movie maniac

One Of The Best, 2 Mar 2012

Rear window is among Alfred Hitchcock's best work. Photographer Jeff's leg is broken and he is stuck in his flat with nothing to but watch the neighbours obsessively.

James Stewart plays the character to a t. Grace Kelly is the love interest, looking as if she has just come straight from a vogue photo shoot.

Stewart's character thinks the man who lives in the apartment opposite him has committed murder; suspense mounts and things spiral out of control. The reason the film is such a masterpiece is that it is essentially about what its like to watch a film and not being able to participate in events observed. The many small stories of the neighbour's lives are memorable… Read more

Could Be The Best Film Ever Made, 2 Mar 2012

The first half of vertigo is about someone being taken for a ride, but the viewer does not realise that until half way through. Really, the spiritual madness that possesses the first half of the film is what makes it such a monumental achievement.

A detective (James Stewart) almost dies and a fellow cop falls to his death from a high building. The detective stops work, as he suffers from vertigo. He is then approached for a private job from an old friend. He is hired to follow his friend's wife (Kim Novak) who is perhaps possessed by someone who is dead.

The way Hitchcock stages each set piece as the mentally unhinged ex-cop follows the mysterious women is as… Read more

She He ?, 2 Mar 2012

Neil Jordan's film The Crying Game is a thriller about the redeeming power of love. The IRA kidnap a man (Forest Whitaker in one of his first major roles). They hold him for ransom but it is not paid so they end up having to kill him. The twist is that a kidnapper called Jimmy makes friends with the kidnapped man.

The victim asks a favour of his friend that after he is killed that Jimmy will go and see his girlfriend and see that she is okay. Jimmy goes, and falls in love with her, but there is another twist that changes everything. The film touches on many subjects such as redemption and homosexuality. It is also about how love can heal almost any situation.

The… Read more