Demon - 2015 - Poland

Demon - 2015 - 6/10
AKA - Dibbuk

 
Python, excuse me, Piotr as he is now, travels to the village of his buddy and his soon-to-be bride, Zaneta.
While helping shift brush with an end loader, Piotr accidentally unearths an unmarked grave.
There is a human skeleton, which he covers up.
Yet the spirit, the soul, emerges, and latches itself – herself – to Piotr.
And the wedding revelries get underway.  Music, alcohol, dancing, alcohol, arguments, alcohol, sex, alcohol.
Only Piotr sees the darkly beautiful wraith, clad in an older style, approaching ever nearer.
The wedding celebrations, evasions and denials, dominate the supernatural elements.
For Americans, there are no explanations.  Only a cryptic history to make your own guess.
English subtitles = https://sub-scene.com/subtitle/3357652

The New Morality - 2015 - USA

The New Morality - 2015 - 6/10

 
Betty, suspicious that her husband might be having an affair, loudly calls the other woman a rude name.
While never quite spoken, let’s say it rhymes with itch.
A scandal in the crusty social set, circa 1911, and slander rears its head.
Both females deploy their husbands as reluctant messengers.
Starchy theatre set aboard a houseboat: cabin below and on deck.
Acid humor, although situations better grasped by those familiar with New Woman feminism.

The Witches - 1966 - UK

The Witches - 1966 - 6/10

Her final experiences in Africa were horrifying.
Tribal uprising led by the witch doctor.
Safely back in England, Gwen lands the job of headmistress in the village school.

 
Where, drip by drip, the locals still believe, still practice, the odd pagan rites.
Almost everyone is close-lipped, yet she sees how the women view the older children.
Obsessively protective, saving them … for what?
Hammer film has good locations, fabulous color, slow buildup.
Finale proves a little too artsy for my liking, however.

3 Bad Men - 1926 - USA

3 Bad Men - 1926 - 6/10

 
The wagon is attacked by a pack of outlaws.
Observing from on high, three desperadoes.  Horse thief, card sharp, murderer.
They arrive too late to save the helpless pioneers, save for the young girl.
Nevertheless, they befriend her, and decide to stick with her for the Dakota Land Rush.
Early John Ford Western shows his liabilities and strengths.
Corny comedy, schmaltz, plodding social values.
Then there are magnificent scenes: the mustering of the rush, the torchlit riders, the siege of innocents.
A film of glorious villains.  The crooked sheriff and his corrupt cronies, and the three “bad men”.

 
The “girl” is a smoldering Olive Borden (distant cousin to Lizzie, really).
Love story is token, although she and O’Brien display fiery chemistry.

Operation Eichmann - 1961 - USA

Operation Eichmann - 1961 - 6/10

 
Four years before Hogan’s Heroes Klemperer and Banner as hardcore Nazis in this.
First thirty minutes features an intense Klemperer, bigger, badder, more powerful than one might suppose.
Browbeating Hoss (Auschwitz), putting Goebbels in his place, going toe to toe with Himmler.
As the war ends, he flees with his mistress to Spain, then the ratlines.
Second half follows the Mossad, and is more angsty.
Creative license throughout; quite topical when was released, the “history” is dubious.
Bizarre watching Klink and Schultz out of character.
English subtitles = https://sub-scene.com/subtitle/3357653

Pinwheel Horizon - 2023 - USA

Pinwheel Horizon - 2023 - 5/10

 
Arid short set on another planet, celebrating purposeless conflict.
The trio march though desert wastes facing one battle after another.
Combat without end, without reason.
Conflicts range from minimal to nonexistent.
English subtitles = https://sub-scene.com/subtitle/3357655

Gold Lust - 1984 - Canada

Gold Lust - 1984 - 7/10

 
Documentary of the Serra Pelada gold field in Brazil.
A nugget was discovered in 1979.  By the time of this film, tens of thousands slaved away.
Yes, gold was found, nuggets 10 lb and heavier.
The open air pit was humongous.  As was the violence, thievery, murder, squalor.
Mud, filth, avarice, delusions, despair.
Narration by Orson Welles.
Doc captures the utter depths of humanity … the potential near-future of civilization.

Up In The Air - 2009 - USA

Up In The Air - 2009 - 6/10

 
Ryan is the corporate axeman.
Companies that don’t have the balls to fire employees, he is called.
Impersonal business, all the way.  It’s a living.
Change is in the air, however.
How about firing employees via voicemail or text (which they now do, bastards).
Ryan argues for the “human touch”, despite his lack of empathy.
Most of this film is spot-on, Clooney sardonic and unforgettable.
Last section gets mushy, loses its spine (and a point from me).
Traveling downsizers, typically loss-prevention agents, NEVER embrace sympathy.

Around The World Under The Sea - 1966 - USA

Around The World Under The Sea - 1966 - 5/10

 
Team of modern Argonauts roam the depths.
Mission: place early warning, earthquake sensors.
Cast of familiar faces struggles with a talky script, and a profound lack of action.
An onboard chess match seems more contentious than aquatic dangers.
The relationships are sheer nonsense, the “science” is comic book.
One watches mostly for Lloyd Bridges and Shirley Eaton, others less remembered.

Murders In Béarn - 2023 - France

Murders In Béarn - 2023 - 6/10
AKA - Meurtres en Béarn

The corpse floats in the river, wearing an amulet of medieval legend.
Oh, and a hand has been chopped off.
Police are assigned, two females who despise each other.

 
Why?  Their children, once married, now divorced.
Whereupon one mother had her son-in-law arrested, imprisoned, his reputation destroyed.
The murder is sorta interesting, but not enough for the film.
Thus, the soap opera dynamics.
Scenery and compositions soar above most of these French mysteries.

In Love With Alma Cogan - 2012 - UK

In Love With Alma Cogan - 2012 - 6/10

 
Despite the title, there ain’t no Alma, unless you count a brief flashback and lingering memory.
No, this is a traditional “theatre in trouble” trope, with the saving “let’s put on a show, gang!”
Typical of local theatre-goers, audiences are oldsters.
There is a clash of new accountancy, and a manager trying to make theatre affordable to everyday Joes.
The film is backstage and backstories.  Grudges, rivalries, loyalties, and the pressure of change.
Really, this is for theatre fans, especially Rep or Regional.

Alma Cogan: The Girl With The Giggle In Her Voice - 1991 - UK

Alma Cogan: The Girl With The Giggle In Her Voice - 1991 - 6/10

 
Alma dominated the English music charts from the mid 1950’s until the 60’s.
Buoyant and radiating optimism, Alma represented a return to joie de vivre following austerity.
With Merseybeat, with the rise of young pop groups, she became passé.
Nicely covers the high points of meteoric British artist, forgotten at home, unknown in the States.
The illness struck suddenly.  She was 34.
Her “giggle” by the way, resembles a squeak (although not as pronounced as Dale Bozzio’s).
Beatles fans, proceed = https://webgrafikk.com/blog/uncategorized/alma-cogan-1932-1966/