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The Epic That Never Was (Writer/Producer Bill Duncalf, 1965)



Alexander Korda got the rights to Robert Graves' epic two-volume set, I, Claudius and Claudius the God and proceeded in the mid-1930s to hire Josef von Sternberg as director and cast the principal roles with Charles Laughton, Merle Oberon, Emlyn Williams and Flora Robson. He bought and created a new studio and enlisted his brother Vincent to build some enormous sets for the production which he envisioned to be THE great British epic film. However, along the way, he ran into a few snags, principal of which was that Laughton was having difficulty finding the character of Claudius and basically became too self-conscious to be able to work on a daily basis. After a few weeks, Merle Oberon was injured in a car accident, so Korda & Co. used that as an excuse to pull the plug on the production and recoup their losses through insurance covered by Lloyd's of London.

I actually watched this documentary about this lost episode of cinema history back on PBS in the mid '70s at just about the time "I, Claudius" was all the rage in America on PBS. Narrated by Dirk Bogarde in a sympathetic, yet somehow still dry and acerbic style, it is worth seeing to see some extended scenes of the film which worked out quite well, as well as some rushes with blown lines all over the place, especially by Laughton. It also contains interviews with people involved with the film who were still alive in 1965, including von Sternberg, Oberon, Robson and Williams. It's a grand history lesson, not only of 1930s British film but also the filmmaking process, at least how it was done back in the day.
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It's what you learn after you know it all that counts. - John Wooden
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mark f would easily be number one on the site in rym. I think the top guy has rated 13000
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Oh my god. They're trying to claim another young victim with the foreign films.



Persepolis (Marjane Satrapi & Vincent Paronnaud, 2007)
I know what you're talking about. It was very strange to see someone from a totally different world who is an everyday person. I guess that's one reason people like foreign films.



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Mirrors (Roy Mack, 1934)

Light Is Calling (Bill Morrison, 2005)
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Hollywood Hotel (Busby Berkeley, 1937)

The Croods (Kirk DeMicco & Chris Sanders, 2013)


A free-spirited young man (Voice of Ryan Reynolds) tries to help save a caveman family, led by the overly-careful father (the hilarious Voice of Nicolas Cage) from a current and impending natural disaster.
Rich Man, Poor Girl (Reinhold Schunzel, 1938)

Boobs in Arms (Jules White, 1940)

Lady on the Train (Charles David, 1945)
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Fitzwilly (Delbert Mann, 1967)


Aided by his staff, butler Dick Van Dyke is a modern-day Robin Hood to try to support his kindly, but penniless employer (Edith Evans) but her oblivious new assistant (Barbara Feldon) could complicate matters.
Blondie's Blessed Event (Frank R. Strayer, 1942)
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Cloud 9 (Paul Hoen, 2014)

Captain January (David Butler, 1936)

Marwencol (Jeff Malmberg, 2010)
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Mark Hogancamp was beaten close to death and now creates art by building his own world and narrative, set during WWII, which helps him to deal with his personal demons and get on with his life.
Leap! aka Ballerina (4 Directors, 2016)
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A Woman Is a Woman (Jean-Luc Godard, 1961)

Kiss the Star (Sofia Coppola, 1998)
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Above the Law (Andrew Davis, 1988)
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Ex-CIA agent-turned-Chicago cop Steven Seagal finds his past threatening his family, friends and community.
Bad Lands (Lew Landers, 1939)

Skinningrove (Michael Almereyda, 2013)
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Calling Dr. Kildare (Harold S. Bucquet, 1938)

A Christmas Carol (Robert Zemeckis, 2009)


Scrooge (Voice of Jim Carrey) is visited by the ghost of his business partner Marley (Voice of Gary Oldman).



Sorry if I'm rude but I'm right
Oh hai MARK

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Look, I'm not judging you - after all, I'm posting here myself, but maybe, just maybe, if you spent less time here and more time watching films, maybe, and I stress, maybe your taste would be of some value. Just a thought, ya know.



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Henry V (Kenneth Branagh, 1989)
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I sorta want to give this the
I've always given it. It has many powerful moments, and star/director Kenneth Branagh does accept the mantle of "greatest living Shakespearean actor" from co-star Paul Scofield rather gracefully. Yet, despite the fact that it gives Harry more than one terrific speech and presents a superb "battle of the sexes" comedy scene at the end, the play (and film) just doesn't rate as one of the Bard's greatest, at least to me. Now, I want to make it clear that I find this far more successful a film than Laurence Olivier's version. Sir Larry's version was made during WWII and was dedicated to be a rallying cry to England to defeat the Nazis since it seemed like a foregone conclusion at the time. Olivier did an interesting interpretation of displaying the play within the play by beginning the entire thing on the stage at the Globe Theatre. Branagh trumps him by having a modern-era Chorus [narrator] (Derek Jacobi) admit that what we're seeing is a 20th century film, and then we follow him throughout all the significant scenes of the play.

Henry V is still a very significant film, especially in the lives of Branagh and co-star Emma Thompson. They married at the end of filming and made a total of four other films together. It solidified both of them as serious actors and filmmakers. I know several people, including my wife and other females at this site, who have Henry's speech, pre-Agincourt, completely memorized. Even if I don't find it to be one of Shakespeare's best plays, there are several people's opinions who could "prove" me wrong. No matter what, this is a solid film which I recommend to all filmwatchers and Shakespeareans. I'm sorry if I make it sound less than that. I actually want to go into more detail here, but I don't want to spoil anything.



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Mr. Jealousy (Noah Baumbach, 1997)



While watching part of this movie this morning, Brenda offered one of her amazing asides... "I don't normally find redheads attractive, but HE is!", referring to Eric Stoltz. I noticed that she was paying attention all of a sudden, so I remarked, "Oh, that was what that look was about!" I never thought about it before myself, but I would have considered Eric Stoltz rather attractive to most all of the opposite sex, and I doubt any guy could call him ugly either. Now, I didn't quiz Bre on what she thought about Annabella Sciorra, but she is a fan of "Law & Order", so I probably already know. Plus, I also know that Bre likes one of the most obnoxious-type guys who's ever been to Barcelona, Chris Eigeman, so we're all well and even here.

I'm actually surprised that I can't even find another significant image from this film on the internet. I find it to be well-worth watching and discussing (and actually far superior to Kicking and Screaming). I'll admit that it lifts quite a bit from Woody Allen, especially the therapy and the classic film watching, but when somebody can borrow from Woody and still make the entire thing their own, I'll cut them some slack. In fact, the actual plot, involving characters posing as other real characters to somehow have therapy (presided over by Dr. Peter Bogdanovich!) is really rather witty and something resembling tightrope walking. I haven't done this film proud by explaining all the good things in it, but maybe you can watch it and fill those in for me.



I never thought about it before myself, but I would have considered Eric Stoltz rather attractive to most all of the opposite sex, and I doubt any guy could call him ugly either.
He was cute in Mask.



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The More the Merrier (George Stevens, 1943)



This is one of those cute, funny and romantic comedies that seemed to be released once or twice a month back in the '30s and '40s, but we're lucky today if Hollywood produces one or two a year which are this good. It's set in WWII Washington, D.C., where there just aren't enough rooms for all the people who need a place to stay. Through a series of crazy incidents, three people end up sharing one small apartment with two bedrooms: patriotic "working girl" Jean Arthur, a businessman (Oscar-winner Charles Coburn) and a mysterious young man (Joel McCrea) who's just "passing through". Since the businessman has a predilection for playing Cupid and loves to use the phrase "Damn the torpedoes! Full speed ahead!", he does his best to get the other two roommates romantically together. This film was a big hit during the war, and although it's not quite as sparkling as it may once have been, it still provides plenty of laughs and a surprising amount of warm romance. The scenes with McCrea and Arthur on the apartment steps and later in their own individual beds talking to each other through the wall are very touching. Of course, Coburn steals the picture, playing a character who strongly resembles the grandfather character he played the same year in Ernst Lubitsch's Heaven Can Wait. I'm still not sure how the Production Code allowed so many damns in the film. (By the way, this was remade in 1966 as Walk, Don't Run, Cary Grant's final film, and it was transplanted to the 1964 Tokyo Olympics where there was a similar housing shortage.)



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Bloody Sunday (Paul Greengrass, 2002)



Paul Greengrass turns his sniper's eye on a key moment in the history of The Troubles, trying to not only recreate the incidents of January 25, 1972, in Northern Ireland's Londonderry, but also trying to bring some sort of closure and potential healing to a tragic historical incident, much the same way he did with his later United 93. The film is set up from the beginning, showing MP Ivan Cooper (James Nesbitt) discussing his plan for a peaceful Civil Rights March through Derry in an attempt to counteract Britain's systematic use of internment in Northern Ireland. At the same time, the chief officers of the British Army are seen discussing how they need to have maximum presence at the march, especially since they basically announce that any such gathering, even if it's non-violent, is now against the law! What you would expect to result in a lit powder keg all too readily occurs.

Writer/Director Greengrass is probably best known for his two Bourne films, The Bourne Supremacy and The Bourne Ultimatum where he uses intense photography and editing to create crackerjack thrillers. Both Bloody Sunday and United 93 are intense thrillers, but they're also human tragedies. In these latter two films, Greengrass slowly builds to the tension of the heartbreaking reality. When all hell breaks loose, it's extremely realistic and scary, especially because there is no consensus of what happened and what caused the events of the day. The results are known: 13 Irish killed and 14 wounded; no British soldiers wounded and no weapons found on any of the Irish, except for perhaps some found under extremely questionable circumstances. As Ivan Cooper himself says at the end of the film, "I just want to say this to the British Government... You know what you've just done, don't you? You've destroyed the civil rights movement, and you've given the IRA the biggest victory it will ever have. All over this city tonight, young men... boys will be joining the IRA, and you will reap a whirlwind." Bloody Sunday is an important film.



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Jersey Girl (Kevin Smith, 2004)



Kevin Smith proves he can make a mainstream, PG-13 romantic/family comedy. The opening scenes between Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez are a bit queasy to watch as they show both husband and wife to be not very good people, let alone spouses, but I believe Affleck wins the "Bigger Jerk Award". After Jennifer dies giving childbirth (sorry, but this happens less than 20 minutes in and isn't much of a spoiler; just look at the box), Affleck's Ollie enlists his father (George Carlin) to help him care for his daughter while Ollie continues his workaholic job as an NYC celebrity publicist. However, one day at his job, he actually says what he thinks to all the media people waiting for a Will Smith interview and loses his job.

It's at this point that he's forced to move in with dad, go to work with him as a garbage man and still try to have a good relationship with his now seven-year-old daughter (Raquel Castro). Oh yeah, this hot video store employee (well, it's a Kevin Smith flick) played by Liv Tyler feels sorry for him because he hasn't been laid since his wife died... Throw in a trip to a Broadway performance of Sweeney Todd, the fact that the daughter wants to stage it at her school and that Will Smith eventually turns up so that he and Ollie can discuss what's really important in one's life, and you get a fair-to-middling, seen-it-before, but it's an almost charming little film. I seem to recall this film garnering lots of lousy reviews when it came out, but it gets better as it goes along, and even if it's mostly unoriginal, it's a watchable film. R.I.P. George Carlin.



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Spider (David Cronenberg, 2002)



Cronenberg's low-key, but haunting treatment of mental illness begins slowly but gradually draws you into the story of a man nicknamed Spider (Ralph Fiennes) who's released from a mental hospital and enters a halfway house run by Mrs. Wilkinson (Lynn Redgrave). The halfway house is populated by many disturbed men; in fact, the only discernable difference between the "house" and a "hospital" is that there is no treatment in the "house". Spider is able to function at a seemingly-higher level than the other ex-patients though, and soon, he's roaming the streets of his hometown from twenty years ago, just about the time his psychosis first appeared when he was a boy. In fact, Spider begins to "see" not only himself as a boy (played by Bradley Hall) 20 years earlier, but his hard-drinking father (Gabriel Byrne) and housewife mother (Miranda Richardson). And then, there's that blonde tramp (also Miranda Richardson) who may be trying to steal the husband or may not even be real at all...

Like many of Cronenberg's films, Spider is open to interpretation and undoubtedly rewards added viewings for those who are able to get past the slow pace and the depressing surroundings. Cronenberg doesn't really make easy films, and this one begins especially "difficultly", but things begin to clarify about 30-40 minutes in and it becomes more interesting. The best parts to me are trying to determine which parts are real, which parts are imagined and which parts could even be both. I also liked the fact that Spider kept a journal of everything which went on in his day-to-day life, but since it's written in some original language of his own making, no one can understand it except for himself. It's similar to the way that Spider often mumbles something which the viewer cannot understand because it's either too low in volume or doesn't even seem to be real words. Some people may not understand and care about Spider while others will "enjoy" it for probably the same reasons. I probably fall somewhere in the middle ground.



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Invasion of the Body Snatchers (Philip Kaufman, 1978)



Thirty years ago when I saw this on the humongous Big Newport screen, I just wasn't impressed. I'm not sure what my problem was. I was never that big a fan of the original, true, but I was having a hard time empathisizing any more with the lead characters than I did with the pod people. Three decades and several viewings later, I can safely say I was full of it back then. This film may actually qualify to me as the ultimate paranoid thriller. Everything is in place. The shiny photography, the dark shadows, the killer sound effects, the scary music (actually, I'd probably tone down some of the music because it's the quietest parts which are the scariest). I like the performances and the black humor, as well as just the weird touches, like Robert Duvall's "priest" swinging in a children's playground.

To me, this is Kaufman's first full-blown success, and if he was ahead of me in the power curve, at least I could see it just a short while later. I thought he went even more into paranoia and dark comedy with his next film, The Wanderers, but that's for another post. This film is pretty-much textbook, as far as basically showing you what's happening, then slowly allowing only one character (Brooke Adams) to know about it. Nobody believes her, but eventually a group of three others (Donald Sutherland, Jeff Goldblum, Veronica Cartwright) are forced to believe her because they cannot deny their own eyes, no matter how much pop psychiatrist Leonard Nimoy tries to rationalize away everything "paranoid". That's enough for now, but be sure to watch for Sutherland's friend's dog near the end.



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Next (Lee Tamahori, 2007)



I barely even remember this flick being released, but it came on cable a couple of hours ago when I felt a desire to put my feet up, so I watched the beginning, and it kept me moderately interested enough to keep watching for an hour and a half. Nicolas Cage is a clairvoyant, masquerading as a magician, who was born with the gift (or is it curse?) to see about two minutes into the future involving his personal life. However, there is a mystery woman (Jessica Biel) whom he's never met, who he's apparently able to see further into the future, although for what reason isn't clear. Well, Cage is thrown into the middle of a plot by unknown terrorists who seem to want to blow up a nuke in Southern California (shades of "24") and the FBI, led by field agent Julianne Moore, who are trying to stop them. For some reason, both groups seem to understand that some two-bit Las Vegas magician is the key for them to succeed.

Based on a Philip K. Dick story, Next is probably best at setting up the story, no matter how preposterous it may be, since it's fast-paced and doesn't take itself too seriously. There's even a stretch near the beginning which recalls the scene in Dick's Minorty Report where Samantha Morton's pre-cog is able to keep her and Tom Cruise one step ahead of the authorities. There is also some wonderful scenery shot in and around the Grand Canyon. Eventually, the film becomes a little less interesting, but not enough for me to turn it off. Of course, there's a big twist near the end which makes it almost seem like the movie could have gone in an infinite number of directions and still ended up in the same place. I don't especially like that sort of scripting, but in this case, it probably doesn't matter too much to anybody who's likely to watch it.



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Dr. Syn aka The Scarecrow of Romney Marsh (James Neilsen, 1964)



When I was seven years old, I pretty much gave up on Fess Parker's Davy Crockett being my hero and decided it had to be Disney's "Scarecrow" (Patrick McGoohan). This thing was shown on three consecutive Sundays on the Disney "Wonderful World of Color", and I was glued to the set, even if it was B&W! I started playing Scarecrow with my friends just like we played Civil War and baseball, but Scarecow was just so much cooler. The Scarecrow was a smuggler who hung out near the White Cliffs of Dover and was able to exchange the merchandise he amassed into money for all the poor citizens who lived around Romney Marsh but couldn't afford King George III's outrageous taxes. The Scarecrow was something similar to a Robin Hood of the 1770s. The fact that the Scarecrow was actually a pious vicar called Dr. Syn, who has never really harmed anybody, made him an attractive hero and a supercool anti-hero at one and the same time. Plus he, and his best buds, had the coolest costumes and masks of all time!

This made-for-TV flick was released in Europe in 1964 and eventually released in the U.S. as an edited feature with about one-third cut out. Needless to say, that version is weaker than the original TV show which was just released on DVD last week. This full-blooded version offers up plenty of suspense and character development, along with a catchy theme song. Watch it and tell me what you think.



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Hellboy II: The Golden Army (Guillermo del Toro, 2008)



Del Toro's follow-up to both Hellboy and Pan's Labyrinth interestingly begins in the same way as the latter with a child reading/hearing a "fairy tale" which has far more to do with said child than he/she could ever know. Hellboy II is crammed with so much visual stimuli and creative CGI that it can almost seem a bit offputting at first, but if you stick with it, it definitely becomes much-more human and easier to relate to. I'll admit that it wore me down with the F/X overabundance but it did provide nice little touches; yes, even if it means laughing a bit more at Barry Manilow and accepting Tecate Light as much as Duff Beer. The film has plenty of other homages. For example, when Hellboy has to deal with that Forest God in the middle of Downtown, it reminded me both of Spielberg's War of the Worlds and a few Miyazaki films. Obviously, the prologue of a world of elves is reminiscent of Tolkien, but what would you expect since del Toro was picked to helm both Hobbit flicks. Ron Perlman is still the perfect Hellboy, even if I thought he had more to do and did it better in the original, but what about the insane new character, Johann Krauss? He was hilarious and totally far-out, man! He also may have my fave line of 2008. When talking to Hellboy in his cornball German accent, he says "You will learn to obey me, follow protocol and stay fock-used (focused, ha!) at all times!" Hellboy's response is equally priceless. Hellboy II ends up being a mass entertainment which I'm actually surprised doesn't have a huger audience.



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This review was written long before Drumpf was on the active political scene, and when I put several similar-length reviews in one post. That explains certain things in here.

The Visitor (Thomas McCarthy, 2008)



First off, I realize that I'm giving the most serious, lowkey and low-budget film the lowest rating. That may indeed be one of my major flaws when rating films. However, I want to assure everyone that my rating is a positive recommendation, so if you haven't watched this, I'm telling you now to do it. I truly like this film. I like the way it paints a positive and HUMAN image on the illegal immigrant issue. I also realize that some people with certain views about illegal aliens will just think this film is liberal propaganda, and that there's no way we can have illegal Islamic immigrants and that we can be sure that they aren't some kind of ticking time bombs. If you believe that, OK, but the more I listen to all the people who have so many fears about what's happening in America now (Obama, "radical relationships", socialism, "destroying the future for our children", etc.), the more I realize that the fearmongers seem to isolate on one topic or one quote and beat it into the ground. They turn complex individuals into pariahs by repeating catchphrases over and over again, and then they get so mad when you call them on it, that they say silly things like "You're trying to silence our dissent!" I guess whoever "they" are, "they're" doing a crap job because everytime I turn on the car radio, your dissent comes across loud and clear!

I'm sorry because I'm supposed to be discussing this movie which is all about how the wonderful Richard Jenkins can feel that he's an "underachieving bum" of a crumbum college professor named Walter Vale until he meets the outgoing Syrian drummer Tarek (Haaz Sleiman) and his Senegalese jewelry artist girlfriend (Danai Gurira) in NYC. Tarek and Walter both love the drum, so they immediately hit it off, but things go bad when Tarek is arrested (for no good reason) and when it becomes clear that he's illegal, he's incarcerated with an immediate threat of being deported. This brings Tarek's mom (Hiam Abbass) to Walter's door since she hasn't heard from her son for days. The film does play out a bit as a cut-and-dried "Why Can't We Be Friends?" treatise, but I find it has more truth than propaganda and may well be an important film to open certain people's eyes.



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The Boys in the Band (William Friedkin, 1970)



Mart Crowley adapted and produced his play for the screen with Friedkin doing an estimable job of staging it for the screen. This movie is actually about a birthday party where all the guests are gay, except for maybe one of them. Of course, even if this film wasn't exactly a revelation at the time, the fact that it was ALL basically about gays and pretty much showed them as being full of the same anxieties and concerns as any other human being did make it a watershed film, at least in American mainstream cinema. I mean, Friedkin's next two films (The French Connection and The Exorcist) both were enormous mainstream hits even though he used indie filmmaking techniques.

The thing which makes this film so powerful is that the script is both hilarious and pathetic; rather, the characters are both hilarious and pathetic. None of the characters are shortchanged and I don't actually find the relationships and the characters' concerns dated in the least. The Boys in the Band is obviously one of the sharpest plays of its era, and the movie has so many solid performances, it's worth seeing for that alone, even if it wasn't so honest. For example, Cliff Gorman, as the most flamboyant member of the fraternity is heartbreaking during his serious scenes. Truly exceptional acting by everyone, but that Michael character really gets to encompass everything from Earth Mother to self-loathing creature. Anyway, now that it's available on DVD, do yourself a favor and watch the film. This is another one I could go on about for awhile, but hell, it's getting late.



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The Paradine Case (Alfred Hitchcock, 1947)



Although this is a lesser Hitchcock, it's well worth watching if you don't expect too much upon the first viewing. Producer David O. Selznick reteamed with Hitch seven years after Rebecca and "introduced" both Valli (who hit it big soon enough in The Third Man) and Louis Jourdan. The thing which really sets this film apart is that Gregory Peck plays the defense attorney of Valli, who's accused of murdering her blind husband, but Peck plays the most unsympathetic character in the entire film. Not only was that unusual for Peck (who was at the height of his popularity), but it sorta threw off the the entire normal way of looking at the film.

Much of the film takes place in the Old Bailey, and much of the "plot" is revealed during the murder trial, but most all of the character development occurs outside the courtroom, whether it's Peck's courting of the accused in the face of his steadfast wife (Ann Todd) or Charles Laughton's Judge trying to hit on Peck's wife. Then, there's the relationship between Valli and her husband's valet (Louis Jourdan), which results in the film's most melodramatic twists. The Paradine Case is a little light in Hitchcock visual flourishes, but if you pay attention, you can still find them. It's not really a mediocre film, but I can think of at least 25 better Hitchcock films, so if it comes on, I'd recommend watching it. If you start to get bored, put one of the other ones on.



Freaks (Tod Browning, 1932)
(that's my legit rating; for those who are OUT THERE, think:
).


I don't know what to say about Freaks anymore, but down through the last 30 years, my opinion about it has kind of turned inside out. I've seen this film several times, on the big screen, on commercial TV, cable TV, and now on DVD. I've seen three different endings, but never apparently the original ending which was scrapped after the first preview screening in front of an audience. Freaks is a one-of-a-kind film. I realize that phrase gets tossed around a lot, and since this movie is 85 years old (!!), you probably won't believe me, unless, of course, you've seen it yourself.

When I first watched Freaks, I thought to myself, "Why, in God's name, would anyone make this film? Is this just pure exploitation or not? If it isn't, it's still very embarrassing for all involved because nobody can act and the whole thing comes off as amateurish." However, even so, probably because there was an incredible finale, I knew this film was much better than Browning's lauded, but sleep-inducing Dracula which made Bela Lugosi a star. A strange thing happened the more I watched this film. (Actually it's not that strange for all of you who watch a movie over and over; it seemed to shapeshift, transform and become more normal.) I started thinking that the "Freaks" were actually the more physically-"normal", hateful characters, while those with physical disabilities were more human and friendly.

(That character is super cool!)

Ultimately, Freaks is a melodrama showing how people try to take advantage of others. The fact that you never see the owner/manager of the traveling circus allows that non-character to wash his hands of everything. But the true villains of the piece are the "everyday" people who hate and take advantage of others. It's strange that these people who make a living in a sideshow can somehow believe themselves to be any less of a "freak" than those who have no say in the way they were born. Of course, Freaks makes it clear that if you are not "One of Us, One of Us!!", then you deserve whatever you get for being the inhuman monster you are.
Great review Mark I have seen this movie many times myself and I feel that my idea of it still isn't clear I do feel what incredible people the "freaks" were how they lived with their disabilities I feel humbled
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Health is the greatest gift, contentment the greatest wealth, faithfulness the best relationship.
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