Category: Uncategorized

Cape Fear (1962)

Dir. J. Lee Thompson. Robert Mitchum stars as the ex-convict Max Cady, released from prison and is single-minded in his torment of the man he blames for his incarceration, humble local prosecutor Sam Bowden (Gregory Peck). Sam must protect his family from this monster, as he struggles to keep his battle for survival within the…… Continue reading Cape Fear (1962)

The Night (La Notte) (1961)

Dir. Michelangelo Antonioni. Set in Milan over the course of a day, and night. The film starts with Lidia and her husband Giovanni visiting their old friend Tommaso, bedridden and dying from cancer. Like their doomed friend, Giovanni is a writer, and is despondent, unable to envisage writing sometime essential, and unwilling to emotionally connect…… Continue reading The Night (La Notte) (1961)

The Grass is Greener (1960)

Dir. Stanley Donen. Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr are landed gentry, the Earl and Countess of Rhyall who find themselves in the desperate situation of having to open their country estate to the public and sell mushrooms to maintain their standard of living. One such visitor is the American millionaire Charles Delacro (Robert Mitchum), whose…… Continue reading The Grass is Greener (1960)

The Best of Everything (1959)

Dir. Jean Negulesco. Caroline Bender (Hope Lang) lands a job in the stenography pool of a prestigious publishing company in New York City. Her keen literary insights and generous loyalty to her friends serve her well as she navigates the tumultuous business and romantic world of the New York City arts world. Based on the…… Continue reading The Best of Everything (1959)

Maigret Sets a Trap (Maigret tend un piège) (1958)

Dir. Jean Delannoy. Inspector Maigret roams the backstreets of Paris hunting for a ‘Jack the Ripper’ style serial killer. Based on the 1955 Georges Simenon novel of the same name, and the first of many adaptations. The same novel would later be adapted with other well-known actors in the title role, including Rupert Davies in…… Continue reading Maigret Sets a Trap (Maigret tend un piège) (1958)

The Burglar (1957)

Dir. Paul Wendkos. Nat (Dan Duryea) is the head of a small gang of thieves he refers to as ‘the organisation’, including two nervous loudmouth lookouts, and his adoptive sister, Gladden (Jayne Mansfield). Like many of the best heist films, The Burglar is as interested in the consequences of, as the actual mechanics of the…… Continue reading The Burglar (1957)

Nightfall (1956)

Dir. Jacques Tourneur. Aldo Ray is Jim, a freelance commercial artist with a secret. Laying low in Los Angeles, he makes friends with fellow lonely soul Maire (Anne Bancroft), when circumstances conspire to complicate both of their lives. A charming noir mystery, relying heavily on flashback to reveal a series of narrative altering turns. Aldo…… Continue reading Nightfall (1956)

Oh… Rosalinda!! (1955)

Dir. Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. A retelling of the Johann Strauss operetta, Die Fledermaus, “brought up-to-date” and set in post-war Vienna, then occupied by the four Allied countries. Many familiar faces for fans of Powell and Pressburger, including the wonderful Anton Walbrook as the black-market operator who puts the entire farce into motion to…… Continue reading Oh… Rosalinda!! (1955)

Johnny Guitar (1954)

Dir. Nicholas Ray. Joan Crawford stars as Vienna, the owner of a saloon on the outskirts of an Arizona border town. Vienna dreams of founding a new community when the railroad makes its way across the landscape and recruits an old flame (Jonny Guitar) to play some tunes, and if trouble comes knocking, to provide…… Continue reading Johnny Guitar (1954)