Reviews

If you are after a good Western, avoid this for pity's sake. In a genre where clichés are part of the territory, this one packs so many into the first five minutes that nothing it has to say thereafter is going to carry much weight.

Jimmy Stewart is the only reason to watch Destry Rides Again. That buttoned down charm is always great to watch, and the character is a good role for him in many ways. The device of him telling stories about his friends as little parables works well in these capable hands.

Marlene Dietrich, by contrast, is awful: her singing, her looks and her acting made me ask why she was ever in movies.

It's the queasy attempted mix of comedy, musical and Western that really sink this film I think. In the end, it doesn't do any of them well.

As Sullivan's Travels drew to a close, my suspicion that the nostalgia police had been to work on its reputation hardened. The final sequence is both dated and mawkish - not the wry, generous conclusion it strives to be.

I would still advise seeing it. There is plenty to enjoy: Sullivan's butlers, the early chase sequence, much of the dialogue, the lighthearted Hollywood feel, Veronica Lake's beauty. Sturges is no hack either, and the tension between his sharp wit and his wilful naively is interesting to watch. 1941 was a hell of a year for America, and the concern with escapism and facing reality is all on screen too, so it's worth seeing as a film of its time. Still, there are too many bum notes - above all, the limited acting and lack of laughs - for it to be considered a classic, let alone a classic comedy.

Series 1 and 2 of Misfits are outrageous and far more entertaining than the synopsis suggests. The production values are sky high, and it can do horror and thrills as well as almost any other TV programme. Much more importantly though, it surprised me... because it made me roar with laughter. The credit for that goes almost exclusively to Nathan, who takes one look at all the cool haircuts and pouts before tearing it all apart with filthy sociopathic charm. He leaves at the end of Series 2, and the show misses him badly. Rudy tries to fill the hole, but he is increasingly alone in trying to provide some charisma and laughs. By Series 4, the characters who populate the show have become entirely forgettable. Get in, get your fill, then get out while you're ahead.