Archive for 'United States' Category
Captain Blood by Michael Curtiz (1935)
6 August 2008A swashbuckling classic, with the amazing Errol Flynn, and his first of 8 films with the lovely Olivia De Havilland. This is adventure at the high seas with a heroic rogue, and the woman he loves whom he can only be at words with. Some great battle scenes (even if some footage was taken from [...]
Hancock by Peter Berg (2008)
4 August 2008The trailers looked good for this, and the concept is good, but the film overall fails, especially the last half an hour, which comes out of nowhere, and just doesn’t work. And the constant shaky cam is just annoying instead of artistic. I like the concept, but the film really just falls flat. This could [...]
Swing Vote by Joshua Michael Stern (2008)
3 August 2008The movie that Kevin Costner put his own money into to get it made, and which is totally bombing. I actually enjoyed it more than I thought I would, though the whole movie is basically a one line thesis, about how messed up American media and elections have become along both parties. It is a [...]
The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor by Rob Cohen (2008)
2 August 2008I am a fan of the first 2 Mummy movies, and the Scorpion King spin off, and I am a huge fan of Jet Li and Michelle Yeoh, as well as of Brendan Fraser, so I had been looking forward to this film, but unfortunately this film is not a worthy follow up and should [...]
Journey to the Center of the Earth 3D by Eric Brevig (2008)
1 August 2008After seeing the trailers I was not too impressed with this kids film updating the original Jules Verne story, but I went to see this with my father while he was in town, and I was better than pleasantly surprised. This film is really fun, and 3D has come a really long way! From start [...]
Love Crazy by Jack Conway (1941)
29 July 2008Another wonderful Myrna Loy and William Powell romantic comedy. This one where their anniversary gets ruined, and things go bad until the wife believes her husband is cheating, and is willing, and will have to do anything to get her back before things are made final. These two have such great chemistry, and this film [...]
I Love You Again by W.S. Van Dyke II (1940)
28 July 2008More fun from Loy and Powell and Van Dyke who directed the first 4 Thin Man films. This is a really fun love story, because it is about a man who gets hit on the head and realizes he was a con man, and then when he meets his wife, decides to make her fall [...]
Evelyn Prentice by William K. Howard (1934)
28 July 2008Another serious drama with William Powell and Myrna Loy, this one a courtroom drama that has a man having to try to save his wife, when he founds she may have murdered someone who wanted to have an affair with her, and he is her only chance. This is really powerful film with great performances. [...]
Manhattan Melodrama by W.S. Van Dyke (1934)
28 July 2008The first time that Myrna Loy and William Powell were on screen together, and with W.S. Van Dyke who would later direct the first 4 Thin Man films, is a very enjoyable and a bit depressing drama about 2 childhood friends that end up on either side of the law, and both love the same [...]
Song of the Thin Man by Edward Buzzell (1947)
28 July 2008The last film in the Thin Man series is fun as well, though not quite as good as the previous films. It felt like Loy’s part was toned down a bit, though this film is still fun of course. William Powell and Myrna Loy have such great on screen chemistry that it is really worth [...]
Double Wedding by Richard Thorpe (1937)
28 July 2008A romantic comedy with William Powell and Myrna Loy that played with my heart strings. There on screen chemistry just could not be beat, and I love in this film seeing her realize she loves him, but giving him up to her sister, that was so heartbreaking, and yet the film ends in absolute silliness [...]
The X-Files: I Want to Believe by Chris Carter (2008)
26 July 2008Now I was never an X-Files fan to begin with, but I have seen some good episodes (though more bad ones) and thought the first movies was good enough, so I didn’t mind goign with Kelly because she is a fan, and I drag her to movies all the time, but I have to say [...]
The Thin Man Goes Home by Richard Thorpe (1944)
25 July 2008Another enjoyable Thin Man film, with the great interplay between William Powell and Myrna Loy, but this time returning to Nick Charles home town. Fun as can be with Nora once again drawing Nick into another mystery, when all he wants is a vacation!
Nick (William Powell) and Nora are on their way home to Sycamore [...]
Another Thin Man by W.S. Van Dyke (1939)
25 July 2008Another fun enjoyable Thin Man adventure, and this one with a baby. Again the mystery is not all that important, and it all happens in basically the same way, but it is the relationship between William Powell and Myrna Loy’s characters that makes the film so enjoyable. These films are as fun as can be.
Nick [...]
Shadow of the Thin Man by W.S. Van Dyke (1941)
25 July 2008Nick and Nora are back again in another enjoyable adventure, once again made great by William Powell and Myrna Loy and their wonderful on screen relationship. These are such a great series of films. So enjoyable!
Back in San Fransisco, Nick (William Powell) and Nora (Myrna Loy) head off to go to the race track, but [...]
The Spiderwick Chronicles by Mark Waters (2008)
24 July 2008A fairly enjoyable kids fantasy adventure, that at the very least makes me want to read the books, so I say that makes it pretty successful. The effects are decent enough, and so is the story, though I am not sure about having Freddie Highmore play two roles here, but they keep him apart as [...]
After the Thin Man by W.S. Van Dyke (1936)
24 July 2008The sequel to the hit Thinman is more of the same (Nick doesn’t want to do the detecting, but gets dragged in, Nora does detecting on her own, Nick figures out more, and then holds a dinner with all suspects to work it out, and point out the killer), but once again it isn’t so [...]
The Thin Man by W.S. Van Dyke (1934)
23 July 2008The first film in this lovely film series starring the lovely Myrna Loy, and the hysterical William Powell. This film started a series of films, though this film was adapted from a novel by Dashiell Hammett, in fact he wrote no sequels, so they were all written just based on the characters, which does account [...]
Batman: The Dark Knight by Christopher Nolan (2008)
19 July 2008I was looking forward to this film, but after Iron Man I just didn’t think that this could possibly top it. And then their was the whole Heath Ledger death, and all the talk of his getting a posthumous Oscar, which really put me off, and I really should have waited to see the film [...]
Shortbus written and directed by John Cameron Mitchell (2006)
10 July 2008I had no idea what to expect of this art house film, in which the straight and gay actors all participated in actual sex on camera, but after watching it I actually enjoyed it quite a bit more than I thought I would. This is a very good film, made for an adult audience, but [...]
The Spirit of St. Louis by Billy Wilder (1957)
6 July 2008This recently played on cable in a gorgeous new Hi-Definition Transfer and my fiancee and I watched it and absolutely loved it. I am already a sucker for flying films, but this one has the bonus of being true, and so much of the film relies on the performance of James Stewart who you really [...]
Wanted by Timur Bekmambetov (2008)
5 July 2008I could have given or taken this from the trailer, but after it’s exceptional opening weekend I decided to go with Kelly, hoping this film wasn’t too shaky (though of course as a current action film it was), and enjoyed it. It is a ridiculous action film, based on a comic, so maybe a little [...]
Wall-E written and directed by Andrew Stanton (2008)
29 June 2008I always at least enjoy Pixar films (even Cars, which was pretty mediocre, though most are damn good), but this is them back in Top form. I had been excited to see it, not only for the science fiction elements, but also to see a film with very little dialogue that is completely compelling, and [...]
Wedding Present by Richard Wallace (1936)
21 June 2008Another Grant classic, and probably made good because Joan Bennett is just so damn good. She is fierce, and you know how he could not stand not to love her, but at the same time his own personality makes it so hard for them to be together. All locked into the tale of two reporters [...]
The Glenn Miller Story by Anthony Mann (1954)
21 June 2008This is an amazing movie, and an absolute classic, filled with great music, and a powerful true story, with great performances and some great cameos by people Miller actually played with [including Louis Armstrong, Barney Bigard, Cozy Cole, Gene Krupa, Frances Langford, Marty Napoleon, Ben Pollack, Babe Russin, Arvell Shaw, The Modernaires, and James Young [...]