Tag Archives: crime

#236- Strangers on a Train

Quick recap: Guy is a tennis star who hates his wife. Bruno is a creepo that hates his father. When the two meet ( as strangers, on a train), Bruno decides that it would be fun if the two could switch places and murder whom the other hates.

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Making small talk is difficult for some people

Fun (?) fact: Alfred Hitchcock wanted the character of Bruno to be gay but that wasn’t really something you could say back then. Instead, he and Robert Walker worked together to suggest Bruno’s homosexuality with elaborate gestures and fancy clothes without having to actually point it out.

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It was a success!

My thoughts: Strangers on a Train just might be my favorite Hitchcock film. It’s not his best, but I had the most fun watching it. Everyone knows Hitchcock for his horror films, but I much prefer film-noir Hitchcock, where he can put his dark humor to good use.

There is a lot to love about this movie, but it’s the film techniques Hitchcock uses that make Strangers on a Train so stunning. I know there are technical terms for all the camera work but I’m not even going to pretend I have a clue what I’m talking about here and just say it was really, really, really……good. There were many scenes with Bruno where he was just off in the distance, but the perspective made him seem so much more formidable. My favorite example of this was during the tennis match, where the audience moved their heads back and forth to watch the ball, while Bruno’s gaze was fixed squarely on Guy. It was beyond creepy. The scene in which Miriam is murdered is also amazing. Hitchcock somehow filmed the encounter through the perspective of Miriam’s glasses that were knocked to the grass when Bruno grabbed her.

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The dialogue and acting were top notch and although it was a very dark movie, there were many scenes that made me laugh. Like Shadow of a Doubt, many of the characters casually talk about murder and gruesome ways of dying as if it is a common hobby to do so. Which it kind of is? There has always been a fascination with that sort of thing so although it seems off-putting, it’s something we all do. As for the murder itself, I never really understood why Guy could never go to the police and explain what happened. There didn’t seem to be a lot of evidence, and it’s not like the police leading the investigation came from Manitowoc County (I’m topical!) so they probably would’ve been reasonable. The ending also seemed to be wrapped up a little too neatly. One second Guy was the number one suspect and the next second his name is cleared completely. Granted, there wasn’t much of a case to begin with but it was definitely a weak spot in an otherwise enjoyable film to have it all dropped so quickly.

Final review: 4/5

Up next: Storm over Asia

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#232- The Godfather

Thanks for the suggestion, Josh!

Quick recap: A charming, uplifting story about a close-knit Sicilian family.

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Extra fun fact: 90% of  Simpsons episodes are just a parody of The Godfather

Fun (?) fact: The cat held by Marlon Brando in the beginning of the film was just a stray he found on the lot. The cat, being a cat, purred so loudly that some of Brando’s lines weren’t able to be heard.

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My thoughts: I’m so relieved to finally be able to cross The Godfather off of my ‘Oh my god, Mary, you haven’t seen ______? What’s wrong with you?’ list.And I’m also glad that it will not be added to my ‘Oh my god, Mary you didn’t like _______? What’s WRONG with you?’ list.

So. The Godfather. There’s so much to love about this film, but I think the genius lies in having all these common family events- a wedding, an ill loved one, a wife getting blown up, a baptism- and portraying them through the eyes of the Mafia. It created this perfect juxtaposition where I, as the viewer could identify with all these scenes and yet also SO NOT identify with any of the scenes. I know people love this movie for all its badass violence (and believe me, there’s plenty of that), but there is also heart, which I found most surprising. The baptism scene is a perfect example of that and also maybe the greatest scene in film,period. On one hand, here is Michael, the new godfather, honoring his duties, and with each phrase the priest says, the other scene is of absolute slaughter. He’s the godfather and he’s also The Godfather. Perfection.

I’m not even going to go into the acting because of course it was superb and all that jazz, but I never really got used to Don Corleone, played by Marlon Brando. I blame two things for this: 1) I’ve seen so many parodies and tributes  of The Godfather that seeing the actual performance felt like a parody itself and 2) I haven’t forgiven Brando yet for One-Eyed Jacks. Nonetheless, it’s one of the greatest roles in film and I can’t imagine anyone else doing it.He too is a juxtaposition between this family man- playing with his grandson, giving his children advice- and also running one of the most dangerous crime syndicates in history. Don Corleone seemed so helpless after getting shot, yet he still managed to influence every decision just by his very presence. It’s one of the greatest roles in film, which I know I’m saying a lot, but come on, it’s The Godfather.

Final review: 5/5

Up next: possibly the Ghostbusters or Casablanca

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#229- Pulp Fiction

Quick recap: Told out of order, Pulp Fiction interweaves stories about hit men, a boxer and a couple about to rob a diner.

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Fun (?) fact: To prepare for the role, John Travolta researched what it was like to be on heroin and was told to down a bottle of Tequila and then get in a hot tub. The more you know, kids!

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My thoughts: Let me tell you, this has probably been the hardest review I’ve ever written. Not because the movie is bad or anything, but because what could I possibly add to something so perfect? Pulp Fiction is a masterpiece and I have yet to run into anyone who doesn’t like it. It’s Tarantino’s best, hands down and every moment is gold.

I had the opportunity to watch Pulp Fiction on the big screen at the Alamo Drafthouse and I’m so glad I did because that’s how it’s meant to be seen. It was a Quote Along, which I was initially hesitant about but then warmed up to the idea once I was given a cap gun and a syringe pen. It’s been awhile since I had last seen the movie so I wasn’t sure I would be able to remember many of the ‘quotable’ lines, but once it began, it didn’t matter. There’s just something wonderfully cathartic about saying ‘motherfucker’ with about 100 other people.

Yes, there is a lot of violence and language but I’m not really sure what you were expecting from a Tarantino film, if that sort of thing bothers you. I wouldn’t use the word ‘gratuitous’ to describe the killing, especially compared to his newest, Hateful Eight. I think I was most surprised by how perfectly everything fit together. Every line said, every gun fired was necessary. Pulp Fiction has a lot of ‘rambling’ anecdotes but somehow it just works. I loved this film when I first saw it years ago and I think I’m even more in love now.

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Final review: 5/5

Up Next: Pan’s Labyrinth

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#222- Se7en

Quick recap: A serial killer uses the seven deadly sins as a motive to murder people

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Fun (?) fact: All of John Doe’s books were real, written just for the film. They took two months to complete, which is the estimated time Somerset said it would take to read them.

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It’s just never a good idea to mention how close you are to retirement

My thoughts: Se7en is a good movie in that, ‘I’m into serial killers, but not INTO serial killers’ kind of way. I love me a well done murder mystery (despite having never seen CSI or Law and Order), and this movie satisfies all the things I love about the genre: creative death, a sarcastic detective and a fascinating journey to the library.

The biggest aspect that separates Se7en from other crime movies is that it manages to make the villain an actual villain. Hannibal Lecter is a gruesome killer, yet somehow I found myself rooting for him. This guy (John Doe)  was so insane and the murders so brutal that I was 100% on the cops’ side. I also liked that there wasn’t a storyline to delve into John Doe’s past and explain what made him do the things he did. Dude’s a lunatic and that’s all there is to it.

Despite the creativity of the murders, the rest of the movie is your run of the mill police procedural. There’s even a montage of Somerset and Mills analyzing the clues separately, their stereotypes brightly on display. Somerset (Morgan Freeman) is a hardened detective, literally 6 days from retirement while his partner Mills  (played by Brad Pitt) is the cocky young detective who throws Somerset for a loop. It’s like the Odd Couple, but more boring because the two figure out they need each other pretty quick. The mystery of who’s the killer is solved rather easily and I was relieved that it wasn’t anyone we had already been introduced to. For the couple of people who haven’t seen the movie, I won’t spoil the it. All I’ll say is that the case isn’t wrapped up as nicely as you think it is.

Another reason that sets this movie apart from others of its kind is its darkness. There is no happy ending (sorry, SPOILER ALERT) and I was left on my own to search for meaning- Is it that we are damned if we do and damned if we don’t? Is it that sometimes when you feel you have triumphed you have really lost? Or is it that despite Brad Pitt being a beautiful man, even he can’t pull off a goatee and frosted tips? The mystery endures.

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Final review: 4/5. It’s definitely a gruesome film and not one I’m going to go out and buy on DVD any time soon.

Up next: 8 1/2

 

 

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