Whispering City 1947

Starring:  Paul Lukas

A Girl reporter has dangerous information

Never a good sign when your concentration has wandered within the first 2 minutes. Just never engaged with this at all.      2/10

The Amazing Mr Blunden 1972

Starring: Laurence Naismith

In 1918, a widow and her two children meet a kindly gentleman who offers them work in an old mansion. Here they meet two ghost children, discover that he is a ghost too, and travel a hundred years back in time to right a wicked wrong.

Nice to see a gentle ghost story which is a kind of family movie. Reasonably done with Lynne Frederick looking gorgeous. Some severe over-acting by the likes of Diana Dors is my only real criticism.    6/10

The Runaway bus 1954

Starring:  Frankie Howerd

Passengers at London airport are fogbound, and a relief bus driver takes some of them to Blackbushe. Incognito among them are robbers and detectives.

Frankie Howerd was a comic genius and he managed to leave me with a constant smile on my face in this one. Great fun trying to work out who the robbers are and who the detectives are, I changed my mind several times and still got it wrong. Excellent selection of characters, this was great fun.    8/10

Hollywood and Vine 1945

Starring: James Ellison

A New York writer is ordered to Hollywood to script a film for  dog.

Has a few moments but the characters are mainly irritating, you need more than a dancing dog to pull off a successful movie.    3/10

Showdown 1963

Starring: Audie Murphy

Two wandering cowboys become involved with a criminal.

Fairly gritty western with its unusual selling point being the criminals having chains secured around their necks attached to a huge pole in the ground. All fairly routine after that although not bad and Audie Murphy is always solid.        5/10

Silver Lode 1954

Starring: John Payne

A respected citizen of Silver Lode proves that the marshal who rides into town on his wedding day to accuse him of murder is a civilian bent on revenge.

Not bad at all. The entire action is set in one town and you feel like you know every building at the end of this 80 minutes. The plot has all been seen before but it moves along at a good pace and has some reasonable action. Barmaid Dolly steals every scene that she's in.       7/10

Three faces of Eve 1957

Starring: Joanne Woodward

A Psychiatrist discovers that a female patient has three distinct personalities: a drab housewife, a good time girl and a mature sophisticated woman.

Based on a true story, this was absolutely fascinating. Brilliant acting by Joanne Woodward, to make the three characters so distinct and yet still portray the demons that they all had to live with. Never has an Oscar winner been so worthy.       8/10

Confidence 2002

Starring: Edward Burns

Jake Vig (Burns) is a consummate grifter about to pull his biggest con yet, one set to avenge his friend's murder. But his last scam backfired, leaving him indebted to a mob boss (Hoffman) and his enforcer.

I'm not sure who it is that sits down and decided it would be a good idea to litter every sentence with swear words. Within 2 minutes, I was entirely bored of this  language. Some of the cons were quite nicely handled, but by this time the movie had got under my skin and I didn't really care.         2/10

Column south 1953

Starring:  Audie Murphy

A cavalry officer shows how to live peaceably with Indians.

A sort of civil war / western mash-up with emphasis on the political shenanigans that General's were carrying out. Why is there always just one woman in the fort, irritating! Have several women or none at all. Interesting rather than thrilling movie.        5/10

Kotch 1971

Starring: Walter Matthau

An eccentric 72-year old widower is at odds with his family and helps a pregnant babysitter.

Makes an interesting social comment, just because you don't understand people of a different generation, it doesn't mean there isn't a place for them. Matthau got on my nerves initially, never seeming to stop talking. I guess that emphasizes the point I'm trying to make. Possib;y over-long but an interesting watch.        6/10 

Baby face Morgan 1942

Starring: Richard Cromwell

The son of a racketeer is made a figurehead by his father's old mob.

Even though the Baby-face looks about 40, this is a movie that almost gets there. A few  amusing moments with the gang double-crossing themselves. Watched it online and it wasn't the greatest print ever but I've seen worse.        4/10

Man in the wilderness 1971

Starring: Richard Harris

In 1820 in the Canadian Northwest, a fur trapper is mauled by a grizzly and left for dead, but learns to survive and sets out for revenge.

Richard Harris plays this angst ridden, close to death role so well. A reasonable start and great locations but it all got a bit arty for me with irritating flashbacks. Some good moments and if you like to see horses thrashing about in water, this is the movie for you.       4/10

The Boy who stole a million 1960

Starring: Maurice Reyna

A young page in a Spanish bank 'borrows' some money to help his father but finds Dad, police and crooks all after him.

A nice idea with a pleasant innocence, but the chase seems eventually become very repetitive. Having said that, it has to be the most secure oilskin package in the history of oilskin packages. Not once did it look like bursting open.          5/10

Rawhide 1950

Starring: Tyrone Power

Four escaped convicts terrorize a stagecoach stop.

The plot's been seen dozens of times before but it's amazing how the dynamic changes when there's a baby/toddler incolved. This movie simmers throughout and there, for me, were a few surprises towards the end. Really enjoyed this one.      9/10

Operation CIA

Starring: Burt Reynolds

An agent is rushed to Saigon to find a secret message which was never delivered.

An OK thriller although some of the acting by supporting cast was shocking, English reporter Withers a prime example. Occasional moments that were really quite violent, this was easy enough on the eye with interesting locations, but could have done with a lighter touch.         6/10

No down payment 1957

Starring:  Joanne Woodward

Tension among smart surburban couples i a Los Angeles housing development.

Different as a movie and made a hell of a lot of social comment. A new couple move into a seemingly ideal housing development, immediately make friends but it turns out that all the couples have their demons and there is ultimately tragedy. May be dated now but good to see a movie confronting so many social issues.    7/10

King of the khyber rifles 1954

Starring: Tyronne Power

In 1857 a British garrison in India is threatened by the forces of Kumram Khan but saved by a half-caste officer.

Uninteresting script and storyline delivered in a laborious way. A tedious love story didn't help. Some interesting camera angles, other than that this was a waste of time.        3/10

Miss Potter 2006

Starring: Renee Zellweger

The story of Beatrix Potter, the author of the beloved and best-selling children's book, "The Tale of Peter Rabbit", and her struggle for love, happiness and success.

I have never been a fan of Beatrix Potter books but was amazed at how familiar her illustrations seemed to me. BNeautifully underplayed by Zellweger and Ewan McGregor with stunning sets and location. This was bloody charming.            8/10

The Lonely man 1957

Starring: Jack Palance

An outlaw hopes to regain social recognition and contacts the son who abhors him.

A movie played at a very sedate pace all about building relationships and breaking down barriers. A slightly bizarre love triangle doesn't help. There's a few good moments but this is fairly formula stuff.    5/10

Rookie 1990

Starring: Clint Eastwood

Ageing cop teaches his new young partner how to act tough.

Who doesn't love Clint Eastwood? Such a shame that Charlie Sheen went off the rails as he is a fine actor. Standard shoot 'em up stuff with a ridiculous amount of crashes and explosions that must have cost a fortune. All very standard stuff but I loved it.      7/10