Movies
Getting a feel for a genre is always a little exciting, even though the genre may not be completely what you're looking. A year or so ago I was pretty clueless about film-noir, having seen a bunch of them now I feel a bit more at ease with its rules and characteristics. I'm also quickly growing bored with them. Raw Deal is a pretty standard film-noir. Mann is smart enough to keep his film short and concise, but the plot isn't too engaging, the performances are rather bland, and the dialogue is by the numbers. It's fine if you love classic crime cinema, but I'm clearly not part of that niche. Not for me, but there's worse out there.Read all
A pretty dry western. At first, the setup works in its favor, but the middle part is extremely dull and the slow pacing makes this a big drag to sit through. It might be different for people who appreciate this setting and these types of characters (western fans in other words), but that's not me. The performances are poor, the colors are ugly and the build-up is simplistic. I didn't care for the plot or the characters, so the finale lacked any kind of impact. It's not my genre and by now I think I can safely say it never will be. It's not the worst one I've seen, but there's hardly anything to set it apart from the other terrible ones I've seen so far.Read all
This reminded me a little of contemporary Chinese crime films. Propaganda for the police, with a clear message to anyone who wants to pursue a criminal career. There's even a voice-over lauding the accomplishments of the law, underlining the cunningness of their adversary just to make them look even bigger and smarter. The story is pretty crummy, the voice-over makes it worse, and the performances are incredibly stilted. The stark black-and-white cinematography has some appeal, but it wasn't enough to win me over. T-Men is a pretty drab noir, and little more than a subsidized warning for people willing to go down the wrong path.Read all
As someone with a thorough dislike for western cinema, I sometimes forget that so far I've been primarily exposed to the stand-out, notable films in the genre. Festering below that is a pool of purer genre films that don't even bother to try and stand out. It seems that with The Naked Spur, I've finally hit that niche. Stewart is a terrible actor, he didn't magically get any better here. At least he fits in with the rest of the cast, who are equally disappointing. The soundtrack is terrible, the cinematography is bland and the plot is predictable. Add some cliché characters and a sluggish pace, and you have something that is hell to sit through. Unless you love westerns I guess.Read all
A bog-standard western, and to make things worse, it has James Stewart in the lead. It's a pretty lethal combination already, made even worse by Anthony Mann's tepid direction. I'm clueless as to why this film became a bona fide classic, but that's not exactly a new feeling for me. Stewart is a wooden actor, completely unfit to play a tough cowboy. The plot is pretty boring, the setting is dreary and I really didn't care much for Lyn's quest. The cinematography and soundtrack are worthless too. I think must rank as one of the worst Westerns I've seen so far.Read all