The Band Wagon (1953)

Star Rating- 2 1/2
Length of Film- 111 minutes 
Director- Vincente Minnelli
Cast- Fred Astaire, Cyd Charisse, Oscar Levant, Nannette Fabray, Jack Buchanan, James Mitchell, & Robert Gist
Oscar Nominations- Betty Comden, Adolph Green (screenplay), Mary Ann Nyberg (costume), & Adolph Deutsch (music)

The Band Wagon came out a year after Singin' in the Rain, and it did NOT match the same "amazingness" of rain. A lot of it had to with the leading man. Fred Astaire can dance, but he doesn't have the looks or the singing ability like Gene Kelly.

This is going to be a short and sweet synopsis. The first half was producing and practicing  for the stage production of the musical, and of course it failed because the director had a different vision than the writers. The cast and chorus decided to re do the production to the original when they went on tour. The tour was a success and then they went back to on stage.

The end of the film was seeing each individual song in full costume and on stage. My favorite scene was when the 3 main characters dressed up as babies and sang and dance. You can CLEARLY see that they have fake arms and legs, but I have no idea how they did it. The song was catchy and you couldn't take your eyes away from the performers and trying to figure out how they did it. Here's an explanation from tcm.com


"Another musical sequence, the bizarre "Triplets," shows Astaire, Fabray and Buchanan all apparently midgets dressed as babies, sliding down from their high chairs and dancing. Since we see their feet hit the floor and special effects seem impossible, how did they do it? By balancing on artificial legs strapped to their knees, Fabray reports; they fell dozens of times before getting it right, and relied on pain-killers." 

The ONLY reason why I gave this movie the 1/2 star is because of the "Triplets" song. 

Atlantic City (1980)

Star Rating- 2
Length of Film- 104 minutes
Director-Louis Malle
Cast- Burt Lancaster, Susan Surandon, Kate Reid, Michel Piccopi, Hollis McLaren, Robert Joy, Al Waxman, Robert Goulet, Moses Znaimer, Angus Macinnes, Sean Sullivan, Wallace Shawn, Harvey Atkins, Norma Deil' Agnese, & Louis Del Grande
Oscar Nominations- Denis Heroux (best picture), Louis Malle (director), John Guarenas (screenplay), Burt Lancaster (actor), & Susan Surandon





If you want to see Susan Surandon rub lemon juice on her chest, shoulders, and breast...then watch this movie.

If you want to watch Susan Surandon make out with an older man...then watch this movie.

If you want to see a husband leave his wife for her sister, because they got pregnant...then watch this movie. 

If you want to see how they bought and sold cocaine...watch this movie.

Everyone rants and raves about how this movie portrays the crumbling Atlantic City with all the renovations and the mix of old and new AC trying to mesh as one. Burt Lancaster playing the old AC mobster who cannot let go of the past, and Susan Surandon, the present who is trying to get out of the food industry to the card tables to better her life.


I just didn't like it... I didn't like the romance the writers wrote having Surandon and Lamcaster be lovers. I can't believe a woman would go for a man 40+ years older. 

The book, "1,001 Movies You Must See Before You Die" raved about this film stating..." A wonderfully hard-to-categorize combination of crime thriller, love story, Beauty and the Beast-style fairy tale, and meditation on the changes affecting an American resort over half a century. " 

Yes, you write a compelling review interesting me in the film, but it sucked!!! Why would you want to watch a movie about a town that's falling a part, showing that crime and drugs were a crucial part of the city? Not me... 

Susa Surandon's accent was god awful, and made me second guess why she was even nominated for an Oscar. Why? Because she was topless and had to make out with Burt Lancaster? I don't think so... 

The ONLY part I liked was when the mixed the coca in with baby talc powder, or something along those sorts to trick the sellers and make more $. Thought that was pretty clever. 

Again, make your own mind. I disagreed with the reviewer of the book, but it doesn't mean that you won't. 

Happy watching!

M*A*S*H (1970)

Star Rating- 4

Length of Film- 116 minutes
Director- Robert Altman
Cast- Donald Sutherland,Elliott Gould, Tom Skerritt, Sally Kellerman, Robert Duvall, Roger Bowen, Rene Auberjonois, David Arkin
Oscar- Ring Lardner Jr. (Screenplay)
Oscar Nominations- Ingo Preminger (best picture), Robert Altman (director), Sally Kellerman (actress in support role), and Danford B. Greene (editing)






This film is considered a "satire" the use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people's stupidity or vices, particularly in the context of contemporary politics and other topical issues. This of course hits the nail on the head about the Korean War. Here are some of the quotes from the film that made me laugh.

Soldier #1: I think we should send a letter or commendation to the armed forces radio network.

Soldier #2: Ah, wonderful. Yes. It was the most uplifting program I’ve ever heard.

Soldier #1: It was climatic.

_____________________________________________________________________

Hospital Worker- Who are you?

Hawkeye- I’m Dr. Jekyll, actually. This is my friend, Mr. Hyde.

McIntyre- [Grunts]

 This movie is a just a bunch of guys stuck in a small area. They entertain themselves by teasing a female Major, nicknaming her "hot lips". They even go as far as tearing down the walls of the bathroom revealing her naked body for everyone to see.

Another hilarious part was when a soldier was so depressed, that he wanted to commit suicide. They throw him his last supper, which looked a lot like the last supper in the New Testament. 

At the end of the movie, while Hawkeye and Duke was driving away in a jeep, going home after being discharged, the intercom came on with announcements stating the movie MASH would be playing. It went through and named all of the actors that were in the film. It was a creative way to incorporate the credits, but still be in the film.  

The Manchurian Candidate (1962)

Star Rating- 3

Length of Film- 126 minutes
Director- John Frankenheimer 
Cast- Frank Sinatra, Laurence Harvey, Janet Leigh, Angela Lansbury, He ray Silva, James Gregory, Leslie Parrish, John Mcgiver, Khigh Dhiegh, James Edwards, Douglas Henderson, Albert Paulsen, Barry Kelley, Lloyd Corrigan, & Madame Spivy
Oscar Nominations- Angela Lansbury (actress in support role), Ferris Webster (editing)

List of reasons why you should watch this movie: 
1. Angela Lansbury plays a villain
2. Military brainwashing 
3. Love of his life is murdered
4. Frank Sinatra
5. Political manipulation

Here are some fun, behind the scenes info from the book, "The Greatest Movies Ever". 

*Due to its vehemently anti- Communist subject matter, the film was not released in Eastern Bloc countries until the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1993.

*In the karate scene, when Sinatra smashes the coffee table with his hand, that grimace of pain isn't acting. He broke his finger that never completely healed.


Watch this movie. There were so many memorable scenes in this movie: especially when the North Korean held a forum, explaining and showing examples of how heartless the brainwasher can be and when they're told to jump, they say "how high?" 

You will never look at a Queen of Diamonds the same, ever again.

The Conversation (1974)

Star Rating- 3
Length of Film- 113 minutes
Director- Francis Ford Coppola
Cast- Gene Hackman, John Cazale, Allen Garfield, Frederic Forrest, Cindy Williams, Michale Higgins, Elizabeth MacRae, Teri Garr, Harrison Ford, Mark Wheeler, Robert Shields, & Phoebe Alexander
Oscar Nominations- Francis Ford Coppola (best picture), Francis Ford Coppola (screenplay), Walter Murch & Art Rochester (sound)
Cannes Film Festival- Francis Ford Coppola (Golden Palm, ppirze of the ecumenical jury-special mention)



Henry Caul (Gene Hackman) was hired to follow his clients wife, because he suspects she's cheating on him. Henry follows the couple and successfully has a recording of the boyfriend saying, "he'd kill us if he got the chance." 

He gives the recording to his client, and he hears the recording, and fears for the wife and boyfriends safety. In the recording he hears that they're going to meet at specific hotel at, certain date, and time. Becoming obsessed with this case, he gets the hotel room next to theirs, he drills a hole to the other hotel room to hear their conversation.

The hotel had bathroom block windows and a body was smashed up against it, Henry viewing it all...Henry flushes the toilet, and it overflows with blood and towels.

In the end, the quote "he'd kills us if he got the chance" wasn't said by the boyfriend, worried that THEY were going to die... 

In the end, Henry was threatened to keep his mouth shut, because they were listening. He tore his house to shreds to find the bug. And when I say, tear his house apart, I'm talking about the hard wood floors, and the walls.

The best party of the movie was finding out the boyfriend/wife committed murder, and seeing Henry tear his house apart, never finding the bug.

Shadow of a Doubt (1943)

Star Rating- 3
Length of Film- 108 minutes
Director- Alfred Hitchcock
Cast- Teresa Wright, Joseph Cotton, Macdonald Carey, Henry Travers, Patricia Collinge, Hume Cronyn, Wallace Ford, Edna May Wonacott, Charles Bates, Irving Bacon, Clarence Muse, Janet Shaw, & Estelle Jewell
Oscar Nomination- Gordon McDonnell (screenplay) 





Serial killer leaves the city to small suburbia where his sister lives. His teenage niece, Charlie is named after her uncle, and they have this weird psychic connection. As soon as Uncle Charlie (Joseph Cotten) is around, Charlie (Teresa Wright) has a vision of a party and hearing a specific song. We later find out it's the location where the murders happened.

Uncle Charlie said he was in business, and deposited $40,000 in the bank where his brother-in-law works. Everything was peachy keen until detectives come to town. They don't come right out and say they're detectives. They say they're working on a national survey. They come to the house, with a camera to take photos of a working class family, but they're really wanting photos of Uncle Charlie, the murderer suspect. The photographer snaps a photo of Uncle C, but he demands the film, stating he NEVER has his photo taken.

Detective Jack (MacDonald Carey), falls in love with young Charlie and proposes marriage after admitting his intentions to why he was actually there; their suspicions that Charlie is the murderer. Young Charlie does research and finds newspaper clippings and her visions fit the scene of the crime. The ring he gave young Charlie as a gift, had initials engraved in them that matched one of the murders initials. 

Charlie catches on to Young Charlie's skepticism and he tries to get rid of her. The ending is a very Alfred Hitchcocky...suspenseful, edge of your seat. 

The Night of the Hunter (1955)

Star Rating- 4
Length of Film- 93 minutes
Director- Charles Laughton
Cast- Robert Mitchum, Shelley Winters, Lillian Gish, James Gleason, Evelyn Varden, Peter Graves, Don Beddoe, Billy Chapin, Sally Jane Bruce, & Gloria Castillo

This movie was very intense! I was sitting at the edge of my seat, scared for the two kids.

The movie is about a con artist  "pastor" Harry Powell ( Robert Mitchum) who was cell mates with a man who robbed a bank and stole $10,000. Since he never confessed where he hid the money, they hung him. Leaving his wife and two kids alone. Once the "pastor" was released, he decided to woo the widow. The son, Ben (Peter Graves) did not have a good feeling about this man, especially when he saw the tattoos on his hands.

You've probably seen this picture of the man with the love/hate tattooed on his hand. I know I have and always wondered from movie it was from, the answer is Night of the Hunter. Here is the meaning behind the tattoos and how it relates to the plot of this movie.

"Ah, little lad, you're staring at my fingers. Would you like me to tell you the little story of right-hand/left-hand? The story of good and evil? H-A-T-E! It was with this left hand that old brother Cain struck the blow that laid his brother low. L-O-V-E! You see these fingers, dear hearts? These fingers has veins that run straight to the soul of man. The right hand, friends, the hand of love. Now watch, and I'll show you the story of life. Those fingers, dear hearts, is always a-warring and a-tugging, one agin t'other. Now watch 'em! Old brother left hand, left hand he's a fighting, and it looks like love's a goner. But wait a minute! Hot dog, love's a winning! Yessirree! It's love that's won, and old left hand hate is down for the count!"

The widow Willa (Shelley Winters) fell for Pastors B.S. and they were married. On their wedding night, she was fully prepared and ready to consumate the marriage, but he stopped her stating, " You thought, Willa, that the moment you walked in that door, I'd start to paw at you in that abominable way that men are supposed to do on their wedding night. Ain't that right, now?
Willa Harper: No, no, no.
Rev. Harry Powell: I think it's time we made one thing perfectly clear, Willa. Marriage to me represents the blending of two spirits in the sight of Heaven. Get up, Willa.
Willa Harper: Harry, what...?
Rev. Harry Powell: Get up. Now go look at yourself yonder in that mirror. Do as I say. Look at yourself. What do you see, girl? You see the body of a woman, the temple of creation and motherhood. You see the flesh of Eve that man since Adam has profaned. That body was meant for begettin' children. It was not meant for the lust of men! Do you want more children, Willa?
Willa Harper: I... no.
Rev. Harry Powell: It's the business of this marriage to mind the two you have now. Not to beget more. Alright, you can get in bed now. Stop shivering.
Willa Harper: [praying] Help me to be clean, so I can be what Harry wants me to be.

After the marriage, Harry got down to business; finding that $10,000. The daughter, Pearl (Sally Jane Bruce) was too little to understand, opened up to her new daddy, and was very affectionate toward him. Ben wanted NOTHING to do with him, because he knew who his father was and he knew that was after the money, and he swore to his father before he was taken away, that he would never tell.

The movie continues with a murder, cornered in the basement, children running away, threatening with a knife and shot gun.

It was a wonderfully creepy movie, especially when the main song of the movie is the hymnal, "Leaning on the everlasting arms". It's a beautiful song that he makes cold, creepy, and threatening.

The Third Man (1949)

Star Rating- 3
Length of Film- 104 minutes
Director- Carol Reed
Cast- Joseph Cotten, Alida Valli, Orson Welles, Trevor Howard, Paul Horbiger, Ernst Deutxch, Erich Ponto, Siegfried Breuer, Hedwig Bleibtreu, Bernard Lee, & Wilfrid Hyde-White
Oscar- Robert Krasker (photography)
Oscar Nominations- Carol Reed (director), Oswalk Hafenrichter (editing)





 The movie is set at the end of World War II, Holly Martins (Joseph Cotton) arrives in Vienna to meet Harry Lime (Orson Welles) , his old friend from school, who has offered him a job. When he reaches Vienna, he finds out Harry died.

Blah...blah...blah... Martin tries to figure out what happened, met up with Lime's girlfriend Anna (Alida Valli) and falls in love with her. 

This movie is popular for 2 reasons: Harry Lime is ranked #37 for AFI's Villain list because he was stealing penicillin from military hospitals, deluding it and selling it on the black market, with many fatalities for those that used it.

Second reason is the only music that's played in the film is a zither. 

The ending was sad...but I liked it. Anna was walking by herself, and Martins was driving away. He had the driver stop the car, he got out and stood there, waiting for Anna to catch up to him. She never looked him, didn't even stop, she just kept on walking. And let me say, the photography was stunning.

City Lights (1931)

Star Rating- 4
Length of Film- 87 minutes (silent)
Director- Charles Chaplin
Cast- Virginia Cherrill, Florence Lee, Harry Myers, Al Ernest Garcia, Hank Mann, & Charles Chaplin









In 1927, movie studios started making movies with sound. Charlie Chaplin was afraid that he wouldn't have as much success if they heard his voice, so he decided to go against the trend and make a silent film in this 1931 film, City Lights.

Charlie Chaplin's character meets a blind girl that sells flowers, he immediately fell in love. With the flower in the button hook of his lapel, he interrupts a man who's trying to commit suicide in the river. He uses the hook in his cane to help save him.

After surviving the suicide attempt, the rich man became fast friends with Chaplin's character. They went out drinking, and got really drunk.

The Tramp: Be careful how you're driving
Drunken Millionaire: Am I driving?

Another great scene is when he decides to enter a boxing competition to help raise money for blind girls operation. He did set up the opponent boxer to "split" the prize money, but at the last minute, the opponent got switched and The Tramp (Chaplin) panicked.

It's actually a funny movie with a tad bit of romance :) Enjoy the movie. 

The Phantom of the Opera (1925)

Star Rating- 2
Length of Film- 93 minutes
Director- Rupert Julian, Lon Chaney
Cast- Lon Chaney, Mary Philbin, Norman Kerry, Arthur Edmund Carewe, Gibson Gowland, John St. Polis, & Snitz Edwards
Additional Information- Silent film, Black and white film with 2 strip technicolor






If anyone has seen Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera, you'll appreciate how accurate Mr. Webber was to this 1925 film. During the masked ball, where The phantom shows up dressed as Edgar Allan Poe's Red death, you will see a brief technicolor sequence.

It has the chandelier dropping, and the official unmasking. Yet, in this film, the phantom is not deformed on one side of his face, it's his whole face. It's not terrifying. They made the reveal very "dramatic", even though it really wasn't.

I grew up watching horror movies where the faces scared the buh-jesus out of me.

The Exorcist (1973)

AHHHHHHHH!!!!!!! So scary. Not...

The thing that peeved me the most about this movie was when they were in the Phantom's lair, he'd kidnapped Christine, and her lover was trying to rescue her. The phantom had the trip alarm and the noise doesn't match the statuesque bird moving his mouth.

I won't lie, this wasn't an easy movie to watch, it being in black and white and it being a silent film, but the scenery was impressive, and the technicolor scene. If I was in the theater in 1925 and I saw the masquerade scene, I would've been blown away.  

King Kong (1933)

retrieved from netflix.com


 

Star Rating- 4
Length of Film- 100 minutes
Director- Merian C. Cooper & Ernest B. Schoedsack
Cast- Fay Wray, Robert Armstrong, Bruce Cabot, Frank Reicher, Sam Hardy, Noble Johnson, Steve Clemente, & James Flavin












When I was watching this film, I decided to text my dad to tell him what I was watching and also get some feedback from him. This was our conversation...

L- Watching King Kong (1933). Peter Jackson did an amazing job with the remake. It's practically the same. It's unrealistic to see the brontosaurus (plant eater) attacking the men. You can tell there's a screen anytime the actors are in the same shot as Kong.

L- Holy shit! Kong just broke the t-rex's jaw! That was pretty intense! I couldn't imagine what the audience thought, 80 years ago.

D- The 1933 King Kong is a great movie. Kind of corny, but how they did it was fascinating. I guess they had scenes of him eating people but they had to cut it out. Really surprised how sexual Fay Wray was with Kong.

L- Yes...she wasn't wearing much for the time period.

D- True, that time period of movie was very provocative. Which really surprises me.

"Censors took scissors to several scenes, including one in which Kong removes some of Wray's clothes, tickles her, then sniffs his finger". -The Greatest Movies Ever

Going along with my texts I sent my father, I enjoyed this movie. It was suspenseful and it shocked me! There were parts that were corny, but for it being 1933, the "special effects" were off the charts!

"Willis O'Brien a pioneer in the use of stop-motion photography, used an 18 inch model of King Kong covered in rabbit fur. The miniature was shot frame by frame, repositioned each time, then edited together as animation. O'Brien then perfected rear-projection techniques that used animation and actual footage of Fay Wray to make them appear to be in the same shot". -The Greatest Movies Ever

Everything about this film was impressive. I could not believe how much they were able to accomplish for 1933. If you can get over the screen that separates the actors from Kong in a few scenes, you're watching a gem of a movie.

This movies DESERVES to be on the list and it DESERVES to be a part of Entertainment Weekly's Top 100 list and The Ultimate Ranked List of the 101 Best films of all time! (Gail Kinn & Jim Piazza)


" 'Twas beauty killed the beast."

The Maltese Falcon (1941)

Star Rating- 2
Length of Film- 101 minutes
Director- John Huston
Cast- Humphrey Bogart, Mary Astor, Gladys George, Peter Lorre, Barton MacLane, Lee Patrick, Sydney Greenstreet, Ward Bond, Jerome Cowan, Elisha Cook Jr., James Burke, Murray Alper, & John Hamilton
Oscar Nomination- Hal B. Walls (Best Picture), John Huston (Screenplay), Sydney Greenstreet ( Actor in Support Role)


 


This is going to be a quick post. This was not a good movie. It was all very...beige. It's not because it was a black and white film, but Bogart and Astor were a snooze. There was NO excitement.

In my opinion, this movie shouldn't be on the list, but I understand WHY it is on the list of 1,001 movies. It was the FIRST "Film Noir" film and it was the first mystery film where the dame was the murderer. It started a new generation.

Here are some fun facts of film courtesy of "The Greatest Movies Ever" book by Gail Kinn & Jim Piazza

*More than once, Spade makes derogatory references to Wilmer's presumed homosexuality (because he carried a perfumed hand kerchief). In fact, he refers to Wilmer as a gunsel, a term that the censors assumed was a slang reference to a gunman. Gunsel is actually a vulgar Yiddish term for homosexual.

*Two "Maltese Falcons" we're used in the film. The first one is on display in the movie museum at Warner Bros. Studios, it's tail feathers dented from when Bogart dropped it. 

Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)

Retrieved from Netflix.com

Star Rating- 3
Length of Film- 80 minutes
Director- Don Siegel
Cast- Kevin McCarthy, Dana Wynter, Larry Gates, King Donovan, Carolyn Jones, Jean Willies, Ralph Dumke,  Virginia Christine, Tom Fadden, Kenneth Patterson, Guy Way, Eileen Stevens, Beatrice Maude, Jean Andren, & Bobby Clark







Before you sit down and watch this movie, you have to know a little background of what was going on in the 1950's, and THEN you'd understand why this movie is on this list.

        "A number of cutural commentators have remarked on the  "paranoid style" of most
         American sci-fi movies of the 1950's when the "Red Scare" intensified the Cold War  
         atmosphere between the United States and the Soviet Union...The movie was
         produced during an era when many Americans were seriously discussing the
           possibility of building back yard bomb shelters to "protect" themselves from an
         expected nuclear attack by the Soviet Union." -Understanding Movies by Louis
         Giannetti

Invasion of the Body Snatchers is set in a small, quaint town where everything is perfect and in place. Dr. Miles Bennell (Kevin McCarthy) was called to come home from a medical convention because he had patience lining up at his door, frantic to see the doctor. As soon as he got home, no one was desperate to see him; they were all normal. A couple of individuals complained, very emotionally that their loved one wasn't them. They looked, and acted like them, but weren't them.

Blah, blah, blah... pods were found, and they put the puzzle pieces together that the transformation is complete when they fall asleep.

The picture up above is a photo of the pod, and yes...they did use dish soap to make the bubbles. It was the 50's...meh. Dr. Bennell and his egirlfriend, Becky Driscoll (Dana Wynter) took medication to keep them awake, and all the zombie in the town went after them. The last part of the movie, our lead characters were running...running to get away and to survive.

The ending is not relaxing nor does it resolve anything. They left the movie completely open so the audience had the fear that it could happen, and that it could spread to where they live. And THAT is why this movie is on the list and THAT's why it's a classic. It fed into the fear of what was going on that decade. Quite brillant.  

Trainspotting (1996)

Star Rating- 3 1/2
Length of Film- 94 minutes
Director- Danny Boyle
Cast- Ewan McGregor, Ewen Bremner, Jonny Lee Miller, Kevin McKidd, Robert Carlyle, Kelly Macdonald, Peter Mullan, James Cosmo, Eileen Nicholas, Susan Vidler, Pauline Lynch, Shirley Henderson, Stuart McQuarrie, Irvine Welsh, & Dale Winton
Oscar Nominations- John Hodge (screenplay)


Oh boy... I didn't know what I was getting myself into when I pushed play, but I was surprised, in a good way. Renton (Ewan McGregor) is a drug addict, who did squat with his life. After having his last hit, he prepares to detox by himself: with 3 buckets. For piss, shit, and puke. 

He goes to a known drug dealer and takes some opium rectal suppositories. You will see him reach in his pants and insert them into his rectum. The next part...is not for the weak of stomach. He HAS to go to the bathroom, and ends up losing the suppositories, so he sticks his hand in the toilet YUCK!!! Then his head...then his upper body...

This movie does a great job portraying the mind of a heroin addict. We swim in the toilet searching for suppositories, we see a dead baby crawling on the ceiling then turning his head around in a very exorcist way, newly arrested friend is taunting Renton with ball and chains on his ankle. 

This movie is over all fucked up, but memorable and escapes you to this world...their drug addicted world. It's one of those movies that you'll remember for years to come. I believe that Trainspotting inspired 1999's Requiem for a Dream.  Watch the movie and make up your opinion. Happy watching :o)

A Hard Day's Night (1964)

Star Rating- 2
Length of  Film- 87 minutes
Cast- John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Ringo Starr, Wilfrid Brambell,Norman Rossington, John Junkin, Victor Spinetti, Anna Quayle, Deryck Guyler, Richard Vernon, Edward Malin, Robin Ray, Lionel Blair, & Alison Seebohm
Oscar Nomination- Alun Owen (screenplay), George Martin (music)








A Hard Day's Life takes a day in the life of a hugely successful teen group sensation...The Beatles. They're hounded by screaming fans in hot pursuit, uptight execs, and Paul's "alleged" granddad, who delights in stirring the pot. Granddad singes out Ringo as the weak line and briefly convinces him to leave his pal and venture into the world.

Here's a direct quote from Ringo about his scene where he walks alone by a canal, "The scene I got all the credit for was the walking by the canal with the camera- the lonely guy scene. That came about because I came to work, very unprofessionally, straight from a nightclub. And was a little hungover to say the least, you know. I was just so out of it so they said, "Let's do anything". So my version of it was, 'Just let me walk around and film me'. And why I look so cold and dejected is because I felt like shit. So no acting going on there."- The Greatest Movies Ever: The Ultimate Ranked List of the 101 Best Films of all time! by Gail Kinn & Jim  Piazza

The boys finally make it onto the set of a TV program in the nick of time and launch powerfully into a short concert of hits.

In the film, they perform the following songs:

"A Hard Day's Night"

"I Should Have Known Better"

"I Wanna Be Your Man" (sample)

"Don't Bother Me"(sample)

"All My Loving" (sample)

"If I Fell"

"Can't Buy Me Love"

"And I Love Her"

"I'm Happy Just to Dance with You"

"This Boy"

"Tell Me Why"

"She Loves You"

I'm a fan of The Beatles music, but I just did not enjoy the film. I wasn't sure if they were acting or if it was scripted. I felt like the film was depicted "The Beatles" but the bandmembers were acting like The Beatles, rather than themselves. If I was a teenage girl in the 60's, I would have loved the film, but I really didn't enjoy what I was watching.

Watch the movie yourself, and make your own opinion :o)

Stranger on a Train (1951)

Star Rating- 4

Length of Film- 101 minutes
Director- Alfred Hitchcock
Cast- Farley Granger, Ruth Roman, Robert Walker, Leo G. Carroll, Patricia Hitchcock, Kasey Rogers, Marion Lorne, Jonathan Hale, Howard St. John, John Brown, Norma Varden, & Robert Gist
Oscar Nomination- Robert Burks (photography) 






Strangers on a Train, what a great plot line created by novelist Patricia Highsmith!  Bruno Anthony (Robert Walker) met tennis player and socialite Guy Haines on the train. He recognized Guy from the newspaper, and immediately started chatting with him. The space between Bruno and Guy was very close.

 It wasn't until I opened up my book "1,001 Movies You Must See Before You Die" did I find out that Bruno had some homosexual tendencies  In fact, Hitchcock and Robert Walker worked out an elaborate series of gestures and physical appearance to suggest the homosexuality and seductiveness of Bruno's character while bypassing censor objections.

Bruno brought up the fact that he hated his controlling dad, and knowing that Guy was married but wanted a relationship with Anne Morton, a senator's daughter. Bruno devised a perfect plan that both of the men murder the person that they want gone. Especially since there's no ties between the individuals, there's no way to track the connection between them. Bruno was dead serious...

Miriam Haines (Laura Elliott) refused to divorce Guy, and after their fight, she went to the fair with 2 men. I mean...come on, can we say whore?! That night, Bruno follows Mrs. Haines and she is adoring the attention of him. I mean, who wouldn't?! There are 3 pairs of men's eyes on her. 

I'm always impressed watch Hitchcock movies with his choice of camera angles. The murder of Miriam is simple strangling, but Hitchcock has Miriam's glasses mirror back the reflection of the murder. It reminds me of Spellbound. http://moviereviewbylindsey.blogspot.com/2012/11/spellbound-1945.html

Probably the most memorable moment of the film is the climax where Bruno goes after Guy because he has not held up his part of the deal, and murdered his father. A fellow blogspotter actually watched this movie for a film class, and had the most interesting analysis of this scene-tying in the sexuality of these two characters. Here's a direct quote from his site: 

"The mise-en-scene in the "Carousel scene," was carefully constructed and structured to depict the explosion of the sexual tension that had been gradually developing between Bruno and Guy throughout the movie. The motion of the carousel moving slowly in the beginning and gradually getting faster as it moves out of control shows how at first Bruno savours the thrill of Guy chasing him and toys with Guy before getting more serious with him. Then, in the beginning of the scene, Bruno can be seen still running away from Guy whilst the carousel starts getting out of control. As he is on the carousel, he seats on one of the horses. In a sexual context, this symbolizes that Bruno has the power in the relationship and is more dominant over Guy. In other words, Bruno could be considered to be the "top," in a homosexual sense. After that, Guy comes and punches him and the two break out into violence and start fighting and struggling with each other. The struggle can be seen as a struggle of power in the relationship or a kind of foreplay of going back and forth between Bruno and Guy." -http://insight-to-film101.blogspot.com/2011/07/et-16-strangers-on-train-carousel.html

The shot of the carousel operator crawling under the ride to shut it off when it spins out of control did not employ special effects other than speeding up the film slightly. The man actually crawled under the spinning carousel. Hitchcock swore he would never do anything like that again. Here’s what Hitchcock actually said about the scene, taken from an interview with film historian Peter Bogdanovich, which appears as a commentary on the DVD:

AH: The most dangerous thing I ever did in that picture, when the little man crawled underneath. That was actual.

PB: That was for real? How did you get the shot?


AH: I had a camera shooting underneath the merry-go-round – the real one – and my hands sweat now, when I think of it.

This movie sucked me in, it was so intense, that I was clenching to my blanket that was on the couch next to me. The carousel horses hooves were inches away from hitting Guy's face. There was a young boy that was riding alone, who got in the crossfire between the two men and almost flung off the carousel. Of course, the child was fine, but speeding tempo of the carousel, the punches being thrown between the two main characters, I got wrapped up in the movie and gasped out loud. 

I've thoroughly enjoyed researching about this movie AFTER I watched it. The carousel scene was done so well, I wanted to know more about how it was accomplished, that's when I found out that there was no special effects when the actor was crawling under the carousel. The world of internet is wonderful! It has helped flourish my curiosity of films. AND... I gave this a 4 rating. I rarely EVER give this out, but the movie was a thrill, it was a joy to watch. 

Out of the 18 Alfred Hitchcock movies that have made the "1,001 Movies You Must See Before You Die" book, I have viewed 10 of them, and I rated them all high. This movie, being one of them. If you liked this movie, I recommend:
* Rebecca (1940)
*Spellbound (1945)


Happy watching!!!

Diner (1982)

Star Rating- 3
Length of Film- 110 minutes
Director- Barry Levinson
Cast- Steve Guttenberg, Daniel Stern, Mickey Rourke, Kevin Bacon, Timothy Daly, Ellen Barkin, Paul Reiser, Kathryn Dowling, Michael Tucker, Jessica James, Colette Blonigan, Kelle Kipp, John Aquino, Richard Pierson, & Claudia Cron
Oscar Nomination- Barry Levinson (screenplay)









Diner is a movie about 6 friends in 1959 Baltimore. The gang has come back for Eddie's (Steve Guttenberg) wedding. The boys' hangout place is the local diner. 

This movie really jump started famous actors and actresses:

Daniel Stern- Home Alone 1 & 2, and City Slickers

Mickey Rourke- Heart Angel, Sin City, The Wrestler, Iron Man 2

Kevin Bacon- Footloose, Apollo 13, Mystic River, Sleepers

Timothy Daly- Wings, Private Practice, Basic

Ellen Barkin- Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Sea of Love, This Boy's Life, Drop Dead Gorgeous

Paul Reiser- Mad About You, My Two Dads

Diner dissected the male animal’s squirrelly devotion to sports, movies, music, and gambling. Diner had one man give his fiancée a football-trivia test and had another stick his penis through the bottom of a popcorn box. 

The popcorn scene was the best. I tried and tried finding the famous conversation where "Boog" (Mickey Rourke) tried to talk his way out of being a "pig", but I couldn't find it. I had to go back to the scene in the movie and write down word for word the conversation. So here it is. Hopefully you'll find enjoyment in all his B.S. 

(Carol and Boogie are on a date. Boogie opens the flap at the end of the popcorn to get her to touch his penis. Glued to the movie screen, she reaches her hand in the popcorn and touches his penis. She stands up and runs out. Boogie follows.)

Carol: You're disgusting. 

Boogie: Look I know it was really terrible, it was horrible and all, but it was an accident.

Carol: An accident?

Boogie: Oh Carol, seriously it was an accident, I swear to God.

Carol: An Accident? Your thing just got into a box of popcorn? 

Boogie: Can I be straight with you? There's a real good reason. It's like a little embarrassing to me. So maybe if you don't want to hear it, I understand. 

Carol: Go on, I want to hear this.

Boogie: I don't know, ugh... I don't like to tell this to girls, but you really are a knock-out. (Carol starts to walk away) No! You really are, and sitting down next to you, really got me crazy, I got a hard on. I don't like to admit it, but I did. I mean you don't know me, I don't, I try to come off like I'm being cool, I don't like looking like I'm hustlin' and there I was, sitting next to you with a boner. Am I embarrassing you?

Carol: Go on.

Boogie: I don't know, the pain was just killing me. It was to stop the pain. It was digging into the side of my leg. So what I did was open my fly to loosen everything up. Just to give it a little air, and it worked. Everything settled down, and then I got caught back up in the picture, and then that's when Sandra got her leg caught on the bush, and she lifted up her and dress, you know, it just popped right out and went right through the bottom of the popcorn box. The force of it opened the the flap.

Carol: It just pushed the flap open?

Boogie: It's Ripley's, I tell ya, and I couldn't move the box or you would have seen it.

Carol: That's true. 

Boogie: I was just hoping it would shrink back out. (He puts his hand up to her cheek and lovingly touches it) Come on, let's go back inside. 

This movie is worth seeing just for the bond between these guys, and the conversations they have. Here are the top reasons to watch this movie:

#1- The popcorn penis scene

#2- Shrevie's explaination of the difference between dating and marriage

#3- Eddie's football test for his fiancee