Change Your Image
df-haley17
Reviews
Despicable Me 3 (2017)
Consider for whom the film is meant
I saw this film with my nine year-old granddaughter. I had not seen any of its predecessors and was not familiar with the characters or their histories. I quite enjoyed it.
At the end my granddaughter told me that she had really enjoyed seeing the film. It was better than the other three ("Despicable Me","Despicable Me 3" and "The Minions Movie"), easily the funniest.
For a film such as this what is the most important reaction to consider ? It is that of the target audience. One's own verdict must be guided by that.
The highlight for myself - the Minions performing Gilbert and Sullivan !
Pillow Talk (1959)
The Birth of the "Romantic Comedy"
I saw "Pillow Talk" again yesterday after a gap of many years. It was, and remains, amusing and witty. It was not meant as a broad, "laugh out loud" comedy but there are elements of that in it.
It is interesting to compare it, as a film which, undeniably, falls within what is now recognized as the genre of "romantic comedy", with current and recent movies which have established that as a recognizable genre. The problem with most of the latter is that they take themselves too seriously (e.g. "27 Dresses"), so that some of them actually fall out of the genre into "drama with comic elements" ("Dan In Real Life"). "The Holiday" was a good exception, however.
I do not think that "Pillow Talk" would have been seen as part of a genre when it appeared. Indeed, its impact (five Oscar nominations, including one award) would suggest that it was seen as something different from the witty comedies involving couples whose relationship would develop into a romance that had, of course, appeared ever since the 1930s (cf. such diverse films as "I Married A Witch", "His Girl Friday" and "Sabrina").
The Doris Day-Rock Hudson pairing occurred three times but Doris extended the concept in several other films over the next eight years. These films may be seen as having established the benchmark for the genre. Certain other pairings attempted to introduce themselves but none with the same success - Paul Newman/Joanne Woodward ("A New Kind Of Love"), William Holden/Audrey Hepburn ("Paris When it Sizzles"), Bobby Darin/Sandra Dee ("That Funny Feeling"). The latter pairing did appear in the more successful "Come September" but they were the second leads to Hudson and Gina Lollobrigida. (Interestingly, I have just seen, in checking this, that it was written by the scriptwriters of "Pillow Talk".)
Therefore, one may draw the conclusion that "Pillow Talk" was both influential and, almost by definition, one of the best of its type. Why the does it have "only" a 7 from me ? One explanation is that I seem to mark less highly than many other contributors. (I see a 6 as "quite good"). Another reason is that I would, if I could, place it as 7.5 (which equates with the IMDb rating). Perhaps another explanation is that I have not seen any of these films for many years and that it is desirable to leave scope for their potential to be that bit better. Although the trailblazer will usually be the best of its type (e.g. "The Magnificent Seven"), that is not always the case and I have noted that some contributors prefer the later ones.
Finally, I can not leave this film without mentioning the invaluable contributions from the supporting players, in particular of course Tony Randall and Thelma Ritter. The impact of the film owes as much to them as to the stars, in the sense that it widens the area which the comedy covers. It still, however, remains grounded in real life and characters whom one could imagine meeting (cf. the "Road" pictures). Therein perhaps lay the root of its difference when released at the end of the 1950s.
The Atomic Submarine (1959)
Completely forgotten - or did they not care ?
I saw this film for the first time a few hours ago. I had not heard of it previously. Although my impression of it is not as favourable as that of most of those who have posted user comments, that may be explained by the fact that I am not a science fiction fan as such. I am happy to watch such films but I take them as I find them.
The point which I wish to make here, though, concerns something which is not in the film. Is it an omission or is it something which no one thought to be of any importance ?
Lt. Milburn was killed in the fight against the alien invader - "a casualty of war". It is of course clear that the film endorses the position that men in the services must put their lives at risk in the service of their country (or, indeed, as here, the world). However, the film has established Lt. Milburn as the only member of the crew to be seen to have a wife. Not only that, she is expressly described as "the mother of my three children." Despite this, there is no acknowledgement at all, either at the conclusion of the battle, or at the end of the film, that Mrs. Milburn has been left as a widow with three (undoubtedly young) children to raise.
I do not expect a discussion of pension rights and entitlements. What may legitimately be expected, I would say, is some reference to the human cost of what has been depicted in the film, as well as the conclusions as to defence and the need for vigilance which are the film's primary messages.
Master Spy (1963)
Compelling British low budget feature film
I saw this film yesterday morning. I like British low budget, (usually) black and white films from the 1950s and 1960s so I made the effort to ensure that I was available to watch it. Not only was I not disappointed; it turned out to be one of the best of its type.
The plot was very full, with plenty of twists and turns. I will not say what these are, but suffice it to say that they make for a very satisfying concept when one reflects on the film.
The conceptual basis for the story is interesting. It shows how two elements of life in the 1960s had come to the fore. One is the concept of spying and the other is the prominence of science and scientific research. "The white heat of the technological revolution", in Harold Wilson's phrase from that year's General Election campaign. One may conclude that the film was up to date in that sense. (The film "Ring Of Spies", made in the previous year, dealt with these themes from a different aspect.)
A few points arise from the milieu and setting. One is that, in contrast to what was to become a common suggestion/complaint a few years later, there is no sense that it is unusual to have women in senior positions in the research team; indeed, quite the contrary. The other is that several of the characters are shown smoking, regularly. Should there ever be a film suggested that would deal with this subject and this period, the makers will need to bite this particular bullet in the interests of accuracy.
An incidental fact, but one which identifies the film as very much of its period, is the style of spectacles worn by both June Thorburn and the senior civil servant's secretary. This "fashion" style, with prominent rims, belongs almost exclusively to the early and mid-1960s.
Turning to the cast, there is a good collection of British "second rank" character actors. I particularly noted Peter Gilmore's portrayal and of course Stephen Murray, who was completely unrecognisable from the (voice of the) Commander in the long-running radio series "The Navy Lark".
There is also the, to my mind, most attractive player in the film, the charming (and ultimately tragic) figure of June Thorburn. I am always pleased to see her name in the cast list of films made during the decade which began in the first half of the 1950s. That this film was in fact her final one, despite her death not occurring for another three years, shows that her time as a leading actress was over. This, I am sure, will have to been due to a combination of personal reasons and the change in the British film industry, which saw the decline and largely the end of the lower budget films from the mid-1960s onwards.
Had things continued, I am sure that she would still have been cast, as she always makes her mark, playing leading roles in films that do not have an obvious appeal to female members of the audience and making her mark in them. "Fury At Smuggler's Bay" (1961) and her penultimate film, 1963's "The Scarlet Blade", are the films which I have most in mind here.
All told, then, this is a film which has much to recommend it. If you like this type of film, it will be worth making the effort to see it, should it be shown again.