High Steaks in Confidentially Connie (1953)

"Holy mackerel." "No, dear. Holy cow." The first time I watched Confidentially Connie in 2016, I couldn't believe that a movie with such a dumb premise could also be endearing. After watching it twice this year, I wouldn't say it's endearing anymore. Entertaining, yes. Much of it is so dated, frozen in the 1950s. The …

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Film diary: Ship of Fools (1965)

"I really wonder if life is as meaningless and stupid as it seems to be on this ship." Such is the depressing viewpoint of Wilhelm Schumann (Oskar Werner), the doctor on an ocean-liner sailing to Germany in 1933. Based on Katherine Ann Porter's novel, Ship of Fools was directed by Stanley Kramer with a screenplay …

Favorite films: Little Women (1949)

It is Christmas Eve once again, so I wanted to write about one of my favorite Christmas films. This adaptation of Louisa May Alcott's novel is my favorite, not least because June Allyson stars as the feisty and irrepressible Jo March. It's usually overlooked compared to the other four. I have not watched the latest …

Film diary: The Petrified Forest (1936)

A couple of months ago, I rewatched one of my favorite movies, The Petrified Forest. I've always wanted to write about it. This is my attempt to capture what I find so extraordinary about it. Originally a stage play, the film feels and looks like it. The action takes place in a diner on the …

Love light gleaming In The Good Old Summertime (1949)

Miklos Laszlo's 1936 Hungarian play Parfumerie has achieved lasting cultural and artistic significance despite being a relatively unknown piece of work. You most likely know it by its other names: The Shop Around the Corner (1940) and You've Got Mail (1998). There's also a Broadway musical, She Loves Me, that premiered in 1963 and has …

Van Johnson’s remarkable ease in Easy to Wed (1946)

Van! Van! Van!: my constant refrain. Easy to Wed is a remake of the 1936 film, Libeled Lady, which starred such heavyweights as William Powell, Myrna Loy, Spencer Tracy, and Jean Harlow. I actually like this version better than the original, but I can only draw favorable comparisons between each cast. Van and Esther Williams …

The magnetic force of Burt Lancaster

TCM’s yearly Summer Under the Stars festival is now underway, with each day in August dedicated to a different star for 24 hours. Today’s star is Burt Lancaster, him of the countless teeth that were usually bared in a jolly or menacing smile; it could even be both at times.  One of his films airing …

Dear Olivia

Dame Olivia Mary de Havilland (July 1, 1916 - July 26, 2020) "Just heard about Olivia. I hope you're doing alright. I love you and I'm thinking of you." That was the text I got from my best friend on Sunday. Instinctively I knew who she meant, but I didn't want it to believe it. …

The Girl Who Stole the Eiffel Tower

  I reviewed Paris When It Sizzles (1964) over on Fairy Hepburn but I have more to say. The movie has such a bad reputation for no reason at all. This is not going to be a nuanced take. Maybe some people find the film enjoyable and flawed, but I'm not one of those people. …