I know what you're thinking. You're thinking, "How can a movie with a Criterion DVD, a movie that many people love, be called 'overlooked'?" That's the wrong question. The question is, "Have you looked it over lately?"
There are a lot of things to like here. This movie's only 83 minutes long, but it has more plot and more grace notes than just about all the 120-minute-plus movies I've seen lately. The scene of the first meeting between gentleman thief Gaston Monesque (Herbert Marshall) and gentlewoman thief Lily (Miriam Hopkins), besides being very funny, takes care in a few minutes of information that would be parceled out in half an hour. When the two of them plot to steal a fortune from Madame Mariette Colet (Kay Francis), setting their plans in motion takes about 2 minutes, not an hour.
Complications abound. Colet has two suitors (the very amusing Edward Everett Horton and Charles Ruggles) that don't appeal to her. Horton happens to be someone Marshall has robbed in the past, and when Marshall becomes Colet's secretary, Horton almost (but not quite) recognizes him. It's obvious that he'll figure things out sooner or later, though. There are other problems, the biggest one being that Marshall falls for Francis, though it's clear that he still loves Lily and that they're meant for each other.
The director, Ernst Lubitsch, keeps the whole thing lighter than air, with impeccable timing from the entire cast. The costuming and sets are great, too. It's impossible for me to watch this one without smiling all the way through, except for the times I'm laughing. Sure it's 80 years old now. More, actually. So some of it is going to appear dated to you youngsters. And in spite of the color poster up above, the movie is in black and white. It looks great for the most part (I found the first couple of minutes a little murky). I know some younger people who say they can't watch B&W movies. That's their loss, especially in the case of one like this.
Note: The unofficial trailer above was put together by someone not affiliated with the movie or the studio, but it'll give you an idea of what the movie is like.
Every now and then there's a movie that nobody likes but me, and I like it a lot. That's the case with Buffy the Vampire Slayer, which I find hilarious. I even own and have listened to the novelization on tape. I realize that this makes me stupid and immature, but I can't help it. Maybe you prefer the darker TV series that came along later. Not me.
Kristy Swanson is the Valley Girl who discovers that she's the one chosen to be the slayer of vampires. Donald Sutherland is her mentor. Rutger Hauer is the head vamp, and his right-hand minion is Paul Reubens. That's right, Pee-Wee himself, and he's hilarious. So is Stephen Root, who plays the high school principal. Luke Perry is okay. And let's not forget Tilda Swinton in what must be one of her least typical roles.
I found the whole movie hilarious. For me, Kristy Swanson is the real Buffy, and Sarah Michelle Gellar is merely a pretender. Joss Whedon apparently didn't approve of the movie and claims that much of it was rewritten. The story is that he left the set and never returned. His vision was ruined and was shown only in the TV series. That's fine by me. I still prefer the movie. And I'm not one bit ashamed. Okay, maybe a little.
Okay, so here's another one that nobody likes but me. The script is by William Goldman, who has a deft hand with this kind of thing. It's the sort of adventure comedy that was done so well in Charade or It Takes a Thief, but without Cary Grant. Tim Daly is okay, but he's no Cary. On the other hand, you couldn't ask for anyone better then Penelope Ann Miller as the woman he falls for as the adventure takes us from the Scottish Highlands to the French Riviera. She falls for him, too. (I hope this isn't a spoiler.)
They're chasing after a huge bottle of wine from the year of the comet (1811). It's worth its weight in gold. Or maybe more. The villainous Louis Jourdan, who's like Dr. Arcane come out of the swamp, is after it, too, and so are others. Naturally, however, the wine is just a mcguffin. There's more at stake, as we know from the start. We just don't know what it is.
This movie has just about everything: great scenery, attractive actors, action, some very funny lines. But I have to admit that there's something missing. I think it's the direction. The pacing is just . . . off somehow. I don't mind, though. It's worth watching just for Jourdan and Miller. Check it out sometime when you're in the right mood, and you might find yourself enjoying it.
Napoleon invades Russia, but never fear. Woody Allen is there to provide a stout defense of his native country. Okay, not his but his character's. If your country is depending on Woody Allen to save it, you're doomed.
When people talk about Allen's earlier, funnier movies, this must be the one they mean. It has some of Allen's best slapstick and best one-liners. It's hilarious. Also philosophical. Characters are likely to break into philosophical discussions or monologues at any moment. Most often even these discussions are funny, as they're meant to be, but they're also quite serious. Allen gets into plenty of his main concerns about love and death here.
The movie was made when Allen was still doing anarchic comedy. It's off-the-wall, and it borrows from just about everybody. It was made when Allen could parody Bergman and before he tried to become Bergman. The trailer posted down below gives you some idea of things, but here's a sampler of scenes. If you like what you see, you'll like the movie. If not, forget it. As for me, I love this movie.
I find it hard to believe that this movie is nearly 30 years old. Seems like only yesterday that Judy and I went to see it in a Loew's theater, but the theater's been gone for 20 years now, so what can I say? Time flies.
We both enjoyed the movie quite a bit. I've never read the Richard Condon novel, but the movie is a mafia comedy, a caper film, a romantic comedy, a hit man (and woman) movie, and probably a few other things I'm missing. Scattered? Sure, but it worked for me.
One thing that makes it work so well is the famed Nicholson charisma, even when he's playing a not-too-bright character (just the kind Kathleen Turner said she liked in another good movie). He's doing a comic turn here, and he's great. So are a radiant Kathleen Turner and a smoldering Anjelica Houston, and so is the entire cast. What a great ensemble the casting director put together for this one.
I'm not going to try to describe the plot. Let's just say that Nicholson falls for Turner, and complications ensue. Lots of them. You'll wonder right up to the end if she's playing him or not (well, maybe not you, but I did).
The worst thing about many of the trailers for this movie (not the one below, however) is that they gave away the climactic scene. What a misstep that was. But if you haven't seen the movie before, you won't be bothered by it. Even having seen it, I had a great time at the movie.
Love at First Bite may not be the best vampire movie ever made, but it's a very funny vampire comedy, and I like it a lot. It's probably George Hamilton's best role as he plays the amorous Count Dracula. He's very funny. Arte Johnson is great as Renfield and has the best Renfield laugh ever.
The movie provides by far the best role ever for Susan St. James' hair. Check out the trailer down below. As for St. James herself, she's very good. I liked her in the TV series McMillan and Wife, and I liked her even better in this movie. Richard Benjamin was hilarious in one of my favorite TV shows, He and She, and he's even funnier here. I crack up just thinking about some of his scenes in this movie.
The setting is the late '70s. If you think times haven't changed, just watch the film. It should be shown in classes on cultural history. I've seen it several times, and I'd watch it again in a heartbeat.
This is a funny movie about a dysfunctional family that makes mine seem almost normal. It's essentially a road-trip movie that reminded me a lot of National Lampoon's Vacation in certain ways that it's probably best not to discuss; otherwise, I'd spoil some of the fun.The trip ends not at Wally World but at the Little Miss Sunshine competition, an event as horrifying as anything I've seen in a movie in a long time. How Olive, the young girl in the family, ever got into such a competition in the first place is never explained. Oh, we know she won second prize in a previous competition, and that's not explained, either. I'd kind of like to know, given the way her Little Miss Sunshine bit goes.A lot's not explained about the family, for that matter. It's more like they were assembled out of central casting and put together for the picture. Not that I cared. Every one of them is great. I especially liked Alan Arkin who talks a lot, and Paul Dano, who talks very little; but Toni Collette as the mother who tries to hold the crazy bunch together is fine, as is Greg Kinnear, the loser father who wants so much to be a winner. Steve Carell as the uncle is super. The real star of the picture, however, is Abigail Breslin, who deserves an Oscar nomination. She's just great.
Some of the scenes go on too long, especially the climactic one, but what the heck. I got a lot of laughs. Check it out.
