Shilpot7 Reviews

Play for Today: 84, Charing Cross Road (1975) Season 6, Episode 4

Very disappointing

[1/10 · 24 October 2016]

I found this to be a very plodding dramatisation of '84 Charing Cross Road' - interspersed with amazingly boring & obvious news footage from the times, as it went along.

I had been very interested in seeing it after Helene referenced its production in one of of her books.

It's a few years now since I watched it, but I remember being quite aggravated by its tediousness.

So if you, like me, have also read about this television play and feel frustrated in not being able to see it, I'm here to tell you you've missed nothing.

The Fabulous Baker Brothers (2012– )

Exhausting To Watch

[25 October 2014]

Isn't cooking FANTASTIC....WOW!

TURN UP THE ROCK'N'ROLL!!!!!

I think the food they cook looks very good but this show is so exhausting to watch while we're constantly forced to believe that cooking is SOOOO UNBELIEVABLY COOL & FANTABULOUS....all the film cutting, the grinning, the teeth flashing, the loud raunchy music, the slinging the food around and forced ENTHUSIASM wears thin after about three minutes. In fact, it's exhausting.

I think these obviously very talented cooks undermine themselves with this rock'n'roll food show. Maybe they can come back and do a cookery show for grown-ups that focuses more on their food than their teeth...and maybe in the meantime they can turn down the 'in yer face' raunchy soundtrack.

Smashing Time (1967)

Cult Movie Sadly Unloved in its Own Time

[10/10 · 1 August 2012]

This film is the personification of London in the swinging '60s.

Two clumsy girls come down from the North of England, in search of the 'Swinging London scene' they've read so much about in their teen mags.

After much tomfoolery, they 'make it'.

Yvonne played by Lynn Redgrave makes it as a pop star and her mousey friend, Brenda (Rita Tushingham) becomes a top model, adorning the covers of all the top glossy fashion magazines.

Unfortunately, it takes quite a while for things to happen, also, unfortunately, there are too many overly long, unfunny slapstick-pie- throwing scenes before the the action really takes off, but it's worth the wait.

From the moment Yvonne goes into the studio to cut her first hit single, the film starts to fly.

The clothes, the cars, the energy, the excitement of that fleeting moment when London was the coolest place on earth are captured here more than in any other film made at the time. Although the film set out to mock the era, almost unintentionally it caught Zeitgeist, unlike the many other films of the time, that tried so hard to capture what was going on and fell flat on their faces.

Smashing Time was supposed to have been made in 1966 at the height of the Swinging London madness, but it was delayed and delayed, it was finally released in early 1968, by which time people had become very jaded with the notion of 'the swinging city'. Things moved very fast back then. What was in in '66 was very old hat by '68 and the film flopped only to be rediscovered many years later. It now has quite a following and it warrants the retrospective love it gets.

A top notch DVD with tons of extras is long overdue, so the young generations of the past, present and future can have a good look at what '60s London was really like.

A Touch of Love (1969)

Worth your attention.

[8/10 · 28 March 2011]

Gentle film based on the Margaret Drabble novel of several years earlier, entitled, The Millstone.

Ros is an academic virgin doing her thesis at some unnamed university. One night she makes love to a campy television presenter played by Ian McKellen and falls pregnant. After much thought, she decides to keep the baby.

Luckily her rather cold parents have left London for Africa, so she has the run of their large mansion flat off Baker Street and she invites her friend, played by Eleanor Bron, to move in. This adds some life to the proceedings. Bron even rents a TV to bring some light to their gloomy flat, it also gives Ros a chance to catch brief glimpses of the father of her child, who she temporarily becomes mildly obsessed with.

The film is really about a young woman who grapples with the problems of having a child out of wedlock at a time when this was socially difficult.

It's sensitively made. Sometimes quite lifeless. There are some very nice shots of London, mostly around Marylebone. It's quite atmospheric and is the sort of gentle film that in the 70s would have been a rather good one-off TV play. The sort that are sadly no longer made. Middle Class, well spoken, Londoners are now forbidden territory for TV or cinematic dramas in 'Classless Britain'.

Made in 1969, but don't expect 'Swinging London'. Ros, played, rather well by Sandy Dennis, who affects a very good English accent, is what back then would have been considered a 'square'. No Donovan singles in Ros's record collection or Saturday afternoons along the King's Road. More a case of violin recitals at The Wigmore Hall and matronly outfits from Fenwick's.

The film is now available on an excellent quality DVD.

It's well made, well shot, well acted, somewhat lifeless at times, but what's good about it adds up to make this into a film well worth watching.

He Who Rides a Tiger (1965)

Very Classy 'B' Movie.

[8/10 · 12 January 2011]

One night, a notorious cat burglar, just out of prison, is driving through the woods of suburban Surrey, surveying a grand property for a future heist, when he's hailed down by a young woman who has missed the local late night bus.

He drives her back to London and then pursues her.

Judy Dench plays the young woman, Joanne, a gentle, single parent of a boy, born out of wedlock (in the days when this was still a social issue). Her son attends a local orphanage where she helps out in exchange for his education. Peter Rayston, played by Tom Bell, is the handsome, edgy criminal with a kind heart who pursues her.

Initially, Joanne, is reluctant to get involved with this man who tries to woo her with his stolen fortune. Then she falls for him and the love story begins.

Shot in black & white and much of it at night. This is both a crime drama and a sensitive tale of a love in spite of itself. The film isn't quite a classic, more a classy B movie, but the cast are superb and its gentle message is memorable and effectively told.

Made just before London really started swinging, shot in a very grainy black & white, it would have already looked old fashioned by 1967. But it is still well worthy of a DVD release.

A Bigger Splash (1973)

Celia! Celia! Celia!

[7/10 · 25 October 2010]

This film is a snapshot of Hockney's life in London in the early 70s.

It's often unintentionally funny. The talk is mostly so boring, but that's often the case as artists express themselves through images, not words. They're rarely fascinating to listen to. Read or listen to any Hockney interview today and it's just as unimpressive.

I guess the homosexual love making and the male nudity was quite avant-garde in its day and of course naked young men hanging around swimming pools in LA is what was on Hockney's mind and canvases back then.

I enjoyed the snapshot of the Portobello Road area of London at that time and the New York locations.

The dialogue is unintentionally hilarious....sort of: 'Are you going to New York, David?' 'I might go, I prefer L.A.'

'Why don't you invite,Celia (Birtwell)? to go to New York, David?' 'I might, but she doesn't like it there, she prefers stylish people. She likes nice clothes. I don't particularly notice them.'

& again, later... 'Will you stay in New York, David?' 'I might, but I don't think I will. I prefer L.A.'

But the film does capture what it sets out to capture. David Hockney's life and work and personality (if that's not too strong a word), circa 1972.

The fast forward button is definitely your friend during the particularly long and draggier sections.

That Cold Day in the Park (1969)

Better Forgotten

[2/10 · 23 October 2010]

I was really expecting more from this.

It's incredibly and annoyingly slow, as opposed to interesting and sensitively so.

It's very dumb. A woman invites a boy she sees sitting in the rain, in a park, into her home and for days he pretends to be mute and she accepts it and him, without even trying to make any other form of communication.

There's zero humor. I know it's meant to be a thriller, but the odd light moment would really have helped. The performances are wooden. The direction clumsy.

In many ways this is more like a play (a bad play). Very little location. Very little movement. So don't expect to see much of Vancouver circa 1968.

No one says anything even vaguely interesting and the final 'twist' if that's what you call it, is so predictable that it's almost a surprise.

I did like the sweet Johnny Mandel theme that played during the early scenes, very much. Otherwise I can think of nothing else to recommend it.

Only When I Laugh (1981)

Awful

[1/10 · 24 September 2010]

Marsha Mason, Neil Simon and the subject matter, drew me to this film, but it's quite dreadful and I was unable to finish watching it, even though I'd paid for an expensive, out of print, VHS.

It's like a rather boring made for TV movie of the time. It's a film that handles tender issues without love. The characters are clichéd and lightweight. A little bit like watching a movie length version of some 80s-style no brainer like Hart To Hart.

I felt quite angry with the person who recommended it to me in the same breath as other great films of the era. So, I thought I'd come online and warn others, before they made the same mistake and paid good money to see it.

The Pursuit of Happiness (1971)

Better than you'd probably expect

[7/10 · 24 September 2010]

A lot of the films about disaffected youth in America produced at the end of the 60s and the beginning of the 70s were very clichéd and cheaply made by people who really didn't know anything about the subject. They were often clumsily and quickly made to cash in on the period's 'youthquake'.

This is not entirely the case here, though it does have its clumsy clichéd moments. By and large, this film was sensitively executed, about a Columbia student, from an old and wealthy New York family, who accidentally knocks down and kills a woman with his car on a very rainy night and where the tragedy leads him.

Michael Sarrazin is good to look at, as his girlfriend played by Barbara Hershey and he turns in an honest and tender performance. The plot is quite thin but the sensitivity and reasonable depth of many of the various performances, notably by his gentle father (Arthur Hill) and bigoted grandmother (Ruth White), give it substance. It's definitely worth watching.

Girlfriends (1978)

Charming Period Piece.

[8/10 · 12 June 2010]

The central figure, played by Melanie Mayron, is a photographer sharing a large funky apartment on the Upper West Side of New York with her best girlfriend. The girlfriend suddenly decides to get married to someone she's only recently met & this seems to throw our main character into a period of soul searching. Who is she without her best friend? Can she handle the loneliness? The jealousy?

This film reminds me a lot of the Eric Rohmer films of the 70's & 80's...stylewise, it's very stark. Nothing much happens. But it's the ordinariness of the characters that seems to draw us in. In some ways, this film is too stark...so plain are the cast, so grey is the scenery & sometimes, so mundane the dialogue. But 'Girlfriends' has a warmth & a charm that has always made me remember it. To add to this, the film now has the look and feel of another era, the late 70s, which is now interesting to look at in retrospect.

Fans of 'Thirtysomething', who enjoyed Melanie Mayron's character, Melissa, will especially like this film. There are a number of parallels between the two characters. She alone with her warm smile, crooked teeth and mass of wild hair, brings enormous humanity to the proceedings.

An Unmarried Woman (1978)

New York In The Late 70s Time Capsule

[8/10 · 26 May 2010]

It's very interesting reading the other reviews to this film. The reactions to it are very extreme. Some people love it. Some people hate it and that was exactly the reaction people had to it back in 1978 when it first came out.

The mid to late 70s was New York's era as the 'fashionable city' in the days of fashionable cities. NYC took the torch from Swinging Sixites London as the city every fashionable person wanted to go to, live in, know... It was the 'Disco' capital of the world. It was where the most interesting films were set. It where all the happening artists lived and Unmarried Woman caught the zeitgeist of that time. Even jogging was a new phenomenon back then and NY lead the way with it and 'everyone' wanted to know what people were up to there, even about the jogging. If you'd never been to NYC you were missing out. If you had been to NY and or knew NY, back in 1978, you bragged about it. While at the same time the city was officially broke and in many ways seemed to be crumbling into the sea.

Unmarried Woman was a product of all this fascination, both negative and positive, with the city at the time. Trivial details about life in NY had a sort of cachet. Therefore, on reflection, what may seem trite to viewers today, had a strange sort of value back then.

Some people sneer at Erica's seemingly privileged position in society. How dare she be so miserable, have you seen where she lives? Well, guess what, wealthy women also feel sad when they are rejected by their husbands for a younger model. And guess what, some people like to look at the lives of people who live in beautiful apartments with views of the river and whizz downtown in yellow cabs on bright New York mornings. In fact it's the contrast between the material privilege and the sadness and loss that makes this film work.

Some people are also alarmed by the strong, upfront musical score. Sorry about that. Music in the 70s was strong and upfront in our lives, not just background noise. The wailing saxophone was the pop instrument of the time and the excellent, very 70s soundtrack, is one of the aspects that make watching this film such a powerful, nostalgic and enjoyable ride.

Unmarried Woman does have its flaws. It is at times somewhat simplistic and personally, I'm not so sure that newly unmarried woman, Erica, was as much of a catch as we're made to believe. Every man she meets seems to fall at her feet.

This is very much a film of its time and a very interesting time and place it was. I wish they still made films like this today, about adults, for adults, with strong subtle performances, without both eyes on the cash register and without some dreary, over-exposed, under talented box office 'star' drudging her way through her lines. There was something very adult and sophisticated about American cinema in the 70s and Unmarrried Woman takes its place in the long list of films that were a part of that.

The film was beautifully shot, beautifully scored, excellently acted and I'm glad it's now available for us to see, as a reminder of a short but memorable time and place.

Jenny (1970)

It's...OK

[6/10 · 26 May 2010]

Strange little movie made in New York, in 1969. Almost feels like a film student's graduation piece. Sometimes the sound is terrible or the inappropriate soundtrack drowns out the dialogue. Another disappointment is that there isn't much location or atmosphere, so you really don't get the feel of the time or the place, which is often the fun aspect of seeing films of this period.

But the character development is good. The characters grow on you in an intriguing way. It's the sort of movie that's nice to catch on TV on a wet Sunday afternoon and the sort of movie they should run on wet Sunday afternoons but for some reason remains in the archives forever.

If you like Marlo Thomas and or Alan Alda, it's interesting to see them in their youth. Sometimes their performances seem wooden, partly due to the often poor direction, other times quite sensitive and as I said, intriguing. I'm glad I watched it.

The Only Game in Town (1970)

Better With Age

[8/10 · 25 October 2007]

I recorded this off of the TV years ago & I must say I really like it more as the years go by.

When I first saw it about 25 years ago I didn't get it at all & was very disappointed by the cheap setting etc...it felt very much like a filmed play.

But now I really appreciate it as very sensitive film about two lost people who find each other at lonely points in their lives & hook up to conquer the boredom and loneliness, take each other for granted and then realise they actually love each other.

Liz could be a very sensitive, emotional & witty performer. She's often at her best in little movies and I think this is one of her most touching and emotional performances. She gives this picture wit and soul which make up for the cheaply put together locations.

Warren Beatty, who I usually find quite 'blah,' is also good as the guy with a gambling habit who falls for a lonely dancer.

The Counterfeiters (2007)

A Brand New Classic

[10/10 · 14 October 2007]

I don't go to the cinema much these days. Even sitting through the previews before I saw this I was beyond bored, even though Meryl Streep was in two of them, even she's in boring rubbish these days.

But, 'The Counterfeiters' is classy stuff. The Austrians (as well as The Germans) are excellent at making period films (masters at detail) & when they handle the subject of The Holocaust, the few things I've seen, have been superb.

Everyone's good in this. The lead is hypnotic.

If the subject of The Holocaust interests you, don't hesitate seeing this. It's a very good film indeed. It's nice to see something brand new that you can confidently call a classic.

David (1979)

Jewish Survival In Nazi Germany...Very Emotive & Atmospheric

[8/10 · 26 February 2007]

I originally read the very good autobiography 'David' and was then inspired to track down this movie.

Made in 1979, therefore quite early for feature films that explore the subject of The Holocaust.

It's also a German film, with English subtitles which immediately gives it a power and resonance. When originally released it did very well in Germany & won at least one major award at Berlin.

'David' is about a young Jewish man, who manages to survive the war actually living in hiding in Berlin (Jews who hid in Nazi Germany were nicknamed 'submarines')...while he witnesses and suffers his family's deportation, one by one.

The narrative is strangely disjointed at times...but the film is made so sensitively, understatedly & powerfully that it doesn't seem to matter. The period detail is so accurate and the relationships are deeply formed. The charming understated soundtrack also adds depth and poignancy.

If the subject of The Holocaust interests you, I wouldn't hesitate recommending you track this film down.