----As the world turns and my Heartland USA home has to have the furnace or fireplace on to take off the chill, I watched some old favorites and a couple of newer films:
A Stolen Life (1946) Bette Davis, Glenn Ford, Dane Clark, Walter Brennan, Charles Ruggles. Great cast. Bette plays twins, Kate and Pat, and the story is about their romance with the man who comes to the New England villiage and island to do maintainance on the lighthouse. Wonderful atmospherics, great musical score, and the players are all at their best. Bette was instrumental in securing the role for Glenn, for which he was very grateful, having just returned after 3 years in the service in WWII. He had no contract and was not working. Years later when Bette needed a job, he was a number one box office star, and returned the favor. He cast her as Apple Annie in "Pocketful Of Miracles." A real gent. A rainey afternoon by the fire kind of film. 9/10 http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0038984/
Sirocco (1951) Humphrey Bogart, Marta Torin, Lee J. Cobb, Everett Sloane. Just barely kept me awake. Bogey is so tired and cynical that you quit caring what happens to him. Lots of going to underground caverns, staying in dirty surroundings, and all the characters are unworthy - theives, murderers. It is about the French occupied Syria and the insurgency that happened, and gun running, smuggling, murders, etc. Not nice or pretty and after a while, we don't care. That is unforgivable in a film of this sort. We have to identify with someone and here we just don't. 5/10 http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0044040/
Home From The Hill (1960) Robert Mitchum, Eleanor Parker, George Peppard, George Hamilton. Texas heat and sensibilities. A huge ranch/farm with oil wells, have made the patriarch answer to no one, not his wife or their son. A force of nature, he uses people the same as his dogs, expected to heel at his voice. It seems the night of his wedding to Eleanor, he brings his bride home to see his mistress and their son, a five year old who has been living on the ranch ever since. Troubled wife stays in the home in order to raise their son her way. But by age 18, sonny becomes enamored of a school friend, and she ends up pregnant. By this time sonny so hates his parents, he doesn't want to marry, let alone have kids. A tangled web and how it all comes out made a engrossing, if not exciting, film. Peppard, as the illigitimate son, is very good and looks great. A good melodrama and gorgeous cinematography. 9/10 http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0053917/
Panic Room (2002) Jodie Foster, Kristen Stewart, Forrest Whitaker, Dwight Yoakam, Jered Leto. This film was on TV last weekend and I had to stop and watch. Still gives a great rush with the gals trying to outwit and out last the three intruders. Great house set and atmosphere. I've reviewed this before, so - 8/10 http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0258000/
In Enemy Hands (2004) William Macy as Chief of Boat Nathan Travers on the U.S.S Swordfish in the north Atlantic during WWII when the German U-boats were taking out more than half of the merchant ships with supplies for the allies. One crew on a U.S. sub gives battle and is sunk by U-429 and picked up as prisoners. I know nothing about subs, the navy etc., but this held my interest yesterday evening. 7/10 http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0316824/
Reading the news makes a happy person sad. More wars, less health care, still losing jobs, maniacs on the loose. But Friday another Gerard Butler film in theaters, so things aren't all bad. LOL! Hi-ho everybody!
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