Movies
Getting a feel for a genre is always a little exciting, even though the genre may not be completely what you're looking. A year or so ago I was pretty clueless about film-noir, having seen a bunch of them now I feel a bit more at ease with its rules and characteristics. I'm also quickly growing bored with them. Joe Sullivan lands himself in jail, protecting his partner Rick. Rick owes Joe money and wants to get rid of him, though without taking any blame for the hit. Rick devises a flawed escape plan, hoping that'll become Joe's death. With the help of his girlfriend, Joe manages to escape after all, leaving him with some important choices to make. Raw Deal is a pretty standard film-noir. Mann is smart enough to keep his film short and concise, but the plot isn't too engaging, the performances are rather bland, and the dialogue is by the numbers. It's fine if you love classic crime cinema, but I'm clearly not part of that niche. Not for me, but there's worse out there.Read all
As someone with a thorough dislike for western cinema, I sometimes forget that so far I've been primarily exposed to the stand-out, notable films in the genre. Festering below that is a pool of purer genre films that don't even bother to try and stand out. It seems that with The Naked Spur, I've finally hit that niche. Kemp is trailing Vandergroat, a killer worth 5.000 dollars, all the way through the Rockies. Two more men join the hunt, though unaware of the price on Vandergroat's head. When they finally catch the man, he tries to save himself by trying to set up the bounty hunters against each other. That turns out to be a lot easier than expected. Stewart is a terrible actor, he didn't magically get any better here. At least he fits in with the rest of the cast, who are equally disappointing. The soundtrack is terrible, the cinematography is bland and the plot is predictable. Add some cliché characters and a sluggish pace, and you have something that is hell to sit through. Unless you love westerns I guess.Read all