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Reviews
Pulp (1972)
Think "Beat The Devil" - Another Cult Favorite 7.8/10
No, Pulp isn't a great movie. But it's definitely loads of fun if you view it as a wry shaggy dog story, much as the John Huston/Truman Capote/Humphrey Bogart movie Beat The Devil plays out.
Lots of outlandish self-serving characters doing odd things to further their own agendas and certainly willing to throw anyone under the bus if it helps.
The added treat here is the cast - Michael Caine, Lizabeth Scott (the femme fatale of '40s film noir), Micky Rooney (Hollywood's biggest star from 1939 to 1941), gravelly voiced Lionel Stander, Bogie look-alike Robert Sacchi, Dennis Price (Kind Hearts And Coronets) and leggy looker Nadia Cassini.
This glib, quirky, occasionally over the top (Rooney) flick has cult favorite written all over it.
Knowing that - enjoy!
A Little Thing Called Murder (2006)
Monstrously Good! 9.99999/10
Killer performance by Judy Davis, who perfectly nails the twisted, manipulative profile of a predatory grifter and sociopathic murderer.
Seriously, if you want to see how a grifter thinks and acts - this is it in spades.
The added bonus - parts of her behavior are so horrifically outrageous and unbelievable, you can't help but laugh out loud that anyone would have the audacity to try passing it off.
Even more twisted - we see her grooming her son to aid her and follow in her footsteps. Unfreaking real.
Side Note: I once met Sante Kimes very briefly. And even in those very few minutes, I could tell she was shifty dangerous trouble.
Second Side Note: If you like Judy Davis' stellar performance here, seek out her Emmy-winning performance as Judy Garland in Life With Judy Garland - Me And My Shadows . . . Available on disc at Amazon.
Enamorada (1946)
Wow! Wow! And more Wow! This is what great filmmaking is all about.
A really exceptional movie. Maria Felix is stunningly beautiful, Pedro Armendáriz is extremely handsome, Emilio Fernandez's direction is spot on, and Gabriel Figueroa's cinematography is exceptional (he worked with Gregg Toland of Citizen Kane and Grapes Of Wrath fame - and it shows).
Often called the Gone With The Wind of Mexican cinema and with a plot that has been referred to as Mexico's Taming Of The Shrew, it's a film of many parts, all excellent. Starts as a movie about the Mexican revolution, then quickly turns into a film about class distinctions and a romantic battle of wills between a beautiful, hot-tempered, haughty, upper-class woman and a lower-class, powerful general.
The serenade scene - with close-ups of Felix's eyes and the songs of the mariachis - is one of those rare moments of cinematic perfection.
Most highly recommended.
Added note: This may be a bit hard to find with English subtitles, so look for the Alter's Collection - !Vive Mexico! DVD version.
Body Parts (2022)
A terrific look behind the scenes of sex in the movies - 8.5/10
A real education for mature film buffs. Who knew so much went into creating sex scenes in movies?
Who knew there were sex scene choreographers and rehearsals?
Who knew body doubles were used so very extensively (one actress sounds like she's been the body double for about a dozen A-listers)?
Who knew how much legal, contractual protection is now provided to insure women are no longer abused (and good god, it's a lot of protection!)?
Who knew actresses can now contract for what they will do and won't do - and precisely how much they will and won't show?
Who knew how some sex acts can be so plausibly faked?
Who knew actresses will have agents on-set to insure their rights are protected?
Who knew about all the different cosmetic appliances used in sex scenes?
You'll never look at a sex scene the same way again.
Urban Myths: Johnny Cash and the Ostrich (2018)
Wickedly Funny
This one slays me! So glib and tongue in check one minute and painfully punning the next.
Who cares if Skinner looks nowhere close enough to Cash. If you want verisimilitude, watch a documentary. ;-)
Great one liners drollfully played out. With an excellent performance by Isy Suttie as the manageress. And well produced for a small indie short.
Wacky good fun - apparently based on a true incident.
Nova: Shackleton's Voyage of Endurance (2002)
Best Version Of This Adventure
I've seen several versions of this amazing true story. Almost all of them use the same still photography and motion pictures taken during this expedition.
Yet this is the only version that really seems to get it all right - it lays out all the details, fleshes out the characters, and puts all the events into their proper, gripping perspective. And it's all told at a crisp pace that keeps your interest racing every last second for its entire 120 minutes.
The bad news - this hard-to-find DVD is out of print and hideously expensive ($149 used or $260 new) at Amazon.
The good news - you can watch it for free on YouTube.
Very highly recommended.
White Like Me (2013)
Knocked Me Out Of My White Socks
Outstanding, insightful look at being white - as opposed to being black – in modern America.
An exceptionally eye-opening discussion of what it means to be white in a white society, run by whites, for whites. Plus how easy it is for whites to be oblivious to all the obvious advantages and more subconscious perks and less well-known benefits that come from being part of this group.
This film is not a rant or a scold.
Instead, it is an even-handed, almost scientific discussion of how American society behaves and operates.
It is simultaneously fascinating in its little-known details and sobering in its conclusions.
Many kudos to Tim Wise, the filmmaker and educator, for this compelling, terrifically cogent gem.
The Silent Partner (1978)
An incredible, crackling yarn - yet no DVD?!
A razor-sharp suspense drama with plenty of nifty, nasty surprises.
Gould gives one of his top performances, and Christopher Plummer is a revelation: you'll never look on him as the stalwart Herr Von Trapp again as he turns in one of the most cold-blooded sociopathic performances ever committed to celluloid. (Yeah - right up there with Robert Mitchum's Max Cady in Cape Fear.)
And yes this does have some moments of honest-to-God, shockingly intense violence (it sure ain't no chick-flick ;-)
But for my money IF SOME CHOWDERHEADS WOULD RELEASE IT ON DVD, ANYWAY this is one of best suspense dramas in the past 30 years, much in the league of films like Point Blank and Charley Varrick.
Don't miss this one.
The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money & Power (1992)
Astounding Documentary On The Corruptive Power Of Oil
Surprise - just about everything you ever knew about oil and power is wrong.
This terrific documentary based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning book presents an incredibly incisive and insightful story based one on bold premise:
All wars and world economy since WWI has been driven by the need to control access to oil.
From Japan attacking Pearl Harbor, to Hitler opening a second front on Russia (muchless the recent Middle East wars), the startling fact is oil has been an underlying motivation for war and economic power struggles.
Loaded with detail, trivia, history and hard-fact reportage.
Don't miss this one - once seen, you'll never look at oil, power and history in the same perspective again. Outstanding.