Movie Classic Films — Let's Discuss

[Asgardian]

Just thought I'd pop in to say I enjoy your work Asgardian and even though I don't post in this thread often, I thoroughly enjoy reading your posts and your huge knowledge of cinema.

Thanks for that, I sometimes wonder if I'm talking to myself ...

 

[Asgardian]

I finally caught up with a movie I had heard about, Legion of Terror (1936).

It was worth the wait.

Imagine a powerful subversive secret organisation that seems to be able to get away with anything and the local law, newspapers & judicial system cannot come to grips with ............. sounds like the Ku Klux Klan hey? Well in Legion of Terror it's called the Hooded Legion, complete with white robes and pointy masks, flaming crosses, secret locations, no minority groups included and all of the towns important people are secret members.

In Legion of Terror a couple of postal inspectors are trying to hunt them down because of a discovered bomb in the post that was sent to a senator.

They are up against a group to whom kidnapping, vandalism, intimidation, beatings and murder is no problem.

This is another 1930's movie that I recommend

 

[bunsen burner]

Anyone mentioned Without a Paddle yet? Classic.

 

[bunsen burner]

Black Horror?

 

[Asgardian]

Black Horror?

Actually they leave the race question out of the movie, I'm guessing it was because of the Klan.

Plus it is not a horror movie, it's a crime suspense flix.

Anyone mentioned Without a Paddle yet? Classic.

From 2004?

Not a movie I'd call a classic, neither from the quality or the age of it. Especially the age of it.

 

[bunsen burner]

Actually they leave the race question out of the movie, I'm guessing it was because of the Klan.

Plus it is not a horror movie, it's a crime suspense flix.



From 2004?

Not a movie I'd call a classic, neither from the quality or the age of it. Especially the age of it.

tip: I wasn't being serious.

 

[Dan Moody]

Thanks for that, I sometimes wonder if I'm talking to myself ...

Definitely not, I've begun looking for some of the movies you review. Especially movies from the 30's.

 

[Asgardian]

Caught up with The Secret Seven (1940) tonight

A group of specialists, scientists etc, get together to help the police solve unsolvable crimes. A theme used many times in the movies & TV, like Four Just Men & recently, on a supernatural theme, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.

A complicating issue for our specialists is that one of them has been recently released from prison, hence has a credibility problem.

Not a bad movie, but not top notch either.

 

[Asgardian]

Got out a real oldie last night, Q-Ships, made in 1928.

It's a silent movie that later had a couple of lines of dialogue, some sound effects and a bit of music added.

It's all about the Q-Ships that the RAN operated in WW1 to draw the U-Boats in & then attack them. The Q-Ships were disguised merchant men, in reality heavily armed navy vessels able to take on a surfaced submarine. Remember the tactics & capabilities of the U-Boats in WW1 required them to surface a lot of the time.

There's a bit of unpleasant racist humour included but overall it's an enjoyable British film with a goodly amount of action.

 

[Asgardian]

Had a look at Only Yesterday, made in 1933, again.

It's fantastic material for any of the stupid soaps that enjoy long runs on TV.

Girl loves boy, one night stand, he goes off to WW1, she has a bun in the oven, war finishes, he returns to America into the arms of a society belle having completely forgotten about the one night stand .......

Lots more happens, more sex, death, planned suicide ........... but I wont give it all away.

There are lots of well known support actors along with Margaret Sullavan strutting her stuff in a fantastic performance.

Get a hold of this one if you can.

 

[Asgardian]

Had a look at The Green Cockatoo made in 1937

It's a dingy dark Pommy crime mystery, sounds like film noir huh? Well I reckon it is.

A country girl lands in London looking for work, what she does find is murder, crooked gamblers & the London underground (no, not the tram system).

She's help out by a tap dancing John Mills, who happens to be the guy she is looking for, and a whole lot of stuff happens.

The story is by Graham Greene & directed by William Cameron Menzies

I reckon it's a hell of a lot better than several other reviewers have declared.

A good discussion about the movie can be found HERE

Find this one if you can.

 

[Asgardian]

Caught up with another of the real oldies, The Black Watch, made in 1929 & directed by John Ford, this was his first talkie.



The start of WW1, a British officer is on a secret mission to India, others accuse him of cowardice, but he gains the attention of a comely looking white Indian princess.

All good fun and you have to look for a young John Wayne.

 

[djrossie16]

Not sure why I still haven't sat down and watched Seven Samurai. The one classic I probably need to see asap.

 

[childeric]

Anyone mentioned Without a Paddle yet? Classic.

Abort! Abort the foetal position!

 

[Asgardian]

Not sure why I still haven't sat down and watched Seven Samurai. The one classic I probably need to see asap.

A great film

 

[placebo]

Just finished watching Autumn Sonata by Bergman. Just a beautiful film all round. Liv Ullman and Ingrid Bergman play off each other so magnificently, in their estranged mother-daughter relationship. The years of resentment and guilt and pain build to a heart-wrenching climax and re-established why Bergman is my favourite of all filmmakers.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0077711/

 

[CLUBMEDhurst]

I'm ashamed to say it Asgardian, but I've just watched "The Big Combo" for the first time!

And what a treat. Richard Conte is at his stylish, malevolent best as Mr Brown, head of The Combo. The plot concerns Cornel Wilde's obsessive cop (positively creepy at times) and his hunt for Mr Brown, despite his seniors telling him to lay off. He believes that the best way to get to Brown is through his girlfriend Susan (played by Jean Wallace) a beautiful but straight woman (no gangster's moll there).

The photography was amazing, the interplay between dark and light the stretched shadows - pure noir. The movie is quite brutal in it's violence (must be one of the first films that utilised extreme noise as a torture tool). What risque sexuality. At one point Brown is stood behind Susan, kisses her on the lips then slinks down behind her, whilst she appears sexually aroused. The portrayal of the hit men as gay is also quite overt.

Overall a top quality movie at the arse end of film noir

 

[Asgardian]

Yep CLUBMEDhurst The Big Combo is an excellent bit of film noir, the only drawback for me though is Cornel Wilde. He is an actor that I just find easy to dislike.

A couple of lessor known film noir I'd recommend would be The Tattooed Stranger, My Name Is Julia Ross, The Clouded Yellow, The Damned Don't Cry, Nasser Asphalt (Wet Asphalt), Woman on the Run, Obsession, The Sound of Fury, Without Warning!, Shadowed, The Phenix City Story, The Sleeping City, City That Never Sleeps, The Amazing Mr. X.

CLUBMEDhurst there's no point being let down about not yet having caught up with a film, there are 1000's that I am yet to see, that I should have seen.

 

[Asgardian]

Watched Bureau of Missing Persons, made in 1933 with Bette Davis, Pat O'Brien & some regular studio players, last night.

It's a murder, mystery, comic semi serious movie, and quite enjoyable.

Pat O'Brien is a tough guy cop, transferred to the Bureau of Missing Persons coz he was too much of a thug in the other departments.

Bette Davis has lost her husband, or has she, did she kill him, is he really dead, has she committed suicide, will a fake funeral draw out the supposedly dead?

With A grade stars and Roy Del Ruth directing you could be excused for wanting a little more than this delivers, but all in all, and enjoyable quickie.

 

[CURVE]

Watched a few Charlotte Rampling classics over the weekend. Started off with Visconti's The Damned, which is probably my least favourite Visconti film, and followed it up with the The Night Porter by Liliana Cavani. Both are very harrowing, exhausting films about third reich and both contain imagery that remains with you a long time. After those two epics I tried to find a "lighter" Charlotte Rampling film in my collection, but the best I could do was Tis a Pity She's a Whore. She is one dark but talented actress. And grossly under rated.

On Sunday afternoon there was a little documentary on Charlotte on ABC, it was as weird and as interesting as the actress herself.

 

[Asgardian]

Not my favourite actress, but Zardoz was fun.

 

[childeric]

I've been working my way through a box-set of 1950s sci-fi movies mostly directed by Jack Arnold

Monster on the Campus, Tarantula, Monolith Monsters, Deadly Mantis, The Leech Woman, Mole People

Nuclear testing had a lot to answer for - unintentionally amusing at times but entertaining

 

[Asgardian]

I've been working my way through a box-set of 1950s sci-fi movies mostly directed by Jack Arnold

Monster on the Campus, Tarantula, Monolith Monsters, Deadly Mantis, The Leech Woman, Mole People
&
Nuclear testing had a lot to answer for - unintentionally amusing at times but entertaining

Absolutely love those old 50's sci-fi's

Mole People & Monolith Monsters are my favourites from that list.

Of the monster type 50's sci-fi's I reckon you've missed the best of them though ............ "Them"

Add in The Fly, The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms, Creature from the Black Lagoon, The Wasp Woman, It Came from Beneath the Sea, The Phantom from 10,000 Leagues, The Black Scorpion, The Abominable Snowman & Attack of the Giant Leeches.

 

[CURVE]

Of the monster type 50's sci-fi's I reckon you've missed the best of them though ............ "Them"

I'm pretty certain Blondie sampled a scene from "Them" for their song "Attack Of The Giant Ants". It's a brilliant little homage to all 50's sci-fi that can be found on their 1976 debut. Maybe they invented sampling??
For some reason I can't explain, Them is one of the few 50's sci-fi films I haven't seen. I have to rectify that ASAP.

 

[Dan Moody]

Asgardian, interested to know if you've seen Tokyo Story?
Also, have you managed to catch The Story of Film : An Oddyssey which screened recently on SBS?