. Hollywood would not make such a film, especially today. Which is a shame.
I Am Legend (2007)
Post apocalyptic cliché-fest
This should normally be one of my favourite types of film.
Mild spoilers follow.
The empty New York should be an amazing opener but is ruined by crappy CGI, a bad car chase and blatant Ford product placement.
It is a crying shame as the non-CGI stuff later in the film is proper eerie, though never as good as the empty London in the comparable, but much better, 28 days later.
The problem is entirely the fault of the evil English Dr Krippen. Oh dear, oh dear... What happened to the mosquitoes in the book I wonder? We are told that Will Smith's character can't get infected but that his dog (the only other character) can. No surprise then what happens in the next scene.
There is no satisfactory explanation of why he should go off on one with the Darkseekers on the pier.
Whatever was that weird part about Bob Marley for? Did Will Smitth insist on adding this? Everybody knows who Bob Marley is. But to have heard of Damian and not Bob is just bizarre. The quote about the need not to take a day off is kind of relevant, in a cheesy way, but basically, the rest is pants.
Recommendation: Get the other versions Omega Man and The Last Man on Earth instead.
The Tailor of Panama (2001)
A great Greeneland-style spy film with great characters
This is a great Greeneland-style spy film. If you like Le Carre-type British secret servicemen in a Graham Greene setting, this is for you. There are definite hints of Our Man in Havana here and Le Carre takes this feel and runs with it to great effect.
There are great three-dimensional characters performed with alacrity by some great acting talent. The screenplay is sharp and witty.
There was barely an explosion in sight either.
It's been described as a deeply satirical, grown up thriller and that is a pretty apt description.
There was a brief and unnecessary scene of bad CGI helicopter gunships but, apart from that, what's not to like?