1964: SOME FAVOURITE FILMS FROM 50 YEARS AGO

IT'S TIME ONCE AGAIN FOR ME TO DIG INTO THE FILM CANS AND FIND MY DOZEN FAVOURITE FILMS FROM A HALF-CENTURY AGO.  Each year around this time I do this and I usually restrict myself to ten films -- but why deprive myself of some of my favourite films?!?  What is this, the Depression?  So therefore, I'm choosing a dozen of those films which I revisit time and time again and like to live in every once in a while.  These aren't necessarily the best films of 1964 but they're the ones I particularly hold dear.  Here they are in no particular order other than vaguely in order of release:

A HARD DAY'S NIGHT

Made on a small budget in six weeks, the Beatles' first film has buckets of charm and delivers to the viewer a snapshot of a time when the Fab Four (and their fans) were wide-eyed and incandescent.  Richard Lester directs the film on the strength of his previous "RUNNING, JUMPING & STANDING STILL" film featuring the Goons which was popular with the Fabs.  The zany, frenetic film is part comedy, part documentary and part performance piece with the Beatles playing themselves on a train trip from Liverpool to a London TV gig.  Constantly nagged by their manager, the Beatles also have their hands full not only with their screaming teenage fans but also with their grandpa (who is very clean) who is always getting into mischief.  

MARY POPPINS

P.L. Travers' mystical nanny gets the Disney treatment in possibly my favourite Disney flick ever.  The Sherman brothers deliver a perfect soundtrack to accompany Julie Andrews' Oscar-winning title role and Dick Van Dyke's dodgy accent.  Mistakenly viewed as sugary-sweet by those who don't know the film, Mary Poppins has a great deal of flint and vinegar in her nature and straightens out almost everyone's messed-up lives by the end of the film.  An exemplary cast and marvelous sets of an England which no doubt never existed moves us from one memorable set piece to another; not the least of which is the breathtakingly thrilling rooftop dance sequence.  A masterpiece.

MY FAIR LADY

Julie Andrews got screwed out of starring in this movie adaptation of her stage triumph -- so she went ahead and won the Oscar for her consolation role in MARY POPPINS.  However, despite the fact that Audrey Hepburn couldn't sing (and Marni Nixon dubs her), MY FAIR LADY is another masterpiece of a musical with the perfect Lerner & Lowe score and a dream cast helmed by Rex Harrison's Oscar-winning performance.  

ROBINSON CRUSOE ON MARS

With a name like that, you'd be forgiven for conjuring up images in your mind's eye of fifties B-pictures with bug-eyed aliens and lunar cat women.  However, you'd be waaaay wrong!  This very realistic (for 2/3rds of the picture, anyway) depiction of an astronaut crash-landing on the planet Mars and his struggles to survive in a landscape without practically any air to breathe, food to eat or water to drink is riveting.  However, it's not just a nuts-and-bolts equivalent of an astronaut policier film; there are some haunting images as well including lead actor Paul Mantee's occasional hallucinations of his dead co-pilot (Adam West) coming to visit him in the night.  And of course, like every good spacecraft in the early 60's, there's a little monkey along as Mantee's only companion.  Until the towering savage Vic Lundin shows up as an escaped slave from his Martian overlords.  This movie is so good that it was put out on DVD by Criterion, mateys!

BECKET

 





Two powerhouse actors face each other on screen in this historical epic depicting the early friendship and subsequent deadly rivalry between King Henry II and Thomas a Becket.  You don't get much bigger screen personalities than Peter O'Toole and Richard Burton and they're perfectly cast as the monarch and his carousing pal whom the King later invests as Archbishop of Canterbury.  Believing Becket would do his bidding, Henry is chagrined to find out that this Archbishop has a mind of his own and things go downhill fast on the way to a murder in the cathedral.

ONIBABA

Kaneto Shindo's beautifully shot film takes place in medieval Japan during an endless war.  An old woman and her daughter-in-law inhabit a shack amidst a field of waving, undulating tall grass while waiting for her son to return from the wars.  In desperate poverty, the women waylay and kill passing warriors so they can sell any valuables they have on them; their bodies unceremoniously dumped in a deep hole in the middle of the grassy expanse.  A friend of the son teams up with the women but strife isn't far behind.  And then there's the discovery of that odd mask . . . A truly haunting film.

MASQUE OF THE RED DEATH

Roger Corman meets Ingmar Bergman as AIP heads to England to film another Edgar Allan Poe adaptation which looks much more sumptuous than preceding entries in the series.  Vincent Price is on hand as the decadent, Satanic Prince Prospero who gathers all the nobility into his castle to wait out the plague of "the red death" sweeping the countryside.  Vinnie gives one of the greatest speeches of his career in the "What is terror?" scene and the hallway of rooms each of a different colour is an unforgettable set piece.  Poe's short story "Hop-Frog" is added to the mix as well and the influence of Bergman's "THE SEVENTH SEAL" is very evident.  Hazel Court is marvelous and Patrick Magee is hissable!  Super-duper!

THE TOMB OF LIGEIA

Roger Corman's farewell to the AIP Poe cycle concludes with this often-overlooked but wonderful film about death and what's beyond it.  Vinnie's late wife always said she could conquer death and she just might have done it.  Also filmed in England, the movie benefits greatly from a great deal of exterior location shooting of English green grass and actual ruined abbeys.  I'll always remember the first time I saw this film was on local horror TV host Stella's "SATURDAY NIGHT DEAD" show in the early 1980s and I was captivated.  An elegiac, gothic treat!

THE GORGON

Speaking of elegiac, gothic treats . . . we have the only Hammer Horror on my list.  Admittedly let down a little in the special effects department (snakes, anyone), this film nevertheless is one of my favourite (if generally overlooked) Hammers starring the titans of terror Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee along with Shakespearean actor Richard Pasco vs one of the sisters of Medusa from Greek mythology.  Hauntingly shot in a stately manner by Terence Fisher, I can watch this one again and again. . .until I turn to stone!

SEVEN UP

Michael Apted's monumental project begins with this documentary based on the old quote that if you give me the child until the age of 7, "I'll show you the man".  A group of 7 year old British schoolchildren from different social and financial classes are interviewed.  That's it.  But it's one of the most fascinating social experiments I've ever seen because Apted went back and filmed the children every seven years since then -- and he's still doing it today.  The latest installment "56 UP" was just released in 2012.  For half a century now, we've gone back every 7 years to catch up with these children who are now 56 years old and the results each time are totally absorbing.  But "SEVEN UP" is where it all began; it sets up the project and is a vivid snapshot of a time now half a century behind us.

CASTLE OF BLOOD

Barbara Steele floating around a dilapidated old haunted castle filmed in glorious black and white over there in Italy, of course.  Oh yeah . . . and she's dead.  Can there be a better description of heaven?  Add Edgar Allan Poe to the mix?  How 'bout that, then?  The old wheeze of someone betting he can stay all night in a haunted house is the way we get inside the "castle of blood" where ghosts of all sorts relive past unjustices and seek out revenge.  Sumptuous gothic horror!

AT MIDNIGHT I'LL TAKE YOUR SOUL!

There's a lot of horror on my list this year.  Here we have the debut of the legendary Brazilian horror icon Zé do Caixão (known as "Coffin Joe" over here) played by the demonic José Mojica Marins.  Coffin Joe blasphemes regularly, eats meat deliberately on Good Friday and searched endlessly for a woman to bear him a son.  This is the first Brazilian horror movie and it's unlike any other film I've seen.  There is an atmosphere to it which I am unable to describe other than that the film stock itself seems to be drenched in gothic horror you can almost taste while you're watching it.    

BATTY INDUCTEE NUMBER 15

"IN THE BEGINNING GOD SAID 'LET THERE BE LIPS'.  AND THERE WERE.  AND THEY WERE GOOD." Today's inductee is the harbinger of a phenomenon which remained big for decades!  As the opening theme song for a film which has come to represent perhaps the pinnacle of the 70s phenomenon known as the "midnight movie", it has the highest credentials for inclusion.  Therefore, my 15th inductee into the Batty Halloween Hall of Fame is . . . 

SCIENCE FICTION/DOUBLE FEATURE by RICHARD O'BRIEN

Just hearing the opening notes of this song brings back memories of standing in a long line outside the movie theatre at the Echelon Mall.  It's around 1987 or 1988 and more than once I would be entering the darkened theatre space to encounter the wild and wooly world of THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW.  As the projector kicked into gear and those iconic crimson lips zoomed at me from the screen, the lilting piano launched into a song full of classic science fiction and horror movie references which, as a lifelong genre fan, rang more bells than Quasimodo on twelve cappuccinos!  My first encounter with ROCKY HORROR was actually way back in the early 80's when high school friend Paul N. used to play the soundtrack cassette.  I had no idea what was going on but I liked the tunes and the horror/sci-fi angle peaked my interest.  It was only about five years later that I actually ventured forth into the movie theatre at midnight and learned "Don't dream it . . . be it!"  

IN MY 900th POST ON THIS BLOG I THOUGHT I'D RESPOND TO A FRIEND OF A FRIEND. Good buddy Weaverman over at FLEAPIT announced his friend's brand new blog LIFE IS A CABARET in which the focus will be on musicals. In this spirit, he posted his top ten favourite musicals and I thought I'd do the same. This list, of course, runs the risk of me forgetting a film or two and also is very likely to change depending on my mood. But as of now, I figure this be my 10 faves:

1. THE BAND WAGON (1953)
2. THE BIG BROADCAST (1932)
3. JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR (1973)
4. MARY POPPINS (1964)
5. MY FAIR LADY (1964)
6. THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW (1975)
7. 1776 (1972)
8. SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET (1982)
9. THREE LITTLE WORDS (1950)
10. YOUNG GIRLS OF ROCHEFORT (1967)

THE YEAR IN MOVIES 2010! It has been my habit to list my favourite movies which I saw for the first time this year. Not movies MADE in 2010 but those I'd never seen before and watched in 2010. I saw many great films for the first time this year but I've whittled it down to only 50. ONLY he says!

1. AUTUMN SONATA (1978) - Ingmar Bergman finally works with Ingrid Bergman. Masterful performances from Ingrid and Liv Ullman in the harrowing portrait of a mother who never connected with her daughters.
2. THE BIRD WITH THE CRYSTAL PLUMAGE (1970) - Dario Argento's early thriller concerning a writer stalked by a serial killer after witnessing an attempted murder.
3. THE BUDDHA (2010) - Beautiful TV documentary helmed by David Grubin relating the life and teachings of the Buddha with ubiquitous Richard Gere narrating and readings by Blair Brown. Lovely animation as well.
4. CHUSHINGURA (1962) - Director Hiroshi Inagaki's lush retelling of the Japanese national epic of a conflict of obligations also known as THE 47 LOYAL RONIN
5. DAUGHTERS OF DARKNESS (1971) - Dreamlike and queasy "Carmilla-like" film with Delphine Seyrig as the vampire preying on married couple John (DARK SHADOWS) Karlen and (more specifically) Danielle Ouimet.
6. DEEP RED (1975) - Superb Dario Argento horror-thriller starring David Hemmings in the middle of the knife-slashing mania.
7. DISTRICT 9 (2009) - Oscar-nominated science fiction phenomenon with prawns.
8. DORIAN GRAY (2009) - The best filmic adaptation of Oscar Wilde's hoary old tale of debauchery with Ben Barnes as the angelic-faced reprobate and Colin Firth leading him astray. Did I say ashtray?!?
9. THE 8 DIAGRAM POLE FIGHTER (1984) - masterful kung fu director Lau Kar-Leung's revenge film starring Gordon Liu and Alexander Fu Sheng (who died during filming).
10. THE EXTERMINATING ANGEL (1962) - Luis Bunuel's deliriously odd (that's nothing new) tale of a group of guests at a formal dinner party who find themselves unable to leave. Ever.
11. THE FACE OF ANOTHER (1966) - Director Hiroshi Teshigahara's strange mixing of EYES WITHOUT A FACE and DR. JEKYLL & MR. HYDE as a hideously scarred man has a new face sculpted by a plastic surgeon. Does the person wear the mask or the mask wear the person?
12. FELLOWSHIP OF THE FROG (1959) - One of the wonderfully daffy German krimi films based on the writings of Edgar Wallace. A master criminal by the name of "The Frog" torments Joachim Fuchsberger et. al.
13. FIST OF LEGEND (1994) - As much as it seemed like a dopey idea to remake Bruce Lee's classic FISTS OF FURY, they actually did a really nice job of it with Jet Li fighting like a whirlwind.
14. THE FIVE DEADLY VENOMS (1978) - Director Chang Cheh's hugely popular kung fu epic of a dying martial arts master tasking a student with checking on five masked former students named Centipede, Snake, Toad, Lizard and Scorpion. So influential the actors in the film forever after were known as "The Venoms".
15. FIVE ELEMENT NINJAS (1982) - Another Chang Cheh kung fu classic this time with more of a "fairy tale" feel to it. A student seeks revenge over the ninja who killed his brothers & father; he must run the gauntlet of the Five Element Ninja Challenge of Earth, Wood, Fire, Gold and Water.
16. FIVE FINGERS OF DEATH (1972) - Also known as KING BOXER, this is the film which actually kicked off the kung fu craze in the early 70's. This is yet another revenge tale with Lo Lieh playing the hero this time.
17. THE GOOD DIE YOUNG (1954) - Three decent men are led astray by an amoral "gentleman" who involved them in a plot to rob a postal van. Great cast includes Laurence Harvey, Stanley Baker, Richard Basehart, Gloria Grahame, John Ireland, Joan Collins, Margaret Leighton etc.
18. HEROES OF THE EAST (1979) - Kung fu classic helmed by Lau Kar-Leung starring Gordon Liu as the Chinese martial arts master who married a Japanese woman; he accidentally offends all of Japan's martial arts and must accept the challenge to fight 10 ninjas each specializing in a particular fighting style. One of the best.
19. IN THE LOOP (2009) - The closest thing so far to getting the exceptional British comedy THE THICK OF IT into a film. Hilarious political comedy with the spectacular Peter Capaldi as Malcolm.
20. IN WHICH WE SERVE (1942) - Story of World War II British destroyer H.M.S. Torrin told in flashbacks as its crew clings to a life raft. Directed by David Lean & Noel Coward. Cast includes Coward, Michael Wilding and John Mills.
21. IP MAN (2008) - Director Wilson Yip's sorta-biography of Bruce Lee's martial arts master Ip Man takes place before and after the Japanese occupation of China leading up to World War II. Donnie Yen has probably his finest role here. The wonderful Simon Yam also stars and legendary Sammo Hung does the action directing. One of the best films of the year.
22. IT ALWAYS RAINS ON SUNDAY (1947) - Director Robert Hamer's rather bleakly realistic film of an escaped convict's attempt to hide out in his former (married) lover's house. The wonderful Googie Withers heads a superb cast.
23. JUDEX (1963) - Georges Franju's fever-dream updating of the classic French serial.
24. JULIE & JULIA (2009) - Nora Ephron's lovely intertwining of the life of iconic TV chef Julia Child with a blogger's attempt to cook every recipe in Child's cookbook in a year. Based on a true story starring Meryl Streep, Amy Adams and Stanley Tucci.
25. KILLZONE (2005) - Director Wilson Yip's police story/martial arts blockbuster also known as SPL. Stars Donnie Yen as a new police detective taking over retiring Simon Yam's beat and getting entwined in an ongoing revenge vendetta against crimelord Sammo Hung. Great story and great fight scenes including a spectacular alley fight between Yen and psychotic Jing Wu.
26. LA RONDE (1950) - Max Ophuls' delightful film about . . . well, sex, actually. Beautiful as a jewel. Superb cast includes Anton Walbrook, Simone Signoret, Simone Simon, Danielle Darrieux and more.
27. LAST YEAR AT MARIENBAD (1961) - Director Alain Resnais' bewildering but rivetting film concerning a man and a woman who may or may not have met last year at Marienbad. Delphine Seyrig enigmatically stars.
28. THE MAD EXECUTIONERS (1963) - Another wildly fun German krimi based on the writing of Bryan Edgar Wallace in which a hooded society passes judgment on criminals who "got away with it" and kills them. This could be my favourite krimi, I think.
29. ME AND ORSON WELLES (2008) - Lovely Richard Linklater film which (fictionally) takes us back to the famous Mercury Theater production of Julius Caesar. Christian McKay is stunning in his Orson Welles impersonation. The cast is rounded out by Zac Efron (you should pardon the expression), Claire Danes and Ben Chaplin.
30. MY BEST FIEND (1999) - Werner Herzog's startling and hilarious documentary of his relationship with mad actor Klaus Kinski.
31. MYSTERY OF CHESS BOXING (1979) - Mark Long stars as the Ghost Face Killer in this classic "martial arts training" film.
32. OIL CITY CONFIDENTIAL (2009) - Superb Julien Temple rockumentary following the history of classic British rockers Dr. Feelgood.
33. ONG BAK (2003) - One of the most highly touted martial arts flicks in recent memory. Tony Jaa is breathtaking in his fighting scenes as the young man charged with the task of returning his hometown's stolen Buddha statue by using his astonishing Muay Thai fighting technique.
34. OPEN CITY (1945) - Roberto Rossellini's neo-realist trend-setter concerning the final days of Italy's Nazi occupation and the freedom fighters who try to undermine them. Aldo Fabrizi and Anna Magnani head the cast.
35. PASSPORT TO PIMLICO (1949) - Terrific British comedy in which the residence of an area of London secede from Great Britain and proclaim themselves an independent country. Great cast of British character actors includes Stanley Holloway and Hermione Baddeley.
36. PERSONA (1966) - Stunning Ingmar Bergman film in which an actress suddenly stops speaking and the nurse assigned to her care slowly finds herself losing her own personality. Bibi Andersson and Liv Ullman both give startling performances.
37. RICHARD III (1955) - Laurence Olivier directs and stars in this Shakespearean adaptation of the "pantomime villain" which also stars acting heavyweights Sir Cedric Hardwicke, Sir Ralph Richardson, Sir John Gielgud, Pamela Brown and Claire Bloom. But not a horse.
38. RUSH: BEYOND THE LIGHTED STAGE (2010) - Absolutely spectacular documentary on the Canadian rock institution Rush which covers their history and their music in equal depth.
39. THE SARAGOSSA MANUSCRIPT (1965) - Director Wojciech Has' film adaptation of the thought-to-be unfilmable Polish epic.
40. SCARFACE (1932) - Howard Hawks and Richard Rosson co-directed this 30's gangster classic with Paul Muni, Ann Dvorak, George Raft and Boris Karloff.
41. SNATCH (2000) - This is actually the only Guy Ritchie film I've ever seen but I thought it was hilarious. I can't speak to the "mockney" quality of his other films but this is like the British Three Stooges do a caper film. Brad Pitt, Benicio Del Toro, Jason Stathan and Mike "Frank Butcher" Reid are among the cast.
42. TARZAN AND HIS MATE (1934) - The second of the Johnny Weissmuller Tarzan films. It doesn't really matter what the plot of this cult film is; it's just a lot of fun and features the pre-code nudey swimming scene with Maureen O'Sullivan.
43. TESTAMENT OF ORPHEUS (1960) - Jean Cocteau directs and stars in this film in which he looks back on his life and his obsessions.
44. THE 36TH CHAMBER OF SHAOLIN (1978) - One of the greatest kung fu films ever. Lau Kar-Leung directs and Gordon Liu stars in this ultimate "martial arts training" film of the famous Shaolin Temple.
45. THRILL OF A ROMANCE (1945) - Another of those Esther Williams swimming musicals. However, this one stands out because of Esther's rather salty and sarcastic acting role which departs from her usual sugar and light cheeriness. Esther marries a rich businessman but, when he leaves their honeymoon for some business duties, she begins flirting with a war hero. Van Johnson is back again as her co-star.
46. TOKYO STORY (1953) - Yasujiro Ozu's masterpiece of of devastating loneliness as an old couple visit their children and grandchildren who basically ignore them. Heartbreaking.
47. THE WAY AHEAD (1944) - Director Carol Reed helms this World War II tale of a group of infantry conscripts who morph from a hopeless group of amateurs to a seasoned fighting unit. David Niven, Stanley Holloway and William (DOCTOR WHO) Hartnell head a nice cast.
48. WENT THE DAY WELL (1942) - It's startling to realize this film was made deep in the midst of World War II when the outcome wasn't at all decided. Nazi paratroopers take over a sleepy English town and it's up to the residents to fight against them. Surprisingly brutal in spots. Cast includes Leslie Banks, David Farrar and Mervyn Johns.
49. YOU, THE LIVING (2007) - Director Roy Andersson's genuinely funny film of seemingly unrelated scenes which demonstrate the utter "humanness" of us all.
50. ZOMBIELAND (2009) - Ruben Fleischer directs this combination zombie horror film and comedy which surprised me by working on both levels. Cast includes Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg and a magnificent Bill Murray cameo.

WHAT IS THE PERFECT "LABOR DAY WEEKEND" MOVIE??? Of course, if the question was Groundhog Day you'd pick . . . well, GROUNDHOG DAY. And a lot of people like watching SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE on Valentine's Day. Christmas? Well, there are too many to mention; as is the case with Halloween when any horror movie including a certain John Carpenter flick from 1978 would do. But Labor Day? The unofficial "end of summer" weekend party when people usually head to the beach one last time or have a barbecue in their backyards (giant wooden tiki idols and tiki torches should be a must!). Well, I'll tell you that there IS actually a Labor Day movie that I like to watch on Labor Day Weekend. The connection is flimsy at best; merely one mention of Labor Day is tossed off during the course of the film. But it DOES establish the film as taking place basically on and around Labor Day. And that film is the perfect one to watch; preferably if you take your dvd player and TV set out to the driveway with a loooooong extension cord and plop them on the hood of your car so that you can pretend you're at a drive-in theatre in 1959. Because the perfect Labor Day Weekend movie to which I refer is none other than the very early AIP classic (!) THE GHOST OF DRAGSTIP HOLLOW.

This B&W AIP film, unleashed upon the world by James H. Nicholson and Samuel Z. Arkoff in the pursuit of the honest American buck, was so early in AIP's production history that there isn't even the slightest chance of a Vincent Price turning up for a cameo. DRAGSTRIP HOLLOW combines all those things which were swirling in the Clearasil zeitgeist of 1959: rock & roll, juvenile delinquency, rock & roll, hot rods, rock & roll, teenage horror comedies, rock & roll, ghosts & haunted houses, silent film-type slapstick presented on sped-up film, overactive teenage hormones, rock & roll, slumber parties and rock & roll. I don't think we can really say the film has anything resembling a plot but you'd only be a complete squaresville daddy-o if you went looking for one, ya dig?!? Basically, the film opens with your typical two hot-rodders challenging each other to a drag race through a drainage canal which eventually ends in a crash and a policeman taking down a name and license. HOWEVER, it is NOT typical in the fact that the two drag racers are teenage girls (or at least what passes for teenagers in this film since all the teens look like they're pushing 30). The evil (what passes for evil) blonde bimbo crashes while our heroine (what passes for a heroine) Lois gets away. Lois is played by Jody Fair and she is basically reprising her role from the earlier film HOT ROD GANG to which DRAGSTIP HOLLOW is something of a sequel, I guess. Lois hightails it back to the hot-rodders' clubhouse to which she is a member. A member of the fourth estate is doing a feature story for his newspaper about the teen hot-rodding culture and has been allowed to hang around the (very UN-juvenile delinquent) hot rod club in order to get an angle to his story "The Restless Breed" (hmmm, somebody oughta make a movie with THAT title). The closest thing to a "celebrity cameo" is Tommy Ivo: an actual record-setting drag-racer of the late 50's who spouts about 5 minutes of gearhead gobblegook to the bewilderment of the reporter while showing off his actual winning Buick dragster. The reporter Tom Hendry is played by Russ Bender who, in addition to acting actually wrote the film VOODOO WOMAN starring Fink's Mom! The hot rod club makes its headquarters in a sort-of auto shop/malt shop which features a dancefloor, a performing surf band (more on them in a minute) and a fat guy named Frenchy (Harrison Lewis) in a chef's hat who likes shooting off shotguns. Hendry is informed that the teens have been evicted from their HQ and will have to leave in a couple weeks unless they raise enough money to pay the rent or get another place.

Before we get TOO bogged down with plot elements, AIP treats us to not one but SEVERAL musical performances in a row by rock & roll recording artists who JUST HAPPEN to be on sale at your local record store from AMERICAN-INTERNATIONAL RECORDS label. At one point, a girl even holds up a copy of an actual AIP 45 directly in the camera for a good 5 seconds so we know exactly what to look for. The rock & roll group is apparently called "The Renegades" but I can't be 100% sure about that; the surf instrumentals they play are credited to Nick Venet. The songs are typical surf rock instrumentals that proliferated during this period and are actually quite enjoyable if you're into that kind of thing. Their big "hit", if you can call such an unknown record that, apparently is "Geronimo" (the 45 record I previously mentioned that is held up to camera) in which the band members actually shoot off guns periodically during the song. We are also treated to renditions of other surf instumentals called "Charge" (a western "cavalry"-themed song) and "Ghost Train" which should be self-explanatory. Three of our girl hot-rodders shortly get up and sing (actually lip-sync) a pleasant-little 3-part harmony thing called "He's My Guy" which sounds EXACTLY like it should for a late-50's girl harmony rock song. Then a slow dance number plays called "I Promise You" credited to Bruce Johnston & Judy Harriet; this song I promise YOU is torture on the eardrums as the harmony is mostly off-key. Ah well.

I suppose at some point AIP decided they'd better get back to the plot so we find Lois being grounded by her parents for the earlier drag racing incident with "bad blonde". Yes, this incredibly minor incident made the front page of the local paper! Here we have the only slight whiff of juvenile delinquency in the film since our hot-rod club is so squeaky clean that their charter forbids drag racing or any other similar naughtiness. During this time, an eccentric older lady named Anastasia Abernathy (Dorothy Neumann) comes to stay with Lois' family along with her belligerent parrot who constantly wisecracks and insults everyone. Many sources refer to Anastasia as Lois' aunt but I don't think that's right as I seem to remember Lois' dad referring to her as a "rich client". But I'm not going to go back and watch the film again to clear that up so you draw your own conclusions. Either way, despite Lois' recent grounding her parents allow her to have a party at the house for all her hot-rodding friends! And even more, after the party breaks up and the boys leave, the girls are staying all night for a slumber party! As Lois so 1959-ly puts it while explaining the concept of a pajama party to her square father: "the she-cats nap after the he-cats leave". Ain't she the ginchiest?!? Well, the party goes forward as the house fills with teenagers dancing to, you guessed it, those same surf rock instrumentals we already heard. The "evil" rival hot-rod gang (the one with the "evil blonde") arrives to stir up trouble but, of course, never really does. Then, after all the "he-cats" leave, the "she-cats" don their baby doll nighties for their pajama party; during which they dance and dance the night away and manage to keep Lois' father from getting to the bathroom to have a pee!

You may be asking yourself at this point where exactly the "ghost of Dragstip Hollow" comes in since the film is already 2/3rds over. Well, the hot-rodders are forced out of their HQ and Anastasis Abernathy offers the kids her unsold (and unsellable) property down in Dragstrip Hollow: an old dark house known for being haunted. Naturally, the teens break in their new headquarters with a rock & roll dance party held in the haunted house. The surf band (in goofy costumes featuring bug-eyes, big ears and buck teeth) perform "Charge" while the similarly Halloween-costumed teens sock hop the night away. At one point, AIP's music coordinator Jimmie Maddin comes out in a suit and tie and sings his new "hit" song "Tongue-Tied"! Of course, meanwhile the "ghost" of the house is seen creeping around the outskirts of the party. This "ghost" is actually famed AIP makeup man Paul Blaisdell wearing his SHE CREATURE costume (a head from INVASION OF THE SAUCER MEN is also glimpsed). Amongst all the dancing, the rival gang makes another appearance doing nothing more menacing than dancing and arguing. The "ghost" is eventually unmasked and Blaisdell (in a comedy squeaky voice) cries that he's an out-of-work monster movie actor who did it all for . . . well, I really don't know why. Does it matter? Sadly, this would be Blaisdell's last work for AIP so his role was shockingly prophetic and the moneymaking SFX man (who worked on such AIP flicks as IT CONQUERED THE WORLD, INVASION OF THE SAUCER MEN and THE DAY THE WORLD ENDED) would fade away into retirement. The film quickly wraps up after this unmasking (and the revelation that there is STILL a real ghost in the house -- it walks out of a painting towards the camera) and the wonderfully 1959-era title card comes up on the screen: "The endest, man"!

THE GHOST OF DRAGSTRIP HOLLOW is not a great film by any means; but it's such a great film!!!! You know what you're getting when you start watching it and you certainly GET it. Really bad, bad comedy, rock & roll surf instrumentals, old dark house shenanigans, a little bit of drag racing, teen angst (lite), the generation gap (mild) and juvenile delinquency (almost non-existent) genres all smashed into one film. This film, more than any other, pointed the way towards what AIP would do in the 1960s with their Frankie & Annette beach movies and it, more than any other AIP film, provided the template for that cash cow. The Astounding B-Monster site makes this "astounding" (but actually somewhat logical) claim for the film: "Believe it or not, this cloying stretch of celluloid is, in many ways, a most important document. While hardly an intrinsic watershed, it marks a very definite progression in the history of the cult film. It is Ghost of Dragstrip Hollow that, more than any other film, bridges the cultural gap that once yawned between the J.D., hot rod flick of the 50s, and the foam-flecked dreck of the beach-blanket genre that drenched the drive-ins of the 60s." The film was leisurely directed by the rather unfortunately named William Hole. In addition to Paul Blaisdell, there are also a handful of other familar names in the credits including Ronald Stein providing the musical score and Daniel Haller's art direction. I don't know if you'd call the script written by Lou Rusoff "juvenile"; perhaps you'd rate the comedy more accurately as "sub-juvenile" since the stuff that's meant to be funny isn't but only produces a groan. Which, I suppose, makes it funny due to its sheer ineptness. The film is really just a perfect drive-in movie which can be enjoyed while munching popcorn, running to the concession stand and generally horsing around; in other words, you don't have to pay strict attention and take notes. It's all just a lump of silly fun and I can't think of a better way to spend an hour and a half out of your Labor Day Weekend each year.

A YEAR IN MOVIES 2008. In 2008, I watched a WHOLE LOT of movies. Some of them were old favourites but many were movies I was watching for the very first time ever. Last year at about this time I made a list (yes, ANOTHER list) of my 25 favourite films which I had seen for the first time in 2007. These were movies, old and new, which I had never seen until that year. If you want to see what I had newly discovered in 2007 click here. Well, this year I spent much time (and considerable filthy lucre) acquiring movies I had never seen before. So, because of that, this year I've had to expand the list to 50! And believe me, I still had to agonize over which movies did not make the cut. But in my ever-widening quest to track down and see more and more "must see" films, the year 2008 brought these films to my eyes -- movies I had never seen before this year but have now become new favourites. At the end of each brief description, I will also attribute credit to those who encouraged me to seek out the film. So, with your kind indulgence, I would like to once again list (in alphabetical order) these new favourites which I saw for the very first time in 2008:

• AGUIRRE, THE WRATH OF GOD (1972) -- Klaus Kinski, the maddest of madmen, stars as the equally mad Spanish conquistador futilely tracking through the jungle to find the lost city of El Dorado. Apparently both director Werner Herzog and Kinski pulled guns on each other during the filming. Loaded with many haunting images, the final shot of the raft swarming with monkeys is one of the best evocations of madness and futility I've ever seen! Utterly delirious fever dream of a film. Who made me watch this?: Danny Peary's CULT MOVIES book recommended by Terry Frost of Paleocinema.
• ALL THAT HEAVEN ALLOWS (1955) -- Oh, what melodrama from director Douglas Sirk. Jane Wyman is the widow who falls for younger man Rock Hudson only to have her children, her friends . . . hell, the entire town disapprove and try to ruin their only chance for happiness. Completely soppy and damned effective, too. Who made me watch this?: Martin Scorsese.
• AMERICAN MADNESS (1932) -- The Frank Capra film that probably none of you have seen. This is the first truly "Capraesque" Capra film which finds Walter Huston heading a bank by using the "personal touch". However, when a Depression-panicky public embarks on a run on the bank, Huston's altruism is tested. The "run on the bank" scene is technically brilliant. This film is particularly appropriate to watch now that the economy has tanked here in 2008!
• ATTACK! (1956) -- One of the best war movies I've ever seen -- and that's something since I usually don't LIKE war movies. Robert Aldrich directs a superb cast including Jack Palance, Eddie Albert and Lee Marvin. An incompetent Captain is getting his men killed while the higher brass refuses to do anything about it. Gripping, suspenseful and mesmerizing. Who made me watch this?: Weaverman over at FLEAPIT OF THE MIND.

• L'AVVENTURA (1960) -- The first in director Michelangelo Antonioni's groundbreaking "trilogy". A group of friends go off for a day trip to a deserted Mediterranean island and one of the group disappears mysteriously. A truly revolutionary film beautifully shot and starring the sublime Monica Vitti! Who made me watch this?: Martin Scorsese.
• THE BAD AND THE BEAUTIFUL (1952) -- Surely one of the best movies about Hollywood. Director Vincente Minnelli is blessed with a superior cast: Kirk Douglas, Lana Turner, Dick Powell, Walter Pidgeon, Barry Sullivan and Gloria Grahame (who won an Academy Award for this one). Tinseltown wheeling and dealing beautifully presented. Who made me watch this?: Terry Frost from Paleocinema.
• THE BIG RED ONE (1980) -- Yet another war movie on my list. What's going on?!? This is director Sam Fuller's restored DVD version and it's an epic! This is a depiction of World War II from the dogface point of view; from a director who actually fought in World War II. All Fuller's crusty humour and forthright truthfulness is evident. Lee Marvin is a wonder. Who made me watch this?: Martin Scorsese.
• A CANTERBURY TALE (1944) -- This Powell & Pressburger classic has made it's way on to my top ten list of all time. A gentle little tale concerning some English travelers during the Blitz who encounter a mysterious assailant who throws glue into women's hair. But not really. It's about much more than that; the glue hurler is just a maguffin to get the movie started rolling. A truly sublime and spiritually surprising film. Who made me watch this?: Weaverman.
• COTTON COMES TO HARLEM (1970) -- One of the first of the 70's "blaxploitation" movies and one of the best. This one was actually based on a novel by Chester Himes featuring his two famous detectives Coffin Ed and Gravedigger (Godfrey Cambridge & Raymond St. Jacques respectively). The film is jam-packed with great character actors: Calvin Lockhart, Redd Foxx, John Anderson and Cleavon Little among them. The late Ossie Davis directs with flair and humour.
• CUTTER'S WAY (1981) -- A bizarre film with no real likeable characters that still manages to hold one's interest. John Heard plays a badly wounded Vietnam vet and Jeff Bridges plays his male hoyden friend who witnesses someone dumping what looks like a dead body in an alley. Heard becomes obsessed with proving a local bigwig has committed the murder while Bridges does everything he can NOT to help him. A true cult movie. Who made me watch this?: Danny Peary in his CULT MOVIES books via Terry Frost.

• LES DEMOISELLES DE ROCHEFORT (1967) aka YOUNG GIRLS OF ROCHEFORT -- Infectious French musical with great Michel Legrand songs, directed by Jacques Demy with exploding colour and starring scintillating Catherine Deneuve, Francoise Dorleac, Michael (WEST SIDE STORY) Chakiris and Gene Kelly himself; giving the production some real MGM musical cache! You can't stay depressed if you watch this movie! Who made me watch this?: Terry Frost.
• THE DIVORCEE (1930) -- A pre-code Hollywood movie that doesn't pussyfoot around delicate subject matter. Norma Shearer and Chester Morris are a married couple very much in love until Shearer discovers that Morris has had an affair. Norma decides what's good enough for him is good enough for her and promptly goes out and starts sleeping around. Startling movie if you're not used to pre-code Hollywood.

• L'ECLISSE (1962) -- The third in Michelangelo Antonioni's "trilogy", this has now become my favourite film of all time. I saw it for the first time this past January and I've watched it 11 times so far this year. Monica Vitti returns along with Alain Delon in a film impossible to describe. Even more groundbreaking than L'AVVENTURA, the final 10 minutes is stunning! Who made me watch this?: Martin Scorsese.
• EXECUTIVE SUITE (1954) -- Nothing could be more boring to me than the world of high finance. Which is why this Robert Wise film surprised the hell out of me by being so absorbing. The head of a manufacturing company drops dead without naming a successor. His entire board of directors begins jockeying for position as if they were in a Shakespearean play or the medieval court of King Henry II! Absolutely perfect cast includes William Holden, Barbara Stanwyck, June Allyson, Walter Pidgeon, Fredric March, Shelley Winters, Nina Foch, Louis Calhern and Paul Douglas. Who made me watch this?: Peter Biskind in his book excellent book on 50's films SEEING IS BELIEVING.
• FIDO (2006) -- Billy Connelly is perfectly cast as a zombie (he has no dialogue and yet is excellent) in a world where zombies have been domesticated and utilized as servants. Andrew Currie directs with real comic flair. Who made me watch this?: Terry Frost.
• FRANCESCO, GUILLARE DI DIO (1950) aka THE FLOWERS OF ST. FRANCIS. A religious movie that is truly beautiful and not the slightest bit preachy. Based on a medieval work describing incidents in the life of Francis of Assisi, this movie can truly be called sublime. Robert Rossellini directs from a Frederico Fellini screenplay. A beautiful, beautiful, beautiful film! Who made me watch this?: Martin Scorsese.

• FREEWAY (1996) -- If you told me I'd watch and love a movie with Reese Witherspoon in it, I would've called you a doity boid. However, this is the one to watch. When she still had "acting cred", Reese stars as a delinquent who encounters a serial killer. The clash of these two immovable objects is jaw-dropping. Basically a twisted retelling of Little Red Riding Hood that also stars Kiefer Sutherland and a surprisingly good Brooke Shields. Who made me watch this?: The Finkmaster Flash, that's who!
• THE FURIES (1950) -- A Western Gothic that plays like King Lear. Walter Huston plays an all-powerful cattle baron in New Mexico territory battling with his strong-willed daughter Barbara Stanwyck. Another magnificent Western directed by Anthony Mann which also features a stellar cast: Judith Anderson, Wendell Corey, Wallace Ford, Gilbert Roland, Thomas Gomex , Beulah Bondi and Albert Dekker among them. Who made me watch this?: Martin Scorsese.
• GIANT (1956) -- Sprawling adaptation by director George Stevens of Edna Ferber's epic novel of powerful Texas cattle rancher Benedict clan encountering the challenge of newly discovered oil. Notable as James Dean's last film, also starring Rock Hudson, Elizabeth Taylor, Mercedes McCambridge, Carroll Baker, Chill Wills, Dennis Hopper, Sal Mineo, Rod Taylor et. al. Who made me watch this?: Peter Biskind.
• HANK WILLIAMS: THE SHOW HE NEVER GAVE (1980) -- Canadian country singer Sneezy Waters is spellbinding as country great Hank Williams. The film concerns an imaginary "last concert" in a honkytonk bar on the final night of Hank's life. The songs are great, of course, and the performance really gets to the heart of the man. Who made me watch this?: Weaverman.
• HEIMA (2007) -- Concert film of Icelandic group Sigur Ros as they tour Iceland giving free, impromptu concerts for the locals. Breathtaking photography of the beautiful Icelandic terrain is accompanied by equally spectacular musical performances -- particularly the live version of their song "Von" given in what looks like a school cafeteria that sometimes reduces me to tears.
• IKIRU (1952) -- Akira Kurosawa's meditation on death and the meaning of one's life as it has been lived. Takashi Shimura is a revelation as a bureaucrat who develops stomach cancer and looks back on a wasted life. Can he manage one great task to leave his mark on the world he's about to leave? Who made me watch this?: Weaverman.
• THE INFORMER (1935) -- John Ford won a Best Director Oscar for this film which, in many ways, is very unlike a John Ford movie. Ford ventures into German Expressionistic shots in depicting a down-on-his-luck man turning in his Irish rebel friend for money. The evocation of the 1922-era "Irish troubles" is a subject close to Ford's heart. Victor McLaglen won a Best Actor Oscar for his portrayal of informer Gypo Nolan. Ford would tell McLaglen that he would not be shooting any scenes that day and then suddenly roll the cameras on him; resulting in a frantic quality in McLaglen's performance which is heartfelt and real.
• JOHNNY GUITAR (1954) -- Another Gothic Western shot with a bizarre colour palette by director Nicholas Ray. Starring grande dame Joan Crawford as Vienna: a "takes no shit from nobody" saloon keeper who clashes with the strait-laced puritanical townfolk lead by Mercedes McCambridge. Sterling Hayden, Ward Bond and John Carradine also star. Who made me watch this?: Martin Scorsese.
• JUNGFRUKALLEN (1960) aka THE VIRGIN SPRING -- Director Ingmar Bergman takes us back to medieval Sweden as he retells an old folk tale concerning a young girl who sets off to deliver candles to church and is set upon, raped and murderer by three toughs. Unflinching and bold, this won an Oscar for Best Foreign Film. A literally breathtaking final reel caps off a surprisingly spiritual film.

• KUNDUN (1997) -- Martin Scorsese's overlooked depiction of the life story of H. H. the Dalai Lama, his discovery as a young boy and the eventual takeover of Tibet by Communist China. Visually beautiful film.
• LADRI DI BICICLETTE (1948) aka THE BICYCLE THIEF -- One of the most famous of Italian Neo-Realist cinema, Vittoria De Sica's film about a destitute man who can only land a job if he's got a bicycle; and then someone steals his bicycle. The man and his son search for the bicycle. From this we get an immensely moving and powerful film. Who made me watch this?: Martin Scorsese.
• A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH (1946) -- Yet another superb Powell & Pressburger masterpiece set during World War II. American servicewoman Kim Hunter picks up a radio call from British airman David Niven as his shot-up plane is going down in flames. He has no parachute and bails out to certain death. Only he survives. The battle is then on between those powers in Heaven who demand that Niven head straight for the afterlife and the living who try all they can to let him stay on Earth. Those scenes taking place in the afterlife are shot in black & white while the Earth-based scenes are shot in vivid colour. No one made 'em like Powell & Pressburger. Who made me watch this?: Weaverman.
• IL MIO VIAGGIO IN ITALIA (1999) aka MY VOYAGE TO ITALY -- Martin Scorsese's documentary examining the groundbreaking Italian movies of the 40's, 50's and 60's by such directors as Rossellini, De Sica, Antonioni, Fellini, etc. Every Italian film on this list is there because of this monumental documentary. Who made me watch this?: Terry Frost.
• THE NAKED SPUR (1953) -- Another wonderful Anthony Mann western featuring James Stewart giving a rather dark performance as a bounty hunter trying to bring back desperado Robert Ryan. Janet Leigh, Ralph Meeker and Millard Mitchell round out the cast of flawed characters in this western character study. Who made me watch this?: Martin Scorsese.

• NATTVARDGASTERNA (1962) aka WINTER LIGHT -- Now officially my second favourite film of all time, this Ingmar Bergman masterpiece concerns a pastor's crisis of faith. Devastatingly vivid performances by Bergman regulars Gunnar Bjornstrand, Ingrid Thulin and Max Von Sydow anchor this bleak depiction of three hours on a wintery afternoon. Masterful, thought-provoking and emotionally raw. Who made me watch this?: Weaverman.
• THE NINTH CONFIGURATION (1980) -- William Peter Blatty wrote and directed this bizarre film which initially appears to be a cross between M*A*S*H* and ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST but, before you know it, reveals itself to be about much more deeper subjects. Surprisingly spiritual as well as funny. Stacey Keach takes over the running of a military insane asylum. Co-starring Ed Flanders, Jason Miller, the magnificent Scott Wilson, and Robert Loggia. This is a movie you want to immediately re-watch after your first viewing. Who made me watch this?: my dear wife Ilsa*.
• NOTORIOUS (1946) -- Alfred Hitchcock's tale of espionage took a second viewing before I really appreciated it. Party girl Ingrid Bergman is convinced to spy on a South American group of Nazis by US agent Cary Grant. Claude Rains plays the Nazi whom Bergman is asked to romance.
• OM SHANTI OM (2007) -- The biggest moneymaker in the history of Indian film, this Bollywood musical spectacular is unlike any other Bollywood production I've ever seen. It stands on it's own as a top notch musical. I've never been a particular fan of Bollywood movies but this one surely blows them all out of the water. The ravishing Deepika Padukone co-stars with Indian superstar Shakrukh Khan in this musical which is genuinely funny as well as tragic and romantic. Also famous for cramming 30-some hugely famous Bollywood movie stars into a single dance number. This one's got it all.
• A PERSONAL JOURNEY WITH MARTIN SCORSESE THROUGH AMERICAN MOVIES (1995) -- This documentary is Martin Scorsese's direct riposte to the famous AFI list of 100 Greatest Films. There isn't a much more infectious movie fan than Scorsese and going along with him as he looks at the entire history of American film is a dream come true. Packed with billions of movie clips, this film will send you racing to the DVD store. Who made me watch this movie?: Terry Frost.

• THE PHANTOM FROM 10,000 LEAGUES (1955) -- This is a terrible movie. Grade Z production budget and acting. But somehow I love it. A goofy underwater monster is butchering people. However, the movie seems to forget the monster for long stretches of ridiculous tomfoolery masquerading as a screenplay. This movie features Cathy Downs (Clementine herself from John Ford's MY DARLING CLEMENTINE) slipping waaaaaay down the Hollywood ladder to this film. Pure fromage!
• PICNIC AT HANGING ROCK (1975) -- This dreamlike movie dreamily directed by Peter Weir retells story of a group of students & a teacher at a young women's college in 1900 who go out on a daytrip to "Hanging Rock" and mysterious disappear. There is a real sense of eerieness evoked in this film which can't be explained. Rachel Roberts is notable as the crumbling headmistress.
• RED RIVER (1948) -- Classic Howard Hawks western starring John Wayne and Montgomery Clift battling each other over the first cross-country cattle drive in American history. This epic western saga is one of the best!
• SASOM I EN SPEGEL (1961) aka THROUGH A GLASS DARKLY -- Ingmar Bergman's searing chamber piece about a family of four on an island dealing with insanity. All four actors (Max Von Sydow, Gunnar Bjornstrand, Lars Passgard and particularly Harriet Andersson) give great performances. Andersson's portrayal of mental illness is one of the best performances in screen history. Ever.
• THE SCARLET EMPRESS (1934) -- If not THE BLUE ANGEL, then this movie is the quintessential statement of the Josef von Sternberg/Marlene Dietrich movie partnership. Deliriously decadent and sumptuously shot, this film traces the life story of Russian Empress Catherine the Great from shy girl to powerful monarch. Dietrich is breathtaking and perfectly cast while Sam Jaffe is superb as her dimwitted consort. Who made me watch this?: Martin Scorsese.
• SERGEANT RUTLEDGE (1960) -- John Ford's little known film about black cavalry officer Woody Strode standing trial for the rape and murder of a white woman. Part Civil War-era western and part courtroom drama. Jeffrey Hunter and Billie Burke co-star.

• SMULTRONSTALLET (1958) aka WILD STRAWBERRIES -- Another Ingmar Bergman masterpiece. An elderly doctor (Victor Sjostrom) is being given an award and drives to receive it along with his estranged daughter-in-law Ingrid Thulin. This film deals with strained family relationships, past regrets, approaching mortality and crippled emotions. Bibi Andersson and Gunnar Bjornstrand co-star. Who made me watch this?: Weaverman.
• STROMBOLI (1950) -- Robert Rossellini directs and Ingrid Bergman stars as a woman who marries an Italian fisherman in order to leave a prison camp. She goes to live on his home island of Stromboli and immediately hates it. Vivid character study of people who know nothing about each other and understand each other less. Who made me watch this?: Martin Scorsese.
• SWEET SMELL OF SUCCESS (1957) -- Another classic film about the seedy wheeling and dealing that goes on in the show business world. Burt Lancaster plays a ruthless, all-powerful newspaper columnist who can make or break careers. Tony Curtis is the small-time reporter who wants to be something more. Exceedingly acidic portrait of New York celebrity nightlife.
• THE TALL T (1957) -- The best of the Budd Boetticher/Randolph Scott westerns. Scott plays an aging cowpoke who stumbles into a deadly situation. Based on a novel by Elmore Leonard. Richard Boone is fantastic as the head desperado. Who made me watch this?: Martin Scorsese.
• THE THIEF OF BAGDAD (1940) -- Epic fantasy film with still-incredible special effects, brilliant colour, charming lead part for young Sabu, marvelous villainous performance by Conrad Veidt and magical whimsy. A stunningly perfect fantasy film. Who made me watch this?: Terry Frost.
• TOUCHEZ PAS AU GRISBI (1955) aka HANDS OFF THE LOOT! -- Classic French gangster film which brings back aging tough guy Jean Gabin (Pepe Le Moko himself) in a terrific gangland movie. Who made me watch this?: Weaverman.
• TROUBLE IN PARADISE (1932) -- My favourite Ernst Lubitsch film. That's right; even better than NINOTCHKA. Herbert Marshall and Miriam Hopkins play two cat burglars who fall in love and join forces to burgle rich hottie Kay Francis. But while attempting to swindle the wavishing Kay Fwancis, Marshall instead falls in love with her. A movie that sparkles like good champagne. It's pre-code status also makes it more daring than you'd think. Urbane and classy to the nth degree. Who made me watch this?: Ilsa*.
• UMBERTO D. (1952) -- Another classic Italian neo-realist film which will tear your heart out. Director Vittorio De Sica dedicated the film to his father. Carlo Battisti plays an old age pensioner about to be thrown out of his cheap apartment; his only friend is his little dog. With nowhere to go and no money at hand, Umberto becomes desperate. Beautifully heartbreaking and uplifting at the same time. Who made me watch this?: Martin Scorsese.
• VIAGGIO IN ITALIA (1952) aka VOYAGE TO ITALY -- Masterful Roberto Rossellini film which stars Ingrid Bergman and George Sanders as an estranged married couple who go to Italy upon inheriting some property. Wonderfully acted character study finds both Bergman and Sanders in top form. Who made me watch this?: Martin Scorsese.

Well, there you have it: the best 50 films I saw for the first time in 2008. Trust me, there could've been about 25 more other top contenders but I vowed to keep it down to just 50. I can't recommend these movies highly enough and, again, if you ever find yourself at a loss as to what to watch, do yourself a favour and seek some of these films out. I don't think you'll be sorry you did.

ALPHABET MOVIE MEME THINGY. Good buddy and Surrogate Daddy Pax over at the horror blog Billy Loves Stu was recently tagged by another one of those memes. Like the true gentleman he is, he declined to tag 5 other people and simply put his list up for all of us to see (and quite a great list it IS, too)! For the heck of it, I thought I'd give it a try; you know how us boys love lists! The original Alphabetical Movie Meme originated here and you'll find the rules in detail. In miniature, the rules are as follows: in short, list your favourite movie for each letter of the alphabet. Simple, huh? Until the agonizing over which movie to choose, that is. Daddy Pax stirred things up interestingly by adding a theme: one "guilty pleasure" movie for each letter of the alphabet. One more rule is that you don't use the words "A" or "The" as the first letter of the movie, natch. There you go. I too will not "tag" anyone but feel free to make your own list is you're so inclined. However, like Daddy Pax, I too am going to tweak the meme a little. First I will list my favourite films of each letter in the alphabet. Then I will list my favourite HORROR films of each letter of the alphabet (what could be more natural on THIS blog?!?). And finally, I will list those movies which I'm sure most of you reading this have never seen but should -- those favourites of mine which might be a little more obscure -- for each letter of the alphabet. So here goes:

MY FAVES FOR EACH LETTER OF THE ALPHABET:

• THE APARTMENT (1960)
• THE BREAKFAST CLUB (1985)
• CASABLANCA (1942)
• DESK SET (1957)
• L'ECLISSE (1962)
• THE FLOWERS OF ST. FRANCIS (1950)
• GUESS WHO'S COMING TO DINNER (1967)
• HOLIDAY (1938)
• IT'S A GIFT (1934)
• JAZZ ON A SUMMER'S DAY (1960)
• KISS ME DEADLY (1955)
• LONG DAY'S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT (1962)
• THE MALTESE FALCON (1941)
• NOBODY'S FOOL (1994)
• ONLY ANGELS HAVE WINGS (1939)
• PICKUP ON SOUTH STREET (1953)
• THE QUIET MAN (1952)
• REAR WINDOW (1954)
• THE SEVEN YEAR ITCH (1955)
• THE TROUBLE WITH HARRY (1955)
• UMBERTO D. (1952)
• VOYAGE TO ITALY (1954)
• WINTER LIGHT (1962)
• X-MEN 2 (2003) things are a bit thin for this letter, obviously
• YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN (1974)
• ZIEGFELD FOLLIES (1946)

MY FAVOURITE HORROR FILMS FOR EACH LETTER:

• ALIEN (1979)
• THE BLACK CAT (1934)
• THE COMEDY OF TERRORS (1964)
• DAWN OF THE DEAD (1978)
• THE EVIL DEAD (1981)
• FRANKENSTEIN (1931)
• THE GORGON (1964)
• THE HAUNTING (1963)
• INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS (1956)
• JU-ON (2000)
• KING KONG (1933)
• LEGEND OF HELL HOUSE (1973)
• THE MUMMY (1932)
• NIGHT OF THE DEMON (1957)
• THE OLD DARK HOUSE (1932)
• PSYCHO (1960)
• QUATERMASS 2 (1957)
• ROSEMARY'S BABY (1968)
• SHAUN OF THE DEAD (2004)
• THE THING FROM ANOTHER WORLD (1951)
• THE UNINVITED (1944)
• VAL LEWTON: THE MAN IN THE SHADOWS (2007)
• THE WICKER MAN (1973)
• X THE UNKNOWN (1956)
• THE YELLOW WALLPAPER (1989)
• ZODIAC (2007)

MY FAVOURITE "OBSCURE" FILMS YOU PROBABLY HAVEN'T SEEN

(BUT REALLY SHOULD!):

• ATTACK! (1956)
• THE BIG BROADCAST (1932)
• A CANTERBURY TALE (1944)
• DONOVAN'S REEF (1963)
• EXECUTIVE SUITE (1954)
• FATSO (1980)
• GALLIPOLI (1981)
• HELL DRIVERS (1957)
• IKIRU (1952)
• JANDEK ON CORWOOD (2003)
• KUNDUN (1997)
• LOST IN YONKERS (1993)
• A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH (1946)
• THE NINTH CONFIGURATION (1980)
• ON BORROWED TIME (1939)
• PORTRAIT OF JENNIE (1948)
• THE QUEEN OF SPADES (1949)
• ROSENKRANTZ AND GUILDENSTERN ARE DEAD (1990)
• SHIRLEY VALENTINE (1989)
• TROUBLE IN PARADISE (1932)
• UNDERCURRENT (1946)
• THE VIRGIN SPRING (1960)
• THE WINTER GUEST (1997)
• X: THE MAN WITH X-RAY EYES (1963)
• YOU'RE OUT OF LUCK (1941)
• ZEITGEIST (2007)

So there you have it. As you've no doubt noticed already, those films which I'll bet most of you haven't seen (but should) have links so that you can go take a look and see what they're all about. I heartily recommend all the movies up there and, when you're stuck for something new to watch, try a few.