“Each of us is defined by what he does. This being the case, the only thing left for me is to undo myself neatly.”
|
Synopsis: |
|
Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:
Review: Redeeming Qualities and Moments:
Must See? Links: |
“I should like to fall violently in love.”
|
Synopsis: |
|
Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:
Review: Redeeming Qualities and Moments:
Must See? Links: |
“There’s no reason to become alarmed, and we hope you’ll enjoy the rest of your flight. By the way, is there anyone on board who knows how to fly a plane?”
|
Synopsis: |
|
Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:
Response to Peary’s Review: Redeeming Qualities and Moments:
Must See? Categories
(Listed in 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die) Links: |
“Gee, Babe — you’ve done more for baseball than cheese has for Switzerland!”
|
Synopsis: |
|
Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:
Review: Redeeming Qualities and Moments:
Must See? Links: |
“I’m going to make a perfect life for you– I’m going to give you all the things I never had, my beautiful little darling!”
|
Synopsis: |
|
Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:
Response to Peary’s Review: I’ll admit that my initial response to Mommie Dearest was the same as Peary’s. I watched it immediately after reading Crawford’s book, and was upset by how egregiously the filmmakers had mangled Christina’s story of her abusive childhood. Watching it again years later, however, I can appreciate Mommie Dearest for what it unintentionally turned out to be: a film so clumsily made — and so far removed from its source material — that it’s actually entertaining. Indeed, it is precisely the film’s “staggeringly bad scenes and campy dialogue” which have contributed to its cult over the years, allowing those who “laugh at its overall ineptitude” (click here for a long list of goofs) to have a grand old time. Plus, despite its obvious flaws, the film contains many moments of genuine insight into Crawford’s character. When Dunaway holds her infant daughter in her arms for the first time, and is reminded by her boyfriend (Steve Forrest) that Christina is both a “very lucky” and a “very expensive” baby, we are reminded that Crawford ultimately bought her children rather than adopted them. When Dunaway reacts with thinly-veiled jealousy as reporters seem more interested in filming her daughter than her during Christina’s birthday party, we really “get” how difficult it was for Crawford to share the limelight, even with her own kids. And when Dunaway expresses her heartfelt gratitude to the crowd of fans standing outside her house after she won an Oscar for her performance in Mildred Pierce (1945), we learn why her following was so enormous — and so loyal — for so many years. Most impressive of all, however, is the powerhouse performance by Faye Dunaway, who, though “she overacts at times,” makes “a gallant effort playing Crawford not as a villain, but as a ‘warrior’.” Indeed, it’s absolutely fascinating to gain an inside glimpse at this rags-to-riches actress, someone who took her status as a beloved Hollywood star so seriously that she was willing to work as hard as it took to maintain it. Though Peary argues that “Dunaway’s Crawford comes across as no less sympathetic” than her daughter, I disagree: when watching Crawford obsessively scrubbing her own floor, jogging to stay in shape, and getting up at the crack of dawn to arrive at the studio on time, we understand that this was a driven woman who, quite simply, didn’t have a clue about how to be an effective mother. Redeeming Qualities and Moments:
Must See? Categories
Links: |
“Are you ready for me?”
|
Synopsis: |
|
Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:
Response to Peary’s Review: With that said, however, Risky Business ultimately comes across as too much of an adolescent-male wish-fulfillment fantasy to hold universal appeal. The women in the film — seen from Joel’s point of view — are all either sex objects (like Lana and her friends) or nagging maternal figures (such as Joel’s overprotective mom, or the nurse who refuses to write him an excuse at school). Lana herself symbolizes every guy’s worst fear: a woman so sexually irresistible that she can lure a “good son” (Joel’s last name is “Goodson”) to his doom — though ultimately, of course, our young “hero” will prevail. Even her much ballyhooed entrance — filmed as an ethereal, mist-filled sequence, with Tangerine Dream’s soundtrack pulsing in the background — clearly posits Lana as an other-worldly siren with supernatural powers. This smart, sexy, interesting character (she has a back story) is ultimately not given her due; I’d love to see Risky Business shown from her perspective. Redeeming Qualities and Moments:
Must See? Categories
Links: |
“It certainly is smooth. Yes, a man can faint from such smoothness.”
|
Synopsis: |
|
Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:
Response to Peary’s Review:
and that the “love scenes with Susan Bay are embarrassingly sappy”.
At nearly two hours, the movie goes on for far too long, and, as Peary notes, has “too many scenes at Sea World”.
With that said, it has a number of fans, and is certainly worth checking out if you’re enamored with Lewis’s wacky impersonations — there are plenty here.
Redeeming Qualities and Moments:
Must See? Links: |
“The holes prophets make to see the future are the same ones historians use to look at the past.”
|
Synopsis: |
|
Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:
Review:
Indeed, one can’t help rooting for these all-too-human characters as they struggle to reconcile their socialist ideals with the reality of life in a capitalist society. Ultimately, Tanner succeeds in portraying the passion and zeal of former revolutionaries without patronizing them — not an easy task. Redeeming Qualities and Moments:
Must See? Categories
Links: |
“The black cat is deathless — deathless as evil!”
|
Synopsis:> |
|
Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:
Response to Peary’s Review:
At only 65 minutes long, the story moves quickly, yet is often incoherent — most likely as a result of Universal Studios cutting the film drastically. Nonetheless, the film is so oddly conceived and visually compelling that it’s hard not to watch even when you’re not quite sure what’s going on.
While reviewers at the time of its release were dismissive, today The Black Cat is regarded as pulp director Edgar Ulmer’s masterpiece — and for all its fans (though I’ll admit I’m not one of them), it remains “morbid, tasteless, and lots of fun.” Redeeming Qualities and Moments:
Must See? Categories
(Listed in 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die) Links: |
“I was always dreaming about very powerful people — dictators and things like that.”
|
Synopsis: |
|
Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:
Response to Peary’s Review: Redeeming Qualities and Moments:
Must See? Categories
Links: |
