Reviews

I read "Clochmerle", Gabriel Chevalier's classic novel, more than forty years ago & loved it. It was achingly funny in a very French way - irreverent; very political - and I wondered how it might translate to the screen. Apart from Macha Meril, the cast is wholly unknown to me, but the acting is universally of a high standard & the absurdity of a Government almost crashing - because of the building of a Vespasienne in the Beaujolais & siting it beside the local church - is well paced, never descending into "Carry On" farce. It keeps to the original in a scrupulous fashion & retains the wonderful sense of period - 1923. I would award it a 9.

Artur Rubinstein has that knack of connecting immediately with his audience. The twinkling eyes & the mischievous comments, not always what one expects. When he went to Moscow, in 1964, there was an expectancy, which permeated the hall. When he finished the first of many Chopin pieces, the hall erupted & it was difficult to hold back the emotional reaction one felt, as a mere TV spectator. I am unsure how the grapevine works if one wants to set up a plea for the reissue of this classic film. It was made in France, so perhaps that should be the starting point? RCA produced an LP of the music. Whatever, one might ask IMDb to lend a bit of weight to those of us who would pay serious money to obtain a copy? Is there a Post Box somewhere - or an amateur who has a copy & might weigh in? I tried eBay, but, so far, no response. I would like to open a dialogue here.

Some of the most entertaining films are directed around a conspiracy. Three Days of the Condor is one of the best, for several reasons. The opening is so ordinary, so well paced; normal people going about their business. Into this scene assassins descend to murder the entire staff. It is quick & efficient. Robert Redford, breaks protocol & uses a rear exit to fetch lunch and survives the slaughter. The film follows his horror, his girl friend is one of the victims; his confusion; why has this happened? We discover he works for an obscure section of the CIA and the film moves into a new gear as Condor (Redford) tries to survive in a world where life is cheap & a contract assassin (Max von Sydow - at his grim best) is hired to eliminate him. Redford's evasive action - he kidnaps Faye Dunaway - is clever & believable. She is brilliant - conveying the fear & vulnerability of a woman confronted by a gun & brutally tied up in her own apartment. The use of her bleak photography is a brilliant counterpoint in the development of her character and Redford's reaction to them is telling. I have never seen Redford act as well. It is not a glamorous part. He is cruel in his treatment of Dunaway and her fear and sense of being abused is conveyed in a simple understated way. This is acting of a very high quality and the use of the various technical skills in tracing the telephone connections - properly signalled by an earlier overview by his superiors - is gripping in its authenticity. John Houseman provides a stunning cameo role as Mr. Wabash, the CIA professional. When he says of The Great War, that there was a clarity then, we can understand that open warfare was a different scenario to the games being played between the CIA and their perceived enemies. This is, in many ways, the raison d'etre of this story. The Games played to gain advantage. In this film, the game is Oil. We are made aware that some time, in the future, it could be water.

Some of the other commentators found this a dated story, lacking weight & credibility. I found it scary. In the very ordinariness of the people, the conflicts, just getting on with their lives - and the spooks - also ordinary, in their suits, creating artificial mayhem.

Three Days of the Condor ranks with North By Northwest; The Spy Who Came in from The Cold; All the President's Men.

it is one of the best and I rate it 10 out of ten.

Stockhard Channing must be one of the most underrated comediennes about. This is an hilarious film. gridoon, who found it disappointing, seems to base his critique on the quality of the cast; Nicholson; Beatty & Channing. His expectations were probably pitched too high - and, sure, Five Easy Pieces is amazing, and Bonnie & Clyde is a classic. But The Fortune can stand on its own. It is very funny. The pace is hectic and the storyline has resonances of "It Happened One Night". The difference being that in the "The Fortune", the heroine is kidnapped - a botched attempt by two incompetents (Nicholson & Beatty). The so-called Swedish Syndrome seems to have rooted here, in that the captive falls for her captors & doesn't want to be saved.

This film is well worth putting into DVD format - all Regions, please.

Steve Martin is a good comedian, often funny and, when he is not overacting, as he does in this film, he can be entertaining. Michael Caine is the quintessential gangster; East End Alfie; the pimp in Mona Lisa: the crook in Shiner; all tailor made for his rough, one dimensional talent.He plays crude to perfection. Four-letter words trip from his mouth with ease.

But an English Prince in Beaumont-sur-Mer!!!

An aristocrat Caine could never be.

One has only to watch the original "Bedtime Story" (A confusing title), with David Niven playing Jamieson to perfection and the great Marlon Brando his rival.

Niven; Elegant; suave; funny; the epitome of civilised good manners. Brando, brash; coarse; very funny.

If "Bedtime Story" ever makes it to the Roxy in Salem, jhclues should treat himself to a night out & compare it with the rubbish called "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels"

David Niven was the quintessential English gentleman. Dapper, suave, without ever being pushy. He glided through his many roles with consummate ease. I can understand Marlon Brando's reactions. The whole film depended on the viewer believing that Niven could get away with the confidence trickery. And, of course, he could, just as Brando as the brash American, was the perfect foil. In the 1988 travesty, the viewer could never believe in Michael Caine being an aristocrat. A barrow boy, yes; a gangster; yes - but a smooth confidence trickster, able to con his targets in the South of France - never. Sorry.

I would give "Bedtime Story" 9 +

I would give "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" zero -.

Both titles are inept & the former is confusing. I wonder whose idea it was?

It was rather like renaming Les Valseuses ('Balls' in French argot) "Going Places".

Cinema, at its best is entertainment. If one is to question every aspect with which one finds room for disagreement,and much of recorded history is based on contemporary opinions - often biased - then one should leave the cinema, because their prejudices will always spoil their enjoyment. When I spotted an airplane flying overhead in a film dated 33BC I was amused. The background scenery in "Casablanca" is absurdly fake. So, do I set up a moan & say that the film failed to convince? Fiona, relax and enjoy some excellent acting. Wajda's decision to cast the protagonists as French & Polish was inspired. one was immediately aware of which side each of the main characters was representing. No need to dwell on the authenticity of the wigs. This is powerful cinema. If there is a political message which is still relevant today - have a dinner party - a Château d'Yquem with the foie-gras; a Puligny Montrachet with the entree; some Polish Vodka sorbets and perhaps a 1961 Château Lafite-Rothschild with the beef - and discuss the political aspects of Danton until you drop with fatigue. Danton would surely have agreed?

This is a psychological thriller, which neatly plots a few days in the life of an technical executive in a computer company and his interaction with his colleagues, all as ambitious as he is himself. The film improves on Michael Crichton's novel by showing us how manipulative modern management is, when the bottom line is a big bonus to the bosses. Donald Sutherland, is excellent as the Boss who wants an important merger to work. And he thinks he has the person to make it do just that - the Demi Moore character, equallly excellent in a difficult role. Michael Douglas (excellent too)finds himself sidelined,being unaware of the bigger issues at stake. The plot becomes complicated by his being sexually harassed by Demi Moore's character - an issue which upset The Feminist Sisterhood - and possibly lost the film support from female viewers? But the plots and counter plots are clever. The end is not signalled in any obvious way and the use of the advanced computer system is absolutely central to the development of the story. The plot could be used as a blueprint for any story about corruption; backstabbing; corporate malpractice & legal manipulation. Cast your mind back to the Arbitration sessions - watch the by-play of the two attorneys. This is powerful cinema. I give it 9.5.

The previous writer felt that Caine was slightly miscast as the thuggish pimp and was better suited to The Quiet American & Hannah & her Sisters.

I couldn't disagree more. Caine is a one dimensional actor. He has one voice - that of the East End of London - Alfie - Shiner - Get Carter.

Put him into the remake of Bedtime Story (David Niven & Marlon Brando) and you see his shortcomings immediately. He is no David Niven, but presumably the money was good & Steve Martin bailed him out.

Caine has menace. He tried to be smoothly menacing in Sleuth and failed miserably.

Horses for courses & Caine does not have Classic breeding.

I agree with the other comments and would add that the players are outstanding, playing roles not usually associated with them. Cecil Parker and Celia Johnson have always portrayed toffs and to see them cast as Social workers is unusual. Almost like Peter Ustinov in "Hot Millions" - another gem. Harry Fowler is the quintessential wide boy and plays the part to perfection. He shares this talent with Micael Caine - who is often miscast - as a toff ("Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" - where he is completely out of his depth reprising the David Niven (the quintessential toff) role in "Bedtime Story" - with Marlon Brando. And the young Joan Collins is perfect as a working class girl - she too was regularly miscast as a society type. All in all, a wonderful piece of cinema & I hope it gets re-issued, along with "The Liile Farm" (Country Matters by H.E. Bates) and "The Happy Valley" - both brilliant films. I wonder if it would be possible, using the good offices of IMDb, to open a forum to petition for the re-issue of some of the classics of the 50's & 60's? I can think of Toi, le venin; A Cold Wind in August: Les Amants: Les Valseuses; Dimendicare Venetia Loulou & many others.

Like all H.E Bates stories of Country Matters, this one is deceptively simple and has, at its heart, a clever take on Shakespeare's Othello. A farmer, who is unable to read or write, works a smallholding in rural England. He has a farmhand who has been stealing the proceeds of the sale of eggs. When the farmer brings a woman into the farm, the farmhand begins to sew the seeds of distrust as he sees his power base being eroded. When the woman eventually goes away, she leaves a note for the farmer. The farm hand, realising his master's problems with reading, reads his own version of the letter in which the woman "confesses" to stealing the money and gives this as her reason for leaving. Like Othello, it is a tragedy and most beautifully acted. Ithink it would be well worth re-issuing on DVD, perhaps in a compilation of Bates' stories.

It is difficult to disagree that the floggings of Juanita Carberry were, perhaps, excessive, but it was she who exposed Jock Delves- Broughton's confession. Compared with "White Mischief", this is a far superior film, better acted, particularly by Holly Aird & Michael Byrne who is wholly repellent as Jack Carberry - which may have provoked the disgust expressed in the other review. Denholm Elliot, an actor who has always managed to get into the essence of the characters he portrays, is outstanding as Broughton. The sense of period is imaginatively evoked, the settings realistic and one really feels that this is what was happening in Kenya during the war; bored people trying to justify their empty lives. It really deserves to be issued in DVD format

This is one of Verdi's late middle period operas, which he wrote for the Paris Oprea. It is a long opera & very uneven, with five acts and the obligatory ballet - for the demanding Paris audience of the late 19th Century. What makes this performance so special, is the singing of Susan Dunn as Elena. Her singing of the Act 4 aria "Arrigo, ah parle ad un core" is amazing -the purest lirico spinto I have heard in a long time - better than Callas - and that is not an exaggeration. The applause lasted more than five minutes in the recording - and this is a long time when one has come to listen to opera. I would recommend to anyone interested in great singing to listen to Susan Dunn's rendition of the Act 4 aria - it is spellbinding singing, the clarity of her voice and breath control is truly wondrous.

WHEN I first saw this film, in London, in 1958, I was bowled over. I had never seen a film like this before. It had a strange, hypnotic effect, quite unlike the films that I had seen previously and it left a lasting impact.

I believe that Odile Versios & Marina Vlady are sisters, if not twins. Certainly the interaction is amazing in its power to influence the viewer.

If this has been converted to DVD - in Region 2 format - and in the original French language, I would love to hear about it & where it can be purchased.