it's not going to be easy. / Has it been, up 'til now?

One big winner here, a couple that were pretty good, and two that I wanted to like but could not.

Battle Hymn (1957) - "A remorseful bomber pilot turned minister rejoins for the Korean War."
Source: I borrowed the DVD from my parents' collection
I watched it because: Rock Hudson is an enigma, and this seemed like an intriguing choice for a "war movies" box set
IMDB: 6.4/10
Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: N/A% Audience: 20%
story: 3/10--just because something is based on a true story, which may have been inspirational in real life, it is not necessarily good entertainment
visuals: 6/10
costumes, hair & makeup: 6/10
acting: 4/10--standouts: Hudson (Col. Dean Hess) and Jock Mahoney (Maj. Frank Moore), who has a phenomenal singing voice

intangibles: 2/10--quite a heavy religious overtone. I can see shades of M*A*S*H here (the TV show, not the movie!), but also some preachy anti-war movies from various eras.
overall: 4.2/10

I would recommend this to: well, I am not sure that I would recommend it, but I would not tell anyone not to watch it (given the caveats above). It is just a little too hoodoo-voodoo for my taste.

Take Me Home (2011) - "Soon after Thom starts operating as an illegal taxi driver in New York City, Claire hires him to drive her to California after her estranged father suffers a heart attack."
Source: it has been recommended on Amazon Prime for as long as I have had it
I watched it because: I was in the mood for a comedy
IMDB: 6.8/10
Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: N/A% Audience: 67%
story: 9/10--not precisely a comedy? But SO good. Very real, very funny, touching, weird, fun...
visuals: 8.5/10
costumes, hair & makeup: 8.5/10--there was not a whole lot to work with, under the limits of the script, but these characters seemed to become different people as the film progressed
acting: 9/10--standout: Amber Jaeger was marvelous as Claire

intangibles: 9.5/10--I had a huge smile plastered on my face as the movie ended, and wanted to immediately start over and see it again. Since I started reviewing what I watch in a "serious" way, I find that less and less often am I truly swept up in what I am seeing. This grabbed me and would not let me go. I adored it.
overall: 8.9/10
I would recommend this to: anyone. In particular, those who have seen and liked One Night or This Is Where I Leave You

 

Raid on Rommel (1971) - "In 1942 Libya, a German-speaking British Intelligence officer uses former British POWs, some dressed in German uniforms, to fulfill a secret sabotage mission inside German-captured Tobruk."
Source: I borrowed the DVD from my parents' collection
I watched it because: Richard Burton - Hello
IMDB: 5.6/10
Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: N/A% Audience: 31%
story: 3/10--"based on true events" but not written from those accounts, this is 98 minutes of mayhem, 60-75% of which is in German. The copy that I saw has no subtitles. What German I do know is limited to what I picked up in grad school, troop and rank names, brief translations from Mein Kampf and the like. No help here. 
visuals: 5/10--dark
costumes, hair & makeup: 4/10--really hard to tell who was who and what was what, given the language problem, so there is no way of telling how realistic the uniforms were
acting: 4/10

intangibles: 3/10
overall: 3.8/10

I would recommend this to: not recommended

The High and the Mighty (1954) - "When a commercial airliner develops engine problems on a trans-Pacific flight and the pilot loses his nerve, it is up to the washed-up co-pilot Dan Roman to bring the plane in safely."
Source: I borrowed the DVD from my parents' collection
I watched it because: this is the "prequel" to Airplane! - and the forerunner to all the great disaster films of the 1970s (like The Towering Inferno)
IMDB: 6.8/10
Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: 33% Audience: 60%
story: 6/10--so yeah, it might be a little schmaltzy...
visuals: 7.5/10--pretty good effects for the period
costumes, hair & makeup: 6/10--it is a "locked door mystery," with everyone on the plane, so not much to sing about here
acting: 7.5/10--standout: this is one of the better John Wayne roles, as beleaguered first officer Dan Roman. He imbues his usual swagger with an uncertainty and vulnerability. His "speech" to the passengers is first rate.

intangibles: 6/10--a little heavy-handed with The Meaning there toward the end
Academy Award winner: Best Music, Score
Academy Award nominee:
• Best Director

• Best Supporting Actress--Jan Sterling (Sally McKee)

• Best Supporting Actress--Claire Trevor (May Holst)

• Best Film Editing

• Best Music, Original Song
overall: 6.6/10
I would recommend this to: fans of Wayne or the genre

The Barefoot Contessa (1954) - "This is the life of a Hollywood movie star named Maria, as told by writer/director Harry et. al, from being discovered in Madrid, Spain, until her funeral in Italy."
Source: recommended on Amazon Prime
I watched it because: I had heard of it but knew nothing, and the cast looked good
IMDB: 7.0/10
Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: 100% Audience: 72%
story: 7/10--it wanders a bit
visuals: 8/10--there are moments where it was so big and theatrical that it reminded me of Riefenstahl's Triumph of the Will and Welles' Citizen Kane, though in most ways it is a simple, tidy little movie
costumes, hair & makeup: 7.5/10
acting: 7/10--Humphrey Bogart (Harry Dawes) is magnificent

intangibles: 7/10--an odd, sweet, sad story
Academy Award winner: Best Supporting Actor--Edmond O'Brien
Academy Award nominee: Best Writing, Story and Screenplay
overall: 7.3/10
I would recommend this to: fans of these actors or of films about Italy

[the title quotation is from The Barefoot Contessa]