1966 Movies
OSCARS Won/Nominated
IMDB Top 250
IMDB Top 250
Come Drink With Me
Dir: King Hu Stars: Pei-Pei Cheng 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die This movie is credited as being the inspiration to the great Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. I can see that, because its central character is a beautiful porcelain doll who has greater martial arts ability than anyone expects...but I just can't get beyond its corniness. The editing is so abrupt that instead of assisting and distracting from the limits of filmmaking at the time, it showcases it. There was just so little heart or emotion in the film...and the focus shifts all of the sudden to a different character and I was like....what the hell? I guess "inspired by" was good for Ang Lee....because he improved on it completely. C |
Django
Dir: Sergio Corbucci Stars: Franco Nero It may be a bit blasphemous to say, but I enjoyed this more than the Clint Eastwood Spghetti western from the same year. Not by a huge margin...but this was gritty , creative, and really overblown fun. The audacity of the title character walking around dragging a coffin in the opening scene really gripped me...and the continuous use of this maguffin throughout the film always kept me guessing and invested. Surprisingly violent in a way I didn't expect...but that is a good thing. B |
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
Dir: Sergio Leone Stars: Clint Eastwood, Eli Wallach 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die IMDB #9 This is actually the first "Spaghetti Western" I have seen, and it is certainly enjoyable. There is hardly any plot and it is too long...but Eastwood and Wallach are fantastic to watch, Sergio Leone is more of a visual artist than a director, and Ennio Morricone's iconic theme is so brilliantly anachronistic that it elevates every single scene. That final standoff at the cemetary is gloriously overblown. Clocking in at 3 hrs long, it was a bit of a chore getting through it...but it had a lot to admire and enjoy. B |
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
Dir: Bill Melendez This is just a staple of our childhood. Who doesn't get nostalgic while seeing Charlie Brown's ghost costume full of holes, and when he gets a rock in his sack, or when Linus is hanging out in the pumpkin patch waiting for the titular legend. There isn't anything great about it, and it certainly isn't better than A Boy Named Charlie Brown...but its just nostalgia. B- |
OSCARS
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Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Dir: Mike Nichols Stars: Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, George Segal 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die This might very well be the finest, most exciting, most intricate screenplay I have ever seen on film. Sure it is an ADAPTED screenplay, but the verbal fencing match that Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor engage in is simply mesmerizing. Watching them go at each other and sucking in the young couple into their despair is nothing short of masterful entertainment. Mike Nichols directs, and the entire film is so expertly executed that you could swear it was real, and done in one take. What a perfect film. I loved it!!! A |