One Wild Oat 1951

Starring: Robertson Hare

An old flame tries to blackmail a highly respectable solicitor.

Two guys trying to get the better of each other. It was only when a little underscore came in at one point tha I realised I'd been sitting, listening to two guys bickering for about 5 minutes. One amusing scene when one of the guys 'dames up', other than that, very dated.       4/10   

Saloon Bar 1940

Starring: Gordon Harker

A murder is solved during an evening in a pub.

Interesting idea, but when you're not shown the offence or the person accused, it's very difficult to become engaged. Must have been very cheap to make and was light-hearted in places, just didn't quite work for me.         4/10

Orchestra Wives 1942

Starring: Ann Rutherford

A small town girl marries the trumpet player of a traveling swing band.

If they re-made this now, it would be called Orchestra WAGS. Lasted a little too long but very easy viewing and the swing music that went on throughout either as played pieces or underscore, were terrific.                   6/10

Fort Algiers 1952

Starring: Yvonne de Carlo

A female French agent loves a fellow spy who turns up as a foreign Legionnaire, working against an evil Emir.

A little tedious until the final showdown. American pronunciation of words such as harem and Sheikh were lazy, ignorant and a little disrespectful. Very average movie.         3/10

Ride The Man Down 1952

Starring: Brian Donlevy

The death of a rancher sets off a bitter fight for his lands.

A bit of a political Western with lots of dialogue about land ownership and herd branding. Plot needed to be tighter but there was a fair amount of furious horse riding and shooting to keep the traditionalists happy. Strong female lead. Not bad.        5/10

The Night My Number Came Up 1954

Starring: Michael Redgrave

A man dreams that his plane will crash, and the dream begins to come true.

The story was almost strong enough to stand without the dream element. Excellent special effects for the time and good tension. Enjoyed this.         8/10

Hope Springs 2012

Starring: Meryl Streep

After thirty years of marriage, a middle-aged couple attends an intense, week-long counseling session to work on their relationship. 

What an absolute delight. Meryl Streep is so normal, she could sit in a room and you'd never notice her. Tommy Lee Jones is gruff, uncomfortable and very funny. This movie could resonate with any couple in their middle age.  Strong, strong acting and both amusing and thought-provoking.   9/10

Ambush 1949

Starring: Robert Taylor

An army scout leads a posse to capture an Indian chief who is holding a white womanhostage.

 
Print seems a little dark now, too much emphasis on the romance and not enough action. Inevitable final shoot-out was good enough if a shade predictable.    4/10

Elopement 1951

Starring: Clifton Webb

A girl student eloping with her professor is chased by her father.

They don't make them like this any more. So refreshing to see this sort of movie without sordid sex, swearing etc. Just a nice old fashioned comedy that puts a smile on your face.    7/10

Winter Of Our Dreams 1981

Starring: Judy Davis

A bookseller investigates the suicide of an old girl friend, and becomes involved with an unhappy prostitute.

Very low key. The old 'Tart with a heart' theme. Quite nicely done if lacking any real pace changes, Judy Davis and Bryan Brown are both very watchable.      6/10

City On Fire 1979

Starring: Barry Newman

A slum fire threatens an entire city.

This era was golden for disaster movies. Some good special effects and stunts at times, sadly the script didn't really live up to it. Henry Fonda who cruised through this a little was different class.    6/10

Dear Murderer 1947

Starring: Eric Portman

Plot and counterplot among an adulterous triangle.

More like an episode of Dixon Of Dock Green than a movie. Reasonable enough although the melodramatic moments were a little overplayed.      5/10 

A Room With A View 1985

Starring: Maggie Smith

An innocent Edwardian girl travelling in Italy has her eyes opened to real life and romance.

Anybody who was anybody in the World of British acting is in this movie.Considering they were travelling in Italy, I didn't see or hear a single Italian. Lovely to look at, superbly acting, jsut lacks a little something for me.    5/10

The Goose Steps Out 1942

Starring: Will Hay

To steal a secret weapon, an incompetent teacher is sent into Germany in place of his Nazi double.

Will Hay can either be really annoying, as he was at the beginning of this movie, or really funny, as he often was in the classroom scenes. Nice to see Charles Hawtrey who was always my favurite in the Carry On movies. Definitely had some amusing moments.             6/10

Lambada 1990

Starring: J. Eddie Peck

A teacher spends his nights as a lambada dancer so that he can give lessons to a gang of dropouts.

Lots of fast cars and dancing. Nice to see a movie of this genre without constant swearing. A strong moralistic message which is reinforced by the end credits.       5/10

 

The Hired Hand 1971

Starring: Peter Fonda

Two Western drifters avenge the killing of their friend and settle down to work on a farm; but violence follows them.

Very downbeat movie. In this modern age, where so much is talked about mental health, you could read this very subject into this movie. Loneliness, the desire to find yourself. Interesting if low key movie.       6/10

After The Ball 1957

Starring:  Pat Kirkwood

The life and loves of music-hall singer Vesta Tilley, who married into the nobility.

I didn't know of Vesta Tilley, but Pat Kirkwood, doing a fine Julie Andrews impersonation, was very engaging and the songs were foot tapping.       5/10

Keeping Company 1940

Starring: Frank Morgan

A young man announces his engagement but has trouble when his ex-girlfriend returns to town.

Light hearted rom-com, although old-fashioned, still made me smile on several occasions. All wrapped up neatly at the end, this was not bad.        6/10

Crime Doctor 1943

Starring: Warner Baxter

An amnesiac becomes a successful psychiatrist, then discovers that he was once a wanted gangster.

The old amnesiac angle, amazing how often this comes up in movies. To be honest, this didn't bring anything new to the table although it led on to seven sequels.        3/10

Paris Blues 1961

Starring: Paul Newman

Two jazz musicians have romantic problems in Paris.

Set against a moody setting and backing soundtrack, the always reliable Sidney Poitier joins Newman where the subjects of love, race and drugs are lightly tackled amongst others. Only occasionally became uplifting, but always interesting.      6/10

Give me a sailor 1938

Starring: Martha Raye

An ugly girl envies her sister her beaux, but ends up winning a competition for beautiful legs.

Bob Hope has the most brilliant comic timing, a lot of modern comedians could do a lot worse than study his techniques. A dated movie of course, but made me smile on several occasions and had one great dance number.   6/10

I Cover The Waterfront 1933

Starring: Claudette Colbert

A reporter user a girl's friendship to expose her father's smuggling activities.

A smuggling melodrama. A couple of nice scenes with Claudette Colbert, but nothing else to shout about.     3/10

Waterloo Bridge 1931

Starring: Mae Clarke

An army officer marries a ballerina; when she is reported missing his family ignore her and she sinks into prostitution.

Very old movie full of melodrama and bluster. Does have a dramatic ending though.         2/10

The Fourth War 1990

Starring: Roy Scheider

A violent feud develops between an American and a Soviet colonel, each in charge of a border post between Czechoslavakia and East Germany.

Slightly odd thriller, whatever was eating at Scheider's character right from the off, was never really explained. A few decent action sequences. Scheider is not the greatest of actors and yet I always seem to quite enjoy his movies.        6/10

Blackout 1950

Starring: Dinah Sheridan

A man supposedly killed in an air crash turns out to be the head of a counterfeiting ring.

The old 'Blind man witnesses a murder' plot. I wish his character had remained blind throughout. Reasonable B-movie thriller.      6/10

Friday The Thirteenth 1933

Starring: Sonnie Hale

Several people are involved in a bus crash, and we turn back the clock to see how they came to be there.

No, not that one. A different Friday 13th. A nice idea but I think I would have developed it in a different way. To work on fewer stories, really developed the characterization so that the audience are fully invested in them and then see who survives the crash and who didn't. Not the best.        3/10

The Numbers Station 2013

Starring: John Cusack

A disgraced black ops agent is dispatched to a remote CIA broadcast station to protect a code operator. Soon, they find themselves in a life-or-death struggle to stop a deadly plot before it's too late. 

A bit too dark for my taste, needed a little more light along with the shade. Started well but I lost interest about half way through.         4/10

King Of The Jungle 1933

Starring: Buster Crabbe

A small boy grows up with lions; he is captured with them and sold to an American circus.

A pre-Tarzan movie but similar in many ways. Crabbe is spot on and I have to say that the effects with the animals, for its time, are amazing. All in all, a really well made film and still to this day, entertaining.         8/10

Tea For Two 1950

Starring: Doris Day

A nearly bankrupt financier promises his niece 25,000 dollars for her new musical show if she can say no to every question for twenty-four hours.

A watched this as a tribute to the marvelous Doris Day who died this week. Happy song and dance movie with loads of great tap routines, one up a staircase my personal highlight.    6/10

Hidden Fear 1957

Starring: John Payne

An American cop in Copenhagen clears his sister of a murder charge.

Lost my interest in the first couple of minutes and it never got me back Terribly dull.    1/10

Twins 1988

Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger

A 36 year old man, bred in a genetic experiment as the perfect man, discovers that he has a less than perfect twin brother.

A well known movie which is actually quite amusing in places, mainly down to Arnie's lovely portrayal. The whole idea actually kind of works and the movie is oddly moving in places.  7/10

Strange Bedfellows 1965

Starring: Rock Hudson

An American executive in London nearly divorces his fiery Italian wife.

Full of bright, primary colours, this was an amusing little movie that made me chuckle on many occasions. A lot of nonsense but all very easy on the eye.        6/10

The Late Show 1977

Starring:  Art Carney

An ageing private eye in Los Angeles finds that his ex-partner's death and a lost cat have a complex connexion.

I never bought Art Carney's character in this, the whole movie was very 'New Yoik' and although there were a couple of moments that made me smile, it never engaged me. I usually really like Lily Tomlin but just found her character irritating.       4/10 

Some People 1962

Starring: Kenneth Moore

Troublesome teenage factory workers are helped by a church organist and become model citizens.

Loved it. How times have changed in just over 50 years. A great nod to The Duke Of Edinburgh award scheme and some great songs throughout, some with a definite Shadows sound. Never heard of Annika Wells before, she was stunning and a really good actress too. Nostalgic and well worth seeing.                       9/10

They Met In The Dark 1943

Starring: Tom Wells

A Blackpool theatrical agent is really a master spy.

Crime Noir thriller which was a little muddled and confusing. James Mason gets everywhere, he often looks different, but as s oon as he speaks you know exactly who it is.           4/10

The Crooked Road 1964

Starring: Robert Ryan

Am American journalist plans to expose as a crook the dictator of a small Balkan state, but finds himself framed for murder.

Melodrama which wasn't particularly interesting until the last 3o mins. Enjoyable to watch Ryan and Stewart Granger doing their stuff. I'm more of a Ryan fan than a Granger fan, but Granger won this one being particulary suave and believable.            5/10

Sapphire 1959

Starring: Nigel Patrick

Scotland Yard solves the murder of a coloured music student.

More like a TV drama than a feature movie. Amaing that this is only 60 years ago and yet the room went quiet when a black person entered, they were constantly being referred to as coloured and the whole film centered around racial prejudice. Fascinating viewing.      7/10

Apache War Smoke 1952

Starring:  Gilbert Roland

An Indian killer is among those sheltering in a desert outpost before an Apache raid.

Standard Western with a light-hearted hand in places. The action scene were pleasing to the little boy inside me. Not bad.      5/10

That Feminine Touch 1941

Starring: Rosalind Russell

A professor gets into woman trouble when he writes a book about jealousy.

Selected this due to International Women's Day the other day. Wish I hadn't. Dull beyond belief with a lot of talking followed by shouting. Attempts at slapstick occasionally lifted the monotony.    2/10

Against A Crooked Sky 1975

Starring: Richard Boone

Two Westerners set out to find the sister of one of them, who has been kidnapped by Indians.

Seemed about 20 year older than it actually is. There was something about this that made it seem quite believable. A simple story and yet I found myself totally engrossed. Not overcomplicated and for me, worked.               6/10

Conquest Of Cochise 1953

Starring: Robert Stack

An army major is sent to make peace with Cochise, the Apache.

Traditional cowboy's and Injuns with a Mexican twist. War, peace and a little romance. Classic ingredients but a little tame.            5/10

The Gene Krupa Story 1959

Starring: Sal Mineo

A successful jazz drummer is convicted on a drugs charge and falls from grace.

A wasn't aware of this fella and as biopics go, this is not bad. Lots of upbeat jazz music to get the foot tapping and the whole thing looked great.         6/10

Make Me an Offer 1954

Starring: Peter Finch

An antique dealer has an ambition to own a famous vase.

A gentle British movie set in the antique World. Novel because of its subject matter and Finch played the lead role nicely. Not a lot happens to be honest and yet ot holds a certain charm throughout.

A loved the line early on "We teach children how to cross the road, why don't we teach them not to go into the antique trade?"           7/10

Okinawa 1952

Starring: Pat O'Brien

Adventures of the gun crew of a Pacific destroyer.

Too much talking and not enough action. Waiting for the Japanese Kamikaze to attack. A few good plane scenes but instantly forgettable.     4/10

Where The Sidewalk Ends 1950

Starring: Dana Andrews

A tough policeman accidentally kills a suspect and tries to implicate a gang leader.

The old rogue cop plot. Not bad with Karl Malden effectively auditioning for The streets Of San Francisco. Dull in places with some good phases in others.    5/10

The Masque Of The Red Death 1964

Starring: Vincent Price

A medieval Italian prince practices devil worship while the plague rages outside, but when he holds a ball, death is an uninvited guest.     

Usual Price material with him being mean moody and sending lots of people to death. Flashbacks, lots of dancing, a little girl with a woman's voice and the red death. All a little weird really.   5/10

Forty Little Mothers 1940

Starring: Eddie Cantor

A teacher in a girls' school finds himself in charge of a baby.

What an absolute delight. Cantor is so endearing that you totally believe him. All the school girls looked about 35, but who cares. Find it on Youtube and watch it if you can.         9//10

Conversations With Other Women 2005

Starring: Helena Bonham Carter

When a man and woman flirt with each other at a wedding reception, the sexual tension seems spontaneous. As they break from the party to a hotel room, the flirtation turns into a night filled with passion and remorse. 

Such a simple idea and yet utterly compelling. Two people talking at the end of a wedding reception and briefly rekindling a love affair. I'm not a fan of flashbacks, this movie had flash glimpses which were superbly placed and really added to the movie. Clever movie.        8/10