Film Reviews by Cato

Ray Milland (the Welsh American) gives a very good performance in this taut thriller in which he's caught up in the murder of a young woman by his newspaper editor, played by the very nasty Charles Laughton. Great filming in this 1948 film, showing how New York had considerably advanced after the war.

Wayne well into his career, 39 years old, and Colbert, 43, gave us a film which would have seemed pretty funny in its time, but unfortunately it now seems so ancient that it's only for the true historians of cinema to find it amusing.

Right from the beginning I knew it wasn't going to work for me. The script seemed actorly, and the whole idea for the film came across as pretentious and long winded. One found no sympathy for the actors, except maybe for the Frenchman who didn't speak English (very wise). The film was too long, at times sleep inducing, and I didn't really care what happened in the end. Not a success for me.

Based on an H.E. Bates novel, this film is a downer from the opening scene of a girl burying her dead baby on the side of a hill. This may well put you off watching it, but it's an Ismael Merchant production, and all that you see is set in well nigh perfect 19th century surroundings. The acting is flawless with many very good actors (Tom Bell, Jemma Jones and Greg Jones plus many more), but the performance that stands out most is that of Embeth Davidtz, the poor girl, who finds herself living with a local family that has three young and good looking brothers in it, and you can guess what happens. For all it's misery, this is a riveting film, and one that will remain with you for some time afterwards.

Not a great one for me this . It was all well done, but I found the pace of the film terribly slow, and just a bit too quirky and rather pedantic. I really have nothing against Norway as a country, never having been there, but it did seem a trifle boring in this film, but perhaps that was intentional. Sorry.

Perhaps it was because the film was in monochrome, or maybe because the squawking Shirley Booth seemed a little too old (6 years older than Lancaster), but this film seemed pretty darned old. As far as Little Sheba was concerned, she didn't even put in an appearance. I think we were supposed to think the dog was in some way connected to the story, but I didn't really get it. The film was apparently a play before it became a film, but maybe it should have stayed on stage.

Shot in the title of the film, this was a story about young people, although some seemed young going on middle aged, what with the way in which they crammed the old LSD into their poor systems. After we'd seen most of the degenerates in their stupor hanging out in an old church they'd just happened to find in SW9, there wasn't really much of a story. except that a poor young woman had her briefcase stolen by various criminals and we followed it's rescue. Dated, but perhaps relevant to those who were there or thereabouts.

Some critics have panned this film, implying that it wasn't nearly as good as David Lean's classics, but I think it's as good as most films I've watched that have been about Victorian times. Set in Glasgow just over 50 years than when the film was made, it's a powerful film about a real crime, that of a woman who is supposed to have poisoned her French lover in order that she can marry the man who is chosen for her by her patriarchal father. Lean's wife, Ann Todd , who some critics didn't like (maybe because she was forty years old), thinking that she wasn't right for the part of Madeleine, but I thought that she gave a superb performance, and belied her real age extremely well. The only part of the film which I thought was rather overlong was the speech in the court at the end - I won't tell you what happens though.

A delightful 50s gem, in which two rich brothers bet that they can present a poor man with a million pound note and see if he will still have it after a month. Gregory Peck plays the down at heel sailor who has a surprisingly engaging month. It's one of those older films which satisfy the watcher in many ways, especially as it was originally a Mark Twain story. Forget about the capitalistic undertones and enjoy it for the simple tale that it is.

An excellent take on the nasty side of politics, wherein a dishonest nobody is elevated to a mayor and thence to being elected to the governorship of his American state. It was Preston Sturges' first film as writer/director and it's wonderfully dry and satirical. Made in 1940 (when you could still clearly hear everything the actors said) it's a very clever film.

Some of the reviews don't have a good word to say about this film, mainly because it didn't enjoy box office success. However I think we have to consider it in a better light, in that it was made in 1935 and deserves interest from those of us who enjoy watching old movies. Katharine Hepburn is great, even if Cary Grant doesn't come across very well as a crook. And Edmund Gwenn is an excellent washed up father. The Hungarian director George Cukor brings a delightful middle European feel to the film. There's still a lot to enjoy in this film, even if it didn't make a lot of money.

I find myself at a loss to review this film. It is unlike any film that I have watched for a long time, in that it is should really be classed as a forty year old documentary rather than a cinema film in any sense. I therefore relinquish my task to anyone who feels capable of reviewing it.

Except that it was directed by one of the greatest English directors ever. It was obviously a very good film, but not a great one. I can only surmise that it was obviously made for British film watchers of the time.

The title is American, the sport is American, the whole premise of the film is American, and the actors are Walter Matthau and Jack Lemon, all put together by Billy Wilder. It's a very good film but now seems somewhat dated (52 years old), but it's still got some good laughs in it. It's one for the connoisseurs.

A very good film about some serious subjects. The 2nd World War and it's after effects for a serious man, played by Gregory Peck (very good) who has some trouble with his wife and his work, in that he suffers from the American problem of working 24/7 or working 9 to 5 and seeing more of your family. It's a very compelling film which deserved better reviews than the film aficionados gave it credit for.

in fact it's almost a great film.