The 8th MoFo Hall of Fame

Wonderful reviews of Paths of Glory and Spirited Away Citizen and Nope!

Not sure if I want to give lady killer a or a .

The film started on a high note with the handbag scandal and James Cagney, but the story didn't exactly engage me at times and Cagney's character kind of felt like a medium rare Cagney versus a superior medium Cagney. The movie business aspect felt awkward but the overall plot fine. I enjoyed it, though not sure if it was technically good or not. I'll post a more detailed examination tomorrow.

Here is my full review of Spirited Away from my review thread:

Very glad you liked it. One of the finest animations of all time. You should try the other Miazaki films. I got seriously into animation after watching Spirited Away as well.

I've seen this a few times, but after a while I'll mix up the three parts of the trilogy, much like I do with James Bond movies or horror franchises. As far as this trilogy goes, they're very close to equal for me.


This movie starts with a great set-up for the story, and introduction to the characters. The scene when Eastwood's and Van Cleef's characters first confront one another is just epic. They're relationship is fun to watch the entire movie. They're great and so is the villain, and of course the movie sounds awesome. This is definitely a top 10 Western for me.

The Shop Around the Corner: James Stewart is one of my favourite actors and once again he was excellent here. I thought this was a good movie but if I was going to be critical I would say I wanted a little bit more - it felt a bit too nice with 99% of the characters being likeable. A bit more depth to some of the support characters would have made me love it but as it was I liked it a lot.

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Top 133 Favourite Films

Asia/Pacific Top 100

Some comments:

The Gold Rush (Charlie Chaplin, 1925)
Nominated by Rauldc14

Very gold Chaplin emotion/comedy, very much like other Chaplin.

Lady Killer (Roy Del Ruth, 1933)
Nominated by Citizen Rules

Never heard of this one.

The Shop Around the Corner (Ernst Lubitsch, 1940)
Nominated by Frightened Inmate No. 2

I watched this one because I read a review of Kondo's Whisper of the Heart saying it was like a Lubitsch film, well, it's similar in some ways but very different in overall tone and sensibilities. I didn't care for it as much as this classic status would make me "supposed to like it".

Pather Panchali (Satyajit Ray, 1955)
Nominated by Sane

In my top 50, enough said.

Paths of Glory (Stanley Kubrick, 1957)
Nominated by Neiba

In my top 100.

Anatomy of a Murder (Otto Preminger, 1959)
Nominated by Seanc

Heard about it but never watched it before.

For a Few Dollars More (Sergio Leone, 1965)
Nominated by Luf

Considered for my top 50. A great film and I like it more than Once Upon a Time in the West.

A Man for All Seasons (Fred Zinnemann, 1966)
Nominated by Pussy Galore

Never heard of this one.

Aguirre Wrath of God (Werner Herzog, 1972)
Nominated by Swan

In my top 50.

Coming Home (Hal Ashby, 1978)
Nominated by Cricket

Never heard of this one.

The Road Warrior (George Miller, 1981)
Nominated by Nope1172

In my top 50.

The Killing Fields (Roland Joffé, 1984)
Nominated by Beatle

Never heard of this one.

My Life as a Dog (Lasse Hallström, 1985)
Nominated by Gatsby

Never heard of this one.

Goodfellas (Martin Scorsese, 1990)
Nominated by SilentVamp

In my top 150. Though I rate it high not because I sympathize with the characters but because I hated'en.

Patlabor 2: The Movie (Mamoru Oshii, 1993)
Nominated by Guaporense

In my top 40 animated films. Really impressive work from Oshii an absolute classic.

Spirited Away (Hayao Miyazaki, 2001)
Nominated by Friendly Mushroom!

In my top 10. To call it a masterpiece would be almost an insult to it.

Head-On (Fatih Akin, 2004)
Nominated by Thursday Next

Never heard of this one.

Overall a mix between long time favorites and obscure movies I never heard about.

Lady Killer (1933)

This is an enjoyable movie, and James Cagney is terrific as one of his most likeable characters, but the movie has some flaws. It feels like it's not sure if it wants to be a rom-com or a gangster movie, and while it doesn't really fail at either, it doesn't really succeed either. It kind of hits a midpoint for each, so it's a fun watch, but it lacks believability at times.

But if you like James Cagney, (and who doesn't?), then this movie is worth watching just for him.

I have seen The Killing Fields already, and although I'd really like never to have to watch it again, I thought it was a good film.

Otto Preminger knows how to make a movie! Who else could make a 2 hour 40 minute movie about a murder investigation with a long trial and yet make it interesting? Without using over dramatization, Preminger tells a straight forward story as he takes a frank look at the inner workings of the judicial system.

Preminger masterully controlled the story keeping it focused. Many other directors would have thrown in a car chase or a gun battle or two. Another director would have been tempted to create a romantic sub plot around Lee Remrick and James Stewart. But this is a tight film, it has focus, it knows what it wants to be and it delivers.

Preminger's cinematography is polished. The camera glides effortlessly. I loved how the film opens with a Duke Ellington jazz score that tells us James Stewart's character marches to a different drummer. The score tells us he's a bit roguish but likable. Equally impressive was how the score changed when we get to the trial portion of the film, then it was all business. Preminger has all the elements of film making in harmonization.

James Stewart is always amazing. What's amazing here is he plays his character more subdued than he usually does. He's not as quirky, not as colorful...and that matches the feel of the movie. Same goes for George C Scott, amazing always. Here he's powerful but not uber powerful as he often is. He's metered, also matching the style of the film. Artur O'Connelly and Eve Arden were good choices to lighten the film some.

Lee Remrick was OK but didn't quite fit the role. Oh sure she's all dolled up and looks the part, but she didn't have the personality of a man crazy, party girl floozy.

I watched The Shop Around the Corner (1940),which made me want to watch the remakes In the Good Old Summertime (1949) and You've Got Mail (1998). I've seen all three of these movies before, and I think this is a rare case where not only is the original a great movie, but the remakes are also great movies. Each of the remakes took the original story and changed it in some way to give each movie a unique feel, even though the basic stories are nearly identical.

The Shop Around the Corner is the most charming of the three movies. James Stewart and Margaret Sullavan are both such likeable people that it's easy to watch the movie and root for them to end up together. Overall, I think this is the best version of the three movies, because the entire cast is the best, but the main couple is not my favorite couple of the three movies.

In the Good Old Summertime was the most unique of the three because it's a musical. As a musical, it's a great movie, but as a romance, I didn't feel the chemistry and the tension between Judy Garland's and Van Johnson's characters as much as in the other two movies. The music makes up for what it lacks in charm and character, but it's my least favorite of the three movies, (but I still love the movie, so that just goes to show how good the other two movies are).

You've Got Mail brings the story into the modern era, (or at least what was the modern era when the movie was made). Instead of being co-workers who meet through letters in the mail, these characters meet through AOL's online chat. (For you youngsters, that's what people used to chat online before Facebook and Twitter.) Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks are my favorite couple of the three movies, and I found the ending of this movie to be the most emotional of the three movies. Naming the small bookstore after the original movie, ("The Shop Around the Corner"), was a nice touch too.

Speaking of Judy Garland, did you notice in Anatomy of a Murder that the daugheter of the murder man (Kathryn Grant), looked a bit like Judy Garland? Kathryn Grant was Mrs. Bing Crosby.

I've seen Anatomy of a Murder, but not recently, so I'm planning to rewatch it soon. I'll have to watch for that and see if you're right about her.

Whoops, I thought you had said you had watched recently. I bet Anatomy of a Murder ends up pretty high on the 1950s countdown.

Anatomy of murder is a great film and I would like to see that at least number 3 on the 1950s countdown.

I get into this movie right from the start, because it immediately feels very real to me. I believe the dialogue and the actions of the characters based on the situations. I'm then emotionally hooked like few movies can do to me. I think that there's multiple facets of this movie that different viewers can relate to, or get involved with. For me, I see characters who find strength through others, allowing them to come into their own and blossom.


This is a very simple and human story that works in large part due to the acting. There are multiple characters that I feel for, and I feel that the cast nails it. Hal Ashby proved to be one of my favorite directors in the 70's, and this was my favorite movie of his. I'm also a sucker for a great soundtrack, and this is up there with the best.


I think that there are several things to love about this movie, but I also anticipate some members having different issues with it. Some may find it boring, question the use of the soundtrack, or not like the ending. I'm not even sure about the ending myself, as the last 15 minutes are a little up and down for me. It still can't take away everything I've felt prior.

Great review Cricket I can tell you think highly of it. I've never seen it....yet. I'm looking forward to it. Care to guess what my reaction will be?

I try to think of at least a few people who I think will like a movie before I nominate it. You were one of those that I thought would like this along with Vamp, Sean, Raul, Neiba, and Beatle. Everyone else I wasn't sure, so I felt good that Sane enjoyed it.

I enjoyed it too. I'll bet that surprised you.

Not at all, remember a while back when I said I hope you join the HoF because this time I'm nominating something you'll like? I mean, I was hoping you'd be in the HoF because you're great in it too, but I've made you sit through stuff that wasn't your type before.