Newsies aka The News Boys (1992)

Newsies aka The News Boys (Dir: Kenny Ortega, 1992).

Kenny Ortega's directorial debut was this fact-based musical based upon the New York newsboy's strike of 1899, with tunes courtesy of Oscar winner Alan Menkin and co-composer Jack Feldman.  

A youthful Christian Bale stars as New York newspaper hawker Jack Kelly. When New York World owner Joseph Pulitzer (Robert Duvall) raises the price of the paper and cuts into the boys earnings, Jack leads the newsies in the historic strike which eventually lead to child labour reforms. Aiding him in his quest are journalist Bryan Denton (Bill Pullman) and showgirl Medda Larkson (Ann Margret).

On original release Newsies was an unmitigated critical and commercial disaster. Such was its failure that the movie was hastily re-titled The News Boys for international markets. But all attempts to prevent a flop proved futile; the movie recouped less than $3 million of its $15 million budget and was, seemingly, destined for obscurity. Yet this musical's journey from chump to champ was just beginning. Slowly gaining an appreciative following from home video release and TV screenings, jump forward 20 years and the movie had enough of a following to warrant a stage adaptation. The former turkey was a huge success, winning 2 Tony Awards from 8 nominations; a long way to come for a movie with 5 Golden Raspberry nominations. Things came full circle when the theatrical production was filmed and released as Newsies: The Broadway Musical (Brett Sullivan, 2017).

But what of the movie itself? Newsies is far from perfect. It has an uncertain tone: on one level it doesn’t shy away from the more unsavoury aspects of the story; we see the boys fighting, smoking and spitting (something I find especially distasteful), cavorting with burlesque girls and suffering at the hands of police brutality. Yet at the same time it all seems a bit of a lark, with far better living conditions than I imagine many newsies experienced. Perhaps a movie about child exploitation dressed up a family friendly musical would always struggle with making its subject matter palatable, but Newsies manages to stay on the right side of good taste! 

Performances are strong, especially from Bale who proves a surprisingly adept song and dance man. The choreography is as polished as you would want and the songs are tuneful. It is also refreshing to see a musical which doesn’t suffer from the dreaded auto-tune that afflicts some modern productions. Kenny Ortega had made his reputation as a choreographer and does well in his directorial debut, setting the stage for his later career helming energetic tween franchises such as High School Musical (K Ortega, 2006) and Descendants (K Ortega, 2015).

In retrospect it is not difficult to see why Newsies the movie fared so badly back in 1992. Big Broadway style musicals were just not that popular. An old fashioned movie musical, which consciously recalled movie musicals of the past, particularly Oliver! (Carol Reed, 1968), would have seemed positively archaic alongside popcorn blockbusters such as Batman Returns (Tim Burton, 1992) and Lethal Weapon 3 (Richard Donner, 1992). However, 30 years later in an era when the public has rediscovered its appetite for big budget musicals, this old style Hollywood movie, with its big production numbers and lovingly recreated soundstage sets, is a quaintly quirky treat! It would be fair to say that Newsies is a bit of an acquired taste but it should appeal to those with an appreciation for old fashioned musicals, fans of Disney Channel movies and anyone in between! 

Zombies (2018)

Zombies (Dir: Paul Hoen, 2018)

Girl meets zombie in this musical romcom for the tween set. 

Afraid of the undead? Fret thee not! As a Disney Channel Original Movie, the zombies in Zombies are only likely to induce fear in those terrified by the prospect of perky teens singing and dancing. 

Following a freak accident involving lime soda pop and a mysterious power source, half the population of the seemingly perfect but ultra-conservative town of Seabrook are turned into zombies. After creating havoc eating the brains of townsfolk, the zombie horde are eventually segregated behind a barrier, in their own Zombie Town. Characterised by their pale skin and green hair, the zombies are forced to wear a government issue uniform and keep within the boundaries of Zombie Town. 50 years later the zombies are no longer considered a threat to the community, thanks to the modern tech of  'Z-bands', an electro-bracelet that emits an electric pulse that stops them wanting to consume brains. The movie follows zombie teen Zed (Milo Manheim) as he enters previously off-limits Seabrook High School. Facing opposition from the humans, Zed finds an ally in sympathetic Addison (Meg Donnelly), a pretty cheerleader who does not fit in among the pastel coloured populace of Seabrook. A Zombio and Juliet romance develops as hostility to zombies mounts, especially from Addison's zombie hating parents, desperate for their daughter to blend in. Can the two overcome their antagonists and unite Seabrook? Is this a Disney Channel Movie?!!

Zombies is a lot of fun. The production is good, the song and dance numbers are slickly handled and the clean cut teens are a likeable bunch. While the human/zombie romance is fairly novel, there is little else original in the movie. In actuality this is the High School Musical formula with a zombie overlay. However, its proves a robust formula and happily Zombies still feels pretty fresh. The themes of integration and accepting people (and zombies) for who they are is anything but subtle. Yet, these are ever important messages. The movie certainly means well and if it gets its point across, albeit heavy-handedly, than so be it. 

I have admitted to having a soft spot for Disney Channel movies in the past. For me, they channel the energy of the fluffily enjoyable formulaic Disney comedies of the 70s that I loved as a kid. As Disney’s cinematic schedule become ever more dominated by mega budget remakes and superhero epics, the lightweight output of the Disney Channel seems refreshing simple. No one would claim Zombies is a masterpiece, but it sets out to entertain and in this it succeeds. If you enjoyed High School Musical (Kenny Ortega, 2006) and Descendants (Kenny Ortega, 2015) than Zombies should be right up your alley. 

Saturday Night Out (1964)

Saturday Night Out (Dir: Robert Hartford-Davis, 1964).

On the surface Saturday Night Out would appear to be a non-musical version of On the Town (Gene Kelly & Stanley Donen, 1949) relocated from New York to London. It is actually a portmanteau movie made up of five loosely connected vignettes following the exploits of four merchant seaman and a ships passenger on a night out in the capital. An uneasy mix of the comedic and the dramatic, the movie's best sequences are those laced with humour and which are less concerned with courting controversy. 

Best of the bunch are Bernard Lee as a middle age businessman falling foul of a honey trap and David Lodge as a sailor paying shore leave visit to his 'mum'. Less convincing are Inigo Jackson and his misadventures with a pair of Soho hostesses and Colin Campbell who finds love with a girl he picks up in a bar. Bottom of the heap is the episode with John Bonney and his exploits with existential anarchist Heather Sears who he stops from throwing herself into the River Thames. As Penny, Sears is the kind of free spirited beatnik kook that you only find in the movies. To be honest, I found the characterisation to be a little patronising and somewhat irritating and while the performances are fine, little about the story rings true. 

Saturday Night Out's hoped for sense of realism is undermined by its uncertain tone, which veers from uneasily from comedy to drama. In some respects the movie has not aged well and what was once deemed gritty is now occasionally grim. The somewhat dated attitude to women which permeates the movie doesn't help. Things are livened up by a guest spot by Liverpool beat band The Searchers, inexplicably performing the title song in a East End roughhouse. Celebrity boxer Freddie Mills also puts in an appearance as a Soho nightclub owner. 

Disappointingly, for a film about a night out in London, must of Saturday Night Out takes place indoors. There are some nice shots of the Embankment and the Docklands area but overall there is less location footage than might be expected. It does boast a quality cast and some nice performances but ultimately feels patently fake. Not a bad movie, Saturday Night Out should be enjoyed by fans of the period British cinema, but is by no means essential viewing.

Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)

Mad Max: Fury Road (Dir: George Miller, 2015)

Tom Hardy takes the lead in this reboot of the popular post-apocalyptic Mad Max franchise. 

Although a modestly budgeted Australian production, the original Mad Max (George Miller, 1979) was an enormous box office success and shot star Mel Gibson to international fame. The movie was follow by the sequels Mad Max 2 (George Miller, 1981) re-titled Road Warrior in the US, and the less well received Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (George Miller & George Ogilivie, 1985). Mad Max: Fury Road is once again directed by the original series' co-writer and co-creator George Miller.

The movie opens in a futuristic post-apocalyptic wasteland ruled by masked bad dude Immortan Joe (Hugh Keayes-Byrne). Captured by Joe's army and used as a 'bloodbag' by sickly soldier Nux (Brendan McCarthy), our hero Max soon finds himself adorning the hood of Nux's gasoline guzzling vehicle. Nux is in pursuit of Imperator Furiosa who is fleeing Joe with five of his wives in tow, one of whom is heavily pregnant. After some initial misunderstandings(!) Max and Furiosa soon team up to whoop Joe's ass. Which they do in spectacular fashion! 

Mad is right; this movie is a bit bonkers! I can’t honestly said I had a complete grasp of what was going on throughout its entirety. However, Fury Road has its compensations. The movie is nonstop adrenaline, with breathtaking action set pieces. The pace barely lets up for a second, and while occasionally confusing, it is never dull! 

It is also visually stunning; from special effect sets to costumes to John Seale's exquisite cinematography Mad Max: Fury Road has to be one of the best looking blockbusters out there. (Interestingly, the movie also exists as a Black and Chrome Edition, which has been drained of colour. While it is said to be Miller’s preferred version, the use of colour throughout the film is beautiful and I find it hard to imagine any improvement could be made by viewing the film in monochrome. I will watch it and get back to you.)

It is quite violent and occasionally grizzly. But the movie's overtly stylised and somewhat surreal atmosphere made the violent scenes much more palatable, even to a sensitive soul like me. To be honest, I found the excessive spitting way more upsetting than the carnage! 

Tom Hardy is great in the lead, and makes for a surprisingly sympathetic Max. As the kick-butt Imperator Furiosa, Charlize Theron is Hardy's equal in the action stakes and, refreshingly, of  equal importance to the narrative. This lends the movie a welcome feminist angle relatively rare in mainstream action films. 

Despite almost universal positive reception, Mad Max: Fury Road was only a moderate box office success, making the likelihood of a sequel uncertain. Whether or not Warners will feel the need to reboot it in another 35 years is anybody’s guess. However, I do think it would be a shame not to see Hardy return to the role. 

I enjoyed the original Mad Max trilogy, but it has been too long since I watched those movies to make a fair comparison to this one. While I found the narrative in Fury Road a little confusing I was ultimately won over by its bonkers charm! Action movies as artistic as this are rare beasts; Mad Max: Fury Road is therefore recommended viewing, even for those who are not especially fond of the genre. 

The Alphabet Murders (1965)

The Alphabet Murders (Dir: Frank Tashlin, 1965). 

A comedy thriller based upon Agatha Christie’s 1936 novel The ABC Murders in which Belgian's finest, Detective Hercule Poirot (Tony Randall), investigates a series of murders, each victim being bumped off in alphabetical order. Chief suspect is the dubiously initialed Amanda Beatrice Cross (Anita Ekberg). 

The Alphabet Murders was an attempt by MGM to repeat the success of their series of comic mysteries adapted from Christie’s Miss Marple stories. Returning are Marple scriptwriters David Pursall and Jack Seddon, while directing duties are handled by former Warner Brothers animator Frank Tashlin. Tashlin brings his Termite Terrace cartoon sensibilities to the movie, setting out its kooky objectives from the opening, when Tony Randall addresses the camera first as himself and then in makeup as Poirot. With Tashlin's knack for visual humour, and some striking black and white photography courtesy of cinematographer Desmond Dickinson, the film is a visual treat. 

Unfortunately, the quality doesn't extend to story treatment. As an Agatha Christie adaptation The Alphabet Murders is pretty unsatisfying. What it is, however, is a showcase for the considerable talents of Tony Randall. Randall’s is a fantastic performance, over the top and pantomimic to be sure, but his Poirot is a great comic creation. An excellent support cast including Anita Ekberg and Robert Morley (as Captain Hastings) also register strong performances. 

Yet, despite the efforts of much of the Miss Marple team, and a cameo appearance by those movies stars Margaret Rutherford and Stringer Davis, The Alphabet Murders was not a success. Somehow the elements that worked so well for Marple just don’t gel for Poirot. Possibly the character was not as well suited to comedic interpretation or maybe the overtly American sensibilities of director Tashlin was not suited to something moored so much in Britishness.

The film largely divided critics and audiences between those who lamented its adaptation and those who praised Randall’s performance. Both camps are correct. While The Alphabet Murders must be considered a disappointment, it is certainly not a disaster. In truth there is much in the movie to enjoy, all depending on how one approaches it.  

A Note On My Mental Health

The following is not a movie review, rather it is a note on my mental health: 

I have given this some thought and decided it is time I ‘came out’ as a depressive. Just under 5 months ago I had a bit of a meltdown and spent 2 days in tears. The tears were not exactly tears of sadness, I am not an unduly unhappy person and remain an optimist. More accurately, perhaps, they were tears of extreme emotionalism. It is difficult to exactly put into words how it felt. I could liken it to feeling as if you would never again feel the sun on your face, never again hear birdsong and never smell the sweet scent of summer lawns. I felt alien and isolated, despite being surrounded by the most caring and supportive family I could wish for. It felt as if the colour had completely drained out of my world. It felt empty, cold and monochromatic. 

I was lucky to receive support from the NHS and Inclusion Thurrock. I am also aware that many suffer far worse than I have. I was never suicidal, thankfully, but acknowledge that I may have been were it not for the support; it is a road anyone of us might travel. 

It is quite difficult going public with this. I know the stigma of mental illness and of the many misconceptions surrounding it. Depression isn’t just ‘sadness’, you cannot ‘pull yourself together’. It may be different for others, but for me it was a seemingly eternal descent into a deep despair that I did not think I could ever climb out of. Mental illness is real, but with help and support there is a road back. I don’t expect to never feel depressed or anxious ever again. However, I am gratefully aware that I could feel much worse than I do now and that feeling better is within my grasp. As it is within everybody’s grasp. Day will follow night, spring will follow winter, good times will supplant the bad. The journey is not quite over for me and possibly never will be. However, the knowledge that my (and your) experience is not unique and is nothing to be ashamed of is monumentally important. Hopefully telling of my own experience may help others realise that they are not alone and that there is always hope. 

Thank you for listening,

Mike 

‘Twas the Night (2001)

‘Twas the Night (Dir: Nick Castle, 2001). 

Made for TV Christmas movies have become inexplicably popular in the last two decades. Seemingly hundreds of them litter the television schedules from September to January every year. This entry in the genre, a Disney Channel Original Movie, has become something of a festival staple on the Disney Channel and can usually be found in their December lineup. 

On Christmas Eve, heavily in debt conman Nick Wrigley (Bryan Cranston) escapes his gangland creditors by hiding out in the home of his brother.  After mistaking Santa for an intruder he knocks the fat man out cold, ties him up and steals his high-tech sleigh. Taking advantage of his close relationship with nephew Danny (Josh Zuckerman), the pair go on a burglary spree. Unbeknownst to Danny who believes the pair are helping the concussed Santa by delivering Christmas gifts.  

There is a certain amount of cynicism mixed in with the inevitable sentiment in ‘Twas the Night, lending the movie a somewhat uneven tone. Its self-centered wise guy characters are a little hard to warm to. Their redemption, when it comes (as is always certain), is neither empathetic or particularly heartwarming, suggesting that the ending is there merely to placate viewers expectations of family Christmas movies. 

The visual effects are above the usual TV movie standard, although it never quite overcomes the feel of an extended Disney Channel sitcom. The screenplay by Jim Lincoln, Dan Studney and Jenny Tripp has its funny moments, but little in the movie really rings true. It has all the glitz one would expect of a Christmas movie but is oddly lacking in heart.

Bryan Cranston is the standout among the cast. Cranston came to prominence a year earlier as Hal in popular sitcom Malcolm in the Middle (2000-06). His amiable performance here is the best reason to watch this passably entertaining but unexceptional movie. 

While ‘Twas the Night is not exactly unmissable festive fare, it should appeal to tweens and younger teens who feel they are above sentimental Christmas movies. Younger children, meanwhile, may be a little upset seeing Santa hit over the head with a shovel! Not a Christmas classic but you may find its worth a watch if you come across it while flicking through cable.

Freaky Friday (2018)

Freaky Friday (Dir: Steve Carr, 2018)

Disney have certainly gotten their money’s worth out of Freaky Friday. This Disney Channel Original Movie is the studio’s fourth adaptation of Mary Rodgers’ novel and is itself based upon Disney Theatrical Productions 2016 stage musical, with music and lyrics by Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey and book by Bridget Carpenter. 

The now familiar tale of the mother and daughter at loggerheads who switch bodies for a day is tweaked and refreshed for a new generation of tweens. Here Cozi Zuehlsdorff is a teenager still grieving the death of her father five years earlier and Heidi Blickenstaff her stressed mother on the eve of remarrying. This time a magical hourglass is the catalyst for the swap. A scavenger hunt is shoehorned in, recalling another earlier Disney Production, the cult favourite Midnight Madness (David Wechter & Michael Nankin, 1980).

I have been a fan of the original Freaky Friday (Gary Nelson, 1976) and the 1972 Mary Rodgers novel upon which it is based almost all of my life. This most recent version deviates significantly from both movie and source. While the original is undoubtedly the best, this new Freaky Friday is a lot of fun. Kitt and Yorkey’s  High School Musical-style soft rock is easy on the ear, although the vocals suffer from the same apparent ‘tweaking’ effect which Disney Channel musicals always seem to do. Steve Carr's direction doesn’t belie the movies TV roots, while Blickenstaff and Zuehlsdorff step into the legendary shoes of Barbara Harris and Jodie Foster with an appealing enthusiasm which is hard to resist. Come the inevitable climactic big song and dance number this tween movie had worked its warm-hearted magic of this middle age movie critic. 

I must confess to having a soft spot for Disney Channel movies. No one would argue that they are cinematic masterpieces, but most offer 90 minutes of lightweight fun. If you are a fan you will know what to expect, if you’re not this won’t be the movie to change your mind. Freaky Friday won’t change the world but it should bring a smile to the faces of those looking for goodnatured, undemanding entertainment.

Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie (2017)

Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie (Dir: David Soren, 2017). 

DreamWorks Animation’s Captain Underpants is a lighthearted superhero spoof based upon the successful series of children’s books by Dav Pilkey. 

4th graders George and Harold accidentally hypnotise their strict school principle Mr Krupp into believing he is inept y-fronts wearing superhero Captain Underpants. Although distinctly lacking in superpowers, Captain Underpants soon finds himself battling evil school science teacher Professor P in his bid to rid the world of laughter.

Captain Underpants' bold animation style lacks the finer details of DreamWorks' best features but does a nice job of bringing Pilkey’s illustrations to 3D ‘life’. Further enhancing the visuals is an innovative use of varying animation techniques such as rod puppets and traditional 2D. Unsurprisingly, considering its subject, much of the humour is of the toilet variety. This may limit its appeal to younger audience members, although there are some unsophisticated laughs to be had by kids and grownups alike. Largely absent are the pop culture references which were once a staple of DreamWorks movies; instead we have some neat self-referencing humour and inventive breaking of the fourth wall.

Ed Helms is on vocal duties as Krupp/Captain Underpants and does a fine job of switching from insanely angry principle to authoritatively stupid superhero at the click of a finger.  Kevin Hart and Thomas Middleditch also impress as best buddies George and Harold.

Captain Underpants proves to be a somewhat middle-ground DreamWorks effort; while never approaching the excellence of Kung Fu Panda (Mark Osborne & John Stevenson, 2008) or How to Train Your Dragon (Dean DeBlois & Chris Sanders. 2010), it is better than misfires such as Shark Tale (Bibo Bergeron, Vicky Jenson & Rob Letterman, 2004) and Bee Movie (Simon J Smith & Steve Hickner, 2007). 

Subtitled The Fist Epic Movie, its underwhelming performance at the box office means it is unlikely we will see a Captain Underpants 2. Which is kind of a shame. The movie is no masterpiece but its embracing of different animation styles, along with its general good-naturedness, make it the most original and entertaining Dreamworks animation in recent years. 

Five Weeks in a Balloon (1962)

Five Weeks in a Balloon (Dir: Irvin Allen, 1962).

Following the blockbuster success of Walt Disney's adaptation of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (Richard Fleischer, 1954) and Mike Todd's Around the World in 80 Days (Michael Anderson, 1956), 19th century French author Jules Verne was suddenly a 20th century Hollywood box office hot property. Of the movies released in their wake Journey to the Center of the Earth (Henry Levin, 1959) and Mysterious Island (Cy Endfield, 1961) are the best of the bunch. Further down the list is Five Weeks in a Balloon. 

Loosely based on Verne's 1863 novel of the same name Five Weeks in a Balloon finds an unlikely crew of adventurers, including explorer Fergusson (Cedric Hardwicke), his youthful assistant (popstar Fabian) and US newspaper hack Donald O'Shay (Red Buttons), set sail for Africa in a hot air balloon with a gondola inexplicably shaped like a unicorn! Picking up kidnapped teacher Susan (Barbara Eden) and slave trader Ahmed (Peter Lorre) en route. Getting into scrapes involving various tribes-people, the odd slave and a pipe-smoking chimp, expect some outdated racial stereotypes and some decidedly pre-feminist representations of women. Nothing overtly offensive, however, be warned it is very much a product of its time!

Five Weeks in a Balloon was a conscious attempt by 20th Century Fox to repeat the success of their adaptation of Journey to the Center of the Earth. A decent, if not exactly starry, cast were assembled. Buttons and Eden make for attractive romantic leads. Fabian is thrown in to attract the teens, similar to the casting of Pat Boone in Journey to the Center of the Earth. A little extra gravitas comes courtesy of Hardwicke and Lorre, but nothing particularly demanding is asked of any of the performers. 

Irwin Allen would seem a natural choice for director, having previously helmed the hit adventure movies The Lost World (1960) and Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (1961), both for Fox. Later in the decade he would provide the company with successful television sci-fi series Lost in Space (1965-68) and Land of the Giants (1968-70). Sadly, Five weeks in a Balloon would prove to be a disappointment, both artistically and commercially. It certainly isn't terrible, but it lacks the scope and grandeur of Journey to the Center of the Earth and even the more modest The Lost World.  A smaller budget is evident; while there is nothing essentially wrong with the effects, the balloon for example is impressive, it just seems light on spectacle compared to earlier Verne adaptations. 

Ultimately, Five Weeks in a Balloon is too slight a movie to be considered the epic adventure is promises to be. Neither is it the schlocky fun that so much of the Allen oeuvre is. It is lightweight entertainment, but perhaps a little too lightweight. As adventure and comedy it never quite takes flight and the end result is fun but a bit bland.

The Miracle of the Bells (1948)

The Miracle of the Bells (Dir: Irving Pichel, 1948).

The Miracle of the Bells is a sentimental RKO drama with an A list cast. 

Via a series of flashbacks, the story of aspiring actress Olga Treskovna (Alida Valli - billed here as simply Valli) is told through voice-over narration by Hollywood press agent Bill Dunnigan (Fred MacMurray). Following her early death, Dunning fulfulls her final wish by returning with the body to the small coal-mining town of her childhood. Here she is to receive a modest burial at the struggling St Michael's church, conducted by Father Paul (Frank Sinatra). We learn of Dunnigan's unrequited love of Olga as he concocts a publicity stunt to secure the release of her only film, a starring role as Joan of Ark, which producer Marcus Harris (Lee J Cobb) has held back, due to her death.

The decision to tell the story in flashback was probably a mistake and does little to help an already weak narrative. Its 120 minutes feels epically long and structuring the movie in this way only serves to delay the inevitable conclusion. When it finally arrives, the treatment of the so called 'miracle' is mawkish in the extreme. Even then the movie plods along pointlessly for another 20 minutes before the end credits roll. Despite its themes of faith and belief, The Miracle of the Bells feels patently fake. Nothing about the movie rings true, from its skewed ideas about the workings of Hollywood to the reaction of the world to the death of the previously unheard of 'star'. Even the miracle of the title is called into question by the St Michael's priest.

How such a slight movie ended up with a heavyweight cast is baffling. Yet MacMurray, Sinatra and Cobb have all given better performances in dozens of better movies. Frank Sinatra is no one’s idea of a priest and his casting here must have confused his, by then, fading Bobby-soxer audience. Modern audiences would be surprised to see Frankie third billed and in such a relatively minor role. Career revival would come for Frank with From Here to Eternity (Fred Zinnemann, 1953), but The Miracle of the Bells survives as a reminder of the legend's early career lull. He sings one number, a Polish folk tune, but the movie is not a musical.

Sometimes regarded as a Christmas movie, it isn’t, apart from a short early sequence set on Christmas Eve. It does, however, deal with religious themes. Faith can be a tricky subject to pull off on film, but it can be done; festive favourites such as It's a Wonderful Life (Frank Capra, 1946) and The Bishop's Wife (Henry Koster, 1947) are testament to this. Yet where those movies were successful in presenting spiritual themes in engaging, credible manner to a secular audience, The Miracle of the Bells is not. It feels outdated, corny and preachy. But its biggest sin of all is that it is so dull. At least 40 minutes too long, fidgeters like me will be feeling antsy about two thirds of the way through. 

With its star-studded cast, The Miracle of the Bells is not entirely unwatchable, but I cannot honestly recommend it, even to fans of such sentimental Hollywood hogwash. Give it go if you must; it will be a miracle if you make it until the end. 

We’re Not Married (1952)

We’re Not Married (Dir: Edmund Goulding, 1952).

Covering similar ground to the earlier Mr and Mrs Smith (Alfred Hitchcock, 1941), We're Not Married is a portmanteau comedy in which, due to a jurisdictional error, five couples discover they are no longer married. Seemingly starring any available 20th Century Fox contract player, the movie is of most interest today for an early appearance from Marilyn Monroe. 

On Christmas Eve, a newly appointed justice of the peace (Victor Moore) marries the first of five couples, ignorant to the fact that his appointment does not take effect until January. This comes to light a few years later when each pair is informed of the mishap. The movie follows each couple as they respond to the news in different ways. 

Although its strands are loosely connected, We're Not Married cannot overcome feeling like a series of sketches, some of which are, inevitably, better than others. For me the weakest of the bunch was the one which is granted the most screentime. Top billed Ginger Rogers and Fred Allen star as the Gladwyns, a pair of radio hosts whose contracts deem they are a married couple. I found the constant bickering between the two rather tiresome, although it does feature some neat satirical swipes at commercial radio. 

Far more appealing is the sequence with Marilyn Monroe as a Mississippi beauty queen and her stay at home husband David Wayne. Monroe's appeal, in what was one of her first significant roles, in readily apparent; easily holding her own among a cast of much bigger names. The other highlight is the episode with soldier Eddie Bracken and his pregnant wife Mitzi Gaynor. With Bracken about to be shipped to Hawaii, the sequence is a sweetly old fashioned reminder of the mores of an earlier age.

Less successful are the remaining segments, with Eve Arden as the long suffering wife of philanderer Paul Douglas and, Louis Calhern and Zsa Zsa Gabor as a warring couple on the verge of divorce. Both have their amusing moments but suffer from dated, some would argue sexist, humour.

Not a perfect movie, and some ways off from being a classic, We’re Not Married is still worth a watch thanks to some genuine high spots and its roster of vintage Hollywood stars. 

All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)

All Quiet on the Western Front (Dir: Lewis Milestone, 1930).

A pre-code WWI drama adapted from German author Erich Maria Remarque's 1928 novel, All Quiet on the Western Front follows a group of students as they enlist in the army, detailing their transformation from idealistic boys to war weary soldiers, depicting the squalid living conditions and futility of the loss of young lives with a stark realism.

Despite a lifelong love of vintage movies, until recently, I knew Lewis Milestone’s anti-war epic by reputation only. After my first viewing I am happy to report that All Quiet on the Western Front more than lives up to 90 years of hype. In short, it is a masterpiece. 

Told, unusually, from the perspective of German soldiers. At first the broad American accents are a little jarring and take some getting used to. But remember this is so early in the history of sound cinema that it is a miracle they are talking at all. Little else in the picture strikes a wrong note. Nowhere to be found are the static camera shots often associated with early talkies. With its inventive camera angels, practical special effects and hundreds of extras it presents a visual spectacle that more than holds its own against modern CGI aided blockbusters. The film is full of affecting imagery, from the sight of the rapt students stirred up by an impassioned indoctrination on the glory of serving the "Fatherland", to the poetic final frames of a butterfly on the battleground, fading to shot of a cemetery.

Its powerful anti-war message, seen by some as controversial, is as potent now as when the movie was made; so potent in fact that the feature was outlawed in Germany at the behest of the Nazis. Its plea for pacifism is all the more pertinent when one remember that the world would be in conflict again in less than a decade.

With the possible exception of Lewis Ayres, in the lead role of young soldier Paul, much of the cast is unrecognizable to modern audiences. This arguably lends the film more authority, as no preconceptions of star status are allowed to diminish the powerful performances. Director Milestone elicits sensitive, natural performances from the cast which compliments the brutally beautiful images that he and cinematographer Arthur Edeson have created. 

Almost a century after its release All Quiet on the Western Front remains probably the most powerful indictment on the horrors of war ever put to celluloid. Released a mere twelve years after the Armistice, the movie was met with immense critical acclaim, receiving the Academy Awards for Best Picture and Best Director in what was only the third year the ceremony was held. The movie is indisputably both an influential landmark in cinema history and a bona fide classic. Simply one of the greatest movies ever made.