jefadlm-1 Reviews

Anna Karenina (1961 TV Movie)

A monochrome spectacular to commemorate BBC first 25 years

[10/10 · 29 February 2024]

Why only one reviewer, this being the 2nd review from me ?! This harks back to 1961 and that in and of itself is pretty amazing !

Why you may ask is that amazing. ? Because they then were then largest and most revered home television production organisation world wide , They clearly wanted to make this production a show case as proof of their production capabilities,! And this Tolstoy choice was considered an extremely difficult production, thereby proving BBC values ! And thank good ness they succeeded in every one of production departments with an eye for detail in every department,,! Wardrobe,, set design, continuity, , lighting and camera as well as clear audio mix , no boom shadows , camera Close ups, long and short etc etc . So in short they proved that with correctly chosen actors and especially the 2 lead characters.this unknown crew and director could succeed with a high quality rendition of one of the most demanding theatrical brilliantly told tragedies from an equally faultless author , In the eyes of western cultural themes , Russian culture, , atmospheres among many other alien sensibilities, enigmatic daily lives lived in a claustrophobia totally unknown , in 1961 to western hemisphere ( or European cultures) brought all those mysteries starkly to our TV screens ! Ms. Bloom and Mr. Connery were both faultless. That said Ms. Bloom was a known safe bet, whereas Mr Connery was a risk which paid off in spades! He as we know succeeded above and beyond and that unique beauty as always in her long illustrious career, visibly relished in that truly delicious , brilliant narrative....

The League of Gentlemen (1960)

A truly valiant attempt.....

[10/10 · 9 January 2024]

From start to conclusion, such a simple solution to future solvency ! Your training is never taken lightly or compromised , We relied on every instruction as ordered without question, ? Or did we .. ? Well i suppose you could say even the best can and the greatest can also err at times? No time or space for any. Weakness will be tolerated, no exceptions. , none , except sometimes ? Military honour was always and remains unequivocal , albeit inflexible ?

If it be your wish to succeed , to progress, to achieve the highest of honours , on the clear understanding of your strict code of honour , never ever lowering oneself to the ugliness of self aggrandisement , and never aloof towards others irrespective of your criticism, of them of which you will not ever allow your self to fall foul. Do not drop your guard, even to close family or friends !

Follow these rules, never ever weaken, except sometimes ?

This film illustrates very accurately the total life's needs for the duration of a well organised mind whilst serving for the best, with the best ..... And finally, I propose a modest salute to Hyde on the evening prior to the 'job' for his modest tribute to the rocking horse , and Randolph Hurst/ Orson 's iconic 'ROSEBUD' That would be most appropriate,, i suggest for the TRiViA section !

The Devil's Brigade (1968)

An unforgivable insult

[10/10 · 3 December 2023]

This movie compared to "The Dirty Dozen". Is sufficiently inexcusably and as such unacceptably far enough to warrant a swift sharp smack where it hurts most ! Utter piffle without any sympathy ! D. D dependant on which version was as similar to oranges are to lemons ! I Both tangy, one sweet the other sour. ! Apart from much else to say, this film (whether accurately or possibly partially not .) depicted the first ever military assault on an enemy (nazis) whereby the gutsy US commander inspired his men to make their assault from a previously impossible and unpassable craggy rocky sheer mountainside that the enemy were clearly acquainted with and falsely confident that no assault could be made with any success ? They had not reckoned with these gutsy US. Men of valor who went down in history as a first of its kind , .

The assault lost countless brave men and secured that mountain for further successful assaults subsequent to their unfailing stoicism and determination.. Bearing in mind the Major General sitting comfortably in Washington had ordered the Commanding officer to withdraw from that area of conflict ! D. D. Eat yer hearts out UGH.....

The Father (I) (2020)

Hugely and honestly informative

[5/10 · 3 December 2023]

This amazingly directorial brilliance is not a normal commercially viable cinema luxurious outing ! ! This truly is more of a documentary graphically describing an awful disease suffered by as many women as men ! Make no mistake here, this production is as much a master class in every cinematic department as it is also a master class in an unforgiving , debilitating masterclass exploding in to every nook and cranny of destructive dementia that is as unforgiving in this expose as it undoubtedly is in real life ! Please do not be put off by this , my review as the sad gruesome fact is, that any of us can suffer these horrendous consequences, whether personally or as a result , in the worst scenario with any of our close relatives, or friends ? All adult viewers can and should give up 97 minutes of your time in order to fully appreciate and understand that any of us at any time in our lives, especially in latter years of life in this day and age. May be can easily be negatively affected thereby unwillingly. Causing family or others close to us with this brutal disease . So, albeit ghastly , viewing this right to the very last image certainly should give every viewer a stark lesson in order to be fully aware before it strikes, which hopefully will educate all if and when you, me or they will be unfortunate to experience what is so starkly mapped out here .

The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943)

A lonely killer of joy !

[5/10 · 1 December 2023]

WOW .Yes even Roger Ebert, and many other great and good folk praised this film without doubt as their favourite of all time , The loved it so much they ran out of praiseworthy descriptions ! And i come along with the cheek of an Anglo Russian Israeli bored to the point of channel changing after 20 minutes ! Production values , sumptuous , delicious stunning glorious Kodachrome painterly colors seeping out of every scene that i did view! The best, the finest of British show business dignitaries adored it and I do agree, Sir Winston, bless him to the rafters thought it would ,have a negative effect on the stoicism and bravery of British and allied troops battling and suffering losses, injuries and morale ? The bottom line was he was very mistaken .? I have not found any proof of allied troops viewing this film on some of their short lived breaks from that bloody conflict ? I dare say at wars end many uk cinemas were packed to capacity viewing this masterpiece !

In short,I found the main point of this film, its humor , frankly un appealing painful dialogue and mundane images lacking in true mirth !

Warriors (1999)

Malevolent lack of morality

[10/10 · 20 October 2023]

All reviews were justifiably accurate as to this docu drama being a brilliant depiction of the greatest accurate account during the time and locations as the wider world witnessed ! I have nothing bur praise for the almost 3 riveting blood curdling hours , beautifully acted, directed and edited .

This , for my part is my (hopefully sufficiently brutal) main title ! For me , as i dare say very likely for others the weasel mouthed body entrusted with their draconian vision of impartiality , sitting in their ivory towers , ensuring exactly what .? That bad people can remain and behave as disgustingly as they wish , towards the children, , elderly women and men without the slightest thought of compassion , or morality. One of the UK soldiers was heard to say " They can row me out of the army " Rules of non engagement palpably showed and encouraged lowest of the low in human kind !

I have never experienced this vicinity in person, only on news items and in this film . I have experienced this fractured, organisation as one of unconcealed corruption ! I have been at the uncomfortable sharp end when due to their blatant dishonesty , they were hounded out of one specific sovereign land ! They ran crying to their weaselly masters who could not alter the facts and therefore have been unwanted/required anathema ever since ! In short,, as opposed to other sovereign countries, they literally encouraged and often even opened fire on a very specific military with clear intent to kill or maim ? According to their own weaselly legal rules they blatantly ignored with the approval of their so called masters !

These descriptions from me are clearly political corruption which they have blatantly used at will !

Woman in Gold (2015)

Above and Beyond , well made truths cannot fail....

[10/10 · 14 October 2023]

The characterizations here are second to none. Casting great actors, admittedly had to live up to Ms Mirren's professional exemplary work.

I have not seen any of the documentaries mentioned by other reviewers ! That said, clearly Mr Curtis clearly had studied, viewed and thoroughly researched this history starting with the original factual history from as early as possible in post war Austria ! He is also an accurate choice bearing in mind his own personal background , The infamous and also the less infamous brothers clearly new what their responsibilities were to strictly adhere to precise historical events as closely as possible whilst not losing site of the need for a well balanced level of dramatic content albeit assuring throughout audience attention ? Sometimes that can prove a daunting task requiring a keen eye and open mind to ignore how to produce, direct , record and light every frame without prejudice , replacing ones professionalism and discarding daily production input, replacing that with the visual aspect of an audience member and their critical perspective ? As influencers in production, we/ the makers must never allow our selves to be sucked in to our own efforts or try to convince ourselves, egotistically that this is wonderful.. no never. That is where one of the many traps of film making that can and if necessary will chew us up and heartlessly spit us out . Many successful productions led to directors , producers and investors losing on later films due very often to overtly exaggerated egos, and one disaster will never be forgiven or forgotten ,! This highly recommended well made film from a now sadly defunct, previously amazing production company, all due to one uncontrollable man of weak character, He had it all, and justifiably suffered, dragging his entire organization to the trash can ! There are a million and one ways to destruction in the film world. Glamorous is only a fantasy to the uninitiated.

7 Days in Entebbe (2018)

A questionable interface ?

[9/10 · 8 August 2023]

This docu style film portrayed the true heroics stoically brave non aggrandizement of the potentially dangerous raid and just as honestly the tensely seen politics involved .? Prime minister Rabin was always a peacemaker accurately seen here with his final fateful line " that we must learn to negotiate " !, He was never a favorite of conflict and continuously. Clashed with the status quo; , which marked him as a coward in the eyes of many ! He died for his country having had some success with the Palestinians , who expressed their gratitude for his tact and diplomacy ! During his tenure there were a number of lengthy non violent rallies and marches by the Palestinians .

He, it was that however reluctantly did publicly shake the hand of Yasser Arafat towards the conclusion of peace talks at Camp David !

To return to the job in hand , the one artfully thoughtful dance and music sequence , albeit a sideline from the immediacy of the narrative, was on the part of the director, really a tipping of his hat with one of the favorite song lyrics in Israeli culture , which in tandem with the spectacularly complicated synchronized modern dance , that was considered by a warm blooded director as wholly appropriate. The final rubbery bodied leg twirling with the permanently on the spot background female running , a final flurry demonstration indicating that the diversify of Israel art and society are not only adaptable and ambitious. In conflict ! Israeli society justifiably, wears its pride of culture clearly on both left and right sleeves, directly from their heart ! Those sequences , unloved by Western/European audiences gave true pleasure to all indigenous viewers , and they unashamedly smiled and laughed with pride....

Burton and Taylor (2013 TV Movie)

Great idea, impossible ambition......

[5/10 · 23 July 2023]

Yup thanks to whoever thought of this. It clearly does not work however accurate the dialogue between them and the valiantly attempted body language was painfully unconvincing from two truly fine highly professional thespians who both strived to convince ?

Minutes prior to accessing this attempt i had for the first time, after all these years watched the truly fabulously produced, filmed and found myself mesmerized by them both in Cleopatra from 1963. As for this BBC attempt i noticed a modest reaction from viewers of a total of 10 not very impressive contributions ! Without having yet checked the number of contributions for Cleopatra, i am only guessing more than 50 minimum and i will check that true number of reactions later , ?

Short and sweet as possible, frankly this BBC attempt is not what i was hoping it would be .?

The Long, Hot Summer (1958)

Faultlessly acted, directed, produced plus cinematically and audio wise....

[10/10 · 25 June 2023]

An outstanding story teller, Martin Ritt, the colours, sets and locations all perfection and obseved as faultlessly as possible. A gripping story, which albeit totally different from O'Neils ' Long days journey ' used a similarly theatrical feel to this narrative !

Compelling story had a powerful feel that this really was a real family and this was how their lives over a short period of their family history.

The dialogue was so well written and absolutely believable . As a Brit , personally i could not criticise any of the southern accents, as for me they were clearly and phonetically accurate. And the audio recordings were all crisply clear for my hearing. That said , I was pleased there were subtitles for accuracy of all the script , which for me is a helpful luxury. At some time i do wish to buy a dvd , with any luck may also have an interview with M R ? I understand he must have been a physically and mentally fearless tower of strength to have dealt with Orson Welles especially re his pre production lesson for Orson to have been taught a gruesome pre production lesson as mentioned in trivia ?

Some brilliant actors, such as Welles undoubtedly was obviously needed certain specifics right before first days filming !

Well done to director showing who is running this show, and well done to Welles who it seems did not complain and accepted his pre movie punishment from the get go ! All of which ensured a fantastic all round movie goers pleasure !

Hummus Full Trailer (2022)

5 narratives x1 film , result useless .....

[2/10 · 24 May 2023]

With the best will in the world , someone whose name escapes me failed to humorously knit together this film !

An abysmal failure on all fronts, standing apart from technical details, lighting, focus, camera angles, acting and sound all aok.

Story wise , very difficult to write good comedy, and or events within the script. A mixed audience in a small theatre with maximum seats of about 55 to 60 ,! That small venue allowed for any groans, sighs or snoring easy to detect . It also allowed for a small group of no more than 7 to 11 audience members occasionally giggling , at about 70 minutes in to this 90 minutes film. Those folk all sat in one or two rows together so easily noticed.. I decided to tough it out to the end , so as to be fair if I wished to review ? As far as i could ascertain, , the problem was the 4 themes which over stretched any possibility of genuine humour ? Actually , now I recall there were 5 strands , all of which needed by films conclusion 7 to 15 minutes before the end, to clash hilariously together, , which they did , albeit not hilariously attempting some sort of vague similarity with straw dogs , and weak attempt at Tarantino (ish) violence .?

Worth a viewing for some, who may get a smidgen of laughs from the story, so do not simply decide due to this review , please make your own minds up, as there are some nuggets of smiles or more if you are in the directors desired frame of mind, humour wise ?

My Neighbor Adolf (2022)

Clever tongue in cheek ,

[10/10 · 24 May 2023]

Light comedy, well paced, cleverly scripted , difficult balance , albeit cleverly written narrative worth every second of an open minded viewers time.

As mentioned by others, ignore the so called professional reviewers , their salaries are controlled by their bosses ,!

Great under stated acting, no real tension, only gentle tense moments and thoughtful characterisations. The ending or finale, is also handled with lots of thoughtfulness and tact. Unique idea, even possible reality , this could have been a true story, albeit not, followed on from the private investigators in the TV documentary .......

The Whistleblower (2010)

A universal issue with International consequences .... !

[10/10 · 19 May 2023]

This factual display of evil at its most stark is a hard one to view, and viewed by a world wide audience it must continue in all its display of human horror.

As a true depiction of what , possibly continues to this day , sickeningly continues unabated ? I personally cannot verify that ? What i can verify is the fact that similar to many, if not most gigantic organizations , with their deep set blatant institutionalized draconian views , do continue to flourish !

That organization has unfortunately influence in every corner of our inhumanely spoiled planet ,! Nothing can always retain perfection, obviously not in an imperfect world , Having spent some years in the middle east i hav personally witnessed how that above ( un named) world wide organization , set up specifically to monitor, advise and guide post 2nd World War independent and some despotic lands, countries to protect indigenous communities from human abuse . The so called unfettered partisan servers in that organization, in addition to their organizations salaries, which would have come from huge countries membership payments , were delighted to receive untaxed or monitored cash sums from their employers, in exchange for permitting internationally banned approved terrorist factions giving them full rights to use forced women, children and any elderly innocents as shields for terrorist gunmen , all known by the non combatants clearly visible in their peace makers uniforms ! These ex Yugoslavian , Marshal Tito folk had been living slightly less criminal existences due to their fear of extreme consequences and punishments from that now dead leader. So, , as another reviewer correctly mentioned, Rachel Weisz should have received a well earned Oscar for her amazing performance , to which i respectfully add well honed emotionality and honesty. Every time i see a film with her presence , i realize. This, is not a fun film in any way, more accurate to regard it as a hugely important slice of the sheer ugliness of our fractured modern world . I am about to watch something and someone really worth every second she appears in every scene.and she does every justice to this excruciating narrative, thereby telling us nothing but the truth in every scene.

Pretty Woman (1990)

Entertainment in every sense of that word.....better than the pirates of Penzance !,!

[10/10 · 1 April 2023]

Romance and business do not usually interface so perfectly as in this sweet, partly cruel, warm hearted believable story !

The 2 main characters feel perfectly matched and thanks to well honed dialogue throughout the story runs as smoothly and convincingly adding up to a faultless final narrative. Added to that, the deftly directed stars are believable in their roles. Entertainment as good as you will find given the correct ingredients , an all round success..Well worth seeing and although over 20 years old now in 2023 , this magic of a truly loved , laughed and teared up warm relationship oozes during every syllable ! Nothing standard here, verging on the romantic , and yet not falling into that trap.

Definitely worth viewing for many times in the future, just to remind me how to direct and produce the best that some films are capable of striving for , which this does as best as is possible .....

Kingsman: The Secret Service (2014)

Beware if your over 50 ish ghastly and boring ......

[2/10 · 31 March 2023]

Oh no thanks to anyone for this right from establishing shots , i had zero sympathy for whoever dies, or lives. I viewed until Michael Caine bored room meeting with rose colored lenses showing a full compliment of participants, politicos and sundry types !

At which point good bye and search for either another channel or a good book to read ? Reviews here seem to be all cinematically wearing rosy tints , such is their unequivocal absolute unconditional pleasure ? Fine, , that said , perhaps over 65 s might find this too lacking in spending their time to view to whatever eventually transpires into more and more ( spelling correct) galumphing bilious nonsense .....

U-571 (2000)

Never say " I can't do that "

[10/10 · 27 January 2023]

Aaron, the first reviewer in 2010 said the English were the first to find Enigma ! Possibly after the last 13 years he may now know that in fact that WW2 Enigma was a German invention, from a gentleman whose idea was to use it for business sales statistics and as no interest was shown, he advertised in a German newspaper which was how that first model fell quite innocently in to the hands of a Polish mathematician and his 2 youn friends, also bright l young lads . One of those 3 spent 3 months modifying it for more sophisticated usage and eventually he somehow in 1933 got the English interested and they realised how it could be an efficient code breaker ! The rest is known history, claimed to have shortened the 2nd WW by 2 years !

U571 , as Aaaron quite correctly states, this is an invented narrative and extremely well produced, acted and no doubt a very challenging film set on which to beautifully weave their fantasy story and a fantastic story it turns out to be worth every minute of suspension, , character portrayal, weaknesses, strengths , hopes and fears, in short every human emotion, good, bad and indifferent all starkly in second by second evidence.. Highly recommended for all its minor glitches or if and when the viewer can spot any overlooked production continuity pop ups ?

The bottom line, lap up the suspense and go with the sea swells and so in short roll with the flow .......

The Razor's Edge (1984)

And who said a comic cannot act sincerely in drama , Versatility and guts , very well done Mr.Bill Murray 10 out of 10 Sir.....

[10/10 · 13 January 2023]

Absolutely as near to perfection as possible in every department ! John Byrum, directing perfection. Lighting, settings, props, continuity, dialogue recording, no lip synchs and no missing inserts , no post synchs either . All in all a tribute must go to Mr. Maugham ,! I have not yet read the book, now inspired to do that ! Added to that, as often happens to me I missed the first 45 minutes , and more credit to John Byrum It was very easy to catch up and thoroughly enjoy the film from that late section. Art director also deserved of a mention from flop house to sumptuous hotel, 5th floor rental , mansion house , awe inspiring snowy mountain scenes through to springy seasonal sunsets, its all there to be lapped up and a veritable feast to behold.

And it all comes neatly wrapped up in comic British snobby bits mixed with a good dollop of intimacy and high drama.

Just let yourselves go, and relish every moment of pure ecstasy .

The Score (2001)

Well worth every accolade , really tense, albeit 20 years remains just as tense.....

[10/10 · 10 December 2022]

Just strides across the screen cleverly directed and cinematically with all techie details in place. And with all that, the striding momentum of the narrative , carefully. Ups the speed of the narrative from scene to scene, leading the viewer with no clue as to a riveting climax! !!

Three brilliant actors , who give this movie all the best characterizations working efficiently as a very believable team.

Impossible to find any acting weaknesses and so it should be with Brando and De Niro and the younger man's excellent portrayal of a physically and unknown psychologically challenged characterization which is performed with believable intricacy throughout.

Nothing of any value can be said in addition to all the following reviews, some of which i dare say can find reasons for negative response ?

The English (2022)

Ok so what ?

[8/10 · 23 November 2022]

Yep i do mean so what ? Yes well produced, yes well acted, yes realistic, yes Ms Blunt puts her heart and soul into this stunning series.

I totally agree with all the truly exquisite descriptions and well deserved accolades. Well done indeed. That said, there is truly nothing new, unique , or different in this repetitive American tough guy versus tough woman and assorted women striving for life and liberty in the vastness of the American 18th century cow pokes, vagabonds , good folk from Europe and violent indigenous folk than any old fashioned monochrome myriad of old fashioned westerns from the 1920s up to less frequent full colour , fast running out of fashion 1970s80s ! Ok i have not viewed the 4th 5th or final episode, because frankly the final reveal referred to in ep. 6 is not worth my time. Who cares, ,clearly not I. For those viewers, I am very pleased they truly enjoyed every second of this superb production ! I am also absolutely sure beyond doubt , had I produced this , I would have been delighted to have so many people appreciate this rendition and worthy, successful attempt by Ms Blunt and her exemplary crew, That said, producers need to work hard , as they did here, in order to achieve their worthy financial returns, which truly good film making is all about !

Dunkirk (2017)

Ditto :::Capturing the spirit (accurately expressed)

[10/10 · 6 August 2022]

The reviewers (one in particular of recent reviews) that complained a QUOTE::lack of characterisations UnQuote seems to have missed the point here ?

All the heroes were clearly seen lying lifeless on the beach , the end also saw the plethora of discarded protective helmets,! Once again, i messed up somewhat as i missed the first 30 minutes or more,, although it was clearly depicted as the horrific disaster without unnecessary sentiments .

That was the whole point, every man for himself including the so called plucky mariners who willingly mucked in and without being asked performed the most amazing feat of heroism imaginable !! The real heroes, none of whom needed any explanation were lucky if maimed, not so if dead , ?

Mr . Branagh made his very short , somewhat unexpected statement at the conclusion of a devastatingly bloody evacuation , end of, no words could possibly describe the inescapable horrifying fear of any nano second one could look round and in a living nightmare suddenly notice one of his arms was missing,, the adrenaline was surging through his body so powerfully he hadn't noticed or felt anything, no pain nothing ! ! Does it make a jot of difference if we know his name, which town or village he lives in, whether he is a farmer or an accountant ? Who and why does anyone need or care to know any of those mundane details ? Until such time (which i do not wish on anyone) as any of you reading this experience war in all its utter and totality of careless life and limb , you can never begin to relate in any shape or form the unnrelentlessness of death and or injury until such time as hopefully as few folk as possible will ever sense , feel , and bleed .? This stunning unforgiving production with all of its obvious limitless production values is not everyones cup of coffee or tea, so my advice , if you are a sensitive soul , avoid this film for its unrelenting true horror.

A Touch of Love (1969)

Ditchwater dull......

[5/10 · 5 August 2022]

I saw the first 7 or so mins. And realising i was due to miss Ian Mckellen who never fails to fill his excellent acting with every sinew of his mind and body.

As Ms. Dennis is the supposed major role here, she reminded me of what i I regard as the ghastly mundane side of 1960s and 70s Brit . Attempts That s to portray characteristic Englishness ! That said Waris Husein is usually an excellent reason to view anything he directed . Unfortunately , not this time !

An indication of good, bad or indifferent films often seems to be indicated by the tiny, or medium sized, or huge.numbers of reviewers ? This one I think has 10 reviews, my opine being the eleventh ! And sure enough it seems those small numbers are in agreement , or rather i am in agreement with them ! I changed channel to Dunkirk with Kenneth Branagh made in 2017 ! That film modestly has I believe over 200 reviews, albeit some viewers were far from satisfied , which is clearly irrelevant for this review? So, "A touch of love" is not an absolute flop, it simply does not reach the heights in 2022 that it may have been enjoyable for its viewers in 1968 or was it 69 ? That said, with all due respects to Mr Hussein, this film has no bite compared to a number of others from those years, "The L. Shaped Room" springs to mind and many others from those earlier years which definitely stands the (sometimes) brutal test of time ! The occasional similarities betwixt and between those 2 films produced within the same time frame is fascinating to observe ? Both love stories, both far apart from each other in my final assessment there are as i have said, many others,, one in particular that was produced in 1947 , which i have already reviewed not only favourably, also as one of the very best conclusions of any film i can recall, apart from most , almost all of Kubricks genius ?

Mr. Perrin and Mr. Traill (1948)

Proof in and of the pudding , I experienced similar times....

[10/10 · 28 July 2022]

This brought back memories, too many anecdotes for this forum! I searched OLD MOROVIANS BOYS SCHOOL unfortunately without success !

Things have changed since those distant post WW2 days. Briefly looking back, it is quite apparent t least to me that a good teacher needs more than the knowledge of her or his subject ? In short in addition to subject matter awareness and confidence ,, they need the talent to inspire , which hopefully would lead a pupil, boy or girl to find the subject being taught, worth paying attention to thereby finding more value doing so as opposed to widow gazing and dozing off into dreamy fantasy land ? That often was my reaction and objection to any study or learning. ! And I was not alone with that negative attitude which i have lived to regret.

So in the film we did see some examples of boys channeling their thoughts to anything but the subject at hand !

This was typical and prevalent within the British school system, also of the 1950s/60s. At this stage in a young girl or boys life, going to school and battling with complications such as parental confusion, puberty and for girls menstruation all lumped together in a morass of daily confusion , none of which received understanding or sympathy , often leading to early pregnancy or early loss of virginity in the irresponsible, frustrated boys. Ok , the era of this film was far too old fashioned to deal with any of this issues ,! And once again, as in some of my previous reviews i have not said enough about this extraordinarily well acted, directed and produced first class story taken from an author i had never previously encountered albeit W. S. Maugham is familiar to me . Strange man that he may have been, in his desire to get the known author of that time all riled up in an attempt to upset him thereby apportioning self aggrandisement ?

An interesting psychological conundrum ? I do highly recommend this film for having all the essential elements of pathos, suspense, a romantic episode, very muted humour and a truly stunning, wholly unexpected finale !

The Running Man (1963)

Good cast Carol Reed Good Director ......

[5/10 · 13 July 2022]

Difficult, maybe it's me thats difficult ? And. Carol Reed was an amzing story teller. This story had potetial and perhaps in 1963 it was very well received .

Sadly some films simply out live their originality and must watchability ! And this is one of those . It simply does not hold ones sleepless attention !

Hence I score it for excellent crew, actors and frankly some valiant acting attempts, which have not lasted the test of time , by 2022 or possibly even an earlier decade, when it started to flag , until such time as the flag ran out of wind ! ? A really unpleasant word for any film ,' boring' .....

A Twist of Sand (1968)

Ho hum

[1/10 · 9 June 2022]

I started viewing this about half way through ! I was also reading a book whilst easily keeping up with the narrative. Only 7 reviews plus me making 8 !!! WOW that about sums up this dull waste of time ! That said Peter Vaughan was interesting to watch , his facial expressions and body language told me more than any of the good cast , wasted on this bloomer ! Not recommended by me........

Suspicion (1941)

Not a Hitchcock fan, usually ?

[10/10 · 27 May 2022]

From the start, this oozed with panache, off hand remarks and perfectly nuanced humour ,! As it took me 79 years before my first viewing , i do feel very glad to have seen this clever uncomplicated mystery plotting its way through numerous ups and downs, twists and turns with for all the other reviewers complaints of the conclusion ,was the final MacGuffin plot! The previous cleverly placed one was the strange slightly Picasso style drawing.

Intensely viewed by the lower rank detective when 2 of them visited Joan Fontaine., another plot subterfuge and consistent wth Hitchcockian humour.

Albeit i have not read all these reviews, i also point out the synchronized dialogue speed which remained throughout with Grant and Fontaine plus occasionally some other other actors , albeit only for some scenes, whereas the 2 main stars were more consistent and that dialogue delivery did give a tense edge to their scenes , sometimes also a jolt of humour ?