Oppenheimer (2023)

I knew my dad and I would have to see this while it was still in theaters. Not only is it popular, but it loses something on a smaller screen. Not that nuclear explosions, "real" or imagined, make up much of the three hours.

The story covers the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer (Cillian Murphy) from his doctoral student days in 1926 to his receipt of the Enrico Fermi Award in '63. His key work on the Manhattan Project and reactions to its aftermath tend to dominate the focus, but there's more to it than that. He hangs out with communists too much for the comfort of authorities, and two party members, eventual wife Kitty Puening (Emily Blunt) and codependent Jean Tatlock (Florence Pugh), become his love interests.

Blood Simple (1984)

I had seen a dozen Coen brothers movies. My overall impression was that they are very skilled at the craft, whether going goofy or gritty, but always include something strange and unsatisfying, seemingly to annoy viewers on purpose. I got curious about their first feature-length effort, an indie, which was the only entry on AFI's 100 Years...100 Thrills I hadn't seen yet.

Texan bar owner Julian Marty (Dan Hedaya) hires PI Loren Visser (M. Emmet Walsh) to see whether Marty's wife, Abby (Frances McDormand in her screen debut), is cheating on him. She is -- with one of his employees, Ray (John Getz). When his own confrontations prove fruitless, Marty asks Visser to kill Abby and Ray. He learns the hard way not to try to make a hit man out of someone who wasn't in that line of work to begin with. But that's just Act 1. Characters get confused from there, and as their panic mounts, so do the dangerous mistakes....

Remember the Night (1940)

I may not see any more movies directed by Preston Sturges, but writing is another matter. I had seen this title many times, perhaps especially in connection with some of its actors, so it seemed time to look further. Yes, I usually save holiday pictures for when they're timely, but Netflix disc service won't last that long.

Shortly before Christmas, an inveterate New York City thief who goes by Lee Leander (Barbara Stanwyck), among other names, gets caught. Her preacher-like attorney (Francis X. O'Leary) posits a form of temporary insanity, but prosecutor Jack Sargent (Fred MacMurray) demands the testimony of an expert psychologist who won't be available until January 3, so the court will adjourn until then. Out of pity, he bails her out. The depraved bondsman (Tom Kennedy) misreads his intentions and sends her to Jack's apartment. Jack tells Lee to leave, but upon learning she's homeless, he takes her on his vacation to Indiana.

Rio Grande (1950)

It is by sheer accident that I have watched all of John Ford's Cavalry Trilogy in chronological order, the first two entries being Fort Apache (which I didn't review for some reason) and She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (which I remember better than I predicted). I also didn't intend to watch two Victor McLaglen movies in a row, but oh well.

In 1879, Lt Col. Kirby Yorke (John Wayne), owing largely to military obligations, has not seen his wife, Kathleen (Maureen O'Hara), or their son, Jeff (Claude Jarman, Jr.), since the Valley campaigns of 1864. Then they both show up at his Texas fort at once -- Jeff to serve as a trooper and Kathleen to try to get him out of it. This is not an ideal environment for a reunion, especially when the regiment has to defend settlers from a string of Apache raids.

Dishonored (1931)

This movie has a lot of the same people involved as the next year's Shanghai Express. Maybe that's why it was recommended to me. At any rate, I moved it up in my queue because it probably won't be streaming anywhere soon.

In 1915 Vienna, Marie (Marlene Dietrich) has turned to prostitution to make ends meet after her husband died in the war. When the Austrian Secret Service chief (Gustav von Seyffertitz) overhears her declare that she fears neither life nor death, he tests her patriotism and then invites her to become a spy a la Mata Hari. In particular, she is to seduce suspected Russian mole Col. von Hindau (Warner Oland) until she can intercept his intel. His correspondent, Col. Kranau (Victor McLaglen), is a tougher nut to crack....

Jesus Revolution (2023)

Even at my most devout, I didn't watch a whole lot of Christianity-themed movies, and those I did were mostly about famous historic figures. This one looked like it could well be run-of-the-mill sappy, preachy fare about coming to Jesus. But it did extraordinarily well at the box office, so I got curious. Was it especially good, or were many Christians just desperate for a new flick with their values? If nothing else, it promised a true story I didn't already know.

The film begins in California in 1968, dividing its focus among high schooler Greg Laurie (Joel Courtney), nondenominational pastor Chuck Smith (Kelsey Grammer), and homeless evangelist Lonnie Frisbee (Jonathan Roumie). Chuck initially has a low opinion of hippies, but Lonnie, introduced by Chuck's daughter (Ally Ioannides), assures him they've been doing the wrong things for the right reason: looking for answers. Chuck invites Lonnie to preach at his church, drawing a large young congregation. Greg, meanwhile, has followed his crush, Cathe (Anna Grace Barlow), to go from a "square" to an unsatisfied stoner, until Cathe discovers Lonnie, and Greg eventually follows once more. That's not the end of all their struggles, of course....

Pork Chop Hill (1959)

I've hardly seen any depictions of the Korean War outside of M*A*S*H, which involves little to no onscreen battle. For more of that, I figured on Lewis Milestone to do a good job. And it's based on a soldier's account, so I stood to learn true history.

In 1953, the Chinese People's Volunteer Army seizes the American outpost on the titular hill. Lt. Joseph G. Clemons (Gregory Peck) leads K Company in an effort to recapture it, starting before dawn. But higher-ups have not prepared them well. For example, one border is much better defended than was said, keeping L Company too busy to meet up as soon as expected. It soon becomes apparent that heavy losses will follow.

The Hateful Eight (2015)

I previously mentioned my friend's interest in this movie. He had seen the first maybe half of it before. Now he would know that it wasn't all predictable from there.

In an 1877 Wyoming blizzard, former Union soldier Major Marquis Warren (Samuel L. Jackson) hitches a ride on the stagecoach of fellow bounty hunter John Ruth (Kurt Russell) and John's captive, Daisy Domergue (Jennifer Jason Leigh), toward the nearest town to collect rewards. Chris Mannix (Walton Goggins), who claims to be the town's imminent sheriff, joins later. They and their driver, O.B. Jackson (James Parks), seek shelter at a haberdashery already occupied by Señor Bob (Demián Bichir), Oswaldo Mobray (Tim Roth), Joe Gage (Michael Madsen), and former Confederate General Sanford Smithers (Bruce Dern). Marquis smells something fishy, and John is sure that at least one man there plans to either help Daisy escape or claim the bounty himself.

Ride the Pink Horse (1947)

For a moment, I expected a quirky western. As it is, I barely understand where the title came from. A character does ride an allegedly pink carousel horse (we can't tell in black and white), but that's not important to the plot, and any symbolism in it is lost on me. Maybe the filmmakers just wanted something that didn't sound like a cookie-cutter noir.

Ex-soldier "Lucky" Gagin (Robert Montgomery, also directing) comes to the New Mexican border town of San Pablo to confront Frank Hugo (Fred Clark), a mob boss who ordered the killing of Gagin's friend "Shorty" over a blackmailing. Gagin's lucky charm is his pistol, but he wants to try his own hand at blackmail rather than vengeful murder. FBI Agent Retz (Art Smith), who's kept tabs on both Gagin and Hugo, advises against this, but given Hugo's historical pull with the government, Gagin doesn't readily trust Retz. Hugo's moll, Marjorie (Andrea King), asks Gagin to raise the ransom and cut her in, but he's not sure what to make of her either.

Police Story (1985)

Had I realized I was about to see another action flick, I would not have put this next on my queue. Still, it's not all that similar. No sci-fi here, just the slightly off physics of Jackie Chan.

Hong Kong policeman Chan Ka-Kui (Chan) gets some positive attention for arresting crime lord Chu Tao (Chor Yuen), but convicting him will be tough. Ka-Kui is assigned to guard a reluctant witness, Chu's secretary (Brigitte Lin), who manages to slip away, disbelieving his claims of danger. A subplot involves his girlfriend (Maggie Cheung) getting the wrong idea about the two of them. Not content to beat the charges, Chu arranges to frame Ka-Kui for murder. Chief Inspector Raymond Li (Lam Kwok-Hung) trusts Ka-Kui but is too by-the-book to forgo an arrest, so Ka-Kui runs off to deal with matters irregularly.