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High Sierra, a review by Antares

High Sierra





Year: 1941
Film Studio: Warner Bros. Pictures, First National Pictures
Genre: Crime, Classic, Drama
Length: 100 Min.

Director
Raoul Walsh (1887)

Writing
John Huston (1906)...Screenplay
W. R. Burnett (1899)...Screenplay
W. R. Burnett (1899)...Novel

Producer
Mark Hellinger (1903)
Hal B. Wallis (1899)

Cinematographer
Tony Gaudio (1883)

Music
Adolph Deutsch (1897)...Composer

Stars
Ida Lupino (1914) as Marie
Humphrey Bogart (1899) as Roy Earle
Alan Curtis (1909) as 'Babe'
Arthur Kennedy (1914) as 'Red'
Joan Leslie (1925) as Velma
Henry Hull (1890) as 'Doc' Banton
Henry Travers (1874) as Pa
Jerome Cowan (1897) as Healy

ReviewHigh SierraHigh Sierra, but also The Maltese Falcon that same year, and of course Casablanca (both film roles rejected by Raft) in 1942.

       In High Sierra Earle. Instead of only portraying Earle as an unrepentant and incorrigible criminal, he allows Bogart to add a little compassion to his ruthless character. It is this bit of humanity that will bring an end to his lawbreaking life and serve up a heaping helping of the doctrine of the day that . The anti-hero would become more popular in the counter-culture of the sixties and most of the credit for this twist in storytelling would be lauded upon the directors and actors of that time, even though this was the first film to feature this departure from the norm.

       High SierraRatings Criterion4 Stars - Historically important film, considered a classic.

(From High Sierra (1941) on January 17th, 2010)

Jonah Hex, a review by RossRoy

WHAT THEY SAY

OUT OF THE PAGES OF THE LEGENDARY COMICS AND GRAPHIC NOVELS STEPS JONAH HEX (Josh Brolin), a scarred drifter and bounty hunter of last resort who has survived death and can track anyone...and anything. Jonah's violent history is steeped in myth and legend and has left him with one foot in the natural world and one on the "other side." His one human connection is with Lilah (Megan Fox), where life in a brothel has left her with scars of her own. But Jonah's past catches up with him when the U.S. military makes him an offer he can't refuse: to wipe out the warrants on his head, he must hunt and stop dangerous terrorist Quentin Turnbull (John Malkovich). But Turnbull, now gathering an army and preparing to unleash Hell, is also Jonah's oldest enemy and will stop at nothing until Jonah is dead.

MY THOUGHTS

What to say? Guess you could say it's your run-of-the-mill, drab, soulless revenge story. Nothing stands out in this. A few pretty big explosions, some interesting weapon design. That's about it. Boring story. Bland acting. Uninspired direction. Only redeeming quality, and that's not much, Megan Fox manages to not look like a tramp all the time. Guess that's something, considering she plays a whore.

RATING

(From RossRoy's Random Viewings on December 5th, 2010)

"Due South" marathon, a review by addicted2dvd

Diefenbaker's Day Off
Fraser smells a rat when his neighbor Charlie suffers from one too many "accidents." Promising Charlie's daughter Lucy that he'll investigate her dad's streak of bad luck, Fraser discovers that Charlie is the unwilling fall guy for an insurance scam. In his efforts to help Charlie out, Fraser runs afoul of investigative reporter Mackenzie King, who thinks that the displaced Mountie is a part of the scam. Meanwhile, Fraser's still-unlicensed pet wolf Diefenbaker runs afoul of the local dog catcher.

My Thoughts:
Another really fun episode. I got a kick out of the wolf's adventures every time Fraser leaves him alone. And I also really liked this investigative reporter. The very end of this episode suggests she may be back in more episodes... I hope she is.

My Rating:

(From "Due South" marathon on June 23rd, 2009)