Last Seen Movie - The Latest Movie You Have Seen; ratings

Reza
Laureate Emeritus
Posts: 10031
Joined: Thu Jan 02, 2003 11:14 am
Location: Islamabad, Pakistan

Re: Last Seen Movie - The Latest Movie You Have Seen; ratings

Post by Reza »

Beirut (Brad Anderson, 2018) 7/10

Low budget but intelligent film uses Morocco as the location to superbly recreate war torn Beirut of the early 1980s. A retired American diplomat (Jon Hamm), who suffered a personal tragedy during his posting in Beirut during the early 1970s, is brought back in ten years later to negotiate the release of a former colleague who has been kidnapped. Reluctantly the alcoholic man accepts the assignment returning to a city which is now strife ridden due to different divided political factions trying to assert their power. The complex (and confusing) politics hovers over the story which decides to focus instead on the diplomat's redemption as he tries to stay one step ahead of the kidnappers while keeping a close eye on his double crossing American colleagues (the CIA and the embassy). Aiding him is an officer (Rosamund Pike) assigned to assist him. The screenplay successfully channels the story like a spy thriller straight out of a John Le Carré book. Hamm is very good but Pike is unfortunately stuck with a terribly underwritten role.
Reza
Laureate Emeritus
Posts: 10031
Joined: Thu Jan 02, 2003 11:14 am
Location: Islamabad, Pakistan

Re: Last Seen Movie - The Latest Movie You Have Seen; ratings

Post by Reza »

Ocean's 8 (Gary Ross, 2018) 6/10

Danny Ocean (George Clooney) is dead and his sister Debbie (Sandra Bullock), just released from a prison stint, plans on pulling a fool-proof jewel robbery with the help of her partner-in-crime (Cate Blanchett). Five specialists are hired - the film gets a gender switch this time around - a computer hacker (Rihanna), an emotionally fragile fashion designer (Helena Bonham Carter), a jeweler (Mindy Kaling), a pick-pocket (Awkwafina) and an old partner (Sarah Paulson). Their target is a movie star (Anne Hathaway) who is persuaded to wear a Cartier diamond necklace to the Met Ball which they plan to steal. The film is strictly formulaic and plods along picking up some momentum during the heist sequence with the cast of female stars clearly enjoying themselves. Bullock looks like a waxwork - her face immobile thanks to a terrible facelift - Blanchett has an underwritten role, Carter does her usual eccentric bit full of annoying tics but Hathaway steals the film from her co-stars. She is sexy, witty, extremely funny and looks fabulous appropriately dressed to her teeth for the Gala with a spectacular diamond necklace around her neck. Sadly the screenplay does not have the playfullness and comraderie of Steven Soderberg's original with Clooney, Pitt, Damon and their gang - Elliott Gould and Shaobo King are the only leftovers from the original trilogy - although many famous (albeit second-rate) names appear in cameos (as guests at the Met) of which the most delightful are Elizabeth Ashley, Marlo Thomas, Dana Ivey and Mary Louise Wilson as four old ladies who help out the gang at a crucial juncture. Pity the film is a missed opportunity and hope the sequel comes up with more surprises.
Reza
Laureate Emeritus
Posts: 10031
Joined: Thu Jan 02, 2003 11:14 am
Location: Islamabad, Pakistan

Re: Last Seen Movie - The Latest Movie You Have Seen; ratings

Post by Reza »

Sunday Dinner for a Soldier (Lloyd Bacon, 1944) 8/10

Absolutely corny, old fashioned but utterly charming and sentimental homespun Americana with heavy doses of wartime patriotism. A poor family living on a beach in a derelict boat house invite a soldier to Sunday dinner in order to do their bit for the war effort. The soldier doesn't arrive till the end of the film and the screenplay is a series of vignettes about the family - an old man (Charles Winninger) bickering with a smart mouthed spinster (Anne Revere), his exasperated eldest grandaughter (Anne Baxter) trying to meet ends meet, the antics of her precocious siblings (Bobby Driscoll & Connie Marshall) and the soldier (John Hodiak) who finally arrives for dinner after an initial mixup. Baxter and Hodiak make a luminous couple who fell in love while shooting this film and married. The film's message of hope and love in times of adversity went down well with the public and it still manages to bring a happy smile to one's face.
Reza
Laureate Emeritus
Posts: 10031
Joined: Thu Jan 02, 2003 11:14 am
Location: Islamabad, Pakistan

Re: Last Seen Movie - The Latest Movie You Have Seen; ratings

Post by Reza »

Malta Story (Brian Desmond Hurst, 1953) 6/10

During WWII Malta is repeatedly bombed by the Italians and Germans while the British offer a strong defence. Low budget film has a documentary feel to it with actual war-time archive footage interspersed. The human angle revolves around two dull romantic sub plots between an aerial reconnaissance specialist (Alec Guinness) and a local girl (Muriel Pavlow), whose mother (Flora Robson) and brother (Nigel Stock) figure prominently, and an RAF officer (Anthony Steel) and a wren (Renée Asherson). Jack Hawkins is around posturing stiffly as the resident air force CO. Superbly photographed by Robert Krasker on location highlighting the plight of the residents of Malta.
Reza
Laureate Emeritus
Posts: 10031
Joined: Thu Jan 02, 2003 11:14 am
Location: Islamabad, Pakistan

Re: Last Seen Movie - The Latest Movie You Have Seen; ratings

Post by Reza »

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (J.A. Bayona, 2018) 7/10

The series gets more and more prepostrous but that does not stop it from being any less exciting - humans being chased by the T-Rex or the Raptor is an image that will always remain pretty scary. This installment has the duo (Chris Pratt & Bryce Dallas Howard) from the previous one trying to save the dinosaurs on that island from being killed by an active volcano. Abetting the plan is a nefarious animal trafficker (Rafe Spall) and his gang (Toby Jones, B.D. Wong & Ted Levine) with the plot converging at a gothic mansion in California - home to the surviving scientist (James Cromwell) who discovered the dinosaur dna - where he lives with his grandaughter and her Mrs Danvers-like governess (Geraldine Chaplin). The plot throws in the kid to provide obvious tension when the giant reptiles cut loose and rampage through the house. The screenplay involves cloning of not only a new specie of dinosaur but also delves into human cloning. Pratt and Howard (there is a witty closeup of her notorious stiletto heels) make an engaging couple and the beasts go through the usual motion of creating havoc. The ensuing rollercoaster ride of terror may seem old hat and repetitious but it still manages to keep the audience on the edge of the seat. It will be interesting to see where the plot goes in the next sequel since the beasts have now been brought out in the open becoming "a world problem" as predicted by the scientist (Jeff Goldblum) on Capital Hill. Enjoyable summer flick if you allow yourself the luxury of suspending all the disbelief on view.
Reza
Laureate Emeritus
Posts: 10031
Joined: Thu Jan 02, 2003 11:14 am
Location: Islamabad, Pakistan

Re: Last Seen Movie - The Latest Movie You Have Seen; ratings

Post by Reza »

Whiplash (Lewis Seiler, 1948) 5/10

Atmospheric but rather slow romantic melodrama with noir overtones. A failed painter (Dane Clark) takes up boxing to be near the mysterious woman (Alexis Smith) he loves. She is unhappily married to the manipulative crippled boxing promoter (Zachary Scott) who holds her in his cruel grip. Clark is good and easily passes off as a John Garfield clone, Smith is sexy but morose throughout while Scott does his usual sleazy bit. Coming off best are Eve Arden as a wisecracking pal and charming S.Z. Sakall as a romantic bartender.
Reza
Laureate Emeritus
Posts: 10031
Joined: Thu Jan 02, 2003 11:14 am
Location: Islamabad, Pakistan

Re: Last Seen Movie - The Latest Movie You Have Seen; ratings

Post by Reza »

The Woman in White (Peter Godfrey, 1948) 7/10

A painter (Gig Young) arrives at a country estate to find an odd group of eccentrics living together in a perpetual state of morose tension and terror - his pupil the pretty heiress (Eleanor Parker), her hysterical doppleganger and "woman in white" (also played by Parker) whom he meets in the forest, the girls' cousin (Alexis Smith), their hypochondriac invalid uncle (John Abbott), the seemingly charming but diabolical guest (Sydney Greenstreet) plotting to get the heiress (and her sister) killed and his wife (Agnes Moorehead) who holds the key to the mystery . Overwrought gothic melodrama moves at a lightning pace creating an eerie atmosphere through wonderfully moody photography. Sleazy Greenstreet steals the film with his maniacal plotting and Parker creates two sexy characters although with subtle shadings between the two. Sadly Alexis Smith is wasted in an underwritten role.
Reza
Laureate Emeritus
Posts: 10031
Joined: Thu Jan 02, 2003 11:14 am
Location: Islamabad, Pakistan

Re: Last Seen Movie - The Latest Movie You Have Seen; ratings

Post by Reza »

When Strangers Marry (William Castle 1944) 7/10

Studio bound vision of New York seen through the eyes of a naive war bride (Kim Hunter) who arrives in search of her husband (Dean Jagger) and gradually realises he may be the stocking killer on the loose. Castle directs this minor film with imagination (although there is a direct lift from Hitchcock's "39 Steps" during one scene) as every nook and shadowy corner seemingly houses something sinister often using odd camera angles to effectively create suspense. The girl is helped along the way by an old friend (Robert Mitchum) leading up to a twist ending. Hunter is very good, Jagger an odd choice as a leading man and Mitchum is deadpan throughout.
Reza
Laureate Emeritus
Posts: 10031
Joined: Thu Jan 02, 2003 11:14 am
Location: Islamabad, Pakistan

Re: Last Seen Movie - The Latest Movie You Have Seen; ratings

Post by Reza »

Highway 301 (Andrew L. Stone, 1950) 8/10

Tough B-noir is a newsreel-like thriller that follows the crime spree of a gang of bank robbers led by a vicious criminal (Steve Cochran) who has no qualms about shooting people who come in his way. The story is narrated by a cop and the exciting film closely follows the gang (Richard Egan, Robert Webber, Edward Norris) and their molls (a snappy Virginia Grey, Gaby André, Aline Towne) as they rob, kill, bicker and hide as the cops snap at their heels. The films violent ending has a strong (if preachy) message that crime does not pay. Cochran, sadly very underrated in Hollywood, is brilliant as the cold blooded murderer.
Reza
Laureate Emeritus
Posts: 10031
Joined: Thu Jan 02, 2003 11:14 am
Location: Islamabad, Pakistan

Re: Last Seen Movie - The Latest Movie You Have Seen; ratings

Post by Reza »

Dangerous Mission! (Louis King, 1954) 5/10

A woman (Piper Laurie) witnesses a mob killing in New York and hides out in Glacier National Park in Montana. At a hotel she befriends two men (Victor Mature & Vincent Price) and unbeknownst to her one of them is a hit man out to get her. Action adventure film has a number of set pieces - an avalanche, a forest fire and a dangerous trek across a glacier. The three attractive stars go through the paces but its all rather stale. Routine B film.
Reza
Laureate Emeritus
Posts: 10031
Joined: Thu Jan 02, 2003 11:14 am
Location: Islamabad, Pakistan

Re: Last Seen Movie - The Latest Movie You Have Seen; ratings

Post by Reza »

Madame Butterfly (Marion Gering, 1932) 7/10

Puccini's famous opera gets a work out in early Hollywood minus the arias. High born Cho Cho San (Sylvia Sidney) - who can speak english with a "very high class Brooklyn accent" - is sold by her family to a geisha house which in turn makes plans to get her married to a rich bidder. Along comes an American Navy sailor (Cary Grant) who is charmed by her beauty and decides to get married to her despite a fiancé back home. After he leaves, his wife waits for three years along with his son, but when he returns he brings along his American wife leading to tragedy. Sidney is heart breaking as the demure geisha while Grant, in one of his early lead roles, is handsome and dashing. The famous music from the opera is heard in the background and despite typically creaky moments from old Hollywood this is an effective adaptation with good production values.
Reza
Laureate Emeritus
Posts: 10031
Joined: Thu Jan 02, 2003 11:14 am
Location: Islamabad, Pakistan

Re: Last Seen Movie - The Latest Movie You Have Seen; ratings

Post by Reza »

I Confess (Alfred Hitchcock, 1953) 8/10

Somber broody thriller about Catholic guilt. A murderer confesses his crime to a priest (Montgomery Clift) who refuses to divulge his identity to the investigating cop (Karl Malden). When the priest becomes the prime suspect his former lover (Anne Baxter), now married to a politician, comes to his rescue providing herself as his alibi. The matter is exploited in court by the prosecuting attorney (Brian Aherne) leading to much hand wringing for the two lovers. Despite the melodrama this is a beautifully acted film shot starkly by Robert Burks on location in Quebec City. Clift and Baxter make an intense and swooningly romantic couple. One of Hitchcock's least celebrated films - the murderer is revealed at the start hence there is no suspense and the director's macabre sense of humour is totally missing - but there are enough captivating elements in the plot to make this one of his most intriguing films.
Reza
Laureate Emeritus
Posts: 10031
Joined: Thu Jan 02, 2003 11:14 am
Location: Islamabad, Pakistan

Re: Last Seen Movie - The Latest Movie You Have Seen; ratings

Post by Reza »

The Passover Plot (Michael Campus, 1976) 6/10

Little seen adaptation of the controversial book by Hugh J. Schonfield which goes contrary to the New Testament in presenting Jesus Christ (Zalman King - who would later go on to direct several soft porn movies) as a con artist. Christ the zealot, having read the Old Testament and its prophesy of a king leading his people to freedom, decides to stage his arrest and fake his death on the cross by taking a sleeping potion and plans to "rise" later after the effect of the medicine wears off. Christ is like a politician here strong-arming his way through some miracles and rabble rousing people to join his "cause" which is basically to oust the Romans from Jerusalem. Matters don't go quite according to plan resulting in the events which the world now believes to be true. The film had a shoestring budget though manages to feel authentic with a number of forceful cameos by familiar faces - Donald Pleasence as Pontius Pilate, Harry Andrews as John the Baptist, Scott Wilson as Judas and Hugh Griffith as Caiaphas. There is a rousing score by Alex North and Oscar nominated costumes. Fascinating alternative look at history not unlike a similar stance (with a different take) by Nikos Kazantzakis in his novel "The Last Temptation of Christ" which was brought to the screen by Martin Scorsese which also proved equally controvercial.
Reza
Laureate Emeritus
Posts: 10031
Joined: Thu Jan 02, 2003 11:14 am
Location: Islamabad, Pakistan

Re: Last Seen Movie - The Latest Movie You Have Seen; ratings

Post by Reza »

Vertigo (Alfred Hitchcock, 1958) 10/10

Haunting, dream-like film is one of Hitchcock's most personal thrillers. From the dazzling titles created by Saul Bass and accompanied by Bernard Herrmann's magnificent score the film sets the tone from the opening nightime roof-top chase sequence which dizzyingly establishes the main protagonist's fear of heights. A retired police detective (James Stewart), suffering from vertigo, is hired by an old friend to follow his disturbed wife (Kim Novak) whom he thinks might harm herself. When she jumps into San Francisco Bay he rescues her and falls in love with her. This deceptively simple plot proves to have more sinister layers which are gradually revealed intertwining the cop and the woman in a macabre dance involving obsession, love, deception and death. This was a rare flop for Hitchcock after a string of hits during the 1950s but the film has gained stature over the years and is now considered to be the director's masterpiece. The success of the film rests on the two stars and both Stewart and Novak deliver outstanding performances. Stewart was coming off a series of brutal westerns by Anthony Mann and here captures the tough yet vulnerable quality of the character who finds himself enraptured by a woman which leads him to the depths of catatonic hysteria. Novak - the ultimate "cool blonde" Hitchcock heroine - makes a dazzling entrance with the camera gliding towards her from afar and capturing her from the back followed by her slow walk towards the camera (and the audience), a vision in black with an emerald green wrap. Her character, initially deadpan but later acquiring a subtle change, is the key to the mystery and her performance is greatly helped by the dramatic costume designs of Edith Head - this is a perfect case of how costumes help to enhance the mood of a film. The entire enterprise deserves praise starting with the intelligent script, the outstanding production design, great use of sound, sharp editing, Robert Burk's outstanding camerawork, the special effects and the iconic score. The film takes us on an exciting rollercoaster ride leading up to a devastating conclusion. A must-see.
Reza
Laureate Emeritus
Posts: 10031
Joined: Thu Jan 02, 2003 11:14 am
Location: Islamabad, Pakistan

Re: Last Seen Movie - The Latest Movie You Have Seen; ratings

Post by Reza »

Scene of the Crime (Roy Rowland, 1949) 3/10

MGM's belated entry into the noir genre is a dull police procedural. A tough cop (Van Johnson) tries to clear the name of his former partner who is gunned down. Deathly slow film goes through the paces with the usual pat clchés. Pretty Arlene Dahl is wasted as the wife-at-home who is disillusioned by her marriage because her cop husband is never home. Boring film.
Post Reply

Return to “Other Film Discussions”