Review CLXII - High Noon

Review 162
High Noon (1952)

It feels like the sun was setting at 16:00 only a month ago, and suddenly it's almost summer. Okay, granted, the summer solstice is still over a month away, but nonetheless, it's feeling pretty warm where I live, especially around noon time. Yeah? See what I did there? Today we're talking about Fred Zinnemann's High Noon starring Gary Cooper, Grace Kelly, Lloyd Bridges, and Katy Jurado. Let's jump into this review!

Marshall Will Kane (Gary Cooper) has just married Amy Fowler (Grace Kelly), has given in his badge until the new marshall arrives tomorrow, and about to embark on his honeymoon when news spreads that Frank Miller (Ian MacDonald), an outlaw stopped by Kane only to be released after a close-call on execution, is coming back to town. While the town encourages Kane to leave and escape the madman, Kane decides to stay and take care of the man once responsible for bringing the town to near ruin. But the question is, will anyone be willing to help him in his conquest?

Like Sexy Beast, High Noon mostly centres around the pre-fight rather than the fight itself. Kind of interesting that I'm reviewing two similar films one after another... Anyway, this already makes it an interesting piece of cinema again since, well, every cowboy movie is about fighting the bad guys, right? And High Noon definitely makes it interesting.

The reality is, High Noon is a film about a man trying to get others to help him, but no one wants to get their hands dirty. No one wants to die in order to protect their town. Prior to Kane, Hadleyville was overrun by crime and prostitution. He was the one who came in and helped clean up the town, which included sending Frank Miller to hang. However, not everyone was happy about this, particularly the barman and manager of the hotel, who saw healthy profits when the town was run by outlaws. But it's not like the women and family men are all ready to help out Kane. They believe that the bad blood between Miller and Kane will only cause more trouble than is worth and it would be best to wait for the new marshall as opposed to fighting now. Meanwhile, Kane is constantly encouraged to leave and forget about Miller, but he cannot, even with the angry opposition from his new wife. I'd have to say that Katy Jurado's comment sums up the film's message pretty well: "It takes more than broad shoulders to make a man." I guess I could voice my opinion on this issue, but let's just say I agree with this strongly. There's a reason why men will go into high-risk jobs, and the ones who aren't gonna stand up for a country, well, they're gonna make the country fall.

I guess there's not much I have to say about the film without giving it away... I really liked it and thought it did something different. My only beef was that I was surprised that no one was willing to help out Kane, something pretty odd in my opinion, but I also get that the film wanted to give that added suspense. The acting was also great, and it progressed well, with the time of the film following with the time of the arrival of Frank Miller, which was pretty cool, I gotta say.

High Noon is an interesting Western that you should definitely give a try. It isn't all bang bang, but rather, examines the hardship of a man trying to get others to help themselves. It also stars Lee Van Cleef in his first role ever! He doesn't talk at all, but it's okay, I enjoyed seeing him, hehe. Happy viewing, folks!

Review CXI - Per qualche dollaro in più

Review 111
For a Few Dollars More (1965)

This review was supposed to come out waaay before I'm actually posting it. But I ended up getting bu- what, you're tired of hearing the same excuses over and over again? Fine. So, here is the second film in the "Dollars" trilogy from Sergio Leone, Per qualche dollaro in più with our usual protagonist Clint Eastwood, alongside the ever-so-lovely Lee Van Cleef and familiar face Gian Maria Volonté. Lezz go!

The Man with No Name (Clint Eastwood) returns, stronger than ever to get those bounties. However, bounty hunter Colonel Douglas Mortimer (Lee Van Cleef) is particularly interested in catching one man, El Indio, a criminal with a high bounty. When Monco (as The Man with No Name is known in the film) decides to go after El Indio as well, the colonel decides to work together in order to catch this infamous and crazy man. But does Monco really approve?

Okay, so For a Few Dollars More was beautiful. It was a lot more colourful than A Fistful of Dollars, and you could see Sergio Leone was exploring more in this film. However, the plot was... lacking. I mean, you had the first one ripping off some Japanese film (I watched Yojimbo - it really is a double to A Fistful of Dollars, but with funnier music), but now I can see why - Sergio Leone wasn't quite at his peak in story-telling yet. Hence why this one is a bit meh at times. I mean, Monco is cool, Colonel Mortimer is cool, but El Indio's back story was meh. I mean, the way the shots were put together for the back story was cheesy, and I don't know, it was flimsy. I don't want to ruin it, but you guys might see what I mean if you watch the film. I dunno, it's just weak. But the ending worked with it, so Sergio Leone was close, but he really got it down with The Good, The Bad, The Ugly. Again, like A Fistful of Dollars, this was more of an experiment, or practice, if you will, which would lead into an ultimate classic.

As I mentioned, the shots were very nice. Not quite The Good, The Bad, The Ugly, but Sergio Leone was trying. There is some reference to the final scene of The Good, The Bad, The Ugly, but less refined. But in this one, he played with mirrors, with windows, the like. It was good. Not spectacular, but good nonetheless. And the additional colours were nice. Not just going with sandy brown, dark browns, black, and sandied-green, but brighter yellows, blues, etc. Not necessarily something you care about, but it's something my boyfriend enjoyed mentioning throughout the whole film, hehe.

For a Few Dollars More is not necessarily as good plot-wise as its predecessor or successor, but at least this one was no rip-off. Sergio Leone was trying to get more stable footing in terms of cinematography in this one, and its higher budget is definitely noticed. Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, and Gian Maria Volonté all did great jobs, though unfortunately, the plot made it so no one particularly shined... Well, they were still all bad ass, so I guess that isn't completely true, hehe. Not his best, but still a fun watch from Sergio Leone! Oh, and Ennio Morricone still rocks it.

Review XVII - Escape from New York

Review XVII
Escape from New York (1981)

Two reviews in one day? Woah! I started babysitting a friend's little sister yesterday, and I'll be doing so for the next few weeks. She's ten, however, and so far I've not had to do much except sit around, do some dishes, and cook food. We've been watching movies together, but today I got there before she woke up, so I decided to watch another John Carpenter cult film, Escape from New York. Unlike Big Trouble in Little China, this one was commercially a success, but it has since been established as a cult hit. This film stars Kurt Russell, Lee Van Cleef, Harry Dean Stanton, Ernest Borgnine, Adrienne Barbeau, Donald Pleasence, and Isaac Hayes.

While the president (Donald Pleasence) of United States is on his way to an important summit in 1997, his plane is hijacked by a terrorist. He escapes through an escape pod, but lands in New York city, which, ten years previously, became a prison island where prisoners are sent for the rest of their days. The authorities try to get the president, but their results prove fruitless. Enter Snake Plissken (Kurt Russell), an honourable special forces soldier turned robber who has been arrested. Hauk (Lee Van Cleef), an agent in the special forces, offers Snake a deal - rescue the president in 24 hours, and he's given a pardon. There's also a catch - microscopic explosives are implanted in his neck that will explode in 24 hours to ensure Snake goes along with the deal. While New York offers Snake companions to help him in his journey to find the president, the Duke (Isaac Hayes) and his gang are going to prove to be a big problem for Snake, Cabbie (Ernest Borgnine), Brain (Harry Dean Stanton), and Maggie (Adrienne Barbeau).

I loved this film. I'm not sure if Big Trouble in Little Trouble made me a science-fiction-John Carpenter-and-Kurt-Russell lover, but man, I thought the film was grand. Again, it's not a film you watch to think, but simply to be entertained with action and funny lines. It isn't as cheesy as Big Trouble, rather more serious in fact, but it's still a light-hearted film. I also thought the concept of the crime rate in the United States becoming so high that they dedicate a city to housing prisoners and letting them take care of each other interesting. I thought it was pretty amazing that the prisoners never escaped, even if the walls are huge. Manhattan Island is 87.5 square km, or 33.77 square miles, depending on the system you prefer. That's pretty huge! That would mean having people surrounding the whole barrier the whole time, and having a helicopter for at least every few kilometres to ensure no one is sneaking around. Still, that didn't bother me in the least; I just like nitpicking. I just watched the film to be entertained, and entertained I was. The film makes me want to re-watch The Thing (I didn't think it was all that good when watched it), and check out more John Carpenter science fiction films. Kurt Russell was an iconic badass (what did you expect?), and the other characters were well played. I also enjoyed the eighties' soundtrack which John Carpenter also contributed to. That's talent right there!

I'd give the film eight stars on ten. It deserves the cult status it has earned, and it's worth a watch from any action lover. Don't expect too much from it - simply watch it to be entertained.

Pirate Bay torrent

P.S. I rented the film, so I don't know if the quality for the torrent is any good... Sorry!