wisdom was never bought at so cheap a price

Average rating: 7.2

Unknown (2011) - "After a serious car accident in Berlin, Dr. Martin Harris (Liam Neeson) awakes to find his world in utter chaos. His wife (January Jones) does not recognize him; another man is using his identity, and mysterious assassins are hunting him. The authorities do not believe his claims, and he must go on the run alone. With an unlikely ally (Diane Kruger), Martin leaps into a perplexing situation that will force him to discover how far he is willing to go for the truth." 

length: 1h, 53m  |  source: my DVD  |  directed by Jaume Collet-Serra  |  why I watched: I'd seen it before (previously reviewed here) but couldn't recall a thing about it. Since I'd originally watched because one of my favorites (Sebastian Koch) is in it, I thought it important to see it again.

IMDb: 6.8/10  |  Rotten Tomatoes: 56% / 55% Audience  |  my IMDb: 5/10  |  MPAA: PG-13

tone & texture: somber, crisp & modern

notable quote: "I didn't forget everything. I remember how to kill you, asshole."

my notes: insanely convoluted and tied to convenient circumstances, this is an engaging suspense film until too many of the wheels come off. I wanted to like it. The cast is quite good. The story, though... it's like having a ball of yarn when you want a sweater.

    Roger Ebert's review is here, which is both structurally useful to explain my difficulties with this movie and also very funny. "At some point, a thriller has to play fair."

themes: identity, memory, chaos v. order

overall: only marginally recommended

 

Separate Tables (1958) - "Separate Tables unfolds within the faded dignity of a small seaside hotel in Bournemouth, where lives intersect not through grand events but through glances, pauses, and the fragile choreography of social survival. Each guest carries a private burden—regret, deception, loneliness, moral compromise—and the hotel becomes a kind of emotional terrarium, exposing how people construct identities to endure proximity with others. The film moves with restraint and compassion, revealing not explosive confrontations but slow unveilings, where humiliation and mercy coexist. Its emotional force lies in the quiet terror of being seen clearly, and the equally quiet grace of being accepted anyway." 

length: 1h, 40m  |  source: my DVD  |  directed by Delbert Mann  |  why I watched: this is a favorite, one that I seek out when I'm in an especially emotional mood (previously reviewed here)

IMDb: 7.3/10  |  Rotten Tomatoes: 68% / 76% Audience  |  my IMDb: 8/10  |  MPAA: Approved

tone & texture: intimate, classic Hollywood polish

notable quote: "It'll do."

my notes: this is a movie about getting older (and how that can differ from "growing up"). Many cast members—particularly Rita Hayworth, Deborah Kerr, Wendy Hiller, and especially the magnificent David Niven—give terrifically vulnerable performances. Wonderful food for thought.

Academy Awards winner: Best actor (Niven); Best Supporting Actress (Hiller). 5x nominee  

themes: loss, identity, found family

overall: strongly recommended

Red Cliff II {Chi bi: Jue zhan tian xia} (2009) - "The great coalition stands
at the edge of annihilation. After the uneasy alliance of southern warlords halts the northern juggernaut of Cao Cao, strategy rather than sheer force must decide the future of China. In Red Cliff II, alliances deepen, rivalries sharpen, and every decision—military or personal—ripples across the battlefield. As deception, sacrifice, and intellect converge in one of history’s most legendary campaigns, the film moves steadily toward the inferno of the Red Cliffs, where wind, fire, and human ingenuity combine to reshape an empire. John Woo completes his epic with spectacle grounded in character, turning the famous battle into a meditation on loyalty, trust, and the delicate art of winning without losing oneself." 

length: 2h, 22m  |  source: my DVD  |  directed by John Woo  |  why I watched: I wanted a suitable film for Chinese New Year, and I'd recently seen the first in the set (reviewed here)

IMDb: 7.5/10  |  Rotten Tomatoes: N/A% / 82% Audience  |  my IMDb: 8/10  |  MPAA: Not rated

tone & texture: epic, high-color/stylized

notable quote: "I was wrong to scold you."

my notes: I have seen (and own) the separately packaged, edited-for-length, American version of the two Red Cliff films. There is also an international version that pairs the two original films (released a year apart) in their original structure. Taken together, this is a great movie: big, bold, intricately detailed but not bogged in meaningless detail (and with no facile explication, like modern US cinema seems to require). 

    There is no wrong note in the casting. Tony Leung Chiu-wai (Zhou Yu) and Takeshi Kaneshiro (Zhuge Liang) are the obvious draws, and each is masterful in his role. Zhou Yu is action, power, and skill, while Zhuge Liang is planning, strategy, and some mysticism. The other main characters are terrific as well: Fengi Zhang as deluded, power-mad Cao Cao; Wei Zhao as ingenious, strong, curious Sun Shangxiang (and Chang Chen as her over-protective brother, Sun Quan); and Shidô Nakamura as the unintentionally funny, grumpy Gan Xing. 

themes: sacrifice

overall: highly recommended

Barbary Coast (1935) - "In Gold Rush–era San Francisco, the notorious Barbary Coast thrives as a glittering enclave of gambling, music, and carefully managed lawlessness. Newly arrived from the East, a sharp-witted woman finds herself drawn into this world of card tables and smoky saloons, where the city’s most powerful man presides with charm, menace, and absolute control. As fortunes rise and loyalties shift, the line between opportunity and exploitation grows thin. This film offers a brisk, stylish look at a moment when San Francisco balanced precariously between frontier chaos and the coming order of modern city life." 

length: 1h, 31m  |  source: TubiTV  |  directed by Howard Hawks  |  why I watched: I was in the mood for something lighter, after the last few choices, and Joel McCrea is always a favorite

IMDb: 6.7/10  |  Rotten Tomatoes: 92% / 50% Audience  |  my IMDb: 7/10  |  MPAA: Approved

tone & texture: cynical, noir shadows

notable quote: "I like it when life's hidden; it gives you a chance to imagine nice things. Nicer than they are."

my notes: not exactly a Western, definitely not a romance, certainly not a crime story, this movie has elements of each. Miriam Hopkins is terrific as the heroine, Mary Rutledge. She reveals an interesting mix of almost innocent beauty, backbone, and intelligence. Edward G. Robinson revels in portraying the dastardly Luis Chamalis just at the edge of mustachio-twirling nonsense. And Joel McCrea is lovely, guileless, poetic and stubborn as Jim Carmichael. 

themes: chaos v. order, identity, love

Academy Award nominee 

overall:  recommended

 

The Missing: Series 1 (2014) - "A family vacation in rural France turns into every parent’s nightmare when a young boy disappears without a trace. The Missing [series 1] follows the years-long search that consumes his father, moving between the immediate aftermath and the lingering consequences that ripple through everyone involved. Patient, tense, and emotionally raw, the series builds its mystery piece by piece, revealing how time, grief, and obsession reshape lives while the truth remains just out of reach." 

length: the series is made up of eight 60-minute episodes  |  source: my DVD  |  directed by Tom Shankland  |  why I watched: I am a fan of Tchéky Karyo's work, and his portrayal of the French detective Julien Baptiste is said to be terrific

IMDb: 8.1/10  |  Rotten Tomatoes: 93% / 90% Audience  |  my IMDb: 8/10 (based on episodes 1 and 2)  |  MPAA: TV-14

tone & texture: bleak, slow-build/atmospheric

my notes: I've only seen the first two episodes, so this review is incomplete. I'm watching the series in the old-fashioned way, one episode per week or two. It benefits from time in between, for sure. Less an action-thriller than a melancholy memory, it feels like a bruise that won't heal. So far, I know who the characters are, but not why they do what they do and certainly not how it's all going to turn out. It's easy to suspect nearly everyone of being somehow at fault. I intend to review this again when it's complete, before moving on to series 2.  

themes: memory

multiple awards wins and nominations including BAFTAs and Primetime Emmys 

overall:  recommended

 

[the title quotation is from Barbary Coast]