Copie conforme (2010)

English title: Certified copy

 James, an English intellectual, is in Italy to promote the translated edition of his essay, and meets a woman who is interested in his work. They visit places, and from a certain point onwards during their tour together, they start pretending they are a married couple in a crisis.

Supposedly, this is a philosophical investigation on the value of authenticity. In a bit of dialogue James asserts that he wrote the book to convince himself that originality is a myth. Maybe as a practical exploration of the concept, the woman apparently turns him into a "copy" of her ex-husband. He plays along with the charade. To be honest, it's hard to determine what the film is trying to demonstrate, if anything, and there is a sense of sterility to the whole proceedings. Is this too complex or too obvious? Or maybe this is a subtle satire on cell phones. They are a recurrent motif, both as an obstacle to communication (especially among teenagers), and a promoter of excessive communication. This take would make the film an erotic comedy whose punchline is that the nine o'clock train appointment would give him more than enough time to get her into bed, but those cell phones ruined it. The actors are very good in this, and the locations are attractive.

Rating: 47

Quatermass and the Pit (1967)

Second viewing, possibly first one with original audio and/or correct aspect ratio; previously viewed on August 7, 1991.

Alternate title: Five Million Years to Earth

An extraterrestrial ship with some dead extraterrestrials in it is found in the London underground. Some scientists investigate. It turns out those extraterrestrials were on Earth five million years earlier, and the ship interacts with present-day humans in a dangerous way.

While a funnier title would have been Quite a Mess in the Pit, I've nothing against the more descriptive The Demons Were Astronauts. A year later came 2001: A Space Odyssey, with similar themes, though with a more positive view. It's all very crazy, even though the feigned attempt at grounding it in science shows a certain need to pay tribute to reason. In my opinion, a more interesting film would be one in which the ship was indeed a Nazi artifact, with power to turn people into Nazis. Colonel Breen would be a crypto-Nazi, of course, and Hitler would be revealed to have extraterrestrial blood. All that being said, the film, in its actual form, does have some visually impressive scenes, and the narrative is entertainingly tense.

Rating: 50 (down from 65)

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)

 Second viewing, and probably first one with original audio; previously viewed between 1983 and 1986.

After a senator's death, a naïve young man is appointed as a substitute. Unbeknownst to him, there is a corruption scheme in the works, involving a wealthy businessman and an experienced senator from his state.

Although  ultimately just a sort of pamphlet for the ideals of Americanism, this film is sufficiently eventful and tense to be consistently entertaining. Of course, being what it is, it never asks the obvious question: how is a system which depends on exceptional men and exceptional circumstances supposed to thrive in the long run? It's not, of course, but the U.S.A. has thrived and thrives still, which must mean one of two things: corruption isn't such a deadly disease, or there's more to the American system than is shown in the film.

Rating: 65 (unchanged)

The Mechanic (1972)

 Second viewing, and first one with original audio and correct aspect ratio. Previously viewed between 1983 and 1986.

A professional killer becomes a mark himself after he takes the young son of one of his victims as an apprentice and assistant.

It's fascinating to read the criticism this film has been subjected to by the original writer and by the critics at the time of its release. According to its Wikipedia page, the original screenplay was a homosexual drama. I can only surmise that such a film would have been interesting, but honestly what a relief that the producers decided to change it, because the film as it was made is very good. Also according to Wikipedia, critics have repeated some of the criticism made by the original writer while adding other equally meritless objections. Apparently the fact that this is a thriller bothered them. Of course homosexuality is still present in the movie, even if only in a latent form, because of the situations the characters find themselves in and also for having a very masculine-looking older actor paired with a very feminine-looking younger one. Anyway, the movie is very entertaining, and a special mention should go to the excellent musical score.

Rating: 74 (unchanged)

The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)

 Second viewing, and first with original audio; previously viewed on or a little after March 28, 1984.

Three men returning from service in World War II and their troubles adapting to civilian life. Homer lost both hands and is afraid to propose to his girlfriend; Al works in a bank; Fred has no particular skills and can only get a lowly job; Peggy, Al's daughter, falls in love with Fred, who is already married.

This is a highly regarded movie, but some elements of its narrative are not very believable. Fred does not come across as an unemployable guy, and Al's alcoholism seems an artifical contrivance with no dramatic purpose. Peggy is not a very convincing character either. Formally, this is an absolute masterpiece. The script may have the flaws I pointed out but formally it is a very interesting proposition. And I suppose there are few films as well filmed. The Mr. Mollett sequence is doubtlessly the most interesting in the entire movie; he is the only character who tells the historical truth about the U.S. involvement in World War II and is severely punished for it, in a spectacularly realistic scene where a glass case is smashed. All in all, this film is a fun watch, a drama with a very well-concealed self-parodic twist.

Rating: 66 (unchanged)

The Ladykillers (1955)

Second viewing, and first one with original audio; previously viewed between the late seventies (I think) and 1986.

A gang planning to rob an armored vehicle takes a room at an elderly lady's house, pretending to be musicians.

This is a very clever idea made into a slightly uneven screenplay. The sequence with the apple cart is probably the best one. The funny bits outnumber the less inspired ones, and overall the film could be considered as great entertainment.

Rating: 72 (down from 79)

The Wizard of Oz (1939)

Second viewing (first one with original audio); previously viewed on or a little after December 29, 1984.

During a tornado, a farm girl appears to be transported to a magic world where she meets some strange characters and is faced with the problem of how to return home.

Musical fantasy which has a poor underlying text but makes up for it with lush visuals, nice musical numbers, and overall formal sophistication. It gets somewhat excruciating towards the end though, mainly thanks to the annoying whining of the protagonist.

Rating: 53 (up from 50)

To Have and Have Not (1944)

 Second viewing (first with original audio); previously viewed on July 3, 1988.

On an island in the Caribbean, a boat pilot who takes tourists on fishing trips gets involved with anti-Nazi rebels.

I'll admit that this was more entertaining on second viewing than it had been on first. I'll also admit it's somewhat absurd that Martinicans should give a damn about the politics of the European rulers of their Central American island; that it is ruled by the French to this very day is a somewhat dismal fact, I think. To make matters worse, this film has the most caricatural Nazi villain of all times; sometimes it seems that Hollywood doesn't really think what the Nazis did was bad enough; they have to make people believe that aside from their actions and ideology, every Nazi or Nazi-supporting functionary had to be a sadistic brute. Putting politics aside, one can quite enjoy the film, and I don't remember being bored at any moment while watching it. Of course, there is no denying that the characters are just a collection of clichés, but the sheer dynamism of the movie and the cleverness of the dialogue makes one more tolerant of its flaws. Incidentally, I was completely shocked when I read the synopsis of the source novel and compared it to the movie. Apparently, they have turned one of the bleakest and most downbeat plots ever written into a tense yet fairly lightweight romantic comedy. The gruesomest it gets is the reference to an off-screen torture session consisting of... enforcing alcohol abstinence!

Rating: 56 (up from 50)

The War Lord (1965)

Second viewing; first viewing with original audio and in widescreen; previously viewed on February 24, 1994.

It's the 11th century. A Norman knight is given a village to rule. He takes a local woman for a wife who was engaged to a local man, who then goes for help to the Frisians, who have long had designs on the village, and whose Prince's son is being held captive in the Norman castle.

Although possibly not a great film, there are several awesome things in this historical (or should we say half-historical, half-mythical?) drama. The pagan props (masks, sculptures, etc.) are really cool. The performances are uniformly good. The battle and siege sequences are very well made. The drama is thought-provoking (e.g., is using one's power to take a wife really rape when the woman does not object, and was actually escaping a marriage which was socially enforced?). It does not make for a consistently exciting viewing, though, perhaps because the situations are somewhat repetitive and the development is somewhat predictable.

Rating: 54 (up from 48)

How the West Was Won (1962)

Second viewing; first viewing in widescreen and with original audio. Previously viewed probably in or a little after September 06 (part 1) and 07 (part 2), 1984.

An American family decides to move westward in the 19th century and then its members go through the several stages of the development of the American West. A more complete summary may be read here.

The episodic narrative tries to present a summarized answer to the film's title. It strives for a balance between realism and melodrama, and avoids the invented elements which became the staple of the Western genre. There is a nice connection between the episodes. There are at least two very exciting sequences: the confrontation with the river pirates near the beginning and the train robbery near the end.

Rating:  60 (up from 54)

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

 Second viewing; my previous viewing was in or after September 15 (part 1) and 16 (part 2), 1983, of  a broadcast that was in pan-and-scan and dubbed in Portuguese, as I remember it.

Aliens visit Earth millions of years ago and influence the intellectual evolution of hominids through a rectangular object. In 2001, a similar object is discovered buried in the Moon. An expedition to Jupiter is undertaken in connection with the lunar monolith, the details of which are initially kept a secret from the crew. During the voyage, the onboard computer goes haywire.

I've commented on the plot premises of this movie in my commentary on the novel. It's in Portuguese, but, shortly put, those premises are bunkum. Extraterrestrial visits, neurotic computers, wormhole traveling, resurrections. Pfft! That being said, it takes very little effort to put those problems aside or assume they are simply a means to telling a story that may be enjoyable. Of course, the technological depictions in the movie are quite impressive, though overly optimistic, considering the technological state we are at. As for the "meaning" of the movie: I see it as a sort of thematic sibling, or perhaps sequel, to Plan 9 from Outer Space (1959). The premise of both films is how extraterrestrial entities attempt to dominate the world, mainly out of a benign intention of saving humanity from itself, and employ the resurrected dead as their instrument. In 2001, which we might dub Plan 10, the resurrection of one single human is deemed to be sufficient, and the means are rather more convoluted than in Plan 9.

Some people might be interested in a different view by the very erudite Christopher Mulrooney (1956-2015).

Rating: 52 (up from 44)

North by Northwest (1959)

 Second viewing (probably, first one with original audio and widescreen); estimated date of previous viewing: in or  a little after December 19, 1984.

An advertising executive gets unwittingly mixed up in an espionage affair.

The implausible plot in this is just an excuse for some imaginative and photogenic sequences. The most noteworthy aspect of the movie is the strategic insertion of takes which create a sensation of strangeness either through their unusual angles or through their depiction of unusual landscapes, or of humans in unusual configurations, or some combination of those factors. So, one might say that it is a formally impressive movie, but its impact derives not from its dynamism but from static elements in its composition. Although the plot details are, as I pointed out, unimportant, the script does add value to the film, mainly through its witty dialogue, which has an above average (for the time) amount of sexual innuendo. Being mostly a visually-oriented spectacle, I don't know whether it makes sense to ascribe it a theme, but, if thus pressured, I'd say its theme is the number two.

Christopher Mulrooney (1956-2015) has a different view about it:

"A great picture of conversion to the cause, (...)."

He's right, of course. It was purportedly intended as light entertainment, but when you look at it from Mulrooney's angle, the lightness is seen in a different light. It's the same lightness of enlisting propaganda. 'Join the army and know the world', that sort of thing. Cold war is still war, after all.

Rating:  73 (unchanged)

Straight Time (1978)

Second viewing; previously viewed between 1983 and 1986.

Max is released on parole, but resumes his life of crime.

It has at least one great sequence (hint: it features Max and his parole officer), some good ones and some not so good ones. So, while not consistently great, on the whole I think this is a gripping story about a flawed individual.

Rating: 72 (down from 81)

Martin Roumagnac (1946)

U.S. title: The Room Upstairs

In a provincial town, Blanche, a young widow, lives with her uncle who owns a bird shop. She is not from that region, and had lived in Paris before. She has an affair with a local, who is married, but her uncle expects her to marry a diplomat whose rich wife is ill and may die soon. One night, Blanche goes to a boxing match and meets a man who works in the construction business. He is attracted to her, and they start a relationship.

This is a nicely put together passional drama, and well filmed too. One might say it's a tad predictable, but it's so well done that this is not much of a nuisance. The acting is good, and certainly enlivens the film. In its genre, I don't see how one could improve it. I'd never heard of it before it was shown on TV5 about a year ago, and so I suppose it is not well known. Perhaps it should be, but perhaps some people could find it too depressing.

Rating: 63

Les oliviers de la justice (1962)

 English title: The Olive Trees of Justice.

In the late 1950s, a man returns to his native Algeria to be beside his dying father. He remembers his childhood in his father's farm and experiences the current turmoils in Algeria.

This film's main attractiveness is its location shooting in the streets of Algeria and at its countryside. The storyline provides some reflexive views about identity and colonialism. The acting and mise-en-scène is not really very polished, and overall the film is a little dull in some parts. 

The title is a little mysterious, because, although there are olives in the farm, it's really a vineyard, not an olive plantation (at least that's what the film shows us). So, a more appropriate title would be The Grapes of Justice; perhaps the author thought it would be too much like The Grapes of Wrath, which, either way, seems to be the inspiration for the source novel's title. 

Another mystery, which perhaps the novel clarifies, is how the protagonist finally decided to stay in Algeria. That decision is revealed in the captions in the beginning of the film, and, though apparently confirmed in the very last sentence he utters (in thought only), is not preceded by any previous hint; I guess the implication is that he resisted that decision till the very end, and suddenly all the events in the movie overflowed into it. But how realistic that is, considering that his wife and children are still in France, is an open question. How sincere it is from the part of an author who, himself, did not make that decision (he lived in France until his death), is also dubious.

Rating: 43

Cancel My Reservation (1972)

 Second viewing; previously viewed on May 29, 2020.

I decided to view this film again because I didn't understand some of the dialogue on my first viewing. I reviewed it on that date, and maybe I was a little too harsh on it:

A TV show host living in New York takes a vacation in Arizona and is framed for the murder of a young Native American woman. His wife joins him and both join efforts to prove his innocence. The owner of a big ranch is involved in some shady businesses and might be the culprit.

This film has a mix of serious criminal drama and comic gags. Most of it does not work, but can be viewed with a small effort. Some of the one-liners are funny but most are just intrusive.

Rating: 39 (unchanged) 

This movie may be viewed on the Web:

Unfaithfully Yours (1948)

 Second viewing; previously viewed on May 31, 1990.

An orchestra conductor begins suspecting his wife of infidelity, after his brother-in-law commissions an investigation on her.

Ingenious comedy with some hilarious sequences and a splendid leading performance.

Rating: 63 (unchanged)

Bean (1997)

 Second viewing; first viewing with original audio; previously viewed, on a Portuguese-dubbed copy, on May 07, 2008.

Here's my previous review:

Synopsis: A painting by an American is bought from an English museum by an American one. Due to some internal conflict, the English museum sends a clumsy security guard passing off as an art expert.

Appraisal: Decent comedy: imaginatively written, expertly directed, and of course with a remarkable comic performance in the lead role. (...)

Honestly, I find it odd that I had considered it "imaginatively written". It is actually very repetitive, and, to be honest, after a funny first half, the second half drags and the humor veers into corn.

Rating: 47 (down from 55)

The Man with the Golden Arm (1955)

Second viewing; previously viewed on April 14, 1996.

 An ex-junkie just out of rehab plans to quit his card-dealing job and start a new life as a drummer in a band. His chair-ridden wife is not too encouraging, and his former employer wants him back at his service. The drug pusher also keeps tempting him with a fix. The beautiful bar hostess offers him some help.

The characters in this film are such over-the-top caricatures they imbue the protagonist's drama with a comic-book dimension. Within those psychological constraints, the film is indeed electrifying at its peak moments.

Rating: 67 (down from 74)

The Poseidon Adventure (1972)

Second viewing; previously viewed between 1983 and 1986.

A cruise ship is hit by an underwater earthquake and goes down. A religious minister with progressive ideas leads some of the passengers in a quest for survival. Some of the other characters are a policeman, his ex-whore wife, a teenage girl and her younger brother, an insecure young singer, a shy bachelor man, a Jewish couple on their way to Israel, and a member of the crew.

Clichéd but gripping early disaster movie. The original touch here is the making of a religious man into a positive, energetic, and even God-defying person.

Rating: 50 (up from 43)

The Drowning Pool (1975)

Second viewing; previously viewed between 1983 and 1986.

 A private eye is hired by a woman who wants to know who is writing anonymous letters to her husband denouncing her infidelity. A murder happens and the suspects range from members of the household to a hireling who happened to be also in the service of an oil mogul who wants to buy her mother-in-law's land.

Lavishly produced hardboiled thriller. While the individual sequences are well made, the whole comes across as cold and soulless. The beginning is especially problematic, coming across as very mechanical. Toward the end, the film gets more exciting, culminating in the highlights in the hydrotherapy clinic. For those who read the novel, it makes for a nice visual complement. Others may have some trouble getting engaged in the plot.

Rating: 50 (unchanged)

Superman (1978)

 Second viewing; first viewing of the director's cut; previously viewed in 1979 (I think).

An extraterrestrial is sent to Earth when his home planet is about to explode. He is endowed with super-strength and other superpowers. He gets a job as a reporter, while keeping his real identity hidden.

This is a parody (if I may use that word) of the Christ story. The necessary changes were made to make it more, say, palatable to modern audiences.

Rating: 58 (unchanged)

The Go-Between (1971)

Second viewing; previously viewed on December 29, 1988. 

A 12-year-old boy goes to spend his summer vacation in the country house of a rich family. While there, he serves as a messenger between the owners' young daughter and her lover, a lower-class farmer who lives nearby.

This starts out a little dull, but soon becomes an exciting game of manipulation and secrecy. Furthermore, it's marvelously directed and at times dazzlingly beautiful. However, there is an unfortunate wrapping up to all this which sacrifices plausibility for dramaticity. After young Marian had dragged an innocent boy into her rather depressing sexual affair, her mother seemed determined to make sure he wouldn't come out of the experience without a lasting trauma. Really, this author mustn't have had a high opinion of women. But the worst was yet to come, with a cringeworthy epilogue.

Rating: 67 (up from 64)

A King in New York (1957)

Second viewing. Previously viewed on January 12, 1989.

A deposed European king goes to live in the U.S., where he has trouble adapting to the American way of life. He gets involved with the son of a couple who is suspected of being communist agents.

This satire of America has a very contrived plot and a sudden shift to the dramatic at the end. Its initial section is moderately funny, but its political subplot, being obviously an exaggeration of the historical events it is based on, is not very relevant as a political statement.

Rating: 51 (down from 62)

That Cold Day in the Park (1969)

Second viewing; previously viewed between 1983 and 1986. 

A lonely woman invites a stranger to her house, and develops erotic designs on him.

From a review of the source novel one sees that this film departs somewhat from it. The reviewer reminds us that the novel's author probably took inspiration from the short story The Silver Mask, written by Hugh Walpole but misattributed to someone else in the review. Curiously, in that short story, it was the woman who became a prisoner; here, it is the lad. In that sense, the film might be viewed as a female version of The Collector, released a few years earlier. That Cold Day in the Park is very well directed, and the casting for the female protagonist was very fortunate, but it's otherwise a frequently dull movie. Its Wikipedia page quotes some perceptive remarks from a famous critic.

Rating: 49 (unchanged)

Day after the Fair (1986)

 Based on the short story On the Western Circuit, by Thomas Hardy, first published in 1891.

An illiterate girl who works as a servant to a household convinces her mistress to write love letters in her name addressed to a young barrister she met at a fair.

This female version of Cyrano de Bergerac is based on a 1972 play which changed several elements of the original short story. Here, the servant's mistress is married; in the short story she was a widow. Her husband, originally a wine merchant, now deals in beer. The servant girl didn't get pregnant in the short story. Here, the master of the house is roughly the same age of his wife, but he is business-obsessed and puts his wife down; in the short story, all we know is that he was older than her and died after three years of marriage, leaving her childless (it's unclear why they don't have children in the movie version). All these changes affect considerably how we should view the characters' behavior. In the short story, the mistress is a real competitor to the servant; here, since she is married, perhaps the whole affair is more life a fantasy she engages in, but we aren't really sure. But the main difference, in my view, is in the barrister's character. In the short story, he is a gentleman. In the movie, the young man is a cad -- he seduced the girl and wouldn't have married her out of obligation alone. The girl, in turn, is also different. In the short story, she is naïve and immature, but not as stupid and selfish as here. Also, she was not a slut. Side note: in Tess of the d'Urbervilles the protagonist is raped, not seduced. Christopher Mulrooney: "pseudo-19th Century pop-jazz score".

This TV film is available on YouTube:

THE DAY AFTER THE FAIR (1986)

The short story it is (loosely) based on is available on Wikisource:

On the Western Circuit - Wikisource, the free online library

Rating: 38

Mélodie en sous-sol (1963)

 U.S. title: Any Number Can Win

An ageing man is released from prison and plans to rob a seaside casino and then to retire. He partners with a younger man who had been his cellmate, also hiring the latter's brother-in-law as driver.

I had a feeling of déjà vu over this film's basic premise, and could not really remember which film had a similar one. A few days after watching it, I was randomly browsing the book 501 Must-See Movies (Bounty Books, 2004), and found the probable source of my previous encounter with this plotline: The Asphalt Jungle (1950), which I watched long ago. Here is the pertinent excerpt from that book:

Doc Riedenschneider (Jaffe), a criminal mastermind, is just out of prison and has a brilliant plan for a million-dollar jewellery heist. He recruits Louis (Caruso) as a safecracker, Gus (Whitmore) as the driver, and Dix (Hayden) as a strong-arm man to help with the raid. Initially the plan runs like clockwork but each member of the gang proves to have his own fatal flaw and each contributes to his own downfall.

The author of that synopsis is presumably Paul Frost-Sharratt, who is responsible for the book's Mystery/Thriller section. The authors of the other sections are, respectively, Ann Lloyd (Comedy, Musical and Romance), Rob Hill (Horror and Science Fiction & Fantasy), Ronald Bergan (War and Western), Chris Darke (Action/Adventure & Epic), and Cara Frost-Sharratt (Drama).

Back to Mélodie en sous-sol, it is a well made heist movie which has lots of suspense and makes for fairly good entertainment. However, the plot has some weaknesses toward the end of the movie, which I will discuss below -- warning: there will be major spoilers in what follows. Before that, one minor remark about the French title: it's really disgraceful, consisting in an unfortunate play on words. The U.S. title is no better, I'm afraid, because it simply does not describe anything about the movie except that it has a casino in it. The Brazilian title is also terrible ('Gangster in Overcoat', later changed to 'Gangsters in Overcoat') -- below I show the Brazilian poster. If you want to quit reading now, my rating is 62, so you may just skip the remainder of this text.

Spoilers ahead:

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There isn't exactly a plot hole that I could detect, but the after-robbery events, while possessing a certain aesthetical appeal, reveal a certain lack of intelligence on the part of the robbers. They had chosen to hide the loot in a private cabin that the younger robber had rented for the season. When the older robber sees the photo of his younger partner on the newspaper, he abandons his initial plans to stay put until the heat is gone, deciding instead to flee at once with the loot. But in my opinion the assumption that the money would otherwise be safe in the cabin was unwarranted, photo or no photo. In the morning after the heist, the police was already around the swimming pool inquiring about the cabins, which suggests that the screenwriter is of the same opinion as me. The police search certainly wasn't prompted by the newspaper photo: the police didn't pay any attention to the younger robber while he was near them by the pool. Also, the poolside was perhaps not the best place for the robbers to meet; it isn't clear to me why they couldn't just choose a place away from the hotel. I would expect the police to be watching roads and train stations, not every single place in the city. Another easy precaution they could have taken would have been to move the loot to other bags (or, if in a hurry, at least provisionally put the compromised bags inside bigger ones).

Rating: 62

E.T. the Extraterrestrial (1982)

 Second viewing; previously viewed between 1983 and 1986.

An intelligent extraterrestrial gets stranded on Earth and a little boy befriends him.

The kids are good actors. The house is lovely. Otherwise I didn't really find much of value in this production; this second viewing didn't improve it to me. One curious thing about it is that the generally accepted notion that it is a paean to empathy is seriously problematic. The alien's "empathic" organism actually made the kid so sick that his life was in danger. If there's a moral to this story, it's that aliens are dangerous.

For further reading: The Alien (unproduced film) - Wikipedia

Rating: 32 (unchanged)

Un linceul n'a pas de poches (1974)

 International English title: No Pockets in a Shroud

Based on the novel by Horace McCoy, first published in 1937.

A newspaper reporter gets fed up with having his stories censored by his boss, and decides to start his own publication, a magazine. He specializes in denouncing the evil deeds of the powerful: bribery in sports, the illegal (and fatal) abortionist practices of a conservative deputy, and the liaison between the mayor and a teenage boy, which entailed the murder of the latter's father. This last case involves several powerful people, who set out to stop the journalist by any means necessary.

Drama with a very serious subject matter. I suspect that it must feel a little dated in France, where corruption doesn't seem to pay anymore, and conservatism has lost its hegemony, but of course I could be wrong. Anyway, it's not a great movie, but it has some great sequences. The plotline is very complex, and the film is a bit long, with some parts dragging somewhat.

Rating: 50

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

Un drôle de paroissien (1963)

English titles: Heaven Sent (UK); Light-fingered George (US); Thank Heaven for Small Favors (unknown)

 A penniless aristocrat turns into robbing churches' alms boxes for a living.

Comedy which has no other apparent ambition except lightly entertaining its audience. All the same, one could draw some psychological truths (or truisms) from it, such as that one's morality is conditioned by one's familial environment. This is the theme of lots of Mafia movies. Here, however, the crimes are of a less shocking nature and no one gets hurt.

Rating: 51

Solo (1970)

Upon his return to France, a diamond smuggler looks his brother up and discovers he is a terrorist in hiding. He tries to locate his brother and in the process ends up becoming a suspected terrorist also.

Routine thriller with much dialogue and the most repetitive musical score you will ever hear. It has some entertainment value, but not much.

Rating: 44

Pygmalion (1938)

Based on the play by George Bernard Shaw which premiered in Vienna (in German) in 1913 and in London (in English) in 1914.

A phoneticist makes a bet that he can teach a flower seller to talk like a person from the nobility.

This follows the strange pattern of so many films of that era, starting out as though it were approaching an important or interesting social theme and later simply shifting into a purely romantic conflict. The way the character Eliza moves and speaks after her transformation resembles that of an automaton, which draws a weird parallel with Hoffmann's short story The Sandman. Despite lacking any kind of depth, this film is entertaining on a scene-by-scene basis.

Rating: 51

Topper Returns (1941)

 A young woman returns to America to meet her father of whom she has no recollection. On the first night she spends at her father's mansion, the friend she had brought along with her, and with whom she had exchanged rooms, is murdered and her ghost summons the help of a middle-aged man who lives nearby to find the murderer.

Entertaining comedy which makes fun of mystery movies. This is the second sequel to Topper, and is perhaps the finest film of the three. There's plenty of action, the comicity, while somewhat predictable, is quite effective, and the special effects are well done. 

Rating: 51

Una muchachita de Valladolid (1958)

 English title: Girl from Valladolid

The plot centers around a couple and the matrimonial conflicts brought about by the husband's activities as an ambassador, which involve courting other women as a way of influencing their husbands.

Sex comedy which is not badly made, but is pretty conventional and tame by today's standards. I suppose the film's main merit is that it managed to adapt a theatrical play in a reasonably non-verbose manner. I didn't have the curiosity to read the play, but, for anyone who does, here's the link:

Una muchachita de Valladolid | Biblioteca Virtual Miguel de Cervantes (cervantesvirtual.com)

Rating: 38

Topper Takes a Trip (1938)

 Topper's wife is divorcing him and he must follow her to France in order to avoid it. Marion, the ghost who caused all his marital troubles in Topper, comes along with the intention of helping him, but as previously she causes a lot of trouble as well.

Sequel which is more than a tad repetitive. How many times in a row can one find people marveling at a man interacting with an invisible ghost funny? There is some humor in Cosmo's wife's daft utterances, but mostly the film feels creaky.

Rating: 35

Étoile sans lumière (1946)

 English title: Star Without Light

A silent film actress fears for her professional prospects with the advent of sound. When her lover hears the cleaning woman in their hotel sing, he has an idea that could save the actress's career.

This drama has a serious script problem in that the main character behaves in an absurd manner in the end. Aside from that, the film is curious because its plot's premise is the same as that of Singin' in the Rain. Also, there is an extravagent musical number featuring pirates which might be worth seeing. As for the rest of the movie, well, it's not unwatchable, but it's obvious that the whole enterprise is just meant as an exploitation of the fame and singing abilities of its star.

Rating: 36

La grande passion (1928)

English title: The Great Passion

A millionairess falls in love with a rugby player. Another player falls in love with her. While the first player is having an affair with the millionairess, he meets a younger woman.

Silent movie about the romantic troubles of sportsmen. It has some nice moments, amongst which a sequence at the Lido featuring an indoor pond with people swimming and diving. The skiing and luging sequences are well done and provide the climax of the film. The plot is not very interesting, and the ending is rather abrupt. Some rugby sequences are poorly done with the players feigning running in front of a back projection of a crowd.

Rating: 40

L'invitée (1969)

 U.S. title: The Uninvited

Anne leaves her husband after he returns from a trip bringing a strange woman with him and confesses they have become involved with one another. Anne decides to sleep at her workplace (she is a draughtsman at an architecture office). The chief architect appears there and, as he is leaving on a business trip, she decides to come along with him.

This drama has a curious plot which is predictable but no less amusing because of that. It's a slow and well directed film with fine performances. Another curiosity is that the U.S. title is the exact opposite of the original one; one could argue that both make sense, but the original one is preferrable.

Rating: 60

The Morning After (1986)

 Second viewing; first viewed on January 9, 1988.

A former actress wakes up in a strange place with a dead body next to her. The body -- which has a knife stuck in his chest -- belongs to a photographer with a past in pornography. While on the run from the scene of the crime she meets an ex-cop who tries to help her; she also has to deal with her husband -- from whom she is separated -- filing for divorce to marry a rich woman.

This film's script makes a pathetic attempt at social commentary on California issues through a very contrived plot,  but the film itself is not as atrocious as it appeared to me upon my first viewing. It has a nice pace and the love story conveys some interesting dramatic moments at some points.

Rating: 40 (up from 24)

El buen amor (1963)

 English title: The Good Love

A young couple who's been dating for a year decide to secretly travel to another town to have a day away from everyone they know. The trip entails a series of quarrels between them, and also provides an opportunity for them to know each other (and themselves) better, and to plan for their future together.

This is a satisfactory drama about youth. It is quite realistic and the writer/director also displays a good mastery of mise-en-scène. The location shooting in Toledo makes for great visuals in black-and-white.

Rating: 62

Our Town (1940)

It centers on two families living next door in a small town, one headed by an editor and the other by a physician. Their two respective elder children fall in love and marry each other.

I guess I'm the only one in the world who didn't like this, and found its text just a collection of pseudo-philosophical platitudes, and its narrative a collection of conformist banalities. Well, anyway, I must admit that as a cinematic production, it is very well done in all its aspects of image and sound, and so I can't say it's a completely bad movie.

Rating: 42

No mundo da Lua (1958)

Zé da Foice travels from his native State in Northeastern Brazil to Rio de Janeiro to meet the widow with whom he had been exchanging love letters. He is accompanied by Mário, a younger man. Upon arrival, the pair is noticed by Nancy, a criminal in a gang. Said gang is planning to rob a rich industrialist who happens to be Zé da Foice's exact lookalike.

Comedy with a formulaic plot and few mildly funny moments. Some musical numbers are inserted, as usual in this kind of production, the most curious of which is a rendering of The Banana Boat Song by one George Green.

Rating: 19

Incomplete Cast:
Walter d'Ávila as Zé da Foice and Matias the industrialist
Violeta Ferraz as Dora (the widow)
Consuelo Leandro as Carolina (woman who claims to be Zé da Foice's wife)
Nancy Wanderley as Nancy (Northeast-born gang member)
Tiririca (Ubyrajara Vianna) as Matias's chauffeur
Hélio Colonna as Gang Leader's Son
Reginaldo Faria as Mário (Zé da Foice's young friend)
Aracy Rosas as Magali (the widow's niece)
Mozael Silveira as Thirty-Three (escaped lunatic)
Zélia Hoffman as Márcia (woman who seduces Matias)
Saluquia Rentini as Matias's wife
Frederico Schlee as Gang Leader
Leila Miranda as Matias's secretary
Renée Brown as Nurse in Psychiatric Hospital
Francisco Martorelli as Doctor in Psychiatric Hospital

The Troublemaker (1964)

 A country man moves to New York to open a café, and has to deal with the pervading corruption which plagues the city. He is helped by a cynical lawyer friend and starts a relationship with a free-spirited visual artist.

A comic view of several aspects of New York City life in the mid-1960s, which prefigures in a way some films which tackled in a more serious manner the problem of urban corruption, such as Serpico. Although made with some verve, its sense of humor is really far from sophisticated, and gets, at its worst, annoying.

(Admittedly, I couldn't understand some of the dialogue.)

Rating: 35

Proezas de Satanás na vila de Leva-e-Traz (1967)

 A poor village is shaken when oil is found in its vicinity. An artificial town is built around the exploration site, and all young healthy men move there, leaving only some women, old people and the invalid in the village. In the wake of that revolution, strange occurrences take place in the village. A stranger arrives into town who is revealed to be the devil himself.

Parable about economic development which makes use of popular literature and music from the Brazilian Northeast region. It's curious as an idea, but not very creative or exciting. The criticism towards it has been more of a political nature than one which would address its obvious artistic limitations.

Rating: 34

Fearless Frank (1967)

 Frank is a naïve young man who leaves his parents' farm to try his luck on the big city. Upon arriving there, he is killed by criminals belonging to a gang and revived by a scientist, who employs him in the fight against crime. That same gang hires another scientist who produces an evil replica of Frank.

Cartoonish comedy. It is a sort of parody of Frankenstein, Dick Tracy, and Superman, but the campy style is more reminiscent of Batman, the TV series, though the film reportedly was filmed before the airing of that series. Although it seems intent on annoying the viewer, it does not entirely succeed, and a few of them found it varying degrees of amusing.

Rating: 35

L'ibis rouge (1975)

 English title: The Red Ibis

Based on the novel Knock Three-One-Two, by Fredric Brown, in turn an expansion of his short story Night of the Psycho, both first published in 1959.

Raymond is in debt with a loan shark and asks his wife for her jewels, but she wants to divorce him and sell the jewels to open a hair salon. Meanwhile, a serial killer of women is on the loose.

Dark comedy. The plot has some details which do not make sense, e.g., why did the restaurant owner need the jewels at all  -- Raymond would give them as collateral in a loan -- when he could simply use his money directly to buy the house? Anyway, this is a film where the comicity comes from the characters, so the plot is not exactly the most important thing in it.

Rating: 57

A marcha (1972)

Laerte is the son of a landowner in 19th-century Brazil. His father is notorious for his mistreatment of slaves. Laerte joins the abolitionist movement, but hides his identity under a series of disguises. A side plot has a freed slave helping slaves to escape.

While vaguely interesting for its depiction of an important historical period, it's decidely ridiculous from a dramatic point of view. The color cinematography is good, though.

Rating: 35

Logan's Run (1976)

 In the 23rd century, humans have built a domed city run by a computer, where individuals live a hedonistic life until the age of 30, when they are killed in a kind of ritual. Some people occasionally try to escape, but are chased and usually killed by members of an expert police squad.

The chief interest of this production are its visuals. Its plot, though riddled with logical inconsistencies, does serve a purpose of mildly provoking thought about some philosophical, sociological and political themes. Overall, though not a very stimulating film, it's far from an excrutiating viewing experience.

Rating: 40

The Monitors (1969)

 A group of aliens invades the Earth and establishes its dominance over mankind. Their tyranny is well meaning, and their objective is to eliminate wars and other chronic problems of our planet. Not everyone is happy, though, and a rebel group which aims at retaking power from the Monitors is formed. The film centers on an actor and pilot who does not accept the Monitors' rule, and the actress who is in love with him, but secretly works for the Monitors.

Comedy which has an interesting political dilemma as premise: must a dictatorship be rejected because it usually results in oppression and exploitation, or because suppressing freedom is intrinsically bad? There is little verbal discussion in the film, which prefers to concentrate on action and some humorous sketches which satirize political conformity. The result is not exactly brilliant or funny, but is not without some visual and verbal creativity.

Rating: 45

The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings (1976)

 A bunch of Black baseball players break away from their exploitative boss and form an independent team. They travel from town to town playing the local teams.

Comedy about the vicissitudes of entrepreneurship. While racism sets the framework in which the story develops, most of the plot revolves around conflicts within the Black community. The humor is light, and the narrative is sufficiently eventful to keep one entertained. As many sports movies, this one is fairly nice to look at, and the good cinematography helps.

Rating: 50

Salve-se quem puder - Rally da Juventude (1973)

 A wealthy man promotes a car rally. Some young male racers get into a dispute with their girlfriends because the latter want to take part in the rally, which they do. Criminals plan to steal the gold statue which would be awarded to the race winner.

This is a bad movie, made to cash in on the success of American blockbusters such as The Great Race and The Love Bug. The plot is minimal, and the film is comprised mostly of unfunny situations and repetitive  and overstretched car sequences.

Rating: 19

The 3 Worlds of Gulliver (1960)

 Based on the novel Gulliver's Travels, by Jonathan Swift, first published in 1726. (The film adapts only the first two of the four parts of that book.)

Fantastical adventure narrative with satirical undertones. Although it feels a little lacking in energy at certain points, it is reasonably well made, and the actors mostly perform well. The special effects are good too. It is mainly targeted at a juvenile audience, but older people can certainly enjoy it too.

Rating: 52

Casanova's Big Night (1954)

 A tailor's apprentice impersonates Casanova as part of a plan to test the fidelity of a woman who is engaged to be married. He becomes an unwitting piece in a bigger plot by the ambitious doge of Venice.

Well made farce. The script is rather formulaic, but it all works to satisfaction and there is a good amount of laughs to be had, both from verbal exchanges and from visual gags. Sets and costumes are quite fancy.

Rating: 53

My Outlaw Brother (1951)

 A man travels to Texas to meet his estranged brother who now lives in Mexico. The border town he arrives at is being constantly raided by Mexican bandits. A sheriff is assigned the mission of going into Mexico and finding an American guy who is a lieutenant of the chief bandit. It turns out that the guy he is trying to meet with is the newly arrived man's brother.

Routine Western. The script has several weak spots. Overall this film is watchable but rather unexciting.

Rating: 36

Bang Bang (1971)

A guy argues with a taxi driver. Three outlaws ride in a car and terrorize everyone. A flamenco dancer dances on the top of a building. These characters interact in a freewheeling manner.

Plotless movie in which the characters behave in an absurd manner. Initially kind of funny, it soon devolves into sheer boredom, with plenty of noneventful sequences of moving cars. The ending suggests it's all a joke, and I suspect it's on the viewer.

Rating: 19

Les guichets du Louvre (1974)

U.S. title: Black Thursday

In 1942, the French effect a round-up of Jews; they would later be deported to Germany. A Gentile young man unsuccessfully tries to save some Jews until he encounters Jeanne, a Jewish young woman, and decides to protect her from being caught by the police.

Interesting but a little monotonous fictional dramatization of the Vel d'Hiv incidents. I had watched a movie based on the same historical event called Elle s'appelait Sarah (2010). 

Rating: 43

Day of Triumph (1954)

 In Judea, a group of rebels plots against the Roman rule. When Jesus becomes a mass following phenomenon, the rebels see in him a potential leader of their movement. But Jesus has another agenda.

This is an original take on the Gospel story, with Judas Iscariot being given a different role than what is established in the canonical version. I have come to see the Jesus story and teachings as rather funny in themselves; this merging of that story with elements from a real political movement is a fictional exercise which has some amount of entertaining value, but not much consequence. The acting here is good all around, and the production values are just passable.

Rating: 45

Le franc-tireur (1972)

Alternative French title: Les hasards de la gloire

English title (according to IMDB): Chinese Glory

A group of French Resistance fighters in 1944 flee the Germans in a contryside region. One of them has joined the group with the sole purpose of getting away from that place and from the German threat.

Well done war movie which resembles a stretched out episode of the TV show Combat!. It's repetitive because of the situation it depicts, but keeps the viewer interested all the same. It was banned for thirty years, for reasons which no one seems to understand quite well nowadays; perhaps the reedited version has eliminated the problematic portions, or perhaps the emotional attachment to the issues which the film tackles is gone.

Here's a review in French: Le Franc-tireur (1972) de Jean-Max Causse & Roger Taverne – L'Oeil sur l'écran (oeil-ecran.com)

Rating: 50

Juno and the Paycock (1929)

 An Irish family in the midst of the Irish Civil War. The father is averse to work; the son lost an arm in the Independence War. Mother and daugher support the family. News of an upcoming inheritance causes them to start spending the money they think they are about to receive.

Men are women's burden in this bleak yet also funny film which show the Irish in an unforgiving light. It is well staged and well acted.

Rating: 54