The Chaperone - 2018 - USA

The Chaperone - 2018 - 6/10

 
“Inspired by true events”  apropos for a film based on a fiction novel.
1922, Norma offers to chaperone 15 year old Louise Brooks to New York for Denishawn acting tryouts.
Both females are fleeing troubles in Wichita, both find something akin to rebirth.
The film is a character study of Norma Carlisle, so Brooks curiosity seekers be forewarned.
Norma’s story (based on Alice Mills) is pure fabrication, as she encounters 20’s taboos.
As for Louise, dismiss the intro, she was never a major star in the Silent era.
Those were Mary Pickford, Clara Bow, Gloria Swanson, Garbo, Theda.
Louise’s icon status came decades later, although it is now rivals Marilyn and Bettie Page.
For Brooksie, for readers, the Barry Paris biography.
Or 1979 New Yorker interview = https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1979/06/11/louise-brooks-tells-all
Or the Hefner funded documentary, Looking For Lulu.

One California Day - 2007 - USA

One California Day - 2007 - 7/10

Tour through the California surf, from Baja to the North Coast.
Different waves, participants, alternate attitudes.
In Baja, for example, riders prefer the isolation, aloneness, the chance to embrace Nature.
Further north, say Malibu, Orange County or Santa Barbara, surfers deal with the crush.

 
Some scenes witnessed riders shoving other surfers off boards.
Coarseness may contribute, as well as the fact that California is beyond overcrowded.
Music is low-key, and there are nice detours to traditional board makers.
(Professionals now use Thai factories to mass produce their endorsed boards.)
Doc contrasts how the beach was, with how it is today.

Mysterious Intruder - 1946 - USA

Mysterious Intruder - 1946 - 6/10

 
One of the last of the Whistler series is also one of the best.
A mild-mannered, kind-hearted shopkeeper hires a private detective to search for a missing child.
The girl had disappeared sever years earlier, but she has now come into a huge inheritance.
That triggers the PI’s larcenous eye, as he is a rather shadowy spirit.
Soon, there are brooding thugs and impersonators.
The story moves hard, packing in details.  Best, it mirrors the Whistler OTR, loaded with dubious characters.
Jeremy Arnold provides an incisive commentary touching on pre-schlock director William Castle, ex-football alum Dix and MacLane, Charles Lane (character actor with 300+ roles!), not to mention the ill-starred actresses, as well as the mechanics of the B-studio output.

Starship Troopers - 1997 - USA

Starship Troopers - 1997 - 6/10
 

 
Near-future Earth finds itself at War with planet Klendathu.
A few whisper we were the provocateurs, infringing on Klendathu territory.
Hardly cause for them to annihilate a major Earth city!
Patriotism surges, high schoolers enlist, and, whether they remember their training or not, few soldiers survive.
Intense battle sequences coupled with black satire aid this flawed SciFi.

I saw this theatrically and I remember how, at work, we jeered the soap opera romances, clichéd boot camp, and the deadly accuracy of bug farts against the sneering fleet.
Aside from Rasczak and Carl, most characters are ignorant fools, including the top brass.
Still, over the years I’ve rewatched this … what …a dozen times?  More?  The pezhead and his guilty pleasure.
I speed through the Rico-Ibanez-Barcalow twaddle, linger over Dizzy, and ask myself why, oh why, oh why, has no one in the fan-edit world ever given this gem an adult overhaul.

Starship Troopers 2: Hero Federation - 2004 - USA

Starship Troopers 2: Hero Federation - 2004 - 5/10

 
Pale followup to the 1997 flawed original is even more maligned, yet not without interest.
Here, a small Federation detachment is stranded at an abandoned outpost.
Completely surrounded by Klendathu warriors.
Dwindling supplies, armaments, power, food, no hope of reinforcements.
This lacks the budget, scope and characters of the original.
The atmosphere is claustrophobic, and one is left with a gloomy outlook regarding the long outcome of humanity.
In many ways, this is more kindred to Aliens.

EMI: The Inside Story - 2016 - UK

EMI: The Inside Story - 2016 - 6/10

Glib overview that sticks with a few artists, generally one per era.
Oh … Beatles, Pink Floyd, Queen, Sex Pistols, Duran Duran, Kate Bush, Pet Shop Boys, Radiohead.
This also remains on the British side, so don’t expect any US names.
Uncomfortable financial malfeasance unmentioned.
Entertaining, yet the feel of a hearty heigh-ho, pat on the back pervades.
The label itself was pretty much defunct by 2012.

English subs = https://subscene.cam/subtitle/3349450

The Maze - 1983 - UK

The Maze - 1983 - 6/10 

 

Following the war, Arthur and Catherine return to her family home.
The large Victorian estate supposedly is haunted, but it is not.
Catherine is the one haunted by her childhood memories, as well as an incident that occurred during childbirth.
Much of the drama centers around Daisy who persists in playing in the back maze.
Where she defiantly argues she is seeing someone.
Simmering mystery yields broth.

Kafka - 2024 - Germany

Kafka - 2024 - 7/10

 
Inspired construct / retelling of the writer’s personal life, work life, writing, outlook.
Kafka’s domineering family, his circle of friends, suffering women.
Then there are the ever-present men in dark suits or trench coats.
Major works are shown as daydreams or nightmares.

 
Visual style enhances the overall surreal outlook.
Tone at once paranoid, pointless, despairing, and painfully funny.
Kafka is among a select few who realize life is meaningless, with participants the butt of a cosmic joke.

48 Hrs. - 1982 - USA

48 Hrs. - 1982 - 6/10

 
Buddy cop flick finds unorthodox detective paired with temp parolee.
Forty-eight hours to track down and cuff or kill a crime group.
Nick Nolte has the gravitas with the badge, but Eddie Murphy in his film debut is a ball of fire.
Loose, wise-cracking, with terrific lines.  He more than held his own with a very macho cast.
Film, and dialogue, is not remotely “correct” or “woke”.
Nolte and Murphy are terrific, and launched a series of buddy films.

A Great Day In Harlem - 1994 - USA

A Great Day In Harlem - 1994 - 7/10

 
In 1957, Esquire magazine ran a Jazz series: the inexperienced writer wanted a photo of the leading musicians.
A veteran would have shrugged, “That ain’t gonna happen.”
Nevertheless, through persistence, naiveté, and sheer good luck, an image was taken in dawn hours.
Engrossing documentary told from the creators, and from surviving artists.
Talking about the day, fellow musicians, influences, styles.
This makes an essential primer and introduction to classic Jazz, the 50’s.
An acclaimed Jazz documentary came out in 2001, although it gave short shrift to this era
Numerous “Great Day In –-” followed.  This is the one.

Crisis In Six Scenes - 2016 - USA

Crisis In Six Scenes - 2016 - 6/10  

 
Late 1960’s, a free-spirited radical invades the home of her quasi-aunt and husband, straitlaced middle-class types.
Lenny (a good Miley Cyrus in a one note role) is on the run following a bombing and shootouts.
She is opposed to all isms save for the utopian Communism.
Woody Allen’s foray into a series has its moments and gags, but often treads water.
Aside from fashion models, most 60’s agitators were more scruffy.  Lenny is Hollywood.
Best episodes are the first and last (homage to A Night At The Opera).
Historical references seem like cliches, plus a lot of characters for six half hour episodes.
Not as bad as the Allen or Cyrus hate legions decry.

Subspecies - 1991 - Romania

Subspecies - 1991 - 5/10

 
Three college girls (two Americans, one local) investigate folk culture in Romania.
Where in Romania?  Transylvania.
And yes, vampires do exist, friend.  In this case, two rivals, brothers.
The “good vampire” is magazine handsome and has his eye on one of the girls.
The “evil vampire”, Radu, seems a descendant of Murnau’s Nosferatu, and has his eye on world domination.
Straight off, I root for the baddie.
Location filming in Romania is the best thing here.  Script likely penned by a fanboy reading issues of Forrest Ackerman’s “Famous Monsters”.
3-4 sequels expand this Full Moon vampire saga.

Love In The Afternoon - 1971 - France

Love In The Afternoon - 1971 - 6/10
AKA - L'amour l'après-Midi  //  Chloe in the Afternoon

 
Despite a pleasant marriage, Frédéric has a wandering eye.
He sizes up women on the street, in shops and cafes, on trains.
Are they single?  Intelligent?  Lonely, adventurous, stimulating?
Frédéric seems too young for a mid-life crisis; perhaps it is malaise.
Enter Chloe, ex-girlfriend of one of his old buddies.
Scornful, needy, dismissive, more than a little toxic.
Nevertheless, Frédéric sets aside afternoons to listen to her talk, or to assist in problems.
At once, the story goes “nowhere”, yet shows how slippery are morals, ethics and vows.

Kainer Dies Here Today - 2021 - Germany

Kainer Dies Here Today - 2021 - 6/10
AKA - Heute Stirbt Hier Kainer

The brain scan explained the increasing fainting spells.
No cure, his time is running out.
Ulrich heads off to the country, disembarking at random, for a peaceful place to kill himself.

 
Unfortunately, the sticks prove to be rotten: deadly business rivals, young punks, crooked police.
Drunken oldsters concoct a rumor that Ulrich is a Mafia hitman.
Even the craziest rumors often bear an inkling of the truth.
Droll German comedy, with explosive violence ever simmering.

Last Looks - 2021 - USA

Last Looks - 2021 - 6/10

 
After a TV star is accused of murdering his wife, the studio exec lures a disgraced cop out of retirement.
The PI is not really interested, until various factions violently order him to stay away.
The alcoholic star, played with boozy perfection by Mel Gibson, is a fallen Shakespearean.
Shyster lawyers, femme fatales, Chicken, vindictive cops, Inuits, more …
This is one shaggy dog yarn, prepare to hold on.
Light-hearted mystery with an edge.
Some have commented on a Chinatown vibe.  For me, Big Lebowski.

The Forger Of London - 1961 - Germany

The Forger Of London - 1961 - 6/10
AKA - Der Fälscher von London

 
His father was insane, a murderer.  What if he inherited –– What’s that sound?
Jane marries the wealthy Peter who suffers from amnesia and missing time.
Nonetheless, he is rich.  Money smooths problems, such as the occasional corpse.
At the same time, counterfeit bills are flooding various countries.
Suspect #1?  You got it, wealthy playboy, AKA who am I again?

 
Krimi based on Edgar Wallace novel moves briskly.
Superb use of lighting, possibly too many characters (more dead bodies).
None of the camp or comedy that hampered latter Krimi.

Pink Floyd: The Making Of Dark Side Of The Moon - 2003 - USA

Pink Floyd: The Making Of Dark Side Of The Moon - 2003 - 6/10

 
Entertaining, generally informative documentary of the genesis and creation of the classic album.
Aside from band members, talking heads include engineer Alan Parsons and influential critics.
Band members are interviewed separately and are civil toward each other.
This album, they regard as their finest moment as a unit.
Subsequent problems that would wedge the group are merely alluded to.
All members in 2003 are alive, lucid, although some recollections vary.
The techniques were so very old school, no computer software in 1973.
Not necessarily essential, yet fascinating for fans of the group.

Untamed Mistress - 1956 - USA

Untamed Mistress - 1956 - 3/10

 
In India, two white hunters listen to a dying maharajah talk of a strange tribe.
Gorillas, who kidnap women.  White women.
Scene shift, and they are in Africa (elephants, lions, giraffe) where they meet the well dressed, well fed, Velda.
Painful adventure film sees our crew wander sets then gape at footage of wild Africa.
And yes, there are gorillas.  They stalk, they fight, they dance.
They kill.  What’s theirs stays theirs.
Spectacularly bad.

Workers Or Shirkers: Victorian Benefits - 2019 - UK

Workers Or Shirkers: Victorian Benefits - 2019 - 6/10

 
Things never change.  You want to aid the less fortunate, those down on their luck, the injured.
The lazy, the idlers, the spongers, the loafers?  Not so much.
Traces the earliest solutions, devised by those ever-industrious Victorians.
From the workhouse, to unemployment benefits.
Until the government money begins to tap out.
Then the rabble hear a posh phrase – austerity measures.
Even today, no easy solutions, perhaps no solutions.

Hotel Europa - 2021 - Germany

Hotel Europa - 2021 - 6/10
AKA - Das Weiße Haus am Rhein

 
Emil returns to Germany after World War I, carrying a dark secret.
The victorious French have requisitioned the family Dreesen Hotel, yet Emil is able to broker a deal allowing the family and staff to remain, giving the French commanders luxury service.
The hotel is struggling, although Emil has new ideas, bold concepts, at odds with traditions.
Two-part series goes from 1918-1938, an era of uneasy peace, building to war.
No dates are mentioned, so those with a knowledge of history and events might fare better.
Dignitaries include Charlie Chaplin and Adolf Hitler, both of whom actually stayed in the hotel.
The “events” are eerily accurate, family dramas – who knows.

Here Be Monsters - 2023 - USA

Here Be Monsters - 2023 - 6/10

 
Most people would not call us hunters, but monsters.
Over white wine and barbequed meat, the girls discuss reasons why they do what they do.
Or should not do.  Olivia wants to abandon the long practice of sourcing their own meat.
Luna disagrees, no matter that the last meal was only nine years old.
Disturbing horror, set in wooded Los Angeles (Mulholland?).

Cocaine Fiends - 1936 - USA

Cocaine Fiends - 1936 - 4/10

 
Small town Jane flees to the bright lights, meets Nick who gives her “headache powder”.
Soon hooked, and with few prospects, Jane finds illegal work.
Brother Eddie soon arrives, hunting his wayward sister.
Another of Life’s suckers, he’s soon on the powder himself.
Preachy melodrama, often shown in tandem with Reefer Madness, a better, and campier, film.
Actually, this is a remake of The Pace That Kills (1927), likewise more energetic and fun.
Watch if you must, but this is dull and dreary.
Hey, kids!  Try this, instead,

 

Glory - 1989 - USA

Glory - 1989 - 7/10

 
During America’s Civil War, Massachusetts forms a regiment of black volunteers.
Training, drilling, facing the same discrimination as before.
Yes, the narrative goes into that, but this is a war film, with a lot of action.
The cast is exceptional
While historical accuracy is a bit suspect, the historical elements ring true.
Characters, motivations, prevailing attitudes.
Somewhat ignored during its release, and awards were spotty, this has aged well.

Uncle Vanya - 2024 - UK

Uncle Vanya - 2024 - 7/10

 
Vanya and his niece have managed the large rural estate for years.
The money flowing to his brother-in-law, The Professor, a pompous, untalented scholar.
Forcibly retired, the penniless sponger arrives with a much younger trophy wife.
Insists on changes to the daily routine to suit his predilections.
Meanwhile, the trophy wife catches the eye of menfolk.
Chekhov’s play skews class and education, industry and indolence.
Well acted, although like “Hamlet” I have never warmed to this play.
Others laughed throughout.
Acquired taste.

Mark Strikes Again - 1976 - Italy

Mark Strikes Again - 1976 - 6/10
AKA - Mark Colpisce Ancora

 
Detective Mark works undercover in the plaza, catching petty drug dealers and small thieves.
By chance, he is drawn into a team of terrorists, specialty – assassination.
Italian police brass approve, as does Interpol, who wants Mark to gain trust and find the leaders.
Euro-crime flick dashes along with shootings, bombings, betrayals.
Surprisingly, things misfire from time to time, like when street thieves snatch a purse carrying a bomb.
Franco Gasparri exudes breezy charm, and he is not one of those unstoppable killing machines.
Alas, this was to be his last film.