Ace In the Hole****   1951

http://www.criterion.com/films/829-ace-in-the-hole

VIDEO

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kNsun1NO5f4 

  As his car is being towed through downtown Albuquerque, New Mexico, down-and-out reporter Charles "Chuck" Tatum passes by

 the Sun Bulletin newspaper office and rushes inside. After Chuck boldly informs conservative editor Jacob Q. Boot that he is a

 $250-a-week reporter but can be had for $50 a week, Boot offers him a job on condition he stay clean and sober. Chuck, who

 admits his reckless, caustic behavior led to his dismissal from many prestigious Eastern newspapers, embraces Boot's terms,

 confident that his next big break will soon come. A year later, however, Chuck is still working at the Bulletin when Boot assigns

 him and cub reporter-photographer Herbie Cook to cover a rattlesnake hunt. On the way, Herbie and Chuck stop for gas at a

 remote trading post and soon discover that the young proprietor, Leo Minosa, is trapped in a cave in a nearby Indian cliff

dwelling. When an Indian tells Chuck that the cave is in the sacred Mountain  of the Seven Vultures, Chuck senses a story

 opportunity. Ignoring a deputy sheriff, Chuck pushes his way into the cave with Herbie and locates Leo, pinned under a heavy

 plank inside a narrow, unstable crevice. Chuck soothes the frightened Leo, who had crawled into the crevice in search of Indian

 artifacts, and snaps a photo of him. As soon as he returns to the trading post, Chuck calls Boot and boasts that he has a front

 page feature. Chuck then arranges with Leo's cynical wife Lorraine to stay in her in-laws's bedroom, and while he is typing up

 his first article, they talk about Leo. Lorraine reveals that she married Leo, a veteran, right after the war, but quickly became

 disillusioned and bored.

 When Lorraine declares that she is leaving Leo while she can, Chuck, mindful of how her desertion will hurt his story, tries to

 shame her into staying. Lorraine refuses to feel guilty, but changes her mind about going after the vacationing Federber family

 shows up, eager to observe Leo's rescue and buy food and trinkets. Along with Chuck, Lorraine realizes that as news about Leo's

 predicament spreads, business at the trading post will explode. The next day, after Chuck's first story appears in the Bulletin,

 the trading post is besieged by visitors. After learning from Dr. Hilton, who has gone into the cave, that Leo can survive a week

 of entrapment, Chuck approaches Sheriff Gus Kretzer with a proposition. Noting how much publicity the sheriff would earn if the

 rescue went on for a week, Chuck convinces Kretzer to use his position to prolong the operation and, in exchange for Chuck's

 silence and support, guarantee him exclusive access to the story. By threatening to ruin his career, the sheriff then coerces 

 engineer Sam Smollett to drill a shaft from the top of the cave down to Leo, instead of shoring up the walls and getting Leo out

 in a day. That evening, Lorraine, now flush with cash, tries to flirt with Chuck, but he slaps her. As Smollett's rescue team

 begins drilling the next day, the area is flooded with reporters, cameramen and tourists. Taking in the spectacle, Chuck tells the

 wide-eyed Herbie that they are quitting the Bulletin . When other reporters complain about Chuck's favored position, the sheriff 

 announces that he has deputized Chuck and will not allow anyone else inside the cave for safety reasons. In the cave, Leo tells

 Chuck about his upcoming anniversary and his hope that his predicament will somehow save his marriage. Chuck again

 reassures Leo and is nonplussed when Leo declares him his best friend. At the trading post, Chuck runs into Boot, who has

 deduced Chuck's scheme and condemns his "below-the-belt" journalism. Nagel, a New York editor, then calls and agrees to pay

 Chuck $1,000 a day to cover the story. While the sheriff makes campaign speeches, spectators and newsmen continue to pour

 into the area, which now boasts a full-fledged carnival. Restless, Lorraine asks Chuck to take her to New York with him, and he

 responds with a hard kiss. Five and a half days into the ordeal, Dr. Hilton informs Chuck that Leo has developed pneumonia

 and will only last twelve more hours in the cave. Leo begs Chuck to stop the drilling, which is only twenty-six feet away, and

 bring a priest. Although Chuck refuses, he asks Smollett to shore up the walls as originally proposed but learns that because of

 the drilling, the walls have become dangerously weak, making shoring impossible. The next morning, Leo, struggling for breath,

 asks Chuck to give Lorraine the anniversary present he bought for her. Desperate and angry, Chuck finds Lorraine as she is

 about to cut her platinum hair and forces her to put on Leo's present--a cheap fur stole. When Lorraine protests, Chuck starts to

 strangle her with the stole, and she stabs him with her scissors. Though bleeding, Chuck stumbles to the sheriff's car and 

 drives the priest to the cave. Leo dies as the priest prays, and once outside, Chuck grabs a microphone and announces his death.

 As the stunned crowd takes in the news, Chuck's rivals rush to file the story. Numb with pain and guilt, Chuck calls Nagel,

 declaring that he has murdered Leo, and drives Herbie to the Bulletin office. After shoving Herbie back to his desk, Chuck tells

 Boot, "You can have me for nothing," then collapses and dies.

Actress, The****   1953

http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/25752/The-Actress/full-synopsis.html 

VIDEO

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/414528/Actress-The-Movie-Clip-God-ll-Hear-You.html 

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/414531/Actress-The-Movie-Clip-Sing-Out-Your-Lessons.html 

A film flawless in it's simplicity. A naive young girl in World War 1 America, named Ruth Gordon Jones, played by Jean Simmons, 

is driven by her dreams and her sense of worthlessness. Clifton Jones, her father, played  by Spencer Tracy, is driven by anger,

due to his menial job and perceived poverty. The stabilizing force in their lives is Mrs. Annie Jones, played by Teresa Wright. She is driven

by faith and patience. Her husband and daughter on on the verge of chaos, but with the love and patience of Annie, things always end 

up being in perspective. The acting is perfect, Tracy keeps his anger lassoed by using his heart when he senses his responsibility regarding

This daughter's future. Simmons is sometimes selfish in her vision of acting infamy, balances her performance with innocence, and

learns of her father's dedication, and finds humility. Wright is her usual consistent self, performing with her uniquely deep sense of warmth and

humanity. This story is also a perfect blend of situational comedy, with moments of darkness.

Teenage student Ruth Gordon Jones (Jean Simmons) dreams of a theatrical career after becoming mesmerized by a performance of 

The Pink Lady in a Boston theater. Encouraged to pursue her dream by real-life leading lady Hazel Dawn in response to a fan letter 

she sent her, Ruth schemes to drop out of school and move to New York City, much to the dismay of her father, Clinton Jones 

(Spencer Tracy), a former seaman now working at a menial factory job, who urges her to continue her education and become a 

physical education instructor instead. When Ruth's audition with a leading producer proves disastrous and the girl's enthusiasm is 

crushed, her father offers to support her during her first few months in New York if she will at least get her high school diploma.

The film basically is a series of vignettes involving Ruth, her parents, her best friends, and the college boy romantically pursuing her. 

Although Gordon did in fact become an accomplishedAcademy Award-winning actress and a successful writer, the film ends before 

the audience knows if the girl will achieve her goals.

  

Adventures of Robin Hood, The***1/2   1938

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Adventures_of_Robin_Hood_%28film%29

VIDEO

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/314112/Adventures-Of-Robin-Hood-The-Movie-Clip-Are-You-With-Me-.html 

A great early colour film. The script is somewhat cliched and frothy, but it can be said also, to be witty, deliciously

funny and slightly amoral. More than anything else, the film is an exercise in inexhaustive energy. It is made  fun with

the usual stable of brilliant character actors. The "romance" between Much and Nurse Bess (Herbert Mundin and Una

O'Connor) is particularly amusing. Claude Rains and Basil Rathbone are successfully devious. 

The new Technicolor provides us with a clean, fantastical setting, not one of realism, but it is certainly fanciful.

Errol Flynn is the quintessential Robin Hood. Flynn choreographs his own stunts, not just with masculinity, but with

a musical abandon. Up close camera work makes use of Flynn's bright comical sneer, which illustrates his modest

arrogance and mockery of the corrupt political world of Saxony. The character is also complex enough to be interesting,

as Flynn's character displays heroism and courage but never displays reckless confidence. I have, although not initially,

grown fond of the Maid Marian portrayal, by Olivia de Havilland. It is slightly plastic but her eyes show a quiet strength

and you realize that though timid she is cautiously observing everything around her. She takes stock of the identity

of her friends and foes, and therefore makes decisions with careful calculation. It is noteworthy that she is the

character driven less by ego and more by morality and virtue. 

Rathburn, as Guy of Gisbourne, is the main protagonist because he displays a degree of courage and cunning, and is

intent on making Maid Marian his wife.

The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) is one of the greatest, most colorful costume dramas, swashbucklers, and

 romantically-tinged adventure films in film history. After the icy restrictions placed on the film industry following the

 establishment of the Production Code Administration (Breen Office) in the mid 1930s, Warner Bros. Studios decided to find

 relief from censorship by bringing about a renaissance of the historical-costume adventure film, with swordplay, sweeping

 action, and romantic charm. It expertly tells the story of the heroic Robin and his Sherwood Forest followers, who saved England

 from royal treachery by scheming nobles during the absence of the crusading and captured-ransomed King Richard the

 Lion-Hearted. And it tells the fairy-tale romance with nostalgic chivalry, colorful pageantry, simple righteousness triumphant

 over villainous and evil might, and spectacular action. The spectacle includes superb casting of memorable characters, a

 light-hearted, but spirited story, exciting dueling and action scenes requiring extensive stunt work, and the ideal love team

 of de Havilland and gallant Flynn with their witty and tender romantic scenes together. [It was their third of eight films

 together - the first two were Captain Blood (1935) and The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936) - and this was the first of their

 pairings in color.] Flynn did most of his own dueling and other action stunts except for the expert archery shooting,

 and was coached by fencing master Fred Cavens.

The film was nominated for four Academy Awards: Best Interior Direction (Carl J. Weyl), Best Original Score (Erich Wolfgang

Korngold), Best Film Editing (Ralph Dawson), and Best Picture, and lost only its Best Picture recognition to Frank Capra's You

Can't Take It With You (1938).

Advice and Consent**** 1963

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advise_%26_Consent_(film)

VIDEO

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/210269/Advise-and-Consent-Movie-Clip-I-m-Sorry-Mr-President-.html 

 

This film represented the political period of the earl sixties in a very  special way. The infrastructure of political

 decision-making as well as the issue of the privacy rights of politicians was at issue. This Kennedy era film was made

 at a time when the new president represented a supposedly  a new openness and tolerance towards style and political

 differentiation. Ironically, Kennedy's career became very much contingent upon secrecy. It also showcased the careers

 of many great actors who were in the twilight of their acting years: Gene Tierney, Franchot Tone, Walter Pidgeon,

 Lew Ayres, Charles Laughton, and Henry Fonda (a veteran, but still a long way to go). Dom Murray and George Grizzard

 represented the new wave.  

 The film is perfectly paced, and stays suspenseful throughout without ever letting up. 

 There were so many great performances, they cannot all be detailed, but it suffice to say that the particular talents if each actor

was utilized to the maximum. Franchot Tone was effective as a wearing leader, Lew Ayres is dynamic as the great

compromiser , Walter Pidgeon was authoritative, Fonda had a quiet charm, and Laughton was verging on being over the top

was skillfully believable as the nasty and unscrupulous, Senator Cooley Sebright, white suit and all. Betty White appears, as

 well as Peter Lawford as an uncoincidentally Kennedy-like Senator. 

As Senator Brig Anderson has to deal with the ghosts in his closet (past homosexual relationships) he feels morally obligated 

to reveal Senator Leffingwell's alleged Communist associations. In a way this parallels the Kennedy hypocricy of

the administrations fight against organized crime, while on the other hand obligated to it.

A great film that accentuates the characters and battles of conscience (or lack od conscience) that they face, unlike the

more action-based films of today.

The first of Allen Drury "all names changed to protect the guilty" political novels, Advise and Consent was brought to the screen by

 producer/director Otto Preminger. The film hinges upon the appointment of Robert Leffingwell (Henry Fonda) to Secretary of State. Leffingwell

 has been hand-picked by the President (Franchot Tone), meaning that there'll be a battle on the Senate floor between adherents of and

 opponents to the current administration. Among the participants are veteran Dixiecrat Charles Laughton, freshman Senator Don Murray and

 powerseeker George Grizzard. Burgess Meredith also shows up as a man who is brought into the Senate to "prove" that Leffingwell is a

 communist. To neutralize Murray, Grizzard threatens to dredge up a homosexual incident in Murray's past, which results in the latter's suicide.

 Advise and Consent is a slow and old-fashioned film, coming to life only when Laughton and Grizzard are on screen--and in the climax, in

 which the fate of Leffingwell's appointment is left in the hands of acting President Lew Ayres. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi 

Afflication****1/2   1997

http://themovieboy.com/reviews/a/97_affliction.htm

VIDEO

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3-ws_Kruzw

This film is intense and numbing. Nick Nolte who I generally find over-acts is perfectly suited for this role (Wade

Whitehouse), where his seemingly latent madness is the character himself. James Coburn plays the cruel Glen

Whitehouse with startling brutality. Brigid Tierney plays the victimized daughter of Wade Whitehouse, showing

her emotional injuries with severity, but also a courageous pugnacity. 

The emotional impact of the film is that it does not depict hope or confidence. The characters are suffering from

a background of violence. Wade Whitehouse does try to escape from his despair by seeing a crime where guilt is

misplaced. His chance to bring justice is motivating, but his invariable solution is tragic. 

Sissy Spacek plays Wade's girlfriend, and she weaves her magic by being the only one who seems to be able to reach

Wade. This could only be done with Spacek's unique lack of pretension.

The film is narrated by Wade's brother Rolfe (Willem Dafoe), who reveals early on that Wade (Nick Nolte) disappeared from town

after the events related in the story, and was never found. Rolfe' speriodic narration is in the present, so the movie is effectively

a flashback from the perspective of Rolfe's narration. As the film begins, it is a snowy Halloween night. Wade is driving his

daughter, Jill, to a Halloween party he has helped organize, but it is clear she would rather be trick-or-treating. At the party

herdisaffection and moodiness continues. She tells Wade she wants to go home. Jill eventually calls her mother to come and pick

her up. When his ex-wife (Mary Beth Hurt) finally arrives, Wade shoves her lover against their car and watches them drive away

with Jill. Wade vows to get a divorce lawyer to help gain custody of his daughter.

The next morning, Wade rushes to the scene of a crime. A hunting guide named Jack (Jim True) comes back from the woods

claiming that the man with whom he was hunting accidentally shot and killed himself. The police believe Jack, but Wade, after

noticing bloodstains on Jack's shoulder, slowly grows suspicious, believing that the man's death was no accident.

One day, Wade and his girlfriend Margie Fogg (Sissy Spacek) arrive at the house of Wade's abusive father, Glen Whitehouse

(James Coburn), whose brutal treatment of Wade and Rolfe as children is seen through home video-style flashbacks throughout

the film. Wade goes upstairs and finds his mother lying dead in her bed from hypothermia. Glen Whitehouse reacts to her death

with little surprise, and at the funeral wake, while everyone else displays grief, he gets drunk and loudly exclaims, "Not one of

you is worth one hair on that woman's head!" At the wake Wade behaves aggressively toward his father, at one point holding him

up against a wall in front of everyone.

Rolfe, who has come home for the funeral, has a long talk with Wade about the hunting accident, and suggests that Wade's

murder theory is correct. Wade becomes so convinced by Rolfe's advice that he becomes obsessed with the idea of becoming the

town hero. At one point in the film he begins to follow Jack in a car chase, convinced that Jack is running away from something

and is involved in a conspiracy ring with the other police officers. A curiously nervous Jack finally pulls over, threatens Wade with

a rifle, shoots out his tires, and drives off. Wade is so dumbfounded that he doesn't tell anyone.

Later in the film, Wade is confronted with a multitude of crises. He is fired from both of his jobs at the police station for his

constant harassment of Jack. He has a painful toothache, and is forced to pull out the tooth with a pair of pliers (there is a brief

shot of him crying from the pain). He collects Jill from his ex-wife's house, takes her to the local restaurant, and attacks the

bartender in front of his daughter after he insults Wade. Then Wade takes Jill home to find Margie leaving him. Wade grabs

Margie and begs her to stay with him, but Jill rushes up and tries to push Wade away. In response, Wade pushed Jill, causing her

nose to bleed. She and Margie drive off.

Wade is then approached by his father Glen, who congratulates him for finally showing his angry side, but Glen is more concerned

that the farmhouse is almost out of alcohol. Wade, however, refuses to let his father drive to town. An enraged Glen follows

Wade into the barn, sneaks up behind him, and hits him on the head with a bottle of Brown's whiskey. Wade quickly recovers,

jumps up from the ground and knocks Glen unconscious with a rifle, accidentally killing him. He then pours gasoline on Glen,

sets him alight with a cigarette lighter and as a consequence, sets the entire barn on fire. We see him watching the burning

barn from a window of his house. Rolfe's narration reveals that Wade eventually murdered Jack the hunter out of his own false

suspicions), and left town (possibly to Canada, where they found Jack's truck 3 months later), never to return.

Ah! Wilderness****1/2

http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/66921/Ah-Wilderness/

VIDEO

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/71529/Ah-Wilderness-Original-Trailer-.html 

A very early coming of age film. This story of Richard Miller (Eric Linden) develops a character who sees himself

ahead of his time and is often thwarted in his attempts to be "a man of the future". His girlfriends father forces

his daughter to denounce Richard, and Richard's father (Lionel Barrymore) fears his sons ideals are to socialist 

(in a time of reactionary pre-WW1 America). Interestingly his younger brother Tommy, who is played by Mickey

Rooney, typifies the character that does become the coming of age portrayal of future Hollywood film,

and coincidentally, or not!, Mickey Rooney plays that character in Andy Hardy films. Richard has experiences

which expand his view of society, as he deals with the ambiguity regarding his drunken uncle (Wallace Beery).

On the one hand he is told of the inappropriateness of his uncles behavior, but on the other he witnesses that the 

family cannot help but laugh at his shenanigans. When dealing with constant authority, Richard in frustration goes,

to a bar, encounters a women of the evening, and is easily coerced into inebriation and gets taken for a sum of

money.

Nat Miller (a brilliant, sensitive and sometimes solemn performance) tries to give Richard a candid talk on sexuality.

He refers comically to whited sepulchres and shadowboxes futilely around the subject, as his embarrassment

escalates. Aline MacMahon, one of the most talented comic actresses on screen, plays Aunt Lily, who is understanding,

warm, but also capable of wit and sarcasm.

This film is highly entertaining, well balanced between drama (that is not overly sentimentalized), situational comedy,

and character portrayals that are not excessively stereotyped. Great cinematography capturing a fascinating

period...an interesting comparison to Meet Me in St. Louis (1944). The city of St. Louis could actually be paralleled to

that of Richard Miller, in that it was growing, bursting at the seems, and looking for a new identity.  

   

                                                                                                                   The filming of Ah! Wilderness 

Playwright Eugene O'Neill's only comedy, Ah, Wilderness! was filmed by MGM in 1935. Impressionable turn-of-the-century lad Eric

Linden, whose knowledge of the ways of the world has come from French novels, is anxious to taste life to the fullest. Linden's

father Lionel Barrymore sternly advises the boy to be good and be careful, while Barrymore's shiftless, bibulous brother-in-law

Wallace Beery (replacing MGM's first choice, W.C. Fields) encourages Linden to get out, get drunk and get...you know what.

After a frightening encounter with lady of the evening Helen Flint (a surprisingly frank characterization for a Production Code

film), Linden runs home, nursing a monster hangover the next day. The boy eventually accepts the sedate affections of his

childhood sweetheart Jean Parker, while a chastened Beery promises to mend his ways--and Barrymore decides to be more of a

father and less of an autocrat to his son. Ah, Wilderness would be musicalized (and bowdlerized) by MGM as the 1947 film

Summer Holiday. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi 

Review
There's an aching melancholy beneath the surface of Ah, Wilderness!, the wistful and charming, if not completely successful

adaptation of the Eugene O'Neill comedy. Director Clarence Brown has unfortunately coddled the material a bit much, with the

result that some of the acerbic edges have been softened in favor of a nostalgic glow, and -- despite a pretty terrific sequence

involving Richard's run-in with a looser member of the fair sex -- has applied a patina of good taste that dampens some of the

fun. The material itself has also dated somewhat, most damagingly in terms of Uncle Sid's "amusing" alcoholism; many will also

find the Miller family a tad too enthusiastically wholesome. These caveats aside, there's still a good deal to enjoy here,

especially in the performances of a nicely understated Lionel Barrymore, a sensitive Spring Byington, and a moving Aline

MacMahon. Eric Linden is not quite up to carrying as much of the film as he is called upon to do, but overall he's fine and acquits

himself respectfully. As the younger brother, Mickey Rooney goes a bit overboard, but he's more than bearable. As befits an

MGM film of the era, production values are top-notch. If Wilderness could stand a little more wildness, it's still an entertaining

and touching little film. ~ Craig Butler, Rovi

Airplane!***   1980

http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title.jsp?stid=66945

VIDEO

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/299085/Airplane-Movie-Clip-Picked-The-Wrong-Week-.html 

A true comic farce. A script full of gags, some hilarious, some funny, some corny, and some simply

miss the target. This reaches above some of the others for a few reasons. First, it does have a plot

which gives the film a rhythm (it's a parody on the drama Zero Hour). Secondly the array of comic

talent gives a degree of interesting characterizations. 

Lloyd Bridges, as the tower supervisor, plays the role with an intensity, as if mocking the film itself.

He shows the effects of the pressure upon him by lighting his cigarettes in various fervent ways.

One unforgettable scene is when a gentlemen takes a swig of whiskey, and then proceeds to offer a

matronly old lady across the aisle, some of the same. She looks at him with disgust, refusing his offer.

Then we witness her in the act of snorting cocaine!

Here are a few of the best gags from the film.

1.  Elaine Dickinson: "A hospital? What is it?" - Dr. Rumack: "It's a big building with patients, but that's not important 
2.  right now." This is an example of the quick wit used to create the best "Airplane!" (1980) movie quotes. In what
3.  seems to be a serious discussion between a Dr. Rumack (Leslie Neilson) and stewardess Elaine Dickinson (Julie Hagerty)
4.  on an airplane in trouble, there is still time to quickly describe a hospital.
5.  Johnny: "Oh, it's a big pretty white plane with red stripes, curtains in the windows and wheels and it looks like a big
6.  Tylenol."
7.  It seems like the only reason Johnny (Stephen Stucker) is in this movie is to create entries into the list of the best
8.  "Airplane!" movie quotes.
9.  As a reporter asks Johnny to describe what kind of plane the passengers are on, this is the answer Johnny gives.
11.  Jive Lady: "Excuse me stewardess, I speak jive." Mrs. Cleaver makes an appearance in "Airplane!" billed only as the
12.  Jive Lady (Barbara Billingsley). This is just one example of the brilliant gags used in the movie as America's favorite
13.  1950's mom speaks in an urban language to some distressed passengers.
14.  Steve McCroskey: "Looks like I picked the wrong week to quit drinking." Almost everything in "Airplane!" is a parody
15.  of something, and that is what helps to create the memorable "Airplane!" (1980) movie quotes. Flight controller Steve
16.  McCroskey (Lloyd Bridges) is a parody of several airport disaster movie roles that adds more and more vices to the
17.  list of things he shouldn't have quit as the movie rolls along, including sniffing glue and smoking.
18.  Elaine Dickinson: "There's no reason to become alarmed, and we hope you'll enjoy the rest of your flight. By the
19.  way, is there anyone on board who knows how to fly a plane?" As Elaine Dickinson attempts to calm the passengers
20.  she also takes some time to throw out a quick question about whether or not there were any pilots on board.
21.  Ted Striker: "Surely, you can't be serious." - Dr. Rumack: "I am serious, and don't call me Shirley." Ted Striker (Robert
22.  Hayes) plays straight man to a lot of quick jokes based on word pronunciation. This is one of the most classic lines
23.  from the movie and definitely an entry into the list of the best "Airplane!" movie quotes.
24.  Dr. Rumack: "Captain, how soon can you land?" - Captain Oveur: "I can't tell." - Dr. Rumack: "You can tell me, I'm 
25.  a doctor."
26.  Captain Oveur (Peter Graves) sticks around long enough to deliver two of the best "Airplane!" movie quotes. This
27.  one is part of the word play that is expertly written into the script.
28.  Captain Oveur: "You ever seen a grown man naked?" Captain Oveur invites a passenger named Joey (Rossie Harris)
29.  into the cockpit, and then proceeds to ask some pretty uncomfortable questions. This is just one on the list of four
30.  or five questions that would be inappropriate in any situation!
31.  Ted Striker: "Excuse me doc, I've got a plane to land." One of the ultimate goals of "Airplane!" was to parody as many
32.  cliche movie situations as possible. This entry into the list of the best "Airplane!"  movie quotes helped to cap off a
33.  speech by Dr. Rumack that made fun of just about every pep talk ever put on film.
34.  Captain Oveur: "Alright, give me a Hamm on five, hold the Mayo." The jokes in "Airplane!" can be fast, and set-ups are
35.  sometimes done so well that you do not see the joke coming until the punchline. This quote is an example of one of
36.  the best jokes done in the movie.

Ex-fighter pilot Ted Striker (Robert Hays) became traumatized after an incident during the "war", leading to his fear of flying and

his "drinking problem" (implying alcoholism, but specifically the "problem" refers to the fact that he misses his mouth every time).

Recovering his courage, Striker attempts to regain the love of his life from the war, Elaine Dickinson (Julie Hagerty),

now a stewardess. In order to win her love, Striker overcomes his fear and buys a ticket on a flight she is serving on, from

Los Angeles to Chicago. However, during the flight, Elaine rebuffs his attempts.

After dinner is served, many of the passengers fall ill, and fellow passenger Dr. Rumack (Leslie Nielsen) quickly realizes that one

of the meal options, which was fish, gave the passengers  food poisoning. The stewards discover that the pilot crew, including

pilot Clarence Oveur (Peter Graves) and co-pilot Roger Murdock (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar), have all come down with food

poisoning, leaving no one aboard to fly the plane. Elaine informs the passengers that everything is fine. She then asks everyone

on the plane if anyone knows how to fly a plane. Elaine then contacts the Chicago control tower for help, and is instructed by

tower supervisor Steve McCroskey (Lloyd Bridges) to activate the plane's autopilot, a large blow-up doll named "Otto", which

will get them to Chicago but will not be able to land the plane. Elaine realizes that Striker, being the only pilot on board who has

not succumbed to food poisoning, is their only chance, and he is convinced to fly the plane, though he still feels his trauma will

prevent him from safely landing it.

McCroskey knows that he must get someone else to help take the plane down and calls Rex Kramer (Robert Stack). Striker and

Kramer served together in the war and must overcome their negative history. As the plane nears Chicago, Striker becomes

increasingly stressed and can only land the plane after a pep talk from Dr. Rumack. With Kramer's endless stream of advice,

Striker is able to overcome his fears and safely land the plane with only minor injuries to some passengers, and damage to the

landing gear. Striker's courage rekindles Elaine's love for him, and the two share a kiss while Otto takes off in the evacuated

plane after inflating a female companion.

Scene from Airplane, below is the parallel scene from Zero Hour

Another set of parallels as the replacement pilot and girlfriend are portrayed;

Alice Adams****1/2 1935

http://www.filmsite.org/alic.html

VIDEO

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/473318/Alice-Adams-Movie-Clip-Most-People-Bore-Me.html 

Another Hollywood homespun family drama. A wonderful timepiece that captures the imagination and takes a nostalgic journey

without sentimentalism. Katharine Hepburn plays the shy Alice Adams, who has dreams of marrying a class above herself.

Her performance is wonderful, as it, like many performances of the day, combines the intended qualities of the character,

along with the qualities of the actress herself. Alice is a chatty, imaginative, slightly precocious character, not unlike Jo from

Little Women (a role Hepburn played two years earlier). This made Hepburn's films highly entertaining, and also allowed her

to represent women in film. The theme of the heroic, opinionated woman, working against all odds in a "man's world" to attain

a degree of independence and respect was a very popular and common one. Bette Davis, Mirian Hopkins, and Myrna Loy

were but  a few of the actresses that attended to this theme. 

Fred McMurray (as Arthur Russell)  was a somewhat unlikely beau for Alice; rich, charming, handsome. It is not really 

demonstrated why he was so quickly infatuated with her but he shows great resolve in the courtship. Alice faces many

obstacles including her careless brother and awkward father, who lacks ambition, and is made well aware of it by his

wife. The film clearly depicts men as highly flawed, either weak, timid, selfish, greedy, noncommittal, arrogant and

only compromising if profit ensues. Alice is a heroine because she manages to keep her man, as well as managing to get

her father, his boss, and her brother, all in accordance despite their initial conflicts. 

Alice Adams (Katharine Hepburn) is the youngest daughter of the Adams family. Her father (Fred Stone) is an invalid who used to

work in Mr. Lamb's factory as a clerk. Her mother (Ann Shoemaker) is embittered by her husband's lack of ambition and upset by

 the snubs her daughter endures because of their poverty. Alice's older brother, Walter (Frank Albertson), is a gambler who cannot 

hold a job and who associates with African Americans (which, given the time period in which the film is set, is considered a major 

social embarrassment). As the film begins, Alice attends a dance given by the wealthy Henrietta Lamb (Janet McLeod). She has no

 date, and is escorted to the occasion by Walter. Alice is a social climber like her mother, and engages in socially inappropriate

 behavior and conversation in an attempt to impress others. At the dance, Alice meets wealthy Arthur Russell (Fred MacMurray),

 who is charmed by her despite her poverty.

Alice's father is employed as a clerk in a factory owned by Mr. Lamb (Charles Grapewin), who has kept Adams on salary for years

 despite his lengthy illness. Alice's mother nags her husband into quitting his job and pouring his life savings into a glue factory. Mr.

 Lamb ostracizes Mr. Adams from society, believing that Adams stole the glue formula from him. Alice is the subject of cruel town

 gossip, which Russell ignores.

Alice invites Russell to the Adams home for a fancy meal. She and her mother put on airs, the entire family dresses inappropriately

 in formal wear despite the hot summer night, and the Adams pretend that they eat caviar and fancy, rich-tasting food all the time.

 The dinner is ruined by the slovenly behavior and poor cooking skills of the maid the Adams have hired for the occasion, Malena

 (Hattie McDaniel). Mr. Adams unwittingly embarrasses Alice by exposing the many lies she has told Russell. When Walter shows

 up with bad financial news, Alice gently expels Russell from the house now that everything is "ruined".

Walter reveals that "a friend" has gambling debts, and that he stole $150 from Mr. Lamb to cover them. Mr. Adams decides to take

 out a loan against his new factory to save Walter from jail. Just then, Mr. Lamb appears at the Adams house. He accuses Adams

 of stealing the glue formula from him, and declares his intention to ruin Adams by building a glue factory directly across the street

 from the Adams plant. The men argue violently, but their friendship is saved when Alice confesses that her parents took the glue

formula only so she could have a better life and some social status. Lamb and Adams reconcile, and Lamb indicates he will no

 prosecute Walter. Alice wanders out onto the porch where Russell has been waiting for her. He confesses his love for her despite

 her poverty and family problems.

     

All About Eve***1/2   1950

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0042192/synopsis

http://www.filmsite.org/alla.html

VIDEO

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/221641/All-About-Eve-Movie-Clip-Fasten-Your-Seat-Belts.html 

For some reason, all a part of self-evaluation I guess, I had issues with this film the first few times that

I watched. But it did pass one very important test. Even if i didn't particularly want to watch it when it

appeared on my TV screen, I watched it through each time. Some sort of hypnotizing affect. 

This film had what i call the power of inclusion. What this means is that you become a character in the

film itself, which of course has a very powerful effect. The main interaction and conflict is between Margo

(Bette Davis) and Eve (Ann Baxter). It evolves from a simple mentoring relationship to one of conflict,

jealousy, manipulation and deceit. The great supporting cast are all witnessing this metamorphasis before 

their eyes and we join them in the experience. This creates a situation where we observe the motivations 

of these characters. We are not totally clear as to these motivations, which makes us delve into these

characters emotionally as we feel obliged to take sides. Addison de Witt, the perfect name for George

Sanders, is a character who finds the truth, which results in blackmail, but we are still not comfortable

with his purpose. Celeste Holm plays Karen, a friend of the protagonist, who seems to have nothing but 

the best of intentions, but a love triangle complicates matters. The other two supporting performers,

Margo's mate Bill (Gary Merrill) and the playwright, Lloyd (Hugh Marlowe) have their heads spinning with 

the web of mind games they are witnessing. Celeste Holm steals the show, as she often does (as she did in

High Society and The Tender Trap) and Thelma Ritter and Marilyn Monroe add perfect touches. Marilyn 

appearing at a social gathering stirs up jealousies and suspicions beyond what have already been implanted. 

The 1950 classic takes place on Broadway, where Margo Channing (Davis) is its biggest star. Eve Harrington (Anne Baxter) is her

 biggest fan. The young secretary and war widow is at every performance of Channing's play, often standing outside waiting for

 seats. Eve, always wearing the same trench coat and floppy hat, catches the attention of Margo's friend, Karen (Celeste Holm),

 who introduces Eve to her idol.

 Margo, a diva extraordinaire, is won over by Eve's appreciation and her emotional life story, which has 'everything but the hounds

 snapping at her rear end.' For Eve, being part of the creative process has always been with her. As a girl, she would play pretend,

 and 'the unreal seemed more real to me.' Margo offers Eve a place to stay and a job as her assistant, both of which a grateful

 Eve accepts.

 What starts as an ideal hire for Margo soon becomes tempestuous. Margo, the star on- and offstage, is convinced that her

 longtime boyfriend and director (Gary Merrill) has an interest in the much-younger Eve. Margo's jealousy begins a prolonged and

 subtle struggle: Margo, 40, is in the twilight of her career; Eve is 24, eager to please, and has more savvy than her background

 suggests. All that and she's caught the acting bug. This conflict gives writer/director Joseph L. Mankiewicz the opportunity to

 plumb the depths of Margo's emotions, as she confronts her mortality as an actress and as a woman. Davis gives a brilliant

 performance, alternately grand and introspective and always riveting.

 Mankiewicz doesn't just offer Davis a chance to let loose, which is why All About Eve is such a tasty, nasty film. Every character

 has an issue with Margo, who's been riding high for so long. Aside from Margo's mid-life crisis, we see how the appearance of the

 next bright starlet corrupts everyone -- from good friends like Karen to theater critic Addison DeWitt (Oscar winner George

 Sanders, who is phenomenal; he's like George Bernard Shaw crossed with Dr. Evil). As Eve becomes more successful -- she proves

 to be quite the actress -- we start seeing a different side of her, one that is remote from her aw-shucks introduction.

 Mankiewicz's script transitions to each segment so effortlessly, you never see the seams. From that, the motives, the barbed

 one-liners, and the conniving antics fall right into place. Screenwriting students, you have your Bible. Movie lovers, you have a

 film that is impervious to the rigors of time, not to mention an inspiration for every prime-time soap opera. And you'll finally

 get that quote right. It's all she knows.

 Many people know All About Eve from its famous (and often misquoted) line: 'Fasten your seat belts, it's going to be a bumpy

 night.' Guess what? There are a whole bunch of other lines in this superb movie which sound like the greatest hits of the

 Algonquin Round Table. You don't see movies that are so smart and so fun very often, but in this era of Larry the Cable Guy,

 what would be the point?

All Quiet on the Western Front****1/2   1930

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_Quiet_on_the_Western_Front_%281930_film%29

http://www.filmsite.org/allq.html

http://thecelebritycafe.com/movies/full_review/126.html

VIDEO

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/378585/All-Quiet-On-The-Western-Front-Movie-Clip-Life-Of-The-Fatherland.html

The comment of beauty in simplicity definitely surfaces here. The theme couldn't be more simple. 

War is hell. This message is illustrated by the description of a German military unit that faces

impossible odds and is victimized by cruel leadership that has no intention of risking anything

personally. The film has two elements...firstly we see the soldiers gradually de-personalized

and effected by constant shelling, and secondly we see the decisions being made militarily that

are totally void of consideration for the soldiers. The society of the military becomes simplified 

and altered from real life. We see the school teacher using almost hypnotizing tactics to motivate

the young students, even though they have no idea of what war is, or why they are fighting. 

Himmelstoss, a man of no particular standing in society, becomes their commander, and uses this

sudden elevation in status to act with cruelty and arrogance. 

One scene which really drives home home the message powerfully is when the protagonists stabs a

French soldier, but ends up spending the night with him, and realizes that he is a man with loved ones

who is not in any way an enemy, but has only been arbitrarily labeled as such. The guilt is unbearable.

Another scene involves Paul Baumer arriving home on leave, fnding out that he is only viewed as a 

soldier, and a hero, but not human being, glamorized by a manufactured image of a soldier.

In terms of supporting characters, besides Himmelstoss, Katczinsky (Louis Wolheim) represents the

"new" hero. He finds ways to find food and create amusement with ingenuity and courage. War is a 

new game, so new rules and new standards ensue. 

All Fall Down****1/2     1962

http://www.tcm.com/this-month/article.html?isPreview=&id=160918%7C60089&name=All-Fall-Down

VIDEO

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/76830/All-Fall-Down-Movie-Clip-Homecoming.html

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/74807/All-Fall-Down-Movie-Clip-Berry-Berry-gets-a-job-offer.html

 Berry-Berry Willart (Beatty) is a young, handsome hedonistic drifter who hates life and who has no trouble living off the women of all ages he

 seduces. When the women become too attached to him, his charm turns sadistic and frequently lands him in jail for battery. Berry-Berry is

 always on the road far from home, is rarely seen by his drunken father Ralph (Karl Malden), his controlling, manipulative mother, Annabel

 (Angela Lansbury), and his sixteen-year-old brother Clinton (Brandon deWilde). The story follows Clinton, who idolizes Berry-Berry but soon

 finds out his brother's darker side during the many times he has to bail Berry-Berry out of jail. Clinton is in love with a family friend, Echo O'Brien

 (Saint), and is forced to realize the type of person his brother is when Berry-Berry tragically sets his sights on Echo.

One common aspect of any good and successful story, is that you have to have empathy with the main character regardless

of it's qualities. Berry, Berry (Warren Beatty) is a selfish and contemptable womanizer. We do not have any idea why he is 

this way, although we see certain issues with his parents. His father Karl Malden is a drunkard and seems capable only of 

silly, simple conversation. His mother is domineering, and sees Berry Berry as someone who never does wrong. This

is obviously a slight toward her husband. We also observe his brothers complete admiration (Brandon de Wilde), but

this does not seem to generate any sense of responsible behavior in Berry Berry. 

This is certainly a film of performance as Angela Lansbury and Karl Malden are both rivetting...but what really

decorates the film with colour are the portrayals of Echo O'Brien (Eva Marie Saint) and the schoolteacher (Barbara Baxley),

Echo is a family friend who is beautiful and intelligent. Berry berry's young brother has an intense crush on her, but she 

acknowledges him with the love of a sister. When Berry Berry returns home, a romance ensues with a tragic result.

The schoolteacher is beaten in a brutal emotional scene, in which Baxley shows tremendous emotional energy and

desperation. 

We see a family swallowed up by denial, and distorted values. A tragic ending asks the question, "Will they learn from 

a hallowing lesson?"

  

All the President's Men****   1976

http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title.jsp?stid=67091

VIDEO

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/298571/All-The-President-s-Men-Movie-Clip-Follow-The-Money.html 

Not only a great film, but an important one. The filmakers had a great responsibility...first to tell the

truth and secondly to live up to the expectations of telling a story about one of American history's biggest 

political events. 

The film had the potential to enlighten, as well as dramatize, with effectiveness, not needing

embellishment to enhance. 

The main ingredients that made the film fulfilling was firstly, the role of the Washington Post

in it's ability to balance it's obligation along with it's legal restrictions, and secondly the personal

agony and fear of each member of the team that set out to re-elect Richard Nixon, right down

to office staff who were only indirectly involved (but could be manipulated into suspicion). 

Publisher Ben Bradlee (Jason Robards) had to constantly monitor the Bernstein-Woodward 

investigation. he knew the incredible importance of the report, had to put trust in his reporters,

but also knew of the implications of slander and unproven statements. He expresses his position

as follows:

 Ben Bradlee: You know the results of the latest Gallup Poll? Half the country never even heard of the word Watergate. Nobody gives a shit.

 You guys are probably pretty tired, right? Well, you should be. Go on home, get a nice hot bath. Rest up... 15 minutes. Then get your asses back

 in gear. We're under a lot of pressure, you know, and you put us there. Nothing's riding on this except the, uh, first amendment to the Constitution,

 freedom of the press, and maybe the future of the country. Not that any of that matters, but if you guys fuck up again, I'm going to get mad.

 Goodnight. 

Throughout the film, we see the scrutiny many so called innocent bystanders are under, and become aware of the fact that anyone with any

association whatever with any event or person, directly or indirectly involved, could be in serious jeopardy, for the simple fact that the "big guys"

have the money and power to protect themselves. 

Here is an example of what an office girl has to go through. Sally Aiken is played brilliantly by Penny Fuller.

 Sally Aiken: Ken Clawson told me he wrote the Canuck letter. 
 Carl Bernstein: The letter that said Muskie was slurring the Canadians. 
 Bob Woodward: Clawson. 
 Carl Bernstein: The deputy director of White House communications wrote the Canuck letter. When'd he tell you this? 
 Sally Aiken: When we were having drinks. 
 Carl Bernstein: Where were you? 
 Sally Aiken: My apartment. 
 Carl Bernstein: When did you say he told you? 
 Sally Aiken: Two weeks ago. 
 Carl Bernstein: What else did he say? He didn't say anything? Come on, you're hedging. 
 Bob Woodward: Do you think he said it to impress you, to try to get you to go to bed with him? 
 Carl Bernstein: Jesus! 
 Bob Woodward: No, I want to hear her say it. Do you think he said that to impress you, to try to get you to go to bed with him? 
 Carl Bernstein: Why did it take you two weeks to tell us this, Sally? 
 Sally Aiken: I guess I don't have the taste for the jugular you guys have. 

The follow up is as follows, 

 Ken Clawson: Please, listen, now, if you're going to refer to that alleged conversation with Sally Aiken, you can't print that it took

 place in her

 apartment. I have a wife and a family and a dog and a cat. 
 Ben Bradlee: A wife and a family and a dog and a cat. Right, Ken, right, yeah. Uh, Ken, I don't want to print that you were in

 Sally's apartment... 

 Ken Clawson: Thank God. 
 Ben Bradlee: I just want to know what you said, in Sally's apartment. 

We see the apprehension when the reporter's come to the house of Hugh Sloan Jr. (Sloan played by Stephen Collins, 

his wife played by Meredith Baxter). Hugh Sloan's wife is trying to protect him, but Hugh himself knows he is

in trouble and decides that honesty and transparency is now the best policy. 

 Debbie Sloan: This is an honest house. 

 Bob Woodward: That's why we'd like to see your husband. 
 Carl Bernstein: Facing certain criminal charges that might be brought against some people that are innocent, we just feel that it would be... 
 Bob Woodward: It's really for his benefit. 
 Debbie Sloan: No, it's not. 
 Bob Woodward: No, it's not. 
 Hugh Sloan Jr.: Debbie, tell them to come in. 

Other characters who best illustrated this incredible stress and apprehension were the bookkeeper (Jane Alexander),

Sharon Lyons (Penny Peyser), and Don Segretti (Robert Walden).   

Dustin Hoffman and Robert Redford were almost unbelievably perfect in their roles, Hoffman, the more impulsive,

informal Bernstein, Redford, the more calculating and reserved Woodward.

Phenomenal film...an historic event within itself!

On June 1972, a security guard (Frank Wills, playing himself) at the Watergate complex finds a door kept unlocked with tape. The

police arrest burglars in the Democratic National Committee headquarters within the complex. The Washington Post assigns new

reporter Bob Woodward (Robert Redford) to the unimportant story.

Woodward learns that the five men—four Cuban Americans from Miami and James W. McCord, Jr.—had bugging equipment and

have their own "country club" attorney. McCord identifies himself in court as having recently left the Central Intelligence Agency,

and the others also have CIA ties. The reporter connects the burglars to E. Howard Hunt, formerly of the CIA, and President

Richard Nixon's Special Counsel Charles Colson.

Carl Bernstein (Dustin Hoffman), also assigned to the story, and Woodward are reluctant partners but work well together.

Executive editor Ben Bradlee (Jason Robards) believes their work is incomplete, however, and not worthy of the Post's front page.

He encourages them to continue to gather information.

Woodward contacts "Deep Throat" (Hal Holbrook), a senior government official and anonymous source he has used before.

Communicating through copies of the Times and a balcony flower pot, they meet in a parking garage. Deep Throat speaks in

riddles and metaphors, but advises Woodward to "follow the money".

Woodward and Bernstein connect the burglars to thousands of dollars in diverted campaign contributions to Nixon's Committee to

Re-elect the President (CREEP). Their story appears on the front page, but not above the fold. Bradlee and others at the Post

dislike the two young reporters' reliance on unnamed sources like Deep Throat, and wonder why the Nixon administration would

break the law when the president is likely to easily defeat Democratic nominee George McGovern.

Through former CREEP treasurer Hugh W. Sloan, Jr. (Stephen Collins), Woodward and Bernstein connect a slush fund of hundreds

of thousands of dollars to White House Chief of  Staff H. R. Haldeman—"the second most important man in this country"—and

former Nixon Attorney General John N. Mitchell, now head of CREEP. They learn that CREEP used the fund to begin a "ratfucking"

campaign to sabotage Democratic presidential candidates a year before the Watergate burglary, when Nixon was behind Edmund Muskie

in the polls; Deep Throat implies that Muskie's loss in the primaries to McGovern, in part due to the Canuck letter, was what the

White House wanted.

Bradlee's demand for thoroughness forces the reporters to obtain other sources to confirm the Haldeman connection; when the

White House issues a non-denial denial of the Post's above-the-fold story, the editor thus continues to support them. Deep

Throat claims that the coverup was not to hide the burglaries but "covert operations" involving "the entire U.S. intelligence

community", and warns that Woodward, Bernstein, and others' lives are in danger. Bradlee urges the reporters to continue

despite the risk and Nixon's reelection. The film ends with a montage of Watergate-related teletype headlines from the following

years, ending with Nixon's resignation and the inauguration of Gerald Ford in August 1974.

Almost Famous****    2000

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Almost_Famous

VIDEO

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/354043/Almost-Famous-Movie-Clip-Band-Aids.html 

 

Writer and director Cameron Crowe's experiences as a teenage rock journalist -- he was a regular contributor to Rolling Stone while still in high school

 -- inspired this coming-of-age story about a 15-year-old boy hitting the road with an up-and-coming rock band in the early 1970s. Elaine Miller (Frances

 McDormand) is a bright, loving, but strict single parent whose distrust of rock music and fears about drug use have helped to drive a wedge

 between herself and her two children, Anita (Zooey Deschanel) and William (Patrick Fugit). Anita rebels by dropping out of school and becoming a stewardess,

 but William makes something of his love of rock & roll by writing album reviews for a local underground newspaper. William's work attracts the attention of

 Lester Bangs (Philip Seymour Hoffman), editor of renegade rock magazine Creem, who takes William under his wing and gives him his first professional

 writing assignment -- covering a Black Sabbath concert. While William is unable to score an interview with the headliners, the opening act, Stillwater, are more

 than happy to chat with a reporter, even if he's still too young to drive, and William's piece on the group in Creem gains him a new admirer in Ben Fong-Torres

 (Terry Chen), an editor at Rolling Stone. Torres offers William an assignment for a 3,000-word cover story on Stillwater, and over the objections of his mother 

 (whose parting words are "Don't use drugs!"), and after some stern advice from Bangs (who says under no circumstances should he become friends with a

 band he's covering), Williams joins Stillwater on tour, where he becomes friendly with guitarist Russell Hammond (Billy Crudup) and singer Jeff Bebe (Jason

 Lee). William also becomes enamored of Penny Lane (Kate Hudson), a groupie traveling with the band who is no older than William, but is deeply involved with

 Russell. Lester Bangs and Ben Fong-Torres, incidentally, were real-life rock writers Crowe worked with closely during his days as a journalist. Almost

 Famous' original score was composed by Nancy Wilson of Heart (who is also Crowe's wife). ~ Mark Deming, Rovi 

Amazing Dr. Clitterhouse, The***1/2     1938

http://www.tcm.com/this-month/article/99406%7C0/The-Amazing-Doctor-Clitterhouse.html 

VIDEO

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/10766/Amazing-Dr-Clitterhouse-The-Original-Trailer-.html 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-JY_TSBEZ1Q 

Dr. Clitterhouse is a brilliant, well-respected Park Avenue physician who becomes obsessed with understanding the psychology of 

the criminal mind. He burgles the homes of four high society acquaintances, stealing high-end jewelry in order to gauge his own 

physiological reactions to the experience, which he finds exhilarating. On his fourth robbery he crosses paths with professional 

thieves and seeks out their leaders, Jo Keller, a woman fence, and Rocks Madison, a vicious sociopath. They form an unholy 

alliance: Clitterhouse masterminds the high-end robberies, which greatly increases the gang's take, while the Runtonesque thieves 

allow themselves to have their blood and vital signs monitored. Keller's growing attraction to Clitterhouse and the loyalty the gang 

shows him feeds Rock's growing resentment at being displaced, and his growing paranoia pushes him to try to commit the greatest 

crime of all, homicide. Written by duke1029@aol.com 

   

American Beauty****1/2   1999

http://www.decentfilms.com/reviews/americanbeauty.html

VIDEO

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/360921/American-Beauty-Original-Trailer-.html 

 

 Poor, poor Lester. At age 42, he is stuck in a dead-end job, a meaningless marriage, and a love-less family. Every single day is

 just one more step towards the end of his life. He has nothing to look forward to besides his morning shower/jerk-off session.

 But his life takes a turnaround the moment he meets his daughter’s friend Angela (American Pie’s Mena Suvari). Seduced by her

 good looks, he decides to start living again. He starts doing what he wants to do, acting how he wants to act, and saying what

 he wants to say.

 That is only one of the intertwining plots in this enthralling dark-comedy. Other’s include Lester’s wife, Carolyn (Annette Bening),

 a career obsessed ice-queen; their daughter Jane who becomes the target of the creepy next-door neighbor who films her every

 move; the relationship between the creepy next door neighbor (Wes Bently) and his military father (Chris Cooper). This is one of

 those movies that is nearly impossible to describe, because one doesn’t want to spoil anything for the viewer.

 Performances are fantastic all around. Even when a character goes a little over-the-top they are still likable. Even the seemingly

 bloodless Carolyn. Spacey, Bening and Cooper all deserve Oscar nods. Thora Birch and Wes Bently are both very talented young

 actors, and Men Suvari gives a hilarious performance that is completely different from her role in this year’s other "American"

 film (the one about the pie).

 The first hour of this movie is hilarious, perhaps one of the funniest hours I’ve seen all year. From there the movie slowly slides

 from pitch black humor to emotionally complex drama. The transition is seamless. By the end of the movie you’ll be amazed

 that such a funny film could be so emotionally heart-felt. American Beauty never holds back but never feels the need to push the

 viewer into the realm of disturbia.

 One aspect of the movie I really liked was that, in the first few minutes we are delivered a line of information that stays with

 us all the way until the end when it is revealed. It’s a mystery that makes us think throughout the movie and may even taint

 our feelings about certain characters. It’s possible to hate a character during the movie all the way up to the final 5 minutes

 when we realize we were wrong about them the whole time. You’ll want to apologize to the characters.

 The movie made many good points, but an underlying theme was the concept of being normal. Trying extremely hard just to be

 normal, is anything except normal. But the people I saw the movie with came out with other ideas. I don’t think I’ve though so

 much during a movie all year and intellectual stimulation is one of the greatest gifts cinema can offer. Please see American

 Beauty. It’s an enormously entertaining picture that is worthy of all the buzz surrounding it.

One of the best films of the year.

Americanization of Emily, The****     1964

An intriguing and dark comedy, with startingly effective and realistic fictionalized scenes of D-Day. A 

very sophisticated political farce.

http://twentyfourframes.wordpress.com/2009/02/16/the-americanization-of-emily-1964-hiller/

VIDEO

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/149118/Americanization-of-Emily-The-Original-Movie-Promo-.html 

 LCDR Charlie Madison (James Garner), USNR, is a cynical and highly efficient adjutant to RADM William Jessup (Melvyn Douglas)

 in London. Madison's job as a dog robber is to keep his boss and other high-ranking officers supplied with luxury goods and

 amiable Englishwomen. He falls in love with a driver from the motor pool, Emily Barham (Julie Andrews), who has lost her

 husband, brother, and father in the war. Madison's sybaritic, "American" lifestyle amid wartime scarcity both fascinates and

 disgusts Emily, but she does not want to lose another loved one to war and finds the "practicing coward" Madison irresistible.

 Under stress since the death of his wife, Jessup obsesses over the Army and its Air Corps overshadowing the Navy in the

 forthcoming D-Day invasion. The mentally unstable admiral decides that "The first dead man on Omaha Beach must be a sailor."

 A film will document the death, and the casualty will be buried in a "Tomb of the Unknown Sailor." Despite his best efforts to

 avoid the duty, Madison and his gung-ho friend, LCDR "Bus" Cummings (James Coburn), find themselves and a film crew with

 the combat engineers who will be the first on shore. When Madison tries to retreat to safety, Cummings forces him forward with

 a pistol. A German shell lands near Madison, making him the first American to die on Omaha Beach. Hundreds of newspaper and

 magazine covers reprint a photograph of Madison on the shore, making him a martyr. Jessup, having recovered from his

 breakdown, regrets his part in Madison's death but plans to use it in support of the Navy when testifying before a

 Senate committee in Washington. Losing another man she loves to the war devastates Emily. Then comes unexpected news:

 Madison is not dead, but alive and well in an English hospital. A relieved Jessup now plans to show him during the Senate

 testimony as the heroic "first man on Omaha Beach". Madison, angry about his senseless near-death, uncharacteristically plans

 to act nobly by telling the world the truth of what happened on the beach, even if it means being imprisoned for cowardice.

 Emily convinces him to instead choose happiness with her by keeping quiet and accepting his heroic role.

American President, The***   1995  

http://www.calendarlive.com/movies/reviews/cl-movie960406-46,2,3342218.story

VIDEO

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3NI5sE3KeY 

 How does the widowed leader of the free world balance his many obligations to his country with the ordinary demands and

 everyday rites of courtship? When President Andrew Shepherd, quite unexpectedly, falls in love with Sydney Wade, an

 environmental lobbyist, he must overcome obstacles not faced by average citizens; he must worry that the public's right to

 know will collide with the desire for personal privacy. He must contend with approval ratings, an inquiring press and an

 aggressive political opponent just to go on a date. The President's advisors, chief of staff, domestic policy advisor, White

 House pollster and press secretary help him get through his busy schedule, deal with demands of congress and quell any global

 predicaments. But political crises are different than personal ones and somehow the American President alone must find a way

 to balance his love for his country with his love for an incredible woman.

American Tragedy, An***     1931

http://fairweatherlewis.wordpress.com/2010/04/02/an-american-tragedy-where

-murder-literature-film-opera-and-ghostlore-collide/

VIDEO

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OxCcek5eUT4 

 Though his parents are street evangelists, Clyde Griffiths (Phillips Holmes) grows up in squalor, but not without ambitions. He

 first works as a bellhop in Kansas City, but when he's the passenger in a car that kills a little girl, Clyde fears he'll be arrested

 and flees town. His wealthy uncle Samuel Griffiths (Frederick Burton) gets Clyde a job at a shirt factory in upstate New York

 where the young man soon becomes foreman of a department that employs only young women. He is attracted to Roberta Alden

 (Sylvia Sidney), known as "Bert," and though company policy forbids them to fraternize, they begin secretly dating on weekends.

 Eventually, Clyde seduces the smitten Bert,even though he has already become attracted to Sondra Finchley (Frances Dee),

 the daughter of a wealthy family. Clyde and Sondra fall in love, and she promises to marry him when she's of age, but by now,

 Bert has informed Clyde that she is pregnant. With vague thoughts of drowning her in mind, Clyde takes Bert on a vacation in

 the Adirondacks. While canoeing, he decides not to kill her, but to honorably marry her instead. He reveals to Bert what he'd

 planned, and in shock, she accidentally falls overboard. However, instead of rescuing her, Clyde swims to shore, and Bert drowns.

 Eventually, the police track him down and he is arrested, resulting in a trial that gains national attention. ~ Bill Warren,

All Movie Guide 

Anatomy of a Murder*****    1959 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anatomy_of_a_Murder

http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title.jsp?stid=3737

VIDEO

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OxCcek5eUT4 

 Based on the best-selling novel by Robert Traver (the pseudonym for Michigan Supreme Court justice John D. Voelker), Anatomy of a

 Murder stars James Stewart as seat-of-the-pants Michigan lawyer Paul Biegler. Through the intervention of his alcoholic mentor,

 Parnell McCarthy (Arthur O'Connell), Biegler accepts the case of one Lt. Manion (Ben Gazzara), an unlovable lout who has murdered

 a local bar owner. Manion admits that he committed the crime, citing as his motive the victim's rape of the alluring Mrs. Manion

 (Lee Remick). Faced with the formidable opposition of big-city prosecutor Claude Dancer (George C. Scott), Biegler hopes to win

 freedom for his client by using as his defense the argument of "irresistible impulse." Also featured in the cast is Eve Arden as

 Biegler's sardonic secretary, Katherine Grant as the woman who inherits the dead man's business, and Joseph N. Welch -- who in real

 life was the defense attorney in the Army-McCarthy hearings -- as the ever-patient judge. The progressive-jazz musical score is

 provided by Duke Ellington, who also appears in a brief scene. Producer/director Otto Preminger once more pushed the envelope in

 Anatomy of a Murder by utilizing technical terminology referring to sexual penetration, which up until 1959 was a cinematic no-no.

 Contrary to popular belief, Preminger was not merely being faithful to the novel; most of the banter about "panties" and "semen,"

 not to mention the 11-hour courtroom revelation, was invented for the film. Anatomy of a Murder was filmed on location in Michigan's

 Upper Peninsula. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Andy Hardy Series

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andy_Hardy

    Andy Hardy's Double Life***1/2   1942

http://www.andyhardyfilms.com/ahdl.htm

VIDEO

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/34878/Andy-Hardy-s-Double-Life-Original-Trailer-.html 

 This particular Andy Hardy film was not on my favorite list originally but on another viewing, a few things

 impressed me. Firstly the James Hardy character (Lewis Stone) was stretched a bit further, and the 'man

 to man' chat between Andy and himself actually had preceptive and strong dramatic overtones. 

 Scondly the legal case that James Hardy was involved in was touching and utilized other characters

 fittingly, which also shed light a deeper light on the Judge. Thirdly the romantic 'fun' of Andy, was even

 a bit provocative, as Esther Williams was surprisingly sexy and naughty. 

 Incredible as it may seem, rambunctious 18-year-old Andy Hardy (Mickey Rooney) finally makes it to college in Andy Hardy's

 Double Life. Just as he did at Carvel High School, Andy majors in "girls" at college, at one point finding himself engaged

 simultaneously to two different coeds. On a more serious note, Andy has his first major row with his father Judge Hardy

 (Lewis_Stone) over such vital matters as money and poor grades. But in keeping with the "honor thy parents" edicts of MGM 

 head-man Louis_B._Mayer, the plot manages to reunite father and son in the final footage, with Andy respectfully bowing to the

 wisdom of the good grey judge. Much of Andy Hardy's Double Life is a showcase for MGM's new swimming star Esther_Williams,

 as cute as all get out in a two-piece bathing suit. Hal Erickson, Rovi

    Andy Hardy Meets Debutante***1/2   1940

http://www.andyhardyfilms.com/ahmd.htm

VIDEO

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/186749/Andy-Hardy-Meets-Debutante-Movie-Intro-Outro-Jerry-Stiller.html 

 Judge Hardy takes his family to New York City, where he has to appear in court against a law firm that is disputing payments

 from a trust fund that supports an orphanage. In Carvel, Andy had bragged about knowing a socialite, but he hasn't actually

 met her. In New York, he manages to do so, thanks to a friend. But he finds the high society life too expensive, and eventually 

 decides that he liked it better back home.

    Love Finds Andy Hardy***1/2  1938

http://www.andyhardyfilms.com/lfah.htm

VIDEO

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/29292/Love-Finds-Andy-Hardy-Movie-Clip-Am-I-Sensational-.html 

 Christmas vacation finds Andy Hardy involved in his usual combination of financial scheming and romantic troubles. The

 situation is especially complicated this time, as he finds himself involved with no fewer than three young women: Steady

 girlfriend Polly Benedict; his buddy's girlfriend Cynthia Potter (Lana Turner); and next door visitor Betsy Booth (Judy Garland).

    Life Begins For Andy Hardy***1/2   1941

http://www.andyhardyfilms.com/lbah.htm

VIDEO

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/95861/Life-Begins-For-Andy-Hardy-Original-Trailer-.html 

 With high school behind him, Andy Hardy (Mickey Rooney) decides that as an adult, it's time to start living his life. Judge Hardy

 (Lewis Stone) had hoped that his son would go to college and study law, but Andy isn't sure that's what he wants to do so he

 heads off to New York City to find a job. Too proud to accept financial help from his longtime friend Betsy Booth (Judy Garland),

 he at least lets her drive him to the city. Andy soon meets there another young man who has just been fired as "office boy" at

 a midtown firm. When Andy rushes there unannounced to apply for the vacancy, Betsy runs out of gasoline after patiently

 circling the congested streets for hours waiting for him to come out afterwards. Andy lands the job, and even gets to repeatedly

 date the office receptionist, a more worldly woman who with the office staff are amused at his naivete and sometimes 

 clumsiness. He learns that daily expenses, including gifts and dates for his new girlfriend, quickly add up as well as mourning

 over the death of his new friend who commits suicide. Andy is nearly fired after, due to drowsiness, he mixes up two outgoing

 letters in the office mail. Although ashamed to let his parents know of his difficulties, they hear of his circumstances from

 Betsy, and his father goes to bring him home. After facing these several lessons of life, Andy concludes that he may still

 have some growing up to do.

    You're Only Young Once***   1937

http://www.andyhardyfilms.com/yoyo.htm

VIDEO

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/92687/You-re-Only-Young-Once-Original-Trailer-.html 

  

The Hardy family goes to Catalina for a two week vacation, where Judge Hardy tries to catch a swordfish, Marian falls in love with

 Hardy learned about while fishing with Capt. Swenson, their home is saved and Hoyt Wells is run out of town.

Anna Christie****   1931

http://www.answers.com/topic/anna-christie-1931-film

VIDEO

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kzgMHP4cu8o 

 Old sailor Chris Christofferson eagerly awaits the arrival of his grown daughter Anna, whom he sent at five years old to live with

 relatives in Minnesota. He has not seen her since, but believes her to be a decent and respectably employed young woman. When

 Anna arrives, however, it is clear that she has lived a hard life in the dregs of society, and that much of spirit has been extinguished.

 She falls in love with a young sailor rescued at sea by her father, but dreads to reveal to him the truth of her past. Both father and

 young man are deluded about her background, yet Anna cannot quite bring herself to allow them to remain deluded.

Written by Jim Beaver <jumblejim@prodigy.net>

Anne of Green Gables**** 1934

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anne_of_Green_Gables_(1934_film) 

VIDEO

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lw499WSH7aM 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nIX9JRNWvS4

At the turn of the century, Ann Shirley, a precocious, tempermental, red-headed orphan, is sent from an asylum in Nova Scotia

 to Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert's farm, Green Gables, on Prince Edward Island. Although her quiet brother Matthew takes an

 immediate liking to the imaginative Anne, stoic Marilla Cuthbert, who had "ordered" a boy, resists her charms and threatens

 repeatedly to return her to the orphanage. Gradually, however, Anne wins over Marilla and earns a permanent place at Green

 Gables. Although Anne curses the brightness of her red hair, Gilbert Blythe, a handsome schoolmate, admires it shamelessly during

 class, and his attentions both please and confuse Anne. From her best friend, Diana Barry, Anne learns that years before, Gilbert's

 father ran off with Matthew's fiancée, and that since that incident, the entire Blythe family has been condemned by Marilla. After a

 tempestuous start, the forbidden love affair between Anne and Gilbert blossoms, but as soon as Marilla learns of it, she orders the

 teenagers to stop seeing each other. Despondent, Gilbert leaves town and Anne is sent off to normal school. Years later, Anne is

 visited by Diana, who divulges the fact that Matthew is seriously ill with heart trouble. Anne rushes home and finds out that because

 of her education costs, the Cuthberts cannot afford a medical specialist. Knowing that Gilbert is studying with the specialist whom

 Matthew needs, Anne goes to see him and begs his help.

 As a favor to Gilbert, the specialist agrees to treat Matthew, and Marilla, grateful for Gilbert's aid, at last gives in and blesses the

 young couple.

  

Anthony Adverse*****   1936

 A great drama of the Napoleonic period. Frederick March (as Adverse) is a well documented

 chararacter who faces a moral dilemma when given the responsibility of recovering money from

 the debtors of his employer, some of whom are invovlved in slave trading. His antagonist is the

 nasty Marquis Don Luis (Claude Rains), who is accompanied by the scheming seductress

 Faith Palologus (Gale Sondergaard) who steals many scenes with her menacing smile and cunning.

 

http://thepiratebay.org/torrent/5202069/Anthony_Adverse__%281936%29__Olivia_de_

Havilland_Eng_%28Fr_Hardsubs%29

VIDEO

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/354925/Anthony-Adverse-Movie-Clip-Your-Husband-Is-Complete-Again-.html 

 The plot of the epic costume drama follows the globe-trotting adventures of the title character, the illegitimate offspring of Maria

 Bonnyfeather, the wife of the cruel and devious middle-aged nobleman Marquis Don Luis, and Denis Moore. When he learns of his

 wife's affair, Don Luis challenges her lover to a duel. Denis is killed, and shortly thereafter Maria dies in childbirth. Don Luis leaves

 the infant at a convent, where the nuns christen him Anthony, and lie to wealthy merchant John Bonnyfeather, Maria's father, telling

 him that the infant is also dead. Ten years later, completely by coincidence, the child is apprenticed to Bonnyfeather, his real

 grandfather, who discovers his relationship to the boy but keeps it a secret from him. He gives the boy the surname Adverse in

 acknowledgement of the difficult life he has led.

 As an adult, Anthony falls in love with Angela Giuseppe, the cook's daughter, and the couple wed. Soon after the ceremony, Anthony

 departs for Havana to save Bonnyfeather's fortune. The note Angela leaves Anthony is blown away and he is unaware that she has

 gone to another city. Instead, assuming he has abandoned her, she pursues a career as an opera singer. Anthony leaves Cuba

for Africa, where he becomes corrupted by his involvement with the slave trade. He is redeemed by his friendship with Brother

 François, and following the friar's death he returns to Italy to find Bonnyfeather has died and his housekeeper, Faith Paleologus

 (now married to Don Luis), will inherit the man's estate fortune unless Anthony goes to Paris to claim his inheritance. In Paris,

 Anthony is reunited with his friend, prominent banker Vincent Nolte, whom he saves from bankruptcy by giving him his fortune.

 Through the intercession of impressario Debrulle, Anthony finds Angela and discovers she bore him a son. She fails to reveal she is

 Mlle. Georges, a famous opera star and the mistress of Napoleon Bonaparte. When Anthony learns her secret, he departs for America with his son in search of a better life.

Apartment, The*****   1960

http://www.theapartmentfilm.com/

http://www.filmsite.org/apar.html

VIDEO

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/205777/Apartment-The-Movie-Clip-I-Have-Other-Plans.html 

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/195724/Apartment-The-Movie-Clip-Junior-Executive-Model.html 

 Earlier in the year, a movie about a mall security guard chasing down a pervert came out to the mixed reactions of people shouting

 “genius!” from the back row and others shouting obscenities from somewhere near the middle. Observe and Report is the natural 

 heir to a new lineage of dramatic comedies that has sprouted in the past decade (much to the horror of film marketers who

 have only two presets). The movement of comedic dramas or dramatic comedies has been a strong one, especially for audiences that

 got tired of the strict separation of the two that took place in the 1990s – sprinkled with a healthy dose of romantic comedies that 

 required a box of tissues. Much like the great prognosticator of trends that he always was, Billy Wilder drew from the past and

 anticipated the future by creating a hilarious movie that also happens to deal realistically with infidelity, occupational depression,

 and suicide. Funny. Jack Lemmon stars as C.C. Baxter , a middling executive who endears himself to his higher-ups by

 letting them use his apartment for their extra-marital activities. This puts him on the fast track to promotion (no matter how

 sniveling he is) and gives him a reputation with his neighbors as a man who brings home a new girl almost every night. One of those

 higher-ups is Jeff Sheldrake (Fred MacMurray) who acts as a smarmy, passive-aggressive forerunner to Bill Lumbergh and manages to

 drive a young girl to suicide. During Christmas. Then doesn’t bother to even talk to her over the phone. That young woman happens

 to be Fran Kubelik (Shirley MacLaine), the only girl that C.C. has seemed to take a shine to. Luckily, he’ll be seeing a lot more of her.

As with any movie about sexual politics, there is a delicate balance that has to be struck. Fran has to be naive and obsessed with her

 boss/lover but not too insane. C.C. has to seem like a nice guy, but not so weak that he can’t make a stand when he needs to. As a

 boss, Sheldrake just needs to see his affair like those tissues the women use at romantic comedies – something easily disposable to

 leave wet and used and left in the trash can of your buddy’s apartment. The balance of it all comes in a dangerous proposition: that

 you can’t really show any of that, except for C.C.’s character development, on screen. Fortunately, in his genius, Wilder takes the

 narrow path and leaves the sex off camera, choosing instead to focus it completely on both the budding love affair between C.C. and

 Fran and the utter devastation she feels when the man who’s using her grows tired of her. This all provides a lot of comedic fodder,

 but when all of that boils away, the tension is reduced to an ethical question of whether C.C. will continue his path up the corporate

 ladder or fight for a woman who, honestly, he’s just now getting to know (and who has a sordid very-recent past). The mastery of

 storytelling here is that it’s a complex emotional tale that’s given its due. With so many stock comedies today weaving together a

 feel-good plot and tacking on a schmaltzy faux-heartening lesson at the end (even if it is learned while laughing), it’s good to see that

 there are some movies that are brave enough to blend the comedic with the dramatic and do so with some degree of skill. They have

 many films to thank, definitely, but one of them has to be The Apartment. It’s brave and frustrating in the way most matters of the

 heart are, but it also allows for the natural humor of a dark situation to emerge and leave everyone watching in stitches.

 The beauty here is that once you’re rolling in the aisles, The Apartment hits you right in the gut and reminds you that you watched a

 girl try to kill herself and a man try to escape from the thumb of corporate bribery. Shame on you for laughing (but that was pretty

 funny, wasn’t it?).

 This movie is a perfect candidate for this column because it seems modern even by today’s standards. In fact, modern audiences

 might actually find themselves a little shocked by some of the subject matter and how bluntly it’s dealt with. Who knows. With a good

 enough HD transfer, people might mistake this for a ballsy new release. Probably not, but even so, it’s a movie that demands to be

 sought out by anyone who loves comedy, who loves drama, and who wants to pay their respects to the forerunners of the modern

 movement in dramadies.

Apollo 13****     1995

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_13_%28film%29

http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=990CE0D7123FF933A05755C0A963958260

VIDEO

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kAmsi05P9Uw 

 The scene cuts to the big city and to the days when everyone seemed to wear a hat and puff unfiltered Camels. Crowds of Americans

 are gathered in Times Square watching a floating marquee spell out the news of some impending crisis. That's how some Americans

 got the word about the trouble facing NASA's Apollo 13 on the evening of April 13, 1970. Twenty-five years have gone by. But interest

 in Apollo 13 is higher than ever thanks, in part, to a new film directed by Ron Howard. The film stars Tom Hanks, Kevin Bacon and

 Bill Paxton as Astronauts Jim Lovell, Fred Haise, and Jack Swigert. The film is expected to have special meaning for Huntsville

 residents. The Marshall Center was responsible for providing the Saturn V launch vehicles for all of the Apollo missions. The crisis

 aboard Apollo 13 had nothing to do with the Saturn V launch vehicle. However, some employees at the Center served as consultants

 to the boards that investigated Apollo 13. One of those employees was Marshall's Robert Schwinghamer. He and others were

 summoned to Houston where they stayed several weeks conducting tests and other data. Schwinghamer and his group focused on

 tests involving liquid and gaseous oxygen. He said some of the lessons learned were later applied to the development of the wiring

 for the Space Shuttle External Tank. Aside from being involved in the technical investigations into the cause of the accident,

 Schwinghamer also remembers the feelings that NASA employees shared during the week that Apollo 13 was in danger. "Despair was

 not evident," he said. "It was a challenging engineering problem," he added, but one "in which  human lives were at stake." Howard's

 film about Apollo 13 is also expected to have additional meaning for Huntsville. Howard, Tom Hanks and other cast members made

 an unpublicized visit  to Huntsville last year to learn more about space exploration and to orient themselves for the film production.

 The group visited the United States Space and Rocket Center and the Marshall Center. Marshall Protocol Officer Sandra Turner

 conducted the MSFC tour and arranged for briefings by Marshall employees. "The visitors were all just as down to earth as they could

 be," Turner  said, adding that Hanks loved to crack jokes.

 The group visited the Marshall Test Area, the Neutral Buoyancy Simulator and other sites. Along with Turner, Rodney Grubbs, Motion

 Picture Production specialist for the Marshall Center's Information Systems Services office was cited in the credits of the film. Grubbs

 assisted the film's editors by helping them determine the possible  use of NASA's original film footage for the launch sequence.

 The real Apollo 13 mission was, said Commander James Lovell, "strictly a case of survival." Apollo 13 was launched at 1:13 p.m. CST

 April 11 at Cape Kennedy -- a perfect launch under slightly cloudy skies. About 2 1/2 hours after launch, the spacecraft was placed on

 a path to the moon and, as the crew trained its television cameras, the command/service module was separated, turned and docked.

 The astronauts began taking photos and doing housekeeping chores. The mission was going faultlessly. Astronaut Fred Haise played

 the Marine Corps hymn on a small tape recorder in the spacecraft. The morning of the second day of the flight found the astronauts

 swapping off for long 10-hour rest periods. Mission Control went into a phase of what it called quiet planning. Astronaut Jack Swigert

 joked about forgetting to file his income tax. Commander Jim Lovell ate a hot dog. On Monday morning, Mission Control was

 predicting that Apollo 13 would enter the moon's influence the following day, Tuesday on schedule--with the landing to follow the

 next day. At about that time, the spacecraft was on such a good trajectory to the moon that a mid- course correction was eliminated.

 Monday evening, now in their third full day in space, the astronauts -- in a television broadcast -- showed millions of viewers some of 

 the electronic equipment in the spacecraft. But about 9 p.m. that evening -- Monday evening -- trouble developed. There was a thump

 in the service module behind the astronauts. An oxygen tank had ruptured. Pressure dropped alarmingly.

 "Thirteen minutes after the explosion, I happened to look out of the left-hand window, and saw the final evidence pointing toward

 potential catastrophe," Lovell later recalled. "It was a gas -- oxygen -- escaping at a high rate from our second, and last, oxygen

 tank." Mission Control canceled the lunar landing and rushed plans to bring the spacecraft back to earth as soon as possible.

 It was decided that the swiftest and easiest method would be to have Apollo 13 continue to the moon, swing around it and return to

 earth and try for a landing in the Pacific Ocean. Meanwhile, on the ground at Mission Control, Chris Kraft, deputy director of the

 Manned Spacecraft Center, was expressing assurance that there was enough oxygen, water and power to return the three astronauts

 safely to earth. Now about 215,000 miles from earth, a make-shift plan was devised. The astronauts would move into the lunar

 module and use its life support systems after they had powered down the command module. "With only 15 minutes of power left in

 the CM, CapCom told us to make our way into the LM," Lovell said. "There were many, many things to do. In the first place, did we

have enough consumables to get home?" Tuesday evening, the spacecraft looped around the moon and then completed a 30 second

 burn of the lunar module's descent engine. Now on the way home, the astronauts turned down some systems on the lunar module to

 conserve power and the men resumed regular but shorter rest periods. "We would have died of the exhaust from our own lungs if

 Mission Control hadn't come up with a marvelous fix," Lovell said. Using spare parts and spacecraft canisters, the astronauts

 improvised a method to reduce the carbon dioxide concentration in the spacecraft. Mission Control verified again that the crew 

 would have enough water, oxygen and power to last the remainder of the abbreviated mission. But conditions inside the Lunar Module

 were awful. "The trip was marked by discomfort beyond the lack of food and water," said Lovell, who lost 14 pounds of body weight

 during the mission. "Sleep was almost impossible because of the cold. When we turned off electrical systems, we lost our source of

 heat, and the Sun streaming in the windows didn't help much. We were as cold as frogs in a frozen pool," Lovell said. On Wednesday

 evening, Apollo 13 underwent another mid-course correction -- again a burn of the lunar module's descent engine -- and refined its

 trajectory toward the Pacific splashdown point. By Friday morning, discussion had turned to entry angles and the weather in the

 splashdown area. The Iwo Jima, the recovery ship, was on station. After a final mid-course correction Friday morning, hours before

 splashdown, the astronauts jettisoned the service module and the lunar module, Aquarius, which had served as their life boat since

 the trouble on Monday evening. The astronauts entered the command module and prepared for their return home. "We found the CM

 a cold, clammy tin can when we started to power up. The walls, ceilings, floor, wire harnesses, and panels were all covered with

 droplets of water. We suspected conditions were the same behind the panels," Lovell recalled. The chances for short circuits and fire

 were great. Fortunately no arcing took place and hours later the crew splashed down gently in the Pacific Ocean near Samoa. It was

 "a beautiful landing in a blue-ink ocean on a lovely, lovely planet, " Lovell said. Apollo 13 captured America's attention. Lovell,

 Swigert, and Haise were greeted by the President and parades following their return. "We never dreamed a billion people were

 following us on television and radio, and reading about us in banner headlines of every newspaper published."

 Interest in amazing but true stories like Apollo 13 will always be popular in America. And, Ron Howard's version of Apollo 13 will

 make the real story even more popular. In addition, many who see the film, and others who may not, can download text, still images,

 video and sound on Apollo 13 from the World Wide Web. The address is

 http://www-pao.ksc.nasa.gov/history/apollo/apollo-13/apollo-13-090503c.htm

 (Portions of the above article were adapted from The Marshall Star of April 22, 1970; "Houston, We've Had a Problem," in NASA's

 "Apollo Expeditions to the Moon," edited by Edgar M. Cortright; 

 and from other NASA sources.) 

Arlington Road 1999 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arlington_Road 

VIDEO

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7EvXsSJHQc 

Michael Faraday is a recently widowed college history professor living alone with his ten-year-old son Grant in the suburbs of 

Washington, DC. The death of Michael's wife Leah, an FBI agent killed in the line of duty, continues to haunt both father and son.

Michael and Grant are soon befriended by the Langs, a vivacious, All-American family new to the neighborhood. The parents, Oliver

and Cheryl Lang, go out of their way to draw Michael into their lives. Soon, Grant and young Brody Lang become inseparable friends.

The Faradays' long period of mourning seems finally to be over. As the two families become closer, Michael begins to have

misgivings about the gregarious Oliver. After catching Oliver in a few insignificant lies, the more Michael learns about Oliver, the

more his uneasiness grows. With Grant spending more and more time at the Langs, Michael decides to check into the background

of his neighbors. What he discovers deepens the mystery, arousing suspicions that shake Michael to the core of his existence. The

Langs are definitely not who they claim to be; but who are they? Why have they come to Washington, DC? Written by PFE publicity 

 

Asphalt Jungle, The****   1950

http://www.moviezeal.com/the-asphalt-jungle/

VIDEO

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/244932/Asphalt-Jungle-The-Movie-Clip-42-Market-Street.html 

When police track hoodlum and ex-convict Dix Handley to a café, Dix's friend, the owner, Gus Minissi, saves him from arrest by hiding

 his gun. Police Commissioner Hardy reprimands Lt. Ditrich for failing to catch Dix, whom they know has committed the crime, but,

 not realizing that Ditrich is a crooked cop, gives him one more chance by assigning him the task of trailing recently released

 convict Doc Erwin Reidenshneider. Meanwhile, Doc visits Cobby, a gambling bookie, with a proposition to make half a million dollars

 in return for a fifty thousand dollar loan from Cobby's contact, wealthy but corrupt lawyer Alonzo D. Emmerich. Later, Doll Conovan,

 a beautiful but lonely waitress, visits Dix and asks if she can stay with him for a few days, and Dix brusquely agrees. That night,

 Doc impresses Emmerich with his plan for a massive jewelry store robbery, and after closing the bargain by offering to act as both

 backer and bagman, Emmerich runs to his mistress, the young and gorgeous Angela Phinlay. The next morning before he leaves to

 meet Cobby, Dix talks with Doll about his past on his family's Kentucky farm and how much he longs to go back. At Cobby's, he meets

 Doc, who has heard that Emmerich has gone bankrupt spending all his money on Angela. At the same time, Emmerich admits to his

 private detective, Bob Brannom, that he is broke, prompting them to plan together to swindle Doc out of the stolen jewels. Emmerich

 asks Cobby to advance him the fifty thousand dollars, and on the night of the crime, manages to pull himself away from his lonely

 wife May to meet Brannom. Meanwhile, Doc, Dix, safe cracker Louis Ciavelli and driver Gus rob the store expertly, but when a

 watchman happens by, Dix hits him and fires his gun accidentally, wounding Louis. Gus, afraid to take Louis to a doctor, delivers him

 to his home, where his wife Maria cries helplessly watching him die. Dix and Doc go to Emmerich's as planned and realize he is

 trying to cheat them when Brannom pulls out his gun. Brannom and Dix end up shooting each other, and as Brannom dies, Doc advises

 a terrified Emmerich to ask the insurance company to pay for the return of the jewels, no questions asked, or else Dix will kill him.

 Soon after, Emmerich dumps Brannom in the river, and Dix and Doc escape to Doll's new apartment, where Dix refuses to see a

 doctor, though he is bleeding. Soon, the police find Brannom's body with a piece of Emmerich's stationery in his pocket, and though

 Emmerich uses Angela as his alibi, his story is quickly destroyed when a taxi driver tells Hardy that he once dropped Doc off at

 Cobby's, and Cobby confesses the whole scheme. Hardy then pushes a willing Angela to tell the truth about Emmerich, who

 immediately shoots himself. After Doc hears about the suicide, he says goodbye to Dix and leaves town. By lingering at a café 

 outside of the city in order to leer at a young girl dancing, however, Doc gives the police just enough time to catch him. Meanwhile,

 the weakening Dix agrees to let Doll escape with him to Kentucky, barely making it to his family farm. As he dies in the pasture,

 Hardy speaks to the press about the pervasiveness of crime in the urban jungle.

Atonement****1/2   2007

http://www.timeout.com/film/reviews/84184/atonement.html

VIDEO

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1uwkJa6Elu0&feature=related 

 

 In 1935, Briony Tallis (Saoirse Ronan), a 13-year-old girl from a wealthy English family, has just finished writing a play. As Briony

 attempts to stage the play with her cousins, they get bored and decide to go swimming. Briony stays behind and witnesses a

 significant moment of sexual tension between her older sister, Cecilia (Keira Knightley), and Robbie Turner (James McAvoy), a man

 Briony has a childish crush on. Robbie returns home and writes several drafts of letters to Cecilia, including one, explicit and

 erotically charged. He does not, however, intend to send it and sets it aside. On his way to join the Tallis family celebration, Robbie

 asks Briony to deliver his letter, only to later realise that he has mistakenly given her the prurient one. Briony secretly reads the

 letter and becomes still more suspicious of Robbie's intentions.

 That evening, Cecilia and Robbie meet in the library, where they spontaneously have sex. During the act, Briony walks in on the

 couple and mistakenly believes that Robbie is raping her sister. At dinner it is revealed that the twin cousins have run away. Briony

 goes off alone into the woods looking for them and stumbles upon a man running away from apparently raping her teenaged cousin

 Lola. Lola claims that she does not know the identity of her attacker, but Briony is certain that it was Robbie, and tells everyone this,

 including the police, claiming she saw Robbie commit the act. She shows the shocking letter to her mother. Everyone believes her

 story – except for Cecilia. Robbie is arrested and sent to prison.

 Four years later, in 1939, Robbie is released from prison on condition that he join the British Army. He is assigned to A Company,

 1st Battalion, Royal Sussex Regiment. He is reunited with Cecilia in London, where they renew their love before he is shipped off to

 the French front. Briony (Romola Garai), now 18, has joined Cecilia's old nursing corps at St. Thomas's in London. Her attempts

 at contacting her sister go unanswered, as Cecilia blames her for Robbie's imprisonment. Later, Robbie, wounded and very ill, finally

 arrives at the beaches of Dunkirk, where he waits to be evacuated. Briony, now fully understanding the impact of her accusation,

 later visits Cecilia to apologize to her directly; Cecilia coldly replies that she will never forgive her. Robbie, in a rage that almost

 becomes physical, confronts Briony and demands that she immediately tell her family and the authorities the truth. Briony reveals

 that the rapist was actually family friend Paul Marshall (Benedict Cumberbatch), who was an adult at the time of the rape, and that

 he cannot be implicated in a court of law because he has married Lola. Decades later, an elderly Briony (Vanessa Redgrave) reveals in

 an interview that she is dying of vascular dementia, and that her novel, Atonement, which she has been working on for most of her

 adult life, will be her last. Briony reveals that the book's ending where she apologized to Cecilia and Robbie is fictional. In reality,

 Robbie actually died at Dunkirk of septicemia while awaiting evacuation, and that Cecilia died a few months later as one of the

 65 flood victims in the Balham tube station of the London Underground during The Blitz. Briony hopes that, by reuniting them in

 fiction, she can give them the happy conclusion to their lives that they have always deserved.

Awful Truth, The****    1937

  

29

Ball of Fire***1/2   1941

http://www.moderntimes.com/ball/

VIDEO

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/377510/Ball-Of-Fire-Movie-Clip-Shove-In-Your-Clutch.html 

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/377588/Ball-Of-Fire-Movie-Clip-What-Does-Boogie-Mean-.html 

 At the Daniel S. Totten Foundation in New York, Bertram Potts, a somber, dedicated linguistics professor, oversees the writing of an

 encyclopedia, on which he and his eight uniquely qualified colleagues have been toiling for nine years. When their financial backer,

 Miss Totten, drops by the foundation and threatens to withdraw her support, Bertram is prodded by the others to flirt with her.

 Charmed by Bertram's flattery, Miss Totten changes her mind, agreeing to back the encyclopedia to its completion. Soon after, a

 garbage man appears in the foundation's library and asks the professors for help on some radio quiz show questions. Intrigued by the

 garbage man's picturesque slang, Bertram declares that his section on slang is already outdated and requires further research.

 Bertram then takes to the streets, where he eavesdrops on a series of conversations and invites several people to participate in a

 slang symposium. When he invites sexy nightclub performer Sugarpuss O'Shea to attend, Sugarpuss abruptly dismisses him. Unknown

 to Bertram, Sugarpuss is being sought by the district attorney in connection with a murder that her gangster boyfriend, Joe Lilac,

 is suspected of committing, and she and Joe's henchmen, Asthma Anderson and Duke Pastrami, flee the club one step ahead of a

 subpoena. With no safe place to hide, Sugarpuss decides to take Bertram up on his invitation and shows up at the foundation later

 that night. Although pleased to see the still scantily clad Sugarpuss, Bertram, whom Sugarpuss calls "Pottsie," refuses to allow her to

 stay the night, but is overruled by his sex-starved colleagues. At the district attorney's office, meanwhile, Joe is confronted about a

 monogrammed bathrobe found in the murdered man's suitcase, which the district attorney suspects once belonged to Joe and was

 given to him by Sugarpuss. Concerned that Sugarpuss might be compelled to testify against Joe, his lawyer advises him to marry her.

 Three days later, Sugarpuss, who has been helping Bertram dissect a long list of slang expressions as well as teaching the other

 professors the conga, is visited by Asthma and Pastrami. The thugs present her with a pricey diamond engagement ring from Joe,

 and eager to become the wealthy Mrs. Lilac, Sugarpuss accepts the ring and agrees to stay at the foundation until she can safely

 meet Joe. Just then, however, Miss Bragg, the professors' prim housekeeper, demands that Sugarpuss leave, as she has become too

 much of a disruption. When Bertram asks Sugarpuss to go, admitting that her feminine ways have distracted him from his work,

 Sugarpuss declares that she is "just plain wacky" for him and kisses him. Bertram is so taken with Sugarpuss' kisses that he decides

 to propose to her, and the next morning, he gives her a small diamond engagement ring. Bertram's ardor saddens and confuses

 Sugarpuss, but before she can respond, Joe telephones from New Jersey. As Joe has identified himself as "Daddy," Bertram assumes

 he is Sugarpuss' father and asks him for permission to marry. Joe, seeing an opportunity to get Sugarpuss past the police's dragnet,

 goes along with the misconception and requests that the wedding be performed in New Jersey. Before the wedding party departs,

 however, Miss Bragg, having seen Sugarpuss' photo in the newspaper, threatens to call the police on her. After Sugarpuss slugs Miss

 Bragg and locks her in a closet, Bertram and the other unsuspecting professors excitedly depart for New Jersey. On the way,

 Professor Gurkakoff, who is driving, crashes into a signpost, disabling the car. The wedding party is forced to spend the night at an

 auto court, but when Sugarpuss calls Joe with the news, he insists on picking her up that night. While she waits in her bungalow,

 Professor Oddly, a widowed botanist, tells Bertram about his genteel honeymoon, then retires for the night. Perturbed by Oddly's

 remarks, Bertram seeks him out for clarification, but accidentally ends up in Sugarpuss' darkened bungalow. Believing that he is

 speaking to Oddly, Bertram describes his deeply felt passion for Sugarpuss, and moved by his words, she reveals herself and kisses

 him. At that moment, however, Joe and his gang arrive and expose Sugarpuss' deception. Finding lipstick on Bertram's face, Joe

 then pummels the hapless professor. After directing Miss Bragg, who escaped from the closet, and the police away from the auto

 court, Bertram confronts Sugarpuss. She tearfully apologizes, but Bertram returns to New York, angry and humiliated. Later, at the

 foundation, Oddly reveals that Sugarpuss gave him a ring to deliver to Bertram, not his, but Joe's. Bertram is buoyed by the

 professors' deduction that the singer is in love with him, and is unshaken when a scandalized Miss Totten arrives to announce their

 termination. Asthma and Pastrami then appear and, while holding the professors and Miss Totten at gunpoint, tell Sugarpuss

 over the phone that they are going to open fire unless she marries Joe. To protect the professors, Sugarpuss proceeds with the

 ceremony, which is being conducted in New Jersey by an addled-brain justice of the peace. Sugarpuss' fate appears sealed until the 

 professors cause a heavy portrait to fall on Pastrami and then take Asthma by surprise. With help from the garbage man, the

 professors tickle Pastrami into revealing Sugarpuss' location and race to New Jersey, arriving seconds before she is officially wed.

 After Bertram beats up Joe and delivers the gangsters to the police, he convinces Sugarpuss she is worthy of him by giving her a

 passionate, "yum-yum" kiss.

Bastard Out of Carolina****1/2   1996

http://www.aumtrails.com/2010/02/25/bastard-out-of-carolina-news-update-review-summary-snippet-movie-film/

VIDEO

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPDBWHE2Bpw 

 Plot: In post-WWII South Carolina, a young woman named Anney gives birth to an illegitimate child, nicknamed Bone. A few years

 later, Anney marries the seemingly decent Glen, who does not get along with Bone. Annie's miscarriage of a boy enrages her husband,

 who, behind his wife's back, begins to physically abuse Bone on a regular basis. After Anney discovers what her husband has been

 doing, she leaves Glen. But her need for a man's love eventually compels her to return to Glen, setting the stage for a heinous

 incident between Glen and his stepdaughter. As a result, a rift forms between mother and daughter -- that may never be healed. A

 made-for-cable adaptation of Dorothy Allison's best-selling novel. Anjelica Huston makes her directorial debut.

Beautiful Girls****   1996

http://thisdistractedglobe.com/2007/12/27/beautiful-girls-1996/

VIDEO

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BYzux5Lmmak 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JCQ-Ujw2ctg&feature=related 

 One of the characters in Ted Demme's "Beautiful Girls" has made his room a shrine to fashion models, plastering their pictures all

 over his walls. Sure, he knows these images are a little rosy and dishonest, but they make him feel good anyway. The same can be

 said for this companionable date movie, a "Big Chill" knockoff reuniting high school buddies in their drab, snowbound hometown.

 The characters are brighter and funnier than verisimilitude should allow (just look at the inspired cast list to see why), but they still

 work as welcome, entertaining company. Even if "Beautiful Girls" isn't as seductive as that title, or quite as cozy as its ads appear

 (the characters have been pasted into a composite bar scene), it still has warmth and good cheer. The film is loosely focused, but its

 ensemble cast is as affable as anything on television these days. And the mood is much more buoyant than the setting. Since the tone

 here is lightly comic, with only the occasional stab at rueful wisdom, there's not even much cause to complain about obvious

 sugar-coating. For instance: the male buddies in this film talk about nothing but their girlfriends, and every one of these guys has

 a heart of gold. As for women, the film duly notes that beauty is only skin deep, then crams as many great-looking actresses