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Benoit Jacquot's "Farewell, My Queen" - an absorbing take on Marie Antoinette on the eve of revolution, as seen through the eyes of one of her servants.
1941 (Spielberg)
DIRECTOR: Steven Spielberg
YEAR: 1979
STARS: John Belushi, Dan Ackroyd, Treat Williams, Robert Stack,
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Universal / Columbia
SCRIPT: Robert Zemickis & Robert Gale
CINEMATOGRAPHER: William Fraker
EDITOR: Michael Kahn
MUSIC: John Williams
QUICK TAKE: A spectacular, anarchistic, expensive comedy in which Spielberg rewrites history, using the post-Pearl Harbor hysteria on America's west coast as an excuse to bundle actual events such as a Japanese submarine shelling offshore Santa Barbara, the 'Great Los Angeles Air Raid' and the Zoot Suit riots in LA into visual mayhem. Critics hated it. Now regarded as having many redeeming features.
YEAR: 1979
STARS: John Belushi, Dan Ackroyd, Treat Williams, Robert Stack,
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Universal / Columbia
SCRIPT: Robert Zemickis & Robert Gale
CINEMATOGRAPHER: William Fraker
EDITOR: Michael Kahn
MUSIC: John Williams
QUICK TAKE: A spectacular, anarchistic, expensive comedy in which Spielberg rewrites history, using the post-Pearl Harbor hysteria on America's west coast as an excuse to bundle actual events such as a Japanese submarine shelling offshore Santa Barbara, the 'Great Los Angeles Air Raid' and the Zoot Suit riots in LA into visual mayhem. Critics hated it. Now regarded as having many redeeming features.
12 Years a Slave (2013)
DIRECTOR: Steve McQueen
YEAR: 2013
STARS: Chiswetel Ejiofor, Paul Giamatti, Brad Pitt
STUDIO / PRODUCER:
SCRIPT: John Ridley
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Sean Bobbitt
EDITOR:Joe Walker
MUSIC: Hans Zimmer
QUICK TAKE: Not quite as original or as daring as its director would have you believe - it is based on a tele-movie and also indebted to Richard Fleischer's Mandingo (a much more daring take on slavery) - but a fascinating watch because of its unque subject: a free black man who was then reduced to slavery. Suffers from McQueen's habitual lack of nuance and his customary self-righteous attitude.
YEAR: 2013
STARS: Chiswetel Ejiofor, Paul Giamatti, Brad Pitt
STUDIO / PRODUCER:
SCRIPT: John Ridley
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Sean Bobbitt
EDITOR:Joe Walker
MUSIC: Hans Zimmer
QUICK TAKE: Not quite as original or as daring as its director would have you believe - it is based on a tele-movie and also indebted to Richard Fleischer's Mandingo (a much more daring take on slavery) - but a fascinating watch because of its unque subject: a free black man who was then reduced to slavery. Suffers from McQueen's habitual lack of nuance and his customary self-righteous attitude.
Affair of the Necklace (2001)
DIRECTOR: Charles Shyer
YEAR: 2001
STARS: Hilary Swank, Joely Richardson, Adrian Body, Christopher Walken
STUDIO / PRODUCER:Charles Shyer,Redmond Morris
SCRIPT:John Sweet
CINEMATOGRAPHER:Ashley Rowe
EDITOR: David Moritz
MUSIC: David Newman
QUICK TAKE: A lavish but uneven look at the Versailles Court of Marie Antoinette during the infamous Affair of the Queen's Necklace a few years before the French revolution. Hilary Swank is miscast as the aristocratic con-artist, but JOely Richardson oputs on a sparking turn as Marie Antoinette - frivolous but cunning. Added zest is provided by Christopher Walken and Adrian Brody enjoying the chance to over-act. Outstanding production values: the color photography, costumes and settings have all justifiably been praised.
YEAR: 2001
STARS: Hilary Swank, Joely Richardson, Adrian Body, Christopher Walken
STUDIO / PRODUCER:Charles Shyer,Redmond Morris
SCRIPT:John Sweet
CINEMATOGRAPHER:Ashley Rowe
EDITOR: David Moritz
MUSIC: David Newman
QUICK TAKE: A lavish but uneven look at the Versailles Court of Marie Antoinette during the infamous Affair of the Queen's Necklace a few years before the French revolution. Hilary Swank is miscast as the aristocratic con-artist, but JOely Richardson oputs on a sparking turn as Marie Antoinette - frivolous but cunning. Added zest is provided by Christopher Walken and Adrian Brody enjoying the chance to over-act. Outstanding production values: the color photography, costumes and settings have all justifiably been praised.
Army of Crime
DIRECTOR: Robert Guediguian
YEAR: 2009
STARS: Simon Abkarian, Virginie Ledoyen, Jean-Pierre Darroussin
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Dominique Barneaud
SCRIPT:Robert Guediguian, Serge Le Peron, Giles Taurand
CINEMATOGRAPHER:Pierre Milon
EDITOR: Bernard Sasia
MUSIC: Alexandre Desplat
QUICK TAKE:
Made forty years after the seminal Army of Shadows, this fine movie acknowledges Melville's masterpiece not only in its title but in its depiction of the Resistance as splintered and in danger of betrayal from within and without. However, Army of Crime is based on the activities of an actual group and an actual event. It is virtually unique in the Resistance movie genre in that it is concerned with the work of 'foreign' anti-fascists living in France, many of them Jews - Armenians, Poles, Spaniards, Italians. The movie shows the indifference and even downright hostility of many French to the Resistance and details how the groups downfall was primarily due to the work of French authorities, not the Germans. Has some masterly set pieces of urban violence, sometimes mixed with ironic black humor.
YEAR: 2009
STARS: Simon Abkarian, Virginie Ledoyen, Jean-Pierre Darroussin
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Dominique Barneaud
SCRIPT:Robert Guediguian, Serge Le Peron, Giles Taurand
CINEMATOGRAPHER:Pierre Milon
EDITOR: Bernard Sasia
MUSIC: Alexandre Desplat
QUICK TAKE:
Made forty years after the seminal Army of Shadows, this fine movie acknowledges Melville's masterpiece not only in its title but in its depiction of the Resistance as splintered and in danger of betrayal from within and without. However, Army of Crime is based on the activities of an actual group and an actual event. It is virtually unique in the Resistance movie genre in that it is concerned with the work of 'foreign' anti-fascists living in France, many of them Jews - Armenians, Poles, Spaniards, Italians. The movie shows the indifference and even downright hostility of many French to the Resistance and details how the groups downfall was primarily due to the work of French authorities, not the Germans. Has some masterly set pieces of urban violence, sometimes mixed with ironic black humor.
Army of Shadows (1969)
DIRECTOR: Jean-Pierre Melville
YEAR: 1969
STARS: Lino Ventura, Jean-Pierre Cassels, Simone Signoret
STUDIO / PRODUCER:Rialto / Joseph Dorfmann
SCRIPT:Jean-Pierre Melville
CINEMATOGRAPHER:Pierre L'homme, Walter Wottitz
EDITOR: Francois Bonnot
MUSIC: Eric de Marsan
QUICK TAKE: Vilified when first released in 1969 for daring to suggest that the French Resistance was honeycombed with traitors and ignored or unsupported by most of the population, this bleak combination of film noir and war movie is now widely regarded as one of the greatest French movies of the post-1945 era, and the finest movie about the Resistance and France under Nazi Occupation. Acting, direction and photography are of the highest calibre.
Essential viewing.
YEAR: 1969
STARS: Lino Ventura, Jean-Pierre Cassels, Simone Signoret
STUDIO / PRODUCER:Rialto / Joseph Dorfmann
SCRIPT:Jean-Pierre Melville
CINEMATOGRAPHER:Pierre L'homme, Walter Wottitz
EDITOR: Francois Bonnot
MUSIC: Eric de Marsan
QUICK TAKE: Vilified when first released in 1969 for daring to suggest that the French Resistance was honeycombed with traitors and ignored or unsupported by most of the population, this bleak combination of film noir and war movie is now widely regarded as one of the greatest French movies of the post-1945 era, and the finest movie about the Resistance and France under Nazi Occupation. Acting, direction and photography are of the highest calibre.
Essential viewing.
The Artist (2011)
DIRECTOR: Michel Herzanavicius
YEAR: 2011
STARS: Jean Dujardin, Berenice Bejo, John Goodman, Uggy the dog
STUDIO / PRODUCER:
SCRIPT: Michel Hazanavicius
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Guilaume Schiffman
EDITOR: Ann-Sophie Bion & Michel Hazanavicius
MUSIC: Ludovic Borce
QUICK TAKE: A black and white semi-silent comedy about Hollywood's transition from silent movies to sound. Some clever visual set-ups and some great sound gags, but the second half tries too hard for Chaplinesque pathos when it needs the pace and edge of Keaton or Mack Sennett. The leads have charm and talent but the plot and the humour become increasingly predictable. Essentially derivative, the movie's Uggy the dog is lifted straight from the 2007 Australian movie Dr Plonk, and its visual and comic style owes much to the comedies of Pierre Étaix and Jacques Tati, but lacks their comic crispness and sense of pace. The Suitors' themes of ascending and descending movie careers and the silent/sound revolution are based on two Hollywood classics, Sunset Boulevard and Singin' in the Rain.
YEAR: 2011
STARS: Jean Dujardin, Berenice Bejo, John Goodman, Uggy the dog
STUDIO / PRODUCER:
SCRIPT: Michel Hazanavicius
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Guilaume Schiffman
EDITOR: Ann-Sophie Bion & Michel Hazanavicius
MUSIC: Ludovic Borce
QUICK TAKE: A black and white semi-silent comedy about Hollywood's transition from silent movies to sound. Some clever visual set-ups and some great sound gags, but the second half tries too hard for Chaplinesque pathos when it needs the pace and edge of Keaton or Mack Sennett. The leads have charm and talent but the plot and the humour become increasingly predictable. Essentially derivative, the movie's Uggy the dog is lifted straight from the 2007 Australian movie Dr Plonk, and its visual and comic style owes much to the comedies of Pierre Étaix and Jacques Tati, but lacks their comic crispness and sense of pace. The Suitors' themes of ascending and descending movie careers and the silent/sound revolution are based on two Hollywood classics, Sunset Boulevard and Singin' in the Rain.
Battle of the Rails (1946)
DIRECTOR: René Clément
YEAR: 1946
STARS: Jean Clarieux, Jacques Desagneaux
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Colette Audry
SCRIPT: René Clément
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Henri Alekan
EDITOR: Yves Baudrier
MUSIC:
QUICK TAKE: The first post-war French movie that examines the role of the French Resistance movement and the attitude of French people towards the German occupation of France during the war. Semi-documentary in style and episodic in structure, this started this prize-winning film started the career of Clément, once regarded as one of the greatest of twentieth century French directors but whose work sadly became unfashionable after the 1960s. Battle of the Rails has become a pivotal text for historians of Occupation-era France, for it depicts a nation and a Resistance movement united against the Nazis, undivided by political and class divisions, untouched by deceit and betrayal from within. All these features have recently been rejected by revisionist historians.
YEAR: 1946
STARS: Jean Clarieux, Jacques Desagneaux
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Colette Audry
SCRIPT: René Clément
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Henri Alekan
EDITOR: Yves Baudrier
MUSIC:
QUICK TAKE: The first post-war French movie that examines the role of the French Resistance movement and the attitude of French people towards the German occupation of France during the war. Semi-documentary in style and episodic in structure, this started this prize-winning film started the career of Clément, once regarded as one of the greatest of twentieth century French directors but whose work sadly became unfashionable after the 1960s. Battle of the Rails has become a pivotal text for historians of Occupation-era France, for it depicts a nation and a Resistance movement united against the Nazis, undivided by political and class divisions, untouched by deceit and betrayal from within. All these features have recently been rejected by revisionist historians.
Blackboard Jungle (1954)
DIRECTOR: Richard Brooks
YEAR: 1955
STARS: Glenn Ford, Anne Francis
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Pandro S.Berman
SCRIPT:
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Russell Harlan
EDITOR: Ferris Webster
MUSIC: Charles Wolcott
QUICK TAKE: One of the best films ever made about teachers and schools, and essential viewing for an understanding of American society in the 1950s, especially the issues of race relations and so-called 'juvenile delinquency'. A 'problem' movie that is not only thought-provoking but also entertaining. Also significant for its musical soundtrack which launched 'Rock Around the Clock' and for the performance of Sidney Poitier, which helped him become the first African-Amercian Hollywood star.
YEAR: 1955
STARS: Glenn Ford, Anne Francis
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Pandro S.Berman
SCRIPT:
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Russell Harlan
EDITOR: Ferris Webster
MUSIC: Charles Wolcott
QUICK TAKE: One of the best films ever made about teachers and schools, and essential viewing for an understanding of American society in the 1950s, especially the issues of race relations and so-called 'juvenile delinquency'. A 'problem' movie that is not only thought-provoking but also entertaining. Also significant for its musical soundtrack which launched 'Rock Around the Clock' and for the performance of Sidney Poitier, which helped him become the first African-Amercian Hollywood star.
Bhowani Junction
DIRECTOR: George Cukor
YEAR: 1956
STARS: Ava Gardner, Stewart Granger
STUDIO / PRODUCER: MGM / Pandro Berman
SCRIPT:Sonya Levien & Ivan Moffatwell
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Freddie Young
EDITOR: George Boumier & Frank Clark
MUSIC:Miklos Rosza
QUICK TAKE: Although spoilt by a clumsy flashback narrative imposed upon Cukor's original scheme, this is a first-rate movie. It combines a momentous historical setting (India on the eve of independence), colorful location backgrounds (Lahore standing in for a big Indian city), great crowd scenes,glowing cinematography (Freddie Young) a tense climax and a sympathetic investigation into sexual and racial prejudice, and the difficulties faced by those on the perimeter of society - in this case, Ava Gardner as an Anglo-Indian woman, an outsider in both the Indian and British worlds. This is probably Gardner's best performance on screen.
YEAR: 1956
STARS: Ava Gardner, Stewart Granger
STUDIO / PRODUCER: MGM / Pandro Berman
SCRIPT:Sonya Levien & Ivan Moffatwell
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Freddie Young
EDITOR: George Boumier & Frank Clark
MUSIC:Miklos Rosza
QUICK TAKE: Although spoilt by a clumsy flashback narrative imposed upon Cukor's original scheme, this is a first-rate movie. It combines a momentous historical setting (India on the eve of independence), colorful location backgrounds (Lahore standing in for a big Indian city), great crowd scenes,glowing cinematography (Freddie Young) a tense climax and a sympathetic investigation into sexual and racial prejudice, and the difficulties faced by those on the perimeter of society - in this case, Ava Gardner as an Anglo-Indian woman, an outsider in both the Indian and British worlds. This is probably Gardner's best performance on screen.
Carry On Up the Khyber
DIRECTOR: Gerald Thomas
YEAR:
STARS: Sid James, Joan Sims, Kenneth Williams
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Peter Rogers
SCRIPT:Talbot Rothwell
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Ernest Stewart
EDITOR: Alfred Roome
MUSIC:Eric Rogers
QUICK TAKE: Possibly the best of the Carry On series. A very well made, boisterous and politically incorrect satire on imperialism, English dining habits, social pretensions and Scottish kilts.Some of the best Britain's post-war comedians are on display here.
YEAR:
STARS: Sid James, Joan Sims, Kenneth Williams
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Peter Rogers
SCRIPT:Talbot Rothwell
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Ernest Stewart
EDITOR: Alfred Roome
MUSIC:Eric Rogers
QUICK TAKE: Possibly the best of the Carry On series. A very well made, boisterous and politically incorrect satire on imperialism, English dining habits, social pretensions and Scottish kilts.Some of the best Britain's post-war comedians are on display here.
Charlie Wilson's War
DIRECTOR: Mike Nichols
YEAR:
STARS: Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Philip Seymour Hoffman
PRODUCER: Tom Hanks; Gary Goetzman
SCRIPT:Aaron Sorkin
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Stephen Goldblatt
EDITOR: John Bloom, Antonia van Drimmelen
MUSIC: James Newton Howard
QUICK TAKE: A witty, vicious black comedy about the CIA, a corrupt Congressman, a socialite, stinger missiles and the Soviet-Afghan war. And the problems with unintended and disastrous consequences of actions that seem to be advantageous at the time. Smart, clever, with great performances, a fine script and meticulous direction. Hanks, Hoffman and Roberts have never been better: their comic timing and subtle interaction is a joy to watch.
YEAR:
STARS: Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Philip Seymour Hoffman
PRODUCER: Tom Hanks; Gary Goetzman
SCRIPT:Aaron Sorkin
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Stephen Goldblatt
EDITOR: John Bloom, Antonia van Drimmelen
MUSIC: James Newton Howard
QUICK TAKE: A witty, vicious black comedy about the CIA, a corrupt Congressman, a socialite, stinger missiles and the Soviet-Afghan war. And the problems with unintended and disastrous consequences of actions that seem to be advantageous at the time. Smart, clever, with great performances, a fine script and meticulous direction. Hanks, Hoffman and Roberts have never been better: their comic timing and subtle interaction is a joy to watch.
The City Across the River (1949)
DIRECTOR:Maxwell Shane
YEAR: 1949
STARS: Stephen McNally, Thelma Ritter, Tony Curtis
PRODUCER: Ben Coleman
SCRIPT:Maxwell Shane
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Maury Gertsman
EDITOR:
MUSIC: Walter Scharf
QUICK TAKE: This movie about juvenile delinquency has sunk into undeserved obscurity. Not only is a tautly directed and well-written film in its own right; its influence can be seen (unacknowledged) in two of the 1950s era best-known films on troubled youth: Blackboard Jungle and Rebel Without a Cause. Maxwell Shane's movie is a convincing look at the causes of juvenile crime, focusing on slum life in Brooklyn and how one working-class family is tragically affected. The film's examination of parental responsibility is considerably more sophisticated than that displayed in Rebel Without a Cause, and its handling of the theme of delinquency in schools was uplifted by Blackboard Jungle. Heartily recommended.
YEAR: 1949
STARS: Stephen McNally, Thelma Ritter, Tony Curtis
PRODUCER: Ben Coleman
SCRIPT:Maxwell Shane
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Maury Gertsman
EDITOR:
MUSIC: Walter Scharf
QUICK TAKE: This movie about juvenile delinquency has sunk into undeserved obscurity. Not only is a tautly directed and well-written film in its own right; its influence can be seen (unacknowledged) in two of the 1950s era best-known films on troubled youth: Blackboard Jungle and Rebel Without a Cause. Maxwell Shane's movie is a convincing look at the causes of juvenile crime, focusing on slum life in Brooklyn and how one working-class family is tragically affected. The film's examination of parental responsibility is considerably more sophisticated than that displayed in Rebel Without a Cause, and its handling of the theme of delinquency in schools was uplifted by Blackboard Jungle. Heartily recommended.
The Dark Knight Rises
DIRECTOR: Christopher Nolan
YEAR: 2012
STARS: Christopher Bale, Tom Hardy, Anne Hathaway, Gary Oldman, Joseph Gordon-Levitt
PRODUCER:
SCRIPT: Jonathan Nolan, Christopher Nolan
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Wally Pfister
MUSIC: Hans Zimmer
QUICK TAKE: A blockbuster movie based on comic-book characters would seem to have little connection with history. Yet this final film in Nolan's remarkable Batman trilogy can best be appreciated by understanding how its plot and themes area take on the French revolution as filtered through the sensibilities of Charles Dickens' great novel about that epochal event - A Tale of Two Cities.Dickens' themes of heroism, sacrifice and resurrection, guilt and justice are examined in a stunning new context that incorporates a cinematic version of Two Cities remarkable deployment of crowd scenes as integral parts of the plot.
YEAR: 2012
STARS: Christopher Bale, Tom Hardy, Anne Hathaway, Gary Oldman, Joseph Gordon-Levitt
PRODUCER:
SCRIPT: Jonathan Nolan, Christopher Nolan
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Wally Pfister
MUSIC: Hans Zimmer
QUICK TAKE: A blockbuster movie based on comic-book characters would seem to have little connection with history. Yet this final film in Nolan's remarkable Batman trilogy can best be appreciated by understanding how its plot and themes area take on the French revolution as filtered through the sensibilities of Charles Dickens' great novel about that epochal event - A Tale of Two Cities.Dickens' themes of heroism, sacrifice and resurrection, guilt and justice are examined in a stunning new context that incorporates a cinematic version of Two Cities remarkable deployment of crowd scenes as integral parts of the plot.
The Deceivers
DIRECTOR: Nicholas Meyer
YEAR: 1988
STARS: Pierce Brosnan, Saeed Jaffrey
PRODUCER: Merchant-Ivory Productions
SCRIPT: Michael Hirst
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Walter Lassally
MUSIC: Richard Trevor
QUICK TAKE: One of the most unusual films produced by the Merchant-Ivory team and one of their least successful at the box-office. A strange combination of adventure story about British India in the 1820s combined with a psychological thriller about cultural identity. To top this off, glossy production values were combined with a violent plot about the campaign to wipe out the Thuggees in India. Starring Pierce Brosnan before he became James Bond.
YEAR: 1988
STARS: Pierce Brosnan, Saeed Jaffrey
PRODUCER: Merchant-Ivory Productions
SCRIPT: Michael Hirst
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Walter Lassally
MUSIC: Richard Trevor
QUICK TAKE: One of the most unusual films produced by the Merchant-Ivory team and one of their least successful at the box-office. A strange combination of adventure story about British India in the 1820s combined with a psychological thriller about cultural identity. To top this off, glossy production values were combined with a violent plot about the campaign to wipe out the Thuggees in India. Starring Pierce Brosnan before he became James Bond.
Don't Knock the Rock (1956)
DIRECTOR:Fred Sears
YEAR: 1956
STARS:Bill Haley and the Comets, Alan Freed, Alan Dale, Little Richard
PRODUCER: Sam Katzman
SCRIPT: Robert Kent, James B. Gordon
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Benjamin Kline
EDITOR: Paul Barofsky, Edwin Bryant
IN SHORT: Its predecessor Rock Around the Clock has gained all the publicity and cemented its place as an American cultural icon, but this hastily-made follow-up is worth seeking out by fans of 1950s rock 'n' roll and those interested in the social and cultural history of that era. The movie has some fine examples of rock 'n' roll dancing, and some enjoyable (though lip-synched) musical numbers by Bill Haley, Little Richard and the Treniers,.as well as Alan Freed in an important role. It contains interesting insights into the outlook of teenagers and parents at the time. Instead of depicting generational differences as a war-zone, this movie advocates mutual tolerance and understanding. And Don't Knock also goes out of its way to highlight the significant role that black performers had in these early stages of rock 'n' roll. It also has something to say about the commercialization of the music. Well worth a watch.
YEAR: 1956
STARS:Bill Haley and the Comets, Alan Freed, Alan Dale, Little Richard
PRODUCER: Sam Katzman
SCRIPT: Robert Kent, James B. Gordon
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Benjamin Kline
EDITOR: Paul Barofsky, Edwin Bryant
IN SHORT: Its predecessor Rock Around the Clock has gained all the publicity and cemented its place as an American cultural icon, but this hastily-made follow-up is worth seeking out by fans of 1950s rock 'n' roll and those interested in the social and cultural history of that era. The movie has some fine examples of rock 'n' roll dancing, and some enjoyable (though lip-synched) musical numbers by Bill Haley, Little Richard and the Treniers,.as well as Alan Freed in an important role. It contains interesting insights into the outlook of teenagers and parents at the time. Instead of depicting generational differences as a war-zone, this movie advocates mutual tolerance and understanding. And Don't Knock also goes out of its way to highlight the significant role that black performers had in these early stages of rock 'n' roll. It also has something to say about the commercialization of the music. Well worth a watch.
Farewell, My Queen (2012)
DIRECTOR: Benoit Jacquot
YEAR: 2012
STARS: Diane Kruger, Lea Seydoux, Virginie Ledoyen
PRODUCER: Christophe Valette
SCRIPT:Bdenoit Jacquot, Gilles Taurand
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Romain Winding
EDITOR: Luc Barnier, Nellie Ollivault
MUSIC: Bruno Coulais
QUICK TAKE: Set over the course of fours days at the court of Versailles dureing the onset of the French revolution, this film provides a new perspective on Marie Antoinette and the royal court. The events are seen through the eyes of the Queen's personal reader, one of the many servants who tend to the royal needs. This provides an interesting 'Upstairs-Downstairs' portrayal of people and events. Magnificent photography, settings and costumes add value. Diane Kruger provided a nuanced portrait of Marie Antoinette. Considerably more subtle and ironic in its approach than Sofia Coppola's Marie Antoinette.
YEAR: 2012
STARS: Diane Kruger, Lea Seydoux, Virginie Ledoyen
PRODUCER: Christophe Valette
SCRIPT:Bdenoit Jacquot, Gilles Taurand
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Romain Winding
EDITOR: Luc Barnier, Nellie Ollivault
MUSIC: Bruno Coulais
QUICK TAKE: Set over the course of fours days at the court of Versailles dureing the onset of the French revolution, this film provides a new perspective on Marie Antoinette and the royal court. The events are seen through the eyes of the Queen's personal reader, one of the many servants who tend to the royal needs. This provides an interesting 'Upstairs-Downstairs' portrayal of people and events. Magnificent photography, settings and costumes add value. Diane Kruger provided a nuanced portrait of Marie Antoinette. Considerably more subtle and ironic in its approach than Sofia Coppola's Marie Antoinette.
The Girl Can't Help It (1957)
DIRECTOR: Frank Tashlin
YEAR: 1957
STARS: Tom EWell, Jayne Mansfield, Emond O'Brien
PRODUCER: Frank Tashlin
SCRIPT:Bdenoit Jacquot, Gilles Taurand
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Leon Shamroy
EDITOR: James B. Clark
MUSIC: Fats Domino, Little Richard, Eddie Cochran, Treniers,Platters, Abbey Lincoln, Gene Vincent etc
QUICK TAKE: Paul McCartney claims this is the best rock 'n' roll movier ever made. He's right. A vicious satire on the music industry with surrealistic vidual sequences, magnificent photography and settings, great musical routines, raucous comedy and some of the 1950s' best rock artists.Incredibly influential - among other things,it played a role in John Lennon and McCartney getting together. Great sequences with Fats Domino, Little Richard, Eddie Cochran, Gene Vincent, the Platters, the Treniers and Abbey Lincoln.
YEAR: 1957
STARS: Tom EWell, Jayne Mansfield, Emond O'Brien
PRODUCER: Frank Tashlin
SCRIPT:Bdenoit Jacquot, Gilles Taurand
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Leon Shamroy
EDITOR: James B. Clark
MUSIC: Fats Domino, Little Richard, Eddie Cochran, Treniers,Platters, Abbey Lincoln, Gene Vincent etc
QUICK TAKE: Paul McCartney claims this is the best rock 'n' roll movier ever made. He's right. A vicious satire on the music industry with surrealistic vidual sequences, magnificent photography and settings, great musical routines, raucous comedy and some of the 1950s' best rock artists.Incredibly influential - among other things,it played a role in John Lennon and McCartney getting together. Great sequences with Fats Domino, Little Richard, Eddie Cochran, Gene Vincent, the Platters, the Treniers and Abbey Lincoln.
The Great Gatsby (1926 / 1949 / 1974 versions)
Before Baz Lurmann's 2013 version of Scott Fitzgerald's novel, there were three previous movies.
1926's silent version - now lost.
1949 version with Alan Ladd as Gatsby. Luhrmann has appropriated several key aspects of this film, namely its emphasis on Gatsby's background in crime and Ladd playing Gatsby as a film noir hero, a man of inner integrity and steely resolve but unable to overcome a fatal obsession with a woman who will betray him in the end.
1974 version starring Robert Redford as a boring, inert Gatsby and Mia Farrow giving one of the most annoying performances ever put on film.
1926's silent version - now lost.
1949 version with Alan Ladd as Gatsby. Luhrmann has appropriated several key aspects of this film, namely its emphasis on Gatsby's background in crime and Ladd playing Gatsby as a film noir hero, a man of inner integrity and steely resolve but unable to overcome a fatal obsession with a woman who will betray him in the end.
1974 version starring Robert Redford as a boring, inert Gatsby and Mia Farrow giving one of the most annoying performances ever put on film.
Gunga Din (1939)
DIRECTOR: George Stevens
YEAR: 1939
STARS: Cary Grant,Victor McLaglen, Joan Fontaine
STUDIO / PRODUCER: George Stevens
SCRIPT:Joel Sayre, Fred Guiol etc
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Joseph August
EDITOR: Henry Berman, John Lockert
MUSIC:Alfred Newman
QUICK TAKE: One of the classics of Hollywood's 'Golden Era'. It's still an enjoyable movie, with likeable characters and a pleasing mix of action and comedy. See this movie and you'll see where Spielberg got his inspiration for Indiana Jones.
YEAR: 1939
STARS: Cary Grant,Victor McLaglen, Joan Fontaine
STUDIO / PRODUCER: George Stevens
SCRIPT:Joel Sayre, Fred Guiol etc
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Joseph August
EDITOR: Henry Berman, John Lockert
MUSIC:Alfred Newman
QUICK TAKE: One of the classics of Hollywood's 'Golden Era'. It's still an enjoyable movie, with likeable characters and a pleasing mix of action and comedy. See this movie and you'll see where Spielberg got his inspiration for Indiana Jones.
Hemingway & Gellhorn (2012)
DIRECTOR: Philip Kaufman
YEAR: 2012
STARS: Nicole Kidman, Clive Owen
STUDIO / PRODUCER: HBO Movies
SCRIPT:Jerry Stahl & Barbara Turner
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Rogier Stoffers
EDITOR: Walter Murch
MUSIC: Javier Navarette
QUICK TAKE: Lavish biopic by Philip Kaufman (The Incredible Lightness of Being) about Ernest Hemingway and his third wife, Martha Gellhorn, focusing on the intense literary rivalry between two manipulative and self-regarding writers, the forerunners of today's Brangelina-type media darlings. The movie sets their tempestuous relationship against an interesting background of international affairs, 1936-1944, especially the Spanish civil war.
YEAR: 2012
STARS: Nicole Kidman, Clive Owen
STUDIO / PRODUCER: HBO Movies
SCRIPT:Jerry Stahl & Barbara Turner
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Rogier Stoffers
EDITOR: Walter Murch
MUSIC: Javier Navarette
QUICK TAKE: Lavish biopic by Philip Kaufman (The Incredible Lightness of Being) about Ernest Hemingway and his third wife, Martha Gellhorn, focusing on the intense literary rivalry between two manipulative and self-regarding writers, the forerunners of today's Brangelina-type media darlings. The movie sets their tempestuous relationship against an interesting background of international affairs, 1936-1944, especially the Spanish civil war.
Hyde Park on Hudson (2012)
DIRECTOR:Roger Michell
YEAR: 2012
STARS: Bill Murray, Laura Linney
STUDIO / PRODUCER:
SCRIPT:Richard Nelson
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Lol Crawley
EDITOR: Nicholas Gaster
MUSIC: Jeremy Sams
QUICK TAKE: A social comedy, and a sequel of sorts to The King's Speech. In 1939, while King George VI was still working with speech therapist Lionel Logue, the monarch and wife Queen Elizabeth made the first ever visit by a ruling British monarch to America. President Roosevelt invited the royal couple to a weekend at his Hyde Park estate for political and diplomatic reasons. Intertwined with this historical strand is a largely fictional account of how the weekend was a turning-point in the president's "affair" with a distant cousin, Margaret Suckley.
YEAR: 2012
STARS: Bill Murray, Laura Linney
STUDIO / PRODUCER:
SCRIPT:Richard Nelson
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Lol Crawley
EDITOR: Nicholas Gaster
MUSIC: Jeremy Sams
QUICK TAKE: A social comedy, and a sequel of sorts to The King's Speech. In 1939, while King George VI was still working with speech therapist Lionel Logue, the monarch and wife Queen Elizabeth made the first ever visit by a ruling British monarch to America. President Roosevelt invited the royal couple to a weekend at his Hyde Park estate for political and diplomatic reasons. Intertwined with this historical strand is a largely fictional account of how the weekend was a turning-point in the president's "affair" with a distant cousin, Margaret Suckley.
The Inner Circle (1991)
DIRECTOR: Andrei Konchalovsky
YEAR: 1991
STARS:Tom Hulce, Lolita Davidovich, Bob Hoskins, Aleksand Zbruev
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Calaudio Bonivento
SCRIPT: Andrei Konchalovsky & Anatoli Usov
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Ennio Guarnieri
EDITOR: Henry Richardson
MUSIC: Eduard Artemev
QUICK TAKE: Based on actual events, this is a fascinating look at Stalin and members of his inner circle (especially Beria) seen through the perspective of one of his admirers, the man who acted as the projectionist for the movie-mad tyrant. Much of the film's considerable tension and power comes from the contrast between the projectionist and his (fictional) wife: he wilfully ignores the evil that Stalin represents and encourages, while his wife has a clear-eyed understanding of that evil and ultimately become another of its victims. Much of the grimness of this situation is cleverly offset by the movie's portrayal of Stalin as, superficially, a rather likeable, intelligent and capable man .
YEAR: 1991
STARS:Tom Hulce, Lolita Davidovich, Bob Hoskins, Aleksand Zbruev
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Calaudio Bonivento
SCRIPT: Andrei Konchalovsky & Anatoli Usov
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Ennio Guarnieri
EDITOR: Henry Richardson
MUSIC: Eduard Artemev
QUICK TAKE: Based on actual events, this is a fascinating look at Stalin and members of his inner circle (especially Beria) seen through the perspective of one of his admirers, the man who acted as the projectionist for the movie-mad tyrant. Much of the film's considerable tension and power comes from the contrast between the projectionist and his (fictional) wife: he wilfully ignores the evil that Stalin represents and encourages, while his wife has a clear-eyed understanding of that evil and ultimately become another of its victims. Much of the grimness of this situation is cleverly offset by the movie's portrayal of Stalin as, superficially, a rather likeable, intelligent and capable man .
Kim
DIRECTOR: Victor Saville
YEAR: 1950
STARS: Errol Flynn, Dean Stockwell
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Leon Gordon
SCRIPT:Leon Gordon, Helen Deutsch
CINEMATOGRAPHER: William Skall
EDITOR: George Boemier
MUSIC: Andre Previn
QUICK TAKE: Slow-moving by modern standards, but true to the spirit if not the plot of Kipling's novel. The lively and intelligent performances of its two stars remain its main attractions today, plus some good location shooting. Also interesting because of its reliance on the 'Great Game' scenario, which is treated without any irony.
YEAR: 1950
STARS: Errol Flynn, Dean Stockwell
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Leon Gordon
SCRIPT:Leon Gordon, Helen Deutsch
CINEMATOGRAPHER: William Skall
EDITOR: George Boemier
MUSIC: Andre Previn
QUICK TAKE: Slow-moving by modern standards, but true to the spirit if not the plot of Kipling's novel. The lively and intelligent performances of its two stars remain its main attractions today, plus some good location shooting. Also interesting because of its reliance on the 'Great Game' scenario, which is treated without any irony.
King of the Khyber Rifles
DIRECTOR: Henry King
YEAR: 1954-5
STARS: Tyrone Power, Terry Moore, Michael Rennie
STUDIO / PRODUCER: 20th Century Fox / FRank Rosenberg
SCRIPT: Ivan Goff, Ben Roberts
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Leon Shamroy
EDITOR: Barbara McLean
MUSIC: Bernard Herrmann
QUICK TAKE: Essentially a 'cavalry eastern', distinguished by several good action sequences, great music and colour photography, and interesting and for the time unconventional attitudes towards imperialism and the treatment of 'native' and mixed races.
YEAR: 1954-5
STARS: Tyrone Power, Terry Moore, Michael Rennie
STUDIO / PRODUCER: 20th Century Fox / FRank Rosenberg
SCRIPT: Ivan Goff, Ben Roberts
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Leon Shamroy
EDITOR: Barbara McLean
MUSIC: Bernard Herrmann
QUICK TAKE: Essentially a 'cavalry eastern', distinguished by several good action sequences, great music and colour photography, and interesting and for the time unconventional attitudes towards imperialism and the treatment of 'native' and mixed races.
Les Misérables (various versions, from 1934 to 2012)
DIRECTOR:Tom Hooper
YEAR: 2012
STARS: Hugh Jackan, Russell Crowe, Amanda Syfried, Ann Hathaway
STUDIO / PRODUCER:
SCRIPT:Richard Nelson
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Lol Crawley
EDITOR: Nicholas Gaster
MUSIC: Jeremy Sams
QUICK TAKE:
There have been at least eight movie adaptations of Les Miserables, and more than a dozen telvesion productions in serial form, plus of course the musical. The latest attempt to place Hugo's novel on the big screen The versions by French directors
YEAR: 2012
STARS: Hugh Jackan, Russell Crowe, Amanda Syfried, Ann Hathaway
STUDIO / PRODUCER:
SCRIPT:Richard Nelson
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Lol Crawley
EDITOR: Nicholas Gaster
MUSIC: Jeremy Sams
QUICK TAKE:
There have been at least eight movie adaptations of Les Miserables, and more than a dozen telvesion productions in serial form, plus of course the musical. The latest attempt to place Hugo's novel on the big screen The versions by French directors
Lincoln
DIRECTOR: Steven Spielberg
YEAR: 2012
STARS: Daniel Day-Lewis, Tommy Lee Jones, Sally Field,
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Disney
SCRIPT: Tony Kushner
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Janusz Kominski
EDITOR: Michael Kahn
MUSIC: John Williams
QUICK TAKE: Spielberg's daring attempt to define Lincoln by restricting the film's scope to the last few months of his presidency, in which Lincoln used a mixture of wit, force, bribery, morality and pragmatism to persuade the House of Representatives to agree to a constitutional amendment outlawing slavery. This is essentially a film about that most difficult of subjects, the nature of the political process. Spielberg uses it to illuminate the nature of Lincoln and his greatness.
YEAR: 2012
STARS: Daniel Day-Lewis, Tommy Lee Jones, Sally Field,
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Disney
SCRIPT: Tony Kushner
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Janusz Kominski
EDITOR: Michael Kahn
MUSIC: John Williams
QUICK TAKE: Spielberg's daring attempt to define Lincoln by restricting the film's scope to the last few months of his presidency, in which Lincoln used a mixture of wit, force, bribery, morality and pragmatism to persuade the House of Representatives to agree to a constitutional amendment outlawing slavery. This is essentially a film about that most difficult of subjects, the nature of the political process. Spielberg uses it to illuminate the nature of Lincoln and his greatness.
Lives of a Bengal Lancer (1935)
DIRECTOR: Henry Hathaway
YEAR: 1935
STARS: Gary Cooper, Franchot Tone
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Paramount
SCRIPT: Waldemar Young, John Balderston & Achmed Abdullah
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Charles lang
EDITOR: Elsworth Hogland
MUSIC:
QUICK TAKE: Another 'cavalry eastern'. Its attitudes towards imperialism, the 'white man's burden' and native races are naive by today's standards,but the film itself is 'golden Hollywood' at its best with excellent action sequences, some interesting digressions about honor and loyalty and interesting characters. This movie deservedly made a star out of Gary Cooper and its influences can be seen in Spielberg's action films.Its director, Henry Hathaway, went on to become one of Hollywood's best -but most neglected - maker of westerns, film noir and action movies.
YEAR: 1935
STARS: Gary Cooper, Franchot Tone
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Paramount
SCRIPT: Waldemar Young, John Balderston & Achmed Abdullah
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Charles lang
EDITOR: Elsworth Hogland
MUSIC:
QUICK TAKE: Another 'cavalry eastern'. Its attitudes towards imperialism, the 'white man's burden' and native races are naive by today's standards,but the film itself is 'golden Hollywood' at its best with excellent action sequences, some interesting digressions about honor and loyalty and interesting characters. This movie deservedly made a star out of Gary Cooper and its influences can be seen in Spielberg's action films.Its director, Henry Hathaway, went on to become one of Hollywood's best -but most neglected - maker of westerns, film noir and action movies.
Mandingo (1975)
DIRECTOR: Richard Fleischer
YEAR: 1975
STARS: James Mason, Ken Norton, Susan George
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Dino De Laurentis
SCRIPT: Norman Wexler
CINEMATOGRAPHER:Richard Kline
EDITOR: Frank Bracht
MUSIC: Maurice Jarre
QUICK TAKE: Reviled by critics on original release as racist, lurid and exploitative, Fleischer's savage take on slavery and its horrific effects is now increasingly regarded as a remarkable and daring movie about race in America. Admired by Tarantino, and referenced heavily by him in Django Unchained. Obviously a major if unacknowledged influence on Steve McQueen's 12 Years a Slave, and makes that movie look timid and patronising by comparison.
YEAR: 1975
STARS: James Mason, Ken Norton, Susan George
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Dino De Laurentis
SCRIPT: Norman Wexler
CINEMATOGRAPHER:Richard Kline
EDITOR: Frank Bracht
MUSIC: Maurice Jarre
QUICK TAKE: Reviled by critics on original release as racist, lurid and exploitative, Fleischer's savage take on slavery and its horrific effects is now increasingly regarded as a remarkable and daring movie about race in America. Admired by Tarantino, and referenced heavily by him in Django Unchained. Obviously a major if unacknowledged influence on Steve McQueen's 12 Years a Slave, and makes that movie look timid and patronising by comparison.
The Man Who Would Be King
DIRECTOR: John Huston
YEAR:1975
STARS: Sean Connery, Michael Caine, Christopher Plummer
STUDIO / PRODUCER: John Foreman
SCRIPT: John Huston & Gladys Hill
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Oswald Morris
EDITOR: Russell Lloyd
MUSIC: Maurice Jarre
QUICK TAKE: One of Huston's best films. Not only an excellent adventure story set in exotic locales and involving interesting characters , but an insightful study of greed, pride and obsession. Also features Sean Connery and Michael Caine at their best.
YEAR:1975
STARS: Sean Connery, Michael Caine, Christopher Plummer
STUDIO / PRODUCER: John Foreman
SCRIPT: John Huston & Gladys Hill
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Oswald Morris
EDITOR: Russell Lloyd
MUSIC: Maurice Jarre
QUICK TAKE: One of Huston's best films. Not only an excellent adventure story set in exotic locales and involving interesting characters , but an insightful study of greed, pride and obsession. Also features Sean Connery and Michael Caine at their best.
Marie Antoinette (2006)
DIRECTOR: Sofia Coppola
YEAR: 2006
STARS: Kirsten Dunst
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Francis Ford Coppola, Sofia Coppola etc
SCRIPT: Sofia Coppola
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Lance Acord
EDITOR: Sarah Flack
MUSIC:Richard Beggs (Music Editor)
IN SHORT: Sofia Coppola uses the late eighteenth century court of Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI to comment on celebrity culture in the modern era. But does the film endorse the values of this culture or condemn them?
YEAR: 2006
STARS: Kirsten Dunst
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Francis Ford Coppola, Sofia Coppola etc
SCRIPT: Sofia Coppola
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Lance Acord
EDITOR: Sarah Flack
MUSIC:Richard Beggs (Music Editor)
IN SHORT: Sofia Coppola uses the late eighteenth century court of Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI to comment on celebrity culture in the modern era. But does the film endorse the values of this culture or condemn them?
Marie Antoinette (1938)
DIRECTOR: W.S. van Dyke
YEAR: 1938
STARS: Norma Shearer, Tyrone Power, Robert Morley
SCRIPT:Donald Ogden Steward etc (F.Scott Fitzgerald uncredited)
CINEMATOGRAPHER: William Daniel
EDITOR: Robert Kern
MUSIC: Hubert Stothart
IN SHORT: An example of MGM Studios' lavish production values applied to historical epic. Its considerable box office and critical success relied on the film's ability to combine grand social scale and intimate family detail, along with a satisfying story arc, fast pacing. It also benefits from being firmly placed within the wider context of the French revolution.
YEAR: 1938
STARS: Norma Shearer, Tyrone Power, Robert Morley
SCRIPT:Donald Ogden Steward etc (F.Scott Fitzgerald uncredited)
CINEMATOGRAPHER: William Daniel
EDITOR: Robert Kern
MUSIC: Hubert Stothart
IN SHORT: An example of MGM Studios' lavish production values applied to historical epic. Its considerable box office and critical success relied on the film's ability to combine grand social scale and intimate family detail, along with a satisfying story arc, fast pacing. It also benefits from being firmly placed within the wider context of the French revolution.
Mayerling (1936)
DIRECTOR: Anatole Litvak
YEAR: 1936
STARS: Charles Boyer, Dannielle Darrieux
SCRIPT:Marcel Arcard, Joseph Kessel, Irma von Kube
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Jean Isnard, Amrand Thirard
EDITOR:Henri Rust
MUSIC: Arthur Honegger, Hans May
IN SHORT: A critical and commercial success in both Europe and the US that made Litvak's reputation, and combined a talented cast, a literate script with sumptuous settings and elegant camerawork and photography
YEAR: 1936
STARS: Charles Boyer, Dannielle Darrieux
SCRIPT:Marcel Arcard, Joseph Kessel, Irma von Kube
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Jean Isnard, Amrand Thirard
EDITOR:Henri Rust
MUSIC: Arthur Honegger, Hans May
IN SHORT: A critical and commercial success in both Europe and the US that made Litvak's reputation, and combined a talented cast, a literate script with sumptuous settings and elegant camerawork and photography
Mayerling (1968)
DIRECTOR: Terence Young
YEAR: 1968
STARS: Omar Sharif, Catherine Deneuve, James Mason, Ava Gardner
SCRIPT:Claude
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Henri Alekan
EDITOR: Monique Bonnot
MUSIC: Francis Lai
IN SHORT:A ponderous and unconvincing remake of the mush superior 1936 movie.The two leads are ineffective, and the story is confused. The best that can be said is that some of the settings are nice to look at. An attempt to cash in on the current popularity of the David Lean-style Dr Zhivago costume epic.
YEAR: 1968
STARS: Omar Sharif, Catherine Deneuve, James Mason, Ava Gardner
SCRIPT:Claude
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Henri Alekan
EDITOR: Monique Bonnot
MUSIC: Francis Lai
IN SHORT:A ponderous and unconvincing remake of the mush superior 1936 movie.The two leads are ineffective, and the story is confused. The best that can be said is that some of the settings are nice to look at. An attempt to cash in on the current popularity of the David Lean-style Dr Zhivago costume epic.
Midnight in Paris
DIRECTOR: Woody Allen
YEAR: 2011
STARS: Owen Wilson, Marion Cotillard
SCRIPT:Woody Allen
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Darius Khondi, Johanne Debas
EDITOR:Alisa Leprelta
IN SHORT: Woody Allen and Paris in the 21st century, the 1920s and the belle epoque. Plus Hemingway, Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald, Bunuel, Picasso,Cole Porter, Gertrude Stein, Toulouse Lautrec.....
Essential viewing..
YEAR: 2011
STARS: Owen Wilson, Marion Cotillard
SCRIPT:Woody Allen
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Darius Khondi, Johanne Debas
EDITOR:Alisa Leprelta
IN SHORT: Woody Allen and Paris in the 21st century, the 1920s and the belle epoque. Plus Hemingway, Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald, Bunuel, Picasso,Cole Porter, Gertrude Stein, Toulouse Lautrec.....
Essential viewing..
North West Frontier (Flame Over India)
DIRECTOR: J.Lee Thompson
YEAR: 1959
STARS: Lauren Bacall, Kenneth More, Victoria the train engine
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Rank Org; Marcell Hellman
SCRIPT:Frank Nugent
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Geoffrey Unsworth
EDITOR: Frederick Wilson
MUSIC: Mischa Spoliansky
IN SHORT: a fast-moving version of Stagecoach set in British India at the turn of the 20th Century.Literate script, good acting, great photography and a surprisingly thoughtful examination of issues such as racial prejudice, Muslim-Hindu conflict and imperialism. Years ahead of its time, and obviously a model for some scenes in Lawrence of Arabia and Gandhi.
YEAR: 1959
STARS: Lauren Bacall, Kenneth More, Victoria the train engine
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Rank Org; Marcell Hellman
SCRIPT:Frank Nugent
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Geoffrey Unsworth
EDITOR: Frederick Wilson
MUSIC: Mischa Spoliansky
IN SHORT: a fast-moving version of Stagecoach set in British India at the turn of the 20th Century.Literate script, good acting, great photography and a surprisingly thoughtful examination of issues such as racial prejudice, Muslim-Hindu conflict and imperialism. Years ahead of its time, and obviously a model for some scenes in Lawrence of Arabia and Gandhi.
Le pere tranquille (The Quiet Father)
DIRECTOR: René Clément (and Noel-Noel?)
YEAR: 1946
STARS: Noel-Noel, Maurice Chevit, Nadine Alari
STUDIO / PRODUCER:
SCRIPT:Noel-Noel
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Geoffrey Unsworth
EDITOR:
MUSIC: Rene Clerec
IN SHORT: One of the first French films about the Resistance movement. Made just after Bataille du rail by that movie's director René Clément, this is a comedy-drama about an apparently mild father whose harmless persona conceals his identity as a Resistance leader. In this film, his family represents France, bravely struggling against the German occupiers. The movie is a template for the Gaullist version of the French response to Occupation: united in a determination to overcome the reviled invaders.
YEAR: 1946
STARS: Noel-Noel, Maurice Chevit, Nadine Alari
STUDIO / PRODUCER:
SCRIPT:Noel-Noel
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Geoffrey Unsworth
EDITOR:
MUSIC: Rene Clerec
IN SHORT: One of the first French films about the Resistance movement. Made just after Bataille du rail by that movie's director René Clément, this is a comedy-drama about an apparently mild father whose harmless persona conceals his identity as a Resistance leader. In this film, his family represents France, bravely struggling against the German occupiers. The movie is a template for the Gaullist version of the French response to Occupation: united in a determination to overcome the reviled invaders.
Rebel Without a Cause
IRECTOR: Nicholas Ray
YEAR: 1955
STARS: James Dean, Natalie Wood, Sal Mineo
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Warners
SCRIPT:Stewart Stern
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Geoffrey Unsworth
EDITOR: Ernest Haller
MUSIC: Leonard Rosenman
IN SHORT: A tremendous critical and popular success, largely due to the performance of the recently deceased James Dean, Rebel is hardly the daring and innovatory film that its admirers claim. Compared with Blackboard Jungle and some earlier films in the 'juvenile delinquency' cycle that began in the late 1940s, the film opts for a cursory explanation of youthful angst as the result of middle-class family dysfunction. Instead of locating juvenile delinquency in the context of socio-economic deprivation, the movie plays it safe and focuses on an affluent suburban family with mom-and-pop issues. However, there is no denying the impact and influence of this movie.
YEAR: 1955
STARS: James Dean, Natalie Wood, Sal Mineo
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Warners
SCRIPT:Stewart Stern
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Geoffrey Unsworth
EDITOR: Ernest Haller
MUSIC: Leonard Rosenman
IN SHORT: A tremendous critical and popular success, largely due to the performance of the recently deceased James Dean, Rebel is hardly the daring and innovatory film that its admirers claim. Compared with Blackboard Jungle and some earlier films in the 'juvenile delinquency' cycle that began in the late 1940s, the film opts for a cursory explanation of youthful angst as the result of middle-class family dysfunction. Instead of locating juvenile delinquency in the context of socio-economic deprivation, the movie plays it safe and focuses on an affluent suburban family with mom-and-pop issues. However, there is no denying the impact and influence of this movie.
Ridicule
DIRECTOR: Patrice Leconte
YEAR: 1996
STARS: Fanny Ardant, Charles Bering, Jean Rochefort, Judith Godreche
SCRIPT: Remi Waterhouse, Michel Fessler, Eric Vicaut
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Thierry Abergast
EDITOR: Joelie Hache
MUSIC: Antoine Duhamel
IN SHORT: A superb satire on the poisonous effects of aristocratic rivalries at the court of Louis XVI, with the rivals for power and wealth using cunning, wit and invective to advance their political and social agendas. A fascinating contrast between the false values of the court and the humane and progressive values of a minority within the aristocracy.
YEAR: 1996
STARS: Fanny Ardant, Charles Bering, Jean Rochefort, Judith Godreche
SCRIPT: Remi Waterhouse, Michel Fessler, Eric Vicaut
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Thierry Abergast
EDITOR: Joelie Hache
MUSIC: Antoine Duhamel
IN SHORT: A superb satire on the poisonous effects of aristocratic rivalries at the court of Louis XVI, with the rivals for power and wealth using cunning, wit and invective to advance their political and social agendas. A fascinating contrast between the false values of the court and the humane and progressive values of a minority within the aristocracy.
Rock Around the Clock
DIRECTOR:Fred Sears
YEAR: 1956
STARS:Bill Haley and the Comets, Alix Talton, Johnny Johnston, Alan Freed
SCRIPT: Robert Kent, James B. Gordon
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Benjamin Kline
EDITOR: Saul Goodkind, Jack Ogilvie
MUSIC: Fred Karger
IN SHORT:As Variety's original review put it: "76 minutes of foot-patting entertainment".Rock Around the Clock may have been a B-Movie, but it remains one of the most influential musicals ever made. Its cultural influences were enormous.
YEAR: 1956
STARS:Bill Haley and the Comets, Alix Talton, Johnny Johnston, Alan Freed
SCRIPT: Robert Kent, James B. Gordon
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Benjamin Kline
EDITOR: Saul Goodkind, Jack Ogilvie
MUSIC: Fred Karger
IN SHORT:As Variety's original review put it: "76 minutes of foot-patting entertainment".Rock Around the Clock may have been a B-Movie, but it remains one of the most influential musicals ever made. Its cultural influences were enormous.
Silence of the Sea (Le silence de la mer) 1949
DIRECTOR: Jean-Pierre Melville
YEAR: 1949
STARS: Howard Vernon, Nicole Stephan, Jean-Marie Robain
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Jean-Pierre Melville
SCRIPT: Vercors, Jean-Pierre Melville
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Henri Decae
EDITOR: HenriDecaie and Jean-Pierre Melville
MUSIC: Edgar Biscoff
IN SHORT: Melville's first feature film, already revealing the director's fascination with matters of personal integrity and loyalty. A movie about the sweeping issues of war and resistance to evil, yet most of it occurs within one house, one key character speaks mainly in monologue, and the resistance is non-violent.
YEAR: 1949
STARS: Howard Vernon, Nicole Stephan, Jean-Marie Robain
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Jean-Pierre Melville
SCRIPT: Vercors, Jean-Pierre Melville
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Henri Decae
EDITOR: HenriDecaie and Jean-Pierre Melville
MUSIC: Edgar Biscoff
IN SHORT: Melville's first feature film, already revealing the director's fascination with matters of personal integrity and loyalty. A movie about the sweeping issues of war and resistance to evil, yet most of it occurs within one house, one key character speaks mainly in monologue, and the resistance is non-violent.
The Train (1964)
DIRECTOR: John Frankenheimer
YEAR: 1964
STARS: Burt Lancaster, Jean Gabin, Jeanne Moreau
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Jules Bricken
SCRIPT: Franklin Coen,
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Jean Tournier, Walter Wottiz
EDITOR: David Bretherton
MUSIC: Maurice Jarre
IN SHORT: One of the best war / action films ever made, and also one of the very best about the Resistance. The tense and terse scenes of action and suspense, fascinating characters and the ingenious plot are deftly overlaid with insights into the nature of war and the relative values of human life versus the need to preserve great art.
YEAR: 1964
STARS: Burt Lancaster, Jean Gabin, Jeanne Moreau
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Jules Bricken
SCRIPT: Franklin Coen,
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Jean Tournier, Walter Wottiz
EDITOR: David Bretherton
MUSIC: Maurice Jarre
IN SHORT: One of the best war / action films ever made, and also one of the very best about the Resistance. The tense and terse scenes of action and suspense, fascinating characters and the ingenious plot are deftly overlaid with insights into the nature of war and the relative values of human life versus the need to preserve great art.
The Vikings (1958)
DIRECTOR: Richard Fleischer
YEAR: 1957
STARS: Kirk Douglas, Tony Curtis, Ernest Borgnine, Janet Leigh
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Jerry Breslin
SCRIPT: Calder Willingham
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Jack Cardiff
EDITOR: Elmo Williams
MUSIC: Mario Nascimbene
IN SHORT: one of the great action movies, violent for its time, yet with a swaggering humor and a sweep that suits its subject-matter. Great cast at their charismatic best and magnificent location photography . Thrilling battle scenes, with a climactic duel that makes the one in Princess Bride appear tame.
YEAR: 1957
STARS: Kirk Douglas, Tony Curtis, Ernest Borgnine, Janet Leigh
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Jerry Breslin
SCRIPT: Calder Willingham
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Jack Cardiff
EDITOR: Elmo Williams
MUSIC: Mario Nascimbene
IN SHORT: one of the great action movies, violent for its time, yet with a swaggering humor and a sweep that suits its subject-matter. Great cast at their charismatic best and magnificent location photography . Thrilling battle scenes, with a climactic duel that makes the one in Princess Bride appear tame.
Wee Willie Winkie (1937)
DIRECTOR: John Ford
YEAR: 1937
STARS: Shiley Temple, Victor McLaglen
STUDIO / PRODUCER:Gene Markey
SCRIPT: Ernest Pascal, Julien Josephson
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Aethur Miller
EDITOR: Walter Thompson
MUSIC: Alfred Newman
IN SHORT: A major hit at the time, and usually regarded by critics as Shirley Temple's best movie. Basically a cavalry 'eastern', with some typical John Ford flourishes and a fine performance from McLaglen.
YEAR: 1937
STARS: Shiley Temple, Victor McLaglen
STUDIO / PRODUCER:Gene Markey
SCRIPT: Ernest Pascal, Julien Josephson
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Aethur Miller
EDITOR: Walter Thompson
MUSIC: Alfred Newman
IN SHORT: A major hit at the time, and usually regarded by critics as Shirley Temple's best movie. Basically a cavalry 'eastern', with some typical John Ford flourishes and a fine performance from McLaglen.
Zabriskie Point (1970)
DIRECTOR: Michelangelo Antonioni
YEAR: 1970
STARS: Mark Frechette, Daria Halprin
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Carlo Ponti, Harrison Starr
SCRIPT: Michelangelo Antonioni, Franco Rossetti, Sam Shepard, Tonio Guera & Clare peploe
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Alfio Contini
EDITOR: Franco Arcali
MUSIC: Pink Floyd, Jerry Garcia etc
IN SHORT: A massive critical and box-office flop at the time. This deeply flawed movie was meant to provide meaningful insights into the world of the American counterculture in the late 1960s, to attack American capitalism and to act as a cinematic manifesto for youthful revolutionary aspirations. Instead, Antonioni's patronising and lazy film is significant only for its reiteration of his favourite themes of alienation and ennui, and for revealing the trite, self-regarding and ineffectual character of aspects of the counterculture.
YEAR: 1970
STARS: Mark Frechette, Daria Halprin
STUDIO / PRODUCER: Carlo Ponti, Harrison Starr
SCRIPT: Michelangelo Antonioni, Franco Rossetti, Sam Shepard, Tonio Guera & Clare peploe
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Alfio Contini
EDITOR: Franco Arcali
MUSIC: Pink Floyd, Jerry Garcia etc
IN SHORT: A massive critical and box-office flop at the time. This deeply flawed movie was meant to provide meaningful insights into the world of the American counterculture in the late 1960s, to attack American capitalism and to act as a cinematic manifesto for youthful revolutionary aspirations. Instead, Antonioni's patronising and lazy film is significant only for its reiteration of his favourite themes of alienation and ennui, and for revealing the trite, self-regarding and ineffectual character of aspects of the counterculture.
