Roadies: 7. Carpet Season (2016 Julie Ann Robinson)

She looks like a sort of director-for-hire of successful TV shows. Written by Cameron and David Rosen. Title comes from Bill attending an AA session undercover as a carpet salesman, leading to great line 'I'll never look at a carpet in the same way again" - or something.

Phil returns, much to Reg's consternation, Rosanna Arquette is a bitch of a photographer and Kelly Ann pips the great photo of the band.

Roadies: 6. Longest Days (2016 Jonathan Kasdan)

Jon is the son of Lawrence Kasdan, has also acted in several things. Episode written by Cameron and Tom Kapinos (creator and writer of Californication).

We are still in Denver. Lots of double meaning conversations between Bill and Shelli ('That's weird - it's like your parents having sex, only one's married to someone else'.. something like that, anyway.)

Meanwhile everyone thinks Kelly Ann and Reg are having a relationship...

Roadies: 5. Friends and Family (2016 Allison Liddi-Brown)

Written by Cameron and David Rosen. The one where they return to Denver on the eve of the Super-Moon, which happens once every 37 years. And the infamous Janine (Joy Williams) shows up. And Reg thinks she's fallen for him. Love the way they pronounce Reg with a hard g. Plus Mike Finger (Ely Henry) .

Funny digs emerging on crap TV shows and commercial music with Dead Sex and Taylor Swift in space.

Roadies: 4. The City Whose Name Must Not Be Spoken (2016 Jeffrey Reiner)

Written by Cameron and Hannah Friedman, or 'The Day Off That Went Wrong'. It's all in the title. Song of the Day - 'They Are All in Love' by The Who, in the rain. Leading to:

Roadies: 3. The Bryce Newman Letter (2016 Cameron Crowe & scr)

The one in which Rainn Wilson writes an unfavourable review so Wes spikes his coffee with Purple Vagina... Starting to love the mischievous sprite that is Natalie - Jacqueline Byers.

Some wonderful writing about music and the bands and the industry and the people.

"He weasel speaks between the lines."

Being in Atlanta, Donald Glover gets a name check, as his own series came out that year too.

Roadies: 2. What Would Phil Do? (2016)

Written by Winnie Holzman, directed by Cameron. The crew are having difficulty accepting Imogen back. And missing Phil.

'Why are you here?' is one of those classic Cameron 'I have a thing for you' lines, as is ensuing scene about raisins.

Edited by Jon Dudkowski and photographed by Thomas Yatsko.

Roadies: 1. Life Is a Carnival (2016 Cameron Crowe & scr)

A brilliantly written show which manages to introduce all the characters and conflicts: Imogen Poots wanting to leave for film school, her brother Colson Baker (Machine Gun Kelly), the desertion of their parents; that Luke Wilson and Carla Gugino are like a married couple; the threat of Rafe Spall (terrific) and firings; conflicts with the bands...

Has an awesome feel for the music, and the history.. this is where Cameron came in after all... A gold standard of writing.

Ron White is Phil

Edited by Joe Hutshing, talent evident in climactic scene where Imogen runs backs to the band, cross cut to her own film of running scenes in films. Shot by Nicola Marsh. Clay Griffith is the production designer for the whole series (as well as Aloha, Elizabethtown and We Bought a Zoo).

Il Commissario Montalbano: Amore / Inspector Montalbano: Love (2017 Alberto Sironi)

Really classy episode (film), written (I think) by Lucianio Ricceri, based on the characters by Andrea Camilleri (who, at 92, is still writing a new Montalbano every year). Beginning with a dream sequence in which Montalbano arrives at his wedding to find Livia's been carrying on with Mimi, and focusing thereafter on relationships and drawing a parallel story between Montalbano's jealousy and that of a man who's ex-prostitute lover has gone missing; as well as mixing in a really tender episode about a couple of ageing actors, played by Gigliola Reina and Vincenzo Catanzaro.

It's also very funny.

Serena Iansiti is the disappeared, Fabrizzio Ferracane her jealous lover, Stella Egito the sister.

I, Tonya (2017 Craig Gillespie)

Before I forget: make up and hair - Deborah La Mia Denaver and Adruitha Lee. BAFTA nominated. Gillespie directed the similarly offbeat Lars and the Real Girl.

Who's Steven Rogers? He also was BAFTA nominated. I'll tell myself. He wrote Hope Floats (1998) which I thought was 'flabby', Kate and Leopold (2001) - 'Can't say it's particularly well written' - P.S. I Love You (thought we'd seen it but haven't, 2007), Christmas with the Coopers (2015). I thought the approach was interesting - take all points of view and expose the conflicting claims in the story, have characters give knowing asides to the camera, use straight-to-camera 'documentary' scenes... but, ultimately, get the truth of Tonya Harding out there. But -- I came away not really caring about anyone in it, even Tonya, despite her brutal upbringing and stupid relationship choices. Because we weren't given anything to like. Just one scene with her doing something nice would have made all the difference.

Margot Robbie is great (BAFTA and Oscar nominated - lost to Frances McDormand of course), and Allison Janney deservedly won both Oscar and BAFTA. The rest of cast is good - Sebastian Stan (husband), Julianne Nicholson (the trainer, August Osage County), Paul Walter Hauser (deluded dude who organises crime) and Bobby Cannavale (sports writer - didn't even recognise him).

Good editing by Tatiana Riegel (The Way, Way Back). Photographed in Panavision by Nicolas Karakatsanis.

Margot does an awesome job on the ice. She's gives a great performance, also.

Casse Tête Chinois / Chinese Puzzle (2013 Cédric Klapisch & scr)

Such was the time gap, I'm not sure I even twigged last time that this was the third instalment in the 'Xavier' trilogy after L'Auberge Español and Poupées Russes, ten years later (actually eight). Thus Romain Duris, Kelly Reilly, Cécile de France and Audrey Tautou are reunited in New York and complications ensue surrounding their own relationships and the children. Still stylish, clever and inventive, with some funny sex scenes, though perhaps not quite up to the level of the first two - well, I didn't experience tears of joy or emotion, and I did in the others....

With Sandrine Holt (Ju; the last season of Homeland), Flore Bonaventura (the babysitter), Li Jun Li, Benoît Jacquot (Xavier's father). And Klapisch cameoing as a photographer.

A 'Casse-tête' is a brain teaser or difficult problem.

Camera: Natasha Braier. Music: Christophe Minck and Loïk Dury. Editing: Anne-Sophie Bion (The Artist, Back to Burgundy).

It's the first time four films by the same director have been seen in this column reviewed (well, jottingsed) back-to-back, but that's partly down to the fact that we keep chatting about 'Black Cab' and don't watch as many films as we might.

Meet Me Tonight (1952 Anthony Pelissier)

Three Noel Coward playlets adapted by George Barraud.

Kay Walsh and Ted Ray are faded vaudeville actors.

Stanley Holloway finally gets his revenge on ungrateful wife, daughter and mother-in-law.

Valerie Hobson and Nigel Patrick seek Jack Warner's thievery help to dig themselves out of a financial Riviera black hole. With Jessie Royce Landis, Yvette Furneaux, Michael Trubshawe, Mary Jerrold.

Colour photography by Desmond Dickinson, imaginatively edited by Clive Donner. Produced by Cineguild.

It was some time around here, anyway.

Les Poupées Russes / Russian Dolls (2005 Cédric Klapisch & scr)

Truffaut would have loved this. Further adventures of some of the characters from L'Auberge Español in Paris, London and St Petersburg. Lively, inventive writing and filming. Also contains some of those collage montages where the screen is filled with slightly different images. In later life Klapisch would grow out of this sort of thing, but it's fun.

Romain Duris' character is a liar and an idiot, but starts to grow some balls. Gorgeous acting again. With Audrey Tautou, Kelly Reilly, Cécile de France, Kevin Bishop, Evguenta Obraztsova, Irene Montalã, Gary Love, Lucy Gordon, Aïssa Maïga, Pierre Gérald (grand-father).

Photographed by Domonique Colin, music by  Loïk Dury & Laurent Levesque, editing by Francine Sanberg.

Klapisch is just the kind of warm, human, funny, touching, episodic, inventive writer we really dig.

L'Auberge Español / Pot Luck (2002 Cédric Klapisch & scr)

Ce Qui Me Meut is both the name of Cédric Klapisch's production company and his early short film of the same name (1989). They also produce the films of Lola Doillon, which look interesting. They are Et Toi, T'es sur qui? / Just About Love? (2007), Contre Toi / In Your Hands (2010 with Kristin Scott-Thomas and Pio Marmaï) and Le Voyage de Fanny (2016).

Partly - we sense - to escape his mother, but leaving girlfriend Audrey Tautou behind, young Romain Duris leaves Paris for economics studies in Barcelona, where he joins a multi-national group of students and falls for a newly married expatriate (Judith Godrèche). Cécile de France ('Sorry you're not a girl.' 'The world's badly made.') is his gay friend. With Kelly Reilly, Cristina Brondo, Federico D'Anna, Barnaby Metschurat, Christian Pagh, Kevin Bishop.

Much fun around language and cultural differences, many stylistic flourishes, including an astonishing multiple exposure scene after night club, great Barcelona locations, tales of love. A massive treat - well overdue (last seen 14 June 2008!) Pre-Euro film seems old. He wrote it in two weeks!

Shot by Dominique Colin on digital (as is the sequel), edited by Francine Sandberg.

Having twice failed to get into the top French film school, Klapisch studied film at New York University for two years - so the feeling of being a foreign student away from home may be autobiographical.

Ce Qui Nous Lie / Back to Burgundy (2017 Cédric Klapisch & scr)

UK title is about as lazy as you can get. 'Ce Qui Nous Lié' means 'What binds us', rather more pertinent than the bland offering here. However, Cédric's new film is wonderful, moving, funny and with a keen sense of the country and family. In fact - thinking about it - all his films are about relationships, many intra-familial. Pio Marmaï is the prodigal son returning to the family domain, looked after by his sister Ana Girardot in close proximity to younger brother François Civil. Cue flashbacks and great script from Klapisch and Santiago Amigorena.

With Jean-Marc Roulot, Maria Valverde, Yamée Couture, Jean-Marie Winling, Florence Pernel and Karidja Touré (who we notice doesn't turn up for the next year's harvest, and hopefully has started to travel).

It's nicely shot by Alexis Kavyrchine in Panavision (we guess it must have been filmed over a year), good music from Loïc Dury and Christophe 'Disco' Minck.

Loved the imagined conversations between people in long shot, and the drunken scene of dropped consonants.

Legally Blonde 2: Red, White and Blonde (2003 Charles Herman-Wurmfeld)

Have published defence of this film before. Despite the fact it becomes increasingly silly in the last third, it's good fun overall, rather well shot (by Elliot Davis) and featuring winning performances from Reece Witherspoon, Moonie and Sally Field. (Plus a small part for Octavia Spencer.) Music's by Rolfe Kent again.

Not sure I'd get on quite so well with it sober, but there you go.

The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz (1974 Ted Kotcheff)

A Canadian film, written by Jewish-Canadian writer Mordecai Richler, based on his 1959 novel. Richard Dreyfuss is absolutely fantastic as young man who succeeds in ambitious entrepreneurial plans but at the cost of loyalty, friendship and love. Although the time period and location (Montreal) is different, I found it quite Eisnery.

Weirdly obscure now - seems only to exist on VHS - our copy was a 4x3 crop and seems oddly truncated in places, e.g. why did the bastards come clean about the dodgy roulette game, what was in the letter his uncle left him (it clocks at just over two hours*)? I got it from Zeus DVDs.

With Jack Warden, Micheline Lanctôt, Randy Quaid, Joseph Wiseman, Denholm Elliott, Joe Silver (in both Shivers and Rabid).

*That's also the time given by the BBFC when they originally rated it.

Table 19 (2017 Jeffrey Blitz)

Mark and Jay Duplass wrote and directed Jeff, Who Lives at Home. Blitz wrote the debate team film Rocket Science, also with motor-mouthed Anna Kendrick. This is better than both, though the Robinson-Kudrow story isn't quite satisfactory. Also I felt the birth card should have been opened by June Squibb (88 when this was made and still going strong).

With Stephen Merchant, Tony Revolori, Wyatt Russell.

About Schmidt (2002 Alexander Payne & co-scr)

..with Jim Taylor, based on a novel by Louis Begley, who (according to Wikipedia) 'is best known for writing the semi-autobiographical Holocaust novel Wartime Lies (1991), and the Schmidt trilogy: About Schmidt (1996), Schmidt Delivered (2000) and Schmidt Steps Back (2012)'.

It's a well observed, quiet film, Nicholson's performance very restrained. The character seems always to do the opposite of what he's saying, makes all sorts of mistakes and is self-delusional until the end, where he gets some sense (and demonstrates some feeling).

Good music from Rolfe Kent, with a touch of Satie for good measure. Kevin Tent edited, James Glennon shot it in a melancholy palette. Funniest moment: horrible figurines slowly falling off the top of his godalmighty big motorhome.

Rest of cast: Hope Davis, Kathy Bates, Dermot Mulroney, June Squibb, Howard Hesseman.

The Second Death (2000 John Michael McDonagh & scr)

His debut, a very short film about a man in a pub with heart palpitations, and a weird story about a girl who went missing, and was then found. We didn't really get what that was about, but the incidental details of the pub's inhabitants are in his usual dry, irreverent and funny style.

With Liam Cunningham, Michelle Fairley, Aidan Gillen, Owen Sharpe, David Wilmot, Dermot Healy, Gary Lydon, Roxanna Nic Liam.

This led to him writing a screenplay for Ned Kelly, which was then completely re-written and had all the humour taken out of it. It was another eight years before The Guard (and it's on the Blu-Ray of this that you'll find this short).

Legally Blonde (2001 Robert Luketic)

Like Bridget Jones, the heroine goes to a regular party in fancy dress - maybe the writers of this had read the book? (The films came out pretty simultaneously.) We needed bland enjoyment to wash away A Perfect Couple.

It's not really very well written but fun. Holland Tayor is the stern professor, Ali Larter the accused and Oz Perkins the tall dork.

The music's by Rolfe Kent. Overall, it's very packaged.

A Perfect Couple (1979 Robert Altman & co-scr)

'Altman hits a note of surprising magic here' according to Cynthia Rose in Time Out. I won't be trusting Cynthia Rose from Time Out again. We couldn't wait for it to end.

There are some good bits - Paul Dooley (Sixteen Candles and Breaking Away) and Marta Heflin are parallel trapped - he by ridiculously controlling family and her by ridiculously controlling band leader, meet through video dating agency in the rain. But, I know Greek families can be difficult, but really? He would put up with that? And the band. OMG. It's more like a theatrical company, good performers may be, but crap music. And it's endless.

No, not for us.

Atlanta - Season 1 (2016 Donald Glover)

Starring and created by Donald Glover and written by he and his brother Stephen, amongst others. Quirky series is original and quite different to most other things despite fairly straightforward story of promoter and his rapping cousin 'Paper Boi' Brian Tyree Henry. With Zazie Beetz, Lakeith Stanfield.

Shocking moments utilised well - the whole show is about the black experience and being black in America, hugely evident in the series' funniest episode in which Paper Boi attends a TV talk show about a black who's 'identifying as white' - with many hilarious and scattershot TV ads peppered throughout. Clever writing exemplified by final episode in which our hero searches for his jacket and we don't know what's so important...

Glover was a writer on 30 Rock, acted in six seasons of Community and The Martian and raps under the name of Childish Gambino.

About Time (2013 Richard Curtis & scr)

Even though we only watched it recently, it's very enjoyable. Though does have a tendency towards the sentimental.

Tom Hughes has a small part. Would like to have seen more Bill Nighy and Tom Hollander.

Begin Again (2013 John Carney & scr)

Well written and structured, e.g. the opening scene shown three different ways. Very sweet also (the almost relationship between Knightley and Ruffalo, friendship of Knightley and Cordon). Great songs composed by Gregg Alexander and performed by the cast, including Adam Levine (from Maroon 5) and rapper CeeLo Green. With Hailee Steinfeld again (who looks like she's really playing the guitar) and Catherine Keener. Great idea.

Citizen Ruth (1998 Alexander Payne & co-scr)

Laura Dern is a Candide-like innocent - only she's a bad drug addict - who finds herself caught between two equally nutty pro and anti abortion groups. Actually. she's not dumb either, as sub-plot with self-education tapes (picked up on right in the end of the end credits) proves. Nuanced film manages not to make complete fun of either side. The father (Kurtwood Smith) clearly fancies the girl, the mother's child is ' a miracle', though the elder daughter finds this hilarious, the pro-abortion women (Swoosie Kurtz and Kelly Preston) are gay moon-lovers, Vietnam vet takes exception to any more deaths...

With Kenneth Mars (doctor). Mary Kay Place. M.C. Gainey, Katheleen Noone (nurse), Burt Reynolds, Tippi Hedren, Alicia Witt.

Rolfe Kent (music) and Kevin Tent (cutting) began their relationship with Payne here. Payne hadn't found Phedon Papamichael yet - the cameraman is James Glennon (son of Bert). Jim Taylor co-wrote.

Celebrity (1998 Woody Allen & scr)

Woody's meditation on the title subject has everyone in its cast - I mean everyone - half the cast of The Sopranos and Donald Trump (who's pulling down an old cathedral to replace it with a shiny new building), for example, not to mention Sam Rockwell and Adrian Grenier as non-speaking extras.

The story sprawls somewhat but loosely follows the parallel lives of former couple Judy Davis and Kenneth Branagh and their various adventures with Joe Mantegna, Charlize Theron, Melanie Griffith, Winona Ryder and Leonardo di Caprio. With Dylan Baker, J.K. Simmons, Michael Lerner, Debra Messing, Famke Janssen, Bebe Neuwirth, Tony Sirico, Alison Janney, Hank Azaria, Aida Turturro.

Ends where it begins. There was no copy of the novel Ken had been working on for two years. Highlights include Aston Martin crash, plastic surgeons, skinheads at TV studio, usual stupid behaviour of people (Davis trying to sabotage her own relationship, for example). Not only Ken but Judy become Woody Allens at different points. Funny and stinging. Shot by Sven Nykvist.

Life Is Sweet (1990 Mike Leigh & scr)

I find it unbelievable that this didn't win any BAFTAs or even get nominated - the performances of Alison Steadman and Jane Horrocks are world class, not to mention Jim Broadbent, Claire Skinner (it was seeing her in the audience of 'An Ideal Husband' that reminded me to rewatch it in the first place), Timothy Spall, Stephen Rea, David Thewlis and Moya Brady.

Horrocks' character is extremely messed up, but so in varying degrees are those of Spall (really quite violent), Rea and Brady. Spall drunk, smashing up his restaurant, is hilarious. Terrific, subtle writing.

Prawn with jam maybe one thing, but my favourite of Aubrey's truly horrible menu is saveloy on a bed of lychees.

Rachel Portman's simple score is wonderful. Shot by Dick Pope (our copy is in the rather odd ratio of 1.62:1) and edited by Jon Gregory (interesting CV).

The Matador (2005 Richard Shepard & scr)

Directed twelve episodes of Girls, and made Dom Hemingway, with Jude Law, which on the strength of this we do need to see. And The Linguini Incident, a quirky film from aeons ago (well, 1991) with Rosanna Arquette and David Bowie...

Five years ago...

A very enjoyable film, well written, particularly as we don't know what happened in Mexico City, nor do we see (or need to) how Greg Kinnear helps out the shaky assassin Pierce Brosnan at the end. With Hope Davis (Charlie Bartlett, About Schmidt), Philip Baker Hall.

Career Girls (1997 Mike Leigh & scr)

Well overdue, a Mike Leigh that's as moving and quietly powerful as his other pictures. Katrin Cartlidge (the aggressive one) and Lynda Steadman (dermatitis) make friends at college, hook up again six years later. The structure as it goes back and forward works really well and the girls are terrific. Terrific. Mark Benton too great as mentally challenged friend. And with Andy Serkis, Joe Tucker, Kate Byers.

It is a bit coincidental - I would have dropped them seeing their ex room mate, which doesn't really add anything.

Shot by Dick Pope (the old time period in 16 mm and bleach bypass), great music from Marianne Jean-Baptiste (she'd mentioned a keenness to write film music to Mike on Secrets & Lies), edited by Robin Sales, makeup by Christine Blundell.

Katrin died soon after, aged 41.

Sixty Six (2006 Paul Weiland & co-scr)

Gregg Sulkin feels his bar mitvah will change his life. So it does, but only by clashing with the World Cup Final. Complications are added by father and mother Eddie Marsan and Helena Bonham Carter and uncle and aunt Peter Serafinowicz and Catherine Tate. Richard Katz is the rabbi, not Jonathan Pryce, and Stephen Rea and Geraldine Sommerville also appear.

Edited by Paul Tothill with one great pea on table to football into goal moment. The library footage is beautifully restored and integrated. A fitting choice for the beginning of the 2018 World Cup.

Like Crazy (2011 Drake Doremus & co-scr)

We weren't sure about it last time, and remain feeling that way, actually. After a sweet and realistic falling in love prelude, young Felicity Jones manages royally to screw up everything by overstaying her visa; thus when she tries to reunite with Anton Yelchin she finds her entry to the US barred. Thus separated, he begins an affair with Jennifer Lawrence only to dump her, which he then does again, by which time we are feeling really sorry for the wrong person, and beginning to care less about the will they-won't they couple. It ends uneasily - very much in The Graduate tradition.

Quite liked Dustin O'Halloran's music.

Yelchin was accidentally crushed by his own car on June 19, 2016.

The Bad News Bears (1976 Michael Ritchie)

Who's writer Bill Lancaster?* This is based on experiences with his father Burt, who was known for his grumpiness. From that great American seventies period, when things came out a little differently .. when now do you get a film which celebrates coming second? It's a lot of fun.

Walter Matthau coaches crap team, enlists help of surrogate daughter Tatum O'Neal and tearaway Jackie Earle Haley, in a slightly mournful palette of John Alonzo's and to Jerry Fielding adapting various bits of Italian opera to the games.

*Thanks to my 'Paramount Story' by John Douglas Eames for telling me he's the Burt Lancaster's son!

Rudderless (2014 Willam H Macy)

Written by Casey Twenter, Jeff Robison and Macy. The plot twist is quite unexpected, and serves to paint a picture of the parents of school massacrers - here Billy Crudup (who's certainly singing some of the songs) and Felicity Huffman. Though how someone who writes such emotive songs could do that...

The shock was discovering that co-star Anton Yelchin (Charlie Bartlett) died two years later.

The music is good and really well done, and there's quite a lot of fun to be had along the way, particularly when Laurence Fishburne gets involved. The sting is in the ending.

Tea with Mussolini (1999 Franco Zeffirelli)

A true story, written by the director and John Mortimer, vaguely based on the 'Scorpione' of fierce ladies who would meet in Firenze - yes, we're back there again. And Zefferelli was illegitimate, mother died young, father was at a distance, was brought up by English women. And it all makes quite an involving tale.

Good cast: Joan Plowright, Maggie Smith (won BAFTA), Cher, Judi Dench, Lily Tomlin, Baird Wallace / Charlie Lucas (Luca old and young), Mino Bellei.

Shot in the city (making much use of the Uffizi) and San Gimignano, and at Cinecitta. The Gran Cafe Doney was where the ladies really did take tea - it closed in 1986.

Handsomely photographed by David Watkin, edited by Tariq Anwar, music by Stefano Arnaldi & Alessio Vlad, costumes by Jenny Beavan.

The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014 Wes Anderson & scr)

Dashing, funny, stylish, a true original. Won Oscars for Alexandre Desplatt's amazing score, make up, production design and costumes. Nominated for Best Film, screenplay (for which Wes won the BAFTA), editing (Barney Pilling) and photography (Robert Yeoman) but not for Fiennes, who's brilliant.

Darkest Hour (2017 Joe Wright)

Well, he's recovered his status in my opinion, with this. Anthony McCarten's script focuses on a few days at the beginning of Churchill's government. Oldman is terrific as Churchill, Lily James's character never really feels quite integrated. Bruno Delbonnel contributes 'Darkest Film'. Dario Marienelli's score isn't up there with his best, Valerio Bonelli edits ruthlessly. The makeup won Oscar/ BAFTA as well.

With Kristin Scott Thomas, Ben Mendelsohn, Ronald Pickup, Stephen Dillane, Samuel West, Joe Armstrong and David Strathairn's voice.

Scene with Churchill on board Underground train is the highlight.

The Beautiful Blonde From Bashful Bend (1949 Preston Sturges & scr, prod)

Why only now? Preston's short swansong is bouncy, full of gags you have to pay attention for and joyful -- and it's in color! In Color? Or Colour. Whatever. Anyway. Yes it is, and the Fox Cinema Archives edition is very good. Particularly like Porter Hall's emission when shot in the arse - "Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"

Betty Grable (and Olga San Juan) are fleeing Cesar Romero and a court case, end up in Snake City, where Rudy Vallee unsuccessfully tries to woo her, gets mixed up with crazy brothers Sterling Holloway and Dan Jackson. With Porter Hall, Hugh Hebert, Al Bridge, Marie Windsor.

It sort of runs out of plot... Sturges himself said it "got no critical acclaim and lost a fortune. The critics didn't care for it any more than I did, and the picture served only to prove that Betty Grable is a splendid actress, capable of any role. I wish the story, an unfortunate hodgepodge, were one-tenth as good as she is."

They All Laughed (1980 Peter Bogdanovich & scr)

One of the greatest films ever made, a romantic comedy shot like a thriller often summons up thoughts of Rear Window. Has its own massive back story which seeks to weigh the film down, but if you know nothing about this it has a bubbly and effervescent life unlike almost anything else. Today, I was catching Audrey Hepburn - it's her last great role. It's so lovely to see her in material of this kind, where flashes of her Sabrina self emerge - but in the older, sophisticated model (is this the only film which actually shows her indulging in her life long habit of smoking?*) It's just so well made, a collision of Robby Müller's urban lens with the best of 1940s cinema - Welles, Ford, Hawks - all the greats influence and end up in the film. The scene for example where Ritter and Dottie kiss, and she suddenly runs back into the house - it's so well edited and constructed. But then it also has all its own style, personified by Blaine Novak and the roller disco and that everyone makes friends immediately.

Like A Canterbury Tale, it is a film entirely original and without equal - there's simply nothing else like it in all of cinema. And in light of that, it is criminally underestimated and neglected. I love the way we don't know what's going on, and the silent beginning. In that respect it's like how Illegally Yours would have started without the tacked on and annoying voiceover.

"I know this little French place."
"How chic."
"Chic it ain't."

Of course it's Peter's favourite of his films - and why shouldn't it be? And amongst its other achievements, it makes you love Country music - how does that happen??

I once commented that the film begins where Avanti ends - well it ends where Avanti ends, also.

That joke about the detective agency - "we never sleep" - is repeated by Mofogen in She's Funny That Way.

* No, of course it isn't.

How Do You Know (2010 James L Brooks & scr)

Q's choice. She wanted Owen Wilson. And why not?

It's quite funny and boasts a great cast of Reese Witherspoon, Paul Rudd (I don't think we have seen him in a serious role - and it's about time we did), Jack Nicholson, Kathryn Hahn, Mark Linn-Baker (attorney), Shelley Conn.

She's Funny That Way (2014 Peter Bogdanovich)

Taking a leaf (and a key line) from black and white classic comedy masterpieces, Peter directs with lots of 'oners' (e.g. long take in which Owen Wilson juggles various phone calls in hotel room, Wilson and Poots in taxi) and fast scenes of energy (Kathryn Hahn arriving at rehearsal the morning after). It's definitely a film that works if you need cheering up.

The inclusion of Tarantino as a cameo not only reflects Quentin's love for They All Laughed but is from one film obsessive to another.

Joanna Lumley is Jen's drunken mother - on phone only. Tatum O'Neal is a waitress.

I correct my earlier review - if Imogen Poots wasn't so good, Jen would steal the film.

Together Again (1944 Charles Vidor)

Great to see Irene Dunne, Charles Boyer and Charles Coburn doing their stuff. I'm not sure I'd agree with my earlier review that it's Coburn's funniest performance (maybe Monkey Business or The Devil and Miss Jones).

Joe Walker does another of his superb bits of rain light sculptures.

'Mother's just another piece of furniture in the girl's house.'

Charles Coburn - great in everything