Scarlet Street (1945)
Fritz Lang's excellent Noir drama about a man and failed painter (Edward G Robinson) in the throes of a mid life crisis as he hooks up with a younger woman and becomes embroiled in her life of corruption with small time con Dan Duryea.
Joan Bennett's Kitty is a prime example of a femme fatale and Robinson falls under her spell most willingly. The whole film is a superb play off between her, Robinson and sleazy Duryea. Lang revels in exploiting Robinson's genuine nice man and screwing him up so badly as to turn him into the polar opposite come the finale and his descent into what is basically a living hell he can't escape from.
Thanks to Crimson Blade and Bizarre_Eye for the recommendation.
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)
A somewhat overlong but still enjoyable first (of three) chapter of Tolkien's Hobbit story. Following a dubious opening where even faces looked like they were trapped in CGI hell, things settled down and i quickly got into the quest of wizard Gandalf, Hobbit Bilbo Baggins and 13 Dwarves.
Martin Freeman is excellent as Baggins and was a focal point for the film as i found most of the Dwarves to blend into one aside from Richard Armitage and Poldark's Aiden Turner. This didn't take anything away from a fun three hours that was full of asides i didn't recall from reading the story which were most likely put in to flesh out the running time and add references to Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy.
Although An Unexpected Journey pales when compared with the first of the Rings films - The Fellowship of the Ring - i look forward to continuing the journey across Middle Earth in the next day or two.
School for Sex (1968)
Lord Wingate (a likable, roguish, Derek Aylward) acquitted after appearing in court for fraud, starts up a finishing school to teach girls how to extract money from rich men.
Sexy goings on from horror auteur Pete Walker. Well acted, with a witty script (and actual laughs) as well as sexy girls including Françoise Pascal. Lightweight but chock full of smut almost like a St Trinian's film with added nudity, this is a class above the David Sullivan productions i saw earlier in the month and a British sex comedy i recommend.
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