During the war of 1812, an American ship runs the English blockade to collect gold bullion from France.
Colour is a bit washed out now and is oddly dark during some of the fight scenes, but lots of fun messing around on the high seas and Angela Lansbury playing a completely different type of role. 6/10
Six violent convicts revolt against a sadistic warden and try to escape.
Hard hitting prison drama with an explosive ending, not bad but needed a bit of light to counter-balance the dark. 6/10
Three boys go through parachute training school.
Not much of a blot to be honest, but all made in good humour and historically was actually quite interesting. 5/10
The domestic life of inventor Hiram Maxim.
From first meeting, to courting, to getting married and having children. Very likeable lead performances and although there's no in depth plot, it put a smile on my face. 7/10
A reformed pirate, accused of sacking Cartagena, returns to piracy to discover the perpetrators.
I love a good pirate movie and this ticks all the boxes. Plenty of swash and buckle, canon balls and drinking of rum. 6/10
A merchant navy captain avenges the loss of his ship by sabotaging a German U-boat.
War propaganda, highly irritating now. Lots of shouting and breast beating about nationality. A couple of reasonable scenes, otherwise completely forgettable. 3/10
Two rivals for the hand of the pretty daughter of a Swiss hotelier are struck down by chicken pox and cared for by the old nanny of one of them.
Very dated, as much as I like David Tomlinson, this is watchable but just a little silly. A nanny ordering around two middle aged men just doesn't hold water nowadays. Nice scenery though. 5/10
Wyatt Earp cleans up Tombstone.
All the big-hitters here, Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, the Okay Coral. Fascinating to see how Tombstone was depicted as a busy, bustling, riotous place. I wonder how near the truth all of this was. I found this interesting more than gripping. 6/10
A western storekeeper accidentally kills a bank robber, whose brothers seek revenge; will the townsfolk come to his aid?
Loved this. A strong storyline, but I particularly loved the sense of community, you genuinely believed that the people all knew each other and were friends. A tale of loyalty, community and sticking together. 9/10
An anthropologist settling in Los Angeles is haunted by vengeful spirits of remote tribes he had investigated.
Terrible movie. Confused, lots of shrieking and why was Pierce Brosnan selected to play a Frenchman? The 80's soundtrack had some interest, otherwise a complete write off for me. 2/10
The 14th century poet and rascal Francois Villon matches wits with Louis X1 and leads an uprising of the people.
Ronald Colman has his tongue firmly in his cheek and a glint in his eye, Basil Rathbone, who I seem to see in a movie every other week, is marvellously camp. A bit hit and miss but certainly has its moments. 5/10
A clean-cut high school student relies on the school's rumor mill to advance her social and financial standing.
With a nodding wink to John Hughes 1980's movies, this teen flick absolutely hits the mark. Emma Stone is spot on, witty, charming, I can't imagine how somebody like that could be invisible in school. Terrifically writer with a bunch of great cameos, Emma Stone's parents and her teacher steal the show for me. Very enjoyable. 8/10
An International spy mastermind runs a Lisbon night club and sells documents to the highest bidder.
I'm not sure I was ever entirely sure what was going on. Set in Lisbon but quite dark and predominently set indoors, it could have been anywhere. Didn't do it for me at all. 2/10
A vigilante avenge's his wife's murder.
So many vigilante movies made in the 80's. Not one of the greatest to be honest, Yaphet Kotto with his aerial support in an explosive finale was an excellent scene. 4/10
A good-natured but slobbish layabout straightens out his sister's warring children and learns to love domesticity.
I remember this being huge when it was released, looks great on the outside but has little substance. Still watchable although it never once made me laugh out loud. 6/10
An American publisher goes to Venice to recover love letters written by a famous poet to a lady now aged 105.
Intriguing idea and the old lady is brilliantly made up and well played. The movie though is too single paced and pedestrian and just never came alive for me. 4/10
A nurse marries for money, but her ailing spouse recovers and she falls in love with him.
Extremely full melodrama with no character that I particularly liked, the nurse's broken English accent was actually quite a struggle to listen to. Very much on one level throughout. 4/10
Of two young nurses on a cycling holiday in France, one is murdered by a local sex maniac and the other almost shares her fate.
Very well directed and always interesting to look at, this keeps you guessing and is intriguing but needs more pace. There is only so long you can stare at a long empty road and a pretty girl, fortunately an exciting conclusion and twist pushes this into the quite good category. 7/10
An ex-alcoholic is let down not only by his slovenly wife but by the young girl he idolises.
I'm not sure that I've ever seen a Burt Lancaster movie that I haven't enjoyed. This is quite simply, one of the greatest movies I have ever seen. Heartbreaking, hard hitting, joyous at times. Lancaster is understated but in a 10 minute spell, brilliant. Shirley Booth gave an absolute masterclass and fully deserved her Oscar , what a performance! Terry Moore added a youthful delight. This was brilliant in every department. 10/10
Sir Roderick Strood is on trial for the murder of his neurotic wife.
Not a bad courtroom drama which you feel is concentrating more on the forthcoming law to end capital punishment. Didn't see the ending coming though. 6/10
