Notorious: This is a spy movie and perhaps the spy movie that made the genera what it is today. Ingrid Bergman is convinced to take a spy job by Carey Grant, her father's Nazi sympathies make her perfect for the job. She doesn't have the cleanest past but she and Grant fall for each other on the way down to Brazil where the job will be taking place. The job creates trouble in paradise. This is an innovative and well made movie, by Hitchcock naturally.

Night and Day: I'd heard about this movie and figured that I would give it a try, it's about Cole Porter and his rise to fame. Mostly it's a showcase for Cole Porter songs, I don't mind Cole Porter but I don't love him either. Unless you're a really big fan of Cary Grant or Cole Porter I wouldn't bother.

Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland: Move over Tim Burton, this is the original live action movie. I really got a kick out of this movie, ofcourse now the special effects etc. are dinosaurs, however this movie was made in the 30s or 40s and the special effects would have been as revolutionary as Star Wars was when it first came out. This movie was weird but I don't know that you can have Alice in Wonderland without it being at least a little bit weird. It was entertaining to see both Carey Grant and Gary Cooper in little roles. I enjoyed this movie, I might even watch it again.

Tarzan: It's a good story, it's a good movie, Phil Collins wrote some really good music. It's funny, you should watch it.

Return To Cranford: While this movie was still quite enjoyable with Judi Dench and all the other wonderful actors, and while there was a lovely happy ending, I was rather disappointed with this movie. If you liked Cranford you will probably still enjoy this one but I almost wish that I'd just stopped at Cranford and not seen this movie. Most of the stories from this one come from the Cranford novel and I believe a great deal of them have been made up to create more drama.

Only Angles Have Wings: This movie is a bit more black than a lot of movies but it's still fairly comedic and perhaps even sappy. I really enjoy this movie though, Carey Grant and Jean Arthur are great.

The Princess and the Frog: This movie was good, better than a lot of Disney (excluding pixar) movies have been the last few years. Was it amazing? no, was it a good enjoyable movie? yes, would it scare me if I were still a little kid? yes. I've heard that the firefly is hilarious if you know New Orleans, however I am completely unfamiliar with it so he was only amusing.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull: So some movies you hear are terrible and despite that you still are curious and you want to know if they really are as bad as everyone says? At least I do. This movie really was about like everyone said. It wasn't the best idea to have an Indiana Jones movie with the main characters in their 60s, and some movies, to me at least, are better without high tech special effects; in Raiders of the Lost Ark the effects are not so great by today's standards, but that's part of the charm of that movie I think. Any way this movie was akin to the Sandlot 2, in that it was hanging onto Raiders, it tried to recreate a lot of the scenes but it just wasn't the same. As for Shia LeBouff, we won't even go there.

Charade: Audrey Hepburn and Carey Grant are great in this movie. Charade is a good mix between romantic comedy and thriller. I go back to this movie time and time again.

Indiscreet: I'm unsure about this movie, parts of it were really awesome, parts were blah and parts were not cool. Carey Grant and Ingrid Bergman are in love but lies are discovered and problems come up. One thing that comes from this movie is a message that you shouldn't lie about things, and I'm behind that 100% but there's a sort of battle of the sexes and the ending of the movie did not sit well with me. The movie was made in 1958 and that probably accounts for it's chuvanism but it doesn't make it any more plesant.

Australia: Wow, I've been wanting to watch this movie since I saw the previews about a year ago...obviously these things take me a while; it didn't disappoint though, it was a pretty awesome movie, even after they hype has faded down. I must say I was a bit disappointed that I could tell that computer animation was used in some parts but I suppose that can be dealt with. I wish that there weren't a few things in there that are, however I believe it's rated pg 13 and so I was warned. This movie was really awesome, really sad and the stars of the movie are both really pretty (Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman). The plot of this movie is very similar to that of Out of Africa but the issue of race and discrimination is dealt with much more. I am not very familiar with Australia at all but in Australia around the time of WWII the main ethnical groups in Australia were white and Aboriginies and as was usual for the time period, there was discrimination agains the Aboriginies but what really struck me was that below the Aboriginies on the social ladder were childeren who were half white and half Aboriginy, "creamies" was one of the derogatory terms. These poor childeren would be shipped off to an island, to an asylum away from their parents...or mothers really, since most of their fathers wouldn't claim them. It may have occured, but I'm not aware of anything like that happening with the racial discrimination between white and black people and this really struck me, that these poor children were just stuck between worlds, and not really able to join either. This movie really touched me and made me think.

Damn Yankees: This was an interesting movie, not the best plot, not the greatest music, but the dancing was great. This movie was choreographed by Bob Fossse and his wife, Gwen Verden was one of the stars, they even have a dance number together. This movie also made me think, the plot is that a man sells his soul to help his favorite team beat the Yankees, and so he makes a deal with the devil. The way the devil was portrayed in the movie made me wonder about how things would be if one made a deal witht the devil.

Friday, May 8

The Bourn Identity: I love these movies, I love a spy type action thriller well done, and that serise is just that. I have the spy fascination but I've found that I now prefer to watch something that at least seems like a more realistic spy world, than the gadgeted, and farsical world of spies. This being said I also love Chuck, so it goes both ways I guess. Anyway, if you're into spy/ action coolness, I highly recomend Bourn, however I didn't love the books...and they have a way different plot.
Anything Goes: I got this musical because it has Donald O'Connor and I'm a fan, however it wasn't one of those amazing musicals I felt, just mediocer, but maybe if you really love Cole Porter you'd think better of it, who knows. Bing Crosby's also in it but I'm not a huge fan of his.
Mr. Deed's Goes to Town: I got this to see more of Frank Capra's movies. It wasn't bad but also not my favorite. I assume that Mr. Deed's with Adam Sandler took it's plot from this.
The Big Sleep: Bogie, Bacall, it was the first time I'd seen a movie with both of them. I liked it a lot. I have no idea where the title came from though.
The Bachelor and The Bobby Soxer: I love Carey Grant, however not a favorite, I probably won't watch it again.
The Nun's Story: I got this to see Audrey Hepburn and it was not what I was expecting. It was very interesting, I can't say how accurate because I've never been Catholic, I learned a lot, hopefully not things that aren't true. However even if I ever became Catholic, I never, ever want to be a nun.

Thursday, May 14

To Catch a Thief: I usually am a big fan of Hitchcock but this one wasn't my favorite. I think sometimes Hitchcock gets undermined by all the people who came after and have run with what he did so well. I remember watching Rear Window (which is the basis for Disturbia) after hearing all about it, but I remember being quite bored with it, part of that might have been from my watching it at home, in my basement with the lights on, however I think most of it is due to all the suspense movies I've seen since, all the people who were inspired by Hitchcock. Anyway, To Catch a Thief, you'd have to decide for yourself.
I Was A Male War Bride: I liked this one, a pretty good comedy and fairly witty in parts. One of the funniest things might have been seeing Carey Grant in drag, now some men can pull that off, but Carey Grant was not really one of those, just himself in a dress. I recommend it even if just for that.
That's all of the Carey Grant I've seen lately but there's probably more waiting for me at the library.
Sunset Boulevard: I think this is one of the best movies I've seen in a long time, very well crafted, a work of art. This movie is also very creepy, or maybe more along the lines of strange or unnerving. I watched the little thing on the DVD about the making of the movie and things got creepier, errie how close characters were cast in some cases. I liked it but I don't think I'll be watching it all the time, it's hauntingly close to some realities. I think everyone should see it once.
Roman Holiday: I have absolutely loved this movie from the very beginning, from the very first time I saw it. Roman Holiday was Audrey Hepburn's first big movie roll, it launched her into Hollywood stardom. I loved it this time because I can now pick out snatches of what's being said in Italian, I hadn't watched it since taking Italian. Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn are both simply wonderful in this movie. It's rightfully a classic.
Emma: I haven't ever read the book, nor do I intend to, however I do love the movie. I love the costumes, and Gweneth Paltrow and Jeremy Northam. It is funny and sweet and right up there in the chick flick category.

Friday, May 22

The Importance of Being Earnest: I love this movie, which is also a play by Oscar Wilde. I love Wild's works they are so wonderfully witty and satirical. I think this movie is excellent and has a wonderful cast: Judi Dench, Rupert Everett, Colin Firth and Reese Witherspoon. It is a very funny movie.
North and South: This movie is a mini series based off of Elizabeth Gaskill's book by the same title. I haven't read the book but I hope to soon. I like this movie, it's a bit like Pride and Prejudice in plot but I think it goes deeper into both pride and prejudice. The North and South are those of England around the beginning of the industrial revolution. It made me think about people and different points of view. I very much liked it.
The Charge of The Light Brigade: This is an old movie with Errol Flynn, and typical of his movies. This movie is about a historical event, one about England's glorious days of being an empire, which I'm not terribly familiar. This movie is about military actions in India and that general area. I have to say that I did not love this movie, I thought is was well made etc. but I disagree strongly with the events that took place and about revenge. I don't know how to tell this without giving away crucial plot so be warned. There was a massacre of mostly women and children and to avenge that 600 men, the Light Brigade, went into almost certian death to kill the man responsible. It made me sick to think of it, of course it was horrible what happened, but 600 men for one man hardly seems worth it, it just seems to me like more needless death.
Sargent York: This is another war movie, but where I hated Charge of the Light Brigade, I loved this one. I like this movie because it was not really a glorification of war, the main character didn't want to go to the war, but once he made his decision to go, he did the best he could and in doing so he found himself a hero.
Lost Horizion: I loved this movie, it was based off a book by the same title and I now want to read it. In this movie a group of people find themselves in Shangri-La and begin to adjust to how different things are there. I highly recommend it. An interesting point about the movie, apparently over the years it was cut down and the version I got was a restoration, they found the whole soundtrack of the movie and all but 7 minutes of the film. Because of this though there are some parts that are just stills with sound, others high quality and still others are fairly low quality.
Gunga Din: I haven't read the famous poem but I quite liked this movie. I loved the friendship between the three Sargent. I decided that the resemblance between Douglass Fairbanks Jr. and Carey Ewles is uncanny and that this is one of my favorite roles I've seen Carey Grant in. Carey Grant was wonderful at comedy and this movie proves it to a T. I think this role also works because it's not the typical Grant role of someone suave and debonair, I think it's more like the background that Archie Leach had before he became Carey Grant.

Friday, May 29

People Will Talk: Okay so this isn't actually Hepburn or Bogie, it's yet another Carey Grant movie. It's a fun movie with some interesting plot twists. I quite liked the part about the trains. It's a fun movie.
How To Steal A Million: I love this movie, it's very funny and in the crime thriller family. Audrey Hepburn plays a French girl who's father forges paintings, much to her dismay. She meets Peter O'Toole when she shoots him as an intruder in her house. Circumstances occur which force her to join O'Toole and to break into an art museum to protect her father from going to jail.
High Sierra: One of Bogie's big break through movies. A crime thriller, much more so than the previous movie. Love, crime, mountains, a lovable dog... Not my favorite but alright.
Two For The Road: Another Audrey Hepburn movie. The character she plays in this movie is more on the Holly Golightly side of things than the sweet innocent girls Hepburn quite often played. I liked this movie, I think, but it was very sad, it's the story (shown all out of cronolgical sequence) of a couple thorough their relationship together and their travles. It's a rocky marriage and it made me sad to wonder if many marriages out there are or have been like that and to wonder how being so in love isn't enough it would seem, to keep a marriage going.
Love in the Afternoon: Audrey Hepburn and Gary Cooper, Cooper is a big player. Hepburn's father is a private detective and she uses stories from his files to make Cooper jelous and become a one woman man. It's a cute movie.
Paris When it Sizzles: This movie is funny because of the way it portrays Hollywood, and how accuratly. Hepburn and William Holden. It's kind of a strange movie but that's part of what makes it so funny. It's also a chance to see Tony Curtis play a little bit part.
The Maltese Falcon: I'd heard about this movie, or perhaps the book, for years and I finally got around to watching it and seeing the famed Sam Spade. I though this was a really good movie, good mystery and acting and a very good ending. Another movie with Bogie.
The African Queen: This is only a partial report because the DVD was too scratched up to play the whole movie. I liked what I saw. It stars Katherine Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart. I haven't seen any movies with Katherine Hepburn for a while and I'd forgotten what a wonderful actress she was. I'll try and get a better copy of the movie and report when I do.