Change Your Image
Jon Kolenchak
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Carnival of Souls (1962)
A Special Treat for Church Organists
This movie should be required viewing for all church organists. The following are not necessarily spoilers, but fun things to check out:
1. See what music she puts on the music rack and then listen to what she plays.
2. She's talented -- she can make a keyboard switch without it changing the pipes that are playing!
3. She has a crabby boss. OK, so that's not news, but I am curious as to what his denomination is. It looks like the church is Episcopal from the outside sign, but if that's the case, he's wearing the wrong collar.
4. She has rubber legs -- look how she sails over the pedal board as if she were just hitting random notes.
5. Finally, she does the UNTHINKABLE. She plays without shoes! In all fairness, though, they do reappear on her feet when she leaves the console.
The Golden Chance (1915)
Early Cinema at its Best
In watching this early DeMille work, it was once again reinforced to me that early DeMille is far superior to late DeMille. His attention to use of light within scenes is remarkable. His pacing is very good, enabling much to be told in the space of an hour or so. It is a pity that he wasn't as intuitive about the style of his later sound films as he seemed to be in his silent films.
This was the first film in which I had seen Cleo Ridgely. She was remarkable, quite restrained and yet conveyed a broad spectrum of emotions.
The ending is wonderful.
Eye of the Devil (1966)
Just Plain Silly
I have always loved Deborah Kerr, especially in the film The Innocents. I knew nothing about this film before I watched it, and that was probably a good thing.
The first thing that attracted me to this movie was the casting: Deborah Kerr, David Niven, Flora Robson, Sharon Tate, and David Hemmings. How could one possibly go wrong with a cast like that? Well, apparently anything is possible in cinema.
Without giving away the plot, which most people will figure out around 15 minutes into the movie, let me point out some aspects of this production that are worth noting. One gets to hear one of the most obnoxious and sometimes anachronistic film scores ever composed. One gets to see cinematography that tries so hard to be artsy, but ends up instead looking as though you were watching the film on a violent amusement park ride. One gets to see David Niven give his most extreme "doe-eyed" performance. One also gets to see Deborah Kerr make lots of funny faces, and run up and down seemingly endless flights of stairs wearing very noisy shoes.
It's good for a giggle... if you have your fast-forward button handy.
9 Dead Gay Guys (2002)
Ugh
I loved the silliness of the premise. I thought the male leads were quite engaging. I enjoyed the editing. I liked the pacing. I did not like the movie.
I kept thinking that there was an abundance of possibilities with this movie, and as I watched it not many were realized.
There are a handful of moments that are funny, and a few that are outrageously funny for those in the gay community, but as a whole the film just simply didn't work for me. A pity.
This is a film to view from cable or satellite service the first time you see it. You can always buy it later if you really enjoy it.
Agnes of God (1985)
Some Things Are Meant to Be Unresolved
*CONTAINS SPOILERS* I found Agnes of God to be an extraordinary film. Fonda, Bancroft, and Tilly are an amazing ensemble. The cinematography is beautifully done, and the musical score is more complex than what immediately meets the ear.
The main issue of this film can be stated in one word, faith. Many people have very strong convictions, personal and very valid about the existence of God or the non-existence of God. Although there are a multitude of personal religious and non-religious beliefs about God, when we get to the final analysis, no one really knows for certain if they are correct or not. After many years of Roman Catholic grade school, and even more years as a church organist, one of the themes that I hear over and over again is that faith is the ability to believe without relying on tangible evidence.
With that in mind, if you watch the film for a second time you may realize some things that you did not realize before. For example: Jane Fonda's mother - so wrapped in her religious convictions that even in a state of advanced dementia, she can only talk about her daughters Marie (who died in a convent) and Martha (Fonda) who "had an abortion and is going straight to hell.
Jane Fonda -- a professional woman, an atheist, scarred by early religious training and filled with guilt over the deaths of her sister and one of her childhood friends. In Agnes, she finds a link to her dead sister and the past. She resolves to "save" Agnes (pun intended) and somehow purge herself of the errors of her past. She can't bring back her sister Marie, but she can help Agnes.
Anne Bancroft -- a second career nun finding refuge in her religion, then being discarded by her family.
Meg Tilly -- an obviously disturbed young nun who moves in and out of lucidity at a moment's notice.
What are some of the final results of this mix? Through Agnes, Fonda re-connects with some tiny fragment of spirituality that she holds on to through the end of the film. Bancroft goes from deeply religious, to doubt and back to her position of faith again when Agnes comes to the convent, only to have her faith tested again at the trial. Agnes seems to be the only one that, on the surface at least, is unscathed. But is she? The beautifully enigmatic scene at the end of the film where she is in the bell tower holding the bird and then letting it fly away is heartbreaking. Is she freeing herself from the horror of the past? Or has she become more and more insane and withdrawn from the world?
All three women become changed as a result of their interactions. At a key moment in the action when Fonda asks Bancroft if the believes the baby was divinely conceived, Bancroft in one phrase denies the possiblilty, but moments later says, "I want the choice to believe". By the end of the film, Fonda has pretty much destroyed Bancroft's "choice", yet Fonda comes away with a renewed spirituality of her own -- very underplayed, but if you look carefully, you will sense it.
In conclusion, I feel that the circumstance of Agnes' conception is unimportant in itself. What is important is the catalyst it becomes for all personally involved.
Valley of the Dolls (1967)
Good for A Giggle
Hollywood folklore says that Jacqueline Susann left the premier of this film in tears. If that is indeed true, she had good reason to do so.
Over the years, this film has "risen" from simply a bad adaptation of a bestselling novel to a cult camp classic at one extreme or a small guilty pleasure on the other extreme.
Much has been said in previous reviews about the many elements of this movie that are simply bad or wrong or both. I must submit my personal favorite, though -- Susan Hayward singing that DREADFUL "I'll plant my own tree" song while this mod mobile keeps spinning around her head. You get the feeling that in any moment, she is going to lose an eye.
It is a great move to watch while ironing laundry or paying bills.
Mysterious Island (1961)
I LOVE That Giant Chicken!
There are a handful of fantasy/sci-fi films from the late 1950s and 1960s that stand out from all the rest. Mysterious Island is one of them. I place this film in the same box with movies like Jason and the Argonauts, The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad, and in some respects, Journey to the Center of the Earth. They are all stories of adventure with exotic locations and seemingly impossible odds against the characters in their fight for survival. Each has their share of villans and heroes, but the common mission of each story it to get out alive.
There is one very important element shared by all these movies. The film scores were composed by Bernard Herrmann, and all done in his usual excellent manner. Whether it is his using creepy bass woodwinds for the monster sequences, or beautiful harp arpeggios to support scenes of mystery, Herrmann was one of the greatest film composers, and his style was definitely unique. (Those who are interested in his music may be surprised that he wrote a complete cantata, Moby Dick, a complete opera, Wuthering Heights, and a complete Symphony along with shorter orchestral pieces. If you love his work, I suggest that you research these pieces.)
Anyway, back to the island. Her we have 2 British women, one African-American soldier, a war correspondent, 3 union soldiers and one confederate soldier -- not exactly your perfect desert island party.
In these days of reality TV where people are voted off the island in survivor-type shows, It is refreshing to see a film where people work together to plan their escape. Enemies in battle become friends, upperclass British women forget their differences with the lower class Americans and side-by-side fight for their survival.
The movie is fun, full of action, and there is never a dull moment in its 100 minute running time. It is a perfect family film.
Now, it's Soap Box Time. This relates to film technology in general, and perhaps this film in particular. Each decade film technology improves. The movies of this decade are more advanced technologically then the movies of the 1980s, the 1970s, and so on to the beginning of the motion picture industry (the late 1800s). In each decade that we go back in time the movies are considered techinically inferior in quality to current films. Each movie is state of the art for the time that it was filmed. Well, believe it or not, someone will likely review a film like The Matrix in the year 2020 and say something like, "the special effects were really fake and cheesy". That's the way that things go.
I think it's time for movie viewers who love old movies to stop apologizing for them by saying things like, "It had great special effects for its time", or "I guess it doesn't stack up to todays special effects, but I still like it."
Do you ever hear people say, "Citizen Kane should have been filmed in color", or "The music in Casablanca" was too schmaltzy", or "Gone with the Wind was too long?"
I guess I've made my point. I watched this movie tonight with all the wonder of when I first saw it at age 5 or 6. Of course, I noted things technically that I would never have seen as a child. You know what? I didn't care. The movie was fun.
Quality will endure, and a story that is well told with great imagination will always capture my attention.
So, at the risk of sounding redundant, I LOVE THAT GIANT CHICKEN!!!!
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1920)
Hammy Histrionics
Even taking into account the different style of acting present in many silent films, I found John Barrymore's performance (especially in the transformation sequences) a bit much.
If you want to see him do a tremendous job in an offbeat role, check out "Svengali" (1931).
If you want to see the most frightening version of "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde", watch the 1931 version starring Fredric March.
The Ten Commandments (1956)
More Fun Than It Was Meant To Be
I was about six years old when I first saw this movie. This was at at time when movies took a long time to make it to television, and the only hope one had of seeing a film again was when (and if) the film was re-released. I remember very vividly how I was caught up the the wonder of it all. Even at that young age, what I remembered most was the music score.
When the movie was re-released (before it became an annual television event), the LP of the film score was also reissued. I actually wore out one copy of the album because I listened to it so much.
Today, of course, I look at this movie with much different eyes. With all the bad things it has going for it (silent screen-style acting, wretched dialogue, ridiculous casting in the secondary parts, re-writing of traditional notions of Biblical history, etc., etc.) I can't help but say this -- I love this movie! Although I love it for different reasons today.
There are so much computer generated special effects in movies nowadays it is almost impossible to understand the impact that this movie had when it was released. And the gargantuan cast -- what other movie can you think of that had so many leading performers of their day (whether you agree with the casting or not)? Hollywood simply could not afford to do this sort of thing today.
And there is something else about this film -- under all the glossy spectacle and silliness, I genuinely feel that all the actors were giving a very sincere performance (again, whether you like the performance or not.) I never tire of watching Anne Baxter slither, saunter and strut around the film like a cat in heat. I can't help but think what a good drag queen she would have made, if such things were possible.
I highly recommend the DVD print. The movie is absolutely gorgeous, and the sound fantastic.
I don't watch The Ten Commandments much these days, perhaps once every 3 or 4 years. However, not too many months go by without me pulling down the soundtrack CD from the shelf and taking it for a spin.
A Midsummer Night's Dream (1968)
How Can Something Like This Happen?
This film has a dream cast. Diana Rigg, Judi Dench, Helen Mirren, and Paul Rogers are especially fine. Yet, the film moves clumsily along with all the cinematographic finesse of a home video. So much of the production values of this film are just plain sloppy. Sloppy makeup and sloppy attention to costume detail are just the beginning of the list of faults. Exactly when was this story supposed to happen? It could have been an Elizabethian period piece, yet methinks it could have been the 1960's based on the women's short skirts and very 'mod' boots. There were touches of the directing style of Ed Wood, also. We enter the forest and it's dark. A few scenes later, the sun is shining, then it's dark again. I can't let this review go by without echoing another reviewer's comment -- What exactly were they doing to get so dirty?!?
I did find a way to completely enjoy this film. Don't watch it -- listen to it. It works much better as an audioplay than as a film.
Coupling (2000)
Unbelievably Funny
I came across "Coupling" quite by accident one evening on BBC America. I have always been a fan of most Britcoms, and watched the remainder of the episode that was being aired, and then the next episode that followed immediately thereafter.
I discovered something very interesting. Somehow this show could present just about anything and not only get away with it, but made it extremely funny at the same time. Subjects that would come across as crude, rude, and in poor taste in American sitcoms are presented here with surprisingly funny results. The cast's ensemble is just about perfect, and all are very likable in their own quirky way.
It's been a very long time since I have laughed so hard watching a television show. I believe the last time was watching "The Vicar of Dibley" -- surprise! -- another Britcom.
The Pagan (1929)
Charming
Ramon Novarro is quite charming in the title role of this little-known film. All of the other stars also do a superb job: Renee Adoree, Dorothy Janis, and Donald Crisp. It's amazing to me how natural and contemporary this film seems after 72 years. Novarro is funny, dramatic and quite believable in the title role.
It just about breaks one's heart to realize that Renee Adoree died at the age of 35, about 3 years after the release of this film. If you enjoy her in this film, be sure to see her performance in "The Big Parade".
Donald Crisp's role harkens back to his character in "Broken Blossoms", and his is the only performance in this film that teeters a little toward the melodramatic side.
Viewers may also be interested to know that Novarro had attempted a legitimate singing career in opera and recitals, and it is his voice you hear in the overdubbed recording.
Rebecca (1997)
Extremely Disappointing
It is impossible to review this film without comparing it to Alfred Hitchcock's 1940 version. This production has no romance, no mystery, no suspense, and no atmosphere -- all of the things that made Hitchcock's version a masterpiece.
The only thing that makes this film watchable is Diana Rigg's new take on the character Mrs. Danvers. I found her to be the only believable character in the production -- different than Judith Anderson's interpretation nonetheless, but well done.
If you've never seen a film version of Rebecca, watch the Hitchcock version instead of this one.
The Haunting (1963)
Excellent film. Excellent ending.(CONTAINS SPOILERS)
WARNING - CONTAINS SPOILERS
I, like many others who posted reviews of this film saw it as a child, about the same time that I saw "The Innocents". Between the two films, I had many a sleepless night.
I recently purchased the video and watched the film about 30 years after I had first seen it. I won't waste time here duplicating the comments that many have raised about the quality of the production. I agree with all of them.
The one thing that struck me as the most horrifying part of the film was the final line of dialogue that is heard. (I have not seen a review that comments on this, but I have not read all of them.)
SPOILER What is the one thing that frightens Eleanor more than anything else? It's her fear of being "left behind". This is absolutely terrifying to her. So, when we hear her last line of dialogue, "...and we who walk here walk alone.", imagine what that means. Perhaps the hell of her eternal existence is to remain alone -- not even to commune with the other spirits of the house, but to be alone forever.
That's pretty frightening.
Gosford Park (2001)
Too Much of Everything
Gosford Park is a film that is meticulously set, and cast with excellent actors - too many actors. In the opening quarter hour or so of this film, I had a terrible time trying to understand the dialogue, and so when this seeming "cast of thousands" was all in place, I had no idea who any of these people were. Visually, the film is just about perfect. From every other standpoint, it falls flat. I love Helen Mirren and Alan Bates. It's a shame that they did not have more to do. I also enjoy Maggie Smith, but I am getting so tired of her playing the witty "old bitch". The pacing of the film is abysmally slow, but I expect that to some degree in period films. The odd thing about this film was that it was not enough for director Robert Altman to have accurate set and art direction, he also had to impress upon you the fact that you were looking at excellent period detail with camera work that was self-indulgent, to say the least.
By the time the film was over, I could have cared less about who did what to whom. That's a pity considering the talented people involved in this production.
If you go to see this movie, bring a hearing aid for the first scenes. Having a British friend accompany you might also be a good idea, for translation purposes.
Viskningar och rop (1972)
Death, pain, grief, guilt... and love
Death is one of those things that no one really likes to talk about. When a family member or loved one is terminally ill, the lives of all that surround the individual change, sometimes forever.
This film deals with a terminally ill woman, her devoted servant, and the woman's two sisters, brought together by the tragedy. As the women live through the last days of their dying sister, the superficial layers of each begin to disintegrate, and we eventually see the very core of their being --and it isn't always pretty.
Also not pretty are the deathbed scenes. I found them harrowing, painful and frighteningly realistic. No one at the bedside had any sense of the purpose of so much pain -- not even the priest.
Bergman uses silence like other directors use explosions. The ticking and chiming of the clock are almost startling as time drags on and on. Everyone waits for the inevitable, and the inevitable takes it time.
The cinematography is extraordinary, as is the use of color. Red is used to an almost overwhelming degree, but also used to perfection. When I think of red, several ideas or images come to mind, such as blood, passion, and heat. Each of these are presented in various degrees in this film.
The redeeming figure in this film is the servant. Her love for the dying woman is completely unconditional and selfless. It was for her grief that I wept.
The Last Man on Earth (1964)
Dreadful
By "dreadful" I certainly don't mean "full of dread". I mean dreadful acting, dreadful dubbing, dreadful pacing, and a complete lack of cinematic flow and continuity. (I'm still trying to figure out why you can see Vincent Price's wife's breath during one of the indoor scenes.) The dinner scene between Price and Bettioa borders on sitcom-like comedy with his "let's just ignore those zombie vampires outside trying to break in" attitude.
Price stares intently at the camera and corrugates his forehead now and then. Then he goes shopping for garlic. He tells the audience that he has been alone for 3 years, yet walks into a freezer at the local grocery story full of 3-year old meat without gagging once. And guess what? The garlic is fresh! Yeesh!
I mistakenly thought that this would be one of the sci-fi classics of the 1960's. This movie is so bad that you could mistake it for an Ed Wood flick.
The Others (2001)
Deja Boo
As the lights dimmed in the theatre, I was prepared for Gothic mystery, the supernatural, and some good story telling. To my surprise, I discovered that I was not seeing one film, but a combination of three that came to mind almost immediately. Take "The Innocents" (1961) mix with "The Sixth Sense" (1999) and add a drop of "The Night Has Eyes" (1942), and you have "The Others". Much of this film is derivative -- the religion-obsessed maternal figure, the sheltered young brother and sister, and the oh-so-accommodating hired help all set in a nice spooky old house perpetually surrounded by an eternal fog. There are a few plot threads left dangling, to say the least. Discussing those would involve getting into some spoilers, which I never do in films of this type. But then again, you'll probably figure the story out long before the characters on the screen do.
The Viking (1928)
An unknown little gem
Donald Crisp was an extremely prolific actor in sound films. What many people don't know is that he made even more silent films (as actor and director) than sound films. In The Viking, he plays Leif Ericsson, who plans his greatest adventure, to go beyond Greenland and explore for new lands.
A strikingly handsome LeRoy Mason plays Lord Alwin, an English noble. His castle is attacked by the Vikings early in the film, his family scattered, and he is made a slave.
The lovely Pauline Starke plays Helga Nilsson, who is a spunky Nordic gal who is loved by Leif, Alwin, and... well let's not give away too much of the story here.
What makes this film charming and somewhat unique is that it came at the end of the silent era, when camera technique was at its height. It is also filmed in primitive technicolor. The early technicolor process did not render true color as we know it today. The muted shades of the film actually help to make the historic subject matter of the film more remote, as though one were actually watching something that happened long, long ago.
The version of this film that I saw had sound effects, and a symphonic musical score that mixed new music with lots of Richard Wagner at climactic moments. It all worked very well.
It's amazing to me that this very entertaining film is almost unknown today.
Höstsonaten (1978)
"A mother and a daughter... can you imagine a more terrible combination?"
Ingrid Bergman as Charlotte, is a concert pianist visiting her daughter Eva, played by Liv Ullmann. They have not seen each other for 7 years. Charlotte's other daughter, Helena, is also living with Eva. Helena has a crippling disease, and at one time was living in some type of institution.
At first, everything is fine, as mother and daughter do their best to make each other as comfortable as possible. When left alone, they wonder about each other's expectations, but continue on.
Charlotte is a very talented, but completely self-absorbed woman. Eva is a frump. A sweet frump, but a frump nonetheless. At first, there are a few catty remarks exchanged, but the turning point is when Eva offers to play the piano for her mother. She works as hard as she can, but the music sounds contrived and unmusical. When she asks her mother to play the piece for her, Charlotte does the one thing that signaled to me that "the war was on". She laid down the music rack on the piano. (When pianists have a piece memorized, they do that to show the audience that they have no need for the printed music.) Charlotte, of course, plays beautifully (she could play no other way). However, the damage is done. Mother is successful, and daughter is a failure. Although the scene is dramatically pivotal, it did produce one of the few really funny lines in the movie. After Charlotte finishes playing, she says, "Well, I HAVE been playing these Chopin pieces for 37 years."
Charlotte's self-absorption is pretty amazing when you realize that her ill daughter was in an institution, then moved to Eva's house, and she had no idea that it happened. There are some other clues in the early part of the story that indicate she probably wished that her daughter Helena would have died long ago. Charlotte can be totally charming to her public, her agents, her fans... but has very little to offer her own children.
Eva is so desperate for love and affection from her mother that she seemingly misses the fact that her husband loves her very much. When Charlotte is awakened by a nightmare, she and Eva begin a late-night talk. And that is when the real nightmare begins.
At times this film is painful to watch, and at times is emotionally draining. Sven Nykvyst's cinematography is stunning. I thought this especially so in the flashback sequences, and in the scene close to the end of the film when Eva is in the cemetery.
Although not as perfect as The Seventh Seal, or Wild Strawberries, Autumn Sonata still has much to say, whether we feel comfortable listening to it or not.
Portrait of Jennie (1948)
The Artist and His Muse
It seems that all artists at some point in their lives question their abilities. Years of struggling sometimes yields meager results, or involve painting works of art that have no meaning just for some cold, hard cash. Enter Joseph Cotten as artist Eben Adams, who paints "very pretty landscapes and flowers", and when necessity compels him, even paints a mural above the bar at a local pub. He is disenchanted with his life and doubts his artistic gifts. He is befriended by two elderly art dealers, Ethel Barrymore and Cecil Kellaway (both absolutely marvelous in their roles), and is told to try painting portraits instead of landscapes.
One day in the park he meets a rather extraordinary young girl named Jennie Appelton (played by Jennifer Jones). She comes in and out of his life throughout the film and eventually becomes his inspiration. As the film progresses, we realize that that Jennie is not just your ordinary young girl. We also learn that the lives of these two people are very much intertwined, to the degree that their relationship does not even follow the basic fundamental laws of time and space that we usually have come to rely upon.
This fantasy is sensitively acted by the entire cast, including the secondary actors. Cotten's friends are delightful, and it was wonderful to see Lillian Gish in the role of Mother Mary of Mercy.
The cinematography is exquisite. Some of the scenes of New York City actually look like paintings. The use of light, camera angle and even textured filters combined with the black and white photography are simply beautiful. Then, when you least expect it in the final reel, the film is tinted green for a while, then sepia, then the final shot is in Technicolor. All of this is done with complete success.
My only complaint was with the film score. Perhaps it's the music educator in me, but I would have really preferred a new film score written in the style of the French Impressionists, rather than reworking familiar music by Debussy. Every time a familiar motif of Debussy's music was heard I found myself distracted from the film. Re-hashing classical masterpieces rarely works in cinema (the two exceptions that come to mind are "Brief Encounter" and "Excalibur")
If you enjoy a good romantic fantasy (such as "The Ghost and Mrs. Muir") by all means see this film. If you are overly jaded and a romantic cynic, see the film too -- you may enjoy it!
Wuthering Heights (1939)
Haunting
[POSSIBLE SPOILERS] Many times when Hollywood adapts a book for the screen and dramatically alters, truncates, or re-writes it, the result can be pretty bad. I can think of only a few instances when major rewriting of a preexisting work has been successful. Gone with the Wind, The Wizard of OZ, The Good Earth, and Wuthering Heights are examples of classics that are transformed into new works of art that preserve the essence of the original material in many ways, and yet are new and different classics in a new and different medium.
Wuthering Heights opens in a blinding snowstorm. Mr. Lockwood (Miles Mander) is lost on the moors and finds his way to the house of his landlord, Heathcliff (Laurence Olivier). He is forced to stay the night. In the middle of the night, his sleep is disturbed by a rapping sound that he discovers is an outside window shutter. As he reaches out to grasp the shutter, he feels the touch of an icy hand, and he hears a voice call out, "Let me in, it's Cathy.". Lockwood is terrified, and calls out to Heatcliff. After telling Heathcliff what happened, Heathcliff runs out into the blinding snowstorm. An elderly woman, Ellen Dean (Flora Robson), looks on and says, "SHE calls to him... and he follows her out on to the moors..." And so begins the tale of Wuthering Heights, as told in flashback by Ellen, the housekeeper.
The story covers several decades and recounts the thwarted relationship between Heathcliff and Cathy. Olivier is perfect as Heathcliff, Merle Oberon is beautiful as the selfish, immature Cathy who wants it all yet at times isn't quite sure what it is she wants. The supporting cast is perfect -- Geraldine Fitzgerald as Isabella Linton, David Niven as Edgar Linton, and most especially, Flora Robson as Ellen Dean.
This film contains some of the most beautiful black and white cinematography ever created. Gregg Toland created some images that have remained with me for years such as when the window shutter is banging in the wind. The camera then moves to the interior, pans through the room, then through the cobweb coated bed spindles to focus on the agitated Lockwood. Later, when Cathy declares her love for Heathcliff, there is a loud thunderclap and she states, "I AM Heathcliff". At that time there is a blinding flash of lightning that totally washes the screen in light. There is also some wonderful camera work at a party given by the Lintons. Heathcliff arrives, and Cathy does not expect him. There is a scene that goes on for several minutes during which a large Amazon-like woman in playing a rather unmusical rendition of Mozart's Rondo Alla Turca. The camera shifts from Heathcliff to Cathy to Isabella and to the harpsichord player. Not a single word of dialogue is necessary, and you know exactly what is going on in each of their minds. In the final reel, when Cathy is dying, and asks Heatcliff to take her to the window, she says, "I'll wait for you... 'till you come". As she says that line, and her eyes widen, there is a very eerie reflection of light in one eye that lasts for only a second, and seems to be symbolic of her soul leaving her body.
William Wyler's direction is masterful.
This film version of Wuthering Heights stops about midway through the story. In the novel, the children of Cathy and Heathcliff grow up and meet their eventual fates. The novel is much darker and the characters are much more selfish, resentful, and revengeful. Yet, I have no complaint with this movie at all. It's not wrong in its interpretation of the novel, it's just different.
I don't think that I have read a love story that was less romantic in presentation than this novel. Perhaps that is why it is such a fascinating story. Love is not romantic. Love is NECESSARY.
I have seen this film more times that I can count, and there is one scene that always brings me to tears. It's a closeup of Ellen Dean's face, her eyes brimming with tears when she says, "No, [Heathcliff is] not dead, Dr. Kenneth. He's not alone. He's with her. They've only just begun to live. Good bye, Heathcliff. Good bye, my wild sweet Cathy."
Ben-Hur (1959)
De Mille-esque but without the histrionics and bad script
When a film director is well known, he usually specializes in one genre. Everyone knows that Alfred Hitchcock made thriller/suspense films, that Cecil B. De Mille made epics, and so on. Then along comes a director like William Wyler whose films include drama (These Thee, Jezebel), adaptation of a classic novel (Wuthering Heights), adaptation from the stage (The Little Foxes), comedy (How to Steal A Million), and even a musical (Funny Girl). It is said that Wyler decided to direct Ben-Hur because that would give him a chance to do a Cecil B. De Mille movie. Well, he does C.B. one better.
I have been a fan of the epic film since childhood in spite of how awful some of them can be. There's something about a film produced on a grand scale with a cast of thousands set in an exotic location that I enjoy. The problem with these films is that they are many times poorly scripted, historically inaccurate, and even though they run between 3 and 4 hours, the characters never seem to get beyond the Technicolor cut-out stage. Despite these flaws, they sometimes can be awfully fun to watch.
Ben-Hur is film that is extremely well scripted (there were a total of 3 writers working on the film, but only one got screen credit), well filmed, and well acted. Charlton Heston in the title role gives such a sincere performance it almost makes me forget what a jerk he has become in his old age. Stephen Boyd is great as the evil Messala, and Martha Scott does as good a job as Chucky's mother in this film as she did in The Ten Commandments, when Chucky was Moses.
The film's score by Miklos Rosza is perhaps the finest film music that he has ever written. It is somewhat leitmotific in technique, and goes on for much of the 212 minutes of the film -- always supplementing and accentuating the drama, but never overshadowing it.
Without giving any plot elements away to those who may have not seen this film, the story deals with friendship, betrayal, revenge, and redemption. The sets are massive, the costumes beautiful, and the characters are people that you actually care about. The film is one of those rare instances in cinematic history when a remake is as good as the original. (Ben-Hur was first filmed as a full-length film in 1925.)
This review is based on the newly released DVD edition, with which I have some negative views. The print itself that was used for the DVD mastering has some amazingly glaring color fluctuations. The color is also washed out in quite a few scenes, and in the scenes which are softly lit, there is a bluish or purplish haze over most of the screen. One would think that a better copy the film negative existed for its debut on DVD, but perhaps not.
The DVD is in widescreen letterbox format, which is the format that I prefer. However, because it was originally shot in MGM Camera 65 (an extremely wide projection) the viewable area on your television is a very narrow band. I suggest watching this on the largest TV you can find.
If you enjoy this version of Ben-Hur, take a chance and watch the 1925 version. You may be surprised how good a silent film can be.
Days of Wine and Roses (1962)
Sobering Drama
Have you ever been at a party or gathering where you are the only sober person? It's an experience that is hard to describe. Everyone that is moderately to heavily drunk thinks that they are so clever, funny, entertaining, and so on. It has a certain surreal aspect.
There are several scenes in this film which bring back that feeling to me. When Jack Lemmon and Lee Remick are at their most slap-happy rip-roaring state of drunkenness and having a great time, it gave me this odd sensation -- these people are not funny, not clever, and not entertaining. This is at least one of the points made in this very well made film.
The story is well told, and answers the question that many people have about alcoholism, and perhaps addiction in general (How do things ever get so terribly out of control?). It happens slowly, and it happens for a multitude of reasons. The reasons that this film deals mostly with include loneliness, wanting to please others, wanting to do one's job without compromising one's integrity, childhood abandonment, low self-esteem, and just the fact that in the social world "everyone" drinks.
Lemmon and Remick do a fabulous job as your ordinary young couple who get started slowly but surely going down the wrong track. Charles Bickford as Remick's father has little screen time, but makes every moment of it count. Jack Klugman is also very good as Lemmon's Alcoholics Anonymous friend.
Some things are wonderfully telegraphed. Lee Remick has this "thing" about chocolate (addiction potential). There's just a moment when you see a smoldering cigarette in an ashtray, and you get the feeling that something bad is going to happen (it does). When Jack Lemmon, in a drunken state comes home one evening, he impetuously picks some flowers for Lee Remick. The elevator door closes on them, cutting off the tops of the flowers. (When he arrives home, the couple have their first really big fight.) Also, I think it is interesting that every time that Lee Remick is watching the television, she is watching cartoons -- an interesting statement.
The cinematography is realistic, sometimes downright gritty. Filming it in black and white helped to enhance this mood, especially in the greenhouse and the psychiatric ward scenes.
Perhaps the most important point of the story is that addiction, be it alcohol or other things can happen to anyone. Sometimes you just don't realize it until it's too late.
The Days of Wine and Roses is a fine "message" movie that gets its point across without getting preachy or self-righteous, with believable performances by all.
Wo hu cang long (2000)
Overrated and Tedious
I had high expectations for this film, based on media hype and word-of-mouth recommendations. I found the general pace of it to be excruciatingly slow. There was a substantial lack of plot, and what existed seemed terribly contrived. Granted, at times the film was beautiful to watch, and the fight sequences were impressive, but I found myself looking more at my watch than the screen after the first hour. All the elements of the film's story: love, sacrifice, dedication, discipline, revenge, and personal choice can be found in many other films. Don't waste your time on this one.