In Broad Daylight 2019

     This movie is based on the true story of Bethany Arceneaux, a 29-year-old Louisiana woman and her boyfriend Scott Thomas.  The names have been changed for movie.  Jordan Boudreaux meets Steve and they fall in love.  Jordan having a baby and Steve tells her that she can quit her job to stay home with the baby.  They are a family now and he wants the best for Jordan and his son.  Things are going very well until Steve wants Jordan and the baby to stay at home with him.  All she wants to do is go to her mother’s home and spend time with her relatives.  Steve says he doesn’t want to go and she doesn’t need to go there either?  When Steve starts to hurt Jordan, she secretly rents an apartment, gets her job back and files a restraining order with the police.  She asks her cousin Malik to live in the apartment with her for more safety and security.  Malik also helps her with the turnaround with their son and his visits with Steve.  Everything is going smoothly for a while.

     Jordan stops by Steve’s house to pickup their son instead of Malik handling this.  When she drives away from the home, Steve is following her in his car.  He is dangerously close to her car and he’s driving erratically.  Jordan stops at a store where people are outside.  She tries the get their son from his car seat but Steve grabs her and throws her into his car!!  A woman takes the baby into the store and the police are called.  Jordan’s family is very worried about what will happen to Jordan.  There is a LOT of tension because you don’t know if the police will be able to locate Jordan.  What is Steve going to do with and to her?  The family begins their own search for her too.  3 ½* (I liked this movie)

TV Movie, 120 minutes, Crime directed by Kenn Mitchael, written by Scott Mullen with Michael Arnold, Tamara Austin, Tameka Bob, Demetrius Bradley, Darren Cain, Chip Carriere, Tasha Cash, Kendrick Cross, Rhonda Johnson Dents, Lauren Ewell, Curtis Hamilton, Kaya Hampton, Annie Jacob, Chyna Layne, Norise Louis.

Note:  Imdb 6.2 out of 10 (I could not locate other reviews.)

Special Note:  There is a book by the same title written by Harry N. MacClean and also another movie with the same title based on the book.  This story was also inspired by a true story.  It is about Len Rowan and he terrorizes the residents of a small town for years.  He has a history of violence and intimidation plus he has always remained one step ahead of the law.  Brian Dennehy is Len Rowan and Marcia Gay Harden is his wife, Adina Rowan.  Cloris Leachman is Ruth Westerman and John Anderson is her husband Wes Anderson.  

A Pickup on South Street 1953

     Skip McCoy makes his living as a pickpocket.  He can take something out of your purse or pocket and you don’t notice it at all!!  He picks the purse of Candy on a crowded New York Subway.  What he doesn’t know is that what he pocketed was a piece of top-secret microfilm.  It was to be passed to Candy’s consort, a Communist agent.  The police and Candy discover who the pickpocket his and where he lives through Moe Williams.  She sells ties and she also rats on people to get money.  She's saving her money because she doesn’t want to be buried in Potters Field!!  Candy goes to the shack on the water where Skip lives.  She tries to cozy up to him to get the film back.  Skip is too smart to fall for any of Candy’s tricks!!  Candy, Skip and Moe don’t realize the lengths the Communists will go to in order to get the film back!!

     Since this film is from 1953, I can say that Candy is one tough broad!!  Skip socks her in the jaw and it knocks her out cold onto the floor.  She gets roughed up by her Communist partner and thrown around her apartment.  I really wonder if Skip would be able to live year-round in New York in a bait shack on the water?  No windows, sleeping in a hammock and what about the cold New York winter climate??  Boats come by all the time and they are not quiet like in this film???  In a LOT of these older films, the plots take a stretch with the truth!!  3 ½* (I liked this movie)   

     

80 min, Crime directed and written by Samuel Fuller and Dwight Taylor also writing with Richard Widmark, Jean Peters, Thelma Ritter, Murvyn Vye, Richard Kiley Willis Bouchey, Milburn Stone.

Note:  Imdb 7.7 out of 10, Rotten Tomatoes 91% critic 89% audience, Letterboxd average 3.9* out of 5* with 20 reviews, Amazon 4.1* out of 5* with 81 reviews.

Special Note:  Filmed in Century City, West 6^th Street and Grand Avenue, 523 West 6^th Street, Los Angeles, California.  New York Public Library, South Street; 400 Broome Street, Manhattan, New York City; Kent Avenue and North 6^th street, Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York City, New York.  Marilyn Monroe was originally to be cast in the role of Candy and Samuel Fuller liked her very much.  He decided she was wrong for the part because of her “overwhelming sensuality!”  Betty Grable also wanted the role of Candy but she demanded a dance number.  Fuller refused the dance number and then he decided Jean Peters was a better selection.  This is the last of four films in four successive years with Thelma Ritter.  She was nominated for the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for this role and also for All About Eve 1950, The Mating Season 1951 and With a Song in My Heart 1952. 

Jack Ryan 2018, 2019 (Season One and Two)

    The Tom Clancy novels about Jack Ryan are the basis for this series.  CIA analyst Jack Ryan accidentally stumbles on a series of interesting bank transfers.  He thinks they are out of line because of the amount of money and the same time/date frequencies.  An analyst is a desk job but this new information moves him into the secret part of the CIA and the dangerous part as well.  There is a rising terrorist figurehead in the Middle East and his target may be Europe.  There could also be a massive attack against the US and  allies of the US.  The CIA will need to learn everything they can immediately!!

     I thought this series was very good and there is a LOT of tension and suspense in every episode.  Ryan has a new boss and he’s trying to fit into this assignment.  Many times he doesn’t know what to think about Ryan in the beginning?  Ryan meets Cathy Muller and she works as a research physician specializing in infectious diseases at Washington Memorial Hospital.   He would like to get to know her better but work gets in the way and he can’t really tell her much about what he does at work.  He emphasizes the non-secret part with a lot of paperwork and the studying of paperwork.  5* (I really liked this series) (Can’t wait for Season Three)   

TV series, Amazon, 2018, 2019, 2020, each episode one hour, directed by Daniel Sackheim with John Krasinski, Wenmdell Pierce, John Hoogenakker, Abbie Cornish, Ali Suliman, Dina Shihabi, Karim Zein, Emmanuelle Lussier Martinez, Jordi Molla, Eduar Salas, Nadia Affolter, Arpy Ayvazian, Amir El-Masry, Francisco Denis, Cristina Umana, Marcela Vanegas, Kevin Kent.

Note:  Imdb 8.2 out of 10 with 56,524 reviews,  Rotten Tomatoes 74% critic 88% audience, Rolling Stone 3 ½* out of 5* Alan Sepinwall, Amazon Season 1 4.3* out of 5* with 18,132 ratings, Season 2 4.4* out of 5* with 428 ratings, Metacritic Season 1, 66 out of 100 with 28 critics (18 positive, 10 mixed) Season 2 no reviews.

Special Note:  Season two was confirmed before the airing of Season one and Season three will start November 1, 2019.  John Kransinski is the fifth actor to play Jack Ryan.  The others were Harrison Ford, Alec Baldwin, Ben Affleck and Chris Pine.

Special Note:  The ranking of the Jack Ryan actors is Harrison Ford #1, John Krasinski #2, Alec Baldwin #3, Chris Pine #4 and Ben Affleck #5.

A Pickup on South Street 1953

     Skip McCoy makes his living as a pickpocket.  He can take something out of your purse or pocket and you don’t notice it at all!!  He picks the purse of Candy on a crowded New York Subway.  What he doesn’t know is that what he pocketed was a piece of top-secret microfilm.  It was to be passed again by Candy’s consort, a Communist agent.  The police and Candy discover who the pickpocket is and where he lives through Moe Williams.  She sells ties and she also rats on people to get money.  She doesn’t want to be buried in Potters Field!!  Candy goes to the shack on the water where Skip lives.  She tries to cozy up to him to get the film back.  Skip is too smart to fall for any of Candy’s tricks!!  Candy, Skip and Moe don’t realize the lengths the Communists will go to in order to get the film back!!

     Since this film is from 1953, I can say that Candy is one tough broad!!  Skip socks her in the jaw and it knocks her out cold onto the floor.  She also gets roughed up by her Communist partner and thrown around her apartment.  I really wonder if Skip would be able to live year-round in New York in a bait shack on the water?  No windows, sleeping in a hammock and what about the cold New York winter climate??  Boats come by all the time and they are not quiet like in this film???  In a LOT of these older films, the plots take a stretch with the truth!!  3 ½* (I liked this movie)   

     

80 min, Crime directed and written by Samuel Fuller and Dwight Taylor also writing with Richard Widmark, Jean Peters, Thelma Ritter, Murvyn Vye, Richard Kiley Willis Bouchey, Milburn Stone.

Note:  Imdb 7.7 out of 10, Rotten Tomatoes 91% critic 89% audience, Letterboxd average 3.9* out of 5* with 20 reviews, Amazon 4.1* out of 5* with 81 reviews.

Special Note:  Filmed in Century City, West 6^th Street and Grand Avenue, 523 West 6^th Street, Los Angeles, California.  New York Public Library, South Street; 400 Broome Street, Manhattan, New York City; Kent Avenue and North 6^th street, Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York City, New York.  Marilyn Monroe was originally to be cast in the role of Candy and Samuel Fuller liked her very much.  He decided she was wrong for the part because of her “overwhelming sensuality!”  Betty Grable also wanted the role of Candy and she demanded a dance number.  Fuller refused the dance number and then he decided Jean Peters was a better selection.  This is the last of four films in four successive years with Thelma Ritter.  She nominated for the Best Supporting Actress Oscar and also for All About Eve 1950, The Mating Season 1951 and With a Song in My Heart 1952. 

The Heiresses (Las Herederas) 2018

     Chela and Chiquita have been together for over 30 years.  They are both descended from wealthy families in Asuncion Paraguay.  Recently, their financial circumstances have gone downhill and they have started to sell off their inherited possessions.  Because of their piled up debts, Chiquita is imprisoned on fraud charges.  This changes everything for Chela!!  She has not driven in years but she not drive now.  She starts providing a local taxi service to a group of wealthy elderly ladies.  Chela meets Angy and she is much younger.  They form a new connection with each other.  Chela begins to change now that Chiquita is gone.  She comes out of her shell and she is engaging with the world.  She will have her own personal revolution. 

     Ana Brun won Best Actress at Berlin and the entire cast is good.  There are no men in this film and this is unusual.  The male characters are pushed back into the periphery and almost non-existent.  The women are in there 50’s and they show signs of age.  But, they are treated with dignity and respect.   Everything is very understated and the details are important.  3 ½* (I liked this movie) 

98 min, Drama directed and written by Marcelo Martinessi with Ana Brun, Margaria Irun, Ana Ivanova, Nilda Gonzalez, Maria Martins, Alicia Guerra, Mecha Armele, Ana Banks, Beto Barsotti, Rossana Bellassai, Clotilde Cabral, Natalia Calcena, Raul Chamorro, Norma Codas, Regina Duarte.

Note:  Imdb 6.8 out of 10, Rotten Tomatoes 97% critic 77% audience, Roger Ebert 4* Sheila O’Malley, The Guardian 4* out of 5* Peter Bradshaw, Metacritic 77 out of 100 with 14 critics (13 positive 1 mixed) 6.1 out of 10 with 9 user scores (5 positive, 3 mixed, 1 negative), Amazon 5* with 1 review, Letterboxd average 3.4* out of 5*. 

Special Note:  Filmed in Asuncion, Paraguay.  Official submission of Paraguay for the Best Foreign Language Film in the 91^st Academy Awards in 2019.  This is Ana Brun’s acting debut.  She used a pseudonym because she was fearful of being negatively associated with the film.  This was due to the subject matter since Paraguayan society is still very conservative.

Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day 2008

     This film is based on a book with the same title written by Winifred Watson.  The setting of this film is London in the 1930's.  Guinevere Pettigrew is a middle-aged, straitlaced vicar's daughter and she works as a London governess.  She finds herself unfairly dismissed from her job?  Miss Holt is the employment agency head and she says she cannot help her because Guinevere has been fired from four jobs!!  Instead, Guinevere heads off in search of an assignment intended for a colleague.  Flamboyant American singer-actress Delysia Lafosse is in need of a social secretary and not a nanny?  When Guinevere arrives at the luxurious penthouse apartment residence of Delysia, she learns that Delysia is involved with three men!!  A penniless and devoted pianist Michael Pardue just released from prison.  A wealthy and controlling Nick Calderelli, the owner of the nightclub where Delysia is performing.  Young theater impresario Phil Goldman and he is in a position to cast her in the lead role in a West End play.  Suddenly and amazingly, Miss Pettigrew is swept up in the unknown world of high society??
     Miss Pettigrew's entire life changes in just 24 hours!!  She has a much needed makeover by her employer.  She attends a fashion show hosted by a fashion maven.  She meets lingerie designer Joe Blomfield.  She becomes fast friends with Delysia.  Fantastically, Delysia and Michael set sail for New York City aboard the Queen Mary.  Joe comes to Victoria Station and he tells Guinevere that she is the woman for him!!  This is a feel-good fairy tale and if you are going to live, at least do it for a day!!  5* (I really liked this movie)  
92 min, Comedy directed by Bharat Nalluri with Frances McDormand, Amy Adams, Ciaran Hinds, David Alexander, Clare Clifford, Christina Cole, Stephanie Cole, Beatie Edney, Shirley Henderson, Sarah Kants, Ally Leonard, Katy Murphy, Lee Pace, Tom Payne, Tim Potter.   

Note:  Imdb 7.1 out of 10, Rotten Tomatoes 78% critic 71% audience, Common Sense Media S Jhoanna Robeldo, age 13+, 3* out of 5*, 3* sex, 3* drinking, drugs & smoking.  Metacritic 63 out of 100 with 27 critics (positive 18, mixed 9) 7.4 out of 10 user score with 36 reviews (27 positive, 8 mixed, 1 negative), Amazon 4.6* out of 5* with 465 reviews, Letterboxd 3.4* out of 5* with 16 reviews.  Goodreads gives the book 3.97* out of 5 with 12,578 ratings. 

A boy. A girl. A Dream DVD 2019

     The setting of this film is in Los Angeles CA on the night of the 2016 Presidential election with a win by Donald Trump.  Cass is an LA club promoter and he takes an emotional journey with Frieda.  She is a Midwestern visitor and she has a flight home the next day.  Frieda challenges Cass to revisit his broken dreams and he pushes her to discover her dreams.

     This film is a melancholic mood piece.  Cass and Frieda have had a chance meeting but they argue, they fight and they make up?  In the background, there is the tension about the Presidential election and how this will end!  A LOT of times Cass is angry and very bothered throughout the movie?  He tries to get Frieda to warm up to him but he can be too forceful for stranger that she has just met?  I didn’t know how this was going to turn out between them but I did know the outcome of the election.  3* (This movie is OK)

    

89 min, Romance directed and written by Qasim Basir, co-writer Samantha Tanner with Omari Hardwick, Meagan Good, Jay Ellis, Dijon Talton, Kenya Barris, Maryam Basir, Rachel Benyola, David Bianchi, David Brown, Affion Crockett, Jennifer Elliott, Alexis Fallon, Evelyn Gonzalez, Wesley Jonathan, Kris D. Lofton.

Note:  Imdb 4.7 out of 10, Rotten Tomatoes 86% critic 45% audience, Metacritic 65 out of 100 with 5 critics, Letterboxd average 2.9* out of 5*, Amazon Video 2.9* out of 5* with 96 reviews.

Special Note:  This movie was filmed in one single take.  The crew had to plan for months and choreograph the changing settings and chance encounters.  Director and writer Qasim Basir said during the Sundance 2018 premier that it was the hardest thing they have ever done!!  Basir was inspired by the German movie Victoria with its single-take production.   

Detour 1945

     Al Roberts is a New York nightclub pianist.  Sue is a singer in the same nightclub.  Al wants to get married but Sue tells him she is going to California to see if she can hit the big time before she marries.  They are separated for a while and then Sue tells Al that she’s doing very well.  Al decides he will hitchhike to California and join Sue in Los Angeles.  One night, Al gets a ride from sleazy gambler Charles Haskell Jr.  Al takes over driving, Charles sleeps and Al stops the car to put up the convertible top.  When he asks Charles to help him with the top, he finds out Charles is dead??

     The death of Charles starts a real detour for Al.  Everything he has planned begins to change.  He makes a LOT of very dumb decisions and they lead to a downward spiral of more and more problems??  I don’t know if this plot is legit because it seems to go off in wild directions?  I am surprised this film was selected for honors?  3* (This movie is OK)

68 min, Crime directed by Edgar G. Ulmer with Tom Neal, Ann Savage, Claudia Drake, Edmund MacDonald, Tim Ryan, Esther Howard, Pat Gleason.

Note:  Imdb 7.4 out of 10, Roger Ebert 4*, Rotten Tomatoes 100% critic 78% audience, Letterboxd average 3.7* out of 5* with 38 fans, Amazon 3.7* out of 5* with 123 reviews. 

Special Note:  Filmed on Virginia Street, Reno, Nevada; 9263 Sierra Hwy, Actis; US Hwy 6, now CA State Hwy 14, about 20 miles north of Mojave; Sierra Highway, Rosamond, California.  Ann Savage in the role of Vera said that she didn’t get along with Tom Neal in the role of Al.  She said that Tom embarrassed her on the set and after that they did not speak to each other except during filming.  This is the first “B” movie chosen by the Library of Congress for its National Film Registry in 1992.  Also the first Hollywood “Noir” honored.  The budget for this film was very small and the 1941 Lincoln Continental V-12 convertible belonged to director Edgar G. Ulmer.  In the scene where Al picks up hitchhiking Vera, a passing car tried to pick her up first?  This caused a lot of laughter from the crew.  The shooting schedule was 28 days.  Savage and Neal made three movies together at Columbia Pictures before this film.  They were re-teamed to exploit their publicity and press buildup from 1943 and 1944.   On Hemmings.com the price of a restored Lincoln Continental today runs from $60-$70,000.  Al and Vera were hoping to get more than $1,800? 

This Beautiful Fantastic 2016

     Bella dreams of being an author of children’s books and she works at a library.  Next door to her lives Billy Tanter and Alfie Stephenson.  Aflie is vary cantankerous and Billy cooks for him despite his verbal abuse.  O’Brien pays a visit to Bella’s home to check conditions, he learns that the garden has gone to seed and it looks terrible.  According to Bella’s rental agreement, she must keep the home in good condition and also the garden.  Bella takes very good care of the home but she’s not comfortable in the garden.  Billy forces O’Brian to give Bella one month to renovate the garden so she can still live here.  Unusually, cranky O’Brien starts to help with the garden by guiding Bella about what to plant and how to plant.

     Bella Brown believes she is weird and she doesn’t fit in?  Plus, she doesn’t want to fit in!!  When she meets Billy, he tells her that in case she hadn’t noticed, he is weird, he doesn’t fit in and he doesn’t want to fit in!!  I thought this was a wonderful and magical movie!!  Everyone in this film is different and unusual but they are themselves and there is nothing wrong with that!!  What kind of world would this be if everyone was the same??  Would people want to be like they were cookies cut out with cookie cutters to think, feel and look identical?  There is a comic, whimsical approach in this film and it softens any rough edges that the characters have.  This film has the tone and feel of a real-life fairy story.  5* (I really liked this movie)    

           

100 min, Drama directed and written by Simon Aboud with Mia Farkasovska, Jessica Brown Findlay, Anna Chancellor, Jeremy Irvine, Eileen Davies, Tom Wilkinson, Andrew Scott, Natalie and Nancy Nasseraldeen, Paul Hunter.

Note:  Imdb 6.9 out of 10, Rotten Tomatoes 64% critic 74% audience, Roger Evert 1 ½* Sheila O’Malley, Metacritic 51 out of 100 with 10 critics (5 positive, 4 mixed, 1 negative) 7.1 out of 10 user score (12 positive, 4 mixed, 0 negative), Letterboxd average 3.4* out of 5* with 19 reviews, Common Sense Media Barbara Shulgas age 8+ 3* out of 5*, 1* educational, 3* positive, 3* role models, 1* violence, 1* sexy, 2* language, 1* drinking, drugs & smoking.  There is a comic, whimsical approach in this film and it softens any rough edges with the characters.  

Special Note:  Andrew Scott was interested in a role in this film because he was tired of playing villains?  Some critics have referred this film as the British version of Amelie 2001.  Originally, in 2009 Carey Mulligan and Joanne Lumley were scheduled to star.  Later, in 2010, Felicty Jones, Rhys Ifans and Rupert Friend were lined up to star.  Director Simon Aboud met with Jeremy Irvine in New York to discuss a roll in the film.  Simon was surprised that Irvine pitched to him about being in the movie instead?

Santa Fe Trail 1940

     This film is the story of Jeb Stuart.  It’s about his romance with Lady Kit Carson Holliday, his friendship with George Custer and his battles against John Brown.  The time setting is the days leading up to the outbreak of the American Civil War.  The beginning is at West Point.  This United States Military Academy was established in New York in 1802.  There were 445 Civil War generals that graduated from West Point, 294 for the Union and 151 for the Confederacy.  

      When I saw the boxes that John Brown and his group came to pick up, I knew they did not contain Bibles like they claimed!!  This film was not filmed in Santa Fe but in Kansas.  John Brown advocated the use of armed insurrection overthrow the institution of slavery in the United States.  He led small groups of volunteers in Kansas.  He was dissatisfied with the pacifism of the organized abolitionist movement.  In May of 1856, Brown and his supporters killed five supporters of slavery during the Pottawatomie massacre.  In 1959, he led a raid of the federal armory at Harpers Ferry, Virginia and many people were killed.  Afterwards, Brown was tried for treason, found guilty and hanged.  This escalated tensions and the South succeeded the union a year later and the American Civil War began. 3 1/2* (I liked this movie)

110 min, Adventure directed by Michael Curtiz with Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland, Raymond Massey, Ronald Reagan. Alan Hale, William Lundigan, Van Heflin, Gene Reynolds, Henry O’Neill, Guinn ‘Big Boy’ Williams, Alan Baxter, John Litel, Moroni Olsen, David Bruce, Hobart Cavanaugh.

Note:  Imdb 6.3 out of 10, Rotten Tomatoes 83% critic 52% audience, Amazon 4.2* out of 5* with 224 reviews, Letterboxd average 2.8* out of 5*,

Special Note:  This is the seventh of nine movies made by Warner Brothers’ with Olivia de Havilland and Errol Flynn as a romantic couple.  Olivia said that Errol Flynn was a former flame and he behaved badly towards her onset because she was dating James Stewart.  Ronald Reagan got the part of George Custer on the strength of his success playing George Gipp in Knute Rockne All American 1940.  The world premiere of this film was in Santa Fe, New Mexico.  Raymond Massey also starred as John Brown in Seven Angry Men 1955 and he was Abraham Lincoln in four movies or plays.  This story is also the trial and hanging of the abolitionist John Brown.  A year after this film was released, Errol Flynn played George Armstrong Custer in They Died with Their Boots on 1941. 

The Last Resort 2018

     Andy Sweet and Gary Monroe traveled to Miami Beach and took photographs between 1976 and 1986.  They realized that this was a particularly unique community and it would not always be this way.  They began taking pictures of the Jewish retirees living in the area.  The rents were cheap, the climate was warm and there were many things to do.  The hotels had events for the people to attend with food, dancing and just meeting other people like themselves.  Many of the people sat in their lawn chairs on the grass and talked.  Others went out the beach for sun tanning and swimming.

     Andy and Gary snapped pictures of the people as they were.  They wanted everything natural and not with posed images.  They were right about times changing later.  The hotels were deteriorating and people didn’t want to live there anymore.  Many refugees came into the community from the 1980 Mariel boat lift and that brought a lot of crime and drug trafficking.  Cocaine wars and riots.  This situation left the elderly residents isolated, lonely and fearful.  When the hotels were renovated and everything became Art Deco the rents were not affordable anymore.  4* (I really liked this movie)      

        

70 min, Doc directed by Dennis Scholl and Kareem Tabsch with Edna Buchanan, Susan Gladstone, Stan Hughes, Mitchell Kaplan, Gary Monroe, Ellen Sweet Moss, Kelly Reichardt.

Note:  Imdb 7.3 out of 10, Rotten Tomatoes, 91% critic 83% audience, indiewire.com B+ Jude Dry, filmthreat.com 9 out of 10 glasses of fresh-squeezed orange juice Paul Parcellin, Amazon 4* out of 5* with 7 reviews, Letterboxd average 3.3* out of 5*

Special Note:  Filmed in Miami, Florida.  Interviews are with Susan Gladstone, Director of the Jewish Museum of Florida, Kelly Reichardt, she grew up in South Beach and Edna Buchanan, a crime novelist who grew up in Miami Beach where covered crime for Miami newspapers.  Ellen Sweet Moss is the sister of Andy Sweet.      

Little 2019

     The inspiration for this film was the Tom Hanks movie Big.  Marsai Martin wondered how the story would work with a race, gender and age switch?  Big was about a male middle school student wishing to be big and waking up in an adult male body.  This is about a 38-year-old woman becoming little and a middle school student again.  Jordan is the head of her own company but she treats everyone in her personal life and professional life very badly.  I young girl out in front of the building is tired of Jordan being mean and she uses her “magic wand” to make Jordan little.  Jordan does not want to go back to middle school because she remembers how bad it was as a teen!!

     One of the messages of this film is that an adult/boss can be a bully and mean.  This leads to success, a lavish lifestyle and submissive behavior from those working for her?  Jordan treats people badly as an adult and then as a young teen she treats adults and other teens like badly.  She also thinks she can order adults around and drink alcohol if she wants to as a teen?  Jordan doesn’t experience any big consequences for her adult or teen bad behavior?  In the beginning, I wasn’t sure if this would be good but it grows on you as it moves along because of the funny moments.  3 ½* (I liked this movie)  

            

109 min, Comedy directed by Tina Gordon with Regina Hall, Issa Rae, Marsai Martin, Justin Hartley, Tracee Ellis Ross, Tone Bell, Mikey Day, JD McCrary, Tucker Meek, Thalia Tran, Marley Taylor, Eva Carlton, Luke James, Rachel Dratch, Christopher A. Martin.

Note:  Imdb 5.4* out of 10*, Rotten Tomatoes 47% critic 64% audience, Roger Ebert 2 ½* Nell Minow, Common Sense Media Tara McNamara age 13+, 2* out of 5*, 2* positive, 2* role models, 3* violence, 3* sex, 3* language, 4* consumerism, 3* drinking, drugs & smoking, Letterboxd average 2.6* out of 5*, Amazon 4.2* out of 5* with 597 reviews, Metacritic 49 out of 100 with 36 critics (13 positive, 20 mixed, 3 negative) 4.7 out of 10 with 25 user scores (8 positive, 8 mixed, 9 negative).

Special Note:  This is Universal Pictures’ first 1.85:1 production since Pitch Perfect 3 2017.  Production often paused mid-take when the freight train would sound its horn outside the set and the actors would have to restart.  There is a mistake when April makes her final pitch to their client.  Jordan walks in the front door, but her car can be seen through the glass parked in its space behind the meeting room.  Other films with body swapping are Freaky Friday, 13 Going on 30 and The Switch.

People:  Tina Gordon is an American screenwriter, producer and director.  She mad her directorial debut in the 2013 film Peeples and she was also the co-writer.  Regina Hall is an actress and comedian.  She envisioned a career as a journalist but became an actress in her late twenties.  Tracee Ellis Ross is the daughter of actress and recording artist Diana Ross.  She has had lead roles in the television series Girlfriends and Black-ish.      

Columbus 2017

    A Korean-born man is stuck in Columbus, Indiana because his architect father is in a coma.  The man meets a young woman who wants to stay in Columbus with her mother.  She seems to be setting aside her own dreams to help her mother.  She feels her mother needs her help since she is recovering from being an addict. 

     Kogonada said that one of the major influences for this film was filmmaker Yasujiro Oazu and particularly his film Tokyo Story 1953.  This is a very quiet and slow moving movie!!  There are a lot of scenes of interesting buildings in Columbus.  One scene has an old covered bridge framed like a postcard image.  I didn’t know if I could see this film through to the end but it is worthwhile.  3 ½* (I liked this movie)

    

100 min, Drama directed by Kogonada with John Cho, Haley Lu Richardson, Parker Posey, Michelle Forbes, Rory Culkin, Erin Allegretti, Shani Salyers Stiles, Reen Vogel, Rosalyn R. Ross, Lindsey Shope, Jem Cohen, Caitlin Ewald, Jim Dougherty, Joseph Anthony Foronda, Alphaeus Green Jr.

Note:  Imdb 7.2 out of 10, Roger Ebert 3 ½* Sheila O’Malley, Rotten Tomatoes 97% critic 79% audience, The Guardian 4* out of 5* Pewter Bradshaw, Amazon 3.6* out of 5* with 11 reviews, Metacritic 89 out of 100 with 27 critics (26 positive, 1 mixed) 7.3 out of 10 with 85 user scores (64 positive, 11 mixed, 10 negative), Letterboxd average 3.9* out of 5* with 716 reviews.  

Special Note:  Filmed in Columbus, Indiana.  This area of Indiana is known for its unique modern architecture. And it also is known as “The Athens on the Prairie.”  According to Kogonada, Casey believes architecture is “an entrance to a way of seeing.” 

American Chaos 2018

     Six months before the 2016 presidential election, Jim Stern searches for answers to Donald Trump’s widespread support.  This film is a journey into the most controversial presidential campaign in US History.  Jim  traveled through the red states to interview and spend time with Donald Trump supporters.  He wanted to meet people from different backgrounds.  He wanted insights and answers, anything that would explain the billionaire’s surging appeal.  Why did these voters remain untroubled by so many troubling things the candidate had said and done?  This film sheds light on difficult issues confronting this nation.  Jim resolved to not create controversy during his discussions but to hear what these people thought.  A misunderstood cultural divide seemed to flow through democracy.

     Jim Stern’s goal is not to argue or change the ideas of the people he interviews.  He wants to discover why they have made their choices.  It doesn’t matter what the viewer’s choice is, this is about gathering interesting insight into the appeal of Trump.  What does this appeal mean to our country?  This is a calmer, less showy version of Michael Moore’s Fahrenheit 11/9.  Moore’s film asked how did this happen?  3 1/2* (I liked this movie)

90 min, Doc directed by James D. Stern with John Ladd, Julio Marinez, James D. Stern.

Note:  Imdb 5.1 out of 10, Rotten Tomatoes 67% critic 70% audience.

Special Note:  Filmed in Chicago, Illinois.

Ivanhoe 1952

     This film is based on a novel by Walter Scott.  Ivanhoe is a disowned knight but he is planning to join up with Robin Hood.  He is brave of hearted, high minded and valiant.  Currently Robin Hood is living in Forest Sherwood.  The people want King Richard to rule the kingdom instead of his brother evil Prince John.  Some believe King Richard to be dead but Ivanhoe has learned that Richard I is holding him prisoner and there is a high ransom for his release.

     There is a LOT going on in this film!!  There is a jousting tournament, a siege of a castle and a duel near the end.  Rebecca is brought before Prince John and she is found guilty of treason.  Her punishment is death at the stake by fire.  Everyone loyal to King Richard knows and believes that Rebecca is innocent.  Somehow she must be freed!!  The Normans have innumerable arrows but the Saxons have crossbows!!  4 1/2* (I really liked this movie) 

      

106 min, Adventure directed by Richard Thorpe with Robert Taylor, Elizabeth Taylor, Joan Fontaine, George Sanders, Emlyn Williams, Robert Douglas, Finlay Currie, Felix Aylmer, Francis De Wolff, Norman Wooland, Basil Sydney, Harold Warrender, Patrick Holt, Roderick Lovell, Sebastian Cabot.

Note:  Imdb 6.8 out of 10, Rotten Tomatoes 80% critic 75% audience, Amazon 4.6* out of 5* with 229 reviews, Three Movie Buffs 3 ½* out of 4*, Letterboxd average 3.1* out of 5*, decentfilms.com B+.

Special Note:  Filmed at MGM British Studios, Borehamwood, Hertforshire, England, UK; Castel Leone, Lana; Castel Pietra, Vipiteno; Castel Tasso, Vipiteno; Castel Cornedo, Cornedo all’Isarco, Trntino-Alto Adige, Italy.  Robert Taylor was 40 when he played Ivanhoe but the character was in his mid-20’s in the novel.  One of the archers shooting from the walls of Warwick Castle is ‘Mad Jack Churchill’ aka John Churchill.  He is a WWII veteran who was an expert archer and actually carried a sword and longbow into battle.  In Germany of 1940, he notched an arrow onto his longbow and fired at a German soldier.  The German was killed and John is the last British soldier on record to have done so in this manner.  It is accurate that Blondel went around to all the castles singing Richard’s favorite song.  When he heard Richard join in the chorus, he went home and told the Normans that Richard is alive.  This was the highest grossing film for MGM and one of the top four moneymakers of 1952 grossing over $7million, and the second highest–grossing film of 1952.

Cinderella 2015

     Ella is very happy with her mother and father.  She has a pure heart and she is very kind.  Her mother suddenly dies and her father marries a Stepmother.  Drisella and Anastasia are her daughters and they come along with the Stepmother.  Ella’s father goes on a trip and he doesn’t return.  Ella offers her room to Drisella and Anastasia because it is a bigger room and the stepdaughters have been fighting.  The Stepmother decides that Ella can live in the attic and that will be the best arrangement for them all??  All the eligible young women in the Kingdom are invited to a ball and the Prince will choose one to marry.  Ella thinks she is going to the ball but Stepmother orders only three new dresses?  Is Ella going to be able to go to the ball and what will she wear?  Ella doesn’t know how she is going to continue to live in her parents’ house now that she is called Cinderella the servant and she is a servant?

     This film is not based on the Brothers Grimm’s fairy tale “Aschenputtel” of the nineteenth century because of the more violent and disturbing elements.  It is based on Charles Perrault’s 1697 Cinderella.  This version includes the fairy godmother and the pumpkin coach.  Blanchett is a very wicked Stepmother and her daughters are remarkably very low in intelligent and unkind!!  4 ½* (I really liked this movie)   

   

105 min, Drama directed by Kenneth Branagh with Lily James, Cate Blanchett, Richard Madden, Helena Bonham Carter, Nonso Anozie, Stellan Skarsgard, Sophie McShera, Holliday Grainger, Derek Jacobi, Ben Chaplin, Hayley Atwell, Rob Brydon, Jana Perez, Alex Macqueen, Tom Edden.

Note:  Imdb 6.9 out of 10, Roger Ebert 3* Susan Wloszczyna, Rotten Tomatoes 85% critic 78% audience, The Guardian 3* out of 5* Mark Kermode, Pluggedin.com 4.5* out of 5* Adam R. Holz, Common Sense Media Yvonne Condes age 6+ 3* out of 5*, positive 3*, violence & scariness 2*, sex 1*, language 1*, 3* consumerism, 1* drinking, drugs, smoking, Amazon 4.6* out of 58 with 3945 reviews.

Special Note:  Filmed in Greenwich, London; Woodstock, Oxforshire; Iver Heath and Taplow, Buckinghamshire; Pinewood Studios, Iver Heath Buckinghamshire, England, UK.  Originally, Lily James auditioned for the role of Anastasia Tremaine.  A total of ten thousand Swarovski crystals were placed one-by-one on the blue dress and in Lily James’ hair as well.  Two hundred seventy yards of fabric were used for the dress and up to two miles of hem.  There were a total of eight versions made of the blue dress.  They were used depending on what Lily James was doing in the scenes.  One dress was four inches off the ground for her running scene.  Another dragged on the ground slightly for her entrance at the ball.   In the ballroom dance, many of the dress designs are based on the dresses of various Disney Princesses.   Belle from Beauty and the Beast 1991, Tiana from The Princess and the Frog 2009, Aurora from Sleeping Beauty 1959, Snow White from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs 1937, Mulan from Mulan 1998, Ariel from The Little Mermaid 1989.    

Terror by Night 1946

     The Star of Rhodesia diamond is stolen on a London train traveling to Edinburgh.  Lady Margaret owns the diamond and her son is killed during the robbery.  Holmes has taken the precaution of switching the diamonds.  Lady Margaret believes she had the real diamond but actually Sherlock Holmes has switched the real diamond for a fake.  Holmes must discover which of the passengers on the train is responsible?  Dr. Watson and Inspector Lestrade are on hand to help Holmes with his investigation.  There is a possibility that Colonel Sebastian Moran is involved in the crime?  He is a long-time henchman for Moriarty, a foe of Holmes.

     There is a LOT going on in this film and there are many suspects.  This is almost like a Hercule Poirot film with the need of assistance from the “little gray cells!!”  It is interesting to try to figure out who is not involved and separate them from the real suspects.  It is also possible that Dr. Watson is not helping very much??  3 ½* (I liked this movie)  

      

60 min, Crime directed by Roy William Neill with Basil Rathbone, Nigel Bruce, Alan Mowbray, Dennis Hoey, Renee Godfrey, Frederick Worlock, Mary Forbes, Skelton Knaggs, Billy Bevan, Geoffrey Steele.

Note:  Imdb 6.9 out of 10, Rotten Tomatoes 75% critic 61% audience, Amazon 6.9* out of 5* with 180 reviews, Letterboxd average 3.1* out of 5*, bloodymurder.wordpress.com 3* out of 5*, dvdjournal.com 2* Mark Bourne, the spinningimage.co.uk 6* out of 10* Graeme Clark.

Special Note:  Filmed in Universal Studios, 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California.  In order to show the Edinburgh Express preparing for departure, short clips from the classic British film Rome Express 1932 are used.  Veteran actor C. Aubrey Smith appears in a non--speaking role as an elderly man smoking a pipe on the train platform 49 minutes into the film.  A stolen teapot is shown and it appears to have come from the Beacon Hotel.  This is the thirteenth of fourteen films based on Arthur Conan Doyle’s fictional consulting detective Sherlock Holmes with Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce as Doctor Watson.  The original copyright was not renewed and this title has fallen into public domain.  There are seriously inferior copies offered by some sellers.    

Columbus 2017

     Jin is a Korean born man and he finds himself stuck in Columbus Indiana.  His elderly architect father is a Korean scholar.  He is in a coma and Jin doesn’t know what will the be the outcome?  His father was in Columbus to give a talk on modernist architecture.  Jin meets Casey, she lives in Columbus and she likes living there.  Casey’s mother is a recovering addict and Casey wants to help her mother through this rough patch.  Jin wonders why Casey isn’t pursuing her own dreams?  Casey is interested in architecture and she begins to point out the buildings she likes to Jin.  He believes himself to be prickly, wounded and now a uncertain person because of his father's condition.

    I have to start right off with the fact that this is an extremely slow paced movie!!  There are many pauses in the dialog?  Maybe viewers need time to think and process information?  There is also a minimalism in the music and cinematography with a LOT of attention to detail.  If you can keep going with this film it is worth it.  3 1/2* (I liked this movie)  

104 min Drama directed by Kogonada with John Cho, Haley Lu Richardson, Parker Posey, Michelle Forbes, Rory Culkin, Erin Allegretti, Shani Salyers Stiles, Reen Vogel, Rosalyn R. Ross, Lindsey Shope, Jem Cohen, Caitlin Ewald, Jim Dougherty, Joseph Anthony Foronda, Alphaeus Green Jr.

Note:  Imdb 7.2 out of 10, Roger Ebert 3 ½* Sheila O’Malley, Rotten Tomatoes 97% critic 79% audience, The Guardian 4* out of 5* Peter Bradshaw, Amazon 3.9* out of 5* with 77 reviews, Letterboxd average 3.9* out of 5* with 718 reviews, Metacritic 89 out of 100 with 27 critics (26 positive, 1 mixed), 7.3 out of 10 user score with 85 reviews (64 positive, 11 mixed, 10 negative).

Special Note:  Columbus is celebrated for its many significant modernist buildings.  Filming was done entirely in Columbus and over 18 days.     

Transit 2018

     Georg is attempting to escape Nazi-occupied Paris France and he is posing as the author Weidel who has died.  Georg is a German refugee and he flees to Marseille.  He has transit papers and he will be able to get a travel visa to Mexico.  He gets to his hotel and he learns the man he was supposed to meet has also died.  He falls in love with the author’s wife Marie.  She has been with Richard, he is a doctor also preparing leave the country.  Georg meets a Driss, he is a young boy and his mother is deaf and mute.  There are many refugees in Marseille seeking visas to other countries.   

     This film is a WWII allegory set in modern times.  The setting is now the 21^st century.  Some elements of the plot are left vague, especially the identity of the occupying force.  The plight of displaced people is shown to be universal and not restricted to a set place or time period.  There are a LOT of times where I was at sea myself about what was going on??  I needed a script to follow the characters and the situations??  Possibly, reading one or more of the books first would add clarity?  3 ½* (I liked this movie)      

   

101 min Drama directed by Christian Petzold with Franz Rogowski, Paula Beer, Godehard Giese, Lilien Batman, Maryam Zaree, Barbara Auer, Matthais Brandt, Sebastian Hulk, Emilie de Preissac, Antoine Oppenheim, Louison Tresallet, Justus von Dohnanyi, Alex Brendemuhl, Trystan Putter, Ronald Kukulies.

Note:  Imdb 7 out of 10, Rotten Tomatoes 94% critic 64% audience, Roger Ebert 4* Brian Talerico, Indie Wire Grade B David Ehrlich, The Guardian 4* out of 5* Peter Bradshaw, Amazon 3.2* out of 5* with 20 reviews.  

Special Note:  The title describes this film since the word transit means journey.  You are on your way to somewhere.  The languages are German, French and French Sign Language.  Filmed in Marseille, Bouches-du-Rhone, France.  This film is the last chapter of a trilogy written by the director Christian Petzold.  The title of the series is Love in Times of Oppressive Systems.  The other titles are Barbara 2012 and Phoenix 2014.  Petzold collaborated with Harun Farocki and their works are based on novels from the 40’s by Anna Seghers.  Most of the cars, military uniforms and other items couldn’t physically exist unless the Nazis had been defeated.  This makes the film a paradox and also sci-fi.    

All is True 2018

     This film is about the final days in the life of renowned playwright William Shakespeare.  After the globe Theatre burns down in 1613 during a performance of Shakespeare’s play Henry VII, Shakespeare returns home to Stratford with his wife Anne Hathaway.  He vows not to write a play again. 

     This film can be difficult to follow if you don’t know the history of Shakespeare.  There are inside jokes that may not mean anything?  Shakespeare is belatedly mourning his son who died 17 years prior at a young age.  Scandals envelope his daughters and they feel they are a disappointment because they are female.  They are desperate to give their father a male heir.  Shakespeare’s scripts were welcomed in the big city but the countryside was a Puritan stronghold.  The preferred color of clothing in the country was black and no colors would be accepted.  This type of film is really not my cup of tea??  2 ½* (This movie is so-so)

101 min, Bio directed by Kenneth Branagh with Kenneth Branagh, Judi Dench, Ian McKellen, Nonso Anozie, Lolita Chakrabarti, Darryl Clark, Jack Colgrave Hirst, Doug Colling, John Dageleish, Eleanor de Rohan, Clara Duczmal, Phil Dunster, Freya Durkan, Sam Ellis, Sean Foley.

Note:  Imdb 6.1 out of 10, Roger Ebert 3* Odie Henderson, Rotten Tomatoes 71% critic 73% audience, RollingStone Peter Travers 3 ½* out of 5*, The Washington Post 3* out of 4* Ann Hornaday, Amazon 3.6* out of 5* with 48 reviews, The Guardian Peter Bradshaw 4* out of 5*, Common Sense Media Tara McNamara 13+ 2* out of 5*, 2* positive, 1* role model 2* violence, 2* sex, 3* language, 1* drinking, drugs, smoking.

Special Note:  Filmed in Dorney Court, Dorney, Buckinghamshire, England, UK.  The original English title of this movie All Is True taken from the Shakespeare play Henry VII for which it was an early alternative title.  Kenneth Branagh, Judi Dench, Anne Hathaway and Michael Rouse appeared in Murder on the Orient Express 2017.  The cinematography for the interior scenes were done using only candlelight.  Shakespeare addresses the Earl of Southhampton as “Your Grace”.  Addressing an Earl, the correct form is “My Lord”.  Only a Duke is addressed as Your Grace.

Cruel Intentions 1999

     Kathryn Merteuil and Sebastian Valmont are manipulative step- siblings.  They game is to make sure they get what they want when they want it.  Sebastian has made it his goal to get to know Annette.  She is the daughter of the new headmaster at their school.  Kathryn and Sebastian have a bet on the outcome.  If Sebastian can begin to date Annette, he gets Kathryn as his girlfriend.  If Kathryn wins, she will get Sebastian’s vintage 1959 Jaguar Roadster. 

     This film is a modern day Dangerous Liaisons based on the 1782 novel by Choderlos De Laclos.  Kathryn and Sebastian are very devious and they are both good liars.  They both also have a deep streak of wickedness.  Kathryn is sure she is going to win their bet?  On the other hand, Sebastian is just as sure he will win the bet?  Of course, everyone is young wealthy and on top of their game.  3 ½*(I liked this movie)

97 min, Drama directed by Roger Kumble with Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ryan Phillippe, Reese Witherspoon, Selma Blair, Louise Fletcher, Joshua Jackson, Eric Mabius, Sean Patrick Thomas, Swoosie Kurtz, Christine Baranski, Alaina Reed-Hall, Deborah Offner, Tara Reid, Herta Ware, Hiep Thi Le.

Note:  Imdb 6.8 out of 10, Roger Ebert 3*, 54% critic 81% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Amazon 4.2* with 511 reviews, Metacritic 56 out of 100 with 24 critics (12 positive, 8 mixed, 4 negative) 8.2 out of 10 with 296 user scores (235 positive, 25 mixed 36 negative) 

Special Note:  Filmed in Los Angeles, Pasadena, Palos Verdes Peninsula, Brentwood, Hollywood Hills, Lake Sherwood, Thousand Oaks, California; New York City, Long Island, Manhattan, New York; Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

8 Days: To the Moon and Back 2019

     Eight days, three hours, 18 minutes, 35 seconds.  That is the total duration of the most important and celebrated space mission ever flown.  Apollo 11 and when man first stepped on the surface of the moon.  Eight days that created some of the most iconic images in human history.  It also changed the way we think about our place in the universe.  This film marks the 50^th anniversary of Apollo 11.  It seems difficult to believe that it has been 50 years?  There are hours of declassified cockpit audio recorded by the astronauts, Commander Neil A. Armstrong, Command Module Pilot Collins and Lunar Module Pilot Edwin”Buzz” E. Aldrin Jr.

     Everything seems more than real after you view this film!!  You can see the footprint of the astronaut’s boot in the loose surface of the moon as he steps out of the lunar module.  The landing in the Sea of Tranquility was July 20, 1969.  There is tension in the faces of the men as they complete the lunar landing and the other tasks.  One tiny mistake or one tiny failure in any of the equipment could have doomed this mission!!  The men in the control center on Earth are just as tense as the astronauts.  After eight days in space, the splashdown in the Pacific Ocean was July 24, 1969.  This film makes this event seem as new as yesterday. 5* (I really liked this movie)  

90 min, Doc directed by Anthony Philipson and written by Philip Ralph with Patrick Kennedy, Jack Tarlton, Rufus Wright.

Imdb 8* out of 10*, Amazon 5* with 5 reviews, Metacritic 88 out of 100 with 34 critics (33 positive, 1 negative) 8.3 out of 10 user score 8.3 (60 positive, 5 mixed, 3 negative), Letterboxd average 3.5* out of 5*, Rotten Tomatoes 100% critic. 

Special Note:  This is BBC2 production and originally shown on 10 July 2019.

The Way West 1967

     This film is based on a novel by A. B. Guthrie, Jr.  The setting of this film is the mid nineteenth century.  Senator William J. Tadlock leads a group of settlers overland to start a new settlement in the Western US.  Their destination is the Oregon Territory.  Tadlock is a highly principled and demanding taskmaster.  He is as hard on himself as he is on the wagon train members.  He clashes with Lije Evans, one of the new settlers.  Lije doesn’t appreciate Tadlock’s ways.  Along the way, families face death and heartbreak plus a sampling of frontier justice.  One of the travelers accidentally kills a young Indian boy.

      I really wonder if some of the women would be wearing false eyelashes and heavy pink lip-gloss in this time period?  The wagon train and the people speed up to cross the river first on their journey.  I don’t think it would be wise to stress the people and the animals so severely in the beginning of this long trip?  When the party reaches the river, the settlers are drinking and very thirsty.  The horses and other livestock are not drinking at all?  When the Irishman is lowered into the Grand Canyon as the first man ever, a gravel road is clearly seen at the bottom?  It just seems like a LOT of aspects of this film are probably not true?  3* (This movie is OK)

122 min, Adventure directed by Andrew V. McLaglen with Kirk Douglas, Robert Mitchum, Richard Widmark, Lola Albright, Jack Elam, Stubby Kaye, Michael McGreevey, Harry Carey Jr., Connie Sawyer, Michael Witney, William Lundigan, Elisabeth Fraser, John Mitchum, Patric Knowles, Hal Lynch. 

Note:  Imdb 6.2 out of 10, Roger Ebert 2 ½*, Rotten Tomatoes 39% critic, Metacritic 42 out of 100 with 5 reviews (1 positive, 2 mixed, 2 negative), Amazon 3.7* out of 5 stars with 82 reviews, Letterboxd average 3* out of 5*.

Special Note:  Filmed in Tucson, Yuma, Arizona; Crooked River Gorge, Mount Bachelor, Bend, Eugene, Willamette Valley, Oregon.  This is the first film for Sally Field in the role of Mercy McBee.  Robert Mitchum and Richard Widmark reportedly did not get along with Kirk Douglas.  Kirk had a tendency to usurp control of the project from Director McLaglen.  Lola Albright in the role of Rebecca Evans nearly drowned during the river-crossing scene.  Her wagon was tipped over and she was trapped underwater.  The contents of the wagon fell on her and pinned her down.  She was in a hospital overnight, a stunt woman did the re-film scene and Rebecca was deeply traumatized by the near death experience.  Originally, Burt Lancaster, James Stewart and Gary Cooper were to star.  There is a mistake in the distance the wagon train covered on their journey.  Since this is fictional, it doesn’t really matter that they could not cover more than 20 miles a day.