Change Your Image
Dave-114
Reviews
Joe Hill (1971)
Fable of the unjust execution of an early American labor hero
I first saw this one when I was young and passionate about building a just society - loved it. Saw it again recently on TV - didn't think it would stand up, but it did. I still cried. It's a well-scripted, beautifully-crafted little gem that has something genuine to say and says it powerfully and clearly. Would make a great double-bill with "Winstanley". Full of optimism and idealism for making the world a better place. Also very sad and tragic. Old-fashioned socialism, but superbly well packaged. Heart in exactly the right place (with a target pinned over it).
It Happened Here (1964)
Nightmarish, stomach-churning fantasy of what England would have been like under German occupation
A thought-provoking war drama, which began life as the spare-time project of an 18-year-old film-lover and his 16-year-old friend. Almost an amateur film, but intellectually spell-binding. Based on the counter-factual premise that Britain was successfully invaded following the Dunkirk retreat and liberated by the Americans at the end of World War II. The images of London streets thronged with German soldiers are unforgettable. It is a film concerned with what war and military occupation does to people's minds. Nightmarish, stomach-churning. You owe it to yourself to see this film. Cannot recommend too highly. (Please take a look at my slightly longer review under "Newsgroup Reviews")
The Last Picture Show (1971)
Inexhaustible source of insights on the human condition
One of the very few films that you can keep coming back to time after time, and keep finding something new. An unsurpassed portrait not just of small-town life or of growing up, but of what it is to be human. Cannot recommend too highly.