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Mister Roberts (1955)
Seriously dated, but worth one watch
Mister Roberts was based upon a successful stage play, and the film looks like they just put the play on film. Lots of static scenes with the actors sitting around talking. Not exciting film making and not what you would expect from John Ford (although he bowed out about halfway through apparently). I enjoyed watching Henry Fonda and a young Jack Lemmon shows the charm and wit that would make him a big star soon enough. James Cagney is gruff and humorless, and rather one-dimensional. He does little but bark out orders and chew up the scenery. The crew, however, comes across as a bunch of dumb bozos who spout out one liners - perhaps humor was different in the 1950's, but I found little of it funny. And the depiction of women - well, again it was the 1950's, but badly, badly dated. So, a star-studded effort that I found a bit disappointing. The last 20 minutes or so was definitely the best part.
Dazed and Confused (1993)
Dated
This film hasn't aged well at all. Sort of a celebration of psychopathic behavior.. But Matthew McConaughey is a scene stealer. And Mila is gorgeous. I do give credit for putting together a movie on what was obviously a tiny budget.
Jojo Rabbit (2019)
Audacious film that surprisingly works
Described on paper, this film seems unlikely to entertain, or even exist. Yet I found it to be an odd and humorous fantasy that arrives at the right message, but just from a very different direction. Great cast, great music. Glad it found an audience.
Django Unchained (2012)
Great filmmaking but, ...
Great filmmaking, but very heavy handed and almost cartoonish in the presentation of the subject matter. Almost a celebration of mass murder. Stand-out performance was by Samuel L. Jackson.
Tropic Thunder (2008)
Still hilarious
Wonderfully cast, wickedly funny parody. I only wish more films like this got made these days. Robert Downey, Jr. has never been better.
Head (1968)
No, not an under-appreciated masterpiece
Other than a few pretty good Monkees' songs, this is a painful, tedious movie to watch. It proudly has no plot, and you so wish it would, just to help you get through to the end. It was entertaining to see the very brief cameos of Jack Nicholson and Dennis Hopper, however.
Beat the Devil (1953)
Somewhere between a classic and a "complete mess"
I read somewhere that Bogart called this film a "complete mess" upon its release and John Huston definitely told critics to lower their expectations. The film is definitely lacking in a compelling plot, but shines because of some very humorous dialogue and great performances. I read in Truman Capote's biography that his contributions to the screenplay definitely steered the film into the territory of comedy, which was not the original vision for the picture. Well worth watching once, but you don't really care that much about the characters.
Medea (1988)
brilliantly done
I was stunned by how good this film was. While a made-for-TV production, on what appears a modest budget, it is gripping and beautiful to watch. A very grim story indeed, but wonderfully acted and compelling. I do love Udo Kier.