George Petty

VERTIGO’s visual techniques and Bernard Herrmann’s score are excellent. Hitchcock’s direction of the film’s first part is long on monologues to explain the few action scenes. The film’s final part has sufficient action yet the ending is silly: Crime must be punished so Madeleine falls out of a church steeple to her death. The “surprise ending” runs amock like Agatha Christie’s TEN LITTLE INDIANS. Contrast VERTIGO’s talkiness with the compelling action of Guillermo del Toro’s PAN’S LABYRINTH. Another very good movie that emphasizes action instead of internal summary is Mike Flanagan’s OUIJA: ORIGIN OF EVIL.

This is a teen melodrama about Rue, a female addict, trying to go straight, and her high school friends and enemies. The music of this 2019 series has quickly dated it. The few action scenes are well done. However, after a while the music videos, all overly emoted, grow tiresome and self-parodying. A good idea gone bad due to far too much padding.

The first part of Sinners is unusual and engaging. But note that the CGI road scenes are poorly done. The director botches the ending due to the length of the violent scenes. The violence becomes simply boring. Maybe the director has filmed too many franchise movies, wherein the plot is unresolved and the endings are illogical fireworks designed to give viewers a “bang for their buck.”

An update of the original Night of the Living Dead but set in New York City instead of rural Pennsylvania. The software-driven animation sometimes lacks definition. The voice actors are very good, as are the splatter effects. The flesh-eating zombies are scary yet seen only in short takes. The movie’s is surprisingly creepy with some good scares thrown in. Clocking in at a few minutes over an hour, the plotting is tight with no filler. There are many worse zombie films out there.

The only new thing I learned about Oppenheimer is that he was a womanizer. The movie’s first hour gives away the entire plot. The next two hours are slow. I fell asleep during the last 30 minutes.

As are most Stephen King based movies this one is wildly overrated. It’s formulaic and by the numbers in terms of hitting one cliche after another. Freeman and Robbin’s do well given the weak material. The direction is obvious and in your face.

Director Mike Flanagan’s best work yet. It has the feel of a 1940’s film noir, yet the plot is supernatural horror. Its scare scenes are well spaced and the plot reveals a lot of originality.

The series is formulaic and abrasive. The music is intrusive and irrelevant. A must to avoid.

I fell asleep watching this movie. Director Terence Malick’s prior two movies BADLANDS and DAYS OF HEAVEN are innovative and entertaining films. THIN is thin on action and long on introspection.

Expertly directed, edited and acted, this tells the story of a businessman’s decline and fall after years in an unhappy marriage. The film involves both mysticism and fast-paced action, e.g. a fortune teller and sex and violence. It satirizes stereotypes of blacks, women and gays. It is a unique film, ahead of its time.