What Films Have You Seen Recently?

[iank]

Scream 3. When people connected to the production of Stab 3, the Hollywood movie series based on the real-life killing sprees in the first two films, start getting murdered, series survivors Sidney (Neve Campbell), Gale (Courtney Cox) and Dewey (David Arquette) fear the nightmare is starting all over again. Why is the new killer so obsessed with finding Sidney? And why do they keep leaving photos of Sid's mom as a young girl at the scene of every murder? The third film in the great horror series often comes in for stick, but to be honest I've always liked it and still do, and indeed actually somewhat prefer it to the 2nd one (the climax is certainly stronger IMO). Still a lot of fun.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

The Ox-Bow Incident (1943)

Henry Fonda leads an all star cast in this terrific conscience provoking western about three men taken for murdering cattle thieves by a local posse intent that justice will be done.

Although the star of the film, Fonda doesn't actually do an awful lot except watch proceedings unravel as Dana Andrews and Anthony Quinn are tried by street justice. The film is delightfully acted with a script and dialogue Tarantino would kill to have written. The way it plays with people's blind prejudices leading to what amounts to the cold blooded murder of innocents is a subject no less poignant today.

Andrews is excellent, it's clear to the viewer he's innocent all along yet the posse's blinkered viewpoint never flinches. Whilst watching i did feel The Ox-Bow Incident would make an excellent companion piece for 1957's Fonda starrer 12 Angry Men in the way it deals with hatred and prejudice.

Highly recommended.

[Make Them Die Slowly]

Logan

Savage and beautiful study of middle age, mortality and finding a meaning for life in the face of death.

I can't recommend this enough. Best film I have seen this year.

[Cinematic Shocks]

Planet of the Apes (1968)

**** out of *****

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Angel of Darkness (2014)

Stephen Rea plays an academic type who drags his daughter along to Hungary when he visits to check out an old castle before it's demolished. Once there they save a young woman from a car accident and take her into their home. Turns out the woman is the vampire Carmilla.

Despite one or two scenes with a nice creepy atmosphere and a whiff of eroticism there's not an awful lot going on here other than a modern retelling of the Carmilla story complete with hysterical villagers.

Events move along at a snails pace with barely any bloodsucking and certainly no blood bathing. It all feels a bit confused, not sure if it wants to be a full on Gothic mystery or a whiny teenage angst bore-a-thon. Whilst it was okay and featured good cinematography, there really isn't much to recommend here.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

One, Two, Three (1961)

James Cagney's final film, and in my opinion he gives one of his finest performances in this frantic Billy Wilder comedy about the chief of West Berlin's Coca Cola plant who finds himself in dire Cold War straits when the CEO's daughter from the States comes to visit.

One, Two, Three is as vibrant as Wilder films come, fast paced with even faster talking. Cagney who basically carries the whole film, his rapid fire dialogue delivering so many one liners it's impossible to take them all in without missing the next one. Wilder throws in dozens of references to Cagney's past from the cuckoo clock that plays Yankee Doodle Dandy (and speeds up when Cagney's in full flow) to him threatening to push a grapefruit into Horst Buchholz's face, not to mention his lovely secretary Liselotte Pulver who does her best Monroe table dance which certainly echoes Some Like it Hot.

Wilder uses West German locations to the maximum especially the Brandenburg Gate making it all look so authentic and very Cold War with it's bombed out East Berlin. True it pokes fun at communism and freely supports US capitalism but that's where many of the laughs come from.

I only found out about this film earlier this week and bought it immediately. I'm so glad i did as it's become a James Cagney favourite after just one viewing.

Highly recommended.

[Make Them Die Slowly]

Originally Posted by Demdike@Cult Labs

One, Two, Three (1961)

James Cagney's final film, and in my opinion he gives one of his finest performances in this frantic Billy Wilder comedy about the chief of West Berlin's Coca Cola plant who finds himself in dire Cold War straits when the CEO's daughter from the States comes to visit.

One, Two, Three is as vibrant as Wilder films come, fast paced with even faster talking. Cagney who basically carries the whole film, his rapid fire dialogue delivering so many one liners it's impossible to take them all in without missing the next one. Wilder throws in dozens of references to Cagney's past from the cuckoo clock that plays Yankee Doodle Dandy (and speeds up when Cagney's in full flow) to him threatening to push a grapefruit into Horst Buchholz's face, not to mention his lovely secretary Liselotte Pulver who does her best Monroe table dance which certainly echoes Some Like it Hot.

Wilder uses West German locations to the maximum especially the Brandenburg Gate making it all look so authentic and very Cold War with it's bombed out East Berlin. True it pokes fun at communism and freely supports US capitalism but that's where many of the laughs come from.

I only found out about this film earlier this week and bought it immediately. I'm so glad i did as it's become a James Cagney favourite after just one viewing.

Highly recommended.

Didn't he come out of retirement to do Ragtime in the late 70s or early 80s?

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Make Them Die Slowly

Didn't he come out of retirement to do Ragtime in the late 70s or early 80s?

He did now you come to mention it. He was 81.

Second to last film then.

Have you seen it? Is it any good?

Sounds like a musical. Yankee Doodle Dandy showed he could dance with the best of them.

[Make Them Die Slowly]

Originally Posted by Demdike@Cult Labs

He did now you come to mention it. He was 81.

Second to last film then.

Have you seen it? Is it any good?

Sounds like a musical. Yankee Doodle Dandy showed he could dance with the best of them.

I have seen it but it was years and years ago. I only remember how old he looked.

I love his singing and dancing in Footlight Parade where he sings Shanghai Lil...no doubt banned these days for retrospective racism...

[Susan Foreman]

Originally Posted by Demdike@Cult Labs

Yankee Doodle Dandy showed he could dance with the best of them.

Originally Posted by Make Them Die Slowly

I love his singing and dancing in Footlight Parade where he sings Shanghai Lil...no doubt banned these days for retrospective racism...

A little known fact is that when James Cagney made his stage debut as an extra (before he moved into films), he was in a play called "Every Sailor and I" and he spent the entire time in drag as a 'flapper' girl in the chorus

*Second from left in both pictures