Film
Cineworld
The heading above should have been Lee as I intended to see that film on its release date at the 5-00pm performance. However, on arrival at my local Cineworld, I was informed the projector had broken down and I had to go to another performance. It reminded me of the story about a reviewer who [...]
Classic Movies/Sky Arts
This series, presented by Ian Nathan, has returned. No Dr Bonnie Greer, but instead a young American critic and film historian Christina Newland. Neil Norman is also a regular but Steven Armstrong, the Sunday Times film critic, features only occasionally. The choice of movies is odd. The first [...]
The Third Man
The 75th anniversary of the launch of the classic movie The Third Man is being celebrated this month with a re-showing. What made this Alexander Korda/David Selznick collaboration, directed by Carol Reed – the illegitimate son of actor/producer Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree – so memorable? [...]
Marriages (on film and TV)
Having been married to my Rosie – or Roz as she is known – for 45 years I do give a lot of thought to long term matrimony. The best portrayal of a long marriage is that of Horace Rumpole to Hilda. The Rumpole series are shown on Talking Pictures and, irony of ironies given that the [...]
Brief Encounter
In their Classic Movies series the Sky Arts film critics (Ian Nathan, Mel Norman and Steven Armstrong) reviewed Brief Encounter, a Noel Coward and David Lean joint production. It raises the question as to whether or not a film made in 1945 is dated , a period piece or a timeless classic. Clearly [...]
Titanic lives/Richard Davenport-Hines
The Titanic sank 112 years and 1 month ago but it’s still an iconic event and I have often wondered why. It must be the sheer tragedy of the greatest liner of its age sinking on its maiden voyage and/or the film which launched the career of Kate Winslet and/or the horror of rich and poor [...]
Operation Petticoat/Guns of Navarone
No Bank Holiday is complete without a classic war film and on Friday I watched two. I was new to Operation Petticoat (1959) directed by Blake Edwards. Edwards is best known for the Pink Panther movies but, aside from comedy, he also directed the hard-headed film on alcoholism Days of Wine and Roses [...]
