Deadfall (1968)

Twentieth Century-Fox Film
Directed by Bryan Forbes
My rating: 2 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Fox)

Bryan Forbes completely abandons his British new wave origins, which were realistic pictures set in the lives of ordinary people, for a stylish film about a high-class diamond thief set among the ultra rich in Spain. The centerpiece is a long scene where Michael Caine and friends break into a mansion and attempt to steal diamonds in a safe. Forbes decides to cut back and forth between the robbery and a classical music concert attended by the owners of the house, giving equal time to each. When the robbery runs into unexpected trouble, the concert ends and the owners head for home, the two scenes nicely dovetailing. However, the relationships in the film do not work quite so well. Character motivation is lacking, and there is a ludicrous surprise revelation. The ending is anticlimactic and unsatisfying. The film turns out to be one of the more glaring examples of style over substance.

The Last Hard Men (1976)

Twentieth Century-Fox Film
Directed by Andrew V. McLaglen
My rating: 2 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Shout! Factory)

James Coburn escapes from a chain gang in the middle of the Arizona desert. He leads the group of escapees across the barren landscape to Tuscon, where he kidnaps the daughter of retired sheriff Charlton Heston. The two men have a personal grudge to settle. Heston forms a posse and tracks the outlaws across the Arizona landscape for a final, violent showdown. The direction is rather lackluster despite the setting, and there is an over-use of slow motion for the dramatic moments. A rather disappointing western considering the on-screen talent in their prime.

Bigfoot: The Mysterious Monster (1976)

Schick Sun Classic Pictures
Directed by Robert Guenette
My rating: 2 stars out of 4
IMDb
(YouTube)

Peter Graves hosts this pseudo-documentary on the seventies pop-culture phenomenon Bigfoot. It's a series of dramatizations featuring a man-in-a-gorilla-suit, based on eyewitness accounts. It includes the famous Patterson footage of a supposed Bigfoot walking near a river bluff, since debunked as a hoax. Scientific proof that Bigfoot exists presented in the film includes a demonstration by a psychic, hypnotizing an eyewitness who relives her close encounter, a lie detector test of an Indian, and testimony by many expert scientists about foot size, hair type and the like. The one thing I learned by watching this movie: Bigfoot smells really, really bad.

Man in the Shadow (1957)

Universal-International Pictures
Directed by Jack Arnold
My rating: 3 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Universal Vault Collection)

A hired hand and drifter, a Mexican, is murdered on a sprawling ranch for flirting with the daughter of the owner. The only problem is they leave a witness, who goes to the sheriff with his story. It quickly becomes a battle between the idealistic sheriff (Jeff Chandler) and the despotic ranch owner (Orson Welles). More intimidation and murders follow, and Chandler himself becomes a target of the thuggish ranch hands. It's up to the town's citizens to side with their sheriff or the ranch which threatens to ruin them both economically and morally. Sadly, the themes of discrimination, illogical fear and hatred of illegal aliens still exist in America today, perhaps are even more widespread, and the film is just as relevant as it was over 50 years ago.

The Making of Star Wars (1977)

20th Century Fox Television
Directed by Robert Guenette
My rating: 2.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(YouTube)

This hour-long documentary features some interesting behind-the-scenes footage of everybody's favorite sci-fi flick, well at least my favorite. C3PO and R2D2 play hosts in a wraparound segment filmed especially for this release on a new Star Wars set. My favorite scenes include an interview with Carrie Fisher in an arcade playing an old Star Wars vector game, and the footage in a disco with dancers wearing iron-on Star Wars t-shirts. In the end, though, it feels more like a long advertisement than a true "making of", but still a lot of fun for fans.

Mockery (1927)

MGM
Directed by Benjamin Christensen
My rating: 2.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Warner Archive Collection)

A superb performance by Lon Chaney as the Russian peasant Sergei can't hide the fact that this is a predictable, melodramatic story. He guides a Russian princess disguised as a peasant to safety, but in the process falls in love with her. While she is grateful for his help, once her true identity is revealed that is the end of it. However, Chaney can't dismiss his feelings so easily, resulting in a slow build-up of frustration. Goaded by the house cook and his reason clouded by alcohol, he takes advantage of an uprising in the palace to confront her, which is both poignant and tragic.

Kitten with a Whip (1964)

Universal Pictures
Directed by Douglas Heyes
My rating: 2.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Universal Vault Collection)

Ann-Margret escapes from a juvenile prison and takes refuge in the suburban house of John Forsythe, an aspiring political candidate. She takes advantage of his precarious position of having an underage girl in his house while his wife is out of town by inviting a few friends over for laughs. They try to blackmail him, but one of them gets a nasty cut during a scuffle so they head off to Mexico to find a doctor where the situation completely unravels. It's more than just a typical JD flick, with Forsythe's character faced with the dilemma of being an innocent victim but not able to expose his situation for fear of political reprisals. Ann-Margret plays her role with complete abandon and has some priceless lines.

Sweet Hostage (1975)

Directed by Lee Philips
My rating: 2 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Warner Archive Collection)

Teenager Linda Blair is kidnapped by escaped mental patient Martin Sheen in remote New Mexico. He takes her to his mountain cabin where he woos her with poetry and his radical ideas of romance. She initially resists but falls under his spell. There is the inevitable tragic ending when the police catch up to them. Similar in theme to Sheen's performance in Badlands just two years earlier, but this TV movie is no masterpiece and suffers from eye-rolling dialogue and a dated soundtrack.

The Last Run (1971)

MGM
Directed by Richard Fleischer
My rating: 3 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Warner Archive Collection)

A middle aged George C. Scott is living in Portugal with his boat and his car. He accepts a job driving for an escaped criminal, to see if he's still got the nerves for it. His passengers are a bratty mobster and his flirtatious girlfriend. The trio drive through the barren landscapes of Spain and Portugal avoiding anonymous gangsters. The relationship between Scott and the girl, played by his future wife Trish Van Devere, is complex, they obviously like each other but it is unclear who is using who and their motivations. It gets better with repeated viewings, and the photography by Sven Nykvist is excellent as usual.

Savage Messiah (1972)

MGM
Directed by Ken Russell
My rating: 3 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Warner Archive Collection)

Henri Gaudier is a young artist-type in Paris, rebelling against everything around him, including art. He meets a Polish writer twice his age and the two begin a life-long friendship. Desperately poor, they go to London when he gets offered a real job. However, they continue to live in squalor in the London underground railway system. He takes up sculpting to impress an art dealer, and it soon becomes an obsession. Helen Mirren is one of his models, who sings in a nightclub and walks around naked. Meanwhile, war at home in France calls him to volunteer and he is tragically killed. Gaudier's energy is inexhaustible, although his antics can be juvenile at times his talent is undeniable. Scott Antony give a magnificent performance, it's a wonder he did not go on to a better career, virtually disappearing after only a handful of films.

Tale of the Navajos (1949)

MGM
My rating: 2.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Warner Archive Collection)

This hour-long documentary is set in the spectacular scenery of the desert southwest and shot in vivid 3-strip Technicolor. It is the story of two boys, one Indian and the other a trader, who set off across the wilderness in search of the sacred turquoise of the Navajos, whose supply has gone dry. The stones are hidden in cliff dwellings of an ancient tribe. Once there, they chip away at the stones, break some pottery and steal the turquoise, not exactly respectful behavior. The narration tells us about Navajo myths along their journey, sometimes helpful but more often intrusive. My cats enjoyed watching the eagle, owls and crow.

The Traveling Executioner (1970)

MGM
Directed by Jack Smight
My rating: 2.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Warner Archive Collection)

Stacy Keach is a one-man executioner, taking his road show throughout the South. He treats the condemned as "clients" and tells them an eloquent story of the "fields of ambrosia" waiting on the other side to calm them down. He also makes a pretty good living. However, when his next client is a woman it turns his life upside down. He tries to delay her execution first by faking the theft of the chair, then by planning to fake her death. He raises cash to pay off the doctor by bringing a truck load of prostitutes to the prison. When the doctor demands more, he robs a bank but commits murder in the process. Convicted, he becomes his own client, reciting the story of the "fields of ambrosia" once again. Keach is the whole show here, his performance walking the line between comic and morose, much like the film itself. Certainly not for all tastes, but its dark humor will appeal to more adventuresome viewers.

The Fox (1967)

Claridge Pictures
Directed by Mark Rydell
My rating: 2 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Warner Archive Collection)

Lesbian farmers on a remote ranch have their idyllic life interrupted by the arrival of a stranger. At first he just helps out with chores like fixing the roof, but after awhile he abruptly proposes to one of the women. She eventually accepts, sending the other girl into a tailspin. It's an interesting and unusual story, to say the least, but dragged down by the heavy-handed symbolism, and especially the unnecessary on-screen killings of several animals. I realize this is farm life, but do we really need to watch a real fox die for a movie?

The Shanghai Cobra (1945)

Monogram Pictures
Directed by Phil Karlson
My rating: 1.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, MGM)

Charlie Chan helps an old friend investigate murders at a big city bank. People are being poisoned at the local coffee shop, and it isn't the coffee. The trail leads to underground sewers which are being used to access the bank after hours. Sidney Toler just keeps going and going as the famous Chinese detective in Charlie Chan #34.

Avalanche Express (1979)

Twentieth Century-Fox Film
Directed by Mark Robson
My rating: 2 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Warner Archive Collection)

Russian spy Robert Shaw is being escorted out of the country by American spy Lee Marvin and friends on a train. The Russians aren't too happy about this and attack the train by many methods to try to stop him. The most interesting is a massive avalanche started by explosives, which buries a town but does not stop the train. Later, the chase transfers to boats for the finale. Robert Shaw, who died of a heart attack during production, is dubbed throughout which is distracting. Joe Namath proves once again he is no actor, and Linda Evans is not much better. Still, an entertaining diversion for disaster fans.

Wild Rovers (1971)

MGM
Directed by Blake Edwards
My rating: 2 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Warner Archive Collection)

William Holden is an aging cowpoke working on Karl Malden's Montana ranch. He befriends young Ryan O'Neal and the two of them spend most of their time at the whorehouse in town or getting in brawls at the bar over card games. O'Neal comes up with the idea to rob the bank, and Holden reluctantly agrees. They go on the lam through spectacular scenery, pursued by Malden's sons. It's overlong by about an hour, filled with violence towards animals, has a Jerry Goldsmith score derivative of Aaron Copland and relies on slow motion to make its dramatic points.

Counter-Attack (1945)

Columbia Pictures
Directed by Zoltan Korda
My rating: 2.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Sony Screen Classics by Request)

Two Russian soldiers become trapped underneath a destroyed building with a group of Nazi's. Paul Muni is the Russian who decides to play a battle of wits with the Germans, hoping to identify the officer among them and get him to reveal vital information about the battle raging above them. His biggest enemy is sleep, and I would not advise watching this film late at night. Based on a Broadway play, it retains a stage bound feel, rarely going beyond the cramped confines of the crumbling hole in which they are trapped.

Three Came to Kill (1960)

United Artists
Directed by Edward L. Cahn
My rating: 1.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, MGM Limited Edition Collection)

Cameron Mitchell and pals are hired to assassinate a Middle Eastern leader as he leaves the country at the LA airport. They plan to do it by firing a bullet into the gas tank as it sits on the runway. They take hostages at a house that overlooks the airport. Mitchell chews the scenery while the captive family tries to figure out how to stop them. Low budget schlock that takes place almost entirely in one room with projected images of the airport behind the windows.

The Stranger (1946)

RKO Radio Pictures
Directed by Orson Welles
My rating: 3.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Fox/MGM)

The Orson Welles classic deals with a Nazi war criminal hiding in a small New England town under an assumed name. He is a respected teacher at the local school. He marries the daughter of a prominent judge, but on their wedding day a strange "little man" appears at their house. The man turns out to be an old Nazi friend, and afraid of exposure Welles kills him. Surprisingly, he lets his wife in on the act, but gives her a different explanation. A government man pursuing him tells her about his real identity, but she refuses to believe it. The last half-hour or so is a tense battle of wills, with Welles desperate to do away with his wife, but her friends trying to save her. My only gripe would be that it is a bit melodramatic towards the end, but otherwise a truly gripping film filled with shadows and symbolism.

The Snow Devils (1967)

MGM
Directed by Anthony Dawson (Antonio Margheriti)
My rating: 1.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Warner Archive Collection)

In the near-future, the weather goes wild and Italian scientists narrow down the cause to a mysterious energy emanating from the Himalayas. They send out an expedition and find giant, blue, hairy snow men living in caves. They turn out to be aliens from a dying world attempting to transform Earth's climate into their own. The Italians then head for Jupiter to take out their base of operations. This mid-60s Italian space trash includes awful dubbing, hilarious special effects consisting mainly of models hanging on wires and non-stop, boring, pseudo-science gibberish.

The Super Cops (1974)

MGM
Directed by Gordon Parks
My rating: 2.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Warner Archive Collection)

A couple of altruistic rookie cops take on drug pushers and the system in NYC. Directing traffic by day, they spend their off-hours taking down previously untouchable street dealers. The other cops in the precinct feel threatened, and their superiors, most of them corrupt, throw obstacles in their way at every opportunity. Shot on location in some of the poorest NYC neighborhoods, it has an authentic feel. However, it is very episodic, characters come and go in a flash with little backstory, then disappear for the rest of the film. In this respect it resembles a TV show rather than cinema.

Black Eye (1974)

Warner Bros.
Directed by Jack Arnold
My rating: 2 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Warner Archive Collection)

Fred Williamson is a peanut-chomping ex-cop turned private detective. One day he finds the neighbor of his lesbian girlfriend dead in her apartment. The trail leads him into the underworld of drugs, porn, prostitution and Jesus freaks in Venice, California. It's actually not nearly as interesting as it sounds, as the characters that inhabit that world are little more than Hollywood stereotypes. The fight scenes use obvious doubles and the car chases are in slow motion. Nonetheless, fans of blaxploitation may get a few chuckles while soaking up the early 70s atmosphere.

Kona Coast (1968)

Warner Bros.-Seven Arts
Directed by Lamont Johnson
My rating: 1.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Warner Archive Collection)

Meandering account of a middle aged fisherman who looks for the men responsible for his daughter's death. The only problem is the mystery is an afterthought, the plot, if there is one, revolves around his boring personal life. Richard Boone is a vulgar, alcoholic, not very attractive aging bohemian. He is surrounded by young, attractive women, who can't seem to keep their hands off him, and then his lovely ex-wife Vera Miles shows up and she can't resist him either. It's simply asking too much suspension of disbelief from the audience, I mean Boone wears the same old yellow jacket and grey shorts the entire film! You get the feeling this was nothing more than a free vacation in Hawaii for all involved.

Tomahawk (1951)

Universal-International Pictures
Directed by George Sherman
My rating: 2.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Universal Vault Collection)

Vivid Technicolor western that utilizes location shooting in the Black Hills of South Dakota for maximum effect. Van Heflin is an Indian scout for the Cavalry. He suspects a Captain of being involved in a massacre that took his wife and child years ago. So when the local Sioux start an uprising, he uses the opportunity to expose him. Yvonne De Carlo is in a minor role as part of a traveling side show, but surprisingly is not Heflin's romantic diversion.

The L-Shaped Room (1962)

Columbia Pictures
Directed by Bryan Forbes
My rating: 3.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(Turner Classic Movies)

Leslie Caron is a pregnant French girl in London, newly arrived with the intention of having an abortion. She gets a room in a shabby boarding house. The other tenants are an assortment of poor artistic types, a writer, a jazz musician, and aging women who run a brothel downstairs. At first disgusted with her surroundings, she strikes up a friendship with the writer, Tom Bell, and they gradually become romantically involved. She keeps her pregnancy a secret, but can't go through with the abortion. When Bell finds out, it threatens to destroy everything. Leslie Caron's performance is a revelation, miles beyond her previous lightweight roles in frothy Hollywood musicals.

A Place for Lovers (1968)

MGM
Directed by Vittorio De Sica
My rating: 3.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(Turner Classic Movies)

Faye Dunaway shows up at the mansion of wealthy Italian engineer Marcello Mastroianni where they begin an affair. Faye wears beautiful fashions while they frolic among the art work, or even in the grass outside. However, all is not as idyllic as it appears, the romantic music and settings broken by occasional images of ugliness. A friend of Faye's shows up after several days and her background, and motivation for the affair, is revealed. Mastroianni overacts in one key scene, but Dunaway is quite good throughout. A complex, haunting film that will require multiple viewings to fully comprehend.

A Kind of Loving (1962)

Anglo-Amalgamated
Directed by John Schlesinger
My rating: 3 stars out of 4
IMDb
(Turner Classic Movies)

Schlesinger's first film is a matter-of-fact look at first love between a young working class couple in England. They live in row houses, take crowded buses to work, eat in a noisy cafeteria... all in the shadow of smoky industrial chimneys and an ever-present fog. The romance that develops is in direct contrast to their surroundings: shy young lovers with a naive innocence. However, they cannot escape their environment. Take the first date at the movies: they won't even hold hands but the seats around them are filled with couples making out. Vic (Alan Bates) eventually succumbs to the prodding of his juvenile friends and tries to seduce Ingrid (June Ritchie). She initially resists, but when she senses he is losing interest she changes her mind. She becomes pregnant and they get married, living in her house with her mother. The lack of privacy drives them apart and an accident results in a miscarriage. Vic becomes a drunkard and walks out. The once innocent couple now reflects their shabby surroundings. It is only when they strike out on their own to search for an apartment, a dreary, run-down apartment, that they have any hope of finding happiness.

The Desert Song (1953)

Warner Bros.
Directed by Bruce Humberstone
My rating: 2 stars out of 4
IMDb
(VHS, Warner)
(Turner Classic Movies)

Hollywood hokum about a mild mannered archaeologist who moonlights as a Robin Hood of the desert. He tutors lovely Kathryn Grayson as the professor but she falls in love with his other personality after being kidnapped. The hapless French Legionnaires come to her rescue. Some of the songs are well done, even if the lip synching isn't always convincing.

Mister ScoutMaster (1953)

Twentieth Century-Fox Film
Directed by Henry Levin
My rating: 2 stars out of 4
IMDb
(Turner Classic Movies)

Clifton Webb is a curmudgeon with a failing TV show. He hopes to save it by getting kids to watch, but it turns out he knows nothing about kids. In steps a cute kid with a speech impediment, who is also a Cub Scout and just in case that doesn't get enough sympathy also an orphan. Webb takes over as scoutmaster for a rowdy group of hellions in the basement of the local church. In the entirely predictable plot he wins them over, and vice versa. I suppose those pining for 1950s America when life revolved around scouting, patriotism and God will find this both nostalgic and inspiring, but it seems awfully naive and saccharine to me.

Talk About a Stranger (1952)

MGM
Directed by David Bradley
My rating: 3 stars out of 4
IMDb
(Turner Classic Movies)

Little Bud lives on an orange farm with his typical American family. He adopts a stray dog and names it "Boy". Meanwhile, a stranger moves into the neglected mansion next door. His anti-social behavior makes him a target for all the kids in the neighborhood, as well as a source of gossip among the adults at the grocery store and in the barber shop. "Boy" turns up missing one day and is found dead in the stranger's yard. Bud believes the stranger poisoned him and becomes consumed with hate. He digs into the man's past and finds some startling details. Moodily photographed in black and white, the final scenes take place in smoke-filled orchards on a cold night, as the farmers try to save their crop by burning oil, and Bud uncovers the truth about the stranger. This is not a Saturday matinee film about a boy and his dog, but rather an intelligent drama that explores the very adult theme of dealing with the pain of losing a loved one.

Madeleine (1950)

General Film Distributors
Directed by David Lean
My rating: 3 stars out of 4
IMDb
(Turner Classic Movies)

A young Lady in Glasgow carries on an illicit affair with a Frenchman behind the back of her domineering father. She proposes to elope with him, but he is more interested in her money. Rejected, she begins to fall in love with a more appropriate suitor. However, the Frenchman continues to show up at inopportune times demanding her attention. When he turns up dead by arsenic poisoning, her incriminating love letters and possession of the poison for "cosmetic" purposes lead to her arrest for murder. A long trial follows, which captures news headlines across the country. Director Lean carefully avoids any direct evidence of her guilt, so we are not sure if she is the murderer or not during the trial. The ending leaves more questions than answers, which may be unsatisfactory to most viewers, but I found it fit perfectly. However, the film does often wallow in melodramatics, particularly in the first half, and the swelling violin music is overpowering at times. Ann Todd, the director's wife, is perfectly cast: her ice-cold demeanor makes you believe she could indeed commit murder.

Killer Leopard (1954)

Allied Artists
Directed by Ford Beebe
My rating: 1.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(Turner Classic Movies)

The 11th Bomba film finds Johnny Sheffield helping a Hollywood starlet find her good-for-nothing husband in the jungle. The trail leads to illegal diamonds and the men who deal in them. Oh, and there is a killer leopard on the loose, which Bomba gets to wrestle for the ending, well, a stuffed double of the killer leopard.

Meet Boston Blackie (1941)

Columbia Pictures
Directed by Robert Florey
My rating: 2.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(Turner Classic Movies)

Coney Island carnival atmosphere enhances otherwise routine Boston Blackie entry. Our hero, a reformed jewel thief much like the concurrent Lone Wolf series from Columbia, gets framed for murder. He sets out to find the real killers, picking up Rochelle Hudson as a sidekick and foiling the police along the way. The trail leads to spies using a Mechanical Man side show as a cover.

McHale's Navy (1964)

Universal Pictures
Directed by Edward Montagne
My rating: 2 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Universal Vault Collection)

The TV series was in its third season when this theatrical film was made. It must have been a shock to see those familiar faces in color. The situational comedy may have worked for 25-minute TV episodes, but does not fare so well in a 90-minute feature. The characters are coarsely drawn caricatures, the dialogue is loud and exaggerated, the slapstick humor juvenile. Even the great Tim Conway fails to deliver any laughs. This is strictly for fans of the show, and even they may be disappointed.

Geronimo (1962)

United Artists
Directed by Arnold Laven
My rating: 2.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, MGM Limited Edition Collection)

The Apaches surrender to the Cavalry and are escorted to their new home on a government reservation. Stripped of their pride and dignity, their leader, Geronimo, wages guerrilla warfare against the superior American forces. While Geronimo's machismo may aid him on the battlefield, it hinders his relationships with women, particularly with the pretty young Indian girl he forces into marriage. A long subplot detailing their romance weighs down the film considerably. Kamala Devi plays the girl, and would be Chuck Connors' wife for the next ten years.

Desire Me (1947)

MGM
No director credited
My rating: 2 stars out of 4
IMDb
(Turner Classic Movies)

Richard Hart returns to the hometown of an Army buddy in Brittany after escaping from a prison camp. He uses the intimate details of his life, learned in the camp, to seduce his friend's wife, who believes he is dead. Greer Garson is the confused woman, who lets herself fall in love with the man. The husband, Robert Mitchum, unexpectedly returns home, leading to an explosive confrontation with Hart on a foggy cliff. There is a good film buried in here somewhere, but post-production tampering by the studio led to the removal of the director's name from the credits. The result is a mess, including the only example of a four-level flashback I have ever seen on film: Greer Garson narrates a framing device from a doctor's office during which she recalls her husband; Mitchum is seen talking to his buddy on the battlefield telling him about his wife; the buddy arrives at the husband's home town; he has at least one flashback to the battlefield. A flashback within a flashback within a flashback within a flashback!

The Silent Call (1961)

Twentieth Century-Fox Films
Directed by John A. Bushelman
My rating: 1.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(Fox Movie Channel)

A family leaves their dog with a neighbor when they move from Nevada to LA. The dog, a large Labrador retriever, escapes from the house and tries to follow. The movie alternates between scenes in LA, where Guy, the heartbroken only child, rebels against his parents, and Pete the dog's escapades on the road. Pete is a much better actor than all of the humans.

Having a Wild Weekend (1965)

Warner Bros.
Directed by John Boorman
My rating: 2.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(VHS, Warner)
(Turner Classic Movies)

Bored London teenagers Dave Clark and Barbara Ferris steal a car and head for the country on a joyride to nowhere. Their first stop is an abandoned building where despondent junkies are hanging out. They stay for awhile, until the Army shows up and destroys their car. Next stop, the mansion of a bored middle aged couple who "collect things" for a living. They throw a masquerade party where people dress up as old Hollywood comedians such as Charlie Chaplin. The last stop is an abandoned island where our teenage couple decide to break up. It's all rather pointless, and Dave Clark is not a very good actor, but the music of his band the Dave Clark Five, who are also in supporting roles, saves this from being a complete waste of time.

History Is Made at Night (1937)

United Artists
Directed by Frank Borzage
My rating: 2.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(VHS, Warner)
(Turner Classic Movies)

Jean Arthur, in Paris to get a divorce from her husband, falls in love with headwaiter Charles Boyer. When he gets implicated in a murder really committed by her husband, she leaves for New York City to save him. Months later, he follows her and becomes headwaiter at a posh restaurant. Unaware of her whereabouts, he waits patiently for her to show up one night, but their reunion is bittersweet. The plot takes a left turn into disaster-movie melodramatics for the overblown ending.

The Las Vegas Story (1952)

RKO Radio Pictures
Directed by Robert Stevenson
My rating: 2 stars out of 4
IMDb
(Turner Classic Movies)

Jane Russell and husband Vincent Price stopover in Vegas. He indulges his gambling habit while she relives her old days as a nightclub singer. Her expensive necklace attracts the attention of an insurance investigator, and after it gets stolen he is the prime suspect. A final chase sequence in fast motion involves a helicopter at a dusty airport. Hoagy Carmichael is a campy lounge singer and performs the awful "Monkey Song".

Siege at Red River (1954)

Twentieth Century-Fox Film
Directed by Rudolph Maté
My rating: 2 stars out of 4
IMDb
(Fox Movie Channel)

Two rebels steal an early Gatling gun and attempt to smuggle it to the south. They hide under cover of a medicine show as they travel from town to town. They can hardly contain their hatred of the Yankees in their midst, except when one of them is pretty Joanne Dru. They hire an outlaw to guide them through the final stretch of hostile Indian territory. He steals the gun and sells it to Indians, who turn around and use it to attack the Yankees. Can the girl and the Rebs learn to get along to defeat them? And more importantly, what is the Grand Canyon doing in Kansas?

Side Show (1931)

Warner Bros.
Directed by Roy Del Ruth
My rating: 2 stars out of 4
IMDb
(Turner Classic Movies)

A circus provides the backdrop for melodramatics between Winnie Lightner, her sister and her boyfriend. Winnie gets the most screen time, but she is probably the least interesting character in the movie. Charles Butterworth gets the best lines, his deadpan humor either hilarious or hilariously awful, depending on your mood.

The Reckless Moment (1949)

Columbia Pictures
Directed by Max Opuls
My rating: 2.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(Turner Classic Movies)

A teenager accidentally kills her much older mobster boyfriend one night when he attacks her in a boathouse. Her mom discovers the body the next morning and dumps it in a swamp. One of his mobster friends shows up with the girl's love letters and blackmails mom. James Mason is the reluctant blackmailer who falls in love with her. I found his transformation, and final sacrifice, somewhat unbelievable, especially considering the total lack of affection returned by the desperate mother. Good performances all around, except by the annoying teenage son.

The Utah Kid (1944)

Monogram Pictures
Directed by Vernon Keays
My rating: 1.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(Turner Classic Movies)

Pasty-faced cowboy Bob Steele goes to work for overweight marshal Hoot Gibson to root out bad guys at the local rodeo. The most interesting part of this programmer is the stock footage of a rodeo, including some dancing Indians.

The Light Touch (1952)

MGM
Directed by Richard Brooks
My rating: 2 stars out of 4
IMDb
(Turner Classic Movies)

Art thief Stewart Granger smuggles a painting from Italy to Tunisia, where he tries to unload it to a collector. George Sanders is a slimy middle man trying to get a piece of the deal. Granger meets young artist Pier Angeli and uses her to to make a copy of the painting, which he tries to pass off as the real thing. He even goes as far as marrying the naive Angeli. Their relationship is the heart of the film, and it doesn't work, mainly because of the large difference in their ages. Granger's transformation from heel to repentant thief is insincere, and the sight of the couple walking off hand in hand to end the movie feels completely unrealistic.

The Golden Idol (1954)

Allied Artists
Directed by Ford Beebe
My rating: 1.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(Turner Classic Movies)

Bomba tangles with Arabs and a pretty archeologist over a treasured artifact from a lost civilization. The Arabs want it for the money, the archeologist for a museum and Bomba for a poor tribe that will benefit from the money. He steals it from the Arabs and hides it in an underwater cave. The Arabs threaten to kill the archeologist if he doesn't lead them to it. A long, murky chase in near darkness takes up the middle of the film. Bomba fights a stuffed lion, but passes up the chance to wrestle a rubber snake.

The Lone Wolf and His Lady (1949)

Columbia Pictures
Directed by John Hoffman
My rating: 2 stars out of 4
IMDb
(Turner Classic Movies)

New actors replace the familiar leads of Michael Lanyard and his manservant Jamison, and they are pale imitations of former players in the series. Nonetheless, the busy plot is not uninteresting. Lanyard and Jamison pick up a pair of pretty newspaper reporters and become involved in a diamond heist. The bumbling police, led by William Frawley, are clueless as usual.

The Yankee Clipper (1927)

Cecil B. DeMille Pictures
Directed by Rupert Julian
My rating: 2.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Flicker Alley)

American and English clippers race from China to Boston, the winner getting not only the tea trade but the other boat. American Captain William Boyd deals with a typhoon, a stowaway, a mutiny, and still manages time to fall in love with pretty English Lady Elinor Fair. The real star is the Yankee Clipper itself, though a miniature model is used in many scenes.

Broken Journey (1948)

Gainsborough Pictures
Directed by Ken Annakin and Michael C. Chorlton
My rating: 2 stars out of 4
IMDb
(Turner Classic Movies)

Predictable yarn of group of people stranded on a mountaintop after their plane crashes. They constantly bicker, steal food, refuse to help one another and generally act like selfish idiots. I can't think of another film with a cast of such unlikeable characters. Eventually some of them take action, but only when they have no other choice. The location shooting on a snowy glacier is about the only saving grace.

The Tall Target (1951)

MGM
Directed by Anthony Mann
My rating: 3 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Warner Archive Collection)

Dick Powell is a New York police officer who receives a tip that President-elect Lincoln will be assassinated during a speech in Baltimore. His superiors don't believe him, so he quits the force and boards a train to find the assassins himself. The problems start right away, with a man impersonating him to steal his seat, one of many suspects on the train. Powell must outwit them to not only stop the assassination, but save his own life. Mann directs with flair and a master's touch, enhanced by Paul Vogel's wonderful black-and-white cinematography and Powell's genial, smart performance.