Morocco (1930)

A cabaret singer arrives in Morocco concurrently with a Foreign Legion soldier. The two fall in love with each other. A rich middle-aged painter also falls for the singer.

Exquisite melodrama, with an incalculably superb performance by Dietrich. Plot and mise-en-scene wonderfully fit each other. The ending is really disturbing. The only things that seem subject to debate are (1) the choice of musical number which seems strangely at odds with the remainder of the film (perhaps they were trying to cash in on the memory of The Blue Angel, a totally different film) and (2) an occasional tendency to excessive stylization which renders some close-up scenes of the heroine longer and more static than the diegesis would demand.

Rating: 80 (one of my 1930 favorites, ranked number 3)
This is the beginning of a project of mine, which will attempt to view all the films I haven't seen (and see again some that I have) from the Top Ten lists of critic Dale Thomajan. This is his number 1 for 1930.

The Wonderful Country (1959)

An American-born man living in Mexico and working as a hired gun to a local boss returns to the U.S. to take care of an arms deal. Things go wrong, and from then on he goes through a series of adventures.

Entertaining western in which, however, some things do not go quite well. The love story, for example, suffers from that mixture of titillation and puritanism which infected most American movies since the advent of the Hays code. And on top of that, London is such a bad actress. On another department, the director handles some scenes featuring extras in a strange static way which I am not sure I liked. The film seems to go for adventure alone, but it also makes interesting commentary about Mexico being politically more barbaric than the United States. Highlights: a good action sequence where a stagecoach and some Apaches are chased; the protagonist's two consecutive interviews with the two big-shot Mexican brothers (played by the brilliant actors Armendáriz and Mendoza). Mitchum delivers an understated performance (doesn't he always?) which I consider to be a notch above his average.

Rating: 55

Rosemary & Thyme: The Cup of Silence (2005) (TV)

Miss Boxer and Mrs. Thyme are hired to solve problems at a vineyard. It is located next to a hotel, at which the two garden specialists will stay. The hotel is owned by the brother of the vineyard's owner. A food critic (actually "lifestyle columnist") is staying at the hotel.

Well written whodunit. Very classical in style.

Coffee and Cigarettes (2003)

Several short films around a person or persons drinking coffee (or, in one of them, tea) and smoking cigarettes.

1. "Strange to Meet You": This one I had already seen, and hated, a response which hasn't changed upon this new viewing. (Originally released as a standalone short in 1986.)
2. "Twins": A waiter talks to two siblings about Elvis's lost twin brother and other strange topics.
It's kind of agreeable, but I honestly didn't quite see the point. (Rating: 45) (Originally released as a standalone short in 1989.)
3. "Somewhere in California": Two pop singers meet in a bar and do not quite get along.
The performances are interesting, but I wasn't exactly impressed by the whole idea. (Rating: 40)(Originally released as a standalone short in 1993.)
4. "Those things'll Kill Ya": Two elderly italo-Americans discuss smoking and diet in a bar.
Again, I find the whole thing a little too frivolous and bland. (Rating: 40)
5. "Renée": A beautiful woman is sitting alone in a bar, drinking coffee and smoking while browsing a magazine about guns. A waiter keeps pestering her with his unwanted solicitude.
Now, this one is quite intriguing and enigmatic. (Rating: 50)
6. "No Problem": Two friends meet in a bar and one of them repeatedly suggests that there's some problem in the other one's life that he isn't telling him.
Slightly annoying. (Rating: 35)
7. "Cousins": A movie star, in between takes, receives the visit of her punkish cousin.
Bittersweet humor, acute psychological observation, and two respectable performances by the same actress. (Rating: 65)
8. "Cousins?": Two English actors meet, on the insistent request of one of them, who has done some genealogical research about the two of them.
A masterpiece of devilish humor about Hollywood and hurt feelings. And a chance to see its two leading players at their best. (Rating: 86)
9. "Jack Shows Meg His Tesla Coil": A guy and a girl (siblings?) talk about the device of the title, assembled by the former. He demonstrates it in action.
Back to the slightly agreeable/slightly annoying generic weirdness. (Rating: 40)
10. "Delirium": Two rappers meet in a bar and are joined by a celebrity slightly affected by his excessive caffeine ingestion.
Badly flawed and unfunny. (Rating: 15)
11. "Champagne": Two nostalgic senior citizens sit and evoke old times.
The actors are brilliant, but the text is not so good. (Rating: 45)

(Final observation: "Cousins?" joins my list of favorites; it is in the 2nd position in 2003)

Rosemary & Thyme: Up the Garden Path (2004) (TV)

A gardening competition is the background for this episode. The emphasis in this one is not on complexity of plot, but on the sheer entertainment value of everything that comes with the series concept, that is, landscape, dialogue seasoned with intelligent humor, and a notion -- which is perhaps most akin to the British culture -- that death may be kept at bay even (or rather, especially) when one is surrounded by it all the time.

Antichrist (2009)

After a terrible loss, couple retreat into their secluded house in the woods for recovery. Do you think it works? Neither did I.

What first shocked me was that its premise (and initial sequence) is nearly identical to 1973's unsurpassable masterpiece Don't Look Now. The whole film is immersed in structures which populated most of Bergman's films after 1966 (maybe even before that, but I simply haven't seen all those films). One novelty about Antichrist is that it is much more no-holds-barred when it comes to physical manifestations of its characters, be they of a lusty or of a violent nature (or a combination thereof). Another film which is structurally related to it is The Shining, in the apparent connection of secludedness and madness and in some not so apparent ways too, as in the backstory of Her previous stay at the country house. The central duo of actors do a terrific job, and I would go as far as saying that they would make viewing the film justifiable even if there were no other compensations. One particularity which sets this film apart from its filmic relatives is the choice of the female as the mad character, a fact which lends it some novelty and thus makes it interesting. It is a distinctively watchable film, especially at its really hallucinatory climax involving a driller, a metal weight, and a fox hole.

Rating: 55

Rosemary & Thyme: Swords into Ploughshares (2004) (TV)

This, the 7th episode of the second season, is a very well concocted mystery tale. A good summary (complete with spoilers) and some comments are provided by Christopher Mulrooney in here.