Duncan (Aldo Sambrell) and his gang are the most ruthless and feared outlaws in the old west. When first seen, they are destroying a Navajo village and shooting everyone that they see. Duncan even steals a pendant from a young Indian woman. When that woman’s husband, Joe (Burt Reynolds), discovers what has happened, he sets out for vengeance. With Ennio Morricone’s classic score playing in the background, Joe kills one gang member after another. When Duncan and his gang lay siege to the town of Esperanza, Joe approaches the townspeople and offers to defend them. His price? “One dollar a head from every man in this town for every bandit that I kill.”
Following in the footsteps of his friend and fellow television star, Clint Eastwood, Burt Reynolds went to Italy in the 1960s and made a spaghetti western. Navajo Joe was his second starring role, after Operation CIA. Reynolds has always described Navajo Joe as being one of the worst movies ever made but, with the excepton of Deliverance, Burt says that about every film that he has ever made. (Burt has also complained that the wig he wore in Navajo Joe made him look like Natalie Wood, which is true.) While it never reaches the height of some of Sergio Corbucci’s other westerns, Navajo Joe is a frequently exciting movie, featuring one of Morricone’s best scores and a lead performance that is never as bad as Burt claims it was. At first, it is strange to see Burt Reynolds playing such a grim and stoic character but, by the time he is throwing dynamite at Duncan’s gang, he has grown into the role and proven that he could actually play something other than a giggling good old boy. As usual for a Corbucci western, both the outlaws and the greedy and ungrateful townspeople stand in for capitalism run amok. Like many spaghetti protagonists, Joe is an outsider who fights to save a town full of cowardly people who will never accept him. As Joe explains, his ancestors were in America long before any of the townspeople’s ancestors. America is his land but the forces of progress and greed are robbing him of his home.
Navajo Joe may not be a classic but it’s a solid western featuring one of Burt Reynolds’s most underrated performances. If you have ever wanted to see Burt Reynolds smile while scalping a man, Navajo Joe is the film to see.
(I’m currently cleaning out my DVR and right now, I kinda suspect that a comic book movie might get a best picture nomination before I ever get finished. By that, I mean that this is taking forever! But, no matter! I’m having fun. Anyway, I recorded A Neighbor’s Deception off of Lifetime on April 8th.)
Welcome to the neighborhood!
And what a neighborhood it is. Big house, big yards, big SUVs, and … wait, where are all the people? Chloe (Ashley Bell) and Michael Anderson (Adam Mayfield) have just bought a new house in this neighborhood and everything should be perfect. Chloe has had her struggles and, from the first minute we see her, it’s obvious that she’s not exactly stable. She’s nervous and a bit too quick to smile. Michael feels that the new neighborhood will be perfect for Chloe.
While Michael goes to work during the day, Chloe runs and takes pictures. It’s a beautiful neighborhood, surrounded by wonderful scenery. And yet, there’s something off about it. The streets and sidewalks often seem to be strangely deserted The first time that Chloe sees her neighbor, he’s driving past her and he barely acknowledges her.
It’s not until later that Chloe and Michael finally meet their neighbors face-to-face. Gerald (Tom Amandes) and Cheryl Dixon (Isabella Hoffman) seems like their friendly enough but there are hints that everything may not be perfect with them. For one thing, Gerald is considerably more friendly than Cheryl. Gerald is also a retired psychologist and starts to counsel Chloe for free. He says he’s just doing it to be a good neighbor but are his motives truly pure?
That’s what Chloe being to wonder. It doesn’t help that she’s soon getting mysterious phone calls from a man who blames Gerald for the death of his sister. The man wants Chloe to investigate Gerald and his past. Chloe agrees but is her paranoia justified or, as Michael suggests, is she on the verge of having another breakdown?
Written by noted horror expert Adam Rockoff, A Neighbor’s Deception is a hundred times more creepy than the usual Lifetime film. Wisely, both the script and the direction puts the emphasis on atmosphere. That big and oddly empty neighborhood becomes as much of a character as Chloe, Michael, Gerald, and Cheryl. This is one of those films that seems to have literally been bathed in a tub full of existential dread. As we watch, we find ourselves wondering if the neighborhood is really as creepy as it looks or if maybe Chloe’s paranoia is rubbing off on us.
Chloe is played by Ashley Bell, who some will recognize as being the “possessed” girl in The Last Exorcism. Bell gives an excellent performance in this film. She’s immediately sympathetic but, at the same time, she plays the role with just enough a nervous edge that you’re always aware that she could be imagining things. (Bell is often framed in the scene so that she’s seen alone, reinforcing the feeling that Chloe is not quite living in the real world.) Also deserving of credit is Tom Amandes, who is all dapper menace as Gerald.
A Neighbor’s Deception ends with a twist that won’t necessarily take you by surprise but no matter. The journey makes it all worh it.
(I am currently in the process of cleaning out my DVR! It’s probably going to take me longer to do this than it took Theodosia Burr to make her way to Alexandria, Virginia after getting shipwrecked in 1812. I recorded The Psycho She Met Online off of Lifetime on April 9th!)
Let’s just start with the obvious.
The Psycho She Met Online?
That is, without a doubt, one of the greatest titles in the history of Lifetime movies. Not only does it tell you exactly what this movie is about (no ambiguity here!) but it also tells you that this film will feature everything that we love about Lifetime films. When it comes to Lifetime, regardless of the movie, there are two things that will always be true.
First, anyone you meet is going to turn out to be a psycho.
Secondly, anything that begins online is ultimately going to lead to disaster.
In this case, the film is about an EMT named Karen (Chelsea Hobbs). Karen briefly becomes a minor celebrity when she rescues a man from a serious automobile accident. The twist is that the man just happened to be her husband, Andrew (Matthew Lawrence)!
With Andrew laid up in the hospital, Karen decides to make some extra money by renting out some of the spare rooms in their house. She does this be placing an ad online. Oh, Karen! Don’t you realize that only crazy people do stuff online!?
(And what does that say about me, posting my film reviews online!? And you reading them online!? OH MY GOD, WE’RE ALL CRAZY!)
Anyway, Karen soon ends up with two boarders. One is a nice old man named Evander Swandson (Robert Welch). He enjoys going on nature walks and taking photographs. He respects the rules of the house and does his best to stay out of everyone’s way. He is apparently among the one percent of internet users who are not insane and, as soon as Evander showed up, I knew he was doomed.
The other room is taken by Miranda (Charity Shea). Miranda is the psycho of the title. If her superficial resemblance to Jodi Arias doesn’t convince you of that, just wait until she starts killing people. Miranda is a dancer at a “gentleman’s club,” though she doesn’t tell Karen that. Miranda also claims to be Karen’s half-sister and she is just so excited that they will finally have the chance to get to know each other!
At first, Karen is excited too. She’s always wanted a sister and now, she’ll no longer have to settle for a surrogate sibling relationship with her friend, Aubry (Alexis Maitland). However, she soon starts to wonder whether she really wants to have Miranda in her life. Miranda is kind of clingy. Miranda appears to be a pathological liar. Miranda gets jealous whenever Karen has plans that don’t involve her. When Miranda gets upset, she has a habit of ranting to herself. (Then again, I do that as well.)
And, of course, there’s the fact that Miranda has a habit of killing people…
That’s right, it’s yet another Lifetime movie about an obsessive relationship that goes from being friendly to murderous in the blink of an eye. Fortunately, this movie was written by Christine Conradt and directed by Curtis Crawford, two Lifetime veterans who know how to make movies like this interesting. The Psycho She Met Online might never surprise you but then again, the predictability of the format is part of the fun when it comes to Lifetime thrillers. The best role in any Lifetime film is always the psycho and Charity Shea does a great job as the totally insane Miranda.
(Hi! I’m currently in the process of cleaning out my DVR! Hopefully, I’ll be done before the next Congressional special election but it’s going to be a close one! Anyway, I recorded Sometimes The Good Kill off of Lifetime on May 13th!)
I have to admit that when I saw the title of this one, my first thought was, “Since when is Lifetime doing Spaghetti westerns?” I mean seriously, Sometimes The Good Kill is one of those titles that would be perfect for a Franco Nero or a Tomas Milian (or maybe even a Terrence Hill) film.
But no, it turns out I was wrong.
Sometimes The Good Kill takes a look at the sordid things that happen behind the scenes at a convent, a question that has apparently obsessed audiences since the first time they heard Hamlet order Ophelia to “get thee to a nunnery!” Someone is killing nuns, but why? Things get off to a start when the old Mother Superior is found underneath a ladder. Then another is found drowned in a bathtub. The new Mother Superior (Allison Hossack) wants the murders to remain a secret because the convent is struggling financially. So, instead of calling the police, she just puts the bodies in a freezer. Fortunately, the newest arrival at the convent — Sister Talia (Susie Abrometi) — has a mysterious past. She knows the streets. She knows the darkest aspects of human nature. Mother Superior wants Talia to solve these murders and she even hands her a gun to make the job easier.
Wow, that sounds like a lot of fun, doesn’t it? It does but, once you get over the novelty of nuns hiding guns and solving murders, Sometimes The Good Kill settles down to be a fairly typical Lifetime movie. The film moves at a rather stately pace and its full of scenes of nuns gossiping in low voices and sometimes, I found myself straining to understand what everyone was saying. Speaking as someone who comes from an Irish/Italian/Spanish Catholic background, this is a film that I wanted to enjoy more than I actually did.
That said, here are a few words of praise. While the film’s pacing may have been off, it was relatively well-performed. My favorite suspect was Sister Jean (Deborah Grover), because she didn’t trust anyone and had no fear of letting people know that. Even when told that “we’re all Gods creatures,” Sister Jean responded by rolling her eyes. We’ve all known a Sister Jean. And then there was skittish Sister Mai (Lisa Troung), who was freaked out by the poor people who regularly showed up to ask for food. Both Grover and Troung did very well in their roles.
Finally, I liked the look of the film. Sometimes The Good Kill was full of visual atmosphere and took full advantage of its gothic setting. The film had a visual moodiness, one that kept me watching even when the story itself was lacking.
That said, my favorite gun-carrying nun remains Ms. 45.
(I’m currently cleaning out my DVR! It’s going to take forever but I take like 20 capsules of Dexedrine a day so I’m pretty sure I’ll be able to stay awake until I’ve watched everything. Anyway, I recorded the 1969 film, Secret World, off of FXM on February 1st.)
Poor Francois (Jean-Francois Vlerick)! This eleven year-old has already experienced more tragedy than most people will have to deal with in a lifetime. He was recently in a car accident, one that resulted in him being pinned underneath his mother’s body for several hours. He now lives with his grandparents (Pierre Zimmer and Giselle Pascal) on their beautiful estate. It’s a lonely life. Francois spends most his time with his pet rabbit or, at least, he does until Wendy Sinclair (Jacqueline Bisset) shows up.
Wendy used to be his grandfather’s mistress. She may still be. The film is deliberately ambiguous about the current state of their relationship. Grandma, of course, is not happy to see her. Francois, on the other hand, becomes obsessed with her, watching her while she sleeps and even clipping off a lock of her hair. For her part, Wendy good-naturedly tolerates Francois and his attention.
Then Olivier (Marc Morel) shows up. Olivier is Francois’s uncle, a handsome and wealthy rogue. The attraction between Olivier and Wendy is obvious, leading to both Francois and his grandfather growing jealous. With all three of the men in love with Wendy, she eventually does have sex with one of them but the film deliberately declines to reveal whether she’s with Olivier or the grandfather. (We only see a man’s hand and that man is wearing a glove as he approaches the naked Wendy.)
Secret World is a creepy little French movie, one of the many movies from the late 60s that featured boys and men lusting after Jacqueline Bisset. Almost everything about this movie screams 1969, from the fashion to the cars to the oddly pretentious tone of the entire film. Naturally, there’s the occasional jump cut and a few unnecessary close-ups. There are hints of psychedelia in the shots where the sun shines over Olivier’s shoulder. It even has a rather melancholy and ambiguous ending. It’s a frequently gorgeous film, full of haunting shots of the French countryside.
And yet, the film adds up to almost nothing. The movie was obviously trying to be a bittersweet coming-of-age story but it doesn’t work because the characters, as written, are almost all ciphers. Francois is weird when we first meet him and he’s weird when we see him for the last time. He’s one of those kids who is either going to grow up to be a writer or a serial killer. Unfortunately, the film doesn’t seem to know which is true.
At first, I was expecting Secret World to turn out to be a horror film, mostly because little Francois was so creepy with the way that he was always staring at Wendy. I’ve been stared at like that and it made my skin crawl. As soon as Francois started wandering around with the scissors, I was like, “Merde! Everyone in that château is about learn that there are worse things in the world than just ennui!” But no, Secret World never followed up on any of those implications. Instead, it just became a series of pretty and rather empty images. There’s a lot of beauty but not much depth to be found in Secret World.
(Hi! I’m currently in the process of cleaning out my DVR. I recorded 2012’s Healed By Grace off of channel 58 — that’s a local station down here in Dallas — on March 21st.)
Healed by Grace tells the story of two 19 year-old dancers who have the same last name, despite the fact that they aren’t related and can’t stand each other.
Riley Adams (Natalie Weese) is an extremely sweet, sincere, and good-natured person, her only flaw being that she’s regularly running late and she doesn’t appear to be a very good driver. Riley is also a committed Christian, the type who gives a college presentation on the historical probability of the Great Flood. “Bible thumber,” one student says. “Cute bible thumper,’ another replies. Riley’s father is constantly telling her to pray for everyone, even the people who she doesn’t necessarily like.
And then there’s Aleah Adams (April Oberlin), who is rude and self-centered and who like totally rocks. Of course, the film doesn’t acknowledge that she totally rocks, at least not at first. In fact, I think that we’re supposed to dislike her because she’s always talking about how much better she is than Riley and, when they compete at a regional dance competition, Aleah is not a gracious winner. When Riley congratulates her, Aleah says that she knew she would win and then taunts Riley over the fact that her father couldn’t come to see her dance…
But here’s the thing. We get to see both Riley and Aleah dance. Riley is a boring dancer, with lots of technique but very little passion. Aleah is a much more wild and creative dancer. Riley dances to dull piano music. Aleah dances to EDM. Riley is St. Photini while Aleah is Salome. And while neither one of them is really that good (despite the number of times that we’re told that they are the best dancers in the country), Aleah is still a hundred times better than Riley. And, look, I get what the film was going for. When their coach asks them how they’re feeling after rehearsal, Aleah says that she knows she’s going to win while Riley says that she feels she did well but she could do better. I understand. We’re supposed to love Riley for being humble and resent Aleah for being full of herself and blah blah blah.
But, honestly, modesty is overrated. If you know you’re good, why shouldn’t you admit it? Speaking from my own personal experience, confidence is often mistaken for arrogance, in much the same way that determination is often mistaken for being self-centered. To be truly good at anything, you have to know that you’re good. Where’s the shame in admitting what you know to be true?
In other words, I related to Aleah, which probably indicates that I’m not audience that this movie was made for. (Admittedly, Aleah should not have spilled her drinking water on the floor right before Riley started dancing but we all make mistakes.)
Anyway, long story short — Riley gets involved in a horrific traffic accident, spends a few weeks in a coma, and suffers slight brain damage. Riley is determined to dance again but it becomes obvious that she never will. However, she finds a new love: horses. And, when it turns out that Aleah is related to the stablehand that Riley now has a crush on, the two rivals become friends…
In the past, I probably would have been totally snarky about this movie and, while I was watching it, I will admit to rolling my eyes a little. This is a low-budget and, in many ways, amateurish movie, specifically made for the faith-based market. This was especially obvious in the dance scenes. Riley is such an overwhelmingly upbeat character that I found myself getting annoyed with her.
And yet…
The movie’s just so positive! Normally, I scoff at movies that are too positive in the their outlook but, considering the overwhelming negativity of the world today, it was kind of nice to spend two hours watching a movie that didn’t have a single dark thought in its head. It was a break, so to speak, from the usual morbidity of my cinematic diet. It’s a sweet movie and, compared to most faith-based movies, remarkably unpreachy. Nobody was condemned to Hell. The Antichrist never showed up. No unbelievers were punished. Refreshingly, there were no anti-Catholic conspiracy theories. Instead, this was a nice movie about a girl and her horse and what’s wrong with that?
(I am currently in the process of cleaning out my DVR! I recorded the 1952 best picture nominee, High Noon, off of Retroplex on January 28th. This review is scheduled to posted at 12 noon, central time. Clever, no?)
High Noon is a testament to the power of simplicity.
It’s a famous film, one that continues to be influential and which is still studied today. It’s known for being one of the greatest westerns ever made but it’s also a powerful political allegory. Even people who haven’t seen the film know that High Noon is the moment of the day when someone shows their true character. Just as everyone knows the plot of Star Wars, regardless of whether they’ve actually watched the film, everyone knows that High Noon is about a town marshal who, after the entire town deserts him, is forced to face down a gang of gunmen on his own.
And yet, it really is a surprisingly simple movie. It’s the quintessential western, filmed in black-and-white and taking place in the type of frontier town that you would expect to find hiding on the back lot of an old movie studio. Though wonderfully brought to life by a talented cast, the majority of the characters are familiar western archetypes.
There’s the aging town marshal, a simple man of integrity. Gary Cooper won an Oscar for playing the role of Will Kane. When we first see Will, he’s getting married in a frontier courtroom. All of the town leaders have come to his wedding and all of them wish him luck in the future. Will is retiring and everyone agrees that the town would never have survived and prospered if not for Will Kane. After all, Will is the one who captured the notorious outlaw, Frank Miller. When the news comes that Miller has been pardoned and will be arriving back in town on the noon train, everyone tells Will that he should just leave town and go on his honeymoon. However, the new marshal will not be arriving for another day and Will is not willing to abandon the town. However, the town is more than willing to abandon him.
Will’s new wife is Amy Fowler (Grace Kelly). Amy is a Quaker and a pacifist. Amy begs Kane to leave town but Kane says that he’s never run from a fight. Amy tells him that she’ll be leaving on that noon train, with or without him. Helen Ramirez (Katy Jurado) is the former girlfriend of both Kane and Miller. She is one of the few people in town to call out everyone else’s cowardice but she is still planning to leave before Miller arrives. As she explains it to Amy, she would never abandon Kane if he were her man but he’s not her man anymore.
The townspeople, who first appear to be so friendly and honest, soon prove themselves to be cowards. None of them are willing to stand behind Will. The Mayor (Thomas Mitchell) publicly castigates Will for staying in town and putting everyone else in danger. Deputy Harvey Pell (Lloyd Bridges) says that he’ll only help Will if Will recommends him as his replacement. The town minister (Morgan Farley) is more concerned with why Will was married by the justice of the peace, instead of in the church. The town judge (Otto Kruger) leaves early, saying he can be a judge in some other town. One of the few people to show Will any sympathy is the former marshal (Lon Chaney, Jr.) but, unfortunately, he is too old and crippled by arthritis to provide any help.
Though it all, Frank’s gang sits at the train station and waits for Frank to arrive. One gang member is played be Lee Van Cleef. He looks really mean!
With a brisk running time of 84 minutes, High Noon unfolds in real time. Throughout the film, as Kane grows increasingly desperate in his attempt to find anyone brave enough to stand with him, we see clocks in the background of nearly every scene. We hear the ticking. We know that both noon and Frank Miller are getting closer and closer. We know that, soon, Will will have no other option but to stand on the street by himself and defend a town that doesn’t deserve him.
It’s simple but it’s undeniably powerful.
It’s been said that High Noon was meant to be a metaphor for the blacklist. Frank Miller and his gang were the fascists that, having been defeated in World War II, were now coming back to power. Will Kane was a stand-in for all the men and women of integrity who found themselves blacklisted. The townspeople represented the studio execs who refused to challenge the blacklist. That’s the theory and it’s probably true. But, honestly, the political metaphor of High Noon works because it can be applied to any situation. Will Kane is anyone who has ever had to face down the forces of totalitarianism. He is anyone who has ever had the courage to take a lonely stand while everyone else cowered in the corner.
It’s a powerful metaphor and it’s also a genuinely entertaining movie. The gunfight is thrilling. The romance between Will and Amy feels real. Even the town feels like an actual place, one that has its own history and culture. It’s a simple film but it’s a great film.
Like a lot of great films, High Noon was nominated for best picture. And, like a lot of great films, it lost. In High Noon‘s case, it lost to a film that is almost its exact opposite, The Greatest Show on Earth. However, Gary Cooper did win an Oscar for his unforgettable performance as Will Kane.
I think we tend to take classic films for granted. Don’t do that with High Noon. See it the next chance you get.
(I’m currently in the process of cleaning out my DVR! It’s going to take me forever because I have like absolutely no self-control and I’ve got over 150 things to watch! For instance, I recorded Girl On The Edge off of Showtime on February 19th!)
Hannah Green (Taylor Spreitler) is a 15 year-old dancer and is even more troubled than the typical teenage girl. She is struggling to deal with her parent’s divorce. Her father, Hank (Gil Bellows), has remarried and, though loving, he doesn’t know how to talk to his daughter. After the manipulative Tommy (Shane Graham) rapes her at a party and pictures of her are posted online, Hannah stops dancing and descends into depression, self-harm, drugs, and alcohol. With no idea what to do, her father and stepmother stage an intervention and send Taylor to a “healing center,” a ranch in the wilderness where Hannah and other troubled girls attend therapy sessions, take care of horses, and hopefully, begin the process of recovery.
Girl on the Edge actually feels like two movies that, when smashed together, make for something of an awkward fit. The better of the two movies deals with Hannah and how her stay at the ranch affects her. At first, Hannah is resistant to the discipline. She resents being told what to do and, most heart-breakingly, even risks getting expelled from the program so that she can attempt to contact the boy who raped her. (“Kill yourself slut,” he writes back.) Taylor Spreitler gives such a good performance as Hannah that, at times, it was difficult for me to watch. When I was sixteen, I was rebellious and angry. I knew Hannah’s pain and, even more importantly, I also knew her anger. Spreitler’s performance is matched by Peter Coyote, playing the tough-minded founder of the ranch, and the late Elizabeth Pena, who played Hannah’s therapist.
But then there was the second film, which was basically Hank sitting around and feeling guilty. And don’t get me wrong. Gil Bellows gives a good performance as Hank. There are a lot of scenes where Hank is silent and lost in thought but, just through his posture and the sadness in his eyes, Bellows shows us exactly what’s going on inside of Hank’s mind. Hank ends up confronting Tommy at the ice cream parlor where he works. He also ends up confronting Travis Lee (Rex Lee), the sleazy head of the company that created the app that Tommy used to stalk Hannah online. Rex Lee, who is probably best known for playing Jeremy Piven’s assistant on Entourage, gives an over-the-top and rather cartoonishly evil performance. It feels thoroughly out-of-place, especially when compared to the more naturalistic performances of … well, of everyone else in the cast.
Even if I’m not a huge fan of rehabilitation centers, I am a huge fan of movies about out-of-control teenagers so I enjoyed that aspect of Girl on the Edge. I think, ultimately, the main reason why this film works is because it’s a very sincere movie. Cynicism is not to be found in this film’s DNA. You can tell that the filmmakers really believed in the movie’s message. Everyone’s heart was in the right place and that goes a long way towards helping the film get over a few rough patches. Girl on the Edge has its flaws. Some of the dialogue is a bit too on the nose. Occasionally, you do wish that it had been directed with a slightly more subtle touch. But, ultimately, this is one of those movies that is so well-intentioned that it feels a bit petty to get too snarky.
Sometimes, you just have to be willing to appreciate a little sincerity.
(I am currently in the process of cleaning out my DVR! It’s going to take forever because I’ve got over a 150 movies to watch! Anyway, I recorded The Good Nanny off of Lifetime on May 15th.)
Poor Summer Pratt (Briana Evigan).
No sooner has she gotten engaged to Clint (Ben Gavin) then she suffers a miscarriage, losing the baby that she didn’t even know that she was carrying. Before she has even had a chance to emotionally recover from her loss, Summer is offered a job. Lilly Walsh (Ellen Hollman) wants hire Summer to be her interior designer. Summer doesn’t particularly like Lilly, who drinks a bit too much, has a controversial past, and tends to come across as being just a little bit fake. In fact, Summer would rather not take the job at all but Lilly just happens to married to Clint’s boss (Peter Porte). Mostly in order to help Clint’s career, Summer takes the job.
While Clint goes out of town on business, Lilly moves into the Walsh mansion. (As one would expect from a Lifetime movie, the house is absolutely gorgeous.) It turns out the Walshes need more than just an interior designer. Their nanny has quit and they need a new one immediately. Summer takes the job and that’s where things start to get strange.
The Walshes insist that their daughter, Sophie (Sophie Guest), has borderline personality disorder and is accident prone. Summer, however, suspects that they are abusing Sophie and even comes to believe that they might not actually be Sophie’s parents. When she sees that Sophie’s shoulder is scarred, Summer grows even more concerned. And, of course, there’s the fact that Summer regularly talks about a mysterious girl named Sasha and she also sleeps with a pair of scissors.
(Admittedly, I used to do the same thing but that was just because I was sixteen and I was pretending that I was in a horror movie.)
Is Summer right? Are the Walshes abusing their daughter? Or, are the Walshes telling the truth about Sophie? Could Sophie be one of those crazy children who always seem to show up in Lifetime movies? Or could it be that Summer, herself, is imagining things? Has the loss of her own child left hrt susceptible to delusion? Are her frequent nightmares evidence of her own instability or do they mean something else?
I really liked The Good Nanny. It was enjoyably weird and over the top, featuring some memorably off-center performances, especially from Kym Jackson, who gives a ferocious performance as a character who I can’t say too much about. Particularly for a Lifetime film, The Good Nanny is gorgeously shot, with Summer’s nightmares being appropriate creepy and full of shadows and there’s a wonderful harshness to the look of the film’s beach-set finale. The film’s twisty plot will keep you guessing. Just as in real life, you’ll never be sure who is crazy or who is just obnoxious.
The Good Nanny is definitely one to keep an eye out for!
(I am currently trying to clean out my DVR! I recorded this 1979 sports film off of FXM on February 1st!)
In Dreamer, Tim Matheson plays a character named Harold Nuttingham. His nickname is Dreamer. Do you think it’s possible that Harold has a dream!? Well, it would probably be a really cruel nickname if he didn’t!
Dreamer lives in small town Illinois. He loves to bowl. He spends all of his time down at the local bowling alley, where everyone knows him and they all love him and his dreams of becoming a professional bowler. His mentor is named Harry White (Jack Warden) and runs the pro shop. Harry dreamed of being a famous, champion bowler but his dreams didn’t come true. But now he can help Dreamer’s dreams work out. Everyone loves the fact that Harry is helping Dreamer. Dreamer’s girlfriend is named Karen Lee (Susan Blakely). She loves that Dreamer loves bowling but she is frustrated because everyone keeps telling Dreamer that it would be a mistake to take her to his games. Karen might bring bad luck.
Everyone in his hometown loves Dreamer but the Professional Bowling Association (which apparently is an actual thing) doesn’t love Dreamer. They don’t want to let Dreamer compete on a professional level. Or, at least, they don’t until Dreamer meets with them personally and shows off his amazing bowling skills. Then they love Dreamer.
Even though Dreamer is the new guy on the professional circuit, the audiences love him. And all the other professional bowlers love him, even when they lose to him. Everyone loves Dreamer, perhaps because everyone loves a dreamer…
Are you getting the impression that Dreamer might be one of the most positive movies ever made? Well, it is. Hardly anyone says a bad word about anyone in Dreamer. Nobody tells Dreamer to give up. Dreamer never really suffers from any self-doubt, though he does injure his thumb at one point. There is a moment of tragedy towards the end of the movie but it’s one of those tragedies that leads to better things. You can’t have light without a little darkness, though Dreamer seems to suggest that you can come awfully close.
Normally, films get on my nerves when they’re overwhelmingly positive but I can’t really complain about a movie like Dreamer. It’s just so earnest and sincere. There’s no real conflict and there’s no real drama but everyone in the movie is just so damn likable that you almost feel guilty for wishing something unexpected would happen. Dreamer struggles and fails to make bowling cinematic but Dreamer’s a nice guy so you wish him the best.
Perhaps the most interesting thing about Dreamer is that it was directed by Noel Nosseck, who also directed an incredibly odd little grindhouse film called Best Friends. Best Friends, which I recommend tracking down, is almost the anti-Dreamer. Watch Best Friends to have your faith in humanity destroyed and then follow it up with Dreamer so your faith can be restored.
Duncan (Aldo Sambrell) and his gang are the most ruthless and feared outlaws in the old west. When first seen, they are destroying a Navajo village and shooting everyone that they see. Duncan even steals a pendant from a young Indian woman. When that woman’s husband, Joe (Burt Reynolds), discovers what has happened, he sets out for vengeance. With Ennio Morricone’s classic score playing in the background, Joe kills one gang member after another. When Duncan and his gang lay siege to the town of Esperanza, Joe approaches the townspeople and offers to defend them. His price? “One dollar a head from every man in this town for every bandit that I kill.”
Through the Shattered Lens 