Murder on the Orient Express

a film by Sidney Lumet
based on a novel by Agatha Christie

Curiously, it took exactly forty years from the publication of Christie’s classic novel to make its first adaptation. Of the three films from the cycle Nada es lo que parece, the last one was the one I liked the least. I found its all-star cast including Ingrid Bergman, Jean-Pierre Cassel, Sean Connery, Anthony Perkins and Vanessa Redgrave rather underwhelming, while Albert Finney portrayed the most annoying Poirot I’ve seen. It is its few comic moments that make this grandiose movie actually enjoyable.

According to Wikipedia,

Christie, who died fourteen months after the release of the film, stated that Murder on the Orient Express and Witness for the Prosecution were the only movie adaptations of her books that she liked although she expressed disappointment with Poirot’s moustache.

Witness for the Prosecution

a film by Billy Wilder
based on a play by Agatha Christie

Another first — this time, the first film adaptation of Christie’s 1953 play. Compared to last week’s feature, Witness for the Prosecution offers much more mystery, even less noir, and plenty of comedy, albeit of a different kind. Of the three main stars, Tyrone Power is unimpressive, Marlene Dietrich is interesting enough, and Charles Laughton is truly splendid. Una O’Connor is great as a 1957 version of Mrs Doyle (eggbeater = Teamaster), and Elsa Lanchester — by then, a spouse of Laughton for nearly three decades — shines as Miss Plimsoll.

Testigo de cargo continues the cycle Nada es lo que parece. 50 años sin Agatha Christie.

And Then There Were None

a film by René Clair
based on a novel by Agatha Christie

To me, this 1945 movie — the first cinematic adaptation of the classic novel — was not as much a mystery, let alone film noir, as a (black) comedy. According to Wikipedia, this is what René Clair wanted to make all along. Jolly good fun throughout.

The film is full of familiar faces; alas, I couldn’t recall where exactly I saw them.

Diez negritos opened the cycle Nada es lo que parece. 50 años sin Agatha Christie organised by Asociación de Cine Vértigo. Curiously, the Spanish title is faithful to the original title of the novel although the film features figurines of Indians (and was released in the UK as Ten Little Indians).

Rojo y negro

a film by Carlos Arévalo

In Rojo y negro (1942), one of the protagonists, Luisa (Conchita Montenegro), is a goodie Falangist. The problem is — or, I suppose, was, from the regime’s point of view at least — that her boyfriend Miguel (Ismael Merlo), a left-wing activist, is not exactly a baddie. The director’s affiliation with the Falange did not save the film. The Generalissimo was not amused and the movie was promptly withdrawn from the theatres. It was thought to be lost until, 50 years later, a dusty copy was discovered in some basement in Madrid.

This film was screened as part of the new cycle «Los otros de Falange» organised by Asociación de Cine Vértigo.

O. Henry’s Full House

a film by Henry Koster, Henry Hathaway, Jean Negulesco, Howard Hawks and Henry King
based on short stories by O. Henry

Yesterday, we went to see this film screened as a special “literary” session organised by Asociación de Cine Vértigo. I found it thoroughly enjoyable, bar the completely unnecessary interventions by John Steinbeck. But why Cuatro páginas de la vida (“Four pages of life”) if there are five films in the anthology?

According to Wikipedia,

When the film was first premiered in September 1952 in Los Angeles, it consisted of five parts, including Howard Hawks’ “The Ransom of Red Chief”.

The Hawks short was so poorly received that the studio removed it before the film opened in New York that October, leading some outlets to describe the film as O. Henry’s Four of a Kind.

Remarkable, given that the Red Chief is arguably the funniest part. For me, it is not even “arguably”. It remains a mystery why the Spanish title still refers to the “four”.

One of the films we grew up on, Strictly Business (Деловые люди) by Leonid Gaidai, also includes a brilliant adaptation of The Ransom of Red Chief, starring the great Georgy Vitsin and Aleksei Smirnov. Imprinting and stuff notwithstanding, I think I prefer the Hawks’s version. Kathleen Freeman and Irving Bacon as the parents of J.B. are the best.

And another Soviet cinema connection: the opening scene of The Cop and the Anthem reminded us the final of 1975 Hello, I’m Your Aunt! (Здравствуйте, я ваша тётя!). Considering that the latter movie quotes many classic American comedies, I don’t think it’s a coincidence.

“Was that union blessed with any issue?” “Er... What did you say?” “Have they got any children?” “Well...” “You know, those little objects people get after they’re married.” “Yeah. Well, I reckon you could say they have in a way.” “Yeah.” “May I ask what you mean by that foggy response?” “Well, I reckon you could call J.B. a child, if you wanted to.” “J.B.?” “J.B.” “That’s what they call him.” “Oh, it’s a boy.” “I reckon you might, uh, call him a boy.” “Yeah.” “How old is he?” “J.B. is nigh on to 10 now.” “What a lovable age in a boy.” “Where did you say the Dorsets were living now?” “Didn’t say.” “Down the road a piece. A little white house with broken windows.” “You ain’t told us why did you wanna buy the land for.” “You know, I find your conversation rather limited, but very stimulating. Thank you.”

Beloved Infidel

a film by Henry King
based on a memoir by Sheilah Graham

Another CinemaScope film starring Deborah Kerr, sailing on another ocean liner to, surprise surprise, New York, New York. But if An Affair to Remember had the whole first half of decent comedy, no such luck here. Gregory Peck, at times, is pretty good as one F. Scott Fitzgerald, who must have been a thoroughly unpleasant type. I liked Kerr’s portrayal of a cool-as-a-cucumber Ms Graham — not a melodramatic Ms Graham as seen in the trailer.

Beloved Infidel (as Días sin vida) was a closing feature of the cycle 90 años de la 20th Century Fox organised by Asociación de Cine Vértigo.

The Young Lions

a film by Edward Dmytryk
based on a novel by Irwin Shaw

This 1958 film may be (considered) a classic and an epic but it didn’t age well. Maybe it wasn’t that good to start with. Marlon Brando as a blonde German officer speaking (even to other Germans) in English with fake German accent is an embarrassment. Ditto the other protagonists. The only believable character, in my view, is cool and cynical Frau Hardenberg portrayed by May Britt.

The Young Lions (El baile de los malditos) was shown as part of the cycle 90 años de la 20th Century Fox organised by Asociación de Cine Vértigo.

An Affair to Remember

a film by Leo McCarey

I never understood the Hollywood’s obsession with remakes. That includes self-remakes. What’s the point? In 1939, McCarey directed Love Affair starring Charles Boyer and Irene Dunne. According to Wikipedia, it was Cary Grant who convinced McCarey to remake it starring himself in Boyer’s role. Why did McCarey agree, is anyone’s guess. The result “was almost identical to the original on a scene-to-scene basis” — quite a change for a director known for his improvisational approach.

Back in 1957, Bosley Crowther wrote in The New York Times that “something goes wrong with the picture, after the couple get off the ship”. And he was right, if too polite: practically everything goes wrong after that point. Which is a shame, because I quite liked Cary Grant — Deborah Kerr interaction onboard the liner. Considering that the titular affair wasn’t really an affair, even though the rest of the passengers were convinced otherwise (it would be so much nicer if it was the other way around, but c’est la vie, et cetera), the authors could have developed the comedy of errors further or, better still, concluded it right after disembarkment. That would spare the viewers, who might have remembered how the original Love Affair ended anyway, one full hour of sheer embarrassment.

The last funny scene in the movie which I think better should have been simply the last.

For a really good McCarey film starring Grant, I recommend The Awful Truth.

An Affair to Remember (as Tú y yo — why?!) was shown as part of the cycle 90 años de la 20th Century Fox organised by Asociación de Cine Vértigo.

House of Bamboo

a film by Samuel Fuller

Good thing I didn’t watch the utterly ridiculous official trailer before heading to the cinema. Starring Robert Ryan as Sandy, Robert Stack as Eddie, and Yoshiko Yamaguchi as Mariko, this 70-year-old movie has its share of dumb moments, but is saved by a few bits of comedy.

According to Wikipedia,

For many years after its initial release, the film was seen only on television in pan-and-scan prints, leading people to believe that DeForest Kelley has a small role near the end of the film. When Fox finally struck a new 35 mm CinemaScope print for a film festival in the 1990s, viewers were surprised to see that Kelley is in the film all the way through; he was just always off to one side and thus had been panned out of the frame.

House of Bamboo was screened as part of the cycle 90 años de la 20th Century Fox organised by Asociación de Cine Vértigo.

Hiroshima, mon amour

a film by Alain Resnais
screenplay by Marguerite Duras

Resnais’ stunningly beautiful debut feature stars Emmanuelle Riva as “Nevers” and Eiji Okada as “Hiroshima”. Jean-Luc Godard and Éric Rohmer were impressed. As was I, 66 years later.

A “fun fact” I’ve just read in Wikipedia: at the 1959 Cannes Film Festival this film “was excluded from the official selection because of its sensitive subject matter of nuclear bombs and to avoid upsetting the U.S. government”.

Hiroshima, mon amour was screened as part of the cycle Tiempo de memoria, memoria en el tiempo.

Mabel and Fatty Viewing the World’s Fair at San Francisco & Speedy

The last session of the cycle El resto es silencio by Vértigo.

Mabel and Fatty Viewing the World’s Fair at San Francisco

a film by Roscoe Arbuckle and Mabel Normand

I was hoping for another great short from Normand’s vast catalogue but no. Starring both co-directors, this docu-comedy short is pretty much disposable.

Speedy

a film by Ted Wilde

A feel-good slapstick comedy starring Harold Lloyd as Speedy, Ann Christy as Jane Dillon, Bert Woodruff as Pop Dillon and Babe Ruth as himself.Speedy happened to be the final silent film by Lloyd. I have to add that I’ve enjoyed the Carl Davis’ score for this film much more than that for The Kid Brother.

Caught in a Cabaret & The Kid Brother

These films were screened as a part of the cycle El resto es silencio: Normand, Lloyd, Keaton, Chaplin, Fatty y otras sonrisas de antaño by Vértigo.

Caught in a Cabaret

a film by Mabel Normand

Charlie Chaplin’s cinema career began in 1914. Caught in a Cabaret is just one of 36 (!) films featuring Chaplin released that year. Also starring the director, Mabel Normand. Watch for Minta Durfee as a dancer at 20:00.

The Kid Brother

a film by Ted Wilde and J.A. Howe

A classic 1927 comedy starring Harold Lloyd and Jobyna Ralston.

By a strange coincidence, both Mabel Normand and Ted Wilde died at the tender age of 36.

L’amour en fuite

a film by François Truffaut

L’amour en fuite, released 20 years after Les quatre cents coups, brings the adventures of Antoine Doinel to an almost happy end. And, as it happens, it brings to the end the Antoine Doinel cycle by Filmoteca Canaria. I guess I would have enjoyed this comedy more if I didn’t see the other parts of the saga. The flashbacks, taken from the previous films, were not exactly necessary and some of them way too long. The torn-up photo story, however, is utterly brilliant.

Starring Jean-Pierre Léaud as Antoine, Claude Jade as Christine, Marie-France Pisier as Colette, Dani as Liliane, and introducing Dorothée as Sabine.

Domicile conjugal

a film by François Truffaut

Antoine Doinel (Jean-Pierre Léaud) is now happily married to Christine (Claude Jade), however his affair with Kyoko (Hiroko Matsumoto) is about to destroy the idyll.

Unlike Les quatre cents coups, this 1970 film is a pretty light-hearted comedy. There are some conspicuous similarities between Domicile conjugal and Bergman’s 1973 film Scenes from a Marriage (Bergman and Truffaut admired each other).

This was the fourth instalment of Las cinco edades de Antoine Doinel. Alas, I missed the third one!

Antoine et Colette

a film by François Truffaut

A few years after the events of Les quatre cents coups, Antoine (Jean-Pierre Léaud) falls in love.

Co-starring Marie-France Pisier as Colette, Rosy Varte and François Darbon as her parents, and Patrick Auffay as René.

Les quatre cents coups

a film by François Truffaut

Considered to be one of the greatest films of all time, Truffaut’s debut feature introduces the director’s alter ego Antoine Doinel portrayed by Jean-Pierre Léaud.

Is Antoine really a “troubled youth”, “unhappy child” or “outcast”? I didn’t have such an impression. True, the teacher picks on Antoine, but he doesn’t spare other kids either. Here’s one of the IMDb trivia:

All the young actors who unsuccessfully auditioned for the role of Antoine were used in the classroom scenes.

That’s it: all schoolchildren are like Antoine. And, kids being kids, they enjoy themselves even in the most boring and oppressive environments — or find ways out. A gym class scene is simply perfect.

Another scene is often claimed to be improvised but, according to Laura Truffaut, was not:

My father and Jean-Pierre both knew this was a very important scene and they had a long time to prepare for it. My father just gave him the questions he was to be asked but then told him to come up more or less with his own answers. That worked beautifully.

Co-starring Claire Maurier and Albert Rémy as Antoine’s parents and Patrick Auffay as his best friend René.

Les quatre cents coups opens the new cycle Las cinco edades de Antoine Doinel (The Five Ages of Antoine Doinel) by Filmoteca Canaria.

D.O.A.

a film by Rudolph Maté

“A picture as excitingly different as its title!”, said the theatrical release poster for D.O.A.

To me, this 1949 film noir was as exciting as a long joke told after you heard its punchline. But, apparently, it’s a “classic of the genre”, complete with all the clichés of the genre: femmes fatales, mobsters, nighttime driving, etc. etc. The movie has spawned at least six remakes and a musical, so probably I miss something. Or it could be that D.O.A. fell into public domain too early — to be precise, in 1978, due to a silly filing error — an easy prey for idea-starved Hollywood producers.

Edmond O’Brien stars as Frank Bigelow, a pretty dull accountant who, upon learning that he’s mortally poisoned, transforms himself into a hard-boiled detective. Halfway through I got confused with more and more characters and kind of lost interest because, well, the man was gonna die anyway. The jazz band at The Fisherman is good, shame that our accountant doesn’t appreciate live music.

The movie has its share of comic moments, most of them are unintentionally so. Like the one where Frank barges into a second hospital in search of a second opinion:

Frank: Doctor, I want you to examine me for luminous poison.
Doctor: Come right in here. (A few moments later.) Yeah, you’ve got it all right.

The doctor is so cocksure because he shows a test tube that glows in the dark. Great. (It’s puzzling why we don’t have a remake yet where Frank is an ex-KGB agent and “luminous poison” is identified as polonium-210.) Be careful what you drink.

Con las horas contadas closed the cycle Los márgenes de Hollywood en la postguerra.

High Tide

a film by John Reinhardt

Yet another obscure film noir. With pretty cool acting by Don Castle, Lee Tracy, Julie Bishop and Anabel Shaw and some great lines —

“He’s having a slight attack of rigor mortis right in the middle of my living room floor”

— this is my favourite of the bunch so far. But what’s with the title? High Tide is boring. No wonder the Spanish renamed it Ambición perversa — sure, it’s over the top but at least awakening one’s curiosity.

A fun fact: Reinhardt’s directorial debut was 1935 El día que me quieras featuring the tango of the same name as well as Volver and starring Carlos Gardel, Rosita Moreno, Tito Lusiardo and 14-year old Astor Piazzolla!

Hollow Triumph (The Scar)

a film by Steve Sekely

Even less convincing — although significantly better produced and, IMHO, simply better — than Detour, this forgotten 1948 thriller stars Paul Henreid, Joan Bennett and Leslie Brooks.

How come that even the observant dentist Dr. Swangron (John Qualen) failed to notice that the titular scar migrated to the wrong cheek? Never mind that. The girls are beautiful. Henreid is pretty good in a double role of a chain-smoking baddie and, er, another guy, both of them psychoanalysts. Watch out for that orchid scene.

La cicatriz continues the cycle Los márgenes de Hollywood en la postguerra.

Detour

a film by Edgar G. Ulmer
based on a novel by Martin Goldsmith

There is no particular reason why this 1945 B-movie acquired a cult following while scores of superior films were forgotten. An unconvincing story with a few loose ends left untied, perhaps because the film creators ran out of little money they had, it is nevertheless worth watching if only for Ann Savage as Vera.

As I have learned, Vera was placed as a number 6 on Richard Corliss’ list of Top 25 Greatest Movie Villains, one position below Phyllis Dietrichson of Double Indemnity. Why? According to Corliss,

Picked up on a trip out west by a man (Tom Neal) fleeing from a death scene, she instantly and spectacularly gets on his and the audience’s nerves.

Wow. That calls for redefinition of what “villain” is. To me, Vera is a female version of Ostap Bender who, just like the Great Combinator in The Twelve Chairs, effortlessly takes control of a texbook patsy, in this case, Al. If anybody was getting on my nerves, it was this latter, on account of his incurable stupidity and repetitive voice-over narration. Against all odds, I kept hoping that Vera’s machinations would eventually succeed.

Detour was the opening film of the cycle Los márgenes de Hollywood en la postguerra organised by Asociación de Cine Vértigo.