Mandalay - 1934 - 6/10
Smuggler, con man, in debt to Rangoon crime boss, offers his girlfriend in exchange.
Kay Francis becomes - ahem - “hostess” in shady casino, and very popular with men.
She earns a lot of money, hops a freighter to Mandalay, meets alcoholic doctor.
Glossy trash that somehow slipped under the new Production Code net.
The Verdict - 1946 - 6/10
Stylish Noir set in gaslit Victorian London.
After the chief inspector sends an innocent man to the gallows, he is forced to resign.
In “retirement,” he follows his grasping successor with keen interest.
Especially after a locked-room murder plunks in his lap.
Fine Warner Brothers effort, with excellent support, but the draw for this is Greenstreet and Lorre, their last film pairing together.
The Signal - 2007 - 6/10
Your parents, your grandparents, all tried to warn you. Too much TV is bad for you.
Sure enough, a weird electronic signal pulses through millions of screens.
Onlookers lose their grasp on reality and become murderous paranoiacs.
Those who anticipate gory violence will not be left hungry.
Splatter, dismemberment, carnage, all prefaced by anxiety delusions.
A dark film? Well, yes, but it is also fiendishly funny (reference headgear in image above).
One of the best horror comedies since Re-Animator (1985).
The Women On The 6th Floor - 2010 - 6/10
AKA - Les Femmes du 6e étage
Empty headed French comedy set in 1962, though the only evidence I could see of that were references to DeGaulle and later someone driving a Corvair (where did they find that?).
The occupants of the 6th floor were the Spanish maids, merry and engaged in Life, contrasted to the well heeled in lower suites. Of course, the rich were bored, vacuous, disassociated.
Over the course of the story, the master, played by dependable Fabrice Luchini, went on outings with the ladies, even moved upstairs to the cramped room of his wife’s discards, and he started “living.”
Pleasant enough movie, though not one of “This Years Best” as so many critics said.
Iron Buddha - 1970 - 6/10
AKA - Tie Luo Han // 鐵羅漢
Wandering rogue enters home of a martial arts master, tries to rape the nearest female.
He is stopped, but instead of being killed, he is marked with a sword scar and banished.
Forward a few years. The wanderer, now a master himself, returns to slay and rape.
Master and disciples are slaughtered, save for one student, who was away, and who vows revenge.
Shaw Bros actioner should leave fight fans breathless.
I lost count of villains and conflicts. Choreography is excellent, often imaginative.
To be honest, though, I found the endless fights tedious after awhile. Our “hero" is not particularly sympathetic, either, which does not help.
Nevertheless, combat aficionados will find plenty to relish, and the baddie is especially hateable.
Copied my review from OT to FEDB. Hopefully, it pumps traffic.
As you are aware, it seems easier to say “gimme!” rather than “thanks”.
Likewise, scribbling a 4-5 sentence review is akin to brain seizure.
Yours is a good edit, and I’m glad the FE “Academy” approved it.
Coded Bias - 2020 - 6/10
MIT researcher Joy Buolamwini, playing with new facial recognition software, discovers built in prejudices.
The software is very good at differentiating between white males, less with white females, even less with males of color, and poor with females of color.
In other words, facial algorithms developed by white males seem best suited for white males.
The errors of mistaken identity have implications when facial recognition is used by law enforcement.
Parallel narratives follow how this is being implemented in China, and in the West, by Big Tech (Amazon).
The narrative wanders off-topic into identity, privacy and data mining, not necessarily by facial recognition.
Meaning, the biggest personal snitch is the one in your pocket … your “smart” phone.
And, in my opinion, fewer and fewer angst over personal privacy. Younger souls have less inkling of living free range.
The Human Face Of Big Data - 2014 - 5/10
One of those docs that arouses my skepticism.
52 minutes of earnest, very, very idealistic souls talking of the miracles of data mining.
We can track diseases! Governments will be better serve citizens!
Neighborhoods will be more efficient and cleaner!
Society will grow closer, we shall be oh-so happy!
Good thing, too, for the 1,000,000,000 additional planet dwellers predicted within a generation.
At the 40 minute mark, there are a few remarks about the downsize of correlating and exploiting.
But, hey, that only lasts for 6 minutes, then back to smiling utopia!
The majority of speakers are affluent, privileged souls, living in the sheltered bubble.
I suspect few of them would permit the lower orders into their community.
Nor would they allow the children of dirt to attend the same schools as their own offspring.
(One phrase I have heard, “They just can’t keep up. It’s sad.”)
No dictators, totalitarian leaders, or government spy agencies were interviewed, either.
Dark souls who apply data information to … well … you know where I’m going with this.
The Sapphires - 2012 - 6/10
Feel good rubbish, “inspired” by actual events.
I enjoyed this while I watched it, but afterward started dwelling on it.
The oldest girl looked old - the actress was in her 40’s.
Who was that white Irish guy who supposedly found and managed the group? Phil Spector?
(Chris O’Dowd perfect casting as sleazo manager.)
Since when did the war department carry entertainers into Vietnam active combat zones?
Oh, I forgot, “inspired by.”
Which means any fantasy will suffice.
Nice music, but otherwise this is a fairytale.
Sherlock Holmes - 2013 - 7/10
AKA - Шерлок Холмс
Highly entertaining retelling of the canon.
Not that stories are faithful, they are respectful, yet differ in bold strokes.
The series is more Watson-centric, often told from his point of view.
He is not a stupid bumbler. Moreover, as ex-military, he knows how to use his revolver as well as his fists.
And yes, that revolver gets used with deadly accuracy. As do the police revolvers.
Yes, another difference, the police carry and use guns. At times, scenes resemble Tombstone rather than London.
Inspector Lestrade is a wily old fox, chastising Holmes, yet shrewdly using the detective.
While scenery is full Victorian, this London is more open, less cramped, and extraordinarily gritty.
Fans will have fun seeing what shards of stories are utilized in each episode.
Greyzone - 2018 - 5/10
Security forces in Denmark and Sweden hunt for missing nuclear warhead, then advanced drone!
Soon, they realize a high-tech expert has been kidnapped, and she may be forced into dark deeds.
Reviews for this were wide ranging, so I knew there was a 50-50 chance I might dislike this.
Within a half hour you realize the terrorists are Muslim extremists. Really?
Woman kidnapped, and her son threatened. Child in danger, really?
To get info, she has to copy files from a security company to drive. Huh?
Later, load spyware to said outfit. Say wha? The company has no malware protection?
More? Each episode bears a title, which turns out to be a reveal or, worse, a spoiler!
On and on and on and on. Clichés stack into each other.
The writers are sloths, the story predictable, with characters you want to shove into a garbage truck.
Vampire Doll - 1970 - 4/10
AKA - Bloodsucking Doll - Bloody Eyes // 幽霊屋敷の恐怖 血を吸う人形
Cliché ridden horror film.
Boyfriend arrives at spooky house only to learn his fiancee just died!
Or did she?
Next, his sister arrives, looking for her brother (that boyfriend) because he’s been gone a week now.
The mother is remote and warns all visitors to leave, while the deranged servant keeps trying to murder everyone. (Good staff is so hard to find.)
Add a creepy doctor, sinister music, thunder and lightning, gravedigger, empty grave, the basement, cliff fights, chases.
Nothing new here, though it went by quick enough.
Huxley, Aldous - Antic Hay
Bored with teaching, Theodore Gumbril resigns from the school in order to …
He’s not quite sure. Money would be nice, more rather than less.
Brainstorm flash, Theodore decides to make and market pneumatic pants, an inflatable bottom for bony arsed wearers.
This is the funniest line in the novel, along with marketing expert who knows every trick to convince distracted buyers that pneumatic pants are must-own accessories!
The novel itself is a prickly experience.
Set after the Great War (never mentioned), the main characters, once Bright Young Things, are aimless and adrift. Nothing seems to engage them.
They are affluent. No need of employment to distract their moods or occupy their time.
By and large, they ridicule and belittle others – friends and associates.
Few characters emerge as sympathetic, nor is there enough “character” in any to admire or despise.
La Llorona - 2019 - 6/10
She pushes through the mob of demonstrators, past the police barricade, the new maid.
The regime of the military dictator is over, and although his mind is slipping, he is on trial for war crimes.
Family members pray for a “just’ verdict.
Family are, of course, “ignorant” of his methods used to find and exterminate guerrilla insurgents.
Slow boil story of unsettled spirits and, perhaps, reckonings.
I found the latter aspect difficult to swallow. For me, the bad sleep well and are rarely punished.
I bear witness to misdeeds daily, in the office, in the checkout lane, in the news.
Justice? Karma? Constructs that serve to barely keep impulses restrained.
Tiger In The Smoke - 1956 - 5/10
Brit Noir set in the foggiest locations ever.
On the eve of her marriage, a woman’s presumed dead husband contacts her.
Scotland Yard tries to intervene, but the husband is elusive.
Also gliding in and out of the fog is a notorious escaped murder, Jack Havoc.
Despite murders, captures, fisticuffs, the plot is marred by long exposition sections.
Stellar photography, and I think the premise is decent, but overall much too talky.
Lovelace - 2013 - 7/10
Fairly absorbing drama on star of Deep Throat, focusing on her nubile early years and stardom peak.
Ugly, but not as vile as it could have been. A surprisingly strong cast throughout.
Very much in the Boogie Nights vein, but definitely lighter.
I saw the original Deep Throat back in the 70’s at Hollywood Blvd’s Pussycat Theater.
Part of a double bill with The Devil In Miss Jones.
The Pussycat was terribly plush, and never fully dark. Ushers prowled ceaselessly.
Aisles were packed with couples - porn was in its heyday. The era when free love hippies gave way to disco clubrats.
Lovelace caught a lot of that vibe. From the weed to polyester to wide lapels.
A fun film, perhaps because I had good memories.
The Ghost Story - 1979 - 6/10
AKA - Gui Jiao Chun // 鬼叫春
“It’s getting late, children, now go to bed.”
“Good! Now you can start telling the spicy stories.”
And so, the village grandfather proceeds to tell several naughty tales.
Three sisters run a country inn. When troops arrive, private delicacies are offered.
Villagers shake their heads, but do not interfere.
In another tale, lusty men are attracted to tiny shoes, which slip off so easily, as do the clothes.
Easy females, not always the safest option. Prudes – nudity galore.
This is laugh out loud funny and a great Shaw Brothers film.
A Simple Story - 1978 - 7/10
AKA - Une Historie Simple
Marie, above, caught at the moment when she dumps her going-nowhere boyfriend.
French drama of relationships, primarily female relationships.
Most of the women work in the same company, which has recently merged with another.
Workers face redundancies, management tries to gloss unpleasantness.
The females are more like sisters, venting on each other, or lending support, emotional or physical.
Males are not caricatures, though they are secondary. This is very much a chick bonding film.
Very good vehicle, by the way, to catch Romy Schneider.
The Thief Of Baghdad - 1924 - 8/10
Fairbanks towering achievement, with eye popping stunts, incredible sets, and rousing action.
Lowly street thief falls in love with (completely out of his league) princess.
Meanwhile, encroaching Mongols plot to take over Baghdad.
Redemption, and the royal hand, can be gained through severe trials and heroic deeds.
One of those films for those who say, “I don’t like Silent Films.”
Magnificent, and great entertainment.
Malevolent - 2018 - 6/10
Sister-brother, Angela and Jackson, rescue owners of troubled homes.
Houses ghosted by unhappy spirits, restless souls.
They cleanse dwellings … for a price. They are also complete frauds.
The latest client lives in Scotland’s hinterlands, the building is an old school, not derelict, but neglected.
And - there is definitely something wrong with the place.
Good thriller - not necessarily horror - with dark twists throughout, and shady lead characters.
A Florida Enchantment - 1914 - 6/10
Lillian, come into her inheritance, journeys from New York to Florida to advise Fred there is no impediment to their marriage.
Fred is part of a posh hotel, and duties include indulging wealthier females.
Which Lillian observes.
Enter the MacGuiffin. A box containing 100 year old tribal seeds – which can cause sex reversal.
Naturally, Lillian swallows a seed. Well, she was really irate.
Soon, she becomes a predatory feMALE.
She also force feeds seeds down her maid and fiancé Fred.
What follows is a cascade of sex-reversal, transgender comic innuendo.
I imagine 1914 audiences tittered at this, but now much of the humor is dated caricatures and stereotypes.
Modern audiences, often intolerant and judgmental of previously accepted norms, may scorn this.
In other words, know thyself.
The Mill And The Cross - 2011 - 7/10
AKA - Mlyn i Krzyz
Arthouse cinema with Rutger Hauer, Michael York and Charlotte Rampling.
Deliberately paced film shows the creation of Bruegel’s The Way To Calvary.
Hauer, as Bruegel, explains to his patron (York) various aspects of the composition.
Tree of Life on one side, Tree of Death (catherine wheel) balanced on the other.
I was ignorant of Flemish history and couldn’t understand why red garbed Spanish conquistadors were killing heretics.
Looked it up, the start of the Eighty Years War for Dutch independence was imminent.
Every image was a jeweled painting in costume and design.
Film fell somewhere between Monk’s Book Of Days and Parajanov’s The Color Of Pomegranates.
Tell Me Something - 1999 - 7/10
AKA - Telmi Sseomding // 텔 미 썸딩
One of the two films that launched S Korea into global cinema (Shiri being the other).
Slick, stylized police horror / thriller manipulates genre tropes throughout.
Black plastic bags containing chopped bodies keep turning up.
Unfortunately, heads, torsos, arms, legs, don’t match.
After dismemberment, someone jumbles them before bagging.
There is a pattern, and a common link.
All the bodies - men - had dated, and broken up with, one woman.
The daughter of a reclusive artist, she hides secrets.
Meanwhile, the case detective is under investigation for taking bribes. Both souls are deeply flawed.
Rain pours constantly, and interiors are gloomy, mirroring the emotional unhappiness of the characters.
Some have compared this with Se7en, and it does resemble early Fincher, but this is no copycat.
Inside The Mind Of Agatha Christie - 2019 - 6/10
The mistress of murder, profiled in 45”.
For newcomers to Christie, this covers it all:
The first marriage, her disappearance, years in the Middle East, various residences.
Talking heads include historians and family members.
For most, I suspect, this will be old hat.
I have never read her novels, only a few stories, “The Mousetrap,” TV and film adaptations.
Nevertheless, I knew the whole history.
My favorite part were the comments about her notebooks.
Deconstructing her methods, choices, and plotting. That, to me, was “inside the mind.”
Unforgivable - 2011 - 5/10
AKA - Impardonnables
Aging French writer suffers block and opts to recharge in Venice.
After one year, he has a young wife, and his grown daughter has run away … again.
He hires a detective to find his daughter, then hires another to trail his wife.
No, it was not as interesting as is sounds. Snooze inducing narrative, boring characters, offset by nice shots of Venice.
For diehard French film buffs.