A Film Journal: January & February
Ratings from 1 (*) to 5 stars (*****).
First time viewings in bold.
January
The Ghoul (1933) **½ - Minor Boris Karloff chiller, with a great premise and atmosphere wasted on frivolous comedy.
Great Expectations (1946) **** - Typically innovative David Lean Charles Dickens adaptation, capturing the period flavour. But his 1948 "Oliver Twist" is better.
A Bucket of Blood (1959) ** - Offbeat horror-comedy from Roger Corman wastes a potentially interesting beatnik premise on a hackneyed script and stagy scenes.
Tales from the Crypt (1972) **** - Inspired Amicus anthology, based on the 1950s EC horror comics. Peter Cushing has his only turn as a walking corpse.
Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff (1949) *** - Decent comedy bogged down by a few repetitious gags, but Universal applies its time-tested horror experience with success.
Corridors of Blood (1958) ***½ - Fascinating period horror with Boris Karloff as a doctor addicted to his new anaesthetic. Based on true events!
The Scarlet Claw (1944) ****½ - Universal's finest Sherlock Holmes film, an intriguing, bloody mystery set on the Canadian marshlands.
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (1939) ****½ - The greatest Sherlock Holmes movie, bar none. Basil Rathbone versus George Zucco make for the perfect Holmes and Moriarty.
The Madness of King George (1994) *** - Alan Bennett play makes for compelling drama, but isn't well suited to cinema. Nigel Hawthorne delivers an outstanding performance.
The Woman in Green (1945) ***½ - Fair Sherlock Holmes thriller involves the gruesome finger murders. Roy Neill's studied direction and Henry Daniell's villainy are the saviours here.
The Tomb of Ligeia (1964) **** - Vincent Price's final Edgar Allan Poe opus. Stunning lighting and camerawork dress a picturesque Norfolk abbey.
The Revenge of Frankenstein (1958) ****½ - One of Hammer's trademark films, a sequel better than the original. Jimmy Sangster imbues his inventive script with black comedy.
The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959) *** - Peter Cushing's first outing as the great detective. pales next to the 1939 film, but there remains much to enjoy here.
Maria Marten, or, The Murder in the Red Barn (1935) **½ - Deliriously hammy Tod Slaughter melodrama. Poor on most levels, but Slaughter's eyeball-rolling elevates this to near-respectability.
Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (1936) ** - Best-known version of the penny dreadful sustains limited, stodgy interest. Slaughter is back on hand, and is thoroughly perverse.
Dressed to Kill (1946) *** - Universal's final Sherlock Holmes film presents a fascinating mystery in a slightly flat, derivative fashion. It remains a good way to pass the time.
Crimes at the Dark House (1940) ***½ - Famous version of "The Woman in White" is remarkably slick and entertaining, providing a decent story as well as a fine showcase for Slaughter.
The Plague of the Zombies (1966) ****½ - One of Hammer's genuine classics, their only foray into zombie territory. The makeup is groundbreaking and creepy.
New Films: 10
Month Total: 18
February
Sherlock Holmes and the Voice of Terror (1942) **½ - Early Universal Holmes fusion is among their weakest efforts, but has a wonderful contemporary blitz ambiance.
Dracula Has Risen from the Grave (1968) **½ - A stunning Christopher Lee, stylish cinematography and a good impaling are undone by an unimaginative script.
The Curse of Frankenstein (1957) **** - Hammer introduces Peter Cushing's marvellous Baron Frankenstein with a solid, trendsetting series opener.
Frankenstein Must be Destroyed (1969) ****½ - Possibly Hammer's greatest, this film contains all the hallmarks and Gothic beauty associated with the studio.
Frankenstein and the Monster From Hell (1973) *** - A frequently overlooked cult classic, with the wicked Baron gathering fresh materials from the local asylum.
The Others (2001) ****½ - A thoughtful ghost story framed by naturalistic performances and low key photography.
Dracula (1958) ***½ - Slightly tepid first outing for Christopher Lee in his most famous role still retains appeal through copious blood, violence, staking and crumbling to dust.
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) ***** - Sandwiched between two other instant classics, this film has neither a beginning nor an end. But it's awfully well done.
Creature From the Black Lagoon (1954) **** - Sci-fi veteran Jack Arnold brings one of the screen's most convincing rubber suit icons shuffling to life. Groundbreaking underwater scenes.
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) ***** - Aside from the multiple endings, this epic bookend to the trilogy contains very little to fault.
Casablanca (1942) ***** - This is the classic with it all. Personal highlights include all of Claude Rains' Oscar-nominated screen time and the Max Steiner score.
The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires (1974) **½ - Cheesy fun melds vampire horror with martial arts choreography with Peter Cushing... with mixed results.
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) ***** - Welcome to Middle Earth. To appreciate how magnificent this film really is, one must first behold Ralph Bakshi's animated travesty.
New Films: 2
Month Total: 12
posted by James C. Swanton at 5:11 PM
2 Comments:
In response to everyone's favourite unltimate question of "inform me of the health of the feline companion that dwells in the provinces of your constitual abode"
I drafted in the one and only TS Eliot to help me explain:
-----------------------------
Macavity's a Mystery Cat: he's called the Hidden Paw -
For he's the master criminal who can defy the Law.
He's the bafflement of Scotland Yard, the Flying Squad's despair:
For when they reach the scene of crime - Macavity's not there!
Macavity, Macavity, there's no one like Macavity,
He's broken every human law, he breaks the law of gravity.
His powers of levitation would make a fakir stare,
And when you reach the scene of crime - Macavity's not there!
You may seek him in the basement, you may look up in the air -
But I tell you once and once again, Macavity's not there!
Mcavity's a ginger cat, he's very tall and thin;
You would know him if you saw him, for his eyes are sunken in.
His brow is deeply lined with thought, his head is highly domed;
His coat is dusty from neglect, his whiskers are uncombed.
He sways his head from side to side, with movements like a snake;
And when you think he's half asleep, he's always wide awake.
Macavity, Macavity, there's no one like Macavity,
For he's a fiend in feline shape, a monster of depravity.
You may meet him in a by-street, you may see him in the square -
But when a crime's discovered, then Macavity's not there!
He's outwardly respectable. (They say he cheats at cards.)
And his footprints are not found in any file of Scotland Yard's.
And when the larder's looted, or the jewel-case is rifled,
Or when the milk is missing, or another Peke's been stifled,
Or the greenhouse glass is broken, and the trellis past repair -
Ay, there's the wonder of the thing! Macavity's not there!
And when the Foreign Office find a Treaty's gone astray,
Or the Admiralty lose some plans and drawings by the way,
There may be a scrap of paper in the hall or on the stair -
But it's useless to investigate - Mcavity's not there!
And when the loss has been disclosed, the Secret Service say:
`It must have been Macavity!' - but he's a mile away.
You'll be sure to find him resting, or a-licking of his thumbs,
Or engaged in doing complicated long-division sums.
Macavity, Macavity, there's no one like Macavity,
There never was a Cat of such deceitfulness and suavity.
He always has an alibi, and one or two to spaer:
At whatever time the deed took place - MACAVITY WASN'T THERE!
And they say that all the Cats whose wicked deeds are widely known
(I might mention Mungojerrie, I might mention Griddlebone)
Are nothing more than agents for the Cat who all the time
Just controls their operations: the Napoleon of Crime!
thankyou very much. im here till im 92 (according to the death calendar)
how far do you do you agree with the theory of marx that "religion is the opium of the people"?
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