Starring: James Caan
A sailor on shore leave picks up a prostitute and falls in love with her.
I've never been a huge fan of James Caan, I find him a bit single paced and predictible. At the start of this movie, I had no reason to revise my opinion, but his performance as a sailor on extended shore leave due to a boil on the bum, followed by the Navy losing his records grew on my enormously. He picks up a pool-hustling bar hoare and decides to change her life for the better. At first, he is just annoying as it is clear the lady and her 11 year old son with bad teeth don't want him to stick around. But gradually, their barriers are removed and we are left with a touching love story. The performances are all extremely credible with special mention for the lad playing the 11 year old with terrific maturity. The settings are well observed, with the squalor of the flat leaving little to the imagination. Early on, I wasn't sure where this film was going, but a quality script left us with a movie about the fear of change, the fear of loving and the fear of being hurt. Could these fears be conquered? Well, I'll leave you to decide for yourself, but be sure there are tears and laughter along the way with a nicely thought out ending. 7/10
Sunday, February 26, 2006
Sunday, February 19, 2006
Yankee Doodle Dandy 1942
Starring: James Cagney
Biopics aren't my favourite type of movie. The biggest compliment I can pay is that I went straight to the encyclopedia at the end of the movie to find out more about George M Cohan. I obviously knew some of the songs and was amazed at the sheer volume of material that he'd been involved in. Cagney was terrific, convincing as the arrogant, brash youngster but also showing a subtle side to his acting when he potrayed his character's maturity, appreciating his family's priceless involvement in his success. The film is littered with musical numbers, none of which grated on my nerves. This was flag waving, patriotic stuff, but understandable as made during the war years. My one complaint is that Cagney never looked convincing as a young man, looking middle aged when he was supposed to be 17, easier to look older than younger a guess. A worthy Oscar winner.
7/10
Biopics aren't my favourite type of movie. The biggest compliment I can pay is that I went straight to the encyclopedia at the end of the movie to find out more about George M Cohan. I obviously knew some of the songs and was amazed at the sheer volume of material that he'd been involved in. Cagney was terrific, convincing as the arrogant, brash youngster but also showing a subtle side to his acting when he potrayed his character's maturity, appreciating his family's priceless involvement in his success. The film is littered with musical numbers, none of which grated on my nerves. This was flag waving, patriotic stuff, but understandable as made during the war years. My one complaint is that Cagney never looked convincing as a young man, looking middle aged when he was supposed to be 17, easier to look older than younger a guess. A worthy Oscar winner.
7/10
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)