Greystoke wrote:I watched Villa Rides yesterday, which is a film I hadn't seen in a few years, although I recently bought Signal One's Blu-ray release, which is fairly good. It's quite an unremarkable film, with Robert Mitchum miscast as a gun runner for the Mexican army, who then teams up with Pancho Villa, played by an equally miscast Yul Brynner.
Mitchum isn't particularly good here, either, with a forced love interest and not being able to bring much nuance to a character that's badly written. There's some good action, though, and Charles Bronson stands out as one of Villa's confederates, but this western is a misfire in most respects.
Greystoke wrote:I watched Villa Rides yesterday, which is a film I hadn't seen in a few years, although I recently bought Signal One's Blu-ray release, which is fairly good. It's quite an unremarkable film, with Robert Mitchum miscast as a gun runner for the Mexican army, who then teams up with Pancho Villa, played by an equally miscast Yul Brynner.
Mitchum isn't particularly good here, either, with a forced love interest and not being able to bring much nuance to a character that's badly written. There's some good action, though, and Charles Bronson stands out as one of Villa's confederates, but this western is a misfire in most respects.
We did not get to see enough of Robert Mitchum, either. I'd have liked to see him and Lee Marvin do something together in their later years.
Robert Mitchum, like Gregory Peck, was a man I'd like to have had for a nextdoor neighbor. (My neighbors have all, lucky me, been very interesting people who have widened my perspective and my world: friendly, but not really close; people with whom the occasional greeting extended into a prolonged, rambling, often enriching conversation over our common fence.)
We did not get to see enough of Robert Mitchum, either. I'd have liked to see him and Lee Marvin do something together in their later years.
Robert Mitchum, like Gregory Peck, was a man I'd like to have had for a nextdoor neighbor. (My neighbors have all, lucky me, been very interesting people who have widened my perspective and my world: friendly, but not really close; people with whom the occasional greeting extended into a prolonged, rambling, often enriching conversation over our common fence.)
Not exactly. I so enjoyed watching him perform, that the vehicle seldom mattered. He was a master, rarely given a script worthy of his ability, in my opinion.
Not exactly. I so enjoyed watching him perform, that the vehicle seldom mattered. He was a master, rarely given a script worthy of his ability, in my opinion.
I've had The Yakuza and The Friends of Eddie Coyle in mind to watch again. Two of his best from the seventies, in my opinion.
We did not get to see enough of Robert Mitchum, either. I'd have liked to see him and Lee Marvin do something together in their later years.
Robert Mitchum, like Gregory Peck, was a man I'd like to have had for a nextdoor neighbor. (My neighbors have all, lucky me, been very interesting people who have widened my perspective and my world: friendly, but not really close; people with whom the occasional greeting extended into a prolonged, rambling, often enriching conversation over our common fence.)
Do you have any favourite Mitchum films?
Robert Mitchum was one of the greats.
I think all of us can agree on some of the wonderful performances he gave in films like;
The night of the Hunter
Cape fear
Out of the past
The story of G.I. Joe
The longest day
Ryan’s daughter
Farewell, my lovely
The big sleep
But sometimes you find those lesser films that were overlooked, and you realize just how versatile and excellent he was as a film actor. Such as;
Holiday affair
River of no return
Heaven knows Mr. Allison
The enemy below
Thunder Road
The winds of war (TV miniseries)
War and remembrance (TV miniseries)
I remember one of my favorite films as a kid that I still enjoy today. When I was a teenager upon a viewing noticing Robert Mitchum in his first role. That was “the human comedy” with Mickey Rooney.
My mother, who lived through it, said Herman Wouk's The Winds of War captured WWII perfectly, and sent me a copy. Like millions of others, we waited impatiently for War and Remembrance. Since I lived nearby, I made the pilgrimage through the Library of Congress to see the desk where Wouk wrote both books.
No one else could have played Pug Henry -- finally, a role thoroughly worthy of his talent. I have the videos of both parts of the TV series, which was well done.
Anzio is another of my favorites, as are The List of Adrian Messenger and Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo. Astonishingly, he made 25 movies before he got a starring role (in Nevada), most of them either uncredited or credited as "Bob Mitchum". Then he made 89 more! Not counting all his TV work. Mitchum's career ran from 1942 to 1997.
I saw Alien Romulus tonight.
5/10.....kids in space,one of the weakest movie in the series IMO
Amazing sound for those with great Atmos cinema setup at home.
It's a film that I quite like. The murder mystery aspect within a western works fairly well, and the cast is good, including Mitchum sending up his role from Night of the Hunter. And Dean Martin on more engaged form than he typically was after the early-sixties. But I really like Roddy McDowall here. The theme song is pretty catchy, too.
Hal Wallis bought the rights to the novel Five Card Stud was adapted from (Glory Gulch), after his association with Elvis ended, else it might have been a good vehicle for Elvis in Martin's role. He wouldn't have been as good. But it would have been a departure, at least. And it's certainly a better film than anything Elvis was in at the time.
I saw Alien Romulus tonight.
5/10.....kids in space,one of the weakest movie in the series IMO
Amazing sound for those with great Atmos cinema setup at home.
I thought it was one of the better Alien films. Alien and Aliens appreciated. I found a lot to like about it.
It's a film that I quite like. The murder mystery aspect within a western works fairly well, and the cast is good, including Mitchum sending up his role from Night of the Hunter. And Dean Martin on more engaged form than he typically was after the early-sixties. But I really like Roddy McDowall here. The theme song is pretty catchy, too.
Hal Wallis bought the rights to the novel Five Card Stud was adapted from (Glory Gulch), after his association with Elvis ended, else it might have been a good vehicle for Elvis in Martin's role. He wouldn't have been as good. But it would have been a departure, at least. And it's certainly a better film than anything Elvis was in at the time.
i agree with you. Five Card Stud would have been a perfect role for Elvis.
for those who haven't seen it, here's a scene where Robert Mitchum (the preacher) arrives to town and has an impact
Tonight I saw the horror film Margaux, which has just turned up on Netflix. It gets quite a panning from user reviews on IMDB, but it's actually a decent enough watch. A group of college friends rent a "smart house" for spring break, and very nice it is too - other than the fact that the AI thingy that runs the house has a murderous streak. There's nothing groundbreaking here, and there are clear influences from Cabin in the Woods, although this isn't anywhere near as clever. And yet, it kills a couple of hours rather effectively, even if the pre-credits sequence is poor enough to put people off watching the rest of it. It goes a bit nuts in the final quarter of an hour, too, but that seems to be a given with horror films these days.
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I also watched "Hauntings" this week, too, which the BBC have been showing, although it's actually made for Paramount Plus. There's nothing groundbreaking in this four part series looking at a different haunting each week, including the Enfield haunting, the Conjuring house, a graveyard in Edinburgh, and one at Lake Lanier. The lady of the lake episode is rather weak, in all honesty, but the other three episodes are engagingly told, with interviews with people involved. And it's nice to see another documentary series taking a serious look at such tales rather than a ghost-hunting show where sod all happens.
I'll add Margaux to my watchlist on Netflix. Tonight I watched the 2003 version of The Italian Job, Suzhou River, To Catch a Thief, and The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires.
I've liked the 2003 version of The Italian Job more than the 1969 film since I saw it on release, and whilst it's Italian Job by name, it's Soderbergh by nature. There are allusions to the previous film, although this does feel quite forced at times, but it's brisk and the cast is good. Then again, it doesn't have an ending that matches the earlier film.
Suzhou River is one of those alluring films that I love to revisit. It never loses any of its fascination and appeal. It's one of Lou Ye's best films. The central cast is terrific. It's thematically rich. And it's shot with a genuinely vibrant energy. The narrative isn't far removed from that of Vertigo, with the story focusing on three characters -- two men and a woman. One of them believes she is a lost love who was said to have died. And the other begins to think that she isn't who she says she is. Zhou Xun is especially good as the young woman.
The last time I watched To Catch a Thief was last year on Sky, where it has been available in 4K. But I'm glad to say that the new 4K Blu-ray release is not only better, it's the best release of this film to date, and it rights the wrongs of the previous Blu-ray release. It isn't perfect. There's some optics that aren't brilliant and there's one scene that features some egregious DNR, but it's mostly stellar. It's actually quite striking at times. With gorgeous colours and deep blacks. Fantastic detail and the kind of clarity that's a hallmark of 4K at its best.
It isn't that long since I last watched The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires either, but it was also fun to watch again, however, this Hammer/Shaw Brothers co-production never lived up to its promise. But Peter Cushing is great value as always, although the film is wanting for a more charismatic and frightening Count Dracula than John Forbes-Robertson was able to muster. Even though his screen time is pretty brief. David Chiang stands out as the young warrior who convinces Cushing's Van Helsing to save his village. And there's certainly a hint of Seven Samurai here, too. Still, I enjoyed watching this again.
Talking of Soderbergh, tonight I watched Ocean's Thirteen, which was and is an improvement over Ocean's Twelve, a film that was a bit too smug for its own good. This is a lot more fun, too. With numerous moving parts surrounding a revenge heist on a massive new Las Vegas Casino, owned by Al Pacino's Willy Bank.
The cast are clearly in their element, especially Clooney, Pitt, and Damon, whilst Pacino is on the kind of boisterous form that elevates a role that would be far less interesting otherwise. Soderbergh directs with aplomb, and his camera work is clever and keen from the first scene. It's hokey and incredulous, all the same. Including a touch of mythology involving the shaking of Frank Sinatra's hand. But its easy to get on board with.
I also watched Woman of the Hour, which is Anna Kendrick's directorial debut. Set in the 1970s, with an episode of The Dating Game central to the events in the film, this is based on the apprehension of the serial killer, Rodney Alcala. With Kendrick playing an aspiring actress who takes part in the Dating Game when she's unable to find work, with one of the male contestants being Alcala.
The narrative is fractured, however, with various threads at different times in the 1970s depicting encounters with Alcala, which is something that doesn't work entirely well. Especially when so much time is spent on the Dating Game segment of the film. Including one of the audience members recognising Alcala from a previous encounter.
This said, there are moments that are quite intense, grim, and fairly chilling, but Alcala is a character that feels torn between being a cipher, and being a charismatic killer. And as the narrative moves from one vignette to another, unfortunately, the film's grip slackens when it needed to be more gripping.
Daniel Zovatto plays Alcala, and he's quite good in the role, with his depiction of this malignant character bordering on charming, until his motivations become clear. I was reminded to some degree of Peeping Tom, with Alcala luring his victims in front of a camera lens as he convinces them to pose for photographs. Whilst the Dating Game segments have a similar feeling to Late Night with the Devil.
Kendrick is good in her role, and her diminutive frame next to Zovatto makes his presence all the more threatening, and it's an intelligent performance, too. There's good work from Kendrick in front of and behind the camera here. I'll be interested to see what she does again in the director's chair.
Greystoke wrote:Talking of Soderbergh, tonight I watched Ocean's Thirteen, which was and is an improvement over Ocean's Twelve, a film that was a bit too smug for its own good. This is a lot more fun, too. With numerous moving parts surrounding a revenge heist on a massive new Las Vegas Casino, owned by Al Pacino's Willy Bank.
The cast are clearly in their element, especially Clooney, Pitt, and Damon, whilst Pacino is on the kind of boisterous form that elevates a role that would be far less interesting otherwise. Soderbergh directs with aplomb, and his camera work is clever and keen from the first scene. It's hokey and incredulous, all the same. Including a touch of mythology involving the shaking of Frank Sinatra's hand. But its easy to get on board with.
I also watched Woman of the Hour, which is Anna Kendrick's directorial debut. Set in the 1970s, with an episode of The Dating Game central to the events in the film, this is based on the apprehension of the serial killer, Rodney Alcala. With Kendrick playing an aspiring actress who takes part in the Dating Game when she's unable to find work, with one of the male contestants being Alcala.
The narrative is fractured, however, with various threads at different times in the 1970s depicting encounters with Alcala, which is something that doesn't work entirely well. Especially when so much time is spent on the Dating Game segment of the film. Including one of the audience members recognising Alcala from a previous encounter.
This said, there are moments that are quite intense, grim, and fairly chilling, but Alcala is a character that feels torn between being a cipher, and being a charismatic killer. And as the narrative moves from one vignette to another, unfortunately, the film's grip slackens when it needed to be more gripping.
Daniel Zovatto plays Alcala, and he's quite good in the role, with his depiction of this malignant character bordering on charming, until his motivations become clear. I was reminded to some degree of Peeping Tom, with Alcala luring his victims in front of a camera lens as he convinces them to pose for photographs. Whilst the Dating Game segments have a similar feeling to Late Night with the Devil.
Kendrick is good in her role, and her diminutive frame next to Zovatto makes his presence all the more threatening, and it's an intelligent performance, too. There's good work from Kendrick in front of and behind the camera here. I'll be interested to see what she does again in the director's chair.
Hugh, I was interested in Woman of the Hour. Do you know where it’s available to stream?
Greystoke wrote:Talking of Soderbergh, tonight I watched Ocean's Thirteen, which was and is an improvement over Ocean's Twelve, a film that was a bit too smug for its own good. This is a lot more fun, too. With numerous moving parts surrounding a revenge heist on a massive new Las Vegas Casino, owned by Al Pacino's Willy Bank.
The cast are clearly in their element, especially Clooney, Pitt, and Damon, whilst Pacino is on the kind of boisterous form that elevates a role that would be far less interesting otherwise. Soderbergh directs with aplomb, and his camera work is clever and keen from the first scene. It's hokey and incredulous, all the same. Including a touch of mythology involving the shaking of Frank Sinatra's hand. But its easy to get on board with.
I also watched Woman of the Hour, which is Anna Kendrick's directorial debut. Set in the 1970s, with an episode of The Dating Game central to the events in the film, this is based on the apprehension of the serial killer, Rodney Alcala. With Kendrick playing an aspiring actress who takes part in the Dating Game when she's unable to find work, with one of the male contestants being Alcala.
The narrative is fractured, however, with various threads at different times in the 1970s depicting encounters with Alcala, which is something that doesn't work entirely well. Especially when so much time is spent on the Dating Game segment of the film. Including one of the audience members recognising Alcala from a previous encounter.
This said, there are moments that are quite intense, grim, and fairly chilling, but Alcala is a character that feels torn between being a cipher, and being a charismatic killer. And as the narrative moves from one vignette to another, unfortunately, the film's grip slackens when it needed to be more gripping.
Daniel Zovatto plays Alcala, and he's quite good in the role, with his depiction of this malignant character bordering on charming, until his motivations become clear. I was reminded to some degree of Peeping Tom, with Alcala luring his victims in front of a camera lens as he convinces them to pose for photographs. Whilst the Dating Game segments have a similar feeling to Late Night with the Devil.
Kendrick is good in her role, and her diminutive frame next to Zovatto makes his presence all the more threatening, and it's an intelligent performance, too. There's good work from Kendrick in front of and behind the camera here. I'll be interested to see what she does again in the director's chair.
Hugh, I was interested in Woman of the Hour. Do you know where it’s available to stream?
just finished watching my Sunday arvo, Two-A-Penny (1968), a british production that starred the one the only Cliff Richard, who by the way has just announced an australian tour in november 2025!
The movie also starred Anne Holloway, Dora Bryan, Avril Angers and Geoffrey Bayldon.
Those of you who haven't seen the movie will be pleasantly surprised. It's nothing like the previous "Summer Holiday" "The Young Ones" and "Wonderful Life" you would associate with Cliff and his former group, The Shadows.
Anyone here seen Two-a-Penny ? What did you think of the movie?
I saw My Favourite Cake last night, Maryam Moghaddam and Behtash Sanaeeha's tender and moving drama about a seventy year-old widow in Tehran, who decides to join her friends for tea one afternoon and shake off her loneliness. It's an intelligent, thoughtful drama with fine performances from Lily Farhadpour and Esmail Mehrabi.
It's also a film with a lot to say about women's rights and desires within a society and a culture that restricts what women are allowed to say and do with their own lives. Yet it does so in ways that are subtle, gentle, and genuinely thought-provoking. Splendid work from everyone involved.
I saw Smile 2 yesterday, which is an entertaining sequel to an original film that effectively did something new with the curse movie. Written and directed once again by Parker Finn, it stars Naomi Scott as a pop star who is battling her demons, both figurative and literal. The tour must go on despite everything she's facing, including withdrawal symptoms. All of which make for an interesting approach to the same basic concept.
Scott is very good in the leading role, and manages to juggle a lot of balls in her performance, including musical performance aspects that feature some great choreography. I was reminded of Romero with the use of hands and bodies, whilst the hallucinogenic qualities lean into giallo. Although, tonally, it's also akin to John Carpenter's best work when it ramps up the tension and incorporates jump scares that are earned.
It's a really interesting take on something once again familiar, but bolstered by such a good central performance, and a director who knows and understands the genre. I would welcome a third film in the series.
Last night (my wednesday) watched THE HUNGER for the first time, a semi horror, semi erotic movie that starred Catherine Deneuve, David Bowie, Susan Sarandon.
I found the storyline was very dark and patchy. Not to give too much away David and Catherine play ageing husband and wife vampires desperate to retain youth.
Last night (my wednesday) watched THE HUNGER for the first time, a semi horror, semi erotic movie that starred Catherine Deneuve, David Bowie, Susan Sarandon.
I found the storyline was very dark and patchy. Not to give too much away David and Catherine play ageing husband and wife vampires desperate to retain youth.
Not a film i would want to watch again.
Anyone here seen and liked or even dislike THE HUNGER ?
The Hunger is a curio, in my opinion. It's more style than substance, and whilst abstract and incomprehensible, those stylish aspects are quite interesting. Catherine Deneuve and David Bowie both look great and it's certainly the kind of role that played into Bowie's persona. I don't think it's a good film. It's a mess in many respects. But the make-up is good, and the location work is quite vibrant.
