DRACULA (1979)

Director John Badham’s romantic version of the Bram Stoker horror classic stars Frank Langella, Laurence Olivier, Donald Pleasence and Kate Nelligan.  [I herein admit that I am a huge fan of Frank Langella and it was not because this film was my first exposure to him… but we’ll get to him later.]  This stylish screenplay version was written by W. D. Richter, deviates from the Bram Stoker novel and is based on the Broadway play by Hamilton Deane and John L. Balderston (which also starred Mr. Langella who received a Tony Award for the role). John Badham began directing series and movies in TV and struck gold several times with popular (and watchable) films such as Saturday Night Fever (1977, starring John Travolta); War Games (1983, starring Matthew Broderick and Ally Sheedy); and Short Circuit (1986, starring Ally Sheedy and Steve Guttenberg).  In 1998, Badham went back to doing episodes and movies for TV including cable.

I first saw Frank Langella in Mel Brooks’The Twelve Chairs (1970, starring Ron Moody and Frank Langella and Dom DeLuise).   [Due to the charming characters, I consider The Twelve Chairs my favorite Mel Brooks’ movie, even ahead of Young Frankenstein(1974, starring Gene Wilder, Marty Feldman and Peter Boyle).]  Frank Langella was acclaimed for his role inDiary of A Mad Housewife (1970, starring Carrie Snodgress, Richard Benjamin and Frank Langella) but I have not seen it. (It is going on my must-see list right now though!)  Other films with Mr. Langella that I highly recommend are:  Sphinx (1981, starring Lesley-Anne Down and Frank Langella); Frost/Nixon(2008, starring Michael Sheen and Frank Langella in his Best Actor Academy-Award nominated performance); andRobot & Frank (2012, starring Peter Sarsgaard and Frank Langella).  For the record, I do rather enjoy Bela Lugosi’sDracula (1931) and if you haven’t seen either one, then I recommend you watch Lugosi’s prototypical portrayal to fully appreciate Langella’s characterization.

To Langella’s Dracula, Olivier plays Professor Van Helsing.  Olivier may be most well-known for his role as Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights (1939, starring Merle Oberon, Laurence Olivier and David Niven); however, I find that the pairing of those two is more satisfying in The Divorce of Lady X(1938, starring Merle Oberon, Laurence Olivier and Binnie Barnes).  Other Olivier performances I recommend are found in Hitchcock’s Rebecca (1940, starring Laurence Olivier and Joan Fontaine);Pride and Prejudice (1940, starring Greer Garson and Laurence Olivier);That Hamilton Woman (1941, starring Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier);Spartacus (1960, starring Kirk Douglas, Laurence Olivier and Jean Simmons);Marathon Man (1976, starring Dustin Hoffman, Laurence Oliver and Roy Scheider); A Bridge Too Far (1977, starring Sean Connery, Ryan O’Neal and Michael Caine, amongst many others);The Boys from Brazil (1978, starring Gregory Peck, Laurence Oliver and James Mason); A Little Romance (1979, starring Laurence Oliver, Diane Lane and Thelonious Bernard); and The Bounty(1984, starring Anthony Hopkins, Mel Gibson and Laurence Olivier).  If you prefer your Shakespeare with the Olivier flair then Hamlet (1948 in which Olivier won his only Oscar), Richard III (1955 in which he was nominated for Best Actor) and Othello (1965 in which he was nominated for Best Actor) might be your cup of tea.

Donald Pleasence is considered well known for his part in the Halloween saga which began with the filmHalloween (1978, starring Donald Pleasence, Jamie Lee Curtis and P. J. Soles); however, his range is (obviously!) better displayed in meatier roles in several films, namely:  The Great Escape (1963, starring Steve McQueen, James Garner, Richard Attenborough, James Donald, Charles Bronson, Donald Pleasence and James Coburn); You Only Live Twice (1967, starring Sean Connery, Mie Hama and Donald Pleasence); THX 1138 (1971, starring Robert Duvall and Donald Pleasence);The Eagle Has Landed (1976, starring Michael Caine, Donald Sutherland and Robert Duvall); and Telefon (1977, starring Charles Bronson, Donald Pleasence and Lee Remick) and Escape From New York (1981, starring Kurt Russell, Lee Van Cleef, Ernest Borgnine, Donald Pleasence, Issac Hayes, Harry Dean Stanton, Adrienne Barbeau).  And, of course, it’s no small feat to be cast as the personification of Satan [in The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965, starring Max von Sydow, Dorothy McGuire, Charlton Heston and Claude Rains amongst other famous character actors)].

To date, my favorite Kate Nelligan performance is in Eye of the Needle(1981, starring Donald Sutherland and Kate Nelligan).  I have not seen most of her other movies, or the roles have been very small; therefore, I recommend you visit www.imdb.com to see what might interest you out of her complete filmography.  The original music score for Dracula was composed by John Williams (who will most likely get a review all to himself in the near future.) If you are inclined to appreciate musical scores then I suggest you look him up but for the sake of something indicative of his massive talent and incredible influence in cinema, you only need to view the amazing Jaws (1975, starring Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw and Richard Dreyfuss) or Star Wars (1977, starring Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher).  Both of those films won Williams Oscars for Best Score.  He had to compete against himself in 1977 forClose Encounters of the Third Kind(starring Richard Dreyfuss, Francois Truffaut and Teri Garr), another example of a finely crafted film worth multiple viewings.

A Favorite Quote:  “I am the king of my kind.” (Frank Langella as Count Dracula)

Running Time:  109 Minutes

PAPER MOON - A

Set during the Depression, a con man is suddenly responsible for a little girl who may or may not be his daughter.  The characters are played by real life father and daughter, Ryan O’Neal and Tatum O’Neal.  Also starring Madeline Kahn and John Hillerman, this motion picture is charming and definitely not for young children.  Madeline Kahn and Tatum O’Neal were both nominated for Best Supporting Actress and the Oscar went to 10-year-old Ms. O’Neal, making her the youngest Oscar winner ever. (The other nominees in that category were Linda Blair for The Exorcist; Candy Clark for American Graffiti and Sylvia Sidney for Summer Wishes, Winter Dreams.)

Adapted by Alvin Sargent from Joe David Brown’s novel “Addie Pray”, the film was directed by Peter Bogdanovich and filmed in black and white.  Paper Moon is a very endearing comedy and one of my favorite films of all time (probably in the top 20 to 25).  The film was also nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Sound though it did not win in those categories.  That year, the film, in those categories at least, had to compete with Day of the Dolphin(starring George C. Scott, Trish Van Devere and Paul Sorvino), The Exorcist(starring Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow and Linda Blair ), The Last Detail(starring Jack Nicholson and Randy Quaid), The Paper Chase (starring  ),Serpico (starring Al Pacino, John Randolph and Jack Kehoe) and The Sting (starring Paul Newman, Robert Redford and Robert Shaw).

I recommend Mr. Bogdanovich’s screwball comedy What’s Up Doc?  It was released in 1972 and stars Ryan O’Neal, Barbra Streisand and Madeline Kahn. I regret I haven’t seen The Last Picture Show (1971, starring timothy Bottoms, Jeff Bridges and Cybill Shepherd with John Hillerman) and therefore won’t recommend it but I will put it on my must-see list, especially since I love Larry McMurtry who wrote the novel on which it is based.  Alvin Sargent wrote many screenplays, two of which are on my must-see list:  Julia(1977, starring Jane Fonda, Vanessa Redgrave and Jason Robards) andBobby Deerfield (1977, starring Al Pacino, Marthe Keller and Anny Duperey).  Of movies I have seen, I most recommend Ordinary People (1980, starring Donald Sutherland, Judd Hirsch, Mary Tyler Moore and Timothy Hutton) which was adapted from the Judith Guest novel of the same name. Ordinary People won four Academy Awards:  Best Picture (Ronald L. Schwary), Best Supporting Actor (Timothy Hutton who vied with Judd Hirsch in the category), Best Director (Robert Redford) and Best Adapted Screenplay (Alvin Sargent).  Mary Tyler Moore’s performance is powerful and she was nominated for Best Actress but she had to compete against some formidable opponents that year:  Ellen Burstyn in Resurrection (which also starred Sam Shepard and Richard Farnsworth); Goldie Hawn in Private Benjamin (which also starred Eileen Brennan); Gena Rowlands in Gloria(which also starred Buck Henry and Julie Carmen) and my favorite, the winner Sissy Spacek in Coal Miner’s Daughter where she plays Loretta Lynn(which also starred Tommy Lee Jones and Beverly D’Angelo as Patsy Cline).

As for Ryan O’Neal, I am not a big fan of sad romantic movies like Love Story(1970, starring Ali MacGraw and Ryan O’Neal) and it has been many years since I have seen Barry Lyndon (1975, starring Ryan O’Neal, Marisa Berenson and Patrick Magee); however, I can recommend A Bridge Too Far (1977, starring Sean Connery, Ryan O’Neal and Michael Caine amongst many others). As far as Ms. O’Neal goes for younger audiences I would recommend:  The Bad News Bears (1976, starring Walter Matthau, Tatum O’Neal, Vic Morrow, Joyce Van Patten, Ben Piazza and Jackie Earle Haley); International Velvet(1978, starring Tatum O’Neal, Christopher Plummer and Anthony Hopkins) and Little Darlings (1980, starring Tatum O’Neal, Kristy McNichol and Armand Assante).  I also recommend The Runaways (2010, starring Kristen Stewart, Dakota Fanning and Michael Shannon) wherein Tatum O’Neal plays Dakota Fanning’s mother. 

Madeline Kahn’s most famous work would probably be in the Mel Brooks’ classic films Blazing Saddles (1974, starring Cleavon Little, Gene Wilder and Slim Pickens with Madeline Kahn and John Hillerman)and Young Frankenstein(1974, starring Gene Wilder, Madeline Kahn, Marty Feldman with Cloris Leachman, Peter Boyle and Teri Garr); however, I think her role as Eunice is pivotal because as the ‘straight man’, she anchors the whole picture so you can appreciate the rather bland Ryan O’Neal and the peppery Barbra Streisand in What’s Up Doc?  John Hillerman may be best-loved as Magnum PI’s Higgins; however, he was a character actor in many films, the most notable being:  High Plains Drifter(1973, starring Clint Eastwood and Verna Bloom); Chinatown (1974, starring Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway and John Huston); and The Day of the Locust (starring Donald Sutherland, Karen Black, Burgess Meredith and William Atherton).

 A Favorite Quote:  “No, I don’t know what it is, but if you got ‘em, it’s a sure bet they belong to somebody else!” (Tatum O’Neal as Addie Loggins)

Running Time:  102 Minutes

IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT - A

Produced by Frank Capra and executive producer Harry Cohn, director Frank Capra’s romantic comedy stars Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert with Walter Connolly and Roscoe Karns.  Released in 1934, It Happened One Night won Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Actor and Best Actress.  The screenplay, written by Robert Riskin, was adapted from a short story “Night Bus” by Samuel Hopkins Adams.  Colbert plays a wealthy socialite on the lam to reunite with her new husband (that her father disapproves of) when she gets spotted by a reporter, played by Gable, who recognizes and essentially blackmails her into giving him her story. Sometimes credited as the first screwball comedy, this film is lighter on the screwball and heavier on the romance. 

Gable and Colbert are well matched and their interaction is both witty and charming.  This is my favorite Gable film as I really do not enjoy Gone With the Wind (1939, starring Clark Gable, Vivien Leigh and Thomas Mitchell among many others).  I would prefer to watchMutiny on the Bounty (1935, starring Charles Laughton, Clark Gable and Franchot Tone and winner of the Oscar for Best Picture) or Boom Town (1940, starring Clark Gable, Spencer Tracy, Claudette Colbert and Heddy Lamar). Gable and Tracy fans might also enjoySan Francisco (1936, starring Clark Gable, Jeanette MacDonald and Spencer Tracy).  Colbert fans might enjoy Cecil B. DeMille’s Cleopatra (1934, starring Claudette Colbert, Warren William; Henry Wilcoxon); however, I prefer Drums Along the Mohawk (1939, starring Claudette Colbert, Henry Fonda and Edna May Oliver).

My second favorite Capra film is You Can’t Take It With You (1938, starring Jean Arthur, James Stewart and Lionel Barrymore amongst other great cast members and also written by Robert Riskin) which I much prefer to the much-loved It’s A Wonderful Life (1946, starring James Stewart).  I highly recommend these:  Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936, starring Gary Cooper, Jean Arthur and George Bancroft; written by Robert Riskin and winner of Best Director Oscar for Capra); Mr. Smith Goes To Washington (1939, starring James Stewart, Jean Arthur, Claude Rains Harry Carey, and also winner of Best Original Screenplay for Lewis R. Foster); Meet John Doe (1941, starring Gary Cooper, Barbara Stanwyck and Edward Arnold and nominated for Best Original Screenplay for Robert Connell and Robert Presnell Sr.)  Another Capra film, the comedy Arsenic and Old Lace(1944, starring Cary Grant, Priscilla Lane, Raymond Massey), written by Julius J. Epstein and Philip G. Epstein [famous for Casablanca (1942, starring Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Paul Henreid and Claude Rains, among others)] , is worth a viewing as well as a few good laughs.

Running Time:  105 Minutes

A Favorite Quote:  “I want to see what love looks like when it’s triumphant.  I haven’t had a good laugh in a week.” (Clark Gable as Peter Warne) [It’s a comedy, so don’t expect me to give away any really funny lines!]

WALKABOUT - A

Cinematographer-director Nicolas Roeg’s visually stunning tale finds two siblings lost in Australia’s outback, one teenage girl and one small school-aged boy, where they encounter an aborigine boy who is on a ritual journey (known as a ‘walkabout’).  Roeg’s imagery is practicably axiomatic so that the viewer is shown without intellectualism of any sort, the stark contrasts between urban and wild, civilization and nature, Australian and aborigine.  This is the film to study to understand the maximal contribution that cinematography can make to storytelling.  I would put in the same category both Lawrence of Arabia (1962, starring Peter O’Toole, Alec Guinness and Anthony Quinn, which won the Cinematography Oscar for Freddie Young) and Gravity (2013, starring Sandra Bullock and George Clooney, which won the Cinematography Oscar for Emmanuel Lubezki).  The distance between the viewer and the scene is at once apparently so far yet we are intensely and inexorably in it. Since I wrote this several years ago, I have since seen several films by Cinematographer/Director Pawel Pawlikowski and recommend what I have seen to date:  Cold War, Ida and My Summer of Love.

I am at this point in time unable to recommend almost all of Mr. Roeg’s other directorial works because I have not seen most of them, except for The Man Who Fell To Earth (1976, starring David Bowie, Rip Torn and Candy Clark).  As cinematographer, Mr. Roeg’s credited and uncredited works are numerous and I refer you to the www.imdb.com website to see what might appeal to your tastes but I would strongly suggest that any of the BAFTA nominees are worthy of a viewing.

Starring Jenny Agutter, Lucien John (Roeg) and David Gulpilil, Walkabout was written by Edward Bond and inspired by the novel (1959) of the same name by John Vance Marshall.  Edward Bond wrote the English dialogue for the Michelangelo Antonioni film, Blow-Up (1966, starring David Hemmings, Vanessa Redgrave and Sarah Miles).  Walkabout was produced by Sy Litvinoff and was nominated for a Palme d’Or when it debuted in 1971.  It is very possible that I may have erred by not putting Walkabout in my top ten films of all time.  It is definitely vying most competitively with Stanley Kubrick’s A Clockwork Orange (1971, starring Malcolm McDowell, Patrick Magee and Michael Bates.)  A Clockwork Orange was executive produced by Sy Litvinoff who optioned the Anthony Burgess novel.  He certainly had an ability to pick projects that shock and awe (A Clockwork Orange) and awe and shock (Walkabout).

Jenny Agutter has been in many films but I most recommend these three:  Logan’s Run (1976, starring Michael York Jenny Agutter, Richard Jordan, Roscoe Lee Brown, Farrah Fawcett and Peter Ustinov), Equus (1977, starring Richard Burton with Peter Firth, Colin Blakely, Joan Plowright, Eileen Atkins, Harry Andrews and Jenny Agutter) and An American Werewolf in London (1981, starring David Naughton, Jenny Agutter and Griffin Dunne).  David Gulpilil has been in several films but the two most recognizable roles for American audiences are probably from Peter Weir’s The Last Wave (1977, starring Richard Chamberlain, Olivia Hamnett and David Gulpilil) and Crocodile Dundee (1980, starring Paul Hogan, Linda Kozlowski, John Meillon and David Gulpilil).  Luc Roeg has been a film producer since 1987.  I haven’t seen any of his films as a producer but I am immediately putting onto my must-see list his Othello (1995, starring Laurence Fishburne, Irene Jacob and Kenneth Branagh).

Running Time:  100 Minutes

SPELLBOUND - A-

Director Alfred Hitchcock’s psychological suspense thriller Spellbound (1945) stars Ingrid Bergman, Gregory Peck, Michael Chekhov and Leo G. Carroll.  Bergman plays a psychoanalyst who helps her new boss, played by Peck, figure out what’s bothering him.  While Bergman battles the stereotype of the female working professional as cold, she begins to warm up to Peck as they discover that his amnesia and dreams may be evidence of murder.  One dream sequence was designed by the Surrealist Salvador Dali and cut down to two minutes from a reported twenty. Some additional sequences which were designed by Dali were not used in the film; however, from what I’ve seen they might have made the film even better as they would have introduced the (potentially) interesting psychological aspect of Peck’s developing relationship with Bergman.  I am fairly certain that Hitchcock wanted to keep the focus on the central mystery of the film, which is what actually happened to Dr. Edwardes.  [It has recently been brought to my attention that the Producer, David O. Selznick, appears to have been the motivating figure behind Hitchcock directing a film about psychoanalysis in the first place and Hitchcock frequently feuded with Selznick’s personal therapist who was an advisor on the film.  It is not clear to me if Selznick or Hitchcock was more troubled by Dali; however, as Hitchcock was very meticulous about editing, etc. I give all the credit or blame to Hitchcock.]

This film is in my top ten primarily because of interplay of the suspense, the psychological themes and the romance.  I refer you to my review of Notorious (1946) on this website where I mention the romantic relationship and dialogue between Ingrid Bergman and Cary Grant which is more deftly played. I could speculate that Peck was naturally less of a warmer character than Grant anyway or that Hitchcock was not interested in the male-female dynamic from a psychological point of view.  (Was he Psycho?] Other Hitchcock movies which display Grant’s warmth and also the snappier dialogue are To Catch A Thief (1955) with Grace Kelly and North by Northwest (1959) with Eva Marie Saint.  Spellbound was inspired by the novel The House of Dr. Edwardes (1927) by Hilary Saint George Saunders and John Palmer (as ‘Francis Beeding’).  It was adapted by Angus MacPhail and Ben Hecht.  Ben Hecht wrote the screenplay for Notorious aswell as many other Oscar-nominated films, some of which he did not receive credit on the final productions for having made contributions.  I repeat my advice to use the awesome www.imdb.comwebsite to find all the Wonderful andHot writing he has done for The Picturesfrom 1926 to 1964, except to say how much I enjoy His Girl Friday (1940, starring Cary Grant, Rosalind Russell and Ralph Bellamy and adapted by Hecht from the play The Front Page).

Other Hitchcock movies which I highly recommend for various and sundry reasons:  The 39 Steps (1935, starring Robert Donat and Madeleine Carroll);The Lady Vanishes (1938, starring Margaret Lockwood, Michael Redgrave and Paul Lukas); Jamaica Inn (1939, starring Maureen O’Hara, Robert Newton and Charles Laughton);Rebecca (1940, starring Laurence Olivier; Joan Fontaine and George Sanders and also produced by Selznick); Lifeboat (1944, starring Tallulah Bankhead, John Hodiak and Charles Slezak); The Paradine Case(1947, starring Gregory Peck, Ann Todd and Charles Laughton and also produced by Selznick); Rear Window(1954, James Stewart and Grace Kelly);The Trouble with Harry (1955, starring John Forsythe, Shirley MacLaine and Edmund Gwenn); The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956, starring James Stewart and Doris Day).

You may realize if you are big fan of Hitchcock that there are certain Hitchcock movies which I have left off the above list (not counting the films I already reviewed).  This is because I am not particularly enamored of them; however, I will state for the record that I generally recommend any of Hitchcock’s films and would consider it beneficial to see any of them at least once.  (One of my standards for a highly recommended work is that it is worth multiple viewings.)  I may be forgiven for repeating my suggestion to check out the awesome www.imdb.com website as well as my recommendation forHitchcock (2012, starring Anthony Hopkins and Helen Mirren) for those who want more insight into him but more particularly on the making of Psycho (1960).]

Ingrid Bergman has already been recommended for Notorious and I here repeat myself to mention some other most worthy works:  Gaslight (1940, starring Charles Boyer and has Ms. Bergman in her first Best Actress Oscar-winning performance); Anastasia (1956, which has Ms. Bergman in her second Best Actress Oscar-winning performance); Inn of the Sixth Happiness (1958); Indiscreet (1958, starring Ingrid Bergman and Cary Grant); Cactus Flower (1970, starring Walther Matthau and Goldie Hawn in her Best Supporting Actress Oscar-winning performance); Murder on the Orient Express (1974, starring Albert Finney and in which Ms. Bergman won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar);  Autumn Sonata (1978, Ingmar Bergman directed this feature starring Ingrid Bergman and Liv Ullmann); and A Woman Called Golda (1982 made-for-television movie).

I refer you to my review of The Big Country (1958) on this website so you know how much I like Gregory Peck and herewith highly recommend some other pictures of his:  Captain Horatio Hornblower R. N. (1951, starring Gregory Peck, Virginia Mayo and Robert Beatty); Roman Holiday (1953, starring Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn, winner of the Best Academy Award);Moby Dick (1956, starring Gregory Peck and Richard Basehart); Guns of Navarone (1961, starring David Niven, Gregory Peck and Anthony Quinn); To Kill a Mockingbird (1962, starring Gregory Peck in his Oscar-winning role):Cape Fear (1962, starring Gregory Peck, Robert Mitchum and Polly Bergen); Captain Newman, M.D. (1963, starring Gregory Peck, Tony Curtis and Angie Dickinson); The Omen (1976, starring Gregory Peck and Lee Remick); The Boys from Brazil (1978, starring Gregory Peck); and The Sea Wolves (1980, Starring Gregory Peck, Roger Moore and David Niven) and Cape Fear (1991, starring Robert DeNiro, Nick Nolte, Jessica Lange and Juliette Lewis with cameos by Gregory Peck, Robert Mitchum and Martin Balsam who were in the original 1962 version).

Genre:  Psychological Suspense Thriller

Running Time:  111 Minutes

A Favorite Quote:  “Women make the best psychoanalysts until the fall in love.  After that they make the best patients.  (Michael Chekhov as Dr. Alex Brulov)

Now you know my top ten favorite films of all time.  My next review will be Nicolas Roeg’s Walkabout (1971).

PULP FICTION - A+

Writer-director Quentin Tarantino crafts cinematic sequences that mix heady-themed, snappy dialogue with visceral action to create intense, if not orgiastic, masterpieces.  While all of Tarantino’s films are in this same class, Pulp Fiction(1994), with Django Unchained (2012, starring Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz and Leonardo DiCaprio, Kerry Washington and Samuel L. Jackson) a close second, is clearly at the head of it.  The screenplay for Pulp Fiction was co-written by Tarantino and Roger Avary who won Best Original Screenplay Academy Awards, the only Oscar winners out of the seven categories nominated including Best Editing by Sally Menke.  The story’s nonlinear path is complemented by a collection of popular songs which help maintain the viewer’s sanity by offering pointed and lyrical pauses between episodes of witty banter and stark violence.  (If it were possible to make a person insane just by watching a film, I am sure I would nominate both Quentin Tarantino and Stanley Kubrick as Best Crazymaker …but it’s the kind of crazy I love!)

Produced by Lawrence Bender, Pulp Fiction was nominated for Best Picture and won the Palme d’Or.  The other Bender-Tarantino pictures which I highly recommend are Reservoir Dogs (1992, starring Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, Chris Penn, Steve Buscemi, Lawrence Tierney and Michael Madsen), Kill Bill Volume 1( 2003, starring Uma Thurman, David Carradine, Daryl Hannah and Michael Madsen) and Kill Bill Volume 2 (2004, with the same stars as Kill Bill Volume 1plus Lucy Liu, Viveca A. Fox and others) and Inglourious Basterds (2009, starring Brad Pitt, Christoph Waltz and Michael Fassbender among others, including narration by Samuel L. Jackson and Harvey Keitel).

The awesome cast of Pulp Fictionincludes John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson, Uma Thurman, (all three of which were nominated for Acting Oscars), Bruce Willis, Harvey Keitel, Maria de Medeiros, Tim Roth, Amanda Plummer, with Ving Rhames, Eric Stoltz, Rosanna Arquette and Christopher Walken.  A quick list of recommended films in which Mr. Travolta appears: Brian De Palma’s Carrie (1976, starring Sissy Spacek and Piper Laurie with Amy Irving and John Travolta); Saturday Night Fever (1977, starring John Travolta); Blow Out (1981, starring John Travolta with Nancy Allen, John Lithgow, Dennis Franz and also directed by Brian de Palma); Look Who’s Talking (1980, starring John Travolta, Kirstie Alley and George Segal with Bruce Willis providing the Baby’s voice);  Get Shorty(1995, starring John Travolta; Gene Hackman, Rene Russo and Danny DeVito ); Face/Off (1997, starring John Travolta and Nicholas Cage); The General’s Daughter (1999, starring John Travolta and Madeleine Stowe).  Travolta is also extremely watchable in the TV series Welcome Back, Kotter (initially aired in 1975, starring Gabe Kaplan) and the made-for-TV movie The Boy in the Plastic Bubble (1976, starring John Travolta, Glynnis O’Connor, Diana Hyland, Robert Reed and P. J. Soles).

Recommendations for Samuel L. Jackson fans (if not already mentioned): A Time To Kill (1996, starring Matthew McConaughey, Sandra Bullock, Samuel L. Jackson, Kevin Spacey); The Long Kiss Goodnight (1996, starring Geena Davis and Samuel L. Jackson); and The Negotiator (1998, starring Kevin Spacey and Samuel L. Jackson). Recommendations for Uma Thurman fans (if not already mentioned): Dangerous Liaisons (1988, starring Glenn Close, John Malkovich, Michelle Pfeiffer, Swoosie Kurtz, Keanu Reeves, Mildred Natwick and Uma Thurman); and Henry & June (1990, starring Fred Ward, Uma Thurman, Richard E. Grant, Maria de Medeiros and Kevin Spacey).

Films to see for Bruce Willis fans (if not already mentioned):  Die Hard (1988, starring Bruce Willis, Alan Rickman and Bonnie Bedelia) and rest of the Die Hard series films; The Last Boy Scout (1991, starring Bruce Willis and Damon Wayans); Twelve Monkeys (1995, starring Bruce Willis, Madeleine Stowe and Brad Pitt); The Jackal (1997, starring Bruce Willis, Richard Gere and Sidney Poitier); Mercury Rising (1998, starring Bruce Willis, Miko Hughes and Alec Baldwin); The Sixth Sense (1999, starring Bruce Willis, Haley Joel Osment and Toni Collette), Hart’s War (2002, starring Bruce Willis); Sin City (2005, starring Mickey Rourke, Clive Owen and Bruce Willis); Surrogates (2009, starring Bruce Willis, ); Red (2010) and Red 2(2013, starring Bruce Willis, Mary-Louise Parker, Helen Mirren, Morgan Freeman and John Malkovich); and Looper (2012, starring Bruce Willis, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Emily Blunt).  Also Willis was terribly cute in the TV seriesMoonlighting in which he co-starred with Cybill Shepherd and initially aired in 1985. (Yes, he was terribly cute at least once!)

In addition to films already mentioned, must-see films with Mr. Keitel are: Mean Streets (1973, starring Robert De Niro and Harvey Keitel); Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore (1974, starring Ellen Burstyn and Kris Kristofferson with several hidden gems including Jodie Foster and Harvey Keitel); Taxi Driver(1976, starring Robert De Niro; Jodie Foster and Cybill Shepherd); The Duellists (1977, starring Keith Carradine, Harvey Keitel with Albert Finney); The Last Temptation of Christ(1988, starring Willem Dafoe, Barbara Hershey and wherein Keitel plays Judas); The Piano (1993, starring Holly Hunter, Harvey Keitel and Sam Neill);Little Fockers (2010, starring Robert De Niro, Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson, Blythe Danner, Teri Polo, Jessica Alba, Dustin Hoffman and Barbra Streisand, wherein Keitel plays Randy Weir); Moonrise Kingdom (2012, starring ); and The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014, starring Ralph Fiennes, F. Murray Abraham and Mathieu Amalric, wherein Keitel plays Ludwig).

Honorable mention films for the rest of the cast:  Rosencrantz & Guildenstern are Dead (1990, starring Gary Oldman, Tim Roth and Richard Dreyfuss); Rob Roy (1995 starring Liam Neeson, Jessical Lange; John Hurt and Tim Roth); Planet of the Apes (2001, starring Mark Wahlberg, Helena Bonham Carter and Tim Roth); Broken (2012, starring Tim Roth, Cillian Murphy and Charlie Booty); Cattle Annie and Little Britches(1981, starring Burt Lancaster, Rod Steiger, Diane Lane and Amanda Plummer); The World According to Garp (1982, starring Robin Williams, Mary Beth Hurt, Glenn Close and John Lithgow wherein Amanda Plummer plays Ellen James); and The Fisher King(1991, starring Robin Williams, Jeff Bridges and Mercedes Ruehl wherein Amanda Plummer plays Lydia).

Running Time:  154 Minutes

A Favorite Quote:  “Any time of the day is a good time for pie.” (Maria de Medeiros as Fabienne)

The final installment of my top ten films of all time alphabetically is Spellbound.

PSYCHO - A

Alfred Hitchcock’s trend-setting film Psycho was released in 1960 and terrorized many theater-goers with its (surprisingly sparse) violent shower scene.  I recommend the movie Hitchcock (2012, starring Anthony Hopkins as Hitchcock, Helen Mirren as Alma Reville, Scarlett Johansson as Janet Leigh and Danny Huston as Whitfield Cook) which tells the story of the development and making of the film Psycho.  It puts into proper perspective how Psycho as a new kind of horror movie was a practically necessary deviation to (or perhaps evolution of) Hitchcock’s existing suspense thriller genre.  As I mentioned before, I am not going to go into Hitchcock too much until my list of top ten movies of all time alphabetically is finished.  (This is because I still have one more Hitchcock film in my top ten to discuss.)

The screenplay was written by Joseph Stefano, based upon the novel by Robert Bloch which was inspired by the actual murderous crimes of Ed Gein.  As in all of Hitchcock’s films, the writing is worthy of study; however, in this film it is more understated as compared to, for example, Notorious [see my review on this blog], which makes perfect sense because a) there is no living or growing romantic relationship between the male and female stars in the movie and b) the film’s gothic visuals speak more appropriately to the themes of killing and death.  It is well known that Hitchcock as a Producer-Director was a ‘control-freak’ and therefore it is appropriate to give Hitchcock credit within the context of the writing as he approved every word.

Starring Anthony Perkins, Janet Leigh, Vera Miles, John Gavin and Martin Balsam, the film received four Academy Award nominations including Best Director for Hitchcock, Best Supporting Actress for Leigh, Best Cinematography, Black-and-White for John L. Russell and Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Black-and-White for Joseph Hurley, Robert Clatworthy and George Milo. Janet Leigh was in many movies; however, at this time I can only recommend The Manchurian Candidate (1962, starring Frank Sinatra, Laurence Harvey and Janet Leigh).  Vera Miles starred in many movies and series for TV for which I will refer you to the awesome www.imdb.com website; however, in terms of notable films of hers, I recommend two:  The Searchers (1956, starring John Wayne, Jeffrey Hunter, Vera Miles, Ward Bond and Natalie Wood) and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valence (1962, starring James Stewart, John Wayne and Vera Miles).

John Gavin played Julius Caesar in Spartacus (1960, starring Kirk Douglas) which is one of the few ‘sword and sandal’ movies I can recommend with a straight face.  Martin Balsam was a popular character actor in many critically acclaimed and/or popular films including On the Waterfront (1954, starring Marlon Brando, Eva Marie Saint, Lee J. Cobb, Karl Malden and Rod Steiger); 12 Angry Men (1954, starring Henry Fonda along with a whole host of fabulous character actors); Cape Fear(1962, starring Gregory Peck and Robert Mitchum); Seven Days in May (1964, starring Burt Lancaster and Kirk Douglas); Catch-22 (1970, Starring Alan Arkin); Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970, starring Martin Balsam, Joseph Cotton, So Yamamura, E. G. Marshall, James Whitmore and Jason Robards); Little Big Man (1970, starring Dustin Hoffman, Faye Dunaway and Chief Dan George);The Taking of Pelham One Two Three(1974, starring Walter Matthau, Robert Shaw, Martin Balsam and Hector Elizondo); Murder on the Orient Express (1974, starring Albert Finney); All the President’s Men (1975, starring Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman); and Cape Fear (1991, starring Robert De Niro; Nick Nolte, Jessica Lange; Juliette Lewis with cameos by the original stars Gregory Peck, Robert Mitchum and Martin Balsam).

A Famous Quote:  ‘A boy’s best friend is his mother.’ (Anthony Perkins as Norman Bates)

Genre:  Horror

Running Time:  109 Minutes

The next installment of my top ten films of all time alphabetically is Pulp Fiction!