Genre: Crime, Drama

Year: 1981

Country: USA

Rating:

Starring: Robert De Niro, Robert Duvall, Charles Durning, Kenneth McMillan, Ed Flanders

Director: Ulu Grosbard

My Review: This film noir adaptation of a best selling novel (True Confessions by John Gregory Dunne (pub. 1977)) has a fantastic cast. Robert De Niro (Msgr. Desmond Spellacy), Robert Duvall (Det. Tom Spellacy), Charles Durning (business man Jack Amsterdam), and many others. The acting was top notch, and the writing excellent. It's a story of the unsolved 'Black Dahlia' murder mystery, set in Los Angeles circa 1942. In this movie, Robert Duvall (the Detective) starts out investigating the scandalous death of a local priest, followed shortly afterwards by the gruesome murder of a prostitute. It is immediately apparent that the death of this priest and the prostitute are somehow related. While the priest may have died from 'over exertion', the murder of this prostitute was nothing 'ordinary'. Detective Tom Spellacy eventually discovers his prime suspect - a wealthy businessman with a shady past - is connected to his brother, a Roman Catholic priest and his boss the Cardinal through some sort of speculative real estate and land development deals. As the connections start to coalesce, Detective Spellacy starts to chaff at the cover-up put in place by members of the 'establishment'. The brothers wrestle with their conscience, struggle to stay focused on the job at hand, and strive to find redemption amidst the corruption and self deception surrounding them. Excellent pacing, camera work and acting. Great set work and locations. Unfortunately, the writing and direction failed to follow through with sufficient impact. As this movie is based on an 'unsolved' murder, some of the blame rests on the screenplay. Without a conclusion or climactic ending, the viewer is left feeling slighted in some way. An excellent showcase of acting talent, blunted somewhat by the screenplay. I give it a 4 out of 5.

Summary: De Niro (a Catholic Priest) and Duvall (a Homicide Detective) play brothers drawn together after many years apart, in the aftermath of the brutal murder of a young prostitute.

Genre: Sci-Fi

Year: 1958

Country: USA

Rating:

Starring: Allison Hayes, William Hudson, Yvette Vickers, Roy Gordon, George Douglas

Director: Nathan Juran

My Review: What happens when a wealthy woman meets a giant opaque alien and his satellite in the desert. Why she ends up becoming a 50 foot woman bent on fixing her marriage with her adulterous husband! Great 50's hokum here! Lovely Allison Hayes plays a woman who has recently been checked out of a sanitorium and has major drinking/marriage problems. Her husband Harry is the scum of the earth as he flirts(and beyond) with beautiful Honey(Vickers). Both of them want Allison's money, all 50 million of it. The story is pretty ambiguous, and we really never do know just who or what that alien was all about. The best part is seeing just how low and sleazy Harry is, so we can wait to see him get his. The acting is pretty good, nothing great. The direction by Nathan Juran is adequate(nothing like what you would see in The 7th Voyage of Sinbad!). The special effects are fairly standard as we really never see Allison Hayes as a fully-materialized giant. She always seems to be a bit transparent for some reason except when we see her giant hand. Hayes looks great as a giant though in her skimpy shorts and bikini top, giving at least two great reasons to see the film...or is that three? Great 50's sci-fi fun!

Summary: After an encounter with aliens, a wealthy women grows to, surprise surprise, 50 feet tall. With her new found size she decides to get revenge on her husband and others that annoyed her.

Genre: Adventure, Sci-Fi

Year: 1966

Country: USA

Rating:

Starring: Stephen Boyd, Raquel Welch, Edmond O'Brien, Donald Pleasence, Arthur O'Connell

Director: Richard Fleischer

My Review: An award winning (won two academy awards in 1967), highly imaginative, sci-fi drama from 1966. Here is an awesome movie with very few flaws, a great cast an excellent sound track and some outstanding visual effects. The story, a diplomat is nearly assassinated on his way to some important negotiations. With time pressing as tightly as the clot in his brain, surgeons and scientists scramble to save this mans life. The only way to save his life is an amazing, super-secret, procedure. They gather a team of top experts in several fields… Then they shrink them, put them in a tiny submarine, and inject them into his blood stream. Off on a fantastic voyage, this crew of brave scientists have only one hour to break up that clot and save the diplomats life. The tension and suspense start building as soon as they're inside. While there's no specific mention of the year (that I could see), it almost seems as if this futuristic movie is set in 1966. A great cast (starring Stephen Boyd, Raquel Welch, James Brolin, Edmond O'Brien and Donald Pleasance) and outstanding direction. I give it a 5 out of 5. A remake (for 2013 release) is in the works now.

Summary: Scientist Jan Benes, who knows the secret to keeping soldiers shrunken for an indefinite period, escapes from behind the Iron Curtain with the help of CIA agent Grant. While being transferred, their motorcade is attacked. Benes strikes his head, causing a blood clot to form in his brain. Grant is ordered to accompany a group of scientists as they are miniaturized. The crew has one hour to get in Benes's brain, remove the clot and get out.

Genre: Action, Crime, Drama

Year: 1974

Country: USA

Rating:

Starring: H.B. Halicki, Marion Busia, Jerry Daugirda, James McIntyre, George Cole

Director: H.B. Halicki

My Review: An independently produced, low budget film that set new standards in editing, pacing, ambition and car chases. The acting was amateur, but the writing, directing and editing were all well done. Despite it's low budget and bad acting (by all but H.B. Halicki), there was some serious talent behind this film. The story - An insurance adjuster moonlights as the most ambitious member of an auto theft ring. When the boss gets an order for 48 cars in one week, Mandrian Pace (H.B. Halicki - also directed the movie) takes the lead, pushes the team and pulls out all the stops. Problems arise when they can't seem to pin down that elusive 'Eleanor', a 1973 Ford Mustang. As this team of unstoppable car thieves move ever closer to that 48 car goal, things heat up between the team members. The boss tips off the cops, and they stake out the latest attempt to nab 'Eleanor'. The film concludes with a 40 minute car chase that you just can't tear your eyes away from. Great story that doesn't compromise on principles or distract you with ridiculous side-stories or romance angles. I'm going to watch the remake with Nicholas Cage, but I doubt it could be better than this. I give it a 4 out of 5.

Summary: Insurance investigator Maindrian Pace and his team lead double-lives as unstoppable car thieves. When a South American drug lord pays Pace to steal 48 cars for him, all but one, a 1973 Ford Mustang, are in the bag. As Pace prepares to rip-off the fastback, codenamed "Eleanor", in Long Beach, he is unaware that his boss has tipped off the police after a business dispute. Detectives are waiting and pursue Pace through five cities as he desperately tries to get away.

Genre: Biography, Drama, Music

Year: 2009

Country: UK, Canada

Rating:

Starring: Aaron Johnson, Kristin Scott Thomas, David Threlfall, Josh Bolt, Ophelia Lovibond

Director: Sam Taylor-Wood

My Review: A bio-pic about John Lennon. Here is a well acted (Aaron Johnson and Kristin Scott Thomas) story of John Lennon's early life. Raised by a stern aunt, 15 year old John learns that his biological mother lives just down the street. Reunited with Julia, the free spirited, open minded musically inclined women opens up many new possibilities in John's life. This change in John's life creates a bitter battle between two sisters. Leaving John conflicted and tormented. Lennon's tumultuous teen years, his relationships with women and his friendships with Paul McCartney and George Harrison. It's a great movie, marred only by it's rushed direction. Pushing the performances to move more quickly, we're presented with a hyper fast slice of one man's reality. Extremely well written screenplay, excellent acting and an outstanding soundtrack. The birth of the Beatles. A must see for fans of Rock-N-Roll. I give it a 4 out of 5.

Summary: The story of John Lennon's childhood and teenage years from 1944 to 1960, his relationship with his aunt Mimi and his mother Julia -the two dominant women in the first part of his life-, his first meeting with Paul McCartney and George Harrison, their friendship, their love for music and the birth of The Beatles.

Genre: Crime, Drama

Year: 1964

Country: USA

Rating:

Starring: Constance Towers, Anthony Eisley, Michael Dante, Virginia Grey, Patsy Kelly

Director: Samuel Fuller

My Review: I wasn't quite sure about this movie, until the second half… Starring Constance Towers as Kelly the former prostitute, Anthony Eisley as the small town sheriff and Michael Dante as the wealthy playboy. After one to many double crosses, close calls and abusive johns, Kelly decides to call it quits. She collects her final 'paycheck' and checks out for nowheresville. Drifting from small town to small town, she lands in 'Grantville'. A typical small town in America's idyllic mid 60s. Everyone in the town is a perfect model citizen, and Kelly tries her best to fit in. After an initial run-in with the Sheriff, Kelly does her best to leave her old habits behind and start a new life. Everything is going great, as she falls in love with the towns patron. A wealthy, worldly, benefactor who professes his love of Kelly. The wedding is planned, and everything seems perfect… Until! The second half of the movie provides an unexpected plot twist. The first half of the film paints the movie as one sided, but the second half provides a shocking revelation for this mid 60s film. The drama, and social context was awesome. Unfortunately, some aspects of the production, direction, acting, pacing and camera work detracted from this thrilling drama. I give it a 3 out of 5.

Summary: Kelly, a prostitute, finds redemption in the town of Grantville, where she arrives working as a medium-time seller. There, she meets Griff, the police captain of the town, with whom she spends a romantic afternoon. The woman, traumatized by an experience in the past called "The Naked Kiss" by psychiatrists, finally, finds a job as a nurser in a Hospital for handicapped children, experience that allows her to find a sensitive side in caring and patiently love each one of her little patients. Apparently, Kelly will find happiness in Grant, her fiancé and Griff's partner, but she will be the witness of a shocking event that will threaten this happiness and even her mental health.

Genre: Comedy

Year: 1986

Country: USA

Rating:

Starring: Jonathan Silverman, Blythe Danner, Stacey Glick, Lisa Waltz, Judith Ivey

Director: Gene Saks

My Review: Brighton Beach Memoirs is the film adaptation of a Neil Simon Broadway play. Starring a great cast, featuring excellent writing (Neil Simon did the screenplay), acting, direction (Gene Saks) and camera work. The movie is set in Depression-era Brooklyn, New York. This Late 30s period piece features great sets, locations and prop work. Everything seemed authentic and in period. Jonathan Silverman (at age 20) plays a teenage Jewish boy, growing up in Brooklyn. For a debut performance, his acting was outstanding. Living with his parents, his aunt, two cousins and an older brother, Eugene relates his everyday experiences, fantasies and reflections to the audience in a comedic, hopeful and endearing manner. This movie doesn't pretend to be deep, deceptive or difficult to understand. It's excellent entertainment, history lesson and comedic escape from the ills of our modern society. I give it a 4 out of 5.

Summary: Eugene, a young teenage Jewish boy, recalls his memoirs of his time as an adolescent youth. He lives with his parents, his aunt, two cousins, and his brother, Stanley, whom he looks up to and admires. He goes through the hardships of puberty, sexual fantasy, and living the life of a poor boy in a crowded house.

Genre: Comedy, Drama, Horror, Thriller

Year: 1993

Country: Mexico

Rating:

Starring: Federico Luppi, Ron Perlman, Claudio Brook, Margarita Isabel, Tamara Shanath

Director: Guillermo del Toro

My Review: I've seen this film before, but Criterion recently (2010) released the film in Blu-Ray, and I watched the Cronos release on Netflix's 'Watch Instantly' streaming service. Unfortunately, the streaming suffered from sever stutter, and sound synching problems. Fortunately, the film was just as good as I remember it. The feature film debut directed by Guilermo del Toro. The screen play was also written by Guilermo. Starring Federico Luppi and Ron Perlman. This movie was better than I'd have thought it might be. Mexican movies don't exactly have a very good reputation, but I like Ron Perlman and Guilermo del Toro directed some pretty good movies: Blade II, Hellboy, Mimic, Pan's Labyrinth, and one of my favorites: The Devil's Backbone. Cronos is a thrilling horror flick with a dark sense of humor. A vampire movie with a completely reworked vampire origin. An ancient, golden, clock-work device that extends life is the source of much obsession and anguish. In the end love conquers over greed. Ron Perlman's acting has rarely better, and the acting by Federico Luppi was outstanding. The special/mechanical effects were excellent., but the best part of this movie was the challenging, intelligent, horror story. This one (currently on my 'Must Buy' list) gets a 5 out of 5.

Summary: In 1535, an alchemist builds an extraordinary mechanism encapsulated into a small golden device. The invention, designed to convey eternal life to its owner, survives its maker until 1997, when it shows up with an antiques dealer. Fascinated with the strange device, Gris (Luppi) doesn't note that there's more than one person looking for it. The promise of eternal life has become an obsession for old and sick Mr. De la Guardia (Brook). He and his nephew (Perlman) will do anything to get the Chronos Invention.

Genre: Action, Adventure, Thriller

Year: 2010

Country: USA

Rating:

Starring: Liam Neeson, Bradley Cooper, Jessica Biel, Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson, Sharlto Copley

Director: Joe Carnahan

My Review: Thankfully, I had some rather low expectations for this movie, but it didn't disappoint. It was what I thought it would be. A roller-coaster thrill ride of explosions, laughable dialog, lovable characters, and a fitting homage to that very American, action, adventure TV show from the 80s. A feature film based on a TV series. Will they never learn? How ridiculous is it when a studio spends something like $110,000,000.00 on a preposterous rehash like 'The A-Team'? Here Hollywood has updated the TV show to set it in the 00s. The cast was well selected, except for the 'actor' who played B.A. Baracus / aka Mr T. Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson may be bad-ass in the world of MMA, but he's no 'Mr T'. This guy couldn't act his way out of a one-liner with off-stage coaching. The rest of the cast did a very good job playing their roles. I especially enjoyed Sharlto Copley (played Wikus Van De Merwe in District 9) as Murdock. All the original characters are here, and there's plenty of explosions, fast talking dialog and high octane action. These four soldiers make their way from the Iraq war to fugitive status to escaped felons to save the day when the CIA can't seem to get their act together. The plot was paper thin, but that's not the draw for this movie. Sit back, relax, and enjoy the wise-cracking crew as they blast their way out of one preposterous situation after another. I give it a 3 out of 5.

Summary: Four American soldiers who are in Iraq are sent on a mission to recover plates for printing 100 dollar bills that were used to print a billion dollars. After doing the job and returning to the base their commanding officer is killed in an explosion and the plates are stolen by another operative. They would be court martialed and sent to different prisons. 6 months later, the leader, Hannibal Smith is visited by a CIA spook who tells him he knows where the man who took the plates is and wants him and his men to recover it. So he helps him escape and he breaks out the others and they go after the plates. But after doing it, they discover that the spook might not be ok. And a military intelligence officer who was involved with one of them is pursuing them.

Genre: Adventure, Drama, Thriller

Year: 1981

Country: USA, Switzerland, UK

Rating:

Starring: Keith Carradine, Powers Boothe, Fred Ward, Franklyn Seales, T.K. Carter

Director: Walter Hill

My Review: Released in 1981, this movie, directed by Walter Hill, had an excellent premise. Set in the late 70s, here is a movie about the Vietnam war set deep in America's Jungle. The swamps and bayous of Southern Louisiana were/are peopled by an indigenous group of natives with a different language, a different culture and a strong determination to protect their home from an invading group of mach cowboys. A National Guard outing turns into a desperate fight for survival when a small squad of eight guardsmen take to the bayou in a weekend exercise. A great cast (Keith Carradine, Powers Booth, Fred Ward, Peter Coyote, Brion James and others), outstanding location, excellent camera work and fine direction are the best parts of this movie. Unfortunately, the movie suffers from one major problem. The screenplay. Written for hollywood, the script contains some rather blatant attempts to make the movie more 'action' than suspense or thriller. One person panics, and throws everyone into the swamp. The water is only chest deep, but they ditch all their valuable equipment (i.e. the radio). Booby trapped woods where the natives have no idea where the guardsmen will walk. A single box of ammo becomes a three day supply for six men. An attack by a large number of vicious dogs is fended off without firing a shot, and no one seems wounded afterwards. A sequence where several trees simply fall down for no reason. A one armed man that obviously has a second arm tucked under his coat. The movie had some excellent characters, a great premise, and an excellent score. Unfortunately, attention to detail marred the screenplay and made me question everything that happened. I give it a 3 out of 5.

Summary: A squad of National Guards on an isolated weekend exercise in the Louisiana swamp must fight for their lives when they anger local Cajuns by stealing their canoes. Without live ammunition and in a strange country, their experience begins to mirror the Vietnam experience.