Here are a couple of examples of an interesting sub-genre of movie books – the ‘behind the scenes’ making of…. The Live And Let Die book, unusually, does seem to have been authored by Roger Moore himself (albeit probably with the help of a ghost-writer). It is an interesting personal journal of his journey becoming…
Thunderbolt And Lightfoot
Thunderbolt And Lightfoot is one of the great ‘buddy’ movies of the 70s. The idea of a mis-matched ‘bromance’ comedy-thriller is certainly nothing new, but there was a slew of these type of films released around the same year (Freebie And The Bean, Scarecrow). Subsequent movies in the genre include Midnight Run, 48 Hours, Lethal…
The Exorcist
The Exorcist is a land-mark horror movie. It was the first horror movie to be nominated for a Best Picture Oscar. (It lost out to The Sting, but won the Best Adapted Screenplay award). Plus, its success ushered in a slew of big budget supernatural horror movies from major Hollywood studios (notably The Omen and…
The Battle Of Algiers
Here is a rather striking poster for a film I must admit I have never seen. The Battle Of Algiers is supposedly a land-mark movie in cinema-verite. It covers events in the Algerian war between rebels in North Africa and the French government. The movie was shot on location in 1966, largely with non-professional actors…
12 Angry Men
12 Angry Men is the grand-daddy of the court-room drama sub-genre. There have been some great court-room drama movies. (The Verdict, with Paul Newman, is my personal favourite. Director Sidney Lumet, for whom 12 Angry Men was his first feature film, also went on to direct this many years later, so clearly he felt an…
Bonnie And Clyde
In the ongoing debate about graphic violence in the movies, Bonnie and Clyde is something of a watershed. It is tame stuff by today’s standards, but in 1967 the climactic assassination scene, where Bonnie and Clyde are ambushed and ripped apart in a slow motion orgy of gunfire, attracted plenty of notoriety, and became hugely influential…
Enter The Dragon
If you only see one martial arts movie, it should probably be Enter The Dragon. I must admit I, these have never really been my thing, even during the kung-fu frenzy peak in the 70s. I also never quite ‘got’ why some people rave so much about Bruce Lee in particular. The only one of…
The Great Gatsby
Without reading the English text, would you be able to guess the famous movie title from this poster? Le Prix Du Silence is the French language title for the 1949 adaptation of…The Great Gatsby, no less. However, you would be hard-pressed to know that from the imagery here. Alan Ladd in a trench…
Goldfinger
Goldfinger is one of the undisputed high points of the James Bond franchise. The movie includes a bunch of iconic Bond characters and moments – henchman Oddjob and his murderous metal bowler hat, Bond’s silver tricked-out Aston Martin DB5 and, perhaps most famous of all, Shirley Eaton’s cameo as the unfortunate Bond girl who is…
Once Upon A Time In The West
Sergio Leone’s 1968 epic Once Upon A Time In The West is one of the all-time classic Westerns. By this point, Leone was confident enough in his own style and talent to carefully and slowly build lengthy sequences without dialogue or music and only natural sounds – stretching the tension out to the point of…