Movie review - "Prince of the City" (1981) ***1/2

Epic treatment of a New York cop who decides to bust some corrupt colleagues but is determined not to indict his friends... only to find himself unable to control the impact of what he does. You can smell the streets of New York - the dirty streets, colourful characters, dingy life of police. Very well acted, although Treat Williams was excellent I couldn't help wishing at times the role had been played by a star.

The domestic scenes in these sort of movies never really catch fire - they mostly consist of a wife nagging/worrying - but there are some great vignettes, such as a prosecutor who tries to be sympathetic, a ruthless prosecutor, and Jerry Orbach's honourable corrupt cop. It goes for very long and the florid musical score occasionally got on my nerves. But it's an intelligent, complex film for grown ups and you don't get many of them any more.

Movie review - "The Ox Bow Incident" (1943) *****

A remarkable film whose power has not dimmed - although it may have been even more incredible to watch in 1943 when the Hays Code is at full flight. There have been plenty of films were someone is falsely accused of a crime and is about to be lynched - but not many where the innocent parties are actually lynched. It's emotionally devastating, powered by Dana Andrews' excellent performance as an intelligent, innocent man who is plucked from his sleep and told he's going to die - he pleads, barters, gets angry, reasons, all to no avail... it's heartbreaking. Anthony Quinn and Francis Ford are also superb as his friends - Quinn the dodgy Mexican who nonetheless doesn't deserve to die and Ford as a helpless old man.

A lot of the posse are actually reasonable - Henry Fonda (in a not very heroic role - good on him), Harry Davenport, the possibly gay cowboy, I-would-prefer-to-sit-on-fence Henry Morgan - but they are outnumbered by the all too believable posse. In particular there are two of the greatest villains in cinema: the pompous southern general who still wears his uniform (Frank Conroy) and fat cackling woman (Jane Darwell), with an honourable mention to ruthless Marc Lawrence.

It's a superb movie that spanks along and is a tribute to all who worked on it.

Movie review - "Margin Call" (2011) ****

Excellent look at big business which is all the more effective for not being a lazy "all capitalism is bad" diatribe. Jeremy Irons is ruthless to be sure but he's not wrong - the only way to make a lot of money is to be first, the smartest, or cheat. That's a very effective summary of capitalism. But he also points out that busts and booms always happen (something always forgotten when people talk about the economy).

The line up of actors is very impressive, and everyone gets a chance to shine. I could have done without the Chekov symbolism of burying the dog at the end.

Book review - "Spencer Tracy" by James Curtis

Curtis wrote the definitive biographies of Preston Sturges and James Whale (I haven't read his one on WC Fields but I'm assuming its good, too) so you know when he turns his eye on Spencer Tracy the job will be done right. This book clocks in at almost a thousand pages including footnotes and table of contents. Curtis has been helped by one of those gifts all biographers dream: an unpublished memoirs of Louise Tracey, so her point of view is represented like no other work on Tracy. She is best known as the saintly woman who wouldn't let Spencer get a divorce to marry Kate Hepburn but did a lot of good works for deaf people - we get a far more well round picture here.

It was an entertaining read. Periods that normally get skimmed over, like Tracy's childhood, and early theatre days (he put in a solid decade doing plays) and his time at Fox, get thorough treatment. This made me really want to see The Last Mile, it sounds terrific. I also had new appreciation for Fox - it was a fairly shoddy outfit in many respects but they respected Tracey and kept him on in good roles at a decent salary despite him not being a matinee idol or popular merely because he was a good actor. (This was reminiscent of Sean Penn in some ways.)

Tracy has been called an emotionally complex person, including by Curtis. I don't think he was anything of the sort - I think he was just an alcoholic. Many people are. Tracy happened to work at a time and in a field where it was tolerated/encouraged. Throw in a deaf child and an erratic profession and you have plenty of excuses to get on the booze.

Tracy could be a bit of a baby - going in big sulks, and also on benders which resulted in him missing days of production. He loved the security of MGM, who protected and promoted him - he was beloved by Dore Schary and was one of the few stars to thrive in new ways under the Schary regime. He was never close to his son which seems to have prompted paternal feelings for people such as Bob Wagner, Bill Self and Garson Kanin. He was a pants man, too, in his way - not a major Leaguer but he did alright, having flings with Loretta Young, Ingrid Bergman and Gene Tierney, in addition to the famous one with Kate Hepburn (he cheated on Hepburn with Tierney)

Aussies pop up at intervals - Snowy Baker teaches him to play polo, June Dally-Watkins and he have a chaste romance in Europe. Every serious Tracy fan must read.

Movie review - "Looper" (2012) ****1/2

Very clever, entertaining science fiction thriller that would have been even better with excellent actors - like say Ryan Gosling, de Niro or Sean Penn. Okay maybe that's harsh - Joseph Gordon Levitt and Brue Willis are strong actors it's just these roles are so great (hit men who are tormented by love, angst, drugs, the past, revenge, etc) I feel they aren't really given justice, even with Levitt's make up work.

Emily Blunt shines in a part that is better than the typical girl role (that part is taken by the admittedly sexy Piper Perabo who is a stripper single mother); the kid who plays Blunt's kid is brilliantly creepy; top turns by Royal Dano but not Jeff Daniels who keeps popping up in parts that require real strength. I know Daniels is a good actor but sometimes that's not enough. There are two coincidences which jarred for me - the involvement of Piper and an appearance at the end by a semi villain.

That's all the gripes out of the way. Now for praise: superbly done, combining emotion with imagination, good action sequences, a very believable depiction of the future (grimy, class riddled, drug affected, in thrall to China). Really excellent movie.

Movie review - "The Woman in Black" (2012) ***1/2

A very solid, enjoyable old dark house thriller, which mainly consists of Daniel Radcliffe walking around an old dark house being scared. It's a smart way for him to graduate from the Harry Potters as that's what happened in those movies a lot - he's not very convincing as a lawyer or a father, but he does have that "period" look.

Not a lot of it is new, make that none of it - creepy dolls, monkey toys that play chimes, corridors, swamps, creepy babies, ghosts, graveyards, lower class servants, police who don't pay attention, crazy ladies. But it's done with style, some impressive production design and support cast, and there were lots of genuinely creepy moments.

Movie review – “Princess of the Nile” (1954) **

Twentieth Century Fox didn’t go in much for Eastern swashbucklers, leaving that to Universal and Columbia, but they had some pretty young things under contract so obviously decided to give it a go. Jeffrey Hunter isn’t terribly Eastern, but then again neither were Rock Hudson or Tony Curtis – more of a problem is the fact he isn’t that charismatic. 

Still, he’s better than Debra Paget, who is pretty, and walks around in a variety of skimpy outfits and does dances and goes for swims etc but simply doesn’t have the presence to carry a leading role – her face is too indistinguishable or something. It blends into the surrounds – something that Maureen O’Hara, Yvone De Carlo or Piper Laurie never suffered. So what should have launched Paget seems to have confirmed her status as strictly pretty-young-thing only. 

Michael Rennie adds some much needed class as the baddy (I can't imagine he was too happy about this assignment though) and there is the usual supporting cast of wacky thieves and dancing girls.

Movie review - "A Few Best Men" (2011) *

Appalling comedy which nonetheless grossed a healthy amount at the Australian box office - a tribute to the skills of the marketing people and also audiences' desire to see an Aussie comedy. It's just awful. None of it seems real, or funny - Senators who "give" their seat to their daughters, the importance of prize sheep for a political campaign (?), special VIP treatment at customs.

Jokes which might have raised a half smile on their own are flogged mercilessly so the humour is bashed out of them (it's like they keep recapping jokes) - drawing a pair of tits for a speech, Olivia Newton John doing coke, kinky shenanigans with a sheep, Tim Draxl's ex going out with a guy without a penis. Some dreadful performances, such as Kris Marshall, Kevin Bishop and Laura Brett (to be fair none off them have much of a character to play; Kris Marshall looks really old and haggard, like he's done a lot of living). Why is Tim Draxl's character even in the film? (He's an extra groomsman, but spends almost the entire film drunk and asleep). Rebel Wilson is totally wasted too. Jonathan Biggins is too lightweight in a role that requires someone scary (a Bryan Brown, say).

Occasionally this hits the right note, such as in a visit to drug dealer Steve Le Marquand, the soundtrack of crappy wedding songs was cute, and the Blue Mountains photography and locations was stunning. But this was fairly hideous.

Movie review - "American Reunion" (2012) ***1/2

A nice surprise and further proof to the theory that the fourth movie in a series is usually a good one. There are some genuinely funny moments, including a great retread of the pie gag (something which I didn't think was possible), the um of the black guy, lots of top gross humour. Also they give the lead five guys a story, each one with a bit of darkness. Jason Biggs and Sean William Scott seem the most interested; Chris Klein and Mena Survini's plot is a bit disappointing, in part because Klein's hair work was distracting but also it lacked the sweetness of the first film. And it would have been better had Tara Reid nailed her ex instead of him thinking he did. But a strong movie, a lot better than I was afraid it was going to b.

Book review - "Icons in the Fire" by Alexander Walker

Very considerate of Walker basically finishing this book prior to his sudden death as it forms a neat trilogy of books about the British film industry.  This one covers from 1984-2000 and could be subtitled "nothing is ever good enough". Walker is a bit of a whinger - mocking Thorn EMI and Rank for having too much control, for not making films, making bad films; then bagging Cannon for buying into the industry (he feels this stuffed everything). Even Polygram and Lotto money seem to do nothing but the wrong things - their hits aren't adventurous enough, then when they go out of business that's wrong too.

I always associated British cinema of the 80s as a vibrant, exciting time - that's how it seemed to us in Australia, getting movies like My Beautiful Laundrette, Wish You Were Here, Room With a View. Even Absolute Beginners was an exciting flop. To be fair we only got the popular films in Australia not the dross and Walker does say nice things about some movies, he's just determined to say the business models are bad and get worse. You can just tell this is written by a grumpier old man than in his first two books on the industry.

Movie review - "Dirty Girl" (2010) **

A film which sounded good on paper and had many strong elements - 1980s setting, interesting idea (friendship between fat gay teen and slutty girl in Oklahoma), excellent cast. It sold well at Toronto and you can see why - but Glee did all this much better and more often. It's hard to make a road trip movie different and this one fails to do it. It's not a particularly well directed or acted film with too many obvious jokes and vague characterisation - the gay character veers from shy torn up boy to out and out queen. Strong performances from the two leads.

Movie review - "The Bourne Legacy" (2012) ****

Terrific action film, very smart and exciting. It took me a while to get into Jeremy Renner as an action hero - he's really not good looking or charismatic enough - but he does have a sad eyed quality which works for the role and he grew on me. As if to compensate he is given very strong support: Rachel Weisz is beautiful and does wonderful things with a role that isn't that deep; Ed Norton is reliable as ever as a very believable baddy (motivated by a desire to clean up mess rather than world domination).

Some top ideas - the pills Renner needs to take to keep smart, a work place massacre - and others not so good - a key baddy introduced too late in the day, an ending that lacked a comeuppance for the baddies - plus some thrilling action scenes.

Movie review - "The Sitter" (2012) **

Modern day retread of Adventures in Baby Sitting with Jonah Hill in the lead instead and a lot more raunch. There are some funny bits, such as Sam Rockwell's coked up villain and lair which is like a gaol gym re-created, but it lacks charm and surprise. It also loses points for having Hill saved at the end not by any special skills on his part but by some black friends he's made through his ability to speak jive (I think that's what happened). Also the problems of the traumatised kids he's looking after, quite serious ones, are dealt with very easily.

Movie review - "Killing Them Softly" (2012) ***

A simple, effective story given the hey-let's-get-this-into-Cannes treatment - which results in some wonderful scenes and moments but it doesn't quite work as a piece. Brad Pitt deserves kudos for getting this made, and he's very good in what is, at bottom, a superhero role - a killer who is smarter and tougher and more principled (in his way) than anyone else in the film. 

Support turns are great too - Ben Mendhelson's Aussie accent was a bit jarring (you don't expect to find Aussies in that sort of environment) but he was terrific as was Scoot McAir. Richard Jenkins, Ray Liotta and James Gandolfini were strong too although Gandolfini's two monologues felt repetitive and also a bit too much this-is-a-long-scene-to-attract-Gandolfini-to-the-role.

The stuff about the GFC and the 2008 elections felt like it was gilding the lily too much (my head hurt afterwards from having subtext bashed on me) as did Pitt's final speech about Thomas Jefferson. Memorable set pieces such as the heroin sequence, the dogs and the opening credits, some good action.

Movie synopsis - "Universal Soldier" (1971) *

London airport - people arriving. A passport is checked - it's someone born in Melbourne, Australia. There's a handsome photo of clean-shaven George Lazenby - credits: "George Lazenby in Universal Soldier". We cut to George - he's got shaggy hair and a mo. He's pulled into customs to be checked out - his character's name is Ryker. Ryker leaves the airport. People are waiting for him. They take him to a firing range - Ryker is respected on this. He goes to a cinema and watches ads for British arms being used in Vietnam.

 Then he goes to field where hovercrafts are being trialled - people talk about working in the private sector. Ryker takes a hovercraft for a spin. He crashes into another hovercraft. (At this stage of the film other actors are driving the dialogue more than Lazenby.) He visits firing ranges. Gets in a car with an African (Rudolph Walker) who knows about Ryker's last performance. Ryker has come out of retirement for two years. The CIA are bankrolling the operation and have approved Ryker (a bit of satire). "People? Come on you know what happens to people in revolutions - they just get shot".

Ryker is to pick mercenaries. He goes to hotel. Lies in bed with towel and has flashes of various war atrocities - mainly news photos of them and images of guns, they don't seem like his POV. The film uses jump cuts and flash forwards. Ryker goes to an arms shop. Talk about getting appropriate export licences. They visit a plush Playboy club. Ryker listens to a fat businessman talk with lack of morality about arms deals.

Drives along in a car. Song on soundtrack "Oh Ryker/ You've still got a long way to go." He is pulled over by a cop. Cops ask them to open boot. They drive off. They escape. Go out to the country. Fire off some guns. Practising shooting Ryker accidentally wounds a dog collecting a stick in a lake - his American mate finishes off the dog, then Ryker blows his top and shoots at the American's feet (doesn't hit him) then walks off. Then cut to driving in a car, all tense.

Ryker heads off on his own. He walks the streets while another song plays on soundtrack. Back at hotel his American friend tries to thaw the ice but Ryker isn't keen. They are going to meet other arms dealers. Their British friend arrives. The British guy offers to go to Africa.

Ryker drives around London a bit. Arrives at a house - looking for a place to rent - he meets an American expat who has lived in London 18 years since been kicked out of country for being "unfriendly". Played by Cy Endfield, who looks seedy and disreputable and mutters. Enfield shows him around flat. Ryker agrees to take it. Endfield asks "Did you ever read Deer Park by Norman Mailer?"

Enfield's wife comes home - it's Germaine Greer. She talks about her day - her students turned up with an obscene poem. He tells Greer that Ryker is renting the room. Friends of Endfield and Greer arrive - they are hippies.

Go to a political workshop. Some actors where masks and do a piece on British police force. They argue that American police should disarm and there would be no war. (One guy who says a bit and gets close ups I think is Rohan O'Reilly, Lazenby's manager.) People say various political things (montage of it) - chat about selling arms to South Africa, Germaine says a bit. Ryker watches. At drinks after he meets and flirts with some girls. He hits it off with a blonde (Chrissy Townsend) who is Greer's step daughter? Someone's step daughter. He asks to see her.

American friend Jesse says Ryker has left even though he has a lot of people to meet. Ryker goes for a stroll in the park. (Too many scenes in this film of him walking around or going for a stroll.)

Jesse (Ben Carruthers) and British guy worried about Ryker. Whole deal might fall over. Ryker walks around with blonde. Blonde gives beggar money. He tells her about a guy he knew in Africa who would give beggars money, be followed by others, get annoyed and kick them to death. "What sort of friend is that?" she asks. "A solider" he says. He goes home. Girl is in his bed. He gets into bed with her.

There is a montage scene where he mucks arond with girl Chrissy and smokes drugs. Jesse tracks him down. We are millions of dollars out, he says. We have to turn up and train. Ryker doesn't seem interested. Jesse "They said take him back or take a piece of them back."

Ryker and Jesse chucking a frisbee, Ryker tells them to duck. They do. Someone is out to kill him.

That night they go down to the docks where the guns are held. They hold up a security guard and take the trucks.

Then he breaks into house of African man and points a gun at him. We have a deal, Ryker. Ryker blackmails him. (It's confusing what happens.) Ryker wants $125,000.

Next day the African turns up with the money. They exchange money. They are $100,000 short - but Ryker says he didn't give back the guns. Jesse is furious. "I don't know what it is myself, you know," says Ryker. "Even if you had the money you'd still have nothing... You're asleep. You're on the short end of everything and so am I but we don't realise it. We're on the wrong side." Jesse understandably punches Ryker (some flashy slow mo and cutting). Ryker annoyed but doesn't hit back despite Jesse's taunts. Jesse trips him over. Ryker then trips Jesse over (in slow motion). Ryker helps up Jesse saying "some poeple just have to learn peace the hard way." A mysterious car drives past. Drives past two of them - shots ring out. Freeze frame

Summary - a decent story done in by poor handling. Confusing as what is happening and why. Little excitement. Unsympathetic protagonist.

Greer and O'Reilly are special guest stars.

Final credits: screenplay by Endfield with additional dialogue by Kevin Duggan, Kenneth Fueurman and George Lazenby - based on a story by Derek Marlowe and Joe Massot

Production companies of film were Appaloosa Pictures and Ionian. Derek Marlowe, an experienced writer, is credited with the story.

Movie review - "Where the Sidewalk Ends" (1950) **

A reunion of Dana Andrews, Gene Tierney and Otto Preminger is a long way from Laura mostly because of the story - Andrews is a cop again, he's in love with Tierney, but Tierney doesn't have much  to do; instead it's about Andrews accidentally killing a suspect after roughing him up. That's a pretty dark story but Andrews isn't so much a villain as a sympathetic anti-hero. 

Unlike The Big Clock where Ray Milland had to investigate a crime he knows others will pin him for, here Andrews is looking into a murder which he did commit - so it gets repetitive, with no real complication. Tierney's father gets accused of the crime, which just means we're sitting around waiting for Andrews to go "no it was me". This needed another complication to throw things into a loop.

Andrews is very strong in a role ideal for him - tormented by his past (dad was a crook), tough, ruthless. Tierney is wasted, Gary Merrill makes an excellent crime boss.

Movie review - "The Frogmen" (1951) **

There are no women in the cast of this WW2 action film which might explain why Fox cast some of their young hunks (Jeffrey Hunter and Bob Wagner) and have a lot of the cast run around topless wearing tight shorts - anything to get the teeny boppers in. While there is some novelty of having a film about underwater divers in the war (who do their missions only wearing shorts - which threw me until I realised wet suits probably hadn't been invented), it's not much of a story. 

The guts of it is about new commander Richard Widmark sulking his crew respect their former officer, who was killed and who we never meet. Dana Andrews phones it in in a nothing role as a chief mate and scenes of people swimming underwater are shown yet again to be not that exciting on film. 

There's some decent action stuff above the water, which is done in a semi documentary style - I liked the touch of Hunter being wounded sticking up a gag sign for marines, that felt real. But it's too run of the mill on the whole.

Movie review - "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark" (2011) **1/2

This gets off to a highly unpleasant start with a woman having her teeth chiselled out and the little kid who plays the lead is uncharismatic but this is quite spooky as long as the cast aren't speaking that terrible dialogue. A telemovie given a decent budget if not stunningly original handling - the house looks great, Katie Holmes isn't bad, Guy Pearce's American accent grates, Pearce and Alan Dale have a Neighbours reunion. It loses a bit of magic for Aussie audiences seeing all these Aussies pretending to be foreigners (e.g. Garry MacDonald, Jack Thompson).

Movie review - "Fallen Angel" (1945) *** (warning: spoilers)

Good tough film noir which reunites the star, director and studio of Laura - it isn't as good (the story isn't as strong) but there's still a lot to enjoy, notably it's tough attitude, cynical characters and strong support cast. Dana Andrews is solid as a drifter who falls for Linda Darnell (electric performance - she's sexy as hell) and marries Alice Faye to support her. But then Darnell turns up dead - after which the film does lose a little zing.

Faye's role was apparently cut down, and it does feel that way - she's not entirely happily cast (it feels as though they should have cast some New York stage actress). Ann Revere (Faye's cock-blocking sister), John Carradine (seance dude), Charles Bickford (vicious cop), and Percy Kilbridge are all excellent. There's a great scene where Bickford beats up a suspect LA Confidential style with Andrews looking on.

Movie review - "So Proudly We Hail" (1943) ***1/2 (warning: spoilers)

Hollywood movies traditionally like to celebrate victories but for a period there in World War Two they were about defeat, because that's all America suffered during it's early days: Bataan, Cry Havoc, Wake Island, Corregidor. This is a very good movie, stylishly made, expertly created for the female audience: it has great roles for three female stars, who are three different archetypes (sensible Claudette Colbert, sassy and flirty Paulette Goddard, bitter Veronica Lake); it introduces two new hunks (both having their opening scenes with their shirts off and both who who had tragic lives off screen, interestingly enough - George Reeves and Sonny Tufts); it tells the story of war from the female point of view, deals with female-leaning struggles (e.g., a mother loses a son, career vs marriage, wanting to heal vs wanting to kill Japanese).

Colbert does her idealised nurse thing very well - sensible, always shot in one profile, not panicking as the Japanese come on in and her fellow nurses lose it. Goddard is enormous fun as a flirty nurse, keen to wear her negligee to keep up morale, with several men on the go, falling for Tufts (whose limitations work here as he plays a lummox) - she feels real, and works very well with the other actors. Lake isn't the greatest actor in the world (her break down scene shows her limitations) but its a marvellous part, she has that charisma and a terrific suicide bombing last scene (even if it is half way though the film).

It's an impressive script by Alan Scott which starts off with a bang (a plane load of nurse survivors arrive in Melbourne Australia, and are met by a British sounding officer - Colbert is traumatised), and juggles its several plots expertly; ditto the changes in tone (romance, comedy, flirting, seriousness, war action). The war experience thought female eyes - they're active, important, vital. No wonder if was a big hit.

Movie review – “Copper Canyon” (1950) **1/2

Aw, those poor former slave owning Southerners – they’re being picked on after the Civil War by nasty miners. Actually that’s not a bad start for a Western – I’m sure there was plenty of discrimination, it’s just annoying all the ex-Confederates are good and there are nasty Yankees, with the peace kept of course by invoking some words of Abraham Lincoln. Naturally there are no black people or Indians in the film.

Ray Milland is a lot more happily cast than in California as a sharpshooter who the Southerners think is a former officer. Hedy Lamarr is wasted as a gambling gal but MacDonald Carey is excellent as a nasty villain – with three day growth, a hat and a scowl, he’s a lot more interesting actor than he was in his more heroic role.

Movie review - "Ball of Fire" (1941) ***

A bright central idea - nightclub singer Barbara Stanwyck hides out from the cops to protect her gangster boyfriend with some nerdy professors who are writing an encyclopaedia - isn't executed the best. It might have been stronger if the gangster was after Stanwyck but it provides sufficient fish out of water. Stanwyck memorably shows off her splendid legs in one scene. Gary Cooper is the hunky professor whose sex appeal is exploited by the other professors to keep their backer in line. Of course he gets a scene where he feels betrayed and goes into a sulk (this seems to turn up in most Cooper films) but he recovers to get to the rescue.

Some bright lines - the script was written by Billy Wilder and you can see his love/fascination for American slang. A sexy scene in the dark between Stanwyck and Cooper, Stanwyck's hair is very high in a way that reminds me of my grandmother, Gene Kupra does a drum solo, the running time probably goes for too long, the support cast is excellent.

Movie review - "The Westerner" (1940) ***

This starts off great, with a wonderful performance by Walter Brennan as the corrupt, humorous Lily Langtry-obsessed Judge Roy Bean... well to be fair it's not too dissimilar to his other performances but Brennan always made a good villain, especially here because he's a sympathetic one. 

The first half hour is great with Gary Cooper avoiding the noose by pretending to know Lily Langtry. The photography by Gregg Tolland is stunning, its handled with William Wyler's customary care, and you think it's interesting when the father of one of the homesteaders sends his daughter out to seduce Cooper so he will stay. But then when Cooper gets away it goes all conventional with him taking the sides of the homesteaders, and trying to broker a peace, and Brennan getting upset that Cooper doesn't love him anymore.

This really should have had Cooper trying to preserve his neck for most of the movie - they could have easily had the homesteaders want to kill him - but its like they couldn't bare Coop to play anyone even a bit naughty (he's not even a horse thief). The woman he hooks up with is a dull nagger, Coop does his stoic slightly retarded bit. There are some effectively shot scenes like the fire and the final confrontation with Cooper appearing on stage, and Brennan meeting Langtry.

Book review - "Finished" by H Rider Haggard

I was looking forward to this because it dealt with the Zulu War but this is a disappointing book. It spends far too much time on a not very interesting story with Allan Quatermain hanging around with yet another aristocratic male he's going on a shooting trip with. They come across a house where there are some creepy things going on, which is promising, but it soon turns conventional again with the aristocrat falling in love with a girl and them fleeing. Things perk up when Quatermain gets stuck in Zululand just before the Anglo Zulu War with a quite sympathetic depiction of the dilemma Cetewayo found himself in. Then Quatermain winds up at the Battle of Isandlwana which Haggard says too often "well you know what happened then so I won't describe it" - I want him to describe it! Still, it's exciting stuff, and carries us even when the dull aristocrats come back. A bigger role is given to dwarf Zikali here but nothing much new - he wants revenge, he tells everyone he wants revenge. How about a plot twist?Look this isn't bad - I mean, it's got Isandlwana - I just felt let down considering its subject matter.

Movie review - Chan#10 - "Charlie Chan's Secret" (1936) **

An old dark house mystery - a long-lost heir, a group of family members gathered for a will reading, seances, an eccentric old lady, guns peering through curtains, a comic butler, a tiresomely chipper heroine and her tiresomely chipper reporter boyfriend. Its all very very familiar - too familiar. It's also predictable since the guy who looks like a villain is. Herbert Mundin mugs as the wacky butler and there is some nice banter between Charlie Chan and the little old lady. But its fairly unexciting stuff.