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Reviews
The Stranger (1946)
Bad to the point of amateirish
There is nothing good about The Stranger. Edward G. Robinson is the same character he did in Double Indemnity, and Orson Welles is the same guy he is in every movie.
In one scene with Loretta Young and her character's father, the father repeatedly calls her "sister". Wellesian apologists here and elsewhere have tried to downplay this oddity. Opining that in some families it would not be unusual for a man to call his daughter sister, particularly as in this case, when the daughter has siblings. However, he never calls her sister in any other scene, but in this same scene she calls him by his first name, Adam. Clearly for some unknown reason the scene was shot with the characters as sister and brother, not daughter and father, Welles never bothered to reshoot it.
Later when Welles' Professor Rankine is on the run, Edward G Robinson's G-man detective sets up road blocks, stakes out all the train stations and searches the woods, but never bothers to look in the place Rankine spends all his free time, a clock tower.
The ladder that Rankine has to scale every time he works on the clock is an exceedingly dangerous, multi-story, narrow contraption that no one in their right mind besides perhaps a trapeze artist, would attempt. Yet somehow we're supposed to believe Rankine (with tools and spare parts), his wife Loretta Young and even a fat old guy like E G Robinson regularly unhesitatingly go up in down this thing. Loretta Young in skirt and heels no less. LOL.
The Nazi monster meets his demise the same way Frankenstein's monster did in every movie - tree'd and surrounded by angry villagers. Only things missing are torches and pitchforks.
The Idolmaker (1980)
A gem
Saw The Idolmaker in its theatrical release, when it first came on cable, and I bought it when came out on VHS. Never stopped loving it. For years I believe it was caught up in some kind of lawsuit and got hidden away which is why it didn't get the exposure it deserved.
A lot of reviews here go on about Ray Sharkey (deservedly so) and Peter Gallagher (whatever) but for me, after Sharkey the real standout is Paul Land. The excitement he generates in both his musical performances is awesome. The latter musical number, the bandstand appearance, is fantastic. It never fails to send shivers down my spine. You feel like you're watching a real event, the kind of performance that changed popular music forever. I never got that feeling watching early live footage of the Beatles or Elvis.
Also, this movie inspired my life long love for two of its notable co-stars,Tovah Feldshuh and Joe Pantiliano.
The Shepherd of the Hills (1941)
The Quiet Man meets Sergeant York
If you combined The Quiet Man with Sergeant York, you'd mostly have The Shepherd of the Hills. But in this case the end result is far weaker than constituent parts. The setting, characters, grudges, romance and violence is all very similar to that in the first half of Sergeant York. There are two aspects of this movie that should be recognizable to any fan of The Quiet Man. The first being the name of the piece land that the wealthy stranger buys to the chagrin of fearsome locals. In The Quiet Man, it's "White O'Morn". In this movie it's "Mourning Meadow". The other is the way John Wayne says "Thanks" for unhelpful input form well meaning outsiders when he's in a big fight.
Incidentally, Ward Bond who plays a supporting role in The Shepherd of the Hills was in both The Quiet Man and Sergeant York.
Clearly a lot of money was spent to make this movie. Technicolor in 1941 was itself a budget buster. The cast is amazing. I don't think there's another movie that includes Margorie Mane and Beulah Bondi. There are some very wonderful moments where it all comes together. But overall, it's a disappointment. The story is choppy and the ending is just hokey.
The Secret Sex Life of a Single Mom (2014)
Twisted
Lifetime's "The Secret Life of a Single Mom", focuses on the wife in a broken family of four and plays out like a watered down version of "50 Shades of Grey". The husband is secondary and treated like a jerk even though he's the one paying all the bills before and after the divorce. The wife is treated like something of a put-upon heroine as she goes from one bed to another on hubby's dime, until she finds redemption and a paying job in the arms of a great guy/pervert who demeans her in ways her husband never would. Given that this is a Lifetime movie, it's target audience is women, but I think every guy contemplating marriage should watch it as a cautionary tale. Lest they too fall prey to a passive aggressive mooch who gives her best self to everyone but you