Hotel Monterey - 1972 - USA

Hotel Monterey - 1972 - 6/10 

 
First feature by Chantal Akerman is a slow, unblinking look inside a decaying New York hotel.
Empty hallways, ghostly staircases, flaking basements, mindless elevators.
A few residents are seen, many enfeebled, others lifeless.
Once on the rooftop, Manhattan skyline can be seen, the city rousing to life.
Good pairing with Akerman’s News From Home (1976).
Better, however, might be Nightshift (1981) observing the ennui of the lobby.
Note: In the mid-70’s, I worked graveyard shift in a hotel; Hotel Monterey equates to my memories.

Mad Detective - 2007 - Hong Kong

Mad Detective - 2007 - 6/10 
AKA - San Taam // 神探

 
Bun is highly effective, if highly troubled.
Has the ability to get inside the criminal’s mind, in numerous cases, minds.
Meaning, villains with multiple personalities.
Thing is, he was pretty much flat out nuts.  Once off his meds, even worse.
Uncomfortable Johnnie To vehicle of crime, insanity, and the false narrative. 

Thunderball - 1965 - UK

Thunderball - 1965 - 7/10

 
SPECTRE hijacks a NATO aircraft, seizes two nuclear bombs, and demands ransom.
All 00 agents are activated, with Bond heading to Nassau to investigate the pilot’s sister.
Of course, SPECTRE agents are also there, a mix of useless henchmen and sharks.
Nevertheless, there are two iconic villains in Emilio Largo #2, as well as Fiona Volpe.

 
Awash in style, this is quintessential 007.  Connery’s panache sets a gold standard.
While the impatient may whine during lengthy search sequences, this holds up well.

Checkmate - 2024 - USA

Checkmate - 2024 - 5/10

James works through his grief with a counselor.
Mom had died and the guilt is overpowering.
Brother Nick arrives periodically, and demands a repeat chess match.
Which he wins consistently, all the time berating and belittling James.
For those plagued by pessimism and self hate, this offers a dark corner of pain.

I Cover The Waterfront - 1933 - USA

I Cover The Waterfront - 1933 - 6/10

San Diego reporter Miller has been trying to get the goods on Eli Kirk for years.
Kirk is a lowly fisherman, who has a sideline in smuggling Chinese into the country.
Kirk has an attractive daughter Julie, loyal, optimistic, patch of sunshine in the squalor.

 
Miller, not disclosing who he is, woos her and wins her affection, and trust.
Bleak Pre-Code has problem in that Miller is a classic heel, on par with the reporter in Nothing Sacred.
Smuggler Kirk more sympathetic, protective of his daughter and fishing crew.
Concluding scene defies normal behavior.

Full Metal Jacket - 1987 - USA

Full Metal Jacket - 1987 - 7/10

 
Maggots, excuse me, young men, drafted into Uncle Sam’s Marine Corps.
Enduring the brutally savage gunnery sergeant, Hartman, before being shipped to Vietnam.
Just before the Tet Offensive.
Kubrick’s film is terrifying and polarizing.  The Hartman / Pyle conflict searing.
Perhaps a little lopsided, as boot camp lingers long after the deployment.
Easier Vietnam odyssey than Apocalypse Now, which is richer.

Embassy Of The Free Mind - 2024 - Italy

Embassy Of The Free Mind - 2024 - 6/10

 
Museum of books rare, banned and burned.  Filled with progressive ideas, dangerous ideas.
Manuscripts and books from the 15th century and later.
Mysticism, alchemy, astrology, Kabbalah, Cabbalah, Theosophy, Rosicrucianism, the Illuminati.
Not to overlook the River of Life, tying elements together.

 
The speakers, patrons and curators, are earnest idealists.
Who believe, truly, if we only pursue and connect what bygone “scientists” left unfinished, we might remake the world.
“Why are we here?” “What is the meaning of it all?”
In many ways, I felt sad for them; for me, ours is not the right world for them.
When power is held by tyrants, knaves and the deranged, books are burned and intelligence murdered.
English subs = https://sub-scene.com/subtitle/3371357

Summer - 1968 - France

Summer - 1968 - 6/10
AKA - L'été

 
Experimental film, following Graziella as she isolates herself in the countryside.
Earlier, she had been part of Paris riots of the previous month.
She reflects without explanation.  One senses she may have been traumatized.
More of a mood piece, with little narrative.
Knowledge of May 1968 would be helpful for outsiders.

Heroes Shed No Tears - 1986 - Hong Kong

Heroes Shed No Tears - 1986 - 5/10
AKA - Ying Huhng Mouh Leuih // 英雄無淚

 
The Thai government hires military mercenaries for a dangerous operation.
Kidnap a drug lord, hiding in Vietnam near Laos.
This is during the Vietnam War, mind you.
The mercenaries soon face opposition (and bullets) from all sides.
Early John Woo film suffers from studio meddling and an incoherent script.
Meaningless action aside, oh, what could have been.

Metallica: Some Kind Of Monster - 2004 - USA

Metallica: Some Kind Of Monster - 2004 - 7/10

 
Penetrating documentary of a band in crisis.
Fighting file-sharing, they have alienated fans.
Bassist Newsted quits because he wants to do his own thing.
The remaining trio hire a motivational guy, trying to get them to “open up”.
Uncomfortable and engrossing at the same time.
Whereas other bands might have collapsed, Metallica’s dedication and work ethic was unbreakable.

Gallipoli - 1981 - Australia

Gallipoli - 1981 - 7/10

 
The Great War, Turkey and ally of Germany, proves highly resistant to the allies.
Including the Australian contingent.
Accomplished young runners, Archy and Frank, eager to serve, enlist for the war to end all wars.
Hijinks and exploring, ease the tension for awhile.
Until the unit winds up at the slaughterhouse of the Turkish beaches.
Powerful film should have made Mark Lee a name, that went to costar Mel Gibson.

Portrait Of A Young Girl At The End Of The 60’s In Brussels - 1994 - Belgium

Portrait Of A Young Girl At The End Of The 60’s In Brussels - 1994 - 6/10
AKA - Portrait d'une Jeune Fille de la fin des années 60 à Bruxelles

 
Michele impulsively drops out of high school, telling best friend Danielle.
Roaming the streets, she meets Paul, visiting Brussels from Paris.
They talk, wander about, share stories, but don’t quite bond.
Even though he is doing his military service, both are too young for anything serious.
As far as the 1960’s, forget it.
Music and hairstyles are passable, but the cars, posters, stores, CDs, pedestrians are 1990’s.
English subs = https://sub-scene.com/subtitle/3371356

Axe - 1974 - USA

Axe - 1974 - 5/10
AKA - Lisa, Lisa

After a bloody whack job, three criminals hide out in rural North Carolina.
The house seems deserted, yet within are a strange teenage girl and her paralyzed grandfather.
Our criminals aren’t the most observant, as the house is fairly empty, and there is blood.
The girl, Lisa, well, she’s a female, isn’t she?
And men have needs, even criminals. Like I said, none are exactly observant.
Lisa drifts around, eyes glazed like a somnambulist, drawn to the household axe.