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fwroots
I used to say that I only like old movies but that's not quite true there have been some recent classics but I still find theres nothing to compare with the real glamour of the 30's and 40's movies and their stars.
The modern breed of actors just don't have any class!
Favourite Actresses:
Joan Leslie
Ann Sheridan
Ida Lupino
Susan Hayward
Olivia De Havilland
Jane Greer
Gene Tierney
Virginia Mayo
Jessica Lange
Gloria Grahame
Favourite Actors:
James Cagney ( simply the best )
Humphrey Bogart
James Stewart
Fred MacMurray
Edward G Robinson
Vincent Price
Favourite Films:
White Heat
Angels with Dirty Faces
It's a Wonderful Life
Leave Her to Heaven
Murder He Says
The Swimmer
Double Indemnity
Casablanca
The Wizard of Oz
Yankee Doodle Dandy
Each Dawn I Die
Laura
On the Town
Out of the Past
Hollywood Canteen
Each Dawn I die
Mr Smith Goes to Washington
Aresenic and Old Lace
A Night at the Opera
A day at the the races
Sullivans Travels
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
On the Town
Showboat ( 1930's )
In a Lonely Place
Reviews
The Sky's the Limit (1943)
Lovely escapism
Spent a lovely hour and a half on the sofa recovering from a cold, watching this romantic movie from the the wartime years
Of course the plot can be seen with modern eyes as persistent man stalks beautiful girl, and there are a few slow moments to be expected with propaganda films
However whilst this is not Fred's best film the overall feel is light and cheerful with some funny dialogue and great supporting cast
You can't really go too wrong with the best dancer ever and one of the most beautiful actress ever.
The balcony dancing with Joan in her shimmering gown is probably my highlight
All in all well worth a view.
Scoop (2024)
Underwhelming
Worth watching but as many have said you're better off watching the original interview
A lot of talented actors and actresses seem to be on auto pilot here trudging through this stodgy production which felt a bit like W1A at times
The interview was well done but all the peripheral private life stuff was boring and added nothing to the story.
Billie Piper strutting around in her designer coat was irritating
Gillian Anderson looks like Maitland but appears to have not let go of her Maggie Thatcher
Planning clandestine meetings yet walking in and out of the main gate of Buckingham Palace ace was also ludicrous.
The Missing (2014)
Very watchable but ...
Just finished season one
Really watchable and well made , if at times a little hard to follow the obligatory back and forth time jumps in the early episodes
Frances O'Connor is very good, as our most of the supporting cast
James Nesbitt unfortunately is all grimaces, gurning and quite wooden at times, in other words just himself
Shame the locations are all so grim and bleak but I suppose they added to the feeling of despair and foreboding that permeated the unfolding drama
There is one ridiculous event in the last episode crucial to the whole story which lets the plot down but on the whole very good.
Boat Story (2023)
Don't waste you
You can imagine the creators of this rambling cliched and ham fisted rubbish thinking how clever they were
They had some good actors and actresses and the story might have had some potential if handled sensibly
However having watched the first episode that was enough to convince me that I wouldn't waste another hour of my life on this tripe
Instead they went for gimmicks - voice overs and childish narrative screens and the gratuitous violence all distracted from an already confusing and totally unrealistic plot
Dark comedy done well can be very effective but this was a missed opportunity and missed by a mile!
Annika (2021)
Forgettable
Nicola Walker is a good actress but I find her irritating in this series as she delivers all her lines in little staccato sentences.
As for the talking to camera it is intensely tedious and adds absolutely nothing to the narrative, it's just a pretentious gimmick so beloved by modern crime dramas
Also the cliche cop with a mixed team of characters always adding their little notes and never taking over each other very tired and boring.
Silvie Furneaux is the best thing in this and is destined for great things and at least the episodes are short and not very taxing but overall this is a good opportunity wasted.
Why Didn't They Ask Evans? (2022)
Disappointing
I've got and read all the Agatha Christie books but am not a nerd or expert, but from the get go this just didn't feel like one of her stories and that's never a good start!
It felt forced and factous at times with meaningless and unbelievable and historically inaccurate bit part characters adding nothing to the plot or enjoyment
The leads were okay but without any chemistry and the obligatory old hams Thompson and Broadbent were tedious
It was the usual mix of trendy distracting camerawork and overacting, short clumsy scenes and flat jokes.
Its supposed to be set in Wales but apart from a couple of beach scenes it's rural Surrey and just doesn't have any Welshness about it
Stick to acting Mr Laurie.
Magpie Murders (2022)
Pointless and distracting casting
As others have correctly said this is a slightly above average offering from the genre of the easy watching gentle whodunnit
Lesley Manville and the main actors are all and the plot interesting and engaging but .....
Why oh why do they feel the need to change historical fact to supposedly attract a more diverse audience?!
All the fringe characters from this little English village in 1955 are non-white, of course they are! 😔
I'm not begrudging anyone making a living but it is ridiculously jarring and distracts from your investment of time and suspension of disbelief
Will stick with it and try and gloss over the failings until/ unless it gets even sillier.
The Wild Affair (1965)
Lovely time capsule film with great performances
I am ashamed to admit that the work of the lovely Nancy Kwan had previously passed me by, but after seeing this delightful film I will check out her other films
This had all the necessary ingredients of a good easy watching distraction. Nancy was delightful in the main part, naturally charming, easy on the eye and with great expression and timing
She was ably supported by a number of British stalwarts; including a slightly subdued Terry Thomas, Jimmy Logan and even a cameo from Frank Thornton
But it's Betty Marsden who steals the show with a beautiful and touching performance.
Great scenes of a swinging sixties London and I just about old enough to remember this kind of Christmas party! ( which we're always a mixture of fun and sadness, as perfectly illustrated in this film )
Thoroughly recommended viewing.
Cleopatra (1963)
Curate's egg
Not seen this for many years and stuck with it despite its length and some very slow patches.
Sumptuous sets and some good performances it was very watchable ( if only for the magnificent beauty that was Elizabeth Taylor )
Despite his best efforts it was difficult not to see Henry Higgins in Harrison's performance at times and the dialogue lurches from impressive to laughable
I can imagine that on seeing it for the first time on the big screen it would have been quite a spectacle and the truth behind the story is always fascinating, but despite being worth watching, I still prefer Carry on Cleo!
Murder in Provence (2022)
Very wooden
Okay we were not expecting Morse or Endeavour but this was lightWeight in every sense
No chemistry between the Normally excellent main leads and some random casting for the rest of the uninspiring cast
Lots of stiff wooden exchanges and slow meandering scenes
The storyline was slow and uninteresting and of course the pretence that these people are French is ludicrous
Wouldn't have been so bad if loads of Provence scenery but not seen anything so far.