1. The Great Escape
2. Bullitt
3. The Magnificent Seven
4. The Cincinnati Kid
5. Papillon
6. Junior Bonner
7. The Sand Pebbles
8. The Getaway
9. The Thomas Crowne Affair
10. The Towering Inferno
The Best Films of Steve McQueen
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Author Archives: 4 Star Films
The Best Films of James Stewart
1. It’s a Wonderful Life
2. Rear Window
3. Vertigo
4. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
5. The Philadelphia Story
6. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
7. Anatomy of a Murder
8. Harvey
9. The Shop Around the Corner
10. You Can’t Take it With You
11. Winchester ’73
12. Rope
13. Destry Rides Again
14. The Mortal Storm
15. The Naked Spur
16. The Man from Laramie
17. Bend of the River
18. The Man Who Knew Too Much
19. The Far Country
20. Vivacious Lady
21. The Glenn Miller Story
22. The Spirit of St. Louis
23. The Flight of the Phoenix
24. After the Thin Man
25. Call Northside 777
26. Broken Arrow
27. The Stratton Story
28. The Shootist
The Best Films of William Wyler
1. The Best Years of Our Lives
2. Ben Hur
3. Roman Holiday
4. The Little Foxes
5. The Heiress
6. Wuthering Heights
7. Mrs. Miniver
8. Dodsworth
9. Funny Girl
10. The Big Country
11. The Westerner
12. Friendly Persuasion
13. The Letter
14. Jezebel
15. How to Steal a Million
16. Counselor at Law
17. The Collector
18. Detective Story
19. The Desperate Hours
20. The Children’s Hour
21. These Three
22. The Good Fairy
23. Dead End
The Best Films of Dana Andrews
1. The Best Years of Our Lives
2. Laura
3. Where the Sidewalk Ends
4. A Walk in the Sun
5. While the City Sleeps
6. Night of the Demon
7. The Ox-Bow Incident
8. Ball of Fire
The Best Films of Teresa Wright
1. The Best Years of Our Lives
2. Shadow of a Doubt
3. The Pride of the Yankees
4. The Little Foxes
5. Mrs. Miniver
6. Pursued
7. The Men
8. Somewhere in Time
9. Enchantment
10. The Rainmaker
Review: Singin’ in the Rain (1952)
I always seem to get goosebumps during Gene Kelly’s “Singin’ in the Rain” number, because each time I see and hear it, there is still a new magic to it every time. You see when I was young, before I knew all the classics, first and foremost, I knew this gem of a film. It is such a wonderful buildup to that moment with such personal favorites as “Make em’ Laugh” and “Moses Supposes.” Then you have the always popular “Good Morning” with not only Kelly but Donald O’Connor and Debbie Reynolds performing. Great stuff! There’s tireless choreography that goes into many of those sequences but it comes off so effortlessly and it brings us into the moment. There those wonderful, brief instances when you lose yourself in the music, the magic, and so on.As the story goes, the three friends save the failing “Dueling Cavalier” by losing the simple “talkie” gimmick and making it a musical by dubbing the squeaky-voiced Lena Lamont (Jean Hagen). Cathy (Reynolds) no longer is a bit player, and she gains the acknowledgment that she deserves. Then Don Lockwood (Kelly) gets the girl who burst out of a cake. Cosmo Brown (O’Connor) is along for the ride staying with Don through thick and through thin, even calling him a cab when necessary. He’s a true friend in a million.
Although Kelly had a career with other high points (arguably never as high as this one), I am always slightly saddened that O’Connor and Reynolds never reached another apex like this in their subsequent careers. But they were both so great here, we must simply cherish this film for what it is.
Even to this day, the film holds up, and that is a tribute to the writing of Betty Comden and Adolph Green highlighting the infant Hollywood and the advent of talkies. In the same breath, it’s both a satire of the movie star culture and still a love letter to that same cottage industry. The only film with a similar dissection of Hollywood’s Golden Age is another 50s classic in Sunset Boulevard. The big difference is that Wilder’s film is chock full of drama and darkness. Singin’ in the Rain will always and forever be a light, fun musical with a lot of laughs. It is constantly quotable whether it is “dignity, always dignity” or “I CAN’T stand it!”
Jean Hagen is always the butt of everyone’s jokes, but she is indeed very funny with the most annoying voice in the history of cinema (She can’t act, she can’t sing, she can’t dance. Triple threat). You also have other fine performers like Millard Mitchell as studio head R.F., and then appearances by Cyd Charisse and Rita Moreno who made a name for themselves as dancers in the ensuing years. And is it just me or does Donald O’Connor remind others of Danny Kaye? He not only cracks the jokes, but he is a wonderful all-around performer. Although O’Connor was undoubtedly a better dancer.
All in all, this is a timeless classic and it will undoubtedly keep that title for as long as people watch movies. Now I hope it starts pouring buckets of rain so I can go outside and stomp around in the puddles. I will let you know if I come down with pneumonia. But until that happens I’ll enjoy every minute of it. I entreat you to do the same.
5/5 Stars
She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1948)
“Never apologize. It’s a sign of weakness.”She Wore a Yellow Ribbon can probably be considered lighter fare than the Searchers or Liberty Valance, but it is still worth a watch for Ford or Wayne fans.The 2nd installment of John Ford’s cavalry trilogy, this film was shot in Monument Valley in color and features a 41 year old John Wayne playing a 60 year old captain on the verge of retirement. However, before he is done he must diffuse the aggression of the Native Americans due to the aftermath of the Little Big Horn. At base and on the the trail he must deal with two young bucks (James Agar and Harry Carey Jr.) and the stuck up girl (Joanne Dru) they are fighting over. However, he also has some very capable men in his company, two of which are played by Victor McClaigen and Ben Johnson. With his retirement imminent he salvages his last mission before riding off as a civilian towards California. Except they are not quite done with him yet.
Here Wayne takes on a more fatherly role and does a good job dispelling his knowledge and know how as the experienced Nathan Cuttings Brittles. As usual John Ford does not disappoint and there is some brilliant scenery whether it is Monument Valley in the rain or the shine. Next are Fort Apache (1948) and then Rio Grande (1950)!
4/5 Stars
True Grit (1969)
John Wayne was always memorable but he was probably never more iconic than his turn as Marshall Rooster Cogburn. He is a gruff, tough, drinking man who is willing to take on anyone and everyone at the drop of a hair. Yet despite all of that fury, Wayne embodies him in such a way that makes him lovable all the same.Wayne is usually a given to steal the spotlight but Kim Darby gave him more than he bargained for as the stubborn, no-nonsense Maddie Ross. Following suit singer Glen Campbell showed he can do more than knock back a tune, playing the Texas Ranger.
As with many of his other great westerns, Wayne is surrounded by a solid group of stock characters including the likes of Dennis Hopper, Robert Duvall, Strother Martin, and even John Fiedler.
The film is adapted from the Charles Portis novel where Maddie, intent on catching the man who killed her father, hires Cogburn to track him down. They are joined by Laboeuf and thus begins there search.
Nothing beats seeing Wayne charge across a vast meadow towards Ned Pepper and his cronies, with his guns drawn and bridle between his teeth. The sequence is enhanced by the spectacular Colorado landscape that adds a character to the entire film. The Coen Brothers brought us a darker, more dramatic interpretation of this film, but it is hard to beat the fun of Henry Hathaway’s version. John Wayne, Rooster Cogburn, whatever you want to call him, he has True Grit. Isn’t that right baby sister?
4.5/5 Stars
Review: The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)
Nothing’s too good for the Man Who Shot Liberty Valance!!! But who is he exactly? How did it happen? Where is he now?
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance is perhaps one of the moodiest and most atmospheric westerns of all time. In a sense, it is almost like a Noir Western with its often stark cinematography (especially during the climatic moments), and it is told through a long flashback that encapsulates nearly the entire narrative. Both qualities are typical film-noir.
John Ford had numerous classic westerns, but this one is possibly one of the darkest in tone. The film has a typically great John Ford cast (like My Darling Clementine or The Searchers). Of course, it would not be one of his westerns without John Wayne, then add James Stewart, Vera Miles, and of course Lee Marvin. Then the secondary cast is rounded out by such great character actors as Edmund O’Brien, Andy Devine, Woody Strode, Strother Martin, Lee Van Cleef, John Carradine, and Denver Pyle among others.
This film is also steeped in politics. It becomes more obvious the more you watch that there is this underlining conflict between democracy and a different system of representation. Could this be a critique of Communism also packed into a western? Probably.
One of the moments that really stood out this time around was the flashback within the flashback when Doniphan (Wayne) reveals his point of view to Ransom Stoddard (Stewart). He was, in fact, the man who shot Liberty Valance. We knew it at heart but finally we have the proof and all of sudden his behavior seems justified and he becomes the tragic hero of the film.
It is an unjust ending and yet it plays out the way it was meant to — maybe not the way it should have. The lawyer got the girl, the fame, and the spot in Congress, because he is a hero for something he did not actually accomplish. Tom instead is the one who fades into the past. It struck me that this is one of the few films I can remember where Wayne actually dies, the other would be the Shootist. Except here he is dead before the story has even began. The legend of John Wayne himself lends nicely to this legendary man in the film who we only know through the recollections of others. As the newsman noted, when the legend becomes fact you print the legend.
4.5/5 Stars
A Woman Under the Influence (1974)
Wow, this film from John Cassavetes was truly gut-wrenching and powerful. Gena Rowlands and Peter Falk are wonderful as Mabel and Nick. At their core they both seem like essentially good people. They love their kids, their family, and friends. Except Mabel’s problems tear them apart and in turn hurt the ones they love. The drama is not created my major plot twists, but the mundane and the typical. Dinner conversations, picking the kids up from school, gatherings with friends. This is when the film takes place and this is where we see their family unwinding at the seams. It is a personal story and the cinematography and the script for that matter are not polished. They are allowing us to see into this situation and thus the heartache and the pain washes over us and we become engaged with it.Supposedly Richard Dreyfuss threw up after watching this film. Some may not be able to claim that same reaction, but there is no doubt that your heart goes out to not only Mabel but her children who are caught in the middle of it all. Even Nick, who can be a callous and even violent person is given a heart because he was portrayed by the great Peter Falk. This is definitely powerful stuff that is worth seeing.
This film may actually be more difficult to watch than some gorier films for the simple fact that it will hit the audience close to home. Literally. This is my first film from the director John Cassavetes and hopefully there will be more in my near future. Take a chance with this one because there is a chance that it is different than many of the polished Hollywood films you have seen in the past.
4.5/5 Stars
4 Star Films 