Movie review - "No Way Out" (1950) ***

Joseph L. Mankiewicz was in the middle of one of the all-time career hot streaks when he was working under Zanuck at Fox. He takes a break from cocktail swilling sophisticates for this still-raw tale of racism. Richard Widmark and his brother have committed a robbery and been injured; they're bought into hospital where the brother dies under the care of a black (the characters here all use the word "negro"... the nasty ones say "n*gger") doctor. Widmark is determined to get revenge.

It's hotly anti-racism but Mankiewicz knows the importance of a good story and characters. Sidney Poitier (looking oh so young) actually has a decent role to play instead of just a noble, wronged black - his young doctor is insecure, anxious about his own abilities. And there's a decent mystery plot with Poitier and colleague Stephen McNally trying to prove Poitier's ignorance.

Richard Widmark is brilliant as the racist. I understand he got sick of playing baddies and wanted to play heroes but he only every an above-average hero whereas he was an all-time-great villain, and proves that here. Linda Darnell is on hand as his trashy sister in law, proving again what a fine actor she could be.

There are some downsides - Stephen McNally's liberal white doctor is irritating; the movie dragged on too long (it felt as though it should end soon after the race riot but there's a whole other bit to go). Not the classic I was hoping to see (I'd read some pieces rating it highly) but it's got the novelty of young Poitier, electrifying Widmark and still shocking use of the "n" word.

Movie review - "Gravity" (2013) *****

I've gone off going to the multiplex in recent years because its such an unpleasant experience most of the time, far too expensive, and the movies are often dumb. But this has helped revive my faith in Hollywood - a smart big budget special effects flick with stars and an awesome story.

Visually this is incredible - I kept wondering "how did they do that?" Alfonso Cuaron's tendency for long takes works brilliantly - it all works brilliantly - creating genuine white knuckle suspense. I'm sure boffins could poke holes in the science of it all, but I believed it.

Sandra Bullock is excellent in the lead - her plastic surgery wasn't too distracting as she spends most of the movie in a helmet, and looks splendid in astronaut underwear. It's such a tremendous role - I understand Angelina Jolie decided not to do it over money; if that's true, she was a fool: Cuaron is one of the best directors working in the world today. George Clooney was born to play an astronaut, too.

So many excellent moments: the opening "attack", the discovery of the fate of the Shuttle crew, Bullock's third act turning point. A wonderful film.

Movie review - "Kit Carson" (1941) **1/2

Jon Hall became a star (or at least a name) very fast with his lead role in The Hurricane but was kept off screen for a number of years afterwards by Sam Goldwyn as the producer looked for a follow up. Eventually Hall started popping up in a number of movies; this was his first Western, and he's uncomfortably cast... it explains why he fairly quickly settled into sarong and sword adventures only.

It's a shame because otherwise this is an unpretentious, well-constructed Western, typical of the movies Edward Small made around this time - decent production values, strong cast, copies other movies. This seems to borrow the Dodge City template of an adventurer and his two pals who get involved in adventures out west. The trio are Jon Hall (title role), Ward Bond and Harold Huber; there's a love triangle between Hall and army captain Dana Andrews over Lyn Bari (weird seeing her in period clothes, I was used to seeing her in big band dramas) and a serviceable plot about Hall and company escorting an wagon trail across country.

The love triangle got confusing but there is plenty of action including a good old Indian attack of the wagons with the womenfolk helping fire the rifles and a climax where the Americans team up to kick the Mexicans out of California (it's set just prior to the Mexican-US War). I enjoyed seeing a young Andrews and Ward Bond could play this role in his sleep already. But Hall's performance is bad and the more lines he's given the worse he is and it almost wrecks the film.

Movie review - Bond#20 - "Die Another Day" (2002) ***

Pierce Brosnan got worse as James Bond as the years went on - this was his fourth time out and not only was he becoming distractingly old, his continuing inability to say a funny line remains amazing. He is wound uptight and anxious, limiting the impact of this entry, which has many fine moments. Or at least, it does at the beginning - the second half is just plain silly.

The action sequences are back to their high standard, with some truly spectacular and thrilling segments: an opening hovercraft chase through the mine-riddled DMZ in Korea, a full blooded fencing match that turns roughhouse, a shootout in a dodgy clinic in Cuba.

The story isn't bad either - finally, the opening sequence from The Man with the Golden Gun is used... Bond is captured and spends a long time in Communist captivity, and returns a possible rogue (although why wasn't he brainwashed as in the novel?) It reuses the novel Moonraker device of the villain assuming an identity of a rich person who then seeks revenge against the West, something which pops up in a lot of movies (A View to a Kill, Goldeneye).

But still... the script has problems. The team of Purvis and Wade would later be rewritten by Paul Haggis and from this I see why (NB I know it's hard to tell who wrote what based on film credits and I'm making the following judgement on the assumption that they contributed more to this one): they've got plenty of good ideas but don't always seem to make sense. For instance, the fencing match between Bond and Graves (Toby Stephens) is exciting... but not really motivated, there's no point to it, it doesn't add any new information, or pay off in an interesting way. (Yes it prompts Graves to invite Bond to Iceland but surely he could have done that anyway). It's cute how Graves turns out to be a North Korean general... but to have become a billionaire that's that famous so quickly? The finale of the Iceland sequence has Bond driving against time to save Jinx (Halle Berry) who he barely knows... he ignores the villains escaping with a top secret laser and instead goes for some bit of tail.

While watching the latter I thought to myself "that's something Roger Moore's James Bond would do" and this movie more than ever seems to seek to recapture the spirit of the Moore Bonds, with its invisible car, sexually harassing Bond and really silly CGI surfing in Icelandic waters sequence.

American Bond girls are normally the worst and this does nothing to break the mould. Jinx is a decent character - spunky, tough, brave, good name - and Halle Berry is pretty, but she's just too nice and, well, Halle Berry to be believable as a kick arse action hero. (She is no Michelle Yeoh.) At times she seems like the star of some cheesy 90s straight to DVD flick... and adding to that is Michael Madsen as her boss. (When Madsen and Berry do a scene with Judy Dench and Pierce Brosnan, it's like a mashup of action movies)

Rosamund Pike is beautiful and has two effective moments - being an ice queen as she strips off her clothes and hops into bed with Bond, and then randomly appearing at the end dressed in leather pants and bra wielding a sword while on a plane. But she feels underutilitised - as if she's missing a scene or something.

Rick Yune is an excellent villain henchman, Toby Stephens a irritating villain (he does his best but plays the part in an overly flaring nostrils style, rather like Rik Mayall as Iron Man), John Cleese makes an unwelcome return as Q, Madonna is jarring although her title tune was okay, Samantha Bond is fine as Moneypenny.

Setting the action in Cuba, North Korea and Iceland is fresh; I'm not surprised the South Koreans were offended by the finale, which has the Americans completely in charge of their country's defence; occasionally the visuals are far too influenced by the Fast and the Furious and XXX. This wasnt as bad as some claim - it's got some great bits - but a fine first third is thrown away.

Movie review - "All Through the Night " (1941) ***

One of the lesser known movies George Raft turned down but still a stupid decision - like most of his casting selections appeared to be - because this is a bright, fun World War Two comedy thriller, with the then-novelty of having Nazi villains in New York.

Humphrey Bogart is a sports promoter who gets involved in some fifth columnists operating around Broadway. It's the sort of part that normally is played by Bob Hope but Bogie pulls it off, entering into it with lively good nature; he plays a mamma's boy, seemingly far more concerned with looking after his Ma (Jane Darwell, playing a nice person, which always creeps me out) than the love interest (the uninspiring Kaaren Verne in a part that cries out for an Ann Sheridan).

The true delight of this is the support cast - Warner Bros had a stock company to die for in the 1940s and this has Peter Lorre, Conrad Vedit, Phil Silvers, Jackie Gleason. Frank McHugh, Judith Anderson, Wiliam Demarest, etc. It spanks along at a great pace - I really went with it for the first third but found it gradually harder going; needed more Lorre less Verne, or something.

Movie review - "Sword in the Desert" (1948) ***1/2

Hollywood had a love affair with Britain in the 1930s and during World War Two. As the war went on and the Cold War kicked in, and it was clear that America was a far greater world power now, niggles started to emerge - the films became more critical of British foreign policy and attitudes, especially towards imperialism (though never really hostile, the British market was still so vital).

This movie was a case in point - a look at Jewish refugees in British run Palestine just prior to independence. The American hero Dana Andrews is a people smuggler - a cynical, money hungry one at the start to be sure, but just like Bogie in To Have and To Have Not (another people smuggler) we know he'll find his heart. And the baddies are the British. (Arabs are mentioned occasionally but very much in the background here.)

To add to the anti British slant the Jews have an Irish friend, a volunteer (there are hundreds of Irish volunteers, apparently) who consistently makes cracks about John Bull and wanting to kill informers and the like. There are some heroic British characters - British working against their countrymen. But having said all that the British aren't depicted as being evil - they are smart, professional, tough, but not ogres. They are men doing their job, and doing it well, not easily duped.

The writer and producer was Bob Buckner, a talented man whose credits include Yankee Doodle Dandee and he throws us straight into the action: a reluctant Andrews dropping his cargo off, anxiously looking around for British patrols, having to escort the refugees on the beach (as led by Stephen McNally), then the British arriving and Andrews having to flee and winding up a fugitive. He goes to a Jewish camp where the leader is Jeff Chandler in an early star making turn from him.

The main problem with this dramatically was the Dana Andrews character. He starts off as central to the action, and we think the movie is going to be about him coming to embrace the Jewish cause, finding love and so on. But after the beginning Andrews really becomes passive, just going along the flow and whingeing about wanting to get home (he spends most of the movie under guard, whether by the Jews or the British). All he really does drama-wise is be tempted to dob in Chandler and then change his mind.

Stephen McNally's character is far more active; he organises the escape of the Jewish prisoners at the end, has a romance. It was as if he was doing stuff that Andrews should have been doing and it threw the movie off for me - this came about via my expectations, I admit, but Andrews was a bigger star than McNally, surely? I'd love to know if any rewrites were going on.

And Marta Torens character starts out interesting - a sort of Jewish Tokyo Rose, brave and smart - but then gets bland and nothing; there's no dimension to her, she pants over McNally, and winds up with a wistful gauze closeup.

Still, this was surprisingly engrossing and fast paced, and anyone interested in movies about the British Empire and/or the early years of the state of Israel should really see it.

Movie review - "Wagon Master" (1950) ***

John Ford was a big fan of this John Ford movie, presumably because it included so many things he loved: Monument Valley, endless shots of wagons going over the horizon, plenty of character actors, a community feel, religion (Mormons instead of Catholics), outlaws, sensible cowboys, colourful character actors, and horseplay.

Ben Johnson and Harry Carey Jnr lack star power as two cowboys who get involved in leading a wagon train of Mormons across country; they encounter Navajo Indians, a troupe of travelling players, and some outlaws. Joanne Dru is sexy as the girl, Ward Bond excellent as the Mormon leader, Jane Darwell creeps me out as a horn blowing Mormon. There's a lot of wagons, and character actors and shenanigans and not much action. I wasn't wild about it, but it has a certain charm.

Movie review - "Two Rode Together" (1962) ** (warning: spoilers)

No one seems to have much enthusiasm for this John Ford Western, despite the fact it stars James Stewart, Richard Widmark and Shirley Jones (remember when she was a star?), and touches on many of the themes of The Searchers. Stewart and Widmark play two cowboys, the latter a soldier, who try to retrieve a series of whites who've been raised by Indians; Stewart is doing is for cash and Widmark for duty, which means its already a less complex, interesting movie than The Searchers and certainly the characterisations and script isn't as good (although the comic brawls are as annoying).

Ford made a lot of buddy movies around this time - Liberty Valance, Donovan's Reef, The Horse Soldiers - but Stewart and Widmark lach chemistry. The film badly needs John Wayne and doesn't have him.

It's also a really depressing story - the Indians have kidnapped these women and basically made them sex slaves; some don't want to come back, others do. Linda Cristal comes back and faces lots of prejudice (especially from women who can't understand why she didn't kill herself) and eventually leaves town. Shirley Jones wonders where her brother has gone and when he's "rescued" he hates it, wants to go home, kills a white woman and is lynched, Stewart and Widmark being unable to stop it. The happy ending consists of Stewart and Cristal going off into the sunset together and Widmark marrying a traumatised Jones.

It lacks classic Fordian moments - the action isn't well done, and there's little warmth, despite antics at a cavalry post and Andy Devine, Woody Strode and Harry Carey Jnr lumbering around. It's also sexist and looks cheap.

Book review - "Musts, Maybes and Nevers" by David Picker (2013)

I was mostly familiar with David Picker as the smug, gruff, tightly spoken figure who popped up in Bond docos, talking about his involvement in the series, but of course his name is well known for all those students of cinema in the 60s and 70s. Picker was head of production at United Artists in their hey day when they seemed to touch the zietgeist at will - among the films Picker greenlighted were Tom Jones, the Bond series, A Hard Day's Night, Midnight Cowboy, Last Tango in Paris.

Its an incredible record, and yes while Picker mostly said yes and then stayed out of the way, what he said yes too was very impressive. This was Picker's great time in the sun - he became an independent producer with more mixed success, as well as short stints being head of Paramount and Columbia.

Picker puts up the impression of being down to earth but not really; some places in this book seems downright petty, slagging off on Robert Altman for calling him a prick and Mike Medavoy for not inviting him to a party, whingeing about inadequate press coverage of his achievements (he says the story of how the Bond series was started has never been told by a person who was there before... but Cubby Broccoli published his memoirs in the late 90s) and how UA execs got paid less than execs at other Hollywood studios and how Transamerica made them stay at a corporate camp rather than a nice hotel. If his films don't succeed its normally the fault of someone else eg Stella and Leap of Faith was because of the nasty and incompetent directors, The Greatest Story Ever Told was down to its megalomaniac George Stevens. It was Arthur Krim not him who turned down American Graffiti and Bonnie and Clyde, Bob Benjamin Planet of the Apes (to be fair he admits he turned down The Graduate because he didn't get it).

But some anecdotes are gold: Charles Bludhorn being determined to make a movie featuring Buffalo Bill and Hitler, Picker being talked into buying Grease purely on the basis of Allan Carr's enthusiasm, Harold Mirisch desperately trying to get Truman Capote over to his house as a guest, falling out with friend Herb Gardener. George Roy Hill's mistress inspired the native extras to come to his defense and save his job on Hawaii, Picker suggesting John Newcombe as James Bond in On Her Majesty's Secret Service. I liked that he actually praised some critics (Pauline Kael and Clive James) and took the fall for some things, and there are lively sketches about people such as Richard Lester and Harry Salztman. It's an important book by one of the most significant film execs of his time; I just wish he was a little less pompous on the page and that he had spoken about some of his works like Royal Flash.

Movie review - Bond#19 - "The World is Not Enough" (1999) ***1/2 (warning: spoilers)

An odd mix of a Bond film, full of confusing decisions. Like:

*a pre-credit opening sequence that falls into two parts - a small little action sequence in Spain then a big spectacular one on the River Thames (apparently the first sequence was meant to stand alone but was felt to be not strong enough... honestly they should have known that at script stage, and instead we have this long-feeling two parter);

*casting one of the best Bond girls in the series - Sophie Marceau, who is beautiful, smart, exotic and sexy as hell, everything you want in this universe - then one of the worst, Denise Richards. Now Richards was a fine looking woman in the late 90s and looks terrific in boots, shorts and tank top... but as a nuclear scientist no way. She seems more concerned with her tousled hair and lip pout than acting, and seems young enough to be Pierce Brosnan's daughter. Although her character is okay (brave, spunky, smart), she's got some terrible dialogue eg after almost being blown up in a pipe her first question to Bond is "what's this about you and Elektra?". It's like someone suggested casting Richards as a joke and the next thing everyone knew they were filming. It's also a shame they give such a wonderful character as Elektra such a dull death (being shot on a bed) before the big climax.

*continually giving Pierce Brosnan one liners to say when it should have become clear for whatever reason he's lost the ability to do so.

*The Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? style domestic scene between Elektra and Renard (Robert Carlyle) showing their weird domestic relationship - he's jealous of Bond's ability as a lover, he can't feel anything; Renard is far more sympathetic and touching than actually scary. (Though I did like the idea he was eventually dying of a bullet in the brain. NB What happened to 009 who put that bullet there?)

There were some good things in this movie - it is very exotic (Kazakhstan, Istanbul... maybe that's why they wanted an American Bond girl), Marceau is wonderful, Robbie Coltrane has a great death, and I liked the nod to Bond history with the title.

The action sequences are surprisingly un-involving, certainly not as good as Tomorrow Never Dies... I came away with this memory of lots of crash boom bang (boats driving through restaurants in London, spiky wheels destroying cars in the Caspian Sea, a big clunky sub falling to the bottom of the sea) rather than anything thrilling; it even does a rather dull ski chase, which I thought would be impossible. You couldn't say it was a bad Bond movie, but I couldn't help feeling underwhelmed.

Book review - "Don't Say Yes Until I've Finished Talking" by Mel Gussow (1971)

A bright lively bio of Daryl F.  Zanuck written when he was the last surviving tycoon of the great days of Hollywood; not that he lasted much longer, being turfed from his position around the time the book came out. He then pretty much went into retirement, and apparently went senile, living in Palm Springs - however he did live to see his son Dick become one of the leading producers in Hollywood.

This book benefits from the fact so many of its participants were alive, chiefly Zanuck himself - but also his son, wife, colleagues. While an admiring book, some warts are shown - Gussow doesn't stint on criticism of Zanuck's midlife crisis (performing acrobatics, running off with various women) and some of 20 Century Fox's poorer movies; it explores his prickly personality, womanising, various corporate struggles, unusual family life.

Full of lively anecdotes, such as the competitive croquet games, and memorable bits like Zanuck's touching admission that he doesn't have many friends. You need to read this in conjunction with later books on Zanuck but its very entertaining.

Book review - "Operation Storm" by Roger Cole and Richard Belfield

The Battle of Mirbat is a surprisingly not well known British Imperial/SAS triumph from a time when the Western powers weren't really kicking goals in foreign policy - 1972. It involved, so the blurb says, nine SAS fighting off a well organised force of over 400 rebels desperate to knock off the Sultan of Oman... but actually that wasn't the whole truth, there were over a score of Omanis on the SAS's side, helping out, firing guns and taking casualties.

That's still an impressive achievement, but this book does suffer from an overly pro-SAS view; everything the SAS does is brave, clever or wonderful. Now I'm sure they were brave, clever and wonderful, but describing a few flaws (or at least fleshing out the stories of the opposition) wouldn't have hurt.

Anyway, I did enjoy the book, and its surprising this tale hasn't been filmed yet, especially considering the success the British film industry has enjoyed with war movies. It's full of memorable anecdotes and stories: the very British coup with the mad sultan whisked off to the Dorchester; the fact many of the SAS fought the battle in thongs and used margarine to ease their bullets through their machine guns; the role of luck in battle (grenades that go dead, bullets that just missed).