The Furies (1950 Anthony Mann)

What's going on here? The Furies are Roman mythological goddesses of vengeance. Well that fits insofar as Barbara Stanwyck is the strong-willed daughter (of strong-willed rancher Walter Huston) who seeks revenge when daddy backtracks on promise to leave her his ranch 'The Furies', having hooked up with Judith Anderson (who drinks the disgusting sounding combination of cognac with orange juice!). Although why you would name your ranch that is another matter (it's a bit silly).

Stanwyck also has a hot-cold thing going for mercenary and emotionless Wendell Corey, but her heart is with a Mexican (Gilbert Roland) whose family has lived on the estate for ages. There's a very dramatically faulty sequence where Huston's men lay siege to Roland's family's castle (which, frankly, looks unassailable) but they surrender... and then Huston has him hanged for theft of a horse (which he succumbs to without a word or a struggle??) What a cunt! And of course this is going to position his daughter hotly against him also.

And the in the end, she ruins him, but then goes into partnership with him! And marries Corey! But Roland's mother (oh - that was Beulah Bondi) kills him - good! 

I can't help the feeling that this all probably plays better after a few sherberts.

Charles Schnee adapted a novel by Niven Busch. both names we know. And having just been enjoying Mann's films noir like T-Men, Border Incident and Raw Deal, we were somewhat disappointed. Though we like the cast, which also includes Thomas Gomez. It was Huston's last - he died later that year.

Photographed by Victor Milner and scored by Franz Waxman for Paramount, produced by Hal Wallis.

Barbara about to disfigure Judith Anderson

Mrs Dalloway (1997 Marleen Gorris)

We watched an introductory film by Eileen Atkins, who said she was sent such rubbish she might as well adapt Virginia Woolf's novel herself, but 'couldn't find a part' for her. And having looked at a summary of the novel's plot, I'd say she did a bloody good job.

Gorris had just won an Oscar for her film Antonia. Eileen's husband decided to produce it but ran out of money, and the whole project was taken over by a new funder, without their involvement. When they saw the finished film, they hated it. But wind forward a few years, The Hours was premiered at Guildford and they agreed to screen Mrs Dalloway along with, with a Q&A with Eileen, and seeing it again, she and her husband loved it!

Mrs Dalloway (who has recently suffered from some sort of unexplained 'illness') prepares for a party to be given that evening, cross cut against her romantic past. In conjunction a shell shocked soldier spends a day in the park before being committed. He kills himself and Mrs Dalloway hears about it at the party and feels for him. It doesn't sound much, but it's really good.

And with this great cast it should be. Vanessa Redgrave and Natasha McElhone as her younger self, Michael Kitchen, Alan Cox, Rupert Graves, Amelia Bullmore, Lena Headey, John Standing, Sarah Badel, Robert Hardy, Phyllis Calvert.

Handsomely set and photographed by Sue Gibson, good music from Ilona Sekacz. Clapper loader Joe Wright is not that one, but does show I pay attention to credits!