I Just Watched...

[LawrenceA]

Where are you watching these? I'm interested in watching some more.

Criterion Channel had a collection a few years back and I watched them all and really liked quite few of them especially The Diabolical Tenant, Robinson Crusoe and The Kingdom of Fairies.

All on YouTube.

[LawrenceA]

Today I started out with a few more shorts, then some silent features, then some newer stuff:

Love and Science (1912) - French short about a worked-obsessed scientist who develops a TV/telephone combo. His dejected girlfriend uses it to prank him. There's no credited director for this slight sci-fi trifle.

Onesime, Clockmaker (1912) - France again, this time an installment in a short series featuring the character Onesime, played by Ernest Bourbon. He gets news of an inheritance, but there's a stipulation that he must wait 20 years to receive it. So he builds a clock that speeds up time, resulting in many visual gags. Directed by Jean Durand.

The Skeleton (1912) - A professor receives a papier-mâché skeleton, and two bratty kids steal it and prank a bunch of the citizenry. One of the kids is "Baby Early Gorman". A very early child star? Oh, and there's some blackface.

The Double Incarnation of William Sleep (1913) - A man who gambles at chess has a nightmare that an opponent has the ability to change his appearance to match the protagonist. This 15 minute French film from director Georges-Andre Lacroix seems inspired by The Student of Prague.

The Devil's Assistant (1917) - This is a strange American short from director Harry A. Pollard. An evil doctor uses drugs to drive a woman who spurned him into madness. We see her hallucinations as she descends into a literal hell.

Straight Shooting (1917) - Early Western feature from director John Ford features Harry Carey in his popular role of "Cheyenne Harry". He gets caught up in a war between ranchers and homesteaders. Also featuring Molly Malone and Hoot Gibson. Carey apparently played the Cheyenne character in dozens of films, but this was the first one for me. I thought it was enjoyable, and shows a lot of polish compared to others' output of the time. My favorite of the day.

Tepeyac (1917) - Very early Mexican from directors Carlos E. Gonzalez, Jose Manuel Ramos, and Fernando Sayago. A modern day woman worried about the fate of her beloved on sea voyage takes solace in the tale of the Virgin of Guadalupe. This is more Catholic Church propaganda than anything else, and the filmmaking is turgid, but I still enjoyed seeing a Mexican film from this far back.

The Blue Bird (1918) - Children's fantasy from director Maurice Tourneur. Two kids get a magic hat and travel to the land of the fairies in search of the Blue Bird of Happiness. I thought the story was daft, but the costumes and settings are very good.

Fabiola (1918) - Italian historical fiction feature from director Enrico Guazzoni. It's the Romans versus the early Christians. The film was notable for the time for its "excessive" violence, with bloody massacres. Otherwise it's imminently forgettable.

The Tattooed Stranger (1950) - Solid B-level police procedural. This was shown on Noir Alley.

Shark Attack 2 (2000) - Quickie follow-up to the 1999 original (they were filmed back-to-back), this time featuring Thorsten Kaye as a heroic marine biologist out to stop a school of genetically-altered great white sharks. These South African-produced shark movies seem quaint after a couple of decades of ever-more outrageous shark-themed flicks on the Syfy channel.

Arachnia (2003) - Dreadful Big Bug movie. A bunch of people are stranded in the wilderness when their plane is brought down by meteors (?!?), the impact of which opens up the underground lair of a long-dormant species of enormous spider-like creatures. The effects work is stop-motion Harryhausen stuff, without the skill or charm.

[TikiSoo]

Last night I watched ALL THROUGH THE NIGHT 1942 prompted by TCMs Warner Brothers salute. I had never seen this movie before (!) and it seemed like the quintessential Bogart movie.



It's a twisty plot involving a ring of evil Nazi spies that Bogart "Gloves Donahue" gets tangled in and resolves in 107 minutes. This movie was taut, well written & beautifully photographed providing a great base for the actors to shine, in true WB fashion.

Gloves hangs around with other marginal charactors and his favorite baker, an elderly gentleman, is murdered. Jane Darwell is comic relief delivering her repeated line with flourish, "I've got a feeling..."
Gloves & buddies played by William Demerest & Frank McHugh (also bring some light heartedness to the grim story) track them down to a warehouse near the docks. Only WB could take this trope and make it exciting with an unforgettable fight on freight elevator.

Of course in contrast is finding "the girl" involved in the plot singing in a swanky nightclub and snooping around a snobby art auction helmed by Conrad Veit & Judith Anderson who are both great villains. Smarmy Peter Lorre's charactor is the glue holding this all together and unfortunately, all three give pretty cliché performances.
My fave Edward Brophy has a few scenes in the nightclub and Jackie Gleason-who is so young & adorable- only has a few lines in between taking drags off his cigarette, but they both add flavor.

I'm glad TCM is celebrating WB films. They may not have been the artiest or most spectacular movies, but they definitely found a successful formula & perfected it. This movie perfectly represents Warner's consistency in making great movies that were/are enjoyed by the masses.

[Allhallowsday]

BABY FACE (1933)

The beginning is SO lewd.

[Fedya]

BABY FACE (1933)

The beginning is SO lewd.

What's the rest of it, chopped liver?

I love how the establishing shot of the skyscraper pans up a few more stories after each conquest.

[Allhallowsday]

BABY FACE (1933)

The beginning is SO lewd.

What's the rest of it, chopped liver...?

Once GEORGE BRENT is in the picture, it's corny creakiness begins to show. I still love it.

[LawrenceA]

Today's roster:

A Florida Enchantment (1914) - Very odd comedy about a young woman from a Northern family who comes to Florida to visit an aunt. She acquires a vial of strange seeds that, when ingested, swap the gender of the consumer for a period of time. Both she and her maid take the seeds and cause chaos and confusion. There's a lot to like here - I enjoyed seeing local places referenced a lot, and the women in drag were amusing. But there's also much to disdain, like heavy use of blackface. This movie was considered offensive and in poor taste at the time, but due to the gender fluidity rather than the racism.

Broadway Love (1918) - Two chorus girls (Dorothy Phillips & Juanita Hansen) have romantic ups and downs. I watched it for Lon Chaney, who appears as a small town creep stalking one of the girls. Directed by Ida May Park.

The Ghost of Rosy Taylor (1918) - Mary Miles Minter stars as a young woman who impersonates a housekeeper. Directed by Henry King & Edward Sloman. Meh.

Hell Bent (1918) - Another John Ford-directed Harry Carey western. It was okay, but not much to write home about.

The Master Mystery (1918) - Serial starring Harry Houdini as an investigator looking into a crooked patent baron. Featuring a crazy robot-type guy and a lot of escape artistry, naturally. This was the first of five starring roles in films for Houdini. The villain is a very thinly-veiled swipe at Thomas Edison.

Urashima Taro (1918) - Japanese animated short, one of the oldest surviving examples of such. A fisherman rescues a sea turtle, who in turn takes the fisherman on a trip through the sea.

The Strange Affair of Uncle Harry (1945) - I think most people around here have seen this one, and I may have many, many years ago, as some of it seemed familiar. I still liked it, despite the compromised conclusion. My favorite of the day.

Fear (1946) - Monogram adapts Crime & Punishment as a cheap noir. This was better than I expected, and I enjoyed seeing Warren William, Anne Gwynne, and an extremely young Darren McGavin with what looked like platinum blond hair.

[Intrepid37]

Last night I watched the British film Kill List (2011).

A disturbing, relentlessly dark, crime picture that veers from family dysfunction to brutal killing to foreboding mystery and ultimately to unthinkable horror. The closest genre I can think of that carries the viewer to the place of realization of what it's been about is the British classic from 1973, The Wicker Man.

It's a pretty solid viewing experience, although it does contain hints of incredible evil and some actual intense violence. Really intense violence. So, not everyone's cup of tea.

But for fans of oppressive horror, pretty good.

[LawrenceA]

Last night I watched the British film Kill List (2011).

I liked that one. The writer-director Ben Wheatley has gone on to a well-regarded career. I've also seen Sightseers (2012), A Field in England (2013), High-Rise (2015), Free Fire (2016), Rebecca (2020), and In the Earth (2021), but I still liked Kill List the most.

[Cinemaspeak59]

The Lost King (2022) Sally Hawkins plays a frustrated office worker, divorced, and dealing with health issues. After seeing a performance of Richard III, she finds herself rejuvenated, with a new calling: finding King Richard’s remains & rehabilitating the reputation of Shakespeare’s legendary villain. Whimsical, informative feel-good movie directed by Stephen Frears in his goes-down-easy style.

[TikiSoo]

A disturbing, relentlessly dark, crime picture that veers from family dysfunction to brutal killing to foreboding mystery and ultimately to unthinkable horror. The closest genre I can think of that carries the viewer to the place of realization of what it's been about is the British classic from 1973, The Wicker Man

Some of you may know I prefer my horror tending towards fantasy rather than violence.
For some reason, I was completely underwhelmed by The Wicker Man '73. Especially since it seems so many find it scary/horrible.

Wonder what I had missed?

[Intrepid37]

For some reason, I was completely underwhelmed by The Wicker Man '73. Especially since it seems so many find it scary/horrible.

Wonder what I had missed?

Did you get a built-up expectation of it from people before you saw it?

[Lomm]

Last Saturday, in my continuing exposure of my fiancée to classic film, we watched two Cary Grant gems.

Mr Blandings Builds his Dream House (1948) and The Awful Truth (1937). I must have good taste and a good read on what she will enjoy, because she liked both of them a lot. I think it was smart for me to start her off on all this with the Thin Man series. Myrna Loy is such a likable star. Then of course she's in Mr Blandings, so that was a natural segue into Cary Grant films.

[LawrenceA]

Today's lineup:

Alice in Wonderland (1915) - Early screen treatment of the Lewis Carroll tale from director W.W. Young, with Viola Savoy in the title role. The story is very scattered, but I liked the weird costume choices for the various creatures and characters.

Back to God's Country (1919) - One of the earliest surviving features made in Canada. Nell Shipman stars as a backwoods gal who marries a passing surveyor (Wheeler Oakman). They later encounter various dangers in the far north wilderness. This was a huge hit in its day, no doubt partially spurred by a brief bit of nudity on Shipman's part. Later remade at least two more times, once with Rock Hudson.

Different from the Others (1919) - German social drama directed by Richard Oswald and starring Conrad Veidt as a gay concert violinist who gets blackmailed for his sexuality, it being an imprisonable offense at the time. This subject matter is handled better than I thought it would be based on the place and time, although unfortunately quite a bit of the film seems to be lost and is reconstructed using stills and title cards.

The Doll (1919) - Oddball German comedy from writer-director Ernst Lubitsch. The goofy nephew (Hermann Thimig) of an heirless Baron is forced to get married in order to inherit the ailing nobleman's title and wealth. Having no interest in getting married, he instead fakes marriage using a sophisticated animatronic doll/robot (Ossi Oswalda). Oswalda was a big comedy star at the time, and she's cute and charming here.

The Dragon Painter (1919) - Sessue Hayakawa stars as a volatile, eccentric painter who falls for the daughter (Tsuru Aoki) of his new mentor. Hayakawa was at the height of his stardom here, and he shows great screen presence. My favorite of the day.

Haunted Spooks (1920) - A Harold Lloyd short, the second half of which takes place in a supposedly haunted house. There are some good gags here, but also a fair bit of racial "humor". It was during the making of this short that Lloyd blew part of his hand off.

Crack-Up (1946) - Pat O'Brien as an art lecturer (?!?) who "cracks up" and vandalizes the museum where he works, and maybe kills a guy. With Claire Trevor, Herbert Marshall, Ray Collins, Wally Ford, and Mary Ware. This was better than I expected.

The Argyle Secrets (1948) - William Gargan as a reporter rapped up in a murder plot involving some damning documents wanted by homicidal persons unknown. With Marjorie Lord, Ralph "Dick Tracy" Byrd, John Banner, and Barbara Billingsley. A passable "B" picture, although the copy on YouTube is atrocious.