"[T]he opening of Expo...may in retrospect turn out to have been one of those rare moments that changed the direction of a nation's history...This is the greatest thing we have ever done as a nation and surely the modernization of Canada...The more you see of it, the more you're overwhelmed by a feeling that if this is possible, that if this little sub-arctic, self-obsessed country of 20,000,000 people can put on this kind of show, then it can do almost…
This review may contain spoilers. I can handle the truth.
When we first meet fresh-faced teenage Charlie (an excellent Teresa Wright), we find her lying on her bed, resenting the apparent boredom of life in an average American home in her small California town. Her father (Travers) is a mid-level banker whose form of relaxation is to discuss murders with his mousy neighbour (Cronyn). Her mother (Collinge) is a typical 1940s cinematic middle-class housewife: a pleasant homemaker who frets over public perception.
Despite a war raging overseas, you'd hardly know…
This early sound musical comedy from Rene Clair is an aesthetic wonder. Brash and knowingly artificial, Le Million is a fun, gleeful and novel attempt at weaving music with the medium of cinema. The crux of the story - indebted man wins the lottery only to lose his ticket - is an astute launchpad for Clair's stylish film whose editing and camerawork seems to have influenced many a musical that came after it.
While its reputation has faded away gradually over time, it's understandable why this was in the top 10 of the first Sight and Sound poll. A silly, entertaining delight.
This review may contain spoilers. I can handle the truth.
45 Years is an elegiac portrait of a marriage on the brink. While there is something unnatural about the literary dialogue (it was adapted from a short story) 45 Years manages to calibrate an effective tale of personal histories and private possessions (thoughts, feelings, ephemera).
Kate (Rampling) and Geoff (Courtenay) are a childless retired couple living on the outskirts of Norwich that are days away from a party to celebrate their 45th wedding anniversary. One day Geoff receives a letter…
Out of the 1930s cycle of gangster films this has to rank in the top three in level of influence and importance. Paul Muni wasn't an iconic archetype for the genre like Edward G. Robinson or James Cagney were, but he imbues Tony Camonte with an aura that is unlike Little Caesar's Rico or The Public Enemy's Tom Powers.
Despite what the censors thought Muni's Chicagoan gangster isn't someone to aspire to be. He's imbecilic, charmless, perverse and gullible. He's…
Alongside What's Up Doc? this is for my money Peter Bogdanovich's (RIP) best film. An astute blend of 30's cinematic styles (Hawks, Ford, screwball comedies), the picaresque Paper Moon is a marvellous tale of a pair of grifters travelling across Kansas during the Depression.
Tatum O' Neal was a revelation and deservedly won Best Supporting Actress. With her scowls, sad eyes and cigarettes, her performance avoids the saccharine cuteness that infects most child acting performances. It fits perfectly with the…
