The Searchers / In A Lonely Place / Out of the Past

Dir: Jacques Torner
Starring: Robert Mitchum, Kirk Douglas
Comment: Great film noir with an amazing cast. When Robert Mitchum's on form, he really steals the show. The romance angle was a bit weak, but the convoluted plot makes up for it.
Rating: Good

Dir: John Ford
Starring: John Wayne
Comment: You've got to love a good western. Cowboys, Indians... pillaging. And director John Ford is pulling out all the stops here as The Searchers clearly influenced a lot of later filmmakers.
Rating: Top Work

Dir: Nicholas Ray
Starring: Humph
Comment: Another solid bit of noir from Nicholas Ray, who's a surprisingly versatile director. A lot of tension is built up not only in terms of the murder but also the romance with the blonde, and it's the interconnection between these two plot lines that makes Lonely Place so good.
Rating: Top Work

Spring / Upstream Color / Ask Me Anything

Director: Justin Benson, Aaron Moorehead
Starring: Justin Taylor Pucci
Comment: Like (but much better than) Before Sunrise, but with scary scientific monsters. Yeah, you read it right.
Rating: Good

Director: Shane Caruth
Starring: Shane Caruth
Comment: From the Primer guy. Maybe NB's head wasn't fully engaged with this film, but I didn't really figure it out until afterward. Intentionally obscure, but quite well done.
Rating: Good

Director: Alison Burnett
Starring: Who cares
Comment: Really bad. I'd head good things about it being underrated... It's got an awful cliche of a script and it's just not enjoyable.
Rating: Bad

The Descendants

Dir: Alexandar "Bring the" Payne
Starring: George Clooney

Like The Way Way Back, The Descendants is written by Community regular and all-round baldhead, Jim Rash, along with direct Payne and co-creator Nat Faxon. Considering their comedy pedigree, The Descendants is actually a very touching and sincere film about a man who is forced to reassess his life when his wife is in a tragic accident.

But what really is it about? It's about finding peace despite tragedy. And it's about dealing with betrayal and being honest. Also, it's about Hawaii. This is probably the first flick NB has seen that shows so much of that stunning group of islands... why aren't more films produced there?

Well directed, acted and scripted, I'd recommend The Descendants unreservedly.

Rating: Top Wok

La Cabina (The Phone Box)

Dir: Antonio Mercero
Starring: Jose Luiz Lopez Vazquez Gonzalez Garcia del Bosque

A first for a Narry Borman review, I'm actually going to show you where you can watch this online... A little known website called "Your Tube," or something. Here's the link.

Contrary to what NB first thought, Spanish TV shorts are not a pair of bermudas with LCD screens showing 24-hour bullfighting. Rather, it is a style of filmage popular in the 60s in the 70s wherein the filmmakers were limited to 40 minute time restrictions.

If La Cabina by Antonio Mercero is anything to go by, it's a fascinating genre. Within an approx. 35 minute time span, he works in comedy, social commentary, horror and scifi. Incredible!

This heady mix of styles is reminiscent of The Prisoner and the psychological films of Frankenheimer, etc., but with a very strong and delectable Spanish flavor (think jamon + chorizo + paella and you're on the right track).

In terms of allegory, La Cabina works on multiple levels, and with the modern-day reliance on smart phones and other communications technology, the meaning of this film is not hard to miss.

I've given you the link, I've told you it's 'muy bueno'... what are you still here for?

Rating: Genial!

Mirage / Maltese Falcon / Cape Fear / Children of Men

Dir: Various
Starring: People

Narry Borman has been lazy... he's been watching films and eating plenty of nachos, but he hasn't been writing about them. How terrible, as the French would say.

So, here we have four reviews in one:

Interesting, but really flawed. Really clunky performance from Peck, too. 

Classic film noir. Doesn't hold a candle at both ends to The Big Sleep, though.

Hmm... a bit weird. Not sure. Mitchum's pretty scary.

Down-to-earth sci-fi? Only in England... best scene: pushing a Peugeot down a hill. Good film.

Rating: Great

The Way, Way Back

This John Hughes-ish poster is pretty apt

Dir: Fat Noxon, Jim's Rash
Starring: Steve Carousel, Sam Rockwell

Written and directed by Community man Jim Rash, and starring a whole heap of familiar but underrated figures, The Way Way Back was a really pleasantly goodly film that NB enjoyed muchly.

It's hard to balance a story of angsty teenager with comedy stylings that appeal to older people, but by gawd they've done it. Sam Rockwell brings most of the comedy with his rat-a-tat delivery of one liners, although there's a kind of Mike Leigh-esque humour to the whole thing as everyone's lives fall apart while the angsty teenager builds his life in secret.

There's something unconventional about The Way Way Back... NB found himself expecting the nerdy teen to have some kind of hidden talent, to show some kind of incredible passion for something that he'd kept hidden... but the fact is that he is just a normal chap, nothing special about him. That was pretty refreshing. No incredible revelations. No secret nun-chuk skills. Just a dude growing up.

Well, go find out for yourself. Recommended!

Rating: Top Work

The Big Sleep

Dir: Howard Hawks
Starring: Bogart & Bacall

It's crazy how good this film is. Everything just comes together perfectly - the world weary face of Bogart, the straight-talkin' attitude of Bacall, the way-too-complicated story from Chandler, the razor-sharp screenplay from Faulkner... every element of The Big Sleep is spot on.

Narry B, of course, was on the scene in LA in the 1930's and knew Philip Marlowe in person, so he can verify that Bogart plays the hard-boiled shamus with great authenticity.

NB has very little else to say. Go watch it and enjoy it.

Rating: Genius