Bad Girl - 1931 - USA

Bad Girl - 1931 - 5/10

 
Kitchen sink schmaltz of two working class stiffs with zero communication skills.
First meeting is hardly meet-cute, and the progression into marriage seems madness.
Over and over, they miss cues and generally misunderstand the other.
Understandable if there was a torrid romance before the menfolk shipped off to war.
The aftermath of those marriages turned into Noir murders.
Anyway, Dorothy is “bad” with Eddie for one night, which is enough to get knocked up.
Eddie, wildly acclaimed on release, grated on me throughout.

Yellow Face - 2025 - USA

Yellow Face - 2025 - 7/10

 
Meaning, the practice of having Caucasian actors portray Asians in film and theatre.
Similar to blackface, now considered racist and taboo.
Playwright Daniel Dae Kim protests the casting of Jonathan Pryce in “Miss Saigon”.
Unfortunately, he later casts a “white” actor in his next work “Face Value”.
Didn’t know, thought he was part Asian, oh, the explanations
Theatre comedy skewing race, casting, critics, audiences, government agents.
As funny as this is, I suspect righteous posturing will grow ever more imperious over time.
English subs = https://sub-scene.com/subtitle/3366205

Be Natural: Untold Story Of Alice Guy-Blaché - 2018 - USA

Be Natural: Untold Story Of Alice Guy-Blaché - 2018 - 7/10

 
Outstanding documentary / detective work of Alice Guy, pioneer filmmaker for Gaumont.
Producers belabor the notion that Guy has been unfairly forgotten.
Hardly.  Silent era fans know of her and of her few surviving works.
That is the part of the problem for modern audiences.  So much has dissolved, burned, or vanished.
Plus, the earliest films were shorts, and modern viewers favor features.
However, and this is a fair point, after the Silent era women were flat out booted from director chairs.
This delves deep into her productive years, and will be essential for Silent fans.
Looks like the last Hugh Hefner documentary of the Silent era.
English subs = https://sub-scene.com/subtitle/3366204

Noroi - 2005 - Japan

Noroi - 2005 - 6/10
AKA - The Curse // ノロイ

 
Hearing rumors of odd deaths involving a strange women and her mute son, a researcher begins to investigate.
Which leads him into a maze of modern Tokyo, secluded villages, and events 200 years ago.
Clues include demon Kagutaba, the gathering of sorcerers, the rising waters of the dam.
A strong plot aids this one.  One must pay attention as incidents tend to reecho in proceedings.
The camera work is atrocious.  Yes, this is a “found footage” doc, but this is excessive.
In many ways, better than Occult (2009), save for the over-the-top shaky cam and damage.
One Cut Of The Dead (2017) is also worth seeking out and much more fun.
Noroi memorable, depending on your tolerance for cinéma vérité and aluminum foil.