Last Seen Movie - The Latest Movie You Have Seen; ratings

[Reza]

Secret Mission (Harold French, 1942) 6/10

Solid but typical WWII cloak and dagger thriller (from an original story by Terence Young who decades later would helm three of the best early Bond films) about an undercover mission by British agents (Hugh Williams, Roland Culver) and a frenchman (James Mason) who are witty, flippant and cool and easily manage to pull the wool over the eyes of the Germans most of whom are shown as buffoons. After infiltrating a German military base they walk off with their attack plans. Not to be taken seriously this comedy-drama - Michael Wilding provides the low-brow comedy - is not without interest. Minor fluff with an early and very dashing appearance by Stewart Granger as the Captain of a submarine.

[Reza]

Sleepless (Brian Bo Odar, 2017) 2/10

An undercover cop (Jamie Foxx) gets in over his head after a drug bust when his partner keeps the mob's stash and they kidnap his son in retaliation. Also following him is a cop (Michelle Monaghan wasted in a thankless role) from Internal Affairs who thinks he is upto no good. It's like a bad french farce and instead of people barging into each other's rooms banging doors this has assorted goons and cops chasing a bag full of heroin with periodic breaks for fisticuffs or stabbings or shootouts. This sort of stale cop vs drugs vs the mob scenario quickly became passé soon after the trend of buddy cop thrillers first emerged during the 1980s. What is most shocking though is to see a former Oscar winner like Jamie Foxx reduced to a film of this caliber. His career is pretty much the pits and has been for some years now notwithstanding that starring role in the Tarantino some years ago.

[Reza]

The Godfather (Francis Ford Coppola, 1972) 10/10

Coppola takes what is basically a pulp novel (by Mario Puzo) and manages to create endless iconic images adapted from its pages in this story of a mafia family. The film has rightly earned its place as one of the best gangster movies of all time with all praise going to the director who managed this feat despite a troubled production where he was under constant threat of getting fired by Paramount executives. The opening wedding sequence sets the pace early on by introducing all the main characters - played by Brando, Pacino, Caan, Duvall, Cazale, Castellano, Keaton, Shire, Conte - as the camera catches them interacting with each other. The deliberate languid pace of the film contrasts shockingly with each violent sequence which is thrust suddenly onto the audience - the horse's head in the movie mogul's (John Marley) bed, the shooting of Don Corleone on the street as he is buying fruit, Michael assassinating the police chief (Sterling Hayden), Connie getting beaten up by her husband followed by Sonny beating him in anger, the sudden shootout at the toll booth and the long romantic sequence set in Sicily which also ends in violence. The film's production team won equal praise and like the actors became household names - Gordon Willis on camera, the sets by Dean Tavoularis, the score by Nino Rota and the costumes by Anna Hill Johnston. The remarkable use of crosscutting in the scenes between a religious ritual and bloody massacre all added up to make this a memorable experience. A classic film and a must see.

[Reza]

My Cousin Rachel (Henry Koster, 1952) 8/10

Waves crashing on rocks under giant cliffs with a brooding man standing high above and watching. A memorable scene from Daphne du Maurier's Cornwall set romantic mystery novel is transposed onto the film version. This dark old fashioned story gets an intelligent well crafted screenplay with Richard Burton making his intense Hollywood debut. Nobody could brood better than Burton (he could have been a superb Heathcliff) who here captures the character of a man whose mood swings involve going from intense hatred to soft eyed infatuation to passionate love to desperate disappointment. The gothic elements in the story make for a pretty wild ride as human emotions ricochet. The mystery surrounds the death of a rich landowner who on a trip to Florence gets married just before he dies. His nephew (Richard Burton) is devastated and angry at the widow (Olivia de Havilland) who he blames for his Uncle's death. When she arrives in Cornwall as his guest he finds himself desperately falling in love with the older woman. The story hinges on the tension between the infatuated young man and the older woman who happens to be looking out for her own interests. The film has topnotch production values - stunning cinematography (Joseph LaShelle), sets (Lyle Wheeler), costume design (Dorothy Jeakins) and score (Franz Waxman). The film's success rests on the two stars and they play off each other with superb tension. They have great chemistry although supposedly they did not get along off camera. Burton is mesmerizing - his distinct voice, diction and the way he carries himself. It's a star making performance and he was richly rewarded with an Oscar nomination albeit in the supporting category even though he is clearly the lead - the studio billed him below the title allowing de Havilland sole star billing. The film can be counted as one of the great romantic fioms from Hollywood's golden past. Although one that does not play according to convention due to the mystery surrounding the female character's intentions which remain a mystery to the end.

[Reza]

The Greengage Summer / Loss of Innocence (Lewis Gilbert, 1961) 9/10

Lyrical adaptation of Rumer Godden's coming of age drama set in the Champagne district of France. A young girl (Susannah York) and her three siblings (Jane Asher is one) get stranded at a french countryside hotel when their mother is suddenly taken ill while on vacation. A middle-aged Englishman (Kenneth More) becomes their unofficial guardian after he persuades his mistress (Danielle Darrieux) - the hotel owner - to allow them to stay while their mother is in hospital. Lazy days of pleasurable picnics and roaming the local medieval town follow with the young girl getting infatuated with the man as he shows her attention. Matters come to a head when the man's mistress throws a jealous fit over the girl and in turn has to deal with the jealousy of her lesbian business partner and former lover (Claude Nollier). The idyllic time comes to a crashing end with the discovery of the man's criminal past and a night of drunkeness resulting in near rape and death involving one of the young servants at the hotel. Childish dreams are shattered as life's ugly realities are sharply brought to the front. This was York's breakthrough role as an adult and she gives a luminous performance capturing the character's vulnerability who in the space of one summer goes from being a shy young girl to becoming a young woman who discovers love and responsibility. The screenplay manages to avoid any awkwardness involving the girl's relationship with the older man. The film is beautifully shot on location by the great Freddie Fields and the lovely score with it's haunting melody is by Richard Addinsell. A must-see.

[Reza]

Dunkirk (Leslie Norman, 1958) 7/10

An account of the evacuation of over half a million French and British soldiers from the beaches at Dunkirk near the start of WWII as the German Blitzkreig seemed unstoppable. The screenplay covers the events through three individuals - a corporal (John Mills) who finds himself leading a few soldiers who are separated from their unit, a cowardly munitions factory owner (Richard Attenborough) who is a war profiteer and a journalist (Bernard Lee) - who all find themselves on the beach at Dunkirk. Surprisingly the film is free of heroics and flag waving and instead presents the events of the war in all it's painful fury full of confusion and death. Despite an obviously limited budget the film manages to have an epic feel with the camera sweeping across capturing the battles on land, sea and the beaches. Hollywood is gearing up to present a big budget version of these events in 2017 in a film similarly named and directed by Christopher Nolan.

[Reza]

Two Years Before the Mast (John Farrow, 1946) 7/10

The classic 19th century seafaring novel by Richard Henry Dana gets an old fashioned rousing treatment by John Farrow. The novel exposed the barbaric conditions during long voyages captained by cruel men - here Howard Da Silva gives Captain Bligh of "Bounty" fame a run for the money although plays the part with a calm and dead-pan demeanor. The story is about the voyage of the "Pilgrim" - a U.S. Merchant Marine ship - from Boston to Cape Horn and onto San Francisco with the author (Brian Donlevy) on board incognito to find why his brother died on the same ship during a previous voyage. Also on board is the playboy son (Alan Ladd) of the ship's owner who gets shanghaied on board and lives to see first hand the cruelty on board - floggings, starvation, torture, death - and leads a mutiny against the evil Captain. The superb supporting cast - William Bendix, Barry Fitzgerald, Albert Dekker - play assorted colorful crew members. The resulting trial after the mutiny resulted Congress ensuring better conditions for sailors.

[Reza]

Black Widow (Nunnally Johnson, 1954) 7/10

The film has a whiff of Mankiewicz's "All About Eve" in that it's set amongst the sophisticated Broadway lot - a famous producer (Van Heflin), his star-actress wife (Gene Tierney) and the bitchy and gossipy star (Ginger Rogers) in his play who is married to a mousy man (Reginald Gardiner). However, the resemblance ends there as the plot veers off into B-movie territory and becomes a whodunnit with a young girl's (Peggy Ann Garner) death by hanging. She kills herself in the producer's condo and suspicion falls on him when the cop (George Raft) on the case says it's murder. Glossy film shot in cinemascope - the scenes are mainly set inside apartments making the action seem like a stage play. It's all quite second rate but the starry cast is game with Heflin the perfect noir hero getting deeper and deeper into a mess as he starts looking for answers. Rogers has a small part although top billed and has a field day sashaying around being a total bitch. Tierney is merely required to look lovely as she briefly drifts in and out of scenes - the actress was unwell at the time and on medication which would a little later stall her career due to suicidal depression. Garner, the lovely child-star from the 1940s, playing the moody femme fatale is made up to look like Anne Baxter's conniving "Eve" is quite good although her adult career never took off.

[Reza]

The Man Who Finally Died (Quentin Lawrence, 1963) 5/10

A mystery whodunnit begins well but quickly disolves into a mess with far too many red herrings and characters not making any sense. Stanley Baker sails through it all, very Bond-like, looking cool wearing dark shades throughout. He is summoned to Europe by a mysterious voice on a phone who claims to be his father. Upon arrival he discovers the man died and has been buried. The problem for him is that his father had died twenty years before and all his efforts at trying to find out about the recently deceased person are thwarted by a motley lot - the man's widow (Mai Zetterling who is wasted in a nothing role), a slimy doctor (Peter Cushing), the vicious Inspector of police (Eric Portman) and his sergeant (Nigel Green). The initial intrigue and suspense quickly gives way to confusion with a score that emphasises every melodramatic moment. The cast is excellent though and the film's crisp black and white cinematography is outstanding.

[Reza]

Hamari Adhuri Kahani / Our Incomplete Story (Mohit Suri, 2015) 2/10

Old fashioned, corny film has a lousy screenplay (by Mahesh Bhatt of all people) that seems to have inspired Vidya Balan to give a bad performance. An acclaimed actress who never took a wrong career move is forced here to play a character who is not only stupid but she gives an incredibly amateurish performance. She is not helped by her wooden co-star, Emraan Hashmi, whose expressionless mannequin stance throughout is annoying to say the least. A sad, single mother (Vidya Balan) is given a job by a rich hotel owner (Emraan Hashmi). She has led a difficult life raising her son when her husband (a miscast Rajkummar Rao) mysteriously walked out on them. Just when her life is getting better and she is starting to fall in love with her rich employer, who happens to be obsessed with her, the wayward husband returns into her life with a price on his head for being a terrorist. Archaic cheesy dialogue is delivered by the actors, their eyes glistening with tears, as their lives mirror mythological religious figures. The screenplay also attempts at speaking against the unequal treatment of women by men who try to hold onto them as possessions. Every scene is directed in an overwrought fashion and the actors play to the gallery. The hit title song plays in bits throughout but is heard in full during the hilariously corny ending. Skip this film like the plague.

[Reza]

Great Day (Lance Comfort, 1945) 8/10

WWII propaganda piece nestled in what is basically a charming slice-of-life drama set in a small English village awaiting the arrival of Mrs Roosevelt for a visit. The plot captures a group of village folk during wartime - the lady of the Manor (Isabel Jeans), a depressed alcoholic WWI veteran (Eric Portman), his sensible wife (Flora Robson), their daughter (Sheila Sim) who is trying to decide between two suitors - the reliable old rich farmer (Walter Fitzgerald) and her former boyfriend a young RAF officer (Phillip Friend) - and assorted gossips and others. The film is also an ode to the Women's Institute, a voluntary organization, and their contribution to the war effort. Well acted by a solid group of character actors.

[Reza]

The Green Scarf (George More O'Ferrall, 1954) 5/10

Extremely talky and convoluted murder mystery. A deaf and mute man (Kieron Moore) is arrested for the murder of his friend (Michael Medvin). An elderly french lawyer (Michael Redgrave) thinks he's innocent and with the help of the man's wife (Ann Todd) and mentor (Leo Genn) goes all out to prove his innocence in court. Redgrave plays the part in old man get-up complete with white hair and a huge bushy beard doddering around annoyingly. Todd does her usual frigid-wife role in a deadpan manner. The surprise ending takes too long to get there and when it does it's quite a damp fizzle.

[Reza]

The Damned (Luchino Visconti, 1969) 9/10

Visconti's operatic and deliciously overblown account of the rise of Nazism as seen through the eyes of a German industrialist family (supposedly based on the Krupps) during the 1930s. The elaborate decadence is reflected in the family members some of whom are either vying for power on the coattails of the Nazis while others fall prey to savage instincts of greed and murder. The plot moves at full steam when the aged head of the family is murdered on his birthday by the lover (Dirk Bogarde) of his evil widowed daughter-in-law Sophie (Ingrid Thulin) whom she plans to place as head of the steelworks. They implicate the Vice President (Umberto Orsini) of the firm who is the old man's liberal son-in-law (Umberto Orsini) married to his young daughter (Charlotte Rampling). A power struggle breaks out for the steelworks between Sophie, the brownshirt officer heir to the works and a cousin (Helmut Griem) who is an SS leader. Adding to the chaos is Sophie's effete son (Helmut Berger), first seen performing in Marlene Dietrich drag, who goes from being a weak momma's boy to transforming himself into a rabid Nazi. Along the way he molests a young child and rapes his dope addicted mother. The film hysterically captures the era with scenes set in opulent drawing rooms, in beer halls, Nazi rallies on the streets, book burnings, a trasvestite orgy and the Night of the Long Knives. The graphic sex scenes add to the hysteria and horror. This is not Visconti's best film by any means but it has enough moments in it to make it very controversial and one is riveted to the screen watching in open mouthed wonder. As with all of his films it has sumptuous production values. A must-see.

[Reza]

The Driver's Seat / Identikit (Giuseppe Patroni Griffi, 1974) 1/10

Extremely bizarre film (based on the book by Muriel Spark) becomes an awful star vehicle for Elizabeth Taylor. What made her accept the part? Money? The need to appear on screen several times in a see-through bra? A chance to create a record for the worst performance EVER by a two-time Academy Award winner? Probably all of the above. A haughty (and mentally disturbed) spinster arrives in Rome in search of someone to kill her. Along the way she comes across a pervert (Ian Bannen) on the plane, a dotty old coot (Mona Washbourne) who accompanies her on shopping trips and assorted terrorists who either blow up cars or run around shooting people at airports. Liz sails through all of this with a pinched look on her face barking orders at everyone around and throwing hissy fits at the drop of a hat. The film's Eurotrash look along with the "murder" element of the plot makes this the closest La Liz got to starring in a Gialo. Awful score, ugly sets, inane dialogue and a confusing story keep this from being a camp classic.

[Precious Doll]

The Untold Story of Armistead Maupin (2017) Jennifer M. Krout 7/10
Genius (2016) Michael Grandage 4/10
Don't Blink - Robert Frank (2016) Laurel Israel 6/10
I Am Not Your Negro (2016) Raoul Peck 8/10
Norman (2017) Joseph Cedar 5/10
Melody (1971) Waris Hussein 7/10
Tschick (2016) Fatih Akin 7/10
The Climber (1975) Pasquale Squitieri 6/10

Repeat viewings

La Cérémonie (1995) Claude Chabrol 10/10
In Cold Blood (1967) Richard Brooks 10/10
Vision Quest (1985) Harold Becker 6/10
The Big Heat (1953) Fritz Lang 10/10
Housekeeping (1987) Bill Forsyth 7/10