Film Reviews by sb

FILM & REVIEW Anthony Mann’s cracking hard boiled noir has Randolph as Clara who runs a beauty salon with a numbers racket in the back shop. She and her boyfriend Duke (Ireland) conspire to set up a fake robbery to rip off their boss but it goes wrong and Duke’s partner and a cop both get shot. Duke gets his dying partner to set up innocent boy Steve to take the wrap and the cops are convinced they have their man. His sister Rosie (Ryan) sets out to prove his innocence with a sympathetic cop begining to come round to the same conclusion. Rosie embarks on a very dangerous cat and mouse game with Duke to uncover the truth. On the one hand it’s the old Wrong Man story but it’s a solid cast - Ireland is a very menacing heavy with Randolph as the hard as nails broad who cracks under the pressure and Ryan is excellent risking her own life to save her brother. A razor sharp script and some terrific noir lighting and it achieves all this is a sprightly 72 minutes…..4/5

FILM & REVIEW https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0063501/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_ Sergio Sollima’s legendary Western a print of which I have been after for ages… Van Cleef plays Corbett an aging but still lethal bounty hunter who is engaged by a railway baron Barnes to hunt down and bring to justice a Mexican farmer called Cuchillo (Millian) who is accused of the rape and murder of a little girl. In return Barnes will support Corbett in a run for the Senate so the hunt is on.. Cuchillo proves more than a worthy opponent using all the wiles at his disposal to evade capture leaving Corbett more and more frustrated and the hunt crosses over into Mexico which complicates his task even more… Van Cleef is as always excellent with Mullian in his breakthrough role and who would become a stable of Italian cinema fooling everyone one with his simple farmer routine. The film does take a while to settle down - the first third is a little uneven with a couple of sequences that don’t add much to the plot but once the border is crossed things improve with the final third coming to a thunderous conclusion. Fine score by Morricone and it’s a really great restoration with stunning use of the Spanish landscape - 4/5

FILM & REVIEW Siodmak’s seminal noir which I reckon is about as close to perfection you can get in cinema. 2 menacing killers arrive at diner in a small town in New Jersey looking for the Swede.(Lancaster in his debut). He’s off sick after a chance encounter but when his work mate tries to warn him he is indifferent- it’s almost as is he knew it was coming and almost welcomes it. His will bequeaths a life insurance policy to a chambermaid in Atlantic City which piques the interest of insurance investigator Reardon (O’Brien) who slowly over a series of complex flashbacks pieces together what led to the Swede’s murder. He was a washed up boxer who one night meets Kitty (Gardener) and one glance from her and we know he’s doomed. He takes the rap for some stolen jewellery and once released gets involved in a major heist that ends up with everyone double crossing every else……setting in motion the almost pre-ordained fate that awaits him. Based on a Hemming story it’s co-written by an uncredited John Huston with a supurb muscular performance from Lancaster and Gardener smoulders as only she can with O’Brien forensic in his investigation. This was the film that launched both their careers and although the multiple flashbacks are a staple of Noir the way it’s constructed is just superb - 5/5

FILM & REVIEW During the 1950’s Stewart and Anthony Mann made a series of Westerns together and this is one of the finest. Stewart plays Glyn a man with a shady past whose acting as a guide to some settlers heading for fresh country in Portland . He rescues Cole (Kennedy) from a lynching and it becomes apparent that Cole has an equally dark past. Together they take the settlers into town where they buy food for the winter and embark on a steamship up river. Winter is approaching and no food has arrived so Glyn and lead settler Baile head down the trail to find out why. They arrive to a changed town as gold has been discovered and prices have gone through the roof. Hendricks who they bought the food off refuses to hand it over at the agreed price so a gunfight breaks out and Glyn arranges for the food to be transported back up river with Hendricks in pursuit. A rival gold camp is also expecting supplies and offer to buy the food off the settlers and you can tell that Cole is more than tempted at the new price. The scene is set for a final confrontation between the two men… Stewart used the series of films to establish a darker edgier screen persona than audiences were used to and really is terrific in the role with Kennedy equally good as the morally dubious foil. Add in Adams as the rivals love interest although a very out of place Hudson does seem to have been shoehorned in…. All shot on location with some glorious landscapes it really is one one of the key Westerns of the period. Terrific stuff - 4/5

FILM & REWATCH Rein’s masterpiece - i’d almost forgotten what phenomenal film making this is. Everything about it is just perfect - the whole cast - Mulligan , Brooks, Perlman , Isaacs and Cranston’s with Gosling taking the less is more to it’s logical extreme. It’s beautifully shot - only Michael Mann can make L.A. look this cinematic and Cliff Martinez’s synth wave score is incredible. Most movies would have the backstory or flashback scenes but this dispenses with all that - we learn absolutely nothing about the driver. He is a blank canvass into which the audience can project anything they want. Love how he will create an almost Zen like stillness just before the outbreak of appalling violence making it all the more visceral…….just a shame nothing he has done since comes even close……stunning 5/5

FILM & REVIEW https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0047542/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_1 Lewis Allen’s cracking paranoid thriller set in the small town of Suddenly. Local Sheriff Todd (Haydon) is informed The Presidents train will be stopping so he can be driven to a remote ranch. Soon the town is crawling with cops and Secret Service Men who have received a tip of an assassination attempt. A retired Secret Service man lives with his widowed daughter in law and grandson in a house overlooking the station and the FBI show up to check it out - except something isn’t quite right. They are led by John Barron (Sinatra) and are in fact the hit squad awaiting the trains arrival. They take the family and the Sheriff hostage and wait for the clock to tick round….. All manner of psychological mind games take place all set within the house - who will crack first? Sinatra is electric in the role - in it for the money but as he reveals more about himself a picture of a cold calculating psycho emerges with all manner of Nietzchien neurosis - it really was a brave career move for him and it’s one of his best performances. Solid support from Hayden and Gates and pre-figures The Manchurian Candidate by several years ……quite superb - 4/5

FILM & REVIEW Seigal’s New York based cop thriller has Widmark as Madigan who plays fast and loose with the rules partnered with Banaro (Guardino) who bust a guy on a warrant. He turns the tables and takes both their guns and although the cops didn’t know he was wanted for a murder rap. They are given 72 hours to hunt him down and retrieve their guns and their careers. The whole thing is overseen by fastidious Police Commissioner Russell(Fonda) who is a real by the book man which sets up a ongoing conflict with Madigan. Great use is the more obscure New York locations with some terrific character actors in support. Unfortunately the film sags quite a bit with just too much soapy stuff. Madigan has a younger wife (Stevens) but as he works cases with stupid hours she hardly sees him which creates a major strain on the marriage and for all his puritanical take Russell is having an affair with a married woman. On the one hand that fleshes out the characters but some of the scenes just drag on - you’ll much rather concentrate on the manhunt on the mean streets of New York City. Strong performances throughout and a cracking finale - just could have done with little less personal issues - so 3.5/5

FILM & REVIEW Aka Battle of the River Plate - Micheal Powells stirring retelling of the titular battle. Before war was even declared in 1939 Hitler ordered the Graf Spee out to the South Seas so she could harry British Merchant shipping and threaten Britains food supply. From there she sailed to the South Atlantic where she was discovered by 3 British criusers and the first naval battle of the war took place. One of the British cruisers was badly damaged and had to withdraw and the Spee was herself damaged and made it into Montevideo harbour. This was Uruguayan territory who were neutral but under a naval convention the Captain has 72 hours to make good his repair and then the ship would be seized……leaving him little choice. Based mainly on the book by Marchant Naval Captain Dove (played by Bernard Lee) whose ship was sunk and he was captured by Captain Langsdorff and treated with all the normal curtesies and Peter Finch plays him as an decent old fashioned type. All the other German officers give the Nazi salute but not once do we see Finch give one. He is opposed by Commodore Harwood (Quale) who gives it his best stiff upper lip but again a decent chap. The battle scenes (partly on location and partly at Pinewood ) are very good and the way the British fool the Germans into believing they had far more ships that they actually do is very clever. At time the script tends to overdo the whole steady on chaps bit but it’s one of the more balanced WWII films of the period. And look out for a very brief appearance by Christopher Lee - 4/5

FILM & REVIEW Fascinating early Losey film has penniless Dutch painter Jan (Kruger) call at the expensive mews house of his lover Jacqueline (Presle).The door is open but there is no sign of her so he waits - until the Police arrive led by rugged Welsh copper Morgan (Baker). At first they won’t say why they are there and Jan refuses to answer any questions so suspicions are aroused. They then reveal under a duvet and a pile of clothes is the murdered body of Jacqueline. Jan is horrified and begins to recount in flashback how they met but Baker remains unconvinced why a rich older lady would take up with an unknown painter - making him the prime suspect. A game of cat and mouse ensues as evidence is uncovered that Jacqueline may not be who she claimed to Jan to be - nor why she tried to pay him off. Then things take a very unexpected turn…… It very well written and acted and one of Bakers favourite films - he would make 4 films in total with Losey so the rapport was there from the start……it’s very clever indeed - 4/5

FILM & REVIEW Aka Eight for Silver - very effective slice of Gothic Folk Horror set in rural France in the late 19th Century. Local landowner Lamount (Petrie) has a bunch of local gypsies cleared from his land using appalling brutality and finds a curse laid on him and his family involving a set of silver teeth. Soon villagers are being slaughtered by some beast and his own son dissapears. Into this comes pathologist McBride (Holbrook) who lost his own family to a similar attack several years ago who knows more than he is letting on. The locals all assume it’s a wolf but as things develop it’s clear something far more deadly is at large… It’s very well done full of brooding atmosphere with icy forests and swirling mists giving it a real Hammer Horror feel with a good solid cast (Kelly as the long suffering wife is very good) and it’s remarkably gruesome at times as the true nightmare is revealed . It’s got a a really interesting pre-title sequence whose meaning only becomes clear at the very end……very good indeed - 4/5

FILM & WATCHED Just just out on Disney so no real details….with the tragic passing of Boseman they were left with a huge hole to fill character wise and on the positive side the all female cast are very good at achieving this. Wright, Bassett and Guidira are all excellent and as I loved the first one had high hopes ….. But - and I take no pleasure in this…..it isn’t very good…..it’s seems to wander all the place both in plot and tone - you keep thinking it’s going kick in in a moment but it never really does. The new “baddies” are not very convincing and as they are blue fish people suprised James Cameron hasn’t sued…. I know this is has been covered before but so many films these days have fairly poor CGI as the demand outstrips the supply and at times this looks pretty shoddy and comes well short of the first one….. So…..a real shame as hoped for far better……

FILM & REVIEW Pete Walker is best known for his wonderfully demented ‘70’s horror movies but began his career making soft porn movies then moved into the pastiche gangster genre of which this is a fine example. Latimer plays Moon a suave man about town who is a troubleshooter come crook. He is employed to dig some dirt on one faction and in turn is hired to undergo the reverse so it plays in a kinda Yojimbo fashion. Soon he up to ears in sadistic hoodlums, gun smuggling, international intrigue , rent boys , dolly birds, fake coppers and a huge shipment of gold. The entire plot has a making it up as they go all along feel to it with an eye to the dark underbelly of Swinging London. It’s does flag a bit in the final act in North Africa and the ending doesn’t make a lot of sense but Latimer is very likeable with good support from Peters and Alywood and for the most part it zips along nicely - 4/5

FILM & REVIEW Aka Criminal - another taut gritty drama from Joseph Losey has Stanley Baker ( the hardest man in British Cinema) as Bannion a career criminal on his final day in prison. He already has another caper lined up so we know it’s won’t be long before here’s back. The job is set up and he romances Suzanne (Saad) but once the job is done and he buries 40 grand in a frozen field he gets betrayed and banged up again. Last time he was Mr Big in prison but this time as various parties want to know where the cash is he has a much tougher time. He agrees to be sprung in return for the location but things don’t go to plan… It’s got a real who’s who of British acting at the time with Magee doing his creepy turn as the sadistic warden who is Bannions nemesis and very effective use of the icy British winter that chills the bones. Baker is as always superb in the lead - a spring of tightly controlled violence that dominates the whole film. Very good indeed - 4/5

FILM & REVIEW Aka So Evil My Love - wonderfully overraught Victorian melodrama has Todd as Olivia a recently widowed Missionary’s wife returning from Jamaica. On the ship she nurses Mark (Milland) who has had his own reasons to have left England and looks very shifty whenever there is a Policeman around. She inherits a small boarding house and he rents a room there and slowly an affair develops - but he has another girl on the go at the same time. He discovers that Olivia has a school friend (Fitzgerald) unhappily married to a rich barrister who has taken to drink and has a cache of letters to her one time lover. Mark persuades Olivia to renew the friendship and soon her unsuspecting husband hires Olivia to to look after his wife giving Mark the perfect opportunity for some good old fashioned blackmail - then things get seriously out of hand…. What’s supurb about it is that Milland is all suave rakish charm with a nasty dominating controlling side but it’s Todd as his all too willing partner in crime who goes from frumpy widow to full blown ice cold schemer that really shines. It’s all dialled up to eleven with wonderfully lit interiors shot at Denham and what’s interesting is that it’s set in London in the 1870’s but plays like a Film Noir of the 1940’s with its cynical take on relationships with blackmail leading to murder embedded - it’s a real undiscovered classic - 4/5

FILM & REVIEW With Babylon showing in cinema’s which dissects the “Golden” Age of Hollywood - a screening of one of the classics of the era. Set during the Chinese Civil War a motley collection of people are travelling across China by train. There is a dashing English military doctor, an American gambler, an apparent French Major, a strict English Reverend and at the centre two ladies of questionable virtue (Dietrich and May Wong). It’s revealed that Shanghai Lily played by Dietrich and the English Doctor Harvey have a chequered history together - she still loves him but has been hurt and is very standoffish. The train gets ambushed and one of the travellers is revealed to be a revolutionary general who holds the passengers hostage in return for one of his lieutenants - forcing Lily into making a moral choice. Diertrich is just astonishing a mixture of smouldering detatchment and vulnerability who dominates every frame with May Wong equally good. At times Brook as Harvey can be a little stuffed shirt and you can wonder what she sees in him but the film looks superb all shot in crisp monochrome by Lee Garmes with some really iconic shots. Ok the Chinese general is played by a white Swede ( who oddly was cast quite often as Oriental ) but apart from that it’s a great movie - 4/5