#197 / 365 – ‘Touch of Evil’ (1958) – 116 mins
IMDb Challenge #118 / 250 – Ranked #123 – Via Lovefilm
Mexico’s chief narcotics officer, Mike Vargas (Charlton Heston), is in a border town on a quick honeymoon with his American wife, Susan (Janet Leigh). Soon he must testify against Grandi, a drug lord whose brother and sons are tracking him, hoping to scare his wife and back him off the case. When a car bomb kills a rich U.S. developer, Vargas embroils himself in the investigation, putting his wife in harm’s way. After Vargas catches local legendary U.S. cop, Hank Quinlan (Orson Welles), planting evidence against a Mexican national suspected in the bombing, Quinlan joins forces with the Grandi family to impugn Vargas’s character.
Opening up with an single, atmospherically drenched and impressively coordinated tracking shot proves invaluable for establishing the setting in writer, director and star Orson Welles devilishly plotted and powerfully brilliant classic film-noir, Touch of Evil.
The film contains quite a number of unforgettable set-pieces much down to the Welles flamboyant yet elegant use of the camera. However, its just not the camerawork in where Welles shines at, he summons a genius performance from himself, as the corrupt US policeman Hank Quinlan. He then directs some cracking performances from the rest of devious crew of characters. Charlton Heston even though he seems miscast as the Mexican cop, but his performance is a proud one. Janet Leigh as Vargas wife is sweet, fiery, and patient. Marlene Dietrich is proves brilliant and memorable albeit in a small role.
I’ve seen Orson Welles most defining and most talked about ‘Citizen Kane (1941)’ on several occasions but on this first viewing of, Touch of Evil it easily stands alongside that masterpiece and is a true testament to just how masterful a film-maker Orson Welles really was. If you like your film noir to be classy and audacious then, Touch of Evil is a highly recommended watch.
#196 / 365 – ‘8½’ (1963) – 138 mins
IMDb Challenge #117 / 250 – Ranked #186 – Via Lovefilm
8 1/2 is about Guido Anselmi, an Italian director who has lost all inspiration for his upcoming movie, and it’s too late to back out. And aside from the fact that he can’t make the film, his mistress, wife, producer, and all the rest of his friends, are pressuring him about one thing or another. So he retreats into his dreams to shelter himself from the pressure, and there, he finds inspiration to make his new film, and face the world.
8½ is my third Federico Fellini piece I have encompassed on my IMDb Top 250 quest – the other two being ‘Nights of Cabiria’ (1957) and ‘La Strada’ (1954).
There are times (not overly) in 8½, in what is the Italian’s most personal autobiographical feature does border on self-indulgence side. But for the most part, it’s a beautifully shot in its surrealistic black and white imagery, with the opening dream sequence and the final dance on the beach being the most effective, and delightfully scored, to make the film a perceptive exploration into the art of film-making, albeit slightly overlong at 138 minutes.
If you’re looking to encompass any of Fellini’s work, then I recommend you begin with the unforgettable and more delightful La Strada, before 8½ which was the inspiration for the musical drama – ‘Nine’ (2009).
#195 / 365 – ‘Conan the Barbarian’ – 112 mins
Cinema Challenge #79 / 115
Cimmerian warrior Conan (Jason Momoa) is on a personal vendetta to avenge his father’s murder. It’s a quest that soon becomes an epic battle against deadly rivals, horrific monsters, and impossible odds. And the barbarian realises he is the only hope of saving the great nations of Hyboria from an encroaching reign of supernatural evil. With a legacy spanning 80 years, Robert E. Howard’s 1930s creation Conan the Barbarian is often cited as the earliest – and greatest – example of the ever-popular ‘sword and sorcery’ genre.
I’m going to keep this very short, but unfortunately not very sweet. Every film has to have a plot correct. Well in Conan the Barbarian it becomes completely invisible against the tacky backdrop and grimly unimaginative writing. There are a good couple of action scenes but the problem is amongst the midsection of the film that feels completely endless they all become too standardized and extremely repetitive with only the most thinnest strands of glue holding them together on its $90m budget.
To label Conan the Barbarian would be one of inept creativity in film-making and awful dumbness, with lots of profound grunting in the acting, where everything just results in it being a complete waste of time leaving an empty space with nothing to connect too. I’m just glad I didn’t watch it in 3D as you can be sure there would have been more flaws to pick up on.
Not only does Conan the Barbarian takes home the top prized honour of being my worst cinematic movie of the year, replacing previous holders ‘Your Highness’, ‘Zookeeper’ in fact this movie makes those two look like masterpieces, it easily falls into the category of one of my most awful movie experiences of all-time. To which I’m giving it a first on my film quest – no rating.
Today was the return of our fantastic Cheltenham Film Club’s Unlimited Day 2 where we embarked on a movie marathon of 4 movies all in one day at the cinema…
#191 / 365 – ‘Spy Kids: All the Time in the World in 3D/4D’ – 89 mins
Cinema Challenge #75 / 115
On the surface, Marissa Cortez Wilson (Jessica Alba) seems to have it all. She’s married to famous, spy-hunting TV reporter Wilbur (Joel McHale) and has a new baby and a pair of bright, competitive stepchildren. But Rebecca (Rowan Blanchard) and Cecil (Mason Cook) make it clear they don’t want her around, and Wilbur wouldn’t know a spy if he was living with one. In fact, that’s exactly what he is doing. But retired spy Marissa’s life of domesticity comes to an abrupt end when she’s recalled by the OSS, home of the now-defunct Spy Kids division, after the maniacal Timekeeper (Jeremy Piven) unleashes a plot to take over the planet by stopping time.
Spy Kids All the Time in the World, stinks and that’s without the non-smelling 4D aroma-a-scope scratch’n’sniff which just proves to be a worthless gimmick, which in turn causes you to miss parts of the film as you fiddle when the coordinated numbers flash up on the screen. Dare I say it again – the 3D element is invisible.
Ricky Gervais career hits a new low as he plays or his voice lends itself to one of films most annoying characters (on a par with the Phantom Menace Jar Jar Binks), Argonaut the robotic dog. The only credit I can give Spy Kids 4 credit for his that Jeremy Piven does well in a trio of villainous roles as Tick Tock, Time Keeper and Danger D’Amo. After the three previous outing where Spy Kids gave us some good thrills, unfortunately Robert Rodriguez disastrously fails here.
The Spy Kids 4 story is all about having all the time in the world, well I didn’t and all I did frequently throughout was look at my watch hoping for those end credits to arrive sooner rather than later.
#192 / 365 – ‘Cowboys and Aliens’ – 118 mins
Cinema Challenge #76 / 115
1875, New Mexico Territory. A stranger (Daniel Craig) arrives in the sun-baked outpost of Absolution with a mysterious shackle on his wrist and no memory of his past. He soon finds that the townsfolk don’t take kindly to outsiders. What’s more, Absolution is ruled with an iron rod by Colonel Dolarhyde (Harrison Ford). But the climate of fear gets a whole lot worse when mysterious alien invaders start to swoop down at astonishing speed, blinding residents with bright lights as they snatch them one-by-one. As the outcast gunslinger begins to recall his past, he realises that he holds the one secret that could save this desolate town from devastation. With the help of the elusive Ella (Olivia Wilde), he pulls together former opponents – townsfolk, Dolarhyde and his boys, outlaws and Apache warriors – for an epic showdown.
Its gritty, its pretty but combining the two popular genres of Westerns and Sci-Fi in Cowboys and Aliens, came over all too disjointed at times. The Western segment is fantastic but the Alien sequences just feel bland and the battles just lack any real excitement. The main characters never faced any immediate danger from the Aliens and with a quick shake of Jake Lonergan mysterious device their task was all to easy.
There’s no denying that Jon Favreau is a great director to helm the big popcorn movies, as he proved with Iron Man, and whilst Cowboys & Aliens does offer some entertainment value with some great performances from an ultra-talented cast. It never leaves the launch pad and I came away just expecting a whole lot more from an idea that intrigued me and one that had the potential to be great.
It seems not even the combination of Indiana Jones and James Bond can save Cowboys & Aliens from being a misfire of a summer action movie, and that’s a shame.
It’s finally happened. Will (Simon Bird), Simon (Joe Thomas), Jay (James Buckley) and Neil (Blake Harrison) are 18 and School’s out forever! What’s more, the quartet of ex-sixth formers are off on a lads’ holiday in Malia, Crete. But the gawky foursome have no money and very little chance indeed of scoring with the island’s legions of gorgeous but unattainable girls.
Despite having never seen a single episode of the hugely popular BAFTA nominated E4 show. I absolutely loved the adventures of the four lustful lads on a booze-drenched holiday, they all have hilarious set-pieces, and the dance off scenes to impress the girls is just pure comedy gold.
In a nutshell The Inbetweeners delivers a hilarious gut wrenching laugh-a-minute of crude humor, and easily equals the years two other best comedies, ‘The Hangover Part II’ and ‘Bridesmaids’. Right I’m off to play catch up with that TV series now.
#194 / 365 – ‘Rise of the Planet of the Apes’ – 105 mins
Cinema Challenge #78 / 115
Scientist Will Rodman (James Franco) develops a revolutionary therapy that enables the brain to repair itself, offering hope to millions of people with a variety of debilitating conditions. But before his discovery can be marketed to humans, he’s told to test it on chimpanzees. To be certain the treatment is stable, he begins with just one animal. Then something unexpected happens. Baby chimp Caesar swiftly develops advanced mental abilities. As Will’s employers seek to contain the experiment, Caesar’s simian mind turns to thoughts of revolution.
Rise of the Planet of the Apes grabs you from the start, by stimulating your emotions with a feverish sequence of chimps being chased and captured to be taken to the lab for a life of experiments. This then makes for a hugely entertaining watch throughout as you get drawn in to Caesar’s emotional journey where Andy Serkis gives an amazing capture performance with heart within Caesar. Highlight of the film is the climactic sequence when the liberated apes revolt on the Golden Gate bridge – converges in a breathtaking, astonishing moment, full of heart pumping action.
The extraordinary technical vision of the film employed by WETA Digital is truly impressive, from the animatronics to the motion capture to the CGI, are all perfectly integrated. British director Rupert Wyatt pulls everything together beautifully to not only make the apes super intelligent but for an intelligent movie which is constantly engaging ride with its varying emotions. Rise of the Planet of the Apes is quite simply the best of this summers releases. period and in certainly in my Top 10 of the year.
#190 / 365 – ‘The Wizard of Oz’ (1939) – 101 mins
IMDb Challenge #116 / 250 – Ranked #122 – Via DVD Collection
Dorothy Gale (Judy Garland) is swept away to a magical land – with her dog Toto – in a tornado and embarks on a quest to see the Wizard who can help her return home. She meets a strange assortment of fellow travellers like The Scarecrow (Ray Bolger) The Lion (Bert Lahr), The Tin Man (Jack Haley) and the Good Witch of the North (Billie Burke) as well as the Wicked Witch of the West (Margaret Hamilton).
There’s no place like home, well there’s no place like the wonderful Wizard of Oz. Whats not to like about the straightforward, cheerful and lively fantasy musical film that I and millions of others have grown up with on every Christmas, Easter, Bank holiday afternoon as a child.
Looking back on Oz today 71 years after its 1939 release. I’m happy to say the cheer, the charm and the sublime sense of quality storytelling have not weakened against its vivid technicolor backdrop of spectacular set and costume design, and to me, perhaps, never will. You’ll find yourself singing along to the classic songs “Over the Rainbow”, “Follow the Yellow Brick Road”, “We’re Off to See the Wizard”, “Ding Dong, the Witch Is Dead” which are still as fresh as they when they were in 1939.
For nearly two hours The Wizard of Oz soars, you are whirled away to a magical world, where no one is unloved, everyone is caring and a little girls dreams find their resting place in a small Kansas farmhouse amongst family and friends. This is why The Wizard of Oz eternally endures. If you don’t own The Wizard of Oz in your film collection then you really should remedy this right now, as quite simply it’s one of the greatest films ever made.
I along with several friends were very annoyed with Cineworlds screening policy on Wednesday night. As we turned up in at anticipation of watching ‘The Devil’s Double’, but this anticipation soon turned to supreme disappointment because the manager had decided without any prior notice to cancel the showing in favour of adding another showing of ‘The Inbetweeners Movie’. Whilst I appreciate the popularity of this movie and it makes for good business sense for the multiplex chain to add more showings, and as with any service industry it’s all about supply and demand, it did say very little for their customer service and satisfaction.
It seems that many independent / smaller films being released this year or in previous years gone by simply not getting the coverage they deserve. Please add your thoughts and suggestions to the bottom of todays post on how we the movie loving audience, can get the multiplex’s of this world to understand there is a demand for these independent films in most towns and cities.
Ok rant over and on with todays viewing…
#189 / 365 – ‘Into the Wild’ (2007) – 148 mins
IMDb Challenge #115 / 250 – Ranked #145 – Via iTunes
Into the Wild is based on a true story and the bestselling book by Jon Krakauer. After graduating from Emory University in 1992, top student and athlete Christopher McCandless (Emile Hirsch) abandons his possessions, gave his entire $24,000 savings account to charity and hitchhiked to Alaska to live in the wilderness. Along the way, Christopher encounters a series of characters that shape his life.
Into the Wild wears its naturalism heart on its sleeve from the outset, with this quote from Byron – “There is pleasure in the pathless woods, There is rapture on the lonely shore, There is society where none intrudes, By the deep-sea and the music in its roar; I love not man the less, but Nature more.”
Director Sean Penn interweaves Into the Wild two genres; the road trip and the precarious balance of man versus nature effectively. The cinematography is breathtaking and gives a real sense of scope to the life-affirming journey that was undertaken by Christopher McCandless aka Alexander Supertramp.
Emile Hirsch provides a strong but tranquil central performance, which allows the supporting cast of Vince Vaughan, Kirsten Stewart and Hal Holbrook to shine as the interesting people McCandless meets on his travels.
Into the Wild is not without its flaws and at times you just wish Penn would pick up the pace slightly, but overall it provides a profoundly moving and a though provoking portrait of one mans journey into the wilderness in an attempt to detach from the materialistic and formulaic trappings of modern-day society. Recommended viewing and offers a subject matter that becomes highly discussable afterwards.
Johnnie loves his train (“The General”) and Annabelle Lee. When the Civil War begins he is turned down for service because he’s more valuable as an engineer. Annabelle thinks it’s because he’s a coward. Union spies capture The General with Annabelle on board. Johnny must rescue both his loves.
This was my second Buster Keaton film I had encountered on the IMDb 250, with the first being the classic gem ‘Sherlock, Jr’ on day 3 of the challenge. Like Sherlock, Jr, the tricks and physical comedy are impeccable within The General. The most impressive shot is when the Union train is crossing the burning Rock River Bridge and then plummeting into the water below. This stunt would have taken incredible precise timing and to think its all real is even more impressive, and from a silent era who were light years away from CGI – a truly breathtaking moment.
Whilst for me, The General lacked the heart and humanity of Sherlock, Jr, it is very funny and entertaining. If you’re looking to encompass the silent film genre and want an alternative place to start before the legendary Charles Chaplin, then you can go no wrong here.
#184 / 365 – ‘The Sixth Sense’ (1999) – 107 mins
IMDb Challenge #110 / 250 – Ranked #130 – Via DVD Collection
Malcolm Crowe (Bruce Willis) is a child psychologist who receives an award on the same night that he is visited by a very unhappy ex-patient. After this encounter, Crowe takes on the task of curing a young boy, Cole Sear (Haley Joel Osment) with the same ills as the ex-patient. Crowe spends a lot of time with the Cole much to the dismay of his wife. Cole’s mom is at her wit’s end with what to do about her son’s increasing problems. Crowe is the Cole’s only hope.
With The Sixth Sense being writer/director M. Night Shyamalan’s third feature, for me it was one of his greater supernatural offerings to that what he outputted afterwards in ‘Unbreakable’‘Signs’, and most certainly ‘The Happening’. The film finds a delicate balance between the normal and the paranormal. The pace comes off a little slow at times, but not that this matters because the performances from the two leads keep you compelling gripped.
Haley Joel ‘Forrest Gump Jr.’ Osment for me is simply superb for his tender age, and the role of Cole “I see dead people” in his hands is menacingly intelligent. Likewise, and whilst Bruce Willis can pull off Armageddon and Die Hard roles with faultless ease, its nice to see what a more engaging actor he can be when given more dramatic and serious material to play with.
The Sixth sense is genuinely creepy at times and one where you must have your wits about you as you pay attention to its detail. Recommended viewing if you’re a fan of the supernatural world. And oh that ending….
#185 / 365 – ‘District 9′ (2009) – 112 mins
IMDb Challenge #111 / 250 – Ranked #132 – Via DVD Collection
After an extra terrestrial mothership appeared above the earth 20 years earlier, a group of non-human refugees were found, possibly the last survivors of their own world. While the humans argued over what to do, the creatures were isolated – at District 9. Multi-National United (MNU), a private security company and the world’s largest arms manufacturer has been contracted to oversee them. MNU’S real goal is to discover the secret to the activation of the alien’s powerful weaponry that requires their DNA. When an MNU field operative, Wikus van der Merwe (Sharlto Copley), contracts a mysterious virus that begins converting his own DNA, he becomes the most hunted – and valuable – man in the world, perhaps the key to unlocking the secrets of the non-human technology. There is only one place for him to hide – District 9.
Wow. That was the first word out of my mouth when I first encountered District 9 on its 2009 release, this intense and inventive sci-fi picture from first time South African director Neil Blomkamp is an astonishing achievement and this newcomer has done something on his debut more than most directors dream of doing in their whole careers. The film recalls to the mind the likes of ‘The Day the Earth Stood Still’, ‘Independence Day’ and David Cronenberg’s ‘The Fly’.
District 9 starts of with a documentary feel which soon dissolves into an action-adventure and it’s pretty effective in this seamless transition. All of the many action sequences are brilliantly choreographed, easy to follow, and generate a great sense of tension and excitement along with the awesome alien weaponry.
This was my 4th time of watching District 9 and it breaks some of it’s genre boundaries to provide one hell of an entertaining movie from start to finish. I found myself wanting to watch it straight away again – it’s a shame I couldn’t as I had to go and watch another sci-fi epic of the same year.
#186 / 365 – ‘Avatar’ (2009) – 162 mins
IMDb Challenge #112 / 250 – Ranked #141 – Via DVD Collection
The story of paraplegic ex Marine Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) who finds himself thrust into hostilities on an alien planet filled with exotic life forms. As an Avatar, a human mind in an alien body, he finds himself torn between two worlds, in a desperate fight for his own survival and that of the indigenous people
Right. I’ll keep this short and sweet, as the entire population has surely watched this sci-fi epic haven’t they? Then if you haven’t, I’ll just assume you’ve been living on Pandora with the Na’vi for the last couple of years.
Ok let’s get the one big negative out the way – the predictable story. Too which we really can’t give any credit to James Cameron for as it’s essentially been ripped wholesale from the pages of Ferngully and Pocahontas. However, what we can the King of the World give unequivocal credit for and to which I can never heap enough superlatives on is Avatar’s 3D dreamlike visuals and is the only reason why nearly the entire world turned out in their droves. The hugely ambitious project which was 14 years in the planning, results in an extraordinary scaled and bewitching world thanks to it’s jaw-dropping technology, exquisite production design and exotic golden eyed, blue-skinned aliens.
Avatar is an event of a film that can only truly be appreciated on that big screen, and results in a spectacle that allows you to live the fantasy and one that, despite its length, keeps you connected till the very last frame. Simply unmissable. For every film I review in this challenge, I always consider different aspects of its process when handing out the stars. But with Avatar I’m completing abandoning that system and I’m awarding it all 5 stars for its visuals alone – because in this sense its a flawless masterpiece.
#187 / 365 – ‘Witness for the Prosecution’ (1957) – 116 mins
IMDb Challenge #113 / 250 – Ranked #127 – Via iTunes
Following a massive heart attack, infamous British barrister Sir Wilfred Robarts (Charles Laughton) has been ordered by his doctors to forswear drinking, smoking, and his work in the courtroom. However, he is intrigued by the case of Leonard Vole (Tyrone Power), a likeable fellow who’s accused of murdering a wealthy widow. The case is turned on its head when Vole’s loving wife (Marlene Dietrich) announces that they are not really married and agrees to be a witness for the prosecution.
Based on Agatha Christie’s 1953 play, Witness for the Prosecution possesses a slow burning and somewhat old-fashioned charm. Billy Wilder (‘Some Like It Hot’, ‘Sunset Boulevard’) shows just what a versatile director he is with this film. Off all the good performances on show, the most memorable is that of Marlene Dietrich who is superb in her role as mysterious and ice-cold Christine Vole, who will do anything for the man she loves.
With a killer ending Witness for the Prosecution manages to be a somewhat good courtroom drama without taking itself too seriously to make it a crime worth seeing, even if it doesn’t have overall lasting value.
A troubled teenager, Donnie Darko (Jake Gyllenhaal), escapes death when a jet-engine crashes in his bedroom, because he follows a giant bunny leading him outside. The bunny, called Frank, tells him that the world will end in 28 days. As the final date comes closer and closer Donnie is drawn into an alarming series of events that may or may not be a product of growing insanity.
Donnie Darko is a dark and mesmerising fantasy trip into an exploration between fear and love, it displays a see-saw of gloom and doom, as you count down to the expected end of the world in 28 days, 6 hours, 42 minutes and 12 seconds. The entire film is peppered with a jukebox of haunting Eighties ballads, most notably Tears for Fears ‘Mad World’, to perfectly set the dark mood of the Richard Kelly’s cult classic.
Donnie Darko has often been described as piece of genius that David Lynch would have summoned up, as like ‘Mulholland Drive’ it’s a perplexing film in many ways and one that lingers with you days after viewing as you scratch your head trying to make sense of it all, which I truly believe no one ever will – have you?. Despite it being a challenging watch it’s highly recommended as it does intrigue throughout its entirety to let your imagination soar.
When the evil wizard Gargamel chases the tiny blue Smurfs out of their village, they tumble from their magical world and into ours — in fact, smack dab in the middle of Central Park. Just three apples high and stuck in the Big Apple, the Smurfs must find a way to get back to their village before Gargamel tracks them down.
Yes it’s happened. The Smurfs have conjured up their first own live action movie, or a least director Raja Gosnell (‘Scooby-Doo’ and ‘Beverly Hills Chihuahua’) has. Despite the film being aimed entirely at the younger audience it does for the older generation evoke good memories of the ’80s television series. With ‘Super 8’ its been a week of nostalgia.
With it having and eye-watering budget of $110,000,000 it does satisfy in its visuals as Papa Smurf (Jonathan Winters), Smurfette (Katy Perry), Brainy Smurf (Fred Armisen), Gutsy Smurf (Alan Cumming), Grouchy Smurf (George Lopez) and Clumsy Smurf (Anton Yelchin) go about their adventures. Like in Night at the Museum 2, Hank Azaria is great as the villainous wizard Gargamel, however he does get slightly annoying by the films end.
The simplistic story does run out of ideas at the around the 80 minute mark and really should have been trimmed. But you will have a bit of charming and harmless fun with the little blue people as they sing their La La La La La La song and work hard together gathering smurf berries.
Explores the disillusionment of an elderly physician, Professor Isak Borg, as he reflects upon his life and begins to perceive his mortality. As he travels to Lund to receive an honorary award after 50 years of medical practice, he finds himself repeatedly affected by intrusive dreams and hallucinations that expose his darkest fears. He slowly comes to realize that the choices he made in the past have created a cold and empty life, devoid of real meaning or value. Finally, he achieves redemption and reintegration through forgiveness and the love of his family.
I have now encompassed 3 pieces of Ingmar Bergman work on my IMDb quest. This, Persona and Fanny and Alexander and to be honest with you I’m really struggling to make sense of what all the fuss is about the Swedish director being a cinematic genius. Like all of his previous work, Wild Strawberries is exquisitely shot in black and white and has a score to match its visual beauty. Apart from this I found the one mans journey through time, space, and memory pretentious in its output. I await the catcalls…
#183 / 365 – ‘Snatch’ (2000) – 104 mins
IMDb Challenge #109 / 250 – Ranked #129 – Via DVD Collection
Turkish (Jason Statham) an unlicenced boxing promoter is pulled into trouble when he becomes involved in big time criminal Brick Top, who wants him to arrange a fight and fix it. Meanwhile, a diamond theft goes down but the 84 karat stone goes missing. This leads Avi, the boss who was supposed to receive the stone, to come to England to search for it, with the help of his cousin, Doug The Head and Bullet Tooth Tony. As events twist and turn, the two situations blend into one with a chain reaction of events carrying on for each and every character.
Guy Ritchie’s follow-up and which in many ways you could label it has a sequel to his creme de la creme ‘Lock Stock And Two Smoking Barrels’ is more of the same – and like they say when you’ve got a hit, why change the winning formula?. And he doesn’t.
With its raw dialogue, the ensemble cast blend well together with their varying styles. If you enjoyed Lock, Stock then you’ll love Snatch – it’s a diamond watch.
#178 / 365 – ‘Cool Hand Luke’ (1967) – 126 mins
IMDb Challenge #105 / 250 – Ranked #136 – Via DVD Collection
Luke Jackson (Paul Newman) is sent to a prison camp, where he gets a reputation as a hard man. The head of the gang hates him, and tries to break him by beating him up. It doesn’t work, and he gains respect. His mother dies, and he escapes, but is caught, escapes again, and is caught again. Will the camp bosses ever break him?
There may have been better actors out there, but not stars and along with Steve McQueen there is one thing that made Paul Newman a rare breed – they were ‘true’ movie stars who deservedly garnered that ‘King of Cool’ tag. Along with his charm, and cheeky grin he exudes this coolness to full effect in as the chain gang member who rises to iconic status within the prison due to his attitude on non-conformity.
Although this prison drama film overall themes are serious, Cool Hand Luke does contain a lot of humor and this stands out in a couple of classic scenes. The first being when a young woman (played by Joy Harmon) who seductively washes her car to whom the bunch of hard-working, sweaty convicts ogle to, as they go about their work along the side of the road. To which the leader of the gang Dragline (George Kennedy) brilliantly quotes – “Oh Lord, whatever I done, don’t strike me blind for another couple of minutes. Oh you Lucille!”. Later in the film, in what is the films now most iconic moment is when Luke claims he can eat 50 eggs in one hour for a bet. Watching Luke endure the ordeal is an amusing experience.
Strother Martin play the Captain who taunts Luke with the legendary line, “What we’ve got here is… failure to communicate.”. Well there is no failure in Cool Hand Luke as it’s a sharp, honest film that stills packs a punch.
#179 / 365 – ‘Annie Hall’ (1977) – 93 mins
IMDb Challenge #106 / 250 – Ranked #133 – Via DVD Collection
After breaking up with his girlfriend Annie Hall (Diane Keaton), neurotic New York comedian Alvy Singer (Woody Allen) goes on a stream of consciousness journey through his memories of their relationship, trying to find out what caused them to part ways. Is reconciliation with Annie possible, or will Alvy make the same mistakes?
Winner of four Oscars Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay and Best Actress for Diane Keaton flawless role. Woody Allen’s Annie Hall as a perfect blend of everything that makes his movies great; New York, Woody’s quirky humour, and the dialogue which is intelligent and frank.
It’s evident to see Allen’s rom-com style as been used many times since most notably, ‘When Harry Met Sally’ and ‘(500) Days Of Summer’ . Even though Annie Hall is considered by many to be Woody Allen’s breakthrough movie for me his masterpiece will forever remain ‘Manhattan’ – but this comes damn close.
I’ve seen Orson Welles most defining and most talked about ‘Citizen Kane (1941)’ on several occasions but on this first viewing of, Touch of Evil it easily stands alongside that masterpiece and is a true testament to just how masterful a film-maker Orson Welles really was. If you like your film noir to be classy and audacious then, Touch of Evil is a highly recommended watch.
The Life of a Film Obsessive 