First time at the rodeo: The Lusty Men (1952)

Nicholas Ray's The Lusty Men shares traits with some of his finest films; it's tough, bleak, tender, and unexpectedly poetic. The devastation of this one film is swift and total. It's one of the films being shown as part of Susan Hayward's 24 hour marathon for Summer Under the Stars. Indisputably one of the greatest …

Dean Martin at 100: Ada (1961)

  Dean Martin was nicknamed the King of Cool, and quite rightly too. Although the former Dino Paul Crocetti of Steubenville, Ohio (the late, incredibly great Don Rickles was not impressed!) is best known for his laid back, easy breezy style and Rat Pack membership, his talents as an actor are overlooked. There will be …

On the edge: Susan Hayward in Smash-Up: The Story of a Woman (1947)

There's a moment in Smash-Up: The Story of a Woman when Angie (Susan Hayward) glares at her reflection, so consumed with guilt and self loathing that her gaze is piercing enough to shatter the glass. The mirror never breaks though. Angie just gazes stonily at the sodden woman looking back at her. It's her, not the …