Members
Stats
Users OnlineUsers: 0
Guests: 13 Total: 13 |
How Green Was My Valley, a review by AntaresHow Green Was My Valley Year: 1941 Film Studio: Twentieth Century-Fox Genre: Drama, Classic Length: 118 Min. Director John Ford (1894) Writing Philip Dunne (1908)...Screenwriter Richard Llewellyn (1906)...Original Material By Producer Darryl F. Zanuck (1902) Cinematographer Arthur C. Miller (1895) Music Alfred Newman (1901)...Composer Stars Walter Pidgeon (1897) as Mr. Gruffydd Maureen O'Hara (1920) as Angharad Anna Lee (1913) as Bronwyn Donald Crisp (1882) as Mr. Morgan Roddy McDowall (1928) as Huw John Loder (1898) as Ianto Sara Allgood (1879) as Mrs. Morgan Barry Fitzgerald (1888) as Cyfartha ReviewThe Grapes of WrathHow Green Was My Valley. When making films that told of the plights and struggles of the common man, Ford would ascend above his usual penchant for corny storytelling and create works of divine inspiration. Huw Morgan (Narrator) In How Green Was My ValleyCitizen Kane for the coveted statuette. Was it the best film of the year? Hell no, but it is an excellent portrayal of the times and society's class tier prejudices in which the story takes place. Review Criterion4 Stars - Historically important film, considered a classic. (From How Green Was My Valley (1941) on May 18th, 2010) Glory, a review by AntaresGlory (1989) 4/5 - I hadn't seen this film for close to fifteen years, but I remember being surprised at how good a war drama it was. I've never been much of an Edward Zwick fan, but this time, he got it pretty much right. The battle scenes have a realism that shocks the viewer and which is pretty much transparent in other Civil War films such as Gettysburg and Gods and Generals. The gore and horror which is so invisible in those two films hurts the credibilty of the narrative. Not so with Glory. From the moment we witness the horrors of the cornfield at Antietam, a true sense of believabilty is created. As a way to placate the Northern abolitionists, the 54th Massachusetts regiment was comprised of ex-slaves and free blacks and led by white abolitionist officers. But the northern politicians never conceived of letting them go into battle, as they were afraid of alienating the white soldiers of their own ranks, who weren't fighting for emancipation. But after the costly battles of Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville and Gettysburg, and coinciding with the New York draft riots of July 1863, the 54th fought their baptism of fire at Fort Wagner, just outside of Charleston harbor. In their desperate attack and repulsion from the breastworks of the fortress, the seeds of a new fighting force would be sown in the sandy soil of South Carolina. With the influx of new recruits from this untapped segment of the population, it was a foregone conclusion that the war would soon swing in favor of the Union. If I could change one thing in this film, it would be to have Denzel Washington and Andre Braugher switch roles. I'm used to seeing Washington play these angry young black man roles, it would have been interesting to see what Braugher would have done with the role. As good as Washington was in this film, I always felt that Braugher's performance was better. (From Antares' Short Summations on March 11th, 2014) My PILOT Marathon, a review by RichMEN BEHAVING BADLY - SERIES ONE - INTRUDERS Gary wants to leave his girlfriend, Dorothy, but she decides to leave him first. Gary owns a flat and needs a lodger to help pay the mortgage. Unfortunately, he's got Dermot as a lodger and he's no help at all. A young woman named Deborah moves into the flat upstairs and Dermot immediately decides he's in love with her. The feeling isn't mutual though! Winning formula of this popular series starts here, despite the total mis-casting of Harry Enfield as Dermot. Thank god they sorted this for series 2 and ongoing. This show always makes me laugh and is a personal favourite, a lot of the ridiculous situations, especially after beer, I have found myself in many times. Not sure how the show would be met in Europe, does the humour translate well? I am totally biased on this show, but I would highly recommend it for those great belly laugh' moments every episode contains. (From My PILOT Marathon on June 3rd, 2008) |