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Topic:
Guilty As Charged: Super Sexy Thrillers: Now Disc. "9 1/2 Weeks" (1986)
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
2/26 7:16am
Subject:
RE: Guilty As Charged: 21 Great Crime Thrillers: Now Disc. 15. "DOA" (1949)
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Next: "The Big Sleep" (1946)
"The plot of this Philip Marlowe case is so complex that even Raymond Chandler didn't know who committed one of the murders — and he wrote the damn thing. Still, with Humphrey Bogart as Marlowe and Lauren Bacall as a dangerous dame, what's not to love?"
As originially released, the plot makes no sense whatsoever. The melancholy tone, though, is perfect, and the case excellent.
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
2/28 7:20am
Subject:
RE: Guilty As Charged: 21 Great Crime Thrillers: Now Disc. 14. "The Big Sleep"
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1. "The Maltese Falcon" (1941)
"John Huston's adaptation of the Dashiell Hammett tale pretty much invented the detective movie as we know it. Humphrey Bogart is a model gumshoe as Sam Spade, whose pursuit of his partner's killer leads him into a web of murder, greed, international intrigue, and one of the most colorful collections of villains ever put on film."
Low key, cynical and with ye almost perfect cast, John Huston wrote and directed this very entertaining template film noir. Bogart is not likeable here, and hooray for that.
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soitscometothis
Registered:
Jul '03
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Date Posted:
2/28 8:20am
Subject:
RE: Guilty As Charged: 21 Great Crime Thrillers: Now Disc. 1. "The Maltese Falcon" (1941)
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"The Big Sleep" (1946): Great movie. Bogart and Bacall are as great togther as always, and the dialogue is sharp, though the plot is confusing. Classic.
"The Maltese Falcon" (1941): This is one of my favourite movies. The plot, the dialogue, the cast... sheer magic. Five stars in all areas as far as I'm concerned.
Bogart is iconic as the cynical prive-eye Sam Spade, while Sydney Greenstreet (in his film debut)is a wonderful Kasper Gutman, who's wordy affability masks a murderous ruthlessness. Mary Astor as Brigid O'Shaughnessy is a woman you wouldn't trust to tell you the time of day, and Peter Lorre gives the type of performance only he could give.
They really don't make movies like this anymore.
-----signature-----
I am not an eel popsicle. Art: http://boards.theforce.net/Fan_Art/b10020/17816752/?21 Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity
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Jango10
Registered:
Sep '02
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Date Posted:
2/28 1:06pm
Subject:
RE: Guilty As Charged: 21 Great Crime Thrillers: Now Disc. 1. "The Maltese Falcon" (1941)
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Maltese Falcon is a great film, and like what was said earlier, basically invented the detective film as we know it.
-----signature-----
"I love the smell of Napalm in the morning."
McCain/Palin '08
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
3/8 7:34pm
Subject:
RE: Guilty As Charged: Great Crime Thrillers: Now Disc. 1. "The Maltese Falcon" (1941)
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We've had EW's 25 best Crime Thrillers, now here's Moviefone's:
"Blue Velvet"
"Most crime thrillers wouldn't feature such brain-searing moments as Isabella Rossellini naked and shaking, Dean Stockwell lip-synching a Roy Orbison song, and Dennis Hopper inhaling amyl-nitrate like it's his job. Then again, David Lynch is anything but normal -- and we raise our Pabst Blue Ribbons in heartfelt thanks."
I want to see this, but haven't been able to snag a copy.
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JohnWesleyDowney
Registered:
Jan '04
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Date Posted:
3/8 8:14pm
Subject:
RE: Guilty As Charged: Great Crime Thrillers: Now Disc. 25. "Blue Velvet"
- Date Edited:
3/8 8:16pm (1 edits total)
Edited By:
JohnWesleyDowney
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One of Lynch's best films...there's actually a semblance of a story! Lynch grew up in a small town just like Lumberton, all-American, middle class, sunshine. But he's intrigued by the dark underbelly of crime, violence and sexual sickness lurking below the surface and man does he deliver the goods here. Dennis Hopper's performance is off the scale in terms of depravity and is a true monster. The lead character played by Kyle McLachlan is clearly a version of Lynch onscreen who loses his innocence in more ways than one. If you're an adventurous movie fan who is not afraid to try something very offbeat and at times extremely unsettling, this is the movie for you.
IIRC Lynch got his second Academy Award nomination for his direction of this film.
The after effect of Blue Velvet is very very much evident in Lynch's TV series, Twin Peaks. Twin Peaks is almost a PG sequel to the feature Blue Velvet.
The Bobby Vinton song Blue Velvet is used to haunting, remarkable effect in this film. The beautiful robe that forms the backdrop for the opening credits and is worn by Isabella Rossellini adds to the melancholy atmosphere. Miss Rossellini was Lynch's girlfriend at the time, and there was much controversy about the performance that he demanded from her. I will say this, she's a gutsy actress to go this far!
Interesting sidenote about this film. I got to interview Mrs. Roy Orbison one time for a radio program, and she said her late husband was adamantly, vehemently opposed to having his song IN DREAMS used in this film. Apparently Orbison had read the script and thought it was absolutely nothing he wanted to be associated with. But apparently Lynch somehow managed to get the rights to use the song anyway, going over Orbison's head, and ignoring his strenuous objections. Well, ho ho ho. The movie came out and focused so much attention on Orbison he enjoyed a HUGE career resurgence. His old song being used was priceless exposure. One of the best things that ever happened to Roy Orbison. Funny how things sometimes work out in life, eh?
I own a DVD copy of this one, and I showed it to a friend one night, and when he left he was pretty frazzled. I don't think he was expecting what he saw. Lynch takes you places. About half an hour after leaving, my friend called me on his cellphone and said he could NOT get the song Blue Velvet out of his head after watching the movie. I know what he means.
-----signature-----
How many movies do you think Industrial Light and Magic has worked on? WRONG. http://www.ilm.com/ilm_services.html "Films fulfill an unconscious spiritual desire that human beings have to share a common memory." - Martin Scorcese
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
3/9 12:02am
Subject:
RE: Guilty As Charged: Great Crime Thrillers: Now Disc. 25. "Blue Velvet"
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Next: "The Killing"
"Stanley Kubrick's racetrack heist flick is the sort of movie that is shown to film students who have little to no expectations for it, but leave the lecture halls 85 minutes later wowed (not to mentioned enlightened). Its conventional setup is a ruse: This is one of the most innovative films of its time."
Try TCM.
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
3/10 7:39am
Subject:
RE: Guilty As Charged: Great Crime Thrillers: Now Disc. 24. "The Killing" (Stanley Kubrick)
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Next: "Blood Simple"
"The setup is so simple -- rich man hires P.I. to clip his cheating wife and her lover -- but what follows is anything but. It involves one corpse after another, and it's bloody brilliant. It was our introduction to the Coen brothers' genius, and remains one of their best works."
Their first movie suffers from an insufficient actor--John Getz--in a major role, but is otherwise a good example of noir.
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
3/11 7:20am
Subject:
RE: Guilty As Charged: Great Crime Thrillers: Now Disc. 23. "Blood Simple"
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Next: "The Fugitive"
"One of the best films ever made from a TV series, 'The Fugitive' boasts a perfect blend of suspense, action and righteousness (he didn't kill his wife!). But what makes this movie tick is the dynamic between Tommy Lee Jones and Harrison Ford, who get our vote for the most adorable cop-fugitive couple in movie history."
The plot does not hold up, but the cast makes up for much.
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
3/12 6:31am
Subject:
RE: Guilty As Charged: Great Crime Thrillers: Now Disc. 22. "The Fugitive"
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Next: "Cape Fear" (1962)
"Sure, De Niro creeped us out in Martin Scorsese's remake, but the '62 Gregory Peck original is still the one to watch. Robert Mitchum menaces as Max Cady, while Peck and family are archetypal "good" folk. A young-looking Lori Martin as the preteen daughter makes the interplay between her and Cady positively shocking."
Don't bother with the remake, Scorsese or no. The original is better, because Mitchum could give DeNiro creepy lessons.
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
3/13 7:19pm
Subject:
RE: Guilty As Charged: Great Crime Thrillers: Now Disc. 21. "Cape Fear" (1962)
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Next: "Body Heat"
"Something strange happened in 1981: In between 'Escape from New York' and 'Taps' came a return to a genre 40 years young. This noirish yarn was based on the same news story as 'Double Indemnity,' but given a contemporary makeover, with passionate turns from William Hurt and Kathleen Turner."
Yes, yes, but. A noir needs to be reimagined, not replicated. "The Usual Suspects" is a *real* modern noir. "Body Heat" is just pretending. Comes briefly to life when a very young Mickey Rourke shows up.
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
3/14 8:33pm
Subject:
RE: Guilty As Charged: Great Crime Thrillers: Now Disc. 20. "Body Heat" (1981)
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Next: "Dial M For Murder"
"Ray Milland is always suave -- even when he's profoundly diabolical, as he is in this '54 suspenser, one of Alfred Hitchcock's pairings with the sublime Grace Kelly: she, an adulterous moneyed wife to Milland's conniving murderous hubby. It's one of Hitchcock's go-to themes: familial treachery (see also 'Strangers on a Train')."
Just try to figure out the plot, though.
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
3/15 11:21am
Subject:
RE: Guilty As Charged: Great Crime Thrillers: Now Disc. 19. "Dial M For Murder"
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18. "Eastern Promises"
"David Cronenberg's gloriously unconventional film explores what it means to be a man whose business is the hurting -- and sometimes destroying -- of others. Viggo Mortensen is exceptional as a morally conflicted Russian mob enforcer, and his already legendary nude steam-room fight gives new meaning to the term "balls-out brawl."
I'd like to see this.
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Rogue1-and-a-half
Title: Manager: Amphitheatre
Registered:
Nov '00
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Date Posted:
3/15 11:31am
Subject:
RE: Guilty As Charged: Great Crime Thrillers: Now Disc. 18. "Eastern Promises"
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Let me just give high, high praise to The Killing; it's still one of Kubrick's best, before he went over the edge with emotional sterility. Sterling Hayden and Elisha Cook, Jr are both absolutely astounding and the ending is utterly nihlistic.
Many great films mentioned in this thread, but The Killing is often overlooked.
Also, DOA is actually a pretty crap movie; Tiomkin's score is absolutely awful and the actress who plays O'Brien's fiancee is about the worst actor I've ever seen in a mainstream 'classic' film. It's a great gimmick and the ending is a good one, vengeance meted out in darkened office building with absolute brutality, but other than that, give this one a miss.
-----signature-----
I never saw a wild thing sorry for itself.
A small bird will drop frozen dead from a bough
Without having ever felt sorry for itself.
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solojones
Registered:
Sep '00
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Date Posted:
3/15 12:43pm
Subject:
RE: Guilty As Charged: Great Crime Thrillers: Now Disc. 18. "Eastern Promises"
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I want to see Eastern Promises but haven't had the opportunity yet.
-sj loves kevin spacey
-----signature-----
6 x 9 = 42 Proud member of the Colbert Nation  Obi-Wan Kenobi and Obi-Wan Kenobi in Ghost Ship Executor All Hail Cliegg's Blue Leg!
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