Thelma And Louise (1991)

Two best friends, Thelma (Geena Davis) and Louise (Susan Sarandon) set out for a weekend getaway in the mountains. But a stop at a country and western bar turns ugly when a man (Timothy Carhart) attempts to rape Thelma and is shot and killed by Louise. Directed by Ridley Scott (ALIEN). There had been a smattering of mainstream feminist movies in the 1970s (ALICE DOESN'T LIVE HERE ANYMORE, AN UNMARRIED WOMAN etc.) but nothing like the controversy and attention that made THELMA AND LOUISE one of the most talked about movies of the year. It wasn't a small intellectual film but a female road film that had as much action as a Charles Bronson movie and encompassed the anger, rage and frustration toward a male driven society that still treated women as second class citizens. While many feminists decried the violence in the film, audiences cheered the two women as they blew up a sexist trucker's vehicle. I think it's Sarandon's best performance and Geena Davis gives a trajectory to her ditzy housewife's journey of discovery till she realizes she can never go back to the way it was. In many ways, a landmark film. With Brad Pitt (in his breakthrough role), Harvey Keitel, Michael Madsen, Christopher McDonald and Lucinda Jenney. 

怪物 (aka Monster) (2023)

A single mother (Sakura Ando) raising a son (Soya Kurokawa) is alarmed by her son's disturbing behavior and suspects he is being abused by a teacher (Eita Nagayama) and she goes to the school to confront him but is unsatisfied with the school's response. Directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda (SHOPLIFTERS), the film won the best screenplay at the Cannes film festival. The film is a complex puzzle told from three different views and it takes awhile to get used to the fragmented narrative but slowly it emerges into a shattering but empathetic rumination on understanding and accepting who you are. Other themes show themselves: homophobia, bullying, parental abuse, guilt but they are secondary to the film's emotional core. The two central child performers (Hinata Hiiragi is the other boy) are amazing. Not an easy viewing but be patient, the reward is great. With Yuko Tanaka and Mitsuki Takahata.

Tarzan The Ape Man (1932)

Two hunters (C. Aubrey Smith, Neil Hamilton) travel in Africa searching for a sacred elephant burial ground where they expect to find a wealth of ivory. They take along the older hunter's daughter (Maureen O'Sullivan) in their quest. But they come across a primitive white man (Johnny Weissmuller), almost ape like in his demeanor. Based on the 1912 novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs and directed by W.S. Van Dyke (SAN FRANCISCO). Not the first Tarzan feature film made but the most successful. It spawned 12 more movies with Weissmuller as Tarzan and the character would continue with Lex Barker and Gordon Scott playing the jungle hero among many others. It's a primitive film in more ways than one. I found much of it difficult to watch what with its indigenous people being whipped because they didn't move fast enough for their white bwanas and the random slaughter of animals in their native habitat because they were in the way. Weissmuller doesn't have to act, just look good in a loin cloth (which he does) and he doesn't come in until a half hour into the movie. The movie really belongs to O'Sullivan as Jane who carries most of the movie. For me, it was of interest for its historical aspect but not much else. I much preferred the Lex Barker Tarzan movies.

The Looters (1955)

When a plane crashes in the snow capped Rocky Mountains of Colorado, a mountain climber (Rory Calhoun) and his old Army buddy (Ray Danton) set out on their trail with the intention of rescuing any survivors. But the Army buddy is lured  by the $250,000 in cash they find among the plane's debris. Directed by Abner Biberman (THE NIGHT RUNNER). After a slow expository beginning, the film grows in intensity as the two mountain climbers and the survivors make the perilous trek down the mountain. The movie may be a minor Universal programmer but it does its job well and the acting is more than decent. The film benefits from its mountain locations though I have no idea where the film's exteriors were filmed (interiors shot at Universal) and handsomely shot by Lloyd Ahern (MIRACLE ON 34TH STREET) in B&W. A nifty adventure movie. With Julie Adams, Thomas Gomez, Frank Faylen and Russ Conway.

The Questor Tapes (1974)

An android (Robert Foxworth) created with cutting edge technology sets out on a quest to find his missing creator (Lew Ayres) in an attempt to find out his purpose. To this end, he is helped in his search by a young scientist (Mike Farrell). Directed by Richard Colla (THE UFO INCIDENT) and based on a concept by Gene Roddenberry, the man behind the original STAR TREK series. A fascinating premise poorly executed. The movie plays around with the idea of creation in terms of our own creation and our relation to our "creator" and the android's relation to his own creator but it doesn't explore it in any depth. It plays out like a TV movie of the week (which it was) and this is only amplified by the cipher that is Mike Farrell. The film has a large cult following but I, for one, would love to see it remade by more creative and daring minds. With Dana Wynter, John Vernon, Majel Barrett and James Shigeta whose part seems to have been severely cut.

Speriamo Che Sia Femmina (aka Let's Hope It's A Girl) (1986)

Although married, a woman (Liv Ullmann) lives apart from her husband (Philippe Noiret). She lives in the Tuscan countryside while her husband resides in Rome. She lives with an extended female centric family including her actress sister's (Catherine Deneuve) daughter (Francesca Calo). Directed by Mario Monicelli (BIG DEAL ON MADONNA STREET) who won the David di Donatello award (the Italian Oscar) for best director for his work here. The film is near plotless. Instead, we get a series of incidents that eventually build up to a tale of female bonding and empowerment. However, despite its feminist narrative, it isn't heavy handed. Monicelli slowly lets it grow without us even being aware of it until the very end. The only problem I had with it was the usual Italian dubbing. The Nordic Liv Ullmann and the French Deneuve and Noiret are dubbed into Italian and it took me awhile to get used to the dubbed voices. A simple story that moves amiably along until its strong climax. With Stefania Sandrelli, Bernard Blier (also French), Giuliano Gemma, Giuliana De Sio and Athina Cenci.

Sette Note In Nero (aka The Psychic) (1977)

A recently married woman (Jennifer O'Neill) has visions of an older woman murdered by a limping man and her body buried behind a wall. While her husband (Gianni Garko) is away on a business trip, she decides to renovate an abandoned mansion owned by her husband. It is there she discovers a crack in the wall and eventually a skeleton of a dead woman who had been buried behind the wall. But that's only the beginning as she perseveres in locating the killer. Directed by Lucio Fulci (LIZARD IN A WOMAN'S SKIN), this is a gripping giallo that grows in intensity and even when you realize who the murderer is, you're still riveted. The film's only flaw (and it's a minor one) in my eyes is why the killer would bury a second body behind a wall several years later. Surely, there's an easier way to get rid of a body. Although considered a giallo, I was more taken by the murder mystery "whodunit" aspect of it. Stylish and effective, it's a favorite of Quentin Tarantino who wanted to remake it in the late 1990s. The film wasn't released in the U.S. until 1979. With Gabriele Ferzetti, Ida Galli, Marc Porela and Jenny Tamburi.

Three Strangers (1946)

On the eve of the Chinese New Year, three strangers make a wish to a Chinese goddess for money: a solicitor (Sydney Greenstreet), an alcoholic (Peter Lorre) and a manipulative and obsessive woman (Geraldine Fitzgerald). But what good will the money do them if fate already has their destinies plotted out? Directed by Jean Negulesco (THREE COINS IN THE FOUNTAIN) from an original screenplay co-written by John Huston. It's a nifty film noir with curves and irony. The three leads are very good with Peter Lorre in one of his best roles and the usually docile Fitzgerald getting a chance to play a wicked woman. The film was originally planned with bigger stars in the leads but I'm glad that the trio that normally played supporting roles were put into the starring roles. It gives the movie an intrepid texture. The atmospheric score is by Adolph Deutsch (THE MALTESE FALCON) and the suitably ambient cinematography is by Arthur Edeson (CASABLANCA). A real treat for noir fans. With Joan Lorring, Peter Whitney, Marjorie Riordan and Alan Napier.

The Quiet Gun (1957)

Prodded by a saloon owner (Tom Brown) who has ulterior motives, a small town votes to arrest a rancher (Jim Davis) on immorality charges. His crime? Living openly with an Indian girl (Mara Corday) he's not married to. However, when confronted by the city attorney (Lewis Martin), the rancher shoots him when the attorney attempts to pull a gun on him. Based on the novel LAWMAN by Lauran Paine and directed by William F. Claxton (NIGHT OF THE LEPUS). For most of its brief running time (one hour, 17 minutes) I found this B western absorbing. But it declines severely in the film's last half hour when it sinks into routine and the events seem contrived and not organic. A pity because for awhile I thought I might be watching a sleeper. Nicely shot in crisp B&W CinemaScope by John J. Mescal (BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN). With Forrest Tucker, Kathleen Crowley, Lee Van Cleef, Hank Worden and Edith Evanson.

They Call It Sin (1932)

Although he's engaged to be married, a traveling salesman (David Manners) romances a small town girl (Loretta Young). She leaves the small town to go to New York and look him up only to find out that he has a fiancee (Helen Vinson). Based on the novel by Alberta Stedman Eagan and directed by Thornton Freeland (FLYING DOWN TO RIO). I found most of this pre code melodrama infuriating. Manner's character is despicable, hurting two different women by romancing them at the same time and continuing after he's married yet they both love him unconditionally. The predatory lech (Louis Calhern) trying to get Young into his bed is a creep too but at least he's honest about his intentions. Still, even as a pre code it's a bit of a cheat. It teases us without delivering the goods. With George Brent, Una Merkel (who provides some much needed comic relief), Elizabeth Patterson and Roscoe Karns.