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Reviews
Out of the Furnace (2013)
Just about perfect
We all know Casey is a better actor a way better actor than brother Ben and that Christian bale can do no wrong. Although not for the faint of heart this is a top ten movie of all times. Gritty, perfectly framed, nuanced it fails no where.
Abbott Elementary (2021)
Finally something funny!
I've grown so tired of laugh tracked sitcoms that try to suggest they are funny when they aren't. Finally a sharp, intimate comedy with a cast of characters that are believable and worthy of laughs- without the laugh track. It's a great show for all ages set in Philadelphia that tackles the very real problem of underfunded public schools. Thank god. Sharp writing too!
The Lone Hand (1953)
Solid western
A solid western with a twist told from a child's POV. James Aeneas from gun smoke fame and the dependable Joel Mccrae deliver sublime performances with Barbara hale a la Perry mason adds her appearance as Joel's love interest.
Run for Cover (1955)
Wonderful Oater Wins With Stunning Cinematography
An overlooked western genre gem, this Cagney led film features a combo of Borgnine and Cagney with a younger Jon Derek (of Bo Derek fame) all of whom combine to help a briskly plotted story come to life on the stunning backdrop of the Colorado Rockies. Cagney fans will undoubtedly have some difficulty accepting their favorite gangster as a Sherrif But Cagney performs seamlessly and by mid movie it's likely that even the most hardened Public Enemy fans will have accepted the trade of a six gun for the tommy gun. One wonders if Cagney couldn't have done more in this genre. Love, romance, gunslingers and Gorgeous vistas combine to make this movie a solid must see.
The Hustler (1961)
Hustling The Hustler
Paul Newman stars along George C. Scott, Jackie Gleason and the reclusive Piper Laurie as his neurotic girlfriend, who will ultimately prove her mettle by being nominated for no less than three Oscars for three movies, including the mother of a very special girl in Carrie two decades later. Newman is still in his raw, just-becoming-a-star period of his career, having completed The Long Hot Summer, and then Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, and having finally figured out his tumultuous love life, leaving his wife and kids for Joanne Woodward, with whom he would forge a lasting relationship of fifty years.
Newman cements his position as one of Hollywood's finest leading men with Hustler, although the script leaves him a little bit short of material. But Hustler is considered a classic, with nary a mediocre performance in the bunch. The cinematography is a bit short on the pool hustling scenes, with the later remake (albeit in color) better succeeding in dramatizing the action and flow of the pool games.
For buffs who are watching this slightly darker movie after the Tom Cruise version, The Color of Money, where Newman trades places with George C. Scott to play Cruise's handler, it bears noting that this black and white classic is a bit slower paced, taking the necessary time to build up the characters and their associated pathologies, although younger viewers may find this off-putting, having been fed altogether too much action in the first five minutes of everything cinematic while just ignoring character depth.
Consider that The Hustler is a must see, just like Breakfast at Tiffanys or Raging Bull, in that it marks the beginning of a screen acting legend and suggests his future prowess, while providing a gripping storyline along side some really talented actors, and suggesting its rightful place in cinematic black & white classics.