Book review - "The Mad Emperor" by Henry Sidebottom (2022)

 Exhaustive. Very well researched. A more linear approach may have been better. A bit academic-y in that it takes a historiagraphy approach a lot of the time instead of getting into character. A serious work though.

Book ereview - "Montgomery Clift: A Biography” by Patricia Bosworth

 Excellent deep dive on Clift's life and careers. So many people on the record  - lovers, friends. Often harrowing reading. Everyone says Clift was smart, brilliant, funny. But also weak, addictive, whiny, annoying. Given great advantages that he threw away, kept blaming other people (his mother, Hollywood).

Movie review - "Shine" (1996) ***1/2

 Hadn't seen this since it came out. Has aged quite well esp in its depiction of neuro diversity. Stunning acting from Geoffrey Rush, Noah Taylor and Armin Mueller Stahl. I forgot Sonia Todd was in this. Such a clever script - every section has a character who is nice to David (the music teacher, Googie Withers, John Gielgud, the old ladies, Sonia Todd). 

Book review - "Roddy McDowall" by Samuel Bernstein

 Bernstein does another very good biography of an underrated queer actor Roddy McDowall, on top of the one he did for Caesar Romero. The two actors had many things in common - foreigners who flourised in Hollywood, seem like genuinely nice people, hugely long careers, Batman villains. McDowall had more long term romances and possibly better luck with movies - every decade he managed to appear in a classic. How Green Was My Valley, Compulsion, Camelot, Cleopatra, Planet of the Apes, The Poseidon Adventure. It's incredible. 

Worthy book for a person who deserved it. 

Book review - "Cesar Romero: The Joker Is Wild" by Sam Bernstein

 Loving look at a man who sounds like a genuinely terrific person - underrated actor, handsome, polite, hard working. Never seems to have been linked to a romantic relationship, although something may have happened with Tyrone Power. Well researched, fun - half the book is the filmography!

Movie review - "The Rise and Fall of Legs Diamond" (1960) ***

 Decent A minus gangster biopic, done with pace by Budd Boetticher. I'm not a huge Ray Danton fan but he's fine. Karen Steele is bad as his dim true love. Elaine Stewart is fun as a minx. Dyan Cannon is really fun as a moll, Warren Oates strong as Danton's brother, Richard Gardner excellent as Mad Dog Coll ditto Robert Lowery as Rothstein.  It's got some "Psychology" (he pushed everyone away!) but it holds dramatically.

Book review - "Vera Miles: The Hitchcock Blonde Who Got Away" by Christopher McKittrick

 Miles was a solid, pretty actor who delivered solid performances over the years, including some classics - The Searchers, Psycho, The Wrong Man, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. I think it's fair to say she's no one's favourite part of these movies but she doesn't let anyone down. The most interesting thing about her career is Hitchcock was briefly obsessed with her and wanted to star her in Vertigo but she fell pregnant and he ended up using Kim Novak.

This is a conscientous, dogged book, like a Miles performance, not that gripping - her life and career wasn't that interesting. She had a few divorces, the Hitchcock interlude... that was about it. She seems like a nice person who married a few dodgy men. The book might've been better putting more dates and credits in an appendix than the text.

Movie review - "Jolson Sings Again" (1949) ***

 Less story but this means Larry Parks can act a little more and have a more fleshed out romance - with Barbara Hale who is sweet. Lacks the original's energy but has plenty of colour and songs. Memorably bizarre bit where Parks as Jolson meets Parks as Parks.

Movie review - "The Jolson Story" (1946) ***1/2

 The film is hokey but it works. The colour, the enthusiasm, Larry Parks' energy - he's unremarkable in so many films but playing Jolson forces him to be more active. The movie completely works on its own terms.

Evelyn Keyes is alright - anyone could have played that role. William Demarest plays William Demarest. It hops along. There's a lot of blackface. A lot.

Book review - "Joan Crawford" by Scott Eyman (2025)

 Very good book. Eyman loves to step up when redeeming maligned figures. He's sympathetic to Joan but doesn't gloss over her negative qualities. Solid research. A few too many smart ass asides.

Movie review - "The President's Lady" (1953) **

 The story of Andrew Jackson and his wife, best remembered for being bigamous.  Charlon Heston plays Jackson in his typical dogged, conscientous way. Ditto Susan Hayward as is lady love. Slavery and Indians are dealt with as you'd expect, i.e. mostly ignored - Hayward has a black maid.

The story constantly has Jackson going away, which isn't that interesting. Look, this is fine. Acting fine, treatment fine. Lacks fire.  I didn't care for the characters. Might be different for Americans with more of a connection to Jackson.

Movie review - "Hemingway's Adventures of a Young Man" (1962) **

 Adapting the Nick Adams stories wasn't a great idea - they are by nature episodic - though maybe it could've worked more as a "coming of age of Ernest Hemingway" type tale

Richard Beymer is hopelessly out of his element here - not dreadful just not capable. The role needed a really, really good actor - not just an actor, a star. Not sure who could've done it then. Paul Newman maybe even if he was too old.

But the script isn't great. Ten stories! Goes for over two hours!

Martin Ritt gives scenes in the vignettes to the guest stars - Paul Newman as a punch drunk boxer, Arthur Kennedy as dad, Dan Dailey as a drunk editor, Eli Wallach as a soldier. Most of them are not good. A lot of over acting.

Maybe could have worked if it had just focused on young Nick in the woods. Or Nick as a journalist. Or him having a romance in Italy. Together it felt lumpy. 

Movie review - "Gandhi" (1982) ****

 Does anyone watch this any more? Or talk about it? A big deal in its day. The day has passed. But it's smart. Literate. There's an Indian actor in the lead. The lead characters are Indian.

Gandhi is frequently helped by a friendly white - Ian Charleston as a reverend, Martin Sheen as a journalist, etc. This is needed, I believe, to get the film white audiences. 

Beautifully shot and framed. Looks gorgeous. Smart. Powerful.

Long. A collection of scenes it feels like. Intelligent. I can see why no one watches it any more. 

Movie review - "Clint: The Man and the Movies" by Shawn Levy

 Underwhelming. Relies on work done by others especially Patrick McGilligan. Nothing really new or fresh. A lot of reviews. A few smart arse comments. I get the feeling Levy wrote it because he could turn it out in a short time though I might be wrong.

Eastwood's career meants this was easy enough to read but it's a recap really. 

Most interesting characters are Eastwood daughters who come across as hot messes who get involved in escapades. 

Movie review - "Cross Creek" (1983) **

 Worthy. Dull. Surprised it got green lit. Barry Spikings really liked Oscars. "The story of the woman who wrote The Yearling" isn't that sexy. Mary Steenbergen is fine. Peter Coyote a little dull. Malcolm McDowell is lively but has clunky dialogue. Alfred Woodard shines - story from her POV might've been more interesting.

This should've been a TV movie. 

 

Book review - "Kubrick: An Odyssey" by Robert P. Kolker and Nathan Abrams (2024)

 Fantastic book. Big subject but superbly done, great research (access to archives) very thorough and fair. Deep dives on unmade films such as Napoleon and AI. Discusses Kubrick's interest in sex, often ignored by critics. Covers his arseholeness and eccentricities. The book is really fair.

Full of interesting stuff - his battles to make things, a daughter turning into anti-Semitic neo con, his dreams of moving to Australia, James Brolin was considered for The Shining.

Splendid.  

Book review - "There's No Going Back The Life and Work of Jonathan Demme" by David M. Stewart

 Solid biography of the director - I'm surprised there hadn't been one before now. It packs a fair bit in - his publicist, flashy dad, who had progressive politics and was a bit of a sleaze, like his son, really, who didn't always treat women well. Like his Australian first wife who he refused to allow produce.

Demme broke in as a publicist, worked in New York, interned for Joe Levine, benefited from a wealthy background, move to London, did some work on Eyewitness, then hooked up with Roger Corman, stayed with Corman a few years. Obviously talented, so much so that people kept giving him work despite a lack of hits. Indeed, he only had a few hits throughout his career. Quality of his work seemed to slip after Philadelphia with too many remakes but in his defense his focus seems to have been split, doing a lot of producing and documentaries, being involved in Haiti. A heavy smoker which is why he died relatively young.

I'm not a huge Demme fan. Something slightly lacking in the book. Maybe a layer of depth or something.

Movie review - "Patton" (1970) ****

 A movie that managed to unite hawks and doves with its blood and guts hero - isn't he great vs isn't it awful. Some terrific fresh bits like the opening with Patton talking to troops in front of the flag. Others are more conventional such as people going "tell me about Patton" and Germans giving exposition. Karl Malden's Bradley is dull.

There are fresh things, or at least fresh at the time - the more realistic depiction of how battles were fought in World War Two.

Book review - "The Magic Hours: The Films and Hidden Life of Terrence Malick" by John Beasdale

 Beasdale runs a terrific podcast on film books and here is his own - a solid book on Malick, the most enigmatic and experimental of the movie brats. Well researched, decent insights - the main problem isn't Beasdale's fault it's that Malick isn't that interesting. A few divorces and a suiciding brother hints at something. None of the films included a memorable disaster. I'll be honest - also I'm not super familiar with Malick's ouvre. It s a very good book.

Book review - "Mr Strangelove: A Biography of Peter Sellers" by Ed Sikov (2002)

 Very good book. Emphathetic. Not a hagiography. Has the occasional smart arse aside.  Tries to give all sides. He punched his wife and was a terrible dad and had major mental health issues. Could also be wonderful. He made so many good movies. Managed to keep amazingly relevant - I mean, compare with everyone else around him. He was always at some sort of cutting edge - the Goons, Boultings, Kubrick, peak Edwards, Paul Mazursky, Hal Ashby. Survived a very long cold streak thanks to Clouseau. Fascinating life and career and Sikov does it justice.