Dir. John Ford. Starring Tyrone Power, Maureen O’Hara, Betsy Palmer Some soldiers, just through luck or probability or God’s will, are doomed to be the ones to watch others die. Marty Maher (Power), though he enlists annually for decades on end and is in the service for both world wars, never actually goes to battle.… Read More The Long Gray Line (1955)
Dir. John Ford. Starring John Wayne, Pedro Armendariz, Harry Carey, Jr. It may be my contrarian inclinations, it may be my childlessness, it may be that I just prefer critters, but I know that whenever someone has a baby on a sitcom it bores me. It is one of two common topics in fiction (the other being… Read More 3 Godfathers (1948)
I’m joining in the spirit of the year-in-review post, even though the way I watch movies isn’t really conducive to the kind of list that one usually sees at the end of the year. (Incidentally, if you happen to be a recent music aficionado, friend of the blog Matt will have his year-end list of… Read More 2018 Year-End Review: Fifty Movies
Dir. John Ford. Starring Henry Fonda, Victor Mature, Walter Brennan Frank Capra returned to Hollywood from military service and made It’s a Wonderful Life, a story about a man who is certain that his life, overflowing with instances of quiet sacrifice, has come to nothing. William Wyler returned to Hollywood from military service and made… Read More My Darling Clementine (1946)
You can read up on the basis for this series here, and also find links to other posts in the series. Movies I’ve reviewed on this site have a link in the title which you can follow to read my full review. 10) The Hunt for Red October (1990), directed by John McTiernan If Red… Read More 100 Exceptional American Movies in Ten Genres: Veterans of Foreign Wars, 10-6
Dir. Frank Capra. Starring Jimmy Stewart, Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore It’s a Wonderful Life presents an interesting viewing paradox to me. The movie was always going to get its due as a classic after it famously lost to The Best Years of Our Lives among moviegoers in December 1946. (The movie may not have been like, super popular,… Read More It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)
Dir. John Ford. Starring Ben Johnson, Ward Bond, Harry Carey, Jr. Travis (Johnson) has decided, a little foolishly, to check out a geographical formation in the distance. He’s not sure where he is, though Sandy (Carey) seems to vaguely remember it. Predictably, Travis rides into a small band of Navajo who give chase to him.… Read More Wagon Master (1950)
Dir. John Ford and Mervyn LeRoy. Starring Henry Fonda, William Powell, Jack Lemmon Roberts (Fonda) has just traded his chance to get into the war and away from the dyspeptic tyranny of his commanding officer, Morton (James Cagney). Roberts, a onetime medical student who volunteered for the war instead of finishing his degree, is an… Read More Mister Roberts (1955)
Dir. Howard Hawks. Starring John Wayne, Dean Martin, Ricky Nelson Picture links back here Westerns are, as a general rule, as formulaic and reliable as any movie genre this side of romantic comedy. Rio Bravo doesn’t lean far away from any of its tropes. You can check off grizzled sheriff, struggling drunk, goofy geezer, tough… Read More Rio Bravo (1959)
The following is part of an overview of the top 100 American narrative fiction feature films, from my perspective. For an introduction to the project and an index of other entries in the series, click here. For a list of more than 800 films which I considered for the top 450 and my eligibility qualifications, click here.… Read More Better than AFI’s Top 100: 80-76
Seeing Things Secondhand 