TV series - "Andor" (2022) ****

 Some good Star Wars! Takes it seriously. Plays it politically. Drags a little in spots but very compelling. Brilliant prison break.

Movie review - " Omar Khayyam" (1957) **

 Universal pumped out a bunch of Easterns in the 40s and 50s with stars like Tony Curtis and Maria Montez. Columbia made some too including One Thousand and One Nights which like this starred Cornel Wilde.

This one is from Paramount and it's a sluggish piece - William Dieterle was towards the end of his Hollywood career, and I sense he had ambitious above the station of this material, which should be a junky fast paced action film that joyously distorted history. This one tiredly distorted history. I don't recall a film that discussed military tactics so much. Like, wh cares?

Dieterle was famed for his Warners biopics and maybe that approach would have worked here but they've gone the action/romance route.

Wilde plays the title role who impresses ruler Raymond Massey with some poems but also his military strategy.

John Derek is fourth billed in a thankless role as Massey's son. You could cut him out of the film.

A much better part is Michael Rennie's villain - based on a real dude, head of the order of assassins... and a film focusing around that would've been more fun. Debra Paget is The Girl. 

Cornel Wilde's career had interesting parallels with John Derek incidentally - both starred in Easterns, both under contract to Columbia and Fox, Wilde turned down the part Derek played in Ten Commandments, both did swashbucklers, both turned director.

Dull.

Movie review - "The Flesh is Weak" (1957) **1/2

 For someone who looked like a cad, John Derek didn't play a lot of them - he started off as a weakling type them became a hero but he's effectively cast here as a pimp, working in London's red light district. He seduces gals and turns them to a life of crime. 

The main gal here is Italian actress Milly Vitale, who I didn't know that well. His seduction of her is well done with racy-ish scenes, for the time - she's kissing his bare chest in bed. Vitale is okay but I wish Diana Dors played the lead.

Derek is fine. He's well cast. He gets a showy scene where he verbally abuses Vitale and does fine. Derek poo-pooed his acting career but he could be seen to be trying hard and he definitely does here.

William Frankyln is a journo investigating the racket. He makes some pleas for decriminalising prostitution.

Producer Raymond Stross made this - he specialised in sexier movies.  The director was Don Chaffey. He and Stross then made A Question of Adultery.

Movie review - "Glass Onion" (2022) **** (warning: spoilers)

 Glorious music. Clever. Similar in structure to the first in many ways - the second biggest star after Daniel Craig did it, the new girl in town does the bulk of investigating, some social commentary at the end. Cameos have started now (Ethan Hawke, Hugh Grant) but smugness is held at bay.

TV review - "The White Lotus" Season 1 and 2 ****1/2

 Wonderful. I don't have much to add. A slow burn. Pretty pictures, pretty people, some actors I never thought much of really sign, a lot of different types of sex, a bit of violence at the end.

TV review - "Barry" Season 3 (2022) ****

 It took me a while to get into this but the second half of the season was very strong. Some superb action sequences and it benefits by pushing its leads into darker territories and shedding a light on the victims of the murders.

TV review - "Colin from Accounts" (2022) ****

 Funny, lovely, warm rom com which doesn't overstay its welcome (I would've liked to have met her dad). Very well done.

Movie review - "The Bank Raiders" (1958) **

 British B movie from the late 50s - I'm surprised they were still making them when TV came in.

Sidney Tafler, who is in a bunch of these films, like Wide Boy, is a crime boss. Peter Reynolds is a gigolo who works for Tafler as a getaway driver. Aussie Lloyd Lamble is the detective on the case. Arthur Mullard, a burly type in lots of roles, is a hood. Sandra Dorn is a trash gal.

Directed by Maxwell Munden for "The Film Workshop". It's cheap, cheap looking (apart from location work). Poor acting from minor roles.

Some bits are good like Lamble interrogating Reynolds.

Movie review - "Fury at Showdown" (1957) **

John Derek's 50s Westerns were usually surprisingly interesting but this is dull. He comes back to a town where he shot someone a while ago. There's a lot of talk - so much talk. It plays like an episode of a TV series, with extra dollop of angst.

Derek's got angst, so has Nick Adams as his brother. John Smith from Laramie is lively as a gunman. The film coud've done with more of it.

I think the filmmakers were trying to do something different but they missed and what's more didn't replace with interesting characters or tension.

Derek emotes effectively in some scenes. The thought of him and Adams palling around off screen is fun - more fun than the film.

Movie review - "Ha'penny Breeze" (1950) ** (warning: spoilers)

 The first film from Don Sharp, who co-wrote and co-produced as well as starred. It's a DIY effort for its time - low budget but a big enough budget to cover studio filming and location work. Apparently he and his mate Frank Worth (who directed) came up with the idea by going to the location and writing a film about it.

So it's a tale about a little village where they used to sail but don't because it's unmanly compared to fishing or something. The plot is a little fuzzy - well, maybe dull more than fuzzy.

It's full of novelty, though. The photography is lovely, as is the location work. It does have a nice small town feel and is affectionate. 

Sharp plays an Aussie and there's lots of comments on the fact he's Australian (he and his friend were POWs together).  He's not really handsome enough for a leading man (mind you, neither is his co star Edwin Richfield) and he's a little awkward, but it's fun seeing Don Sharp in the lead of a film. Gwynneth Vaughan in Sharp's love interest, Richfield's sister.

The ending has Sharp walking off into the sunset whistling 'Road to Gundagai' which is cool. And there's reference to Australia beating England in the cricket which was sweet.

Movie review - "The Leather Saint" (1956) **

 I think this movie proved John Derek wasn't a star. Not really. He was a good looking leading man.

The material would seem to be surefire. A priest who boxes. A gangster's gal falls for him. The priest is raising money for a hospital.

But nothing is at stake. If he's revealed as a boxer, so what? The woman is fond of him but doesn't fall in love with him. Cesar Romero's gangster threatens to be interesting but isn't. Ditto Paul Douglas' trainer. 

Romero needed to start beating people up. Douglas needed to have a gambling problem or something. Jody Lawrance (Derek's old co star from a swashbuckler and quite good as an ageing boozy blond) should have fallen for him, hard - and gone mad when she found out he was a priest. He should've been attracted to her - make her a former lover from before he was a priest or something. Derek's health needed to be at stake. Lawrence doesn't get to know Derek until 50 minutes in.

But a real star could've got it over the line. Like a Clark Gable or Bing Crosby. Even say a Glenn Ford who had a warmer presence. Derek isn't bad but he couldn't hold the film. I think this movie stopped his mini career spark from the mid 50s when he did Prince of Players and The Ten Commandments.

Movie review - "An Annapolis Story" (1955) **

Another services film where John Derek is in love with the same woman as his buddy. According to Don Siegel, who directed, Derek insisted on swapping roles with Kevin McCarthy. This means Derek pinches Diana Lynn off McCarthy but then is heroic saving McCarthy's life only to see Lynn get back with McCarthy. It didn't really make much difference.

There's documentary footage of training and stuff at sea. Derek and McCarthy go up in jets. It's a surprise to see Siegel directed this.

This is dull. Sam Peckinpah worked on it as dialogue supervisor - he did a bit of work for Allied Artists around this time.

Book review - Grease Scrapbook by Randal Kleiser

 Fun look back at the film from Kleiser's point of view. It seems like a happy accident although everyone was collaborative and have a great piece of material to work with. The emphasis on choreography- getting dancers to play characters - paid off in the depth of the film.

TV series "Frontier Circus" (1961) Ep 1 **1/2

 There were so many Westerns on TV at this stage they were desperate to vary the formula. This one is about a circus, which is cute. The ostensible stars are Chill Wills, Richard Jaekel and John Derek but the bulk of the story involves guest star Aldo Ray - who plays a drunken former lion tamer. Knowing Ray was an alcoholic gives this tremendous resonance - we see scenes of him being boozing and self loathing. It's a good performance.

(Derek and Ray made Saturday's Hero together as well which gives it an extra layer.)

On the concept front, Wills is ideal in this show but Derek and Jaekel are too stock I feel - nothing wrong with them as actors they're just a little too Wagon Train when the show would've benefited from some more obviously showbiz style stars I think - like a brassy showgirl or something.

Movie review - "Prince of Players" (1955) **1/2

 A dream team in a way - Moss Hart wrote the script, based on a best selling novel, with CinemaScope, Richard Burton fresh off The Robe playing a great actor, Maggie McNamara coming off Three Coins in the Fountain and The Moon is Blue, Philip Dunne as producer and director (well, it was his first film as a director but he was associated with "A" product as a producer and writer).

There's great material here - Edwin Booth had a controlling brother, a wife who died, a brother who shot Lincoln. But the material is treated like a musical biopic with renditions of Shakespeare instead of musical numbers. It's interesting to see Burton recite the verse but that's what he does - recite rather than act. McNamara isn't much as the wife. Derek livens up every scene he's in but it's the part more than the actor - still Derek doesn't disgrace himself. Really the film should've just been about the brothers.

Movie review - "The Adventures of Haji Baba" (1955) ***

 Allied Artists got CinemaScope for this and The Warriors with Errol Flynn. This is the more fun - it was produced by Walter Wagner, returning to Easterns which gave him such success with Arabian Nights. This was a hit too - maybe the most profitable film starring John Derek? He's not bad in the lead, a barber (?) who goes off to seek his fortune. He crosses with an escaped princess - Elaine Stewart, who I'm not that familiar with, but is terrific, long limbed and full of fun. Also fun are the all girl tribe of bandits.

The other roles feel slightly undercast but it has nice colour, a Nat King Cole theme song, plenty of action, with torture and dancing girls. Don Weis directed.

Movie review - "The Outcast" (1954) ***

 John Derek's Westerns are proving consistently interesting. This is directed by Tarantino fave William Witney and is full of action - people are always climbing through windows and pulling guns and double crossing. It's a decent script, if a familiar story - John Derek seeks revenge on his uncle Jim Davis.

Derek normally played spoiled weaklings, young things teamed with crusty older stars. Here he plays someone with balls, tough, a womaniser, flirty, ruthless, hires gunmen (who kill people). It's pretty good work. He romances a hayseed girl who gets whipped for kissing him which is full on but the guy who does it dies.

Vigorous entertainment.

Movie review - "Sea of Lost Ships" (1953) **

Republic Films borrowed John Derek from Columbia to star in the sort of services movie he made for Harry Cohn - and also Republic, in Thunderbirds. It's about duty and service and family members who die, and two friends are in love with the same gal.

Barton MacLane pops up at the top to play Derek's dad and die, Richard Jaekel is the guy he has to compete with over Wanda Hendrix, Walter Brennan is a bosun.

There's stock footage of planes crashing and ice bergs but it's dull. Really dull. I struggled to finish this.

Some fun in Hendrix assuming she and Derek are on from the get go. Those scenes have some life.

Derek and Jaekel are dull.

Movie review - "Track of Thunder" (1967) **

 Ambassador Films was a Nashville based outfit that made a few movies. This one was directed by old hand Joseph Kane, and is a stock car movie - that genre that flared briefly in the late sixties. "Tom" Kirk (as he's billed) and Ray Stricklyn are two mates who race and both are keen on Brenda Benet. This is interrupted when track owners combine with a journo to whip up a rivalry.

There's not a lot of car action. Plenty of serious drama. The story is flawed because the two heroes really could just have a chat and sort it out.

Kirk is quite good - looks a little zonked in some scenes, but not too zonked. I may be projecting. Some value in to see him play besties with Ray Stricklyn, who was another youthful juvenile who kept his sexuality secret - they're more keen on each other than Benet, but that's par for the course for this sort of movie.

Faith Domergue plays Kirk's mom who wants him to run the farm.

Movie review - "The Last Posse" (1953) *** (warning: spoilers)

 Medium budget Western from Columbia which marked the third teaming of Broderick Crawford and John Derek. It's got a different sort of set up - telling the story of a posse coming back to town after pursuing some outlaws and we flashback to the build up.

Posse members include Derek and Crawford. The cast also features Charles Bickford and Wanda Hendrix so that's pretty good. I'm not wild about Henry Hull, playing yet another reporter, but people like him.

The black and white photography is wonderful. There's too many characters - the film would've been better off having less, and developing them all. But it's an adult story, surprisingly downbeat. Crawford gets a chance as a boozy but principled sheriff. He dies at the end which is a shock.

Movie review - "Mission Over Korea" (1953) **1/2 (warning: spoilers)

 A film that kept surprising me. On one hand there's a lot of rah-rah ness - unfunny military comedy, talk about sacrifice, Maureen O'Sullivan winsome and tired looking as John Hodiak's wife, John Derek being lecherous with women, Korean orphans, much of it feels rewritten/recut/made up as it goes along.

And yet... the fact it focuses on spotter planes is different, there's plenty of documentary style footage, the consistent action in the middle is fairly gripping, scenes like the arrival of a base that has been wiped out are tense.

There's camp (Derek talking about wanting to napalm the commies), surprisingly interesting characterisation (Audrey Trotter's tired, traumatised nurse), emotional ending (Hodiak dies), some 50s novelty (Harvey Lembeck and Richard Erdman reteaming from Stalag 17, a black soldier sings a song), Rex Reason has this random deep voice.

The film was so much better than I thought it would be.

Hodiak and the director, Fred Sears, would both be dead within a few years.

Movie review - "Ambush at Tomahawk Gap" (1953) *** (warning: spoilers)

 Lovely colour photography and decent set up - four outlaws leave prison, one (John Hodiak) gets dumped so the other three go looking for some money. The story moves at a solid pace. It maybe could've done with a little more character differentiation, although there is some: big baddie, baddie kind of in love with Derek, Derek as young kid baddie, tormented Hodiak, some trusty old prospector with a Walter Brennan type voice. And the complications work - there's a government agent, a Navajo woman (Derek love interest), rampaging Apaches. High death toll - most of the cast die, including (genuine surprise) Hodiak... allowing Derek and the Navajo to live. It's quite a brutal tale full of cynical characters - kind of like a Western noir, including an ending where they don't wind up with money. The Navajo woman was a prisoner of the Apache.

Intense. Interesting. Low budget.

Movie review - "Prince of Pirates" (1953) ***

 I watched this right after Thunderbirds and it was so much better - lively, full of colour, a very good Sam Katzman swashbuckler. John Derek is fine as a prince of some random country fighting Spain - he's a prince and the baddy is his elder brother who has inherited the throne. 

Barbara Rush has a decent part as the woman who goes along and takes part in the fighting.

Maybe it was a reaction to Thunderbirds but I really had a good time - animated, colourful, the cast are commiting, a tough enemy (there's a cut to a shot with two legs from a hanging corpse), Derek is animated, Rush is heaps of fun.

Movie review - "Thunderbirds" (1952) **

 Republic Pictures splashing a bit of cash for them, borrowing John Derek from Columbia. He appears opposite John Drew Barrymore - they're two mates in love with the same gal (Eileen Christy), and there's tough sergeant (Ward Bond), and another tough sergeant (Gene Evans).  Mona Freeman is a gal who rocks up very quickly after Christy picks Derek.

Support cast features people like Barton MacLane and Slim Pickens.

Some novelty in that the lead two are members of the Oklahoma National Guard and they have Indian mascots and there's an Indian motif going through the film.

The film seems to go for a long time. It was dull.

Movie review - "The Church of Baseball" by Ron Shelton (2022)

 Terrific book, read it in one sitting. Extra good because it covers Shelton's life in the minors, and his early days of filmmaking. I knew a fair bit about the 

Loved script stuff especially:

- writing the opening monologue he made sure he after Annie's lofty speech he then went low brow at the ball park

- an Annie/Crash scene where she talks about her past was loved by everyone, on stage and on film, but held up the film - and once he cut it the film flowed - he realised it was because it was too intimate between the characters when they hadn't reached that spot yet

- his ins and outs behind various creative decisions.

The film on one hand was easy - Thom Mount liked the pitch, agreed to make it, Kevin Costner came on - but was also very difficult: it was saved solely by a good review about No Way Out. Shelton punched out a producer who told Susan Sarandon the rushes made her look bad - he was lucky not to get fired. Didn't realise Shelton was open to Anthony Michael Hall - it was Hall who blew it not reading the script. The suits sacked the DOP just to throw their weight around. Costner was a prince, the cast was divine. Laura San Giacomo was cast as Millie but had to pull out, JT Walsh was the manager but got a better offer, they wanted Charlie Sheen but he was attached to Eight Men Out.

Movie review - "Friday the 13th Part 3" (1983) **

 The one in 3-D. It's cheesy, but the 3D effects are fun - brooms shoved forward, an eye, poles, apples. Some of the female cast have a bit of spunk about them and I hope they went on to have a career. The men not so much.

I enjoyed that random gang who appeared to harras the kids then turned up at the house to be murdered. 

Lots of bits feel unfulfilled- like an idea they wanted to develop but didn't. Such as the kids all eating marijuana (why not have that pay off), Tracie Savage's character being pregnant (she's still murdered, in a Psycho homage), having two of the group be stoners.

Full of odd things like two male characters go to the toilet and get killed, neither having wiped; the history of the final girl returning to Crystal Lake - was she meant to have been attacked by Jason? (I think the script was meant to focus around the survivor of Part 2, which would've made more sense - but if the actress didn't want to return why not change it more. I've also heard the character was meant to have been raped. This is unclear).

Directed by Stephen Miner. I got a few jolts.

Movie review - "Scandal Street" (1952) ***

 In the early 1950s Columbia (and a few other Hollywood studios) used to like to team old stars with new stars. This one reunites Broderick Crawford and John Derek, who'd been in All the Kings Men together - though Derek had become a slightly bigger 'name' since.

It's directed by Phil Karlson who made Mask of the Avenger with Derek, and produced by Edward Small. Based on the novel 'The Dark Page" by Sam Fuller.

It's a decent thriller. Crawford kills his ex wife and Derek investigates it. Reed is the voice of reason. Derek is alright - someone like John Payne would've been better. Crawford is one note but has great presence. Stylish photograph. Well handled by Karlson.

Fuller complained about what was done to his book and I'm sure he would've done a better version but this was entertaining.

TV review - "Playhouse 90: Massacre at Sand Creek" (1956) **1/2

 Every four weeks on Playhouse 90 they would do an all film version - Errol Flynn was in one, Without Incident. This is a little similar to that - it feels like it was written to be a cheaper Western rather than a glossy Playhouse 90, though it's got a tough subject: the Massacre at Sand Creek. Edward Everett Sloan is the Colonel Chivington character, here not called that. It changes from the lead facts - the lead officer is motivated more by ambition, less by racism. We hear about things rather than seeing them (soldiers scalping, wearing ears, shooting innocents). Still, it's quite strong.

John Derek is a decent man, a lieutenant, who winds up blamed for the whole thing somehow. Derek has a few heroic things to do - win a brawl, flash a blade, die heroically - but is basically weak and passive. Which suits Derek's persona - he gave off a sense of weakness.

Gene Evans is good as a sergeant.

It's not that well written, and is unable to shake a B Hollywood Western vibe, but is of interest.

Arthur Hiller directed this.

Movie review - "The Family Secret" (1951) **

 Made by Santana Productions, the company of Humphrey Bogart, although Bogart isn't in this one there's clearly a role for him - the lawyer played by J Lee Cobb whose son John Derek commits a murder. Derek leapt to fame in a Sanata film with Bogart, Knock on Any Door. Cobb had made Sirocco fot Santana.

The set up is interesting. Derek has accidentally killed a friend and confesses to Cobb. Dad reckons he should come clean, mum reckons he should be quiet especially after an innocent man is arrested for the crime.

The thing with this sort of material is it has a strong dramatic situation - family love, murder - but it needs to go dark. Cobb is so strong and self righteous there's no drama there. He just sort of hangs around and waits for Derek to confess. The mother is very "don't confess" then her role sort of vanishes.

Instead we get Derek feeling bad. There's some scenes that feel real like him drinking and hitting on the secretary who likes him (Jody Lawrance, good value again) - she likes him but knows he's drunk and pushes him away.

I went with his for a bit but when Cobb actually defends an innocent man I started to hate the characters. Cobb isn't even that much of a defence lawyer.

So many scenes happen off camera - the opening killing (Derek could have killed him in cold blood, incidentally, we only have his word for it that he didn't), the heart attack death of the innocently accused.

Derek does better than can be expected, as the Variety review said.  His weakness works here as does his looks. You beleive him as a spoilt rich kid even though this is more evident in dialogue than seen on screen. The film does have a through line... it's about Derek being a spoilt brat who is forced to stand on his own feet. It's thrown by Cobb who is the dad and is clearly so decent and principled. Really the film should be Derek redeemed by the love of Lawrence with Cobb/mother going "cover it up cover it up".

Henry Levin directs sluggishly.

You know something? This would've been better as a western. Outlaw justice - Cobb could've been tougher. Shoot outs. All that stuff.

Movie review - "Mask of the Avenger" (1951) **

 Phil Karlson is known for his tough crime films and Westerns but at Columbia he made some swashbucklers - this and Lorna Doone. It's a sort of sequel to The Count of Monte Cristo - John Derek is the son of a count (I don't think it's the count, but we see a statue of the count so it's in that universe) who is murdered by Anthony Quinn, who the count discovered was embezzling. John Derek pretends to go along with it but then puts on a mask and gets busy with derring do.

Quinn acts with panache, clearly well aware he should be playing the lead but also that he has the best part. Jody Lawrance is fun as the girl. In the final sword fight between Derek and Quinn there's a bit where Lawrence takes over sword fighting duties while Derek is momentarily injured - that's cute never seen that before. I think Karlson had a soft spot for Lawrence. Or maybe he felt she had more life than Derek, who is pretty though not that lively.

In Derek's defence he doesn't have much to play. When it started off and he was pretended to be injured yet running around swashbuckling I thought 'oh he's going the Zorro route' and that would've given him something to play - pretending to be cowardly, falling in love with Lawrance who doesn't know the truth, etc. But he just puts on a mask and tells Lawrence who he is pretty quickly.

This is fine. Decent production values.

Book review - "The Pirates Lafitte" by William C. Davis

 My knowledge of Lafitte was limited to The Buccaneer. That romanticised it but Lafitte was still pretty exotic - there were two of them, Frenchmen who worked in the Gulf off New Orleans. They smuggled items, particularly slaves, set up their own kingdoms, had mistresses and love children. They took part in the Battle of New Orleans but that was self serving - as was their spying for Spain, their involvement with freebooters. They were handsome, charismatic and met their deaths in battle. 

A lot of detail here. I occasionally got lost following the names. Superbly researched.

Movie review - "Saturday's Hero" (1951) ***

John Derek's first few credits were pretty high brow - Nicholas Ray film starring Bogart, Robert Rossen political drama - that Columbia started building vehicles for him from the get-go. They put him in swashbucklers but also this sports drama, where Derek is a top football player from a poor mining town sought out by colleges. Years before All the Right Moves and Varsity Blues!

Plenty of cliches - dim ethnic dad, wise cynical journalist, third act injury. It might've been a bigger it if it had a few more of them - sweet girlfriend, cruel coach, the big game at the end.

It doesn't do these things. Which is interesting. Gal next door Donna Reed is the love interest - but not a sweet thing rather this rich girl who is a bit wild and has a possibly incestuous relationship with her rich uncle. That's kind of interesting. 

They might've been better off having the wise journo as his hometown girlfriend and Reed as a glory hunting rich gal. But the fact this is different means you're not sure how it's going to end.

Derek's father dies off screen - why not have him do it on screen? I kept expecting the brother to do something interesting.

The film has guts. It takes on the corruption of college ball - the benefactors, the way they treat players like garbage. The film was made by left wingers - Sidney Buchman, etc - and it's got a Marxist take. But a lot of it feels reshot, rewritten - like the finale with Derek deciding to go to night school and Reed sends a telegram that she'll be with him as opposed to seeing it on screen.

Aldo Ray has an early role as a fellow football player - he has ease and comfort on screen that Derek never quite matched for all Derek's beauty. But Derek is quite good here.

The film doesn't get there. It's too over the shop feels too uncertain. But it tries to be a good movie. It tries. And that does count.

Movie review - "The Rogues of Sherwood Forest" (1950) **1/2

 Columbia had a big hit with a son of Rob Hood story, The Bandit of Sherwood Forest, so they remade it (basically) as a vehicle for their new hearthrob star, John Derek. He's Robert Jnr, back from the Crusades, fighting King John. Alan Hale is Little John, Diana Lynn the Lady Marian type.

It's a little stock, competently handled by Gordon Douglas, with some historical touches at the end with King John sealing the Magna Carta. Derek is alright - his pretty looks and moustache are reminiscent of Errol Flynn though he doesn't have Flynn's swagger. Diana Lynn is an average Marian type. George Macready shines as King John with that great noice. There's some nice Cardinal.

It's all quick and competent rather than inspired - you feel they're rushing through the tropes (" now he's back from the Crusades", "now he's with Prince John", "now there's torture") but it is in colour.

This was Alan Hale's final film and he gets the last line of dialogue "Everything has been said, and everything has been done." (It doesn't seem like his last film because his lookalike son continued to play Alan Hale type parts).

Book review - "Top of the Rock: Inside the Rise and Fall of Must See TV" by Warren Littlefield (2012)

Want proof rich people in Hollywood are addicted to rags to riches narrative? Every second person in this book was starving/broke/down and out before rallying to a comeback. NBC was down and out in the 90s apparently - er, apart from Cheers. Still there's some interesting stories here about the inceptions of mega hits - Cosby Show, Cheers, Frasier, Friends, Seinfelf, Will and Grace, Mad About You, ER. Lots of love for Jim Burrows.  Lots of whining - money, time slots.

Movie review - "All the King's Men" (1949) ***1/2

 Engrossing account of a Huey Long style politician memorably portrayed by Broderick Crawford. Everyone scores - Crawford in the role of a lifetime, John Ireland as the journo who works for him. 

The first section is great as we get to know Crawford, John Ireland, Mercedes McCambridge (political operator). Crawford is decent, learns to read, learns to speak, becomes a star. His conversion to corruption happens in five seconds on film - we cut to four years later and he's corrupted. We never sense he believes in the message anymore there's no complexity, he comes across as a gangster - reassuring for all those left wing things his character believes in.

Ireland gets disgusted by him pretty quickly but is required by the plot to stay with him - even after discovering he's sleeping with Dru, is mean to son John Derek, covers up Derek's drink driving manslaughter of a girl, forces Derek to play football and he gets crippled, gets material to blackmail a judge. We don't get a sense of Ireland's idealism to torture him i.e. to see all the good Crawford is doing. Ireland just kind of whinges which is frustrating. 

And what happens to Mercedes McCambridge? (Apparently this film went through torturous post production).

Still, the film's depiction of American society - corrupt, with a dodgy press, easily swayed crowds - gets it some points.

Derek isn't bad. Ireland is good even is his character is frustrating - ditto Dru. Ireland could've played Crawford's role you know. It's a gift role. He's not a very nuanced actor. Imagine John Wayne or Charles Laughton.

Movie review - "Knock on Any Door" (1949) *** (warning: spoilers)

 The fame of this lingers a little. First film from Bogart's company, Santana. Star debut of John Derek. Introduced the line "live fast die young and leave  a good looking corpse".

Good on Bogart for trying to expand his range. He plays a lawyer, from the slums, defending Derek, a kid from the slums. We flash back to various events. See the circumstances that led to the "creation" of this kid.

It was filmed at Columbia (who did a deal with Santana). Columbia reliable George Macready is the prosecutor.

Derek is very very pretty. Not much of an actor. The concept of the film is a spunky Dead End Kid. The novel twist is the kid did it... and winds up in the electric chair. That's full on. But we lose sympathy. 

Who else could've played this? James Dean then too young. Farley Granger? Robert Wagner? Tony Curtis? Actually you know Tony Curtis would've been amazing.

You can feel the censors working on this. Still, well directed by Nicholas Ray - handling of the minor roles is strong, visuals are good, and Bogart is reliable. His character isn't that important - maybe if his daughter had fallen for Derek and been the girl who kills herself. Give Bogart some stakes there.

Interesting. With a knock out young star this would be a lot more famous.

Peter Hyams Top Ten

1. Capricorn One (1978). His best film. Everything works. 

2. Outland (1981). Not everything works. But lots of fun.

3. 2010 (1984). Thankless task. But it's fun and it's remained vivd for me.

4. Running Scared (1986). Fun buddy cop film.

5. Narrow Margin (1990). No one saw this when it came out but it's fun.

6. Our Time (1974). Sweet. Female writer. Not perfect but interesting.

7. Goodnight My Love (1972). Overrated but still entertaining.

8. End of Days (1999). Silly. But it has the courage of its silliness.

9. Enemies Closer (2013). Terrific Jean Claude Van Damme performance.

10. The Presidio (1988). Cheerful slick 80s Hollywood stuff with Meg Ryan as Sean Connery's trashy daughter.

Movie review - "No Good Deed" (2002) **

 Samuel L Jackson does a favour for a friend, looks for a missing daughter, and finds himself with a bunch of whackos about to commit a robbery. They include Stellan Skarsgaard, Joss Ackland, Mila Jovovich... and Jackson might've had more fun in those parts than a more conventional leading man role.

This was dull. I wanted it to be fun. Maybe it would've worked at 70 mins at Warner Bros or RKO in black and white with their stock company. The cast was good enough. Everyone hams it up. I don't know it just annoyed me I got bored.

Based on a Dashiell Hammett short story.

Was Rafelson a good director? He was a good producer - look at The Monkees, BBS. He had an eye for talent - Bogdanovich, Jack Nicholson, Sally Field in a different role, Jessica Lange in a different role, Arnie, Laslo Kovacs. Maybe the life went out of him after Mountains of the Moon.

Movie review - "Poodle Springs" (1998) **

 It's got Bob Rafelson, Chandler, Caan, Tom Stoppard, HBO... but it's not very good. The story wasn't the best, this doesn't nail it. Caan is too old for Dina Meyer (who suits period movies). Brian Cox and Joe Don Baker add the right tone but there's not enough of them.

Book review - "Cinema Speculation" by Quentin Tarantino

 Loved it. Full of genuinely fresh takes, fascinating autobiographical insights, so much love for cinema. In depth pieces on filmmakers like Brian de Palma, Don Siegel, Sam Peckinpah. Tobe Hooper. Jim Brown. Kenneth Thomas of the LA Times (who he attributes a lot of the success of the Corman school to - he'd give them a good review and they'd get an agent out of it.) Very seventies. I could read books by him on every decade.

Book review - "Directed by James Burrows" by James Burrows

 Terrific memoir. Son of Abe Burrows, so that's interesting. Did a lot of theatre, including the legendary Breakfast at Tiffany's. Formed a relationship with Mary Tyler Moore that led to a big time sitcom career. Stayed in the three camera space for most of the time.

Very positive and upbeat. Lots of good tips. Insight into hits like Taxi, Cheers, Friends, Will and Grace. Would've liked to have heard more about the flops. On Patrners he points out the cop wasn't macho enough and says Ryan O'Neal would've been perfect as the gay cop - good idea. Ditto Matthew Perry should've played Felix in The Odd Couple. Didn't like Rob Schneider in Men Behaving Badly - said that needed a loveable person to make it watchable like the British version. On Frasier they had to tone down Frasier and make Niles the real Frasier. They sacked Lisa Kudrow from that show.

Great read.

Movie review - "Blood and Wine" (1996) *** (warning: spoilers)

 Bob Rafelson and Jack Nicholson return to surer material than Man Trouble - a plotty thriller about a heist that goes wrong, done by Nicholson. Stephen Dorff has a big role as Nicholson's stepson. Watching him tee off against Nicholson you can see why Dorff never became a star. He's TV. You can see why Jennifer Lopez (Nicholson's mistress, directed in pervy fashion by Rafelson) did. And Michael Caine. 

Film would've been better had Judy Davis or J Lo squared off against Nicholson.  Film has a strong middle but runs into problems when Judy Davis and Michael Caine die.

Book review - "Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing" by Matthew Perry

 The extracts made play of the juicy stuff - making out with Gwyneth Paltrow, dating Julia Roberts, losing virginity to Tricia Fisher. Lizzy Kaplan is not named but referred to. There's some stuff on Friends. Mostly he goes on about his addictions. Perry is a lot like Chandler only without network notes to make him likable. The lack of commitment, the snark (there are two separate cracks about Keanu), the never being happy.

He says it's all his fault but always mentions factors to blame - his parents divorced, dad moved, mum was  busy, he felt different from his sisters. He likes to whine - never got the good movies, never got the Emmies, never became a proper movie star. He prays for Bruce Willis every day - does he actually visit him.

Perry doesn't seem to like anything - acting, fame, writing. He's got no passion. He's clearly got a brain and is smart. Interesting he was discovered in a way like Lana Turner, at Cafe 101 talking to girls - a passing Bill Richert saw him, wrote a note which led to Jimmie Reardon. It's a fascinating book. He doesn't mind portraying himself as a dipshit. It reads like he's going to star using again too.

All the things Perry could've done with his fame and money. He's not really doing anything with them.

Book review - "For the Term of His Natural Life" by Marcus Clarke

 The strengths

- so much based on truth

- descriptive writing

- spectacular set pieces: the escape of John Rex on the blow hole, the horror of the cannibal trek, the marooned trio

- gutwrenching small scenes: the suicide of the boys

- some of the characters: sadistic Frere, John Rex the cad, his devoted wife

The weaknesses:

- dodgy plotting

- too many escapes and recaptures

- apart from the marooned sequences and towards the end Dawes doesn't have much life - neither does the girl

Movie review - "Mountains of the Moon" (1990) ***

 Bob Rafelson is best known for his Jack Nicholson starring vehicles but this piece shows another aspect of him - the travelling, individual side (he liked to traipse over the third world). It's about Burton and Speke, and I'm surprised Hollywood or Britain never tackled them in the 30s when explorer biopics were the rage. Maybe Burton was too scandalous with him translating the kama sutra.

The film made - temporarily as it turned out - Patrick Bergin into a bit of a name. Fiona Shaw goes nude. Ian Glenn is the other guy. Richard E Grant adds some old school villainy into it.

For all the modern takes (hero into sex, gay upper class Britishers), the Africans are still depicted as a savage mass.

Movie review - "Man Trouble" (1992) *1/2

 A famous flop which reunited the writer, director and star of Five Easy Pieces in an odd romantic comedy/screwball comedy which might've worked in 1971 when I think it was first written. Or maybe with younger stars or maybe just never.

Jack Nicholson is just old now which can be effective. Ellen Barkin tries. Beverly d'Angelo tries. Look, people try. It was long, unfunny, charmless and a drag.

Movie review - "Black Widow" (1987) ***1/2

 Bob Rafelson takes a leave of absence from Jack Nicholson with a sexy 80s concept thriller - Theresa Russell is an enigmatic female Bluebeard who knocks off her husbands, while Debra Winger is on the case.

It's a strong concept with two very good actors. Russell's enigmatic beauty and presence was rarely used better and Winger is typically excellent, not afraid to play dowdy so she can transform.

The film feels a little choppy in places - not as confidently put together as other Rafelson movies, I assume because of working for a studio and him trying not to scare anyone.

It really kicks up a gear when Winger and Russell meet, surprisingly late in the piece (around 50 mins or so).  These are all great - I wanted more.

A lot of deaths happen off screen - might've been easier to follow if we saw them. There's a little too much time spent on the French guy, Sami Frey - and I kind of wish there was a more mano a mano climax between Winger and Russell instead of them facing off behind bars. They hint at same sex attraction - as Rafelson said they do it as much as anyone could in a studio film then.

Terrific support turns from Nicol Williamson (marvellous as a rich guy besotted by Rssell) and James Hong.  Also people like Dennis Hopper, Louis Smith. Mary Woronov and David Mamet have small roles! (Mamet at a poker game).

Movie review - "The Postman Always Rings Twice" (1981) ****

 A remake with point because it is more faithful to the source novel and can take advantage of more relaxed censorship. Jack Nicholson and especially Jessica Lange are superb in the leads - apparently Meryl Streep auditioned but it's hard to see how anyone could be better than Lange (who comes across as a bit more low rent, shall we say).

This was the first screenplay credit for David Mamet who praised Bob Rafelson's treatment of writers -so too did Ron Bass for Black Widow.

John Colicos - aka Baltar - is okay as the cuckolded husband. Other supporting actors much better. I love the shonky lawyer and Angelica Huston as a lion tamer and John Ryan as a slimy assistant. Maybe it's a little long.

Movie review - "Stay Hungry" (1976) **

 The difference between a real star and a handsome character actor. Jack Nicholson is a star. The film would've been perfect for him - a Southern rich boy who falls in with characters at a gym as park of a shonky land deal. But they've got Jeff Bridges. Handsome, excellent actor. Just not a star. Doesn't have the charisma.

This is an odd sort of movie. Rich kid means... gym. Sally Field is in a career changing performance as the receptionist, flashing her but and boobs. She's very good. Arnie is in this too. (Rafelson's casting eye was really good - there's also Robert Englund and Robert Moseley).

Some Rafelson regulars like Scatman Crothers are in this. The film feels like it's made up as it goes along. I went with this for a bit but then got bored.

I'm surprised this got Rafelson kicked off FIST (according to Joe Eszterhas) but it's not very good. The best thing about it is the acting, especially Sally Field.

Movie review - "The King of Marvin Gardens" (1972) ***

 The career of BBS weirdly echoed that of Peter Bogdanovich: three hits, three flops. This was one of the latter, along with Drive He Said and A Safe Place although its reputation is higher than others. It's got Jack Nicholson and Bruce Dern as brothers, the gimmick being Nicholson plays the quiet, depressed one. He's a radio host who is allowed to ramble on in monologues - does this happen?

Lovely acting (by everyone except that fourth lead girl), photography and boardwalk atmosphere. Ellen Burstyn very good. Ditto Dern and Nicholson.  I did wish there was more sex and violence because the glimpses of it (the gals being nude in Dern's room playing cards, Scatman Crothers' gangster) are good. I know that wasn't the point it just would've sparked things up. Like a Bergman film.

Movie review - "Five Easy Pieces" (1970) ***1/2

 The "two" in the one-two punch from Jack Nicholson following Easy Rider. A big hit, critically acclaimed - very much a moment in 1970. Not obviously commercial - I know that's not everything but jeez, it hit the moment. I guess it had a big new star in a charismatic performance. It also had a bit of nudity and sex - Nicholson rooting Karen Black then also his brother's girl, Susan Anspach. There's some interesting quirks like location filming in Washington and the gimmick of Nicholson being a pianist and oil field worker.

While it's got selfish man-itis - lots of sex, dumping women, abusing waitress - the female roles strong, thanks to a female writer, one feels: Karen Black's low rent girlfriend, Anspach's lust object (human enough to be attracted to Nicholson, smart enough to not go with him), Toni Basil as a hippy type, Helena Kallianiotes as a rebel type.

Beautiful photography.

Book review - "Hal Wallis" by Bernard Dick

 Wallis' ghosted memoir Starmaker didn't shed that much light on him. This book is better but still not a piece that Wallis deserves - he was a giant figure in Hollywood.

Spends a lot of time discussing Lizabeth Scott and Walter Seltzer. Goes on some interesting detours - production of Becket and Anne of a Thousand Days, Martha Hyer getting involved in con artists, losing a leg, posthumous fights over art. It doesn't feel like a completely cohesive biography but is still interesting.

Movie review - "Event Horizon" (1997) **1/2

 It's weird I'd never seen this. Decent budget, effects and cast, amiable Alien knock off with chunks of science and some shocks. (The monster is the ship, etc etc). None of it is terribly involving. Actors like Laurence Fishburne, Sam Neill and Joely Richardson class up the joint despite all the third act gore. Don't quite get why it has a cult reputation

Movie review - "Head" (1968) ***

 The Monkees trashed their career with this nutty movie. It's imaginative, far out, clever, fun. It spends a lot of time spoofing old movies - Arabian nights, Westerns, war films - throws in some anti-Vietnam stuff. I think even if it hadn't made a point of toying with the Monkee image it wouldn't have made money - too plot less (even Hard Day's Night had more unity). Also a downer ending with the Monkees trying to escape and being recaptured. Maybe if it had some out earlier - by the late 60s the tide was going out on bands appearing in films (eg Good Times). Maybe if it had nudity.

Great songs. Genuinely good soundtrack. Endearingly odd cast, including Annette Funicello (who has two scenes I think), Victor Mature (the Monkees are dandruff in his head), Frank Zappa, Sonnie Liston. I don't love it the way other people do but it's totally worth watching.

Movie review - "Uncharted" (2022) **

 I get what they were going for and I wanted them to get there - an old 80s style adventure, with twists and tongue and cheek action - but it's a quite sluggish trip. Tom Holland is okay at first but Mark Wahlberg seems bored then after a while Holland seems to be bored too, Sophia Ali lacks spark and Antonio Banderas is clearly just paying the rent.  Tati Gabrielle is good. No one has any chemistry.

Movie review - "Rosaline" (2022) **1/2

 Kaitlyn Dever is one of the best actors of her generation. I think her casting throws this movie off a little - because she's clearly so sensible she's never going to be really into Romeo. Indeed the film makes that clear - she likes the romance of it but wants a job, and then introduces a hunky alternative guy. I think the movie would've worked better with someone more clearly boy crazy who then gets liberated. 

Because after a super bright start the film has no stakes. Romeo isn't worth it, she kind of knows it. The film recovers in the last act because it becomes a race against time to save Romeo and Juliet's life so there are stakes again. And I love she calls Juliet on her terrible plan.

Movie review - "A Futile and Stupid Gesture" (2018) ****

 Lots of fun. Wittiest dialogue in a film since I don't know when. The self referential stuff doesn't always play well (eg comments about women, blacks) though sometimes to be fair it does (eg covering who ws important in the magazine). So much fun to see Joel McHale playing Chevy Chase. Cast is full of people like Emily Rossum and Natasha Lyone. I think star Will Forte means more in America.

One of Netflix's best ever original movies. It seems to have just been and gone and not lingered in the memory, when it should have.

Movie review - "Zombies 3" (2022) **

 I know why they went for aliens, I get it... it doesn't feel right somehow though. It felt as though the newcomers should be something more earth bound - like say mermaids or something. There's too much plot towards the end.

But a nice cast, and breezy tunes. There's even a hint at a lesbian relationship between a werewolf and an alien. Why is that girl on the screen the whole time?

Movie review - "Zombies 2" (2020) **1/2

 They bring in werewolves for this. Song and dance numbers are still great as are the stars. The love triangle hinted at with the leads might've been more effectively developed. Bright and cheerful. Good fun.

Script review - "Mr Horn" by William Goldman

 Goldman refers to this as a "bad experience" in his memoirs. It was filmed, as a TV movie. This script is better than that. I haven't done a comps analysis. This film is really good.

It's long - over 200 pages - and splits into two. I could see where it could be edited. You could get going with the story quicker. Sometimes Goldmans' prose is deceptive - you read it and go "wow this is a movie" but it doesn't necessarily play. But I think most of this would played.

It's in two parts. Part one is about the search for Geronimo, focusing on Horn's relationship with Al Sieber, and sub relationship with an officious army officer, plus the side bars of Crook and Miles. Part two is Horn as a bounty hunter/hired killer for the rich.

Lots of finicky changes in the TV movie. For instance, when Horn and Sieber first encounter Indians in the script it's at night and Horn senses Indians first before we see them. In the movie, we see a cut of the Indians and it's in the less scary day. It cuts a scene where Horn hears Geronimo's two lieutenants talking in Apache, unaware he can hear - this was a dumb cut. So too was reducing the stupidity of Lt Lawton. The suspense is reduced. Horn's achievement in the first battle is reduced. That sort of thing.

Movie review - "Deep Water" (2022) **1/2

 Adrian Lyne returns to the movies - not exactly the big screen, but with a tale in his wheelhouse: sexual jealousy. It's made with polish and some excellent actors - Affleck and Ana de Armas are genuine stars.

I think the story would've had more resonance if still set in the 1950s - I'm sure kinkiness still goes on, I just think the reality of why you'd be stuck in that marriage when it didn't please you would've "sold" more.

The discovery of a dead body doesn't happen until an hour into the film. De Armas takes probably two too many lovers (after a while it's like "alright already"). And I think the ending of the book was more believable.

Tracy Letts is great as an all too believable self important writer. Very good cast. Affleck and de Armas are terrific - Affleck has all this pain on his face, and you'd put up a lot for de Armas.

Movie review - "Zombies" (2018) ***

 Bright, charming musical with an engaging sense of the absurd (including direct to camera address), likeable cast, well covered serious subtext, and some really terrific song and dance numbers. What a talented cast! Meg Donnell was particularly impressive.

Movie review - "Blonde" (2022) **1/2

I loved how the film got people arguing about a movie again, as in it's the foyer of a film festival. The music is divine. The photography. Many of the images have stayed with me. It's long. Don't think it needed to be. It makes the same point again and again - she was mistreated by men. And her crazy mother.

People say it's made up. Well, a lot of it could've happened. Joe di Maggio did beat her. Zanuck could've raped her. She could've had a fling with JFK.  You didn't head the head job scene, I don't think. I know why it was there. I just didn't think it didn't need to be.

It was a slog at times, it was hard at times. I get why people don't like it. But it stimulated me.

Ana de Armas is terrific.

Movie review - "The Hating Game" (2022) **

 Some bright lines, a decent situation and Lucy Hale is winning as the short girl (her height is continually referred to in dialogue) with a work rival, played by some guy who isn't as good as her. Effective.

Movie review - "It's a Grand Life" (1953) **

 Comedy starring Frank Randle, an English northener who made a few comedies, mostly with a military setting. You can see his talent but the film is heavy. He's some old codger in the army and encounters a series of sketches. I only watched it because a support part is played by Diana Dors, who looks terrific and is as lively as ever as a woman in the woman's auxiliary. She has a romance with some sleazy older guy. There's these musical acts at the end.

Movie review - "Invisible Ghost" (1940) ** (re-watching)

 Saw this because it was Bela's 140th anniversary. It's still pretty solid, well directed. Decent twists with Bela thinking his wife is dead and she's not dead and Bela a rather tragic killer. Plenty of Bela. It's pretty full on how a guy is actually wrongly executed for the murders.

Movie review - "Tom Horn" (1980) **1/2

 The background to this movie is more interesting than the actual film - McQueen short of breath and discovering he was dying, firing several directors, wanting to make Old Times but being forced to do this, the fact there were dual Horn productions.

It feels patchy - start stop, voice over, uneven. Nice production design and cinematography. Moving in a lot of places. Some action sequences and Horn's hanging give an indication of what the film could've been.

I'm not sure the story is that interesting still. McQueen is really good.

Movie review - "The Brothers McMullen" (1995) ***1/2

 Probably still Ed Burns' best film. It has authenticity but more story being based around three brothers - the married one who has an affair (initiated by the woman very aggressively which feels fresh), one who is unsure of his new romance, another who has a Catholic crisis. Their dilemmas are the same as what Burns would explore later on but three brothers means more incident. There's also more conflict - people are tougher with each other.

Burns has long Gen X hair and some charming by-play with Maxine Bahns. Connie Britton is lovely as the perfect wife loved by her brother in laws more than her husband.

The Irish American background was fresh then - chats about JFK and JFK Jnr, and the role of the church.

Movie review - "Sidewalks of New York" (2001) ***

 Breezy, easy going Woody Allen riff which even has Heather Graham channelling Mia Farrow and David Krumholtz channels Woodu. His stalking of Rosario Dawson and Brittany Murphy maybe isn't as charming as we're meant to find it but he is a pleasing presence. Actually they all do it's a very well acted film, with plenty of star power - a young Brittany Murphy and Dawson, Burns, Stanley Tucci, Dennis Farina.

Graham and Burns were dating at the time (or once did) - she was his one before Christy Turlington. The film is let down a little by Burns' script - I think the characters are interesting but the chats a bit one note. Some of it is tired - gay jokes, Stanley Tucci worried about the size of his penis.

But there's lovely moments like Graham's friend asking Burns out a date for Graham and cuteness with Murphy. And I liked that Dawson just wasn't in to Burns and decided to keep his baby without telling him - that's dramatically interesting.

Movie review - "Ash Wednesday" (2002) **

 This movie starts off with some funky hand held visuals and I was like "oh Ed Burns has gotten Scorsese". And Burns later wrote that he wished he'd shot the whole film in that style - and he was right.

It is a change of pace for him, being about gangsters, specifically the Irish Mob - this is State of Grace territory. Elijah Wood shoots some gangsters after his brother Burns, then disappears. Three years later it turns out Wood might be coming home, with to get his girl (Rosario Dawson).

That's strong conflict. This would make a decent stage play, if rewritten.

As a film it suffers from Burns not being up to the strength of his idea. There's a lot of repetition - did you see him, yeah I saw him - as well as endless use of characters saying "f*ck". Burns has dishevelled hair in this one - he disliked his performance, but didn't not super different from his other performances.

Elijah Wood's peppy faced youngster has an interesting contrast  with Burns - but the piece might've been more effective with someone tougher, more attractive to Dawson. I didn't buy them being married and having a kid let alone Wood pining for her for so long. It's not the fault of the actors they just seemed too young - it would've been better had they seemed older.

Also they should've have Dawson and Burns be in love all the way through the film. They throw it in at the end.

Malachy McCourt is excellent as an old gangster. Oliver Platt is unusually cast as a hard man but he's always good and he registers. The music theme got wearying.

This movie had a lot of potential. I think Burns needed a co writer or something.

Movie review - "She's the One" (1996) ***

Edward Burns' second film is done with freshness and verve - he still had something to say, even if you can sense he's running out of stuff to say. But his dialogue is a lot sharper here, his characters are meaner.

It focuses on two brothers, Burns and Mike McGlone, one poor and the other rich, which is solid contrast. Burns marries Maxine Bahns impulsively setting off a chain reaction... Bahns isn't the best actor but she has a lovely presence and nice chemistry with Burns.

John Mahoney is excellent as the dad - he always shone in these Gen X films, like this, Reality Bites and Say Anything.

There's a lot of smoking. Cameron Diaz and Jennifer Aniston provide some star power as does Burns. Amanda Peet shines as Aniston's slightly trashy sister (the elder actors who play their parents are good too). Leslie Mann has a funny support role as Bahns' workmate.

The big thing is though that people were meaner. There was more conflict, more secrets. McGlone is cheating on his wife with Burns' ex - that's good drama. So is Bahns not being completely honest with Burns about her desire to go to Paris.

Some of it is tiresome - the plot about everyone wondering if McGlone is gay (because it doesn't pay off in an interesting way). But it's sweet, and tight, and polished.

Robert Redford executive produced.

Movie review - "Summer Days Summer Nights" (2021) **

 This Edward Burns film has a lot more visual confidence than other movies of his I've seen - long tracking shots, pans... maybe a new DOP, maybe more money. (It's not a big budgeted film but the soundtrack includes some well known songs from the early 80s). It's kind of Burns' American Graffiti being about several young people over one summer... it might've been better had it focused on a tighter time frame.

There's a lot of skinny/slender young actors walking around - no one eats too much food in this one. It is sometimes hard to tell the cast apart - maybe they're more familiar for US actors. I recognise Burns, of course, who plays (quite well) a dad, Anthony Ramos from In the Heights and Australia's own Caitlin Stasey.

There's also some bearded muso type who floats through the film and makes you go (me go anyway) "jeez, mate what's your frigging problem in life, f*ck off".

He's part of several subplots. Beardy falls for a blonde girl who is hung up on a guy. Another guy is hung up on his ex, who turns up having broken up from her husband who she is still hung up on. Another guy is  hung up on his ex and has a really hot "older" woman come on to him (she's 22) and encourages him to follow his dreams. I think that's it.

 It touches on the regular Burns themes - following your dreams as opposed to societal expectation, and The One That Got Away. It is pleasant.

Movie review - "The Groomsmen" (2006) **

 The budgets for Ed Burns movies got so low that this one looks like a lush production. It's full of familiar faces like John Leguizamo, Jay Mohr, Matthew Lilliard, Brittany Murphy. There's Irish American accent acting going on.

It's about people being angsty at 35. Burns is getting married to Murphy and his mates are being blokey about it. One is gay, another is infertile. Brittany Murphy has a thankless part as Burns' fiancee who hangs around pregnant. She whinges a bit that Burns doesn't show her any romance and eventually he does. That's her arc. Heather Burns is married to Donal Logue. She worries and whines and that's her arc.

Meatiest part is from Donal Logue as the infertile angry man who is rather relentlessly fat shamed.

Amiable, for the most part. Good actors.

Movie review - "Rifkin's Festival" (2020) **

 I'm a soft marker but I didn't mind it. Biggest problem, surprisingly, is Wallace Shawn. I normally love him but he's getting on now - his timing is a bit off, the candences slow. It's like Woody himself. Gina Gershon isn't quite right as his wife either. It is fun to see them in leads.

Shawn is a film critic at a festival. While Gershon flirts with a pretentious movie director Shawn chases after a doctor - you guessed it, a younger woman, played by Elena Anaya.  And you guessed it Gershon used t be a wild crazy bitch back in the day.

Anyaya is so far out of Shawn's league he never has a chance and there's no connection between the two apart from the fact he's from New York and she misses it. Maybe if she loved cinema and was older or he was younger...

Gershon can't wait to hook up with the movie director so it's not as though there are any stakes in the marriage. What's Shawn's dilemma - to be a critic or teach? Is that right?

The parodies of old films are fine eg The Seventh Seal. But this feels like another roughly formed first draft. Why not just have Swan play Woody with a younger wife and vicious paparazzi and some point...?

Nice scenery and photography.

Movie review - "Nice Guy Johnny" (2010) **

 I'm getting into the rhythms of these low budget Ed Burns films - not much happens, a few actors hanging out, easy going, big hearted. This is about a younger protagonist than usual for his movies - Matt Bush is turning 25, engaged to a hot girl (Anna Wood), has a job he loves but it doesn't pay well so he's going to work for his father in law's business.  That's a metaphor apparently for Burns wanting to stay independent instead of going studio -  a studio movie would probably be better written. But more hassle.

To sweeten the dream he runs into free spirit Kerry Bishe, who is slender and beautiful like Bush's fiancee. I guess that's Burns' type eg Maxine Bahn, Christy Turlington. 

Burns appears as Bush's scallyway uncle. There's an erratic English actor in this one as there was in Purple Violets - I don't know why.

Amiable. Likeable. Bush has a high pitched voice. Not quite as good as the girls. His moral dilemma isn't much - poverty isn't really dramatised and Bishe is there and waiting to help him be true. Nice shots of the Hamptons.

Movie review - "Purple Violets" (2007) **

 Ed Burns likes to make movies where characters wonder about "the one who got away". It's central to She's The One, No Looking Back and this one, where Selma Blair wonders about her ex, Patrick Wilson, while her bestie, Debra Messing, has feelings for her ex, Edward Burns.

There's also a lot of talk about artistic integrity and being true, and not selling out.

It's a slow amble. People hang out in kitchens, at diners, and chat. Lots of pouring glasses of wine, With the Irish American background downplayed Burns' voice feels less sure.

I didn't mind it. It passed over me amiably. I think I have nostalgia for that plotless 90s movie making.

Movie review - "Clerks III" (2022) ** (warning: spoilers)

Kevin Smith is at his best when writing about personal experience, and as he's avoided that in his films the quality of his work has declined. There's plenty of material to mine: the heart attack, turning vegan, trying to stay relevant as he gets old, having a daughter grow up, discovering the truth of allegations about Harvey Weinstein.

The only one he goes for here is the heart attack. I think Smith came up with the concept then was trapped by it - Randall has a heart attack and decides to make a film.  I get that's a sexy concept. 

But it's one that quickly runs into problems. I don't think Smith knows how Randall and Dante would talk these days - he knew how they did talk but not now. He knew how to write about making a cheap film them but not now. It doesn't make sense a forty something man would make a movie about working in a store now... an autobiographical film yes. But the old guys play their roles.

He would've been better off making a film about Walt Flanagan and co now - or his life now. Or a pure nostalgia piece. Maybe he didn't want to go there.

Fun to see cameos though cannot Ralph Garman impersonate anyone other than Arnie and Al Pacino? The Smith stock company is there - wife, daughter, Ben Affleck, Justin Long, Freddy Prinze and Sarah Michelle Gellar, Supergirl.

Some glimpses of a more interesting movie - like when Dante and Veronica hook up. That could've been a film. It has some emotion when Dante dies.

But like Jersey Girl this is outside Smith's comfort zone, despite it being Clerks. His comedy riffs don't work the same way. It's unsure of itself. It repeats the same arc as Clerks 2 with Randall telling Dante what Dante means to him. (Why not give Randall a romance, by the way?)

I loved Kevin Smith movies but they're just not working. If he's not willing to really put it on the line I'm not sure he should be doing it.

Movie review - "End of Days" (1999) **1/2

 Dumb. Loud. Arnie has too much dialogue.  Rips off so many films - The Terminator, Rosemary's Baby, Braveheart. Unpleasant story basically about stopping Gabriel Byrne raping Robin Tunney.

Tunney is good in these wide eyed innocent roles. Byrne is good in these evil devil roles. Rod Steiger eats scenery. Miram Margoyles adds camp value. High death toll. Peter Hyams photography and editing - quick cuts, etc. Random sexy scene with Byrne sleeping with Udo Kier's wife and daughter. 

Still there's always something happening and plenty of action. Logical finale.

Movie review - "Dead for a Dollar" (2022) **1/2

 Good to see Walter Hill back in the saddle. This is a tight, unpretentious riff on The Professionals with Chris Waltz a bounty hunter hired to retrieve the wife, Rachel Brosnahan, of a wealthy man who has run off with a black man to south of the border. He's accompanied by another black man, a Buffalo soldier.

This gets off to a strong start but becomes bogged down in the middle has they hang around a town. But picks  up towards the end with plenty of gun play - including some by Brosnahan who looks as though she's having fun. So too do Willem Dafoe as a horse thief and Benjamin Bratt as a Mexican baddy.

I missed Ry Cooder and this being shot on film but it's a decent tale.

Movie review - "Stay Tuned" (1992) **

 High concept 90s comedy - TV viewers get sucked into a television - with presale TV stars (John Ritter and Pam Dawber). Odd choice for Peter Hyams but presumably he wanted a change of pace. I guess there are many nods to old Hollywood (swasbucklers, gangster films) so that's in his wheelhouse.

There's a double conceit here - the lead couple are dragged into a TV but not regular TV rather spoof of current TV. I wonder if it wouldn't have been more effective just being sucked into normal TV.

Some clever moments. It's well plotted. But also annoying. Has 90s curiou factor with its jokes about Northern Exposure, Thirtysomething and the Salt n Pepa cameo with Ritter skirting with blackface.

The cast try. Eugene Levy is fun. Jeffrey Jones reminds us of another bloated sfx comedy Howard the Duck.

Movie review - "Odongo" (1956) **

 A Warwick adventure set in Africa, like Safari, but this is not typical of their normal output. For one it's got two American stars, not one, and has no British lead. For another it's not action/adventure it's a dull romance between big game hunter MacDonald Carey and doctor Rhonda Fleming. Fleming is at least gorgeous, too hot for Carey. There's some tired conflict between them over killing vs keeping animals alive. Carey's character is unpleasant, Fleming swims in a lagoon, plus  cute kid called Odongo.

The leads have no chemistry. It's not interesting. They throw in a black villain to capture Odongo and throw him off a cliff. There's an annoying white family with a kid who befriends Odongo - it reminded me of the Desmond Tester-Sabu relationship in The Drum. But the kid isn't Sabu.

John Gilling directed.

Book review - "Somehwere Out There: My Animated Life" by Don Bluth

 Bluth's had an interesting career, definitely carved out his own niche as the animation guy who wasn't Disney. He was Disney, and was being fast tracked to take over, but got jack and set up his own shop making The Secret of Nimh. He cough and spluttered along afterwards, never seemed to really crack it but also managed to make eleven films, including An American Tail, Land Before Time and Anastasia.

Bluth wanted to be an animator from an early age but still took a lot of detours - he got a job at Disney then quit it to be a Mormon missionary in Argentina (he's still a Mormon), he went back to Disney later, set up his own shop later.

Bluth refers to some young romances but never got married and never talks of girlfriends. This is odd for such a memoir.

The book is at its best discussing the films - at least that's what I'm most interested in. The dealings of Disney in the 70s, the emergence of the CalTech kids such as Brad Bird, John Lassiter and  Tim Burton (a powerhouse of talent) who Bluth says didn't like him (I'd like to know more about this), moving out on his own, going into video games, the comfort and challenges of Spielberg, moving to Ireland, difficulties with writers, eventually going bust, being rescued by Fox then going bust again.

Where does Bluth stand in cinema? He had a the soul of an artist. Made a lot of films people are fond of. Was independent in animation when that was really brave (I guess it's brave now). Maybe he didn't have the talent to match his dreams but he had the dreams and enough talent to go his own way. As he himself admits his greatest legacy is probably providing Disney with some competition and independent operators such as Pixar with someone to emulate.

Movie review - "Beyond Reasonable Doubt" (1956) *** (warning: spoilers)

 I saw this after the Peter Hyams remake. It's still a little too silly but is better in part because it's simpler. In the remake Jesse Metcalfe wanted to bust Michael Douglas for faking evidence by faking evidence... here Dana Andrews is doing it to show how the death penalty can cause the wrong people to be convicted (the same thing as The Life and Death of David Gale). It's a simpler motivation.

I also believed the final twist more, even though Lang disliked it. Here it feels more organic that Andrews wanted to take out a former lover - he used the opportunity.

Joan Fontaine is adrift in a hopeless role. Dana Andrews does his solid Andrews thing. There's some colourful burlesque girls in support and you can imagine Lang having a high old lechy time around them.

Definitely one of the better 1950s RKO movies. Not a masterpiece but interesting.

Movie review - "Hanover Street" (1979) **

 Look I get what they were going for - old style war time sob story - but I don't think Peter Hyams studied them enough. Or was forced to compromise.

It's not his fault Harrison Ford and Lesley Ann Down have no charisma, or Down can't emote despite her beauty. I know he originally cast Kris Kristofferson and Genevieve Bujold. Harrison Ford isn't bad.

It is his fault that he had them meet and get it on with her married to a man who is not only played by dashing Chris Plummer, but he's shown to be kind and caring and a lovely father (to Patsy Kensit who shines in a nice little scene). He's also got a sexy job - training spies. I mean, that's not dull.

It's also his fault they don't give Down anything sympathetic - some vague nursing scenes. She's not even that involved a mother.

You got why Celia Johnson cheated in Brief Encounter. She was dull, had a dull husband, never fell in love before, found this guy and bang.

You don't get Down and Ford here. She's hot and glamorous and so's her husband. So she just wants to root Ford for a wartime thing. Which is fine, but that's not what the movie should be.

It's Hyam's' fault they pull focus to Ford and make the last third an action film - not a bad one either, with Nazi undercover scenes reminiscent of Ford and Sean Connery in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (Ford again as someone who can't speak English). And it's heart this is really an action /spy movie - there's spy training sequences with Plummer, talk of a spy. It even rips off The Great Escape motorcycle chase.

They get away with Plummer happening to go on a mission with Ford - not so much with convenient flak whiping out everyone on the plane except for them.

The cast includes reliables like Alec McCowen, John Ratzenberger, Shane Rimmer and Richard Masure. There's  fat person in it - Hyams films often had them. Ford's co pilot is Michael Sacks from Slaughterhouse Five. Lush John Barry score.

Movie review - "Enemies Closer" (2013) **1/2

 Not bad little action film which suffers from the casting of Tom Everett Scott as an ex-seal naval vet - Scott's a good actor he just gives off suburban dad vibes. But this is off set by Jean Claude Van Damme having wonderful fun with curly air and veganism as the villain.

Orlando Jones is solid as a guy with a vendetta against Scott, though both actors are forced to monologue too much. Plenty of cheese, a body count that feels unnecessarily high - Sudden Death had this too - nighttime photography, quick pace, some twists, the nighttime setting is good, decent ish action. But the real novelty is Van Damme.

Movie review - "Beyond Reasonable Doubt" (2009) **

 Random film to remake but I guess it has a high concept - a journalist tries to frame a crooked DA by deliberately framing himself for murder then plans on exposing himself as being framed. But didn't he frame himself?

Oh anyway look it's high concept. Michael Douglas has quite a small role as the crooked DA. Jess Metcalf has a decent speaking voice and isn't bad, but he's not a star, nor is Amber Tamblyn and the film needed one.

There's lots of plot - well, detail in the plot, plenty of details, but I didn't buy it. I didn't buy a lot of it - Metcalf as a journo, his determination, or Douglas being evil, or Tamblyn's motives. Maybe the film should've been told from her point of view.

It's got marks of Hyams films: logic flaws, zingers, crisp editing, sharp whispering noises, confused character motivations, sharp pace, easy to watch, car chases, good black people who don't have a big part, fat actors.

Movie review - "Time Cop" (1994) **1/2

 I was hoping this would be better than it was but there are some decent moments. It's nicely shot, has a few twists and has a kind of logic. I got here and there. The action was a little underwhelming. Jean Claude Van Damme is relaxed and confident. Mia Sara is beautiful, not a great actor. Ron Silver can act very well. 

The film lacked something. I can't figure what it is. More holistic approach or something. I don't know. That's not very useful.

Book review - "Rascals in Paradise" by James Michener & Arthur Day (1957)

 "Rascals" is generous considering a lot of these people are rapists, slavers and murderers. A lot of topics that I'm surprised haven't been filmed. The Globe Mutineers were very violent. The French nobleman who sent Europeans out to a dud country. There's a successful Chinese pirate, good old Bligh, a lady explorer, Bully Hayes who is a rascal but also a slavery and child rapist. Leeteg is a painter. Louis Becke an Aussie writer I'd never heard of! Walter Gibson is a Yank who got involved in Hawaiian politics. William Mariner is perhaps the most intersting story - teenager who survived a massacre and was befriended by the King of Tonga, survived and got home to become an accountant.

Book review - "Quartered Safe Out Here" by George MacDonald Fraser

 I've read this book account. A mostly superb account of Fraser's brief time in the line in Burma during World War Two. Great vivid sketches of the army, battle, Slim Gurkhas, Calcutta, the 1945 election. Interspersed the grumpy rants. This one had an epilogue about anniversary of VJ Day and isn't that interesting - more grumpiness about the state of Britain. Still when this is on song it's wonderful.

Movie review - "Wild Card" (2015) ** (re-watching)

 Better cast. Jason Statham isn't as good an actor as Burt Reynolds but he's fine. It was shot in New Orleans, apparently - that can't help. Shoots the original script. Still lacks flavour. Christmas decorations are in the script but it seems to lack the point of setting it at Christmas. Excellent support cast. Cyrus plot doesn't work.

Book review - "The industry : life in the Hollywood fast lane" by Saul David (1981)

 David isn't that famous a figure but had an interesting career, producing a series of hits at Fox in the late 60s, and this is an entertaining book. It wobbles a little all over the place but has terrific accounts of the making of movies like Von Ryan's Express, Skullduggery, The Black Bird - ego trips from Sinatra and George Segal (!), MGM in the early 70s, Lew Wasserman, the Zanucks. I thought there's be more on the Flint films.

Movie review - "Heat" (1986) **

 I enjoyed William Goldman's novel and liked his script but this film doesn't work. It had a troubled production. There's good moments but not enough. Robert Altman who was going to direct would've been ideal. Not to be. Some of the support cast work (Howard Hesseman) others not up to it. Burt Reynolds should've been sensational. This needed a top top director.

Movie review - "Narrow Margin" (1990) ***

 No one seems to ever talk about this remake, with its unfashionable director and middle aged stars, but it's a decent thriller with some twists and turns, less glaring logic problems than other Peter Hyams movies, a very funny quip at a killer "you know what I like about you? your tall", beautiful photography, strong acting (James Sikking is good as always as a killer, Gene Hackman is always strong, Anne Archer gets a decent role). There's also his crisp whispering - it's a thing in Hyams films.

Borrows a bit from the original - bratty kid with a gun, tubby man on the train, assassins bribing the hero, hero's bestie is killed early - but it lacks the twist (it's an undercover gal). Nice scenery.

Movie review - "The Hunter" (1980) **

 I understand Steve McQueen wasn't diagnosed with cancer until after he'd finished this but in hindsight he doesn't look very well. He's got charisma, and can still move he just seems old especially as young pretty Kathryn Harrold is his pregnant girlfriend.

There's a bunch of plots going on here. McQueen worried about being a dad (there's lots of talks about lamaze classes), McQueen captures a crook (LeVar Burton) who then helps around the house, a cop friend is accused of corruption, a nastier criminal results this big action chase set piece shoved in at the end, a psycho torments Harrold (best scene in the film he whispers at her Midnight Lace style in a deserted classroom - but she doens't tell him about it). Almost a wacky comedy ending with McQueen talking Harrold to the hospital before birth followed by TV movie style credits.

Support cast includes Ben Johnson and Eli Wallach.

It's an odd combination of Hollywood feature and TV money, like it needed another $5 million or something.

Peter Hyams was going to make it at one stage and did a draft. McQueen should have worked with better directors at this stage of his career.

Movie review - "The Star Chamber" (1983) **1/2

 We've had a lot of films about cops going rogue to enforce justice so this has novelty being about judges doing it... who form their own star chamber. There's a reason it has novelty though - judges have a lot of discretion to allow things into evidence, Michael Douglas' character isn't as hamstrung as he is depicted. Or at least he shouldn't have been. It's like this film needed to be more political - emphasie there's a new progressive/left government introducing all these laws making it harder to find things admissible, sacking judges. Or maybe a super lawless state - like a few years in the future or South Africa. Or maybe it are judges being forced to pass bad laws and they have to get around it. There's a lot of potential in the concept that isn't really exploited.

The film looks terrific and is well acted. Douglas is very good - maybe not entirely well cast. In his defence he has to be passive a lot of the time.

There's a lot of smoking in the film. And too much whisper dialogue turned up.

Interesting parallels with The Firm including Hal Hollbrook as a dodgy legal mentor to a handsome young idealist. Sharon Gless' part is truly dreadful even by the standard of "wife" parts. Thing is it didn't have to be - they could have used it more. Like she was attacked once, or she's a villain character - or she's super idealistic. Just use her.

A very good chase sequence in a car park.

Peter Hyams Films

 * Old Hollywood throwbacks - he did patisches of old private eye films (Goodbye My Love, Peeper), war films (Hanover Street). He's also done a review sequels and remakes.

*Women's pictures - surprise from Hyams but goes to show you never know. He wrote one (TR Baskin), directed another (Our Time), wrote and directed another (Hanover Street). Rolling Man is a male equivalent.

*Conspiracy thrillers - faked space landings (Capricorn One), secret judge cabals (Star Chamber), corruption in business (Outland), corruption in space (2010)

*Buddy cop movies - (Busting, Running Scared, The Presidio)

*Space epics - Outland, 2010, Time Cop, Sound of Thunder, Enemies Closer.

*Action star vehicles - JCVD (Time Cop, Sudden Death), Arnie (End of Days)

*Remakes - Narrow Margin, Beyond Reasonable Doubt, Outland (in a way - High Noon)

*Comedies - Stay Tuned, Running Scared, Busting.

*Die Hard in a something - museum (The Relic), sports stadium (Sudden Death) 

*Monster movies - Relic, Sound of Thunder

The films have tremendous action sequences, look great and are well acted. They frequently suffer from logic issues. Dialogue is zinger-y.

Movie review - "Captain America: Civil War" (2016) ***1/2

 The Marvel gang can be annoying with their hair transplants, pilates physiques and perfect teeth but this is a super slick very well done movie, admirable in its action scenes and way it juggles so many characters. Dull villain, manufactured heart (Stark's parents were murdered, etc), brilliant airport fight sequence.

Tom Holland steals the show as Spiderman.

Book review - "Flashman on the March" by George MacDonald Fraser

 The last in the series and the dullest. You get a bad feeling reading in the introduction when Fraser praises Napier's mission to Abyssinia "in contrast to today"... it's like, uh-oh, Fraser's politics are spilling into his book. Flashman books are at their best on disasters and yet again Fraser teases us by having Flashman mention more interesting stories that were disasters, the US Civil War, Emperor Maximilian and Khartoum... instead there's this successful trudge through Abyssinia.

It's a different locale - probably why Fraser wrote this one - and Fraser can still describe pictures. He'd lost his ability with narrative and suspense. It perks up occasionally - hanging by a cage, the flreshy and horny queen, most of all the character of Theodore - but feels too repetitive: running, near death, rescued. Flashman gets out of trouble by luck than his wits.

There's no tension at the end. I get in real life it would've been scary for Flashman to be kidnapped by Theodore, but since we know he's going to live it's not scary especially as this section is "something might happen". 

It's just dull. Hard to get through. I hope it's not just because I didn't read it as a kid.

Movie review - "Peeper" (1975) **

 There were a lot of pastiches of old time Hollywood in the 70s - Peter Hyams did one for TV and now did this. The script is full of quips but rarely funny, there's plenty of story but it's not interesting, no one really plays an interesting character. it's all rehashed Big Sleep only without as much life.

Michael Caine is professional and always likeable but it's weird to see him as a British PI in 1947 Hollywood (which might've made a more interesting movie than this if explored). Nice to see Natalie Wood in her least interesting cinematic decade but her character isn't much - none of it is much. It isn't bad just dull. Actually that probably makes it bad. 

Technical credits fine, as Variety would say. Lacks a jazzy support cast.

Movie review - "2010: The Year We Make Contact" (1984) ***

 Such a thankless assignment but they had a go, and a sequel was logical, and Arthur C. Clarke had written one, so... This does not disgrace itself. It looks terrific, lovely sets. Roy Scheider brings warmth lacking in the original. It's a shame genuine Russian actors couldn't have played the Russians.

Madolyn Smith is eye catching in a small part as Scheider's wife. I always loved the scene where the scared Russian woman hops in to hug Schneider while going around the planet, and John Lithgow's heavy breathing travelling. Bob Balaban is excellent has the computer guy even though it's a pity he couldn't have been Indian like in the book.

Hyams might have leaned into the spookiness of the ship more - it could've been really creepy. Maybe it's less so now I know what happened.

It's smart. Looks gorgeous. Lovely to be reunited with Keir Dullea and HAL.

Movie review - "Free Willy" (1993) ***1/2

 Very well done boy and whale movie, expertly directed by Australia's own Simon Wincer. Some exploitation stars have a change of pace - Michael Madsen as a foster dad, Michael Ironside as a baddy. Actually Ironside doesn't change pace - and Madsen doesn't really adjust his acting style from sub James Dean (wrinkly forehead, downward eyes, etc). 

Jason James Richter is the foster kid who bonds with Willy, Lori Petty is a trainer. I'm surprised they didn't make Madsen single and have him romance Petty. I'm sure it was discussed. Entertaining. William Goldman would call the section from when they go "we gotta free Willy" narrative cinema at its finest.  Satisfying jump.

Movie review - "Thor: Love and Thunder" (2022) **

 Chris Hemsworth is animated. Natalie Portman seems bored, even dying, Russell Crowe has fun with a Greek accent. Christian Bale is professional. Matt Damon has a pointless cameo. There's lots of cameos. Tessa Thompson is wasted. I liked the Bale-daughter stuff. That was about it. Thor and Jane aren't really a great couple if they'd wanted to make it work they would've made it work.

Movie review - "The Greatest Showman" (2017) ***1/2

 All set to be a big turkey - an original musical! - but it was, delightfully, a hit. It has one big established star, Hugh, a newer star, Zac, and exciting newbie, Zendaya, some wonderfully stirring songs, Michelle Williams being good in a nothing part, and I liked the theme. Why not make money out of it?

Movie review - "Malcolm and Marie" (2021) **

 Ah, indie movie. Female lead on toilet for realism? Check. Every second word "fuck" for realism? Check. Feels like a first draft? Check. Indulgent monologues? Check. Badly veiled autobiography? Check. Living in Oblivion.

Still, why shouldn't black actors get the chance to appear in these sort of indulgent films and at least it has two film stars, especially Zendaya. Beautifully shot. I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought it would.

Movie review - "Tai Pan" (1986) *

 Looks gorgeous. Beautiful photography. Never seems real. Misses the point of the book - the battle for Hong Kong to be taken seriously. We never access Struan's dream, or get his love for May May or his rivalry with Brock. Bits from the book are there but they feel like filmed bits rather than something coherent. Bryan Brown is miscast as a Scot - physically he's fine, he's got the intelligence, just is silly with that accent. John Stanton isn't good. Janice Turner is lovely. Kyra Sedgwick is Brock's daughter. Joan Chen is gorgeous but dubbed - why? Promising young faces. The older actors aren't good eg the guy who plays Quance. George MacDonald Fraser's script was a lot better.

Book review - "No Beast So Fierce" by Eddie Bunker

 Brilliant. Had heard good things - lived up to the hype. Awesome realism mixed in with flowery prose - but maybe that's how they think. Part one is a crook trying to go straight. The constant tension of a relapse. He relapses then part two is crime. This is all good but paddling. Then a robbery goes horrendously wrong and it's part three life or death fleeing. This is amazing. Can see why it's been so influential on Tarantino, Mann, etc.

Movie review - "A Cinderella Story" (2004) **1/2

 Absolutely fine. Made with life and some fun support performances. Though I'm not sure Cinderella is really poor here - she has a car. Pads out running time with straight geeky best friend. -I guess Ducky from Pretty in Pink was an influence though he doesn't seem into Hilary Duff. Male lead required by plot to be really stupid but Chad Michael Murray pulls it off. Regina King is in this, and Jennifer Coolidge, and Madeleine Zima and Simon Helberg.

Movie review - "Little Women" (2019) ****

 Bright version of the oft film tale. Benefits from strong production values and cast. Soraise Ronan is ideal as Jo, though the show is stolen by Florence Pugh as Amy, an under-rated role. Emma Watson is fine as Meg, though Meg is a terrible part (she's pretty and gets married). An Aussie played Beth. There's Laura Dern, Saul Goodman and Meryl Streep, and two floppy black haired guys who look like Noah Baumbach.

Script review - "The Yakuza" by Paul Schrader (warning: spoilers)

 Based on a novel by Leonard Schrader, says the cover page - I thought both were to work together. A great yarn. Interesting set up. Good star part for the old American soldier called back to Japan; flashy support roles for Dusty, the young Yank who goes with him, Tanner, the guy who calls in Tanner. Terrific co starring part for Tanaka Ken, the bass ass lone wolf who gets involved to his regret. 

There's a pace slump after the girl is rescued but it recovers. Lots of expositiony dialogue and interesting asides - easy to edit.

Movie review - "Our Time" (1974) **1/2

 A female go at Summer of 42 with Pamela Sue Martin and Betsy Slade as two friends in a 1950s boarding school hung up on sex. It was directed by Peter Hyams who wrote a woman's picture, TR Baskin but not this one - it was penned by Jane Stanton.  The gals really talk about sex a lot and are boy crazy. Parker Stevenson is Martin's bloke.

Martin's character actually has a pretty cruisy time - Stevenson loves her, they have nice sex. The bulk of the drama is carried by Slade, not pretty enough, who has impulsive sex, gets pregnant, has an abortion, dies. The best sequence is visiting the abortionist - it's scary, the helpers are mean, the abortionist turns out to be quite nice... but Slade still dies.

The film kind of vanished, I think in part because it has no love story (Martin and Stevenson come in as basically an established couple). But it is interesting.

Movie review - "The Musketeer" (2001) **1/2

 Look, not bad. It pulls back on the three musketeers to focus on D'artagnan - which mightn't be such an issue if Justin Chambers hadn't been such a Ken Doll. Mena Suvari is the love interest (not Constance) and she's quite ideal; they would've been better off casting Chris Klein - or to be honest Suvari (you could've had a female D'artagnan) - or a Hong Kong star.

Stephen Rea is Richeliu and Tim Roth is a made up villain who kills D'artagnan's parents. Roth is excellent, Half way the plot becomes about the Queen, Catherine Denveuve, and she gets all this screen time.

Chambers is a real debit. So too are the undercast musketeers. When they all arrive at the end it should be rousing but it isn't. Still, fine villains and excellent Hong Kong style action sequences - not as good as Hong Kong films themselves but effective.

Movie review - "The Narrow Margin" (1952) **** (warning: spoilers)

 Excellent noir, beautifully shot and crisply written. Charles Macgraw has the role of a lifetime as the tough cop escorting gangster's wife Marie Windsor. Windsor is terrific. The main flaw of the film is she's so good you feel gypped that the last third shifts to this blander other actress - it's a neat twist that she's the actual wife and Windsor is a cop but I miss Macgraw-Windsor scenes and felt Windsor deserved more of an exit. Her death is shocking - I just wish she'd taken out at least one baddie. Very good baddies.

Book review - "Tell me how you love the picture : a Hollywood life" by Edward Feldman

 Entertaining memoir from Feldman, who had a strong Hollywood career, including Peter Weir's Witness. We hear of triumphs like that as well as humour detours making Hot Dog the Movie.

Some great stories: Michael Ritchie being lazy on The Golden Child, Alex Segal being fired from a TV movie for abusing the mothers of child actors, dealing with the ego of Joe Levine (who he had to publicise as much as Embassy's films), Mervyn Le Roy did uncredited directing on The Green Berets,

Feldman talks a lot about Aussies Peter Weir and Mel Gibson, though not so much about others he worked with - Louis Nowra on K19 for instance. There's a chapter on Ray Stark and one on Levine.

Movie review - "Rolling Man" (1972) **1/2

 TV movie that I only watched because it was directed by Peter Hyams. I'm surprised how unconventional and character study-ish it was - I thought TV movies were more formulaic. But maybe they were reassured by the presence of Dennis Weaver- presumably this was done as a deal. 

It's an episodic tale of a mechanic whose wife dies and who goes to prison for attempted murder (of her lover Don Stroud). He gets out, his kids have been taken away so he tries to get him back. Weaver is a stud muffin in this one - he gets off with one gal, Donna Mills, then another, the waitress.

There's lots of southern accents. Not bad. Interesting vanity project/vehicle.

Book review - "Heat 2" by Michael Mann and Meg Gardiner (2022)

 Interesting. Some great scenes. Reads like a Michael Mann script at time - in terms of big print. Characterbios. Not a lot of interior monologue. We don't get to know much about any of the others in the gang - the driver, Tom Sizemore, the other guy... just Val Kilmer and some de Niro and Pacino.

There's a convenient horrible villain who spans time and characters a version of Waingro. Some thrilling sequences - tracking him down in Chicago, and then in Mexico, and then in LA. Actually that is very repetitive. No bank robbing.

Chris/Kilmer goes to Paraguay. That's cool. Lots of research about electronics - a hangover from another script?

It clearly uses research from other Mann scripts (esp 2006 Miami Vice, Blackhat).. without going into spoilers I'd say it's entertaining and worth a read, I'm not sure it would make a great movie (how would you cast it? de-aging tech?) esp as it lacks a core central relationship like the one between Pacino and de Niro in the 1995 film (Pacino/Hanna and de Niro/McCauley were in love with each other, Pacino/Hanna and Kilmer/Chris doesn't have the same resonance) and the plotting over-relies on a super duper convenient Waingro-type character, but there's some very exciting sequences and I would totally be interested in reading novels of Thief, The Keep, Jericho Mile and yep I'll say it Blackhat...

Movie review - "Busting" (1974) **

 Peter Hyams first feature as director. Elliot Gould and Robert Blake are ideal as vice cops. The film has them busting a lot of people who shouldn't be in trouble with cops - prostitutes, gays. Maybe this was titillating in 1974. Or maybe it wasn't which is why this didn't do that well at the box office.

Excellent action sequences - in a market, cars. The violence is handled well. The acting is good - Gould is always good going undercover. It's episodic. But I found myself more on the side of Allen Garfield, the villain.

National General Pictures/Cinema Centre Films

 Short lived production company of the late 60s and early 70s like Cinema Centre.

CCF

A company of CBS to make theatrical films. Would rent facilities. Aimed for cost of $3 million a film. Started in March 1967.

* With Six You Get Eggroll (1968)

*A Fine Pair (1968)

*The April Fools (1969)

*Me Natalie (1969)

*The Royal Hunt of the Sun (1969)

*Hail Hero (1969) - Michael Douglas drama

*A Boy Named Charlie Brown (1969)

*The Reivers (1969)

*The Boys in the Band (1969)

*A Man Called Horse (1970) - Western with Richard Harris

*Something for Everyone (1970) - Harold Prince directed, Michael York

*Darker Than Amber (1970) - Rod Taylor as Travis McGee

*Adam at 6AM (1970) - more Michael Douglas

*Figures in a Landcsape (1970) - Joseph Losey

*Monte Walsh (1970) - Lee Marvin western

*Scrooge (1970) - British musical with Albert Finney

*Homer (1970) - Vietnam War homefront drama with Don Scardino

*Little Big Man (1970) - Dustin Hodfman/Arthur Penn Indian drama

*Rio Lobo (1970) - John Wayne western directed by Howard Hawks

*Black Water White Drath (1971)

*Big Jake (1971) - John Wayne western, a big hit

*Who is Harry Kellerman and Why is He Saying All These Things About Me? (1971) - Dustin Hoffman flop

*Le Mans (1971) -car racing film for Steve McQueen

*The African Elephant (1971) - documentary

*Something Big (1971) - Dean Martin western directed by Andrew McLaglen

*Christian Licorice Store (1971)

*The Little Ark (1972) - children's film

*The Revengers (1972) - Holden-Borgnine western

*The War Between Men and Women (1972) - Jack Lemmon film

*Prime Cut (1972) - Michael Ritchie film with Gene Hackman, Lee Marvin and Sissy Spacek

*Snoopy Come Home (1972)

Sept 1971 Gordon Stulberg joined Fox as preident, replaced by Milton Goldstein.

NGP (them as a production company - they also distributed some films)

* Robert kennedy Remembered (1968)

*The Stalking Moon (1968)

*Charro! (1969) - Elvis Presley Western

*A Dream of Kings (1969)

*Daddy's Gone a Hunting (1969) - Mark Robson, Lorenzo Semple

*Lattitude Zero (1969) - Japanese film with Joe Cotten

*The Grasshopper (1970) - melodrama with Jacie Bisset and Jim Brown

*The Cheyenne Social Club (1970) - with Stewart and Fonda

*El Condor (1970) - Western with Jim Brown and Lee Van Cleef

*The Baby Maker (1970) - James Bridges film

*The Todd Killings (1971) - serial kilelr movie

June 1969 - Charles Boasberg its new president

Late 1972 American Financial Corp starts buying stock and taking over

NGP released First Artists films like Judge Roy Bean, Pocket Money, Up the Sandbox