alicegriffin-02737 Reviews

The Fat Man (1951)

Solid '50s 'B' Mystery

[5 September 2023]

Economy was obviously a concern for Universal and Mark Hellinger. The clip of the man falling to his death is taken right from 'The Spider Woman' (1944) one of Universal's classic Rathbone/Bruce Sherlock Holmes movies.

The second economy was the dress design for Julie London's character (starts at about 26:15). Film noir lovers will instantly recognize it as Kitty's famous evening gown (worn to perfection by Ava Gardner) in Universal's 1947 classic 'The Killers'.

Economies notwithstanding, the solid story and reliable performances (Jerome Cowan (long time Warner Bros. Contract player), Jayne Meadows, and a young Rock Hudson) make this oldie a goodie.

Oppenheimer (I) (2023)

Not Bad, But Not Great

[9 August 2023]

The best first: respectable performances given the script and direction. The best was from Gary Oldman as Harry Truman. No other actor in the film could touch him. What a talent. (Robert Downey, Jr. Tried his best but despite the role of his life in 'Chaplin', he was a caricature.)

Otherwise, mediocre (say 4 out of 10) script and direction. As to the former, every character was given what were supposed to be zingers but 9 out of 10 fell flat. Why does every character need to seem witty? (Wit isn't necessary for every role. Integrity (for the particular role) is what counts.) The writer simply doesn't have it. In fairness, there is no good writing -- for films, at least -- in our time. By contrast, in the halcyon period of American and British cinema of the 1930s to 1950s even potboilers with obvious scenery were well written; probably because in those days screenwriters wrote more. Also, everyone had tight time constraints (three hours is too much time; all was wasted; a great story could have been told in 90 minutes -- or less).

Today writers write too little, directors direct too little, and too much money is spent on things that don't matter. According to titan Bette Davis, great films are made with great scripts and great directors. (Acting need not be great to make a great film.) In our time mediocrity and an overabundance of $ make for waste, including viewers' time and money.

Nothing in this film was worth watching except the five or so minutes Gary Oldman was on screen.

Babylon (I) (2022)

A Few Strong Points But Generally Very Disappointing

[28 December 2022]

To be fair, the title advises the viewer that it depicts Hollywood as irredeemably fetid and evil, and for that reason despite its overlong run and weak script, it is not an awful flick in an age of mediocrity.

As for highlights, the acting was quite good, and I'd expect both Robbie and Smart to receive Oscar nominations. Brad Pitt is solid as a depiction of, essentially, John Gilbert, a leading man of silent films destroyed by talkies. (Another character is an obvious reference to Anna May Wong, and the actress does a competent job despite the character's limitations.) Robbie's character (an uneven depiction of Clara Bow, who left Hollywood and had a family) is unsympathetic: she's a mess when she appears, and it is obvious that success will only encourage her self-immolation.

Much too much time was spent rubbing the viewer's nose in the hedonistic excesses; for example, the opening party scene could -- and should -- have been five minutes. Also unnecessary were the scenes depicting the difficulty of location shoots, they added nothing to the quality and should have been replaced by more illustrations of intrigue and backstabbing.

Not nearly as bad as the average flick these days, but certainly not worth the either the outrageous standard ticket prices (or, sadly, the discounted ones), or the three hour run time.

The Enforcer (1951)

Respectable Post-Golden Era Bogie Vehicle

[24 October 2022]

Anyone looking for a gangster vehicle on the order of 'Angels With Dirty Faces' or 'White Heat' will be disappointed; the script isn't of that caliber. That said, as always, Bogie's charisma makes this formula flick a must see -- for nostalgia. Interestingly, the only other standouts are Bob Steele as a heavy (great to see him and Bogie pointing gats at one another after their meetup in 'The Big Sleep') and Tito Vuolo, doing his Italian immigrant with a big heart routine. There is a twist at the end but not enough to elevate the film to classic status. Everett Sloane, always a bore, doesn't disappoint; he's terribly miscast and one can speculate what someone with a greater talent like Raymond Burr could have offered the viewer. All in all, worth seeing and better than 90% of today's blockbusters.