16th Hall of Fame

would NOT peg you for liking those two -- VERY cool!

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What I actually said to win MovieGal's heart:
- I might not be a real King of Kinkiness, but I make good pancakes

~Mr Minio

I was about 14 when I watched On Golden Pond on TV. I didn't think I'd like it but I did.

The old timers at the bar got me to watch Cat Ballou, one of the only movies I've ever gotten from the library. I was in my mid 20's.

I remember thinking the same thing the first time I saw On Golden Pond. Was pretty sure I wasn't going to like it, and surprised myself.

I didn't know who Lillian Gish was when I watched On Golden Pond. I so need to watch that one again.

Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (2006)

I thought this was pretty great, very stylish and very unique. It reminded me of a Grimm's fairy tale, I love those...This was done with more flair than graphic violence...and that's why I warmed up to it. Hell I even liked Jean-Baptiste Grenouillem, the man with a nose that could discern all the scents in the world. I actually was rooting for him, at times.

I thought it was fascinating how his world was so different than other peoples, and how he too was very different. I liked the actor Ben Winshaw, in this, he was properly different to be the man with no scent, a man who could not love or feel. He seemed almost alien in his behavior and that worked wonders for building the mystery of scent and it's power over humans.

I was captive by the original story line, I've never seen anything quite like this, and the 2.5 hour run time, flew by. And for me that means I was into the movie. There might be a few minor things I wasn't into, but overall say 99% of the movie worked for me. I think the key to enjoying this is to remember it's genre is mystical-fantasy...or just do as I did and think of it as an unpublished Brothers Grimm fairy tale brought to vivid life.

As Ed would say, Bravo!

and as I would also say: SWEET!

VERY happy to hear you enjoyed it, CR. Looking at it as a Grimm Fairy Tale IS an excellent mindset for this film.

I'm finally starting this HoF tonight. I'm going to start with "Wait Until Dark", and "They Shoot Horses, Don't They?".

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"A film has to be a dialogue, not a monologue — a dialogue to provoke in the viewer his own thoughts, his own feelings. And if a film is a dialogue, then it’s a good film; if it’s not a dialogue, it’s a bad film."

- Michael "Gloomy Old Fart" Haneke

Hey Okay, I thought you said I was going to hate this? Surprise, I enjoyed it! It's my kind of film...I loved the slow cinema, take your time, nothing forced, & nothing phony feeling of the movie. It felt very real to me, like I was watching the lives of three working class people in Turkey as they deal with the problems life gave them.

I was instantly interested in these people and I stayed focus through out the film, which is always a good sign. It felt like a slice of life from a part of the world I know nothing about, which interested me. I was glad the film kept the events down to earth too. I think the film was more effective by having the killing and sex take place off screen, instead of putting it right into our faces. I like a minimalist approach, as I believe less is more. Besides the film is about the way the people react to these events, and not so much about the events themselves.

I know there were a couple of technical issues with the film. But I won't hold that against the film maker as I'm sure he was working on a tight budget. Which might explain why there was dialogue in the car scene with the wife and the boss, and yet they weren't shown talking. They must have either decided later that the scene needed more explaining so added in more dialogue, or perhaps footage that they shot didn't turn out so it couldn't be used.

But like I said it won't effect my opinion of the film as I think overall this was a really good nomination.

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Waterloo Bridge is the story of a prostitute and a young soldier trying to maneuver a love affair in World War I England. I thought the film was okay but horrible casting ruined most of the impact of the story. Myra is supposed to be an American showgirl trapped in London and had to spend years prostituting herself to survive. Roy is supposed to be a teenager who falls in love with Myra..basically because she pays attention to him. And she's supposed to visit Roy at his country estate with his parents the "Major" and Mary.


The mother is in her mid-thirties, Roy's in his mid-twenties and Myra is 21. The ages really needed to be consistent for the plot to work. The actual story is okay, having Myra wrestle with a marriage and relationship she knows can't work is a great idea for a film. James Whale does a great job with budgetary restraint's to tell his story often times things that might have cost money are shot off camera.


I also found the story to be sadly very predictable, and we didn't really get to see enough of the romance and chemistry between the two leads to really give you that impact for what ends up happening.

They don't make 'em like this anymore! This was rip roaring, good fun, with colorful & well done characters, and lots of great S.W. desert scenery shots. There's enough happening in the film to keep anyone interested. I found it exciting. This is one of my favorite Russell Crowe performances, I think he's perfectly cast here.

What makes his character so interesting is: he's multi dimensional. I think it was Elia Kazan who said every bad guy in a film should have some redeeming quality, and every good guy should have a flaw...Ben Wade (Russell Crowe) is a heartless killer who takes any advantage he can and uses it for his own needs. And yet I found myself liking him despite the fact he's truly a bad guy!

Same goes for Dan Evans (Christian Bale) he's our good guy, but he's not wearing a 'white hat', and he does have some serious flaws, and that makes him three dimensional. I liked his scenes with his son, Logan Lerman, who was a good actor too. Those scenes showed us how Bale's character has this inner turmoil & doubt, and we experience that by his son's outright disdain for his father.

I also liked how the film balanced action while slowly revealing why Christian Bale's character felt like such a loser, and why he was so determined to get Russell Crowe to the 3:10 train at Yuma.

I love westerns, they're one part history and one part tall tale and that makes for a great way to escape and enjoy the wild old west.

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Glad you enjoyed it, CR!

If time permits, I'm going to try to get Perfume watched tonight, then rewatch Call Me By Your Name sometime this week, and have my ballot in by the weekend.

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My wife also commented about the son being a good actor.

The blonde bad guy was great at being a baddie. Very colorful, so was the dumb but mean deputy that got the fork in the throat. Lots of good characters in it.

The following film might just as well be a horror movie, since it definitely has its fair share of terrifying moments. The death face worn by all of the contestants, due to the extreme level of physical and psychological cruelty lived by them, can at times really dig under the viewer's skin. Not to mention, the hopeless and underlying but persistent themes, also help at giving a horror-ish vibe to the picture.

The peak of the film is definitely the race scenes. Everything that the film-makers thrive to convey, could be perfectly summed up throughout them. Furthermore, their execution is just as remarkable. The way they're edited, scored, and acted, gives off a tragically tense feel. In fact, even though I didn't fully and downright love the movie, its entire execution is all very impressive.

Is Sydney Pollack's filmography reminiscent of this film of his?

Mark is probably the best person to answer.


I felt much like you did about the movie. I didn't love it either, but it made a big impression on me, enough so that I put it on the end of my 60's list.

Perfume:Story of a Murderer is an adaptation of a novel...and it feels like an adaptation of a novel. The film is broken up into a series of quick chapters that move this epic plot along until it reaches an allegorical...or comical ending.


Everyone in the film is ugly and therefore the deaths mean nothing. The way violence is completely desensitized (and sex) it takes away quite a bit from my enjoyment of the film.


The period setting works well, and I wanted to like it but I just never got emotionally connected with the work. It's a good film but I fear it was a much better thriller/novel.

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Ugly? All the girls that were killed were beautiful. If you mean ugly spirited, then the world of London streets were ugly and his first two task masters were ugly as in cruel.

It added to my enjoyment. I think people are misunderstanding the film's intent. This is not a thriller film, not a horror film. It's like a classic Grimm's Fairy Tale, for adults.

I thought the girls in the movie were hideous.