El Cid 1961

Starring: Charlton Heston

A legendary 11th-century hero drives the Moors from Spain.

An epic in every way. Charlton Heston gets in right in this hugely demanding role. The pace is pedestrian to say the least but sometimes you have to just sit back and admire the scale and vision of someone who puts such a movie together. 5/10

The Stranger 1946

Starring: Edward G Robinson

An escaped Nazi criminal marries an American woman and settles in a Conneticut village.

Atmospheric thriller with high emphasis put on moody lighting, shadowing and a melodramatic score. To my mind, you discovered exactly what was going on & who the criminal was way too early and after that, you were waiting for the inevitable comeuppance. The conclusion was well done though with a highly original climaz up a clock tower. Edward G Robinson got some good gigs as an actor which is surprising as his speech and movement all go at a single pace. Quite an original thriller. 7/10

Corvette Summer 1979

Starring: Mark Hamill

A Los Angeles student spends the summer looking for his stolen customised car, and has various adventures around Las Vegas.

You can tell a 70's movie the moment it starts with the dodgy fonts and tinny music. This is a road movie about a young guy looking for a car that he restored. The plot is simple but Hamill & Annie Potts have an easy going charm. The comedy mostly falls flat but there is a watchable, sentiment about the movie that keeps your attention. A nice car chase to round it all off. 7/10

The Desert song 1953

Starring: Gordon Macrae

Well staged straight version of the musical, with full score.

Harmless enough but couldn't really decide whether it was a drama, comedy or musical. Lavish production though and wow, does Gordon Macrae sing fabulously! Easy going but forgetable. 4/10

Love affair 1939

Starring: Charles Boyer

On a transatlantic crossing, a European man of the World meets a New York girl, but their romance is flawed by a misunderstanding and physical accident.

Dated and tedious. A found the characters to be objectionable in their first few scenes and because of that I just never warmed to them. no rise and fall whatsoever, it was all too monotone and vaguely soporific. Got slightly more interesting following Irene Dunne's accident but generally for me, never got out of first gear. 2/10

The Great Sioux massacre

Starring: Joseph Cotten

Two officers are court-martialled after Custer's last stand.

Yet another telling of Custer's demise. Having never studied this historically, I'm unsure how true the events leading up to the final stand are. But Custer & all the cavalry don't come out of this at all well & you end up having a large sympathy towards the Sioux. Quite well made & choreographed film, shame it's a subject matter scene dozens of times before. 6/10

Behind green lines 1945

Starring: Carole Landis

A murderer is spotted during one night in the press room of a police station.

A rather rushed 'B' style movie that seemed to flick from scene to scene without a great deal of care. Two many unnecessary characters and scenes breezed through the movie as an attempt was made to demonstrate a busy police station. The main story was okay but the whole movie was just a little clumsy. 4/10

The Graduate 1967

Starring: Dustin Hoffman

A rich Californian ex-student is led into an affair with the wife of his father's friend, then falls in love with her daughter.

An iconic movie that if it was re-made with unknown actors today, would sink without trace. It is relevant to its period, the performances by Hoffman, Bancroft & Ross are all spot on. The music score is just right and there is love, angst, desperation and a little humour. The scenes in the hotel were beautifully played and somehow, this movie mesmerises you. 8/10

Haunted Honeymoon 1986

Starring: Gene Wilder

A radio actor takes his fiancee to the family's gloomy country estate, where werewolves and transvestites re some of the creatures which abound.

As with most of Wilder's movies, almost a series of sketches with very little plot. It's almost like ideas keep cropping up as they're filming and these are added to what's already there. A bit like machine gun fire, some of these hit the spot whilst others are way off the mark. I loved the song and dance number that randomly appeared & also a great scene when Wilder was talking to policemen with someone else's legs. For me Dom DeLuise stole the show. 5/10

Stay hungry 1976

Starring: Jeff Bridges

The heir to an Alabama estate annoys the locality by assembling a curious bunch of friends and making unexpected use of his money.

A peculiar kind of film. At the end, I wasn't entirely sure what it had all been about & my conclusion was that the plot got bogged down somewhat in excessive dialogue. Sally Field is always a delight & it was interesting to see a very young Schwarzenegger who as a Mr Universe contestant was very good. 3/10

All the Young men 1960

Starring: Sidney Poitier

A marine patrol in Korea is commanded by a black man, and racial tensions take precedence over fighting the enemy

Set in gorgeous mountain location, this war movie was certainly unusual due to the snow angle. Sidney Poitier is excellent & smoulders throughout. I guess in the 21st century, the race angle is just a bit tired and nowadays, irrelevant. The action scenes are okay although a bit samey. Watchable if not memorable. 6/10

Captain Kidd 1945

Starring: Charles Laughton

A pirate tricks King William iii into giving him Royal orders, but enemies he believes dead return to see him hanged.

I wonder whether Jonny Depp got any of his inspiration for Captain Jack Sparrow from Laughton's performance? In many ways & particularly in voice, they are very similar. This film is all about Laughton. His slightly camp & under played amusing performance is really the only thing worth watching. The script is fairly poor, the location virtually non-existent and Randolph Scott is wooden although it was nice to see him not sat on a horse in a cowboy hat. 6/10

The Wackiest ship in the army 1960

Starring: Jack Lemmon

In the South Pacific during World war ii a decrepit sailing ship with an inexperienced crew manages to confuse Japanese patrols and land a scout behind enemy lines.

A nice idea but did not come off for me. Some occasional good moments but the wacky ship and crew were not nearly wacky enough for me. Jack Lemmon is a brilliant actor and his comedy timing was as usual, up to scratch. He was just left with a clumsy, slightly lightweight script that at times seemed to get confused as to whether it was outright comedy, sentimental comedy/drama or war film. 4/10

Millions like us 1943

Starring: Patricia Roc

The tribulations of a family in wartime, especially of the meek daughter who goes into war work and marries an airman, who is killed.

A war film which focuses mainly on the women, in this case based at a factory making parts for aircraft. A ridiculously young Gordon Jackson played the love interest. This was watchable but held no surprises as th scenes made you smile but also produced a sadness & tragedy. As always, movies like this have a historical fascination. 6/10

There's no Business like show business 1954

Starring: Ethel Merman

The life and times of a family of vaudevillians

Typical Holywood musical centring around the multi-talented Donohue family. The routines were very slick and the singing good, it just became a little too similar after a while. The lives of the children became the most interesting aspect of the film and there was a satisfactory ending. The performances were good with the exception of Marilyn Monroe who was hopelessly mis-cast. Quite a feel good affair. 5/10

Night of the Eagle 1961

Starring: Peter Wyngarde

At a medical school, a jealous witch sets an evil force on her rival.

A quite well made witchcraft, black magic story. The characters are believable and the locations excellent. You can' deny that this is far-fetched, I just felt that the story needed a bit more consideration to flesh it out so that all the loose ends tied together & we understood the motivation. Nice ending though! 6/10

Bus Stop 1956

Starring: Marilyn Monroe

In a Rodeo town, a simple-thinking cowboy meets a cafe singer and asks her to marry him.

A simple plot but a movie filled with likeable characters. Monroe pitches it just about right but the real star is Don Murray. His boyish enthusiasm & un-realised manly looks are brilliantly exploited. I found the whole thing to be great fun. 8/10

Half shot at sunrise 1930

Starring: Bert Wheeler

Allegedly one of the best representations of a star comedy duo who went into a decline after 1932.

The comedy story of 2 POW soldiers in Paris chasing girls and causing mayhem. One of them ends up dating the General's daughters and finds himself trying to get crucial orders through to the front line. Not a comedy duo I've ever heard of. This was surprisingly slick & amusing in places. A witty script and a lead duo with good timing. Even a couple of songs thrown in, this was dated but quite good fun. 6/10

Force of evil 1948

Starring: John Garfield

A racketeer's lawyer finds that his boss has killed the lawyer's brother

I don't really get on with film noir. As well as this film has been made & as classy as the acting is, it just seemed ever so dull. Too much dialogue, not enough movement and no light or shade. Difficult to follow because my mind kept wandering. 3/10

Aces high 1976

Starring: Malcom McDowell

In the air force during World War 1, young pilots are needlessly sacrificed.

Utterly brilliant. The special effects and dog fights are thrilling, but more important than that, a brilliant atmosphere is created. A real team spirit with typical stiff upper lipness although several poignant moments when you can see the despair & tragedy in the pilots eyes. I do wish Malcom McDowell wasn't always dysfunctional in some way in his movies, but his characterisation was top drawer. 9/10