The Grouchy Editor

Thanks to James Bond, secret agents dominated Hollywood in the mid-1960s.  Sean Connery was hard to top, so movies and TV decided to spoof 007, rather than compete with him.  Television had Get Smart, and the movies came up with James Coburn in the Flint series and Dean Martin as Matt Helm.  The Silencers was the first in a series of Helm adventures, and it is as ridiculous, sexist, and outdated as you might expect.  And yet, these over-the-top satires had more wit than the moronic Austin Powers films, in my humble opinion.  Watch Martin and Stella Stevens for free by clicking here.

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“Exceptional story.”  “Brought to life with astonishing skill.”  “Breathtakingly filmed.”  “One of the finest historical dramas ever made.”  Those aren’t my words of praise – I’ve never seen the movie.  The accolades come from Leonard Maltin’s Movie & Video Guide, and Leonard can’t be wrong, can he?  Click here to watch this 1989 film starring Matthew Broderick, Denzel Washington, and Morgan Freeman.  Who knows – maybe I’ll watch it, too.

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There have been some horrific home invasions in the news lately, but this kind of thing is, unfortunately, nothing new.  In 1959, four members of the Clutter family were slaughtered in their rural Kansas home by two drifters.  Seven years later, Truman Capote turned the tragedy into a bestselling book, which a year after that became this Richard Brooks-directed film.  Forty years after that, In Cold Blood star Robert Blake was acquitted of the murder of his wife.  Satisfy your morbid curiosity about the Clutters (and Blake) by clicking here.   (You might have to verify your age, but you are old enough, aren’t you?)

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Twenty years ago, an American movie star knew his or her place:  in front of the camera.  But thanks to a few adventurous thespians, we now have Clint Eastwood and Ben Affleck and lord-knows-who-else playing “auteur.”  Robert Redford was one of the pioneer actors to make the move to directing.  Quiz Show’s “scandal” – cheating on a 1950s TV game show – seems kind of quaint today, but Redford’s 1994 film is anything but.  Watch it for free by clicking here.

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Here’s a blast from the past that is notable for two reasons.  It’s widely regarded as a cinematic milestone in documentary technique and, oh yeah, it helped Hitler rise to power in 1930s Germany.  Read my review here  or watch it for free by clicking here.

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Everyone knows about Brando in this film (“I coulda been a contenda!”), but I’d like to know why Eva Marie Saint didn’t have a bigger Hollywood career.  She was the ultimate “Hitchcock blonde” in North by Northwest, and won a supporting actress Oscar for her portrayal of Brando’s girl in this 1954 classic.  Watch it for free by clicking here.

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Back in 1978, very few people knew what the term “China Syndrome” meant.  By the end of 1979, thanks to a nuclear accident at Three Mile Island and the release of this movie, everybody knew.  (The term refers to a hypothetical meltdown releasing molten material through the earth’s crust, all the way from America to China.)  Let Jane Fonda, Michael Douglas, and Jack Lemmon scare the neutrons out of you by watching The China Syndrome for free.  Click here to watch.

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When I was 10 years old, roughly the same age as the young stars of this 1968 musical, I saw the movie and was faced with a choice:  Should I identify with Oliver (Mark Lester), boy-hero of the film, or with the Artful Dodger (Jack Wild), that irascible pickpocket?  Easy choice.  Lester seems fine to me in the role now, but to my 10-year-old self, his angelic face and wimpy manner were much too girlish.  His voice was high-pitched and tremulous – also too feminine.  The Dodger, on the other hand – now there was a role model for a young boy.  But I digress.  What matters are the music, 1800s settings, and performances on display in this Carol Reed-directed classic.  Watch it for free by clicking here.

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Robert Downey, Jr. is a great actor, no question in my mind.  But Downey is not – I repeat, not – Sherlock Holmes.  Not in my world.  That cinematic honor goes to either Jeremy Brett, in the superb British TV series, or to Basil Rathbone, in the old Hollywood movies.  And Jude Law versus Nigel Bruce as Dr. Watson?  Please.  Watch Rathbone and Bruce in one of their better Universal entries, Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon, by clicking here.

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Once upon a time, Kathleen Turner was a big Hollywood star, Nicolas Cage appeared in interesting movies, Jim Carrey was a bit player, and Francis Ford Coppola was out to prove he could do more than make tough-guy movies.  The result was Peggy Sue Got Married, a nostalgic, touching film in which Turner’s title character travels back in time to high school.  Watch it for free by clicking here.

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