The Rules of the Game (1939)

Posted on February 15, 2013 by 4 Star Films

This French film directed by Jean Renoir is a light comedy that turns into a critique of the Upper classes. The film involves the superficial events and racy love affairs as only the French can have. It opens as a famous aviator lands his plane only to be disappointed that his married lover did not come to see him. Soon we learn that her husband has a mistress of his own. Put these four together, Renoir in his jolly role of Octave, all the other guests, then the many servants, and soon you have a major spectacle. They dine, hunt, gossip, put on a show, quarrel, and above all fall in love. It is all fun and games however until someone gets hurt. Although this film is not what we may be accustomed to in our present generation, it is easy to appreciate the satire, cinematography, and ensemble cast. Kudos to Renoir for making a very intriguing film.

4.5/5 Stars

Anatomy of a Murder (1959)

Posted on February 14, 2013 by 4 Star Films

Starring Jimmy Stewart, George C. Scott, Lee Remick, and a cast of others, the film follows a small town lawyer (Stewart) as he defends a man who has committed murder. The whole case is complicated by the fact that the Lieutenant’s beautiful wife was supposedly raped by the murdered man. Now Stewart must battle it out in court using every strategy he knows in order to save his client. With the help of witnesses and evidence both sides have substantial cases. However, Stewart finds the topper in the dead man’s daughter, hoping this will save his client’s life. Despite the valiant effort of the prosecuting attorney and Stewart, everything is in the hands of the jury so now all they can do is wait. With an interesting score, a methodical story, and a great cast, this movie was a good one. The judge especially made this film enjoyable for me and you certainly cannot beat Stewart. It should also be noted that this film has one of the most famous movie posters of all time which was designed by Saul Bass.

4.5/5 Stars

Witness for the Prosecution (1957)

Posted on February 12, 2013 by 4 Star Films

Starring Charles Laughton, Tyrone Power, and Marlene Dietrich with direction by Billy Wilder, this courtroom drama follows the trial of a man accused of murder. Laughton is an English defense attorney just recovering from a heart attack. However, soon he gets so intrigued by Power’s case that he agrees to defend him. Power’s character Vole seems to be falsely accused for the murder of a widowed woman he hardly knew. He does have an alibi in his wife (Dietrich) but she seems to refute Vole’s words and the case takes a bad turn. Through a flashback we see into their complicated past. The befuddled Laughton finally catches a break and is able to prove Dietrich is lying. He has been victorious in defending Vole but then the plot takes a cruel twist. What was reality before now seems to be completely false. Adapted from a story by Agatha Christie, this film has good characters and a brilliant climax.

4.5/5 Stars

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly (1966)

Posted on January 29, 2013 by 4 Star Films

Starring Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, and Eli Wallach as the title characters, this is a memorable Spaghetti western. Angel Eyes (Cleef) is on the prowl for a man who stole some gold. Meanwhile Tuco (Wallach) is on the run until three bounty hunters confront him. However, Blondie (Eastwood) is the one who turns him in and then helps Tuco escape after he picks up the reward. Finally, the two accomplices split up on bad terms. The next time Tuco turns the tables capturing Blondie and marching him through the desert. While on their journey they learn where the gold is hidden. First they have run ins with Angel Eyes an the Union army and then they got caught up in a Civil War skirmish. The two of them endure it all and go to the cemetery where the gold is. There they have the final showdown with Angel Eyes in epic fashion. This film is great because it is exciting, it features an iconic Ennio Morricone score, and it has great cinematography which is a trademark of Sergio Leone. An Italian western may seem strange but Leone somehow makes it work.

5/5 Stars

For A Few Dollars More (1965)

Posted on January 28, 2013 by 4 Star Films

Starring Clint Eastwood and Lee Van Cleef with director Sergio Leone, this Spaghetti western is the second film in the “Dollar Trilogy.” The film opens with two bounty hunters, and in two separate instances we quickly realize their skill in bagging their man. However, when a notorious outlaw, “El Indio,” and his gang begin to cause trouble, both men are intent on getting the reward. Reluctantly they agree to join forces and Manco (Eastwood) joins Indio in his robbing of a bank so the two mercenaries can bring him down. The bandits get away with the money and then later they overhear the intentions of Manco and the Colonel, and so they rough them up. In secret Indio has them released, then sends his gang after them so he can get away with the money.

However, the colonel took the loot and so the next morning he and Manco systematically mow down the bandits. Indo comes for the money and shares a tense moment with the colonel only to have Manco appear too. Using the chime of a pocket watch, they face off. In the end one man leaves, his revenge complete and the other takes the reward. Although this is not the best Eastwood western, it certainly had some action-packed moments that were very entertaining.

4/5 Stars

A Fistful of Dollars (1964)

Posted on January 27, 2013 by 4 Star Films

Starring Clint Eastwood with director Sergio Leone, this western adaption of Yojimbo has a poncho-wearing gunslinger (Eastwood) playing two rival gangs off of each other. Upon entering the town, the man with no name is soon disturbed by the Baxters and he makes light work of four men.

Then, he decides to join the rival Rojos gang while spending the rest of his time at the local saloon. After a massacre takes place over some gold, the man uses two of the bodies to lure both sides out to a cemetery In the ensuing chaos, the Rojos capture one man and then the man with no name sends a hostage over the the Baxters. He was able to get money from both sides before the exchange took place. That night the Rojos celebrate and the gunslinger sneaks off to rescue a woman who is captive. He does a virtuous deed but is found out and the Rojos beat him to a pulp. Using his ingenuity yet again, the man escapes to fight another day. Thinking he received help from the Baxters, the Rojos brutally wipe them out.

With his friend the innkeeper in trouble, the man returns for the final showdown. He outwits his foe and beats the sharpshooter, Ramon, at his own game. As would become the norm the man would ride off as the victor in one of Leone’s famous panoramic shots.

4.5/5 Stars

The Birdman of Alcatraz (1962)

Posted on January 10, 2013 by 4 Star Films

Telling the semi-biographical story of Robert Stroud, Birdman relates his life from violent beginnings until his later years. Burt Lancaster superbly characterizes Stroud as a tragic hero. Despite a relatively simple plot following the progression in a man’s life, Birdman is worth seeing. Ultimately, it is the charcters played by Lancaster, Karl Malden, and Thelma Ritter respectively, that make this movie. Ironically, by the end of the film after all he has accomplished the Birdman is still not a free man. Even if it is not completely historically accurate, this movie tells a great story. Having actually toured Alcatraz after viewing this film, I have to say it resonated with me even more.

3.5/5 Stars

Tokyo Story (1953)

Posted on December 29, 2012 by 4 Star Films

This critically acclaimed Japanese film directed by Yasujiro Ozu has a relatively simple plot having to do with a kind elderly couple going to Tokyo to visit their adult children and extended family. They are excited to see the big city but it is not quite like they had expected. Furthermore, all their relatives and family have very busy lives making it difficult for them to spend time with the couple. The eldest son who is a doctor and then a daughter who owns a salon decide to send their parents off to a spa. Unhappy, the elderly couple return to Tokyo but they feel like they are imposing. Finally, the two of them head home and there the wife becomes ill. Because she is dying, her children do decide to visit. However, after she has passed away it seems they all too soon forget her and go on with life. This film is an interesting study of the void between generations. It also uses realism and focuses on the manners of the Japanese without fully criticizing them.

4.5/5 Stars

Ikiru (1953)

Posted on December 28, 2012 by 4 Star Films

Directed by Akira Kurosawa and starring Takashi Shimura, this drama is loaded full of irony. As the film opens, right away we learn the protagonist has stomach cancer, except he has yet to find out. He has spent 30 years of his life working at a monotonous job as a bureaucrat. Only after he discovers that he barely has 6 months left does Watanabe-san actually begin to live his life again. He tries the night life of Japan and it does not satisfy. Then he starts spending time with a lively, young worker that he used to know. All the while he thinks about telling his son about his condition but he cannot bring himself to do it. However, Watanabe-san finally finds a way to leave his mark on this life. And yet 5 months later he is dead and his fellow bureaucrats seemingly dismiss his accomplishment Through a series of flashbacks they ultimately realize what he really did. I found this film to be powerful because this idea is so powerful. It makes me question if I am really living my life to the fullest extent.

5/5 Stars

Rashomon (1950)

Posted on December 27, 2012 by 4 Star Films

Directed by the famed Akira Kurosawa, the film starts off with two men eventually joined by a third. Both seem very melancholy and they explain this is because of something that happened three days earlier. Apparently a bandit met a husband and wife on the road and raped the wife with the husband being killed. However, this event is shown in four different accounts all varying greatly and we never learn what is fact and what is actually fiction. Because of this horrible event, one of the men who is a priest loses faith in mankind. The film ends just as it began with the two men alone under a pagoda watching the driving rain. However, an act of kindness quickly renews the priest’s belief. Kurasawa’s film certainly has an interesting plot device and camera work. Historically, it is also important because it introduced the world to Japanese cinema