Ménilmontant - 1926 - France

Ménilmontant - 1926 - 6/10

 
Densely packed Silent short opens with a brutal axe murder of two adults.
Parents of two girls, now orphaned.  Who, in no time, have grown and struggle in Paris.
Enter the smooth man, with his gentle hands, coaxing insistence, and fleeting promises.
Film dazzles with then-cutting edge techniques of double exposures, rapid pans, and quick cutting.
Risqué material probably meant this was never shown in America.
This ought to run 30+ minutes.  Beware of shorter run times which were likely from the wrong speed,

Girl Model - 2011 - Russia

Girl Model - 2011 - 7/10

 
Documentary about the modeling meat market.
The girls in this film come from Siberia and are 13 - 14 years old.  Most are rejected for being too old (say 15) or overweight (not starved enough).
Those “fortunate” enough to get signed will travel to Japan for work.
Narrative tracks two stories.  Young girl who optimistically chases the dream, only to spiral down.
The other is of the “talent agent” who used to be a girl model, totally hated it, but is now an active exploiter.
Models struggle in squalid rooms, agents live posh.  Surprise, surprise.
Disturbing, may leave a rotten taste in your mouth.

Murder On Belle Island - 2020 - France

Murder On Belle Island - 2020 - 6/10
AKA - Meurtres à Belle-Île

 
A real estate agent, with a reputation for wife-stealing, is found tied to a menhir, dead.
Mainland detective is sent to assist, just as another murder occurs.
The first half of this is (unintentionally) funny, as the mainlander has no check switch and the damnedest things fly out of his mouth.  Such as, he starts flirting with suspect #1, and even makes a romantic date.
Gradually, the nonsense ebbs away, leaving a routine ho-hum procedural.
Compensation, fantastic island scenery.

Shinobi No Mono 2: Vengeance - 1963

Shinobi No Mono 2: Vengeance - 1963 - 6/10
AKA - Zoku Shinobi No Mono

 
Rousing, action overload sequel to the first film.
Warlords continue to harry and crush ninja strongholds.
The embattled, secretive members assassinate and bide their time.
Meanwhile, rivalries are encouraged, lies dissembled.
The historical background seems loosely accurate, yet the pace is full bore.
Confusing at times (especially if you did not see Part 1).
Hold tight for a wild ride.

Al Murray: The Only Way Is Epic - 2012

Al Murray: The Only Way Is Epic - 2012 - 5/10

 
Al Murray as pub landlord, live in Brighton.
Bit over an hour of hit n miss standup.
There simply were not enough good jokes.
The funny ones, he pounded like a dead horse.
Many times he seemed to be grinding gears.
Opening schtick of querying/baiting front row grew tedious.
Better if you are British, possibly.
I'll never understand the English weakness for sing-alongs.

La Lectrice - 1988

La Lectrice - 1988 - 6/10
AKA - The Reader

 
After Constance reads aloud to her husband, she realizes she has a talent and advertises.
Soon, she has regular customers, wanting her to read aloud to them.
The injured, the blind, others with mental or emotional peculiarities.
As she reads from Maupassant, de Sade, Baudelaire, her imagination begins to mix worlds.
Characters in the book blend with her listeners, and with herself.
One can get quickly lost, unless you simply “go with it.”
Some nudity, sex-lite, but not much.  Not soft-core (nowadays) as others have said.
Book readers, especially French Lit, seek this out.

His House - 2020

His House - 2020 - 7/10

 
The Mediterranean crossing was perilous, and their daughter did not survive it.
Nor did other passengers.
Nonetheless, Bol and Rial apply for refugee asylum in England and are assigned a council flat while they wait.
Only then, do they realize something has followed them.
Slow burn horror, as the couple try to adjust, realizing the house hides malevolence.
Terrific characters, adult plotting and themes, though will not provide the gore some fans insist on.

Haunts - 1976

Haunts - 1976 - 4/10

 
Frisky goings on at California farm / ranch community.
As at many small towns, chief recreations involve drinking and screwing around.
The local bar (Dew Drop In?) is a nexus of flirting, assignations and confrontations.
Business as usual - until - the masked stranger begins raping and killing.
Slow going, poorly shot, downright boring crapola that, despite being in my El Cheapo Box Of Horrors doesn't remotely qualify as horror. Nor a thriller.  This is bull.
And the “young innocent" who keeps getting targeted looks like she hit forty awhile back.

Web Of The Spider - 1971

Web Of The Spider - 1971 - 5/10
AKA - Nella Stretta Morsa Del Ragno

 
Another reworking of “I bet you can’t spend a night in that haunted house.”
Moreover, this is a remake of the director’s own Castle Of Blood (1964).
Anyway, Klaus Kinski (as Edgar Allan Poe!) tells a reporter about the cursed manor.
Without even packing bags, the reporter climbs the next carriage to the dwelling and enters.
Curvacious females nestle in the cobwebs, there are bygone murders, and restless spirits.
Photography is excellent, acting is OK (though Kinski is barely on).  This ought to be better.
The narrative is a sluggish stream, however, and the film is an unfortunate yawn.
Two commentaries: The one with George Reis and Keith Crocker is fun.
Stephen Romano, less informed, seems to mock the film and I quit listening.

Rabid - 2019

Rabid - 2019 - 6/10

Rose, nicknamed Scarface after a childhood accident, toils in the fashion world.
Head designer Gunter belittles her, treats her as a go-fer, yet you sense he is trying to mold her.
Hers is a life stuck in a rut, not getting better, not getting worse.
Until she suffers a horrific traffic accident.

 
Fortunately, there is an institute specializing in experimental reconstructive surgery.
Transhumanism.
Side effects, as always are pooh-poohed, though observant viewers will note the film title.
Outrageous, over the top horror by the Soska Sisters ranks with American Mary for me.
Fashion horror, better than Neon Demon, not as fine as In Fabric.

Puzzle: Murder In Saint Omer - 2019

Puzzle: Murder In Saint Omer - 2019 - 6/10

 
A mass emailing warns of buried criminality and future reprisals.
Followed by disappearances … then corpses.
One of the recipients is a magistrate whose fashion consultant seems to be Wick & Neo.
Anyway, police and judge soon do typical investigation stuff.
Acceptable pot boiler, with enough pacing to distract from plot holes.
Still baffled by parts of this, but I won’t dwell on this film much longer.

Four Adventures Of Reinette And Mirabelle - 1987

Four Adventures Of Reinette And Mirabelle - 1987 - 7/10

 
Parisian Mirabelle, vacationing in the countryside, meets the more rural Reinette.
They strike a friendship, discuss their different lifestyles, make plans.
Despite the title, the story is more Reinette’s, especially after she moves to Paris.
Character study, watching Reinette learning to navigate urban indifference.

Jane Austen: Behind Closed Doors - 2017

Jane Austen:  Behind Closed Doors - 2017 - 6/10

Historian Lucy Worsley guides viewers on a tour of Miss Austen’s many homes.
Along the way, she shares influences and incidents at each.
Reenactment is minimal, an actress reading Jane’s letters, from time to time, in different settings.

 
This is one of the better docs by Worsley.  No blaring pop tunes in this, for instance.
Essential for Janeites.

London To Brighton - 2006 - UK

London To Brighton - 2006 - 6/10

 
British nasty about prostitution.
Aging crime lord calls bottom rung pimp and orders a girl for the night.
Young - 12 years old.
The pimp's jill finds a runaway and they coerce her into the lair.
Next minute, the females are fleeing for their bloody lives, pimp and gangsters in furious pursuit.
Unpleasant film, nicely done.  Dirty alleys, dark woods, cramped flats, ain't no sunshine in this one.

Winchester - 2018

Winchester - 2018 - 6/10

 
Not bad, not great either, interpretation of the haunted Winchester House.
Corporate honchos send psychiatrist out to evaluate the 51% stock-holding heiress.
They want a non compos mentis judgment so they can rein in spending.
Film makes an interesting case for “why” she built and built and built.
Not necessarily accurate -no one actually knows!
Acting is fine, set design is outstanding, and producers resisted going over the top with interiors.

Come And See - 1985 - Russia

Come And See  - 1985 - 8/10
AKA - Idi i Smotri  // Иди и Cмотри

 
“ ... Adventures are not all pony rides in May sunshine.”  Tolkien
Harrowing film of the Nazi invasion of Belorussia in 1943.
A young village boy joins partisan fighters and journeys from wide-eyed idealism to experience.
Opening chapters register uncertainty and anxiety, fears about what German invaders want.
Film proceeds to display, with brutal detail, the Master Race dealing with lower orders.
The audio mix on this is noteworthy, music and sound editing.
After a shelling, the boy suffers hearing loss and viewers share his disability.
Tone shifts from confusion, indifference, barbarity, and rare beauty.

Intouchables - 2011

Intouchables - 2011 - 6/10

 
French quadriplegic hires unknown streetwise tough as caregiver.
Many have raved about this one, because it is a feel good story.
Not as saccharine or cloying as most of these films are.  Also, no big angst ridden drama moment.
Disparate personalities meeting, sharing perspectives.
Your hunch about what this film is, is likely correct.
I enjoyed this, but even though it was based on a true story, there was nothing fresh.

Deadly Circuit - 1983

Deadly Circuit - 1983 - 6/10
AKA - Mortelle Randonnée / Deadly Run

 
Lonely, aging private detective tracks femme fatale, “Marie.”
One of her many, many aliases.
She has a taste for affluent, single males, who give her expensive gifts before perishing.
While the narrative is compelling, the logic often defies belief.
The detective acts on choices that border on incredulity.
Early on, he realizes she is a serial killer, and an extremely bloody one at that.
Does he notify police?  Well, there would go the whole movie.
The narrative takes several unexpected turns, which kept me engrossed, though I never accepted the detective.
Isabelle Adjani must have had a ball with this role, with the ever shifting disguises and wardrobes.

Bitter Feast - 2010

Bitter Feast - 2010 - 6/10

 
After a harsh review from, get this, a blog, chef Peter Grey loses his own restaurant, and gets canned from his own TV show.
Does he dust himself off, start anew? Nooo! He kidnaps that nasty blogger critic and exacts vengeance.
If you’re so good at criticizing, let’s see if your own efforts match your standards.
Wicked horror tale of retribution against souls who cannot create, who eek a living as professional complainers.
Dark film that grows progressively darker. Early sequence of adolescent violence might upset the squeamish.
Bon appétit.

Puss In Books: Adventures Of The Library Cat - 1997

Puss In Books: Adventures Of The Library Cat - 1997 - 6/10

 
Cat haters, keep away.  Book haters, avoid.
Brief documentary of feline denizens working local libraries.
Rodent control, security patrol, good will ambassador, snoozer.
Twenty or so layabouts are discussed and profiled.
There are also stray human Cassandras who wail about dander and ailurophobia. +

+ Years ago, in my village, Dewey and Deci were given the ole heave ho.
One infrequent patron hollered, and the board ignored over 2000 signatures on the petition who defended the felines.

Cass - 2008

Cass - 2008 - 6/10

 
West Ham supporters, the Inter City Firm, led by boss Cass, strive to be #1 firm during the Thatcher years.
Violence, knifings, shootings, slashings, and the rumble of rival tribes.
Cass differs from other football/hooligan films in that the protagonist is a middle class black youth with a warm home background and loving parents.
Rude language throughout, yet little drug use and no nudity.
Based on Cass Pennant’s memoir, I wonder how much of those elements had been massaged out.