A noir classic directed by Carol Reed, written by Graham Greene, and starring Joseph Cotten (although you wouldn't know it from all the posters) as a down on his luck pulp writer in post-war Vienna trying to solve the mysterious death of his old friend Harry Lime (Orson Welles). Anyone interested in filmmaking really needs to study this one, if only to see what you can really do with light and shadow. Welles' role is really just a glorified cameo, but he's the central focus of many of the film's most iconic moments, including one of the greatest screen entrances of all time.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Robert Redford directed this drama about the quiz show scandal of the 1950s where contestants on shows like Twenty-One, such as well bred literary professor Charles Van Doren (Ralph Finnes), were being given answers by the producers. This is one of those films that just screams “Oscar contender”. Between this and A River Runs Through It, it really did seem like Redford was eager to nab himself another gold statue during the early 90s. It is stylish and well made, full of top calibre actors, and based on real life event, but Redford never quite manages to turn this into the compelling story it could be, and it is difficult to feel invested and sorry for a protagonist who is just a white nepo baby that felt bad about cheating after being caught.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐
Séverine Serizy (Catherine Deneuve) lives an idyllic, but frigid life with her devoted husband in Paris. Too reluctant to share her masochistic fantasies with him, she begins working at a high class brothel under the alias Belle de Jour. Given its reputation, this wasn't nearly as messed up as I thought it would be. Apart from the opening dream, many of Séverine's depraved fantasies are really quite tame, as is her work at the brothel. Her relationship with the various men in her life (her husband, their creepy friend, the obsessive client) aren't nearly as interesting as the one between her and the brothel's madame (Geneviève Page). I think I would've enjoyed this a lot more if that had been the central focus throughout.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐
A pair of master thieves (Melina Mercouri and Maximilian Schell) planning to steal a priceless dagger from the Topkapi museum in Istanbul, recruit a bumbling conman (an Oscar winning Peter Ustinov) to smuggle some of their equipment into the country. Caught at the border, he's forced to spy on the thieves by Turkish security, who think they're terrorists plotting an assassination. A light hearted crime caper that is probably too light-hearted for its own good. Too often it feels like it wants to descend into complete farce, but gets cold feet and tries to act all serious. The theft itself is a great sequence, expertly directed by Dassin, but I found everything before and after it rather frustrating as the Hays Code came into obvious effect and the criminal make increasingly dumb or careless decisions so they'll eventually get caught.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐
Orson Welles' last great film started out as a documentary by François Reichenbach about art forger Elmyr de Hory that Welles was asked to edited, but soon evolved into an extended cinematic essay on art and authenticity when de Hory's own biographer, Clifford Irving, was exposed for his own fake biography of Howard Hughes. Welles uses all this to reflect on his own career of telling lies and tall tales, painting himself as a conman and magician who has one last great trick up his sleeves.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
A young street hustler (Robert Redford) teams up with an experienced conman (Paul Newman) to pull off an elaborate scheme to swindle a fortune out of the gangster (Robert Shaw) who murdered their friend. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid is one of cinema's all-time greats, so it's no surprise that Hollywood would try to recapture that magic, but someone forgot to invite along writer William Goldman so it always feels like The Sting is just missing that one crucial ingredient. Still, there's a lot to enjoy about the film such as George Roy Hill's playful direction, those title cards, the period sets and costumes, the ragtime score full of Scott Joplin music, the wonderful supporting cast, and of course the dynamic duo of Newman and Redford.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Mark Greig has been writing for Doux Reviews since 2011 More Mark Greig
I recently rewatched both Butch Cassidy and The Sting. It had been years, but both of them held up well and I loved revisiting them. I agree completely that Butch Cassidy is the better of the two, but there are some simply wonderful moments in The Sting that made me laugh out loud all over again.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely love The Sting, and I think you have a point, Mark. There's a little bit of distance where you think that nothing really bad is going to happen to them, *not* like Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.. I wonder if that's how I felt the first time I saw it? I can't remember.
ReplyDelete