Carry on Cabby (1963 Gerald Thomas)

Wow - was this ever funny? Did anyone ever really laugh at the schoolboy nudge nudge winkery of it all? It's a difficult question to answer without ancient newspaper archives but sadly I think they probably did.

Sid James was in a 1963-4 TV series called Taxi! which didn't do well. The best thing about this is the story, in which neglected wife Hattie Jacques starts her own rival and successful girl only taxi company which knocks Sid's into the ground. Naturally though in the climax Sid's team saves the girls from the villainous robbers, and sexual inequality is restored, to the merry tunes of Eric Rogers.

Weird taxis they had then, without an operating front passenger seat, just a dangerous space in which Charlie Hawtrey is perched perilously on a gas can.

With Liz Fraser, Esma Cannon, Kenneth Connor, Bill Owen, Jim Dale, Amanda Barrie and Carole (Coo Coo Pigeon Sister) Shelley (third and fourth from right, respectively).

Records show I first watched it in 1976 aged 13, and awarded it 5/10.

Harvey (1950 Henry Koster)

An extremely relaxed and whimsically urbane Jimmy Stewart (evidenced in opening where he receives a registered letter and blithely tears it up, unopened) is a huge social embarrassment to his aunt Josephine Hull (Arsenic and Old Lace) and niece Victoria Home through imagining of a companion, an ancient spirit 'Pooka' in the form of an invisible 6'3" rabbit. So they try to have him committed, with disastrous results for the aunt. Involved  are doctors Cecil Kellaway and Charles Drake, nurse Peggy Dow, orderly Jesse White and judge William H Lynn.

Mary Chase adapted her own Pulitzer Prize winning play with Oscar Brodney. You'd think even laid back Stewart would have eventually lost his temper with bully White and socked him in the hooter. Bill Daniels shot it for Universal.

I can't remember the last time we saw it, but it's politely enjoyable.

Years ago my mother used to say to me, she'd say, "In this world, Elwood, you must be" - she always called me Elwood - "In this world, Elwood, you must be oh so smart or oh so pleasant." Well, for years I was smart. I recommend pleasant. You may quote me.

Casablanca (1942 Michael Curtiz)

One of the most perfect films - we made it as far as 'You'll have to do the thinking for both of us'. I did the same, and we twinkled up the merry stairs.

Battle Hymn (1957 Douglas Sirk)

A true story, written by Charles Grayson and Vincent Evans, in which Colonel Hess was constantly on set, supervising; thus Sirk couldn't make him a drinker between the church and the air force as he would have liked to have done; and would have preferred a more complex actor like Robert Stack rather than Rock Hudson. Still, story of guilt-ridden flyer who turns his mind to saving children is fine, particularly when shot by Metty (in CinemaScope) and scored by Skinner (Golitzen of course is the guy who designs a bombed out temple).

Dan Duryea good in support; with Welsh Anna Kashfi (who married Brando and after divorce wrote angry memoir 'Brando for Breakfast'). The delightful child Chu is played by Jung' Kyoo Pyo (all the kids are played by real orphans), who was adopted by the Friars and thus became Sam Friar (source: 'Hollywood Asian' Philip Ahn) - that's as much as I can tell you.

Noted the ripple dissolve to flashback - did David Lean do this first?

Hess's NY Times obit here.

I want Rock Hudson's brown flying jacket.

Little Black Book (2004 Nick Hurran)

Written by Melissa Carter, story about TV producer who investigates her boyfriend's ex-girlfriends doesn't trouble the grey matter - in fact, without its TV studio confrontation scene, engineered by mercenary associate Holly Hunter - would be totally forgettable - a film you forget as you're watching it. Curious.

Don't think much of Brittany Murphy (no idea now why I bought this movie). With Kathy Bates, Ron Livingstone, Julianne Nicholson (freckles, Boardwalk Empire, August Osage County), Stephen Tobolowsky, Kevin Sussman, Rashida Jones (doctor, Parks and Recreation, I Love You Man) and Josie Maran (model). Guest appearance by Carly Simon.

Youth (2015 Paolo Sorrentino)

Most successful, interesting follow up to La Grande Bellezza, in English. Once again, chilly Swiss spa / hotel (Hotel Schatzalp, the setting for Thomas Mann's 'The Magic Mountain') makes me think of Marienbad. Retired composer Michael Caine (perfect as ever) and friend screenwriter Harvey Keitel are in residence, with the former's daughter Rachel Weisz. The fabulous Paul Dano is a resident actor. With Alex McQueen (Queen's emissary), Madelina Diana Ghenea (Miss Universe), Luna Zimic Mijovic (masseuse), Ed Stoppard, Paloma Faith (whose fake pop video is hilarious) and Jane Fonda.

It is as usual splendidly shot in deep richness by Luca Bigazzi and edited by Cristiano Travaglioli.

Films of this sort sometimes take themselves too seriously - Sorrentino uses humour well. Again, you sense a nod to Fellini, especially in the scene where all Keitel's actresses come to life on a mountain side. Sorrentino uses music really well, and the camera. Also he has an unusual way of not showing an establishing shot until the end of a scene. He's a very distinctive film maker.

The only thing I would have changed is not to show the levitator in long shot - I would have left that to the imagination.

Sorrentino / Bigazzi have since made TV series The Young Pope with Jude Law and Diane Keaton.

Executive Suite (1953, released 1954 Robert Wise)

When is a boardroom battle interesting? When it's written by Ernest Lehman (from Cameron Hawley's novel). Familiar faces abound: early lead role for William Holden, plus Barbara Stanwyck and the chameleon Fredric March. Then we have Walter Pidgeon, Paul Douglas (the salesman, The Solid Gold Cadillac, The Maggie, We're Not Married, Clash By Night), Louis Calhern (The Asphalt Jungle), William Phipps. Plus June Allyson, Shelly Winters and Nina Foch.

Interesting subjective POV opening, shot by George Folsey, for MGM. No music.

The Major and the Minor (1942 Billy Wilder)

Billy: "I was very careful. I set out to make a commercial picture I wouldn't be ashamed of, so my first picture as a director wouldn't be my last..' From Doane Harrison he learned to 'cut in the camera'. "What I do is try not to give them any extra film to monkey around with...When I finish a film, there is nothing on the cutting room floor but chewing gum wrappers and tears."

Fresh from an Oscar for Kitty Foyle, Ginger Rogers (aged 30) graciously agreed to pretend to be a 12 year old under a debut director (well, Hollywood debut), and even had her real mother cast as her mother. Lelee Rogers' life is in itself an interesting one.

Brackett and Wilder have mischievous fun with this set-up, derived from a play by Edward Childs Carpenter (explain to me why various foreign versions of Wikipedia cover him but none in English?) from a story by Fanny Kilbourne. She spends the night with Ray Milland and is then thrust into a college full of 300 lusty cadets. Luckily sassy young Diana Lynn becomes her ally against horrible fiancée Rita Johnson, and Peter Benchley puts the cat amongst the pigeons.

Lighting by Leo Tover, transformations by Wally Westmore.

Still very funny, great lines and moments, great title.

Pieces of April (2003 Peter Hedges & scr)

Coincidentally watched the day after Thanksgiving, wayward daughter Katie Holmes strives to put Thanksgiving dinner together for her dying, bitter mother (Patricia Clarkson, Oscar nominated) and rest of family Oliver Platt, Alison Pill, John Gallagher Jr and granny Alice Drummond*. Boyfriend Derek Luke and neighbours variously help and hinder, culminating in a joyous dinner at an hour and a quarter.

Gritty New York feel in good low budget movie, edited by Mark Livolsi, who had been working as an assistant on Woody Allen and Cameron Crowe's films. Hedges went on to Dan in Real Life and Disney's The Odd Life of Timothy Green.

Music and songs by Stephin Merritt.

* Weirdly, Ms Drummond died the following Wednesday.

Heartbreakers (2001 David Mirkin)

Film is as dodgy as title, unfortunately. A revealing writing credit - 'Robert Dunn and Paul Guay & Stephen Mazur' - usually a sign of a rewrite. Not that it's done any good. Dialogue is weak, plot shallow, incidents dumb and as it involves mother-daughter scammers, not twisty enough. That it's at all watchable is down to Sigourney Weaver, and Gene Hackman as an emphysemic billionaire; with ice cream scoop Jennifer Love Hewitt (unsubtle), Ray Liotta, Jason Lee, Anne Bancroft and Zach Galifianakis (a non-part).

Shot by Dean Semler in Panavision and edited by William Steinkamp (Out of Africa, Tootsie, The Fabulous Baker Boys).

Frequently unfunny, sexist and stupid. Now, to the bad points...

The Black Stallion (1979 Caroll Ballard)

Based on Walter Farley's 1941 debut novel (there was a whole ton of Black Stallion stories thereafter of increasingly dubious-sounding worth e.g. 1969's 'The Black Stallion's Ghost'), adapted by Melissa Mathison, Jeanne Rosenberg & William Witliff (and, apparently Walter Murch! It is a Zoetrope production.)

Sensationally shot by Caleb Deschanel (and Stephen Burum) the first hour is almost like a Malick, even in initial US scenes, small on dialogue and big on stunning shots of nature, close ups, skies, dissolves. The 'taming' scene between horse and boy - in one long joyous seashore take - is utterly superb, also the following scenes of underwater 'dancing', learning to ride. The boy, Kelly Reno (whose subsequent career was obliterated by a car accident) is excellent and he's clearly riding the horse (Cass-Olé) brilliantly. All this to Carmine Coppola's fruity score.

Like in Walkabout you get the sense the boy is happier where he was, and the film becomes somewhat more conventional in racing story that is Part 2, with an almost redundant role for mother Teri Garr, plus trainer Mickey Rooney and Clarence Muse, though it remains a stylish pleasure throughout.

Good editing too, by Robert Dalva.

In Name Only (1939 John Cromwell)

My fascination with Carole Lombard continues - her face when attempting to fish, her cute scar, her graceful stoicism - in duet with Cary Grant's unhappily married neighbour. Indeed, they are matched by Kay Francis as the manipulative and utterly callous wife. Charles Coburn is the misunderstanding father, Maurice Moskowitz a useful 11th hour doctor.

RKO. Roy Webb's music typically adept, J.Roy Hunt working in greys.

Seems like the best book on the now neglected Lombard is Larry Swindell's (!) 1975 'Screwball: The Life of Carole Lombard', now annoyingly rare.

8 Minutes Idle (2012 Mark Simon Hewis)

Based on Matt Thorne's 1999 novel, derived from his own experience in a call centre, and co-written (his first) with Nicholas Blincoe. Short, low-budget, Bristol set film is quirky, features a cat, and office romances. And has an enjoyable ending.

A lot rests on safe, friendly performances from Tom Hughes (Dancing on the Edge, About Time, Cemetery Junction, London Town, I Am Soldier, The Game, Victoria) and Ophelia Lovibond. With Antonia Thomas (co-worker), Montserrat Lombard (manager); Pippa Haywood and Paul Kaye make grotesque parents.

The tone is mixed.

Shot by Sarah Bartles-Smith (Mainly TV).

Midnight in Paris (2011 Woody Allen & scr)

If you need proof that Woody Allen likes a pretty lady, take a look at Rachel McAdams, Carla Bruni. Alison Pill, Marion Cotillard and Léa Seydoux. Note scenes in which new cars disappear and old cars appear. Observe how Woody likes people to go in and out of frame (see Versailles sequence, for example). Notice how clever the theme is - that things were better in the past - but doesn't everyone say that?

I'm totally addicted.

Guess Who's Coming To Dinner? (1967 Stanley Kramer)

We thought Hepburn Katharine would be giving Houghton Katharine help with her performance - it turns out they are aunt/niece ('Aunt Katty') and shared a familial oddity of enjoying swimming in ice cold water (Hepburn's shake is a family tremor which Houghton thought she would inherit eventually). They all knew Tracy was dying - thus the scene at the end when he says how much he loves Hepburn has a very real and special quality to it. He went three weeks after filming - Houghton interview here.

William Rose also wrote The Maggie, The Ladykillers, The Smallest Show on Earth, It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World, The Secret of Santa Vittoria and The Russians are Coming! The Russians are Coming!

Sam Leavitt shot it, music by de Vol.

My Best Friend's Wedding (1997 P.J. Hogan)

A rather damp film, which I attribute to Ronald Bass's screenplay. Julia Roberts' force 10 smile fades when she learns her best friend Dermot Mulroney is marrying Cameron Diaz and tries to prevent it, without doing the really obvious thing (just telling him). There's an excruciating karaoke episode, followed by an excruciating restaurant/song scene, and Rupert Everett's part had to be extended as he provides film's comic highlights (Roberts falling over repeatedly doesn't qualify). Best scene is Roberts/Diaz confrontation in ladies' loo.

With Philip Bosco, M. Emmett Walsh, Rachel Griffiths, Carrie Preston and Paul Giamatti. Shot by Laszlo Kovacs with a stunning scene on a boat underneath a bridge.

At one point I observed that JR may have been wearing the same dress as in Pretty Woman and declared 'That's it - I'm officially a woman!' - to which Q helpfully retorted 'Or a gay man!'

Interlude (1957 Douglas Sirk)

Based on a story by James M. Cain, Sirk's Munich-set drama seems once again to be about the challenge a couple face when trying to be together. In this case, the challenge is Rossano Brazzi's lunatic wife Marianne Koch. June Allyson (then 40, hardly the 'young lady' she's referred to) is the lover, in turn dated by Keith Andrews; with Françoise Rosay (Quartet, the Halfway House), Frances Bergen, Jane Wyatt. Full of the director's usual symbolism and shot in CinemaScope by Bill Daniels it's a typically elegant and good looking film with a lush music soundtrack of classics and Frank Skinner (though the Wagner seemed to us to be particularly badly played).

L.A. Confidential (1997 Curtis Hanson & co-scr)

A properly snaky, noirish 1990 story from James Ellroy, adapted by Hanson and Brian Helgeland (Mystic River, Legend), in which tough guy Russell Crowe smartens up and principled Guy Pearce becomes...less principled. Kevin Spacey dies beautifully, Danny de Vito good as yellow journalist. With Kim Basinger, James Cromwell, David Strathairn, Simon Baker.

Jerry Goldsmith's score virtually reprises Chinatown in its love theme. Dante Spinotti shot it handsomely in widescreen.

Exciting scenes e.g. Pearce's suspects interview, confrontation with the 'Nite Owl Killers', film is almost a trial run for Line of Duty.

The BFG (2016 Steven Spielberg)

Melissa Mathison (ET, The Black Stallion) wrote this adaptation of Roald Dahl's story but died of cancer aged 65 before the film was completed (thus 'For our Melissa'). She was apparently able to find the heart in it. It's one of those new hybrids where you don't know what you're looking at any longer. Though if there was an award for Best Giant of the Year it would have to go to Mark Rylance, who's brilliant. The little girl is Ruby Barnhill. With Penelope Wilton, Jemaine Clement, Rebecca Hall, Rafe Spall, Bill Hader.

Usual team of Kaminski, Kahn and Williams, who provides a wonderful orchestral score ending with a sublime passage on a flute. Production design by Rick Carter and Robert Stromberg also worth mentioning.

Letter From an Unknown Woman (1948 Max Ophuls)

An elegantly presented film in which Ophuls would rather move the camera than cut, beautifully designed by Alexander Golitzen, though somewhat distant. Howard Koch adapted Stefan Zweig's novel. Bud Westmore creates a young Joan Fontaine, then an older one, who is absolutely smitten by Louis Jourdan - not he, unfortunately. Also it's the worst fake piano playing ever. Franz Planer lights those elegant scenes elegantly.

Know Art Smith the valet from somewhere - could be In a Lonely Place. Daniele Amfitheatrof scored a good score. It has its own unique atmosphere and feeling.