Killing Zoe is a 1993 movie directed by Roger Avary.
WHAT HAPPENS?
An American safecracker and a French junkie attempt to pull off a bank heist.
ONE LINE REVIEW
Killing Zoe is a quintessential, Tarantino-inspired 90’s gangster film.
THE ACTORS
Eric Stoltz leads an eclectic cast as American safecracker Zed. Stoltz inhabits the character with a laconic cool and basic humanity – a trait lacking in the band of criminals he joins with. Julie Delpy’s Zoe is used sparingly but her inspired performances critically bookend the story – she’s clearly Avary’s muse yet overcomes a narrowly defined role. Jean-Hugues Anglade rounds out the cast as the volatile, drug-addicted Eric – an outlandish role that he exuberantly fills.
Switchblade Sisters is a 1975 movie directed by Jack Hill.
WHAT HAPPENS?
An inner city street gang faces pressures from the outside and inner turmoil.
ONE LINE REVIEW
Switchblade Sisters is a fun, stylish piece of essential 70’s exploitation.
THE ACTORS
Robbie Lee and Joanne Nail portray the antagonistic leads Lace and Maggie. Lee takes on a Marlon Brando-esque The Wild One vibe, albeit with a shrill, accusatory Brooklyn accent. Her Lace is the most interesting character and her tortured relationship with Asher Brauner’s leather-clad Dominic presents some opportunities for real acting. Nail is more style – her Maggie is the confident outcast who eventually takes over the gang. She’s given some fun action scenes to convince the audience of her grit – which produce mixed results.
Heart Beat tells the story of the relationship between Jack Kerouac, Neal Cassady and Carolyn Cassady. Nick Nolte plays the iconic Beat Generation muse, while John Heard portrays Kerouac and Sissy Spacek is Carolyn. While the story attempts to capture the intimacy of a complicated relationship, the movie does a disservice to the vibrancy and pulsing energy of Cassady found in Kerouac’s writing.
THE BEST – Jazz and Cars
Kerouac’s sprawling On the Road is considered an unfilmable novel, at least given its non-linear path and deep spiritual and metaphysical yearnings. However, in a pure visual sense – Kerouac’s book can be boiled down to jazz and cars. The characters furiously race across the country in stolen vehicles and channel their co-opted spirits in dope-steeped jazz clubs.
At least compared to the pale 2012 movie version of On the Road, Byrum manages to remember these basic tenants. The cars look fantastic and while the energy suffers, at least we see Cassady and Kerouac in clubs idolizing their heroes.
A gambler is set up by crooked cops and forced to survive a jail term. When he is released, he gains vengeance.
ONE LINE REVIEW
Framed is a brutal, vicious and essential 70s revenge flick.
THE ACTORS
Joe Don Baker is a commanding and physical lead. His Ron Lewis is an inherently likable character – he’s tough yet affable, charming and occasionally cheesy. He pulls off the difficult trick of appearing both natural and incredibly dangerous.
Gallipoli tells the story of two Australian sprinters who find themselves in the deadly trenches of World War I. Mark Lee is the wide-eyed, idealistic Archy – whose sense of patriotism leads him to join the war effort. Gibson plays the scheming, charismatic Frank – who initially resists becoming a soldier. Their relationship leading up to the climatic battle scene forms the majority of the movie. Weir reveals a youthful innocence and brotherhood between the two – along with sexually suggestive tones.
THE BEST – Races
Weir expertly frames his movie around Lee’s Archy training for a hundred yard dash. Bill Kerr’s Jack is excellent as Archy’s demanding trainer – he strives to shave fractions of seconds off Archy’s time. This detail returns as Archy has to motivate himself to enter the battlefield. Meanwhile, Gibson’s Frank serves as a “runner” during chaotic trench warfare. Every second counts as Frank desperately relays vital information to the commanding officers. It’s a tense, well-crafted scene.
THE WORST – Doppelgängers
It’s completely petty but Jack McBrayer is the spitting image of Mark Lee. While Lee’s Archy is endearing and captures the youthful innocence of a soldier about to be slaughtered by a deadly war, sometimes I could only see Kenneth the page.
FOX FORCE FIVE RATING – 4/5
Gallipoli is a patient, thoughtful war movie that focuses on the humanity behind soldiers. In a sense, we hardly think of either Lee or Gibson as soldiers – which adds a potency to the climactic final scenes.
The Bird With the Crystal Plumage is a 1970 movie directed by Dario Argento.
WHAT HAPPENS?
An American witnesses a murder in Rome before becoming a target of the killer.
ONE LINE REVIEW
The Bird With the Crystal Plumage is a stylish Giallo thriller that features fun acting and quirky characters.
THE ACTORS
Tony Musante plays Sam, an American novelist who performs an amateur investigation into a series of murders. Despite threats on his life – along with his girlfriend – Musante’s character remains affable and obsessed with solving the mystery, exhibiting an odd calm throughout.
Suzy Kendall’s Julia is excellent as Sam’s girlfriend – who is pulled deeper into danger as the mystery evolves. In many respects, we view terror through Kendall’s expressive eyes – as Musante’s character leads the killer to Suzy. Perhaps the movie’s best – and most tense – scene occurs as Kendall’s Suzy is trapped in her apartment as the killer tries to enter.
The Gambler is a 1974 movie directed by Karel Reisz.
WHAT HAPPENS?
A literature professor chases the thrill and destruction of his devastating gambling addiction.
ONE LINE REVIEW
The Gambler is a honest and often difficult look at the impulsive nature of a gambler.
THE ACTORS
James Caan is compelling as Axel Freed, a professor who constantly seeks the “juice” of betting. It’s a unique role for Caan – as he balances his character’s wealthy upbringing and intellectual background with an impulse for seedy action. Caan’s natural fire emerges in several scenes but is tempered during moments with Jacqueline Brookes’ Naomi. Caan appears both enabled and wounded – a victim of both his grandfather’s success and his warped addiction.
Cemetery Without Crosses is a 1969 movie directed by Robert Hossein.
WHAT HAPPENS?
A widow lures a gunfighter into a kidnapping plot in order to gain revenge on a powerful family.
ONE LINE REVIEW
CemetaryWithout Crosses is an exceptionally unique, moody and somber Euro Western.
THE ACTORS
Michele Mercier and Robert Hossein are atypical leads for the genre but deliver brilliant understated performances. Mercier plays Maria, a widow seeking revenge against a powerful family responsible for her husband’s murder. Mercier creates a haunting presence throughout the movie – her eyes and pained but bold expressions convey both the determination and emptiness of her situation. As the movie progresses, she gains a sense of quiet power as her vengeance is delivered through Hossein’s Manuel.
Hossein is another intriguing choice for the genre. Lacking either the typical rugged or feminine traits of many Euro Western leading men, he offers an endearing and perpetually anguished persona. He’s not a physical presence There is something broken or unreachable in Manuel – accented by his slipping on a glove before a shootout. It’s as if Hossein’s character has to change into his role of a gunfighter – something he appears consciously removed from.
Contempt a.k.a. Le Mepris is a 1963 movie directed by Jean-Luc Godard.
WHAT HAPPENS?
The marriage between a screenwriter and his wife falls apart during a trip to Italy.
ONE LINE REVIEW
Contempt is a stylish, lush, honest but bleak portrayal of damaged relationships.
THE ACTORS
Michel Piccoli and Brigitte Bardot play Paul and Camille, a young couple whose relationship craters during the production of an Odysseus movie. Piccoli portrays Paul in a sort of suspended state: he takes on a writing job in lush Capri solely for financial gain, which stifles his creativity – and he learns his wife doesn’t love him anymore. Piccoli conveys a continual dread and depression about his life – which is brilliantly contrasted by the immaculate beauty surrounding him.
Bardot assumes the role of Camille, who after meeting Jack Palance’s churlish Jeremy – the producer of the movie – senses the downfall of her own relationship. Bardot’s character is interesting given her rapid emotional fluctuations – she expertly conveys a heavy sadness throughout the movie. She assumes a female role familiar in many Godard works, yet she maintains an appealing grace and power.
Palance and German director Fritz Lang round out the cast. Palance is terrific playing Jeremy – a producer who despises the artistic nature of filmmaking. He is fixated only on the erotic appeal of art, which translates to his continued pursuit of Bardot’s Camille. Lang plays himself – only here he is the director resigned to the commercial limits placed on his art. His dialogue – which he patiently delivers – serves to endorse the truths of the auteur, rather than its system of delivery.
Money Movers is a 1978 movie directed by Bruce Beresford.
WHAT HAPPENS?
An armored car company is repeatedly robbed – often by those who work as security.
ONE LINE REVIEW
Money Movers is a lean, well-paced, authentic and funny Australian crime movie.
THE ACTORS
Terence Donovan stars as Eric Jackson, a security supervisor who masterminds an armored car robbery. Donovan is interesting as his character adopts a calming personality before turning into a ruthless robber. He contrasts well with Tony Bonner’s Leo, a new hire whose inexperience and love of poetry makes him a target. The cast is rounded out by the impulsive Bryan Brown, who portrays Eric’s brother Brian and Ed Devereaux’s Dick Martin, a former detective who foils the robbery.
THE DIRECTOR
Bruce Beresford creates a tight, well-paced crime narrative that gets all the little details right while adding some lighter moments. Throughout the movie, the actors getting robbed convey actual surprise, while the fighting and shootout scenes are sloppy and chaotic – echoing real life. The sequences where Eric fights off a group of thugs with his hands tied are both creative and stupidly funny.
