Making a Living (1914)

Second viewing; previously viewed on January 6. 2006.

This is about a reporter and a man who keeps getting in his way and thus becomes a source of great annoyance and trouble to him. The reporter witnesses by happenstance a car accident and rushes to cover it. The jobless man, as expected, shows up at the scene of the accident.

Passable silent short comedy. The most interesting aspect of it is probably the way it portrays who is unsympathetic to people in a situation of need (the reporter gives money to the begging man with reluctance and mutters 'bum' after his initial encounter with him). Instead of being rewarded for his moderate generosity, he is punished with continuous setbacks. The film's implicit message seems to be that people without real compassion are always doomed. Or something like that.

Rating: 50 (unchanged)

Against the Wind (1948)

A team of saboteurs engaged in the Resistance during World War II must rescue one of their top men who has been captured by the Germans after an operation in occupied Belgium.

I've read that this is one of the first films about the WWII Underground. As such, many of its story elements will feel like déjà vu to modern audiences. Even so, it stands out for its excellent craftsmanship, and two or three sequences are really thrilling. There are some errors in the Wikipedia page for this movie.

(...) Michèle the Belgian émigrée (Signoret), whose sweetheart has died after the occupation of Belgium (...)

Michèle's sweetheart has not died; he has turned quisling.

On completion of their training Fr Elliott and Julie are parachuted into Belgium, briefed to destroy a Nazi records office in Brussels and to spring prominent SOE agent Andrew from custody (...)

The records office was destroyed by agent Andrew, who subsequently is captured by the Germans.

Rating: 51

Toda Donzela Tem um Pai que É uma Fera (1966)

 Joãozinho is living with his girlfriend in his apartment without the latter's father's knowledge. When her father finds out about it, he becomes enraged and tries to enter the building where Joãozinho lives. Joãozinho hears the ruckus and manages to hide his girlfriend with a friend who lives in the same building. A series of mix-ups ensue.

Comedy which artificially stretches the initial situation into the duration of a feature film. Although the plot development is in itself tedious and more than a little implausible, the film is done with such verve that it somehow succeeds, albeit only barely, at holding the viewer's attention. Other than that, the cinematography is fine, and the film has some interest as a record of a contradictory period in Brazilian history.

Rating: 34