Confession, The (1970)
“The others are confessing — the only chance to save your neck is to confess, as they are doing.”
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Review: Redeeming Qualities and Moments:
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Postman Always Rings Twice, The (1981)
“I’m getting tired of what’s right and wrong.”
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Postman Always Rings Twice, The (1946)
“With my brains and your looks, we could go places.”
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Review: As the unwitting femme fatale who causes the downfall of both Garfield’s drifter and Kellaway’s bumbling restaurateur, “sweater girl” Lana Turner gives what is widely considered her best, most iconic performance: she’s all tanned legs, platinum hair, and seductive poses — literally a cheesecake model come to life — and while some (see DVD Savant’s review) have argued that she’s too pristine and wooden for the role of a gritty roadside waitress, Turner’s sunkissed looks are the perfect embodiment of a seductive force too strong to resist.
John Garfield is well-cast as smitten Frank Chambers, and is a perfect match for Turner, effectively capturing the frustrations of a man torn between erotic desire, wanderlust, and a basic sense of decency. Other bit roles are nicely played as well, particularly Hume Cronyn as the brilliant if corrupt lawyer who first plays Turner off of Garfield, thus starting a downward spiral which ends — in typical noir fashion — tragically. Redeeming Qualities and Moments:
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(Listed in 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die) Links: |
Heroes for Sale (1933)
“I know that all my promotions and decorations belong to you. I know that I’ve stolen the credit from a real hero.”
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Once this is revealed, however (no revenge is taken by the extraordinarily good-hearted Barthelmess), the screenplay veers from one episode to another in rapid-fire succession — Westcott does show up again, but only in the film’s final scene, in order for Wellman to make the point that both rich and poor suffered under the iron grip of the Great Depression. In the meantime (as indicated in TCM’s assessment) we become oddly compelled by Barthelmess’s travails, watching his character emerge as a true “hero” of the era — someone who is decidedly not for sale, at any cost. The fine cast of supporting actors (particularly Aline MacMahon in a pivotal role) adds to the enjoyment of this unusual little film. Redeeming Qualities and Moments:
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Man Who Reclaimed His Head, The (1934)
“As long as munitions stay in the hands of private enterprise, war will always be around the corner.”
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that he agrees to work for an unscrupulous former boss (Atwill), only to find his trust sorely misplaced. Unfortunately, while the expose of “special interests” driving the machinery of war — and the complicity of the media in such efforts — was surely shocking at the time of the film’s release, today’s audiences will find such nefarious collaborations sadly commonplace, and thus may have a hard time relating to the enormity of Rains’ emotions (not to mention his drastic actions). Rains — always a compelling actor — is excellent in the title role (indeed, Peary nominates his performance for an Alternate Oscar), but Atwill’s “evil” character isn’t fleshed out nearly enough.
Meanwhile, Bennett (capable of much better) emerges as little more than a pretty face.
While it’s not “must see” viewing for all film fanatics, however, Claude Rains fans will certainly want to check this one out. Redeeming Qualities and Moments:
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Red Dawn (1984)
“The Russians need to take us in one piece, and that’s why they’re here.”
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Seven Women (1966)
“Whatever the doctor’s doing, she’s doing for our good.”
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Indeed, it’s the interplay between these two females — both independent and strong-willed, but with radically different moral takes on the world — which carries the somewhat uneven script, and keeps us interested to see what will happen next. Leighton’s character eventually devolves into campy hysteria when the situation at “her” mission spirals out of control; her repugnance at being forced to stay in the same room as a woman (Betty Field) giving birth borders on laughable. Bancroft, meanwhile, maintains a fiercely realistic and forceful presence throughout; she’s suffered heartbreak and injustice in the past (simply by being a female doctor in the 1930s), but refuses to compromise her passion for helping others through medicine — even if this means sacrificing herself. The ultimate outcome of the film — in which Bancroft utters a now-classic line — will likely come as a touching surprise to most. Redeeming Qualities and Moments:
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War of the Worlds (1953)
“They seem to murder everything that moves.”
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These days, particularly in the wake of Steven Spielberg’s tepid remake, Pal’s War of the Worlds — which Peary claims has an “enormous cult following” — is seen by most modern viewers as dated but of historic interest, thanks in large part to Gordon Jennings’ “tremendous special effects”, which were enormously impressive at the time.
It’s also important to remember, as Peary notes, that this was “the first film in which America itself is turned into a war zone because of an invasion”; indeed, it must have been tremendously frightening for audiences at the time to vicariously witness an A-bomb being dropped near a populated area. With that said, however, I’m largely in agreement with Peary’s assessment of the film as “colorful but overrated”, and only consider it to be must-see for its historical relevance. Redeeming Qualities and Moments:
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Hardcore (1979)
“A lot of strange things happen in this world — things you don’t know about in Grand Rapids, things you don’t want to know about, doors that shouldn’t be opened.”
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— things slowly go downhill, as Scott’s months-long undertaking (why don’t we ever see him checking in on his business back home?) turns into simply a convenient pretext for “exposing” the underground porn and prostitution industry — an expose which these days no longer seems all that shocking.
Scott’s performance is as fine and true as always, but his character as written doesn’t possess much of an arc — even once he begins opening up to a fresh-faced young prostitute (very nicely played by Season Hubley), we see little evidence of any real character transformation. The film’s deeply unsatisfying ending involves a sudden slo-mo action sequence (what happened to Schrader’s eye for naturalism?), an inexplicable shooting, and a cursory reunion between father and daughter. Given its intriguing premise and fine performances, Hardcore should ultimately have been much better than it is. Redeeming Qualities and Moments:
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President’s Analyst, The (1967)
“If I were an analyst — which I am — I would say I was rapidly turning into a paranoid personality — which I am.”
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