Sorry, Wrong Number (1948)

The brilliant Barbara Stanwyck elevates this pretty average thriller into something actually worth watching.

Alright, y'all, here it is, Sorry, Wrong Number. It stars Barbara Stanwyck (obviously) as Leona Stevenson, the invalid wife of Henry Stevenson (Burt Lancaster). One night, Leona is all alone, her husband is late so Leona tries to find out where he is. Her only means of communication is the telephone, so while waiting for her call to be connected to her husband's office, the wires are crossed and she overhears two men planning the murder of a woman. As the film progresses, we learn that Leona doesn't know quite as much about Henry as she thought, and that the murder being planned may be her own.

Now, that doesn't sound too bad, right? Well it's not, but the main problem with the film arises out of its narrative structure. You see, a great deal of the film consists of flashbacks, as Leona calls person after person hoping to find her husband and we get scenes of what someone observed about Henry the previous day or something like that. Also, we get the story of how Leona and Henry met, as well as the current state of their marriage. We learn that Leona stole Henry from a woman who loved him, and that Leona is a spoiled heiress to her father's prescription drug fortune, we also learn that Henry is frustrated with Leona, having to keep her happy to avoid upsetting her condition, which consists of a heart attack during times of stress.

The flashbacks are a nice way to flesh out the backstory of the film, but it takes away from the suspense, especially since most of the flashbacks concern themselves with the condition of the Stevenson marriage as opposed to the murder plot that Leona overhears, which seemed to be a higher storytelling priority, at least to me.

Luckily, we have Barbara Stanwyck in the lead. She delivers a wonderful performances, making Leona horrible and spoiled in the flashbacks, but adding levels of vulnerability and sorrow during the present, where the life she had constructed for herself falls down around her. She makes the character paranoia and fear totally real, which makes it easy to relate to her and to care about whether or not she survives the film.

Aside from that, the film is a solid thriller with a big hiccup in the story telling department due to the overabuse of flashbacks. But it features one of Barbara Stanwyck's best (and Oscar nominated) performances, which makes it watching simply for that.

The Dark Knight (2008)

That's right readers, I'm tackling a new movie, and a giant, huge, money-making blockbuster at that (I have to do something to please the kids, right?).

Anyway, here we have The Dark Knight, the massive hit from last summer, featuring the last completed performance by Heath Ledger, for which he earned his only Oscar.

The film follows Batman/Bruce Wayne as he deals with the higher-ups of the crime world, who are now being led by a mysterious figure known as The Joker (Heath Ledger). He's also dealing with his former flame Rachel (Maggie Gyllenhaal)'s new relationship with crusading DA Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart).

The plot is easily one of the weakest aspects of the movie. Not because it's poorly constructed, but because the overall plot of The Joker is so convoluted, requiring him to have almost-psychic level powers to accomplish what he wants. Now, I know he's supposed to be a master planner, but he performs some actions that would have completely nullified his future plans if Batman hadn't intervened at exactly the right moment. At the time you're watching, this doesn't present itself as an issue, but upon 2 rewatches, you begin to question the structure of the plot and it eventually unravels.

Not to say that the plot ruins the film, it's still good, but it makes the film a bit hard to rewatch.

As for the acting, everyone involved gives great performances, with the obvious standout being Heath Ledger, who totally immerses himself in the role of an enigmatic killer who only desires to create chaos to create chaos, hoping to prove a point that everyone is like him deep down inside, they just need a push. Aaron Eckhart was mostly ignored for his performance as Harvey Dent, which is a bit sad, because he does deliver a much more subtle performance (but no less powerful) than Ledger, having to create a moral man fighting in an amoral world that doesn't fight fair.

The film deals a lot with this idea of order versus chaos. And the question is raised if Batman can truly protect people by limiting himself by certain rules (No killing being the chief one), it brings an interesting question regarding vigilantism and how low are people willing to sink in order to actually do good.

It's that regard that elevates The Dark Knight above standard action fare, it's an intelligent, but still entertaining examination of a moral question that a lot of people pose in post 9/11 America.

That said, director Christopher Nolan does a brilliant job of keeping our interest, and the action sequences are wonderful to behold. As I said, the main issue with the film is the actual plot, but besides that, it's an entertaining ride with some actual brains behind it.

The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975)

First off, I know that I'm a bad. bad, blog writer. But if you'll forgive me, loyal readers, I had a doggy emergency that's kept me busy and frazzled the last few days. I'll try to be good, I promise I will.

Anyway, here is my much belated Halloween entry, The Rocky Horror Picture Show. It's easily one of the oddest (and possibly gayest) movies I've ever seen, so much so that it spawned a cinematic movement of audience participation.

It's hard to actually evaluate this as a film, since a showing of The Rocky Horror Picture Show has since become an event, something you are part of as opposed to something you view. But anyway, the film follows two straight-laced kids Brad (Barry Bostwick) and Janet (Susan Sarandon), who have the misfortune of having their car break down in front of the castle of Dr. Frank-N-Furter (Tim Curry), a pansexual transvestite from the planet of Transsexual Transylvania, who is unveiling his createst creation, a blond muscular man named Rocky who is essentially a love toy for the hedonistic professor. Mayhem, sex, and cross-dressing ensue into one crazy homage to the B-horror and sci-fi RKO films of yesteryear.

Performance wise, everyone is pretty competent, there's not real Oscar level acting on the part of the main cast, except for maybe Mr. Curry. But let's face it, Tim Curry is the main reason to see this film (though the songs are pretty catchy), he just seems to be having a total ball playing one of the oddest cinematic creations in history. He's funny, over-the-top, and generally brilliant, and it's hard to look away, even if he's in full on drag for the entire movie.

But really, this is The Rocky Horror Picture Show, I'm talking about. It's risen above any sort of real criticism and has become something to be experienced. Really, regardless of what I say, everyone should see this film. See it to love it, see it to hate it, see it to be offended. It's so out-there, and so bizarre, yet so fun that it's hard to tell anyone to avoid it. You really need to just see it for yourself.

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958)

I apologize for being so lazy, dear readers, but school was particularly hectic last week, between two tests and the sudden revelation by a professor that I had to write a 10-15 page paper in a week (There was no procrastination on my part, just so you know).

Anyway, here is Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, the Tennessee Williams classic about lust and love. The film stars Paul Newman as Brick,a former high school football star who is a bit too fond of the bottle, and breaks his leg one night after attempting to jump some hurdles while drunk. Brick and his wife Maggie (Elizabeth Taylor) are in Mississippi, visiting Brick's parents because of his father, Big Daddy's birthday. Unknown to Big Daddy, he is dying of cancer, and the birthday festivities, Brick's alcoholism, and the scheming of Brick's brother and sister-in-law to ensure a large chuck of the inheritance once Big Daddy dies brings to light the issue plaguing the family and the marriage of Brick and Maggie.

The acting in the film is phenomenal. I know it's a crime, but this is the only Paul Newman film I've seen, and he's amazing in it, portraying a deep level of bitterness and hurt over his upbringing, which focused more on being spoiled as opposed to being loved. Elizabeth Taylor is also in fine form, showing a woman who is madly in love with a man who is repulsed by her. Burl Ives, who plays Big Daddy is just as good as the leads, he is larger than life and shows the strength and cunning that made Big Daddy the success he is today.

The film largely plays on the theme of truth and lies, mainly in the context of the lies we construct around ourselves in order to function, so that we don't have to face certain truths of our lives. That it's someone's fault that we're so messed up, or that deep down, someone really loves us. It's heartbreaking to see these various lies shatter upon the heads of the characters, leaving them to face the stark reality of the state they're in and the choices they've made.

It's a brilliant film that I completely recommend.

Murder on the Orient Express (1974)

As a die-hard Agatha Christie fan, I was somewhat apprehensive about watching a film adaptation of one of her most famous novels, but luckily, the film is pretty good.

The film (like most mysteries) features a group of strangers on board the Orient Express, a luxury train traveling through Europe and Asia. When one passenger is murdered during the night, famed detective Hercule Poirot (Albert Finney) must solve the case. Of the suspects, we have a Count (Michael York) and his wife (Jacqueline Bisset), a British Colonel (Sean Connery), an annoying American tourist (Lauren Bacall), a missionary (Ingrid Bergman), a timid secretary (Anthony Perkins), and a Russian princess (Wendy Hiller). As you can see, the cast is pretty star-studded.

The film is a lavish production, with wonderful settings and costumes, with adds to the elegance of the whole film, and the direction by Sidney Lumet is tight and slightly claustrophobic, which it should be.

As for the acting, the cast is universally steller, even if some roles are a bit miscast. Lauren Bacall, I love her to death, but she doesn't really fit the frumpy, irritating character described in the books. She seems more like a cool older lady who you want to hang out with. But luckily, Albert Finney is insanely good as Poirot, completely and totally nailing his odd quirks, the body language, his humor, his slight arrogance, as well as his mental brilliance. It's a wonderful performance that was justified in its Oscar nomination.

Ingrid Bergman actually won an Oscar for her role, which really only consists of one brief minute scene, but she totally owns it, creating a character who is scared, saddened, and slightly coming undone due to her surroundings.

The film takes some liberties with the book (some character's roles are shortened to only a few lines), and the overall mystery is a bit easier to figure out, but the film is a lavish production of one of the greatest mysteries of all-time with a wonderful cast. So what's not to love?

Paper Moon (1973)

A wonderful homage to depression-era films featuring a brilliant (and historical Oscar-winning performance) but Tatum O'Neal.

Moses Pray (Ryan O'Neal) is a conman who travels the country, deceiving people out of their money (which is kinda mean, since it's the depression). Anyway, the film begins at the funeral of Addie Loggins' (Tatum O'Neal) mother, a woman who wasn't exactly chaste. This woman once had an affair with Moses, so it's possible that the young girl is his daughter. He is charged with taking Addie to live with her aunt, and along the way finds the man who hit Addie's mother with his car and cons him out of $200, claiming that it belongs to the young girl. Thus, Addie claims that Moses owes her $200 and refuses to leave him, and the two become partners, conning people along their road trip.

The plot of the film is essentially three different "episodes", the forming of their partnership, the disruption of their partnership by the inclusion of Miss Trixie Delight (Madeline Kahn), a "Harem Dancer" Moses picks up at a fair, and then a con involving a bootlegger in which Addie and Moses may be in over their heads.

The film itself is really good, but the best thing about it is the young Tatum O'Neal as Addie. The character is almost like the anti-child character, because she's like a child. She's not a miniature adult like we see in a lot of films, she's just a normal kid. And O'Neal brings a great deal of cleverness as well as hurt to the performance, creating a fully realized character where there might not have been one in the screenplay, commanding the screen and overshadowing her father.

Another standout is the ever-brilliant Madeline Kahn as Trixie Delight (she also received an Oscar nomination). Like O'Neal, she creates a detailed character in what could have been a one joke role. Trixie is obnoxious, constantly needing to pull over to "go Winky-Tinky", and calling Moses "daddy". But there's one scene that suggests that she hasn't had the easiest life, and Kahn pulls it off without any sort of falseness about it.

Ryan O'Neal is good as well, making Moses a charming, yet slightly slimy character, and he also portrays his budding friendship with Addie quite well. They never become buddy-buddy, instead they rely on each other, and trust each other enough to perform cons together.

The script is sharp and funny, smartly diving the film into 3 different stories to avoid the overall idea of the film from becoming stale of tired. The direction is great as well, with Peter Bogdanovich using a lot of one-take tracking shots and stark black and white cinematography.

This is a great film, one that I've seen several times now, and I can't see myself growing tired of it any time soon.

The Village (2004)

Ok, for the most part, I've been pretty safe in my movie choices and what I say about them, so I figured it's time to insert a bit of controversy (though, it's kinda mild) into the mix.

I hate The Village.

Granted, this opinion isn't exactly a rebellious one (one look at the Rottentomatoes rating for this film actually puts me in the majority), but I cannot help it.

The film is about a small, 1800's town in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by dark and scary woods, which are said to be inhabited by "Those We Don't Speak Of", who might possibly be a relation to He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named and He Who Walks Behind The Rows. Those We Don't Speak of Are Monsters who live in the woods as some sort of bargain between the villagers. They stay out of the woods, and they will stay out of the town.

Living in the town is Ivy Walker (Bryce Dallas Howard), a blind girl who is in love with Lucius Fox (Joaquin Phoenix), and the film essentially follows their romance as well as the events that lead to Ivy being forced to venture into the woods if she wishes to save the man she loves.

The film itself looks beautiful and the direction is varied and interesting, which is about the only positive things in this film. The acting is generally somber and joyless, everyone seems to have just walked away from a funeral and are incapable of expressing anything other than solemnity. Bryce Dallas Howard is able to inject some sunshine into her role, but everyone else seems so tired and sad.

Plus, the film makes an unforgivable mistake, it lies to you. Now, given that Shyamalan is known for his twists, you're going to expect one in this film, but the problem is that we are instantly established with one fact only to be told otherwise later. I know that there could be an argument made on this, but I'm standing firm. This film lies to you, which is a massive no-no.

In addition, the plot is just dull. Ivy essentally bullies Lucius until he makes some out-of-breath confession of love and instantly we're supposed to care about what happens to these two young'uns, when I didn't give a flying fig. And don't get me started on Adrian Brody as a mentally retarded man, because it's just all kind of ridiculous.

Really, I hate this film. It's so dull, lacking in anything that created a spark of interest inside me, and the film's lie to support its twist pushed it into full blown hatred. It's poorly acted, melodramatic, and franky awful. Don't watch it kids.