Unappreciated masterpieces?

Doctor Strange · Apr 7, 2017

I think it's somewhat underrated too - though I must admit I'm no expert on The Shadow. Agreed that it's no masterpiece, but it's one of better comics/pulps-adapted films that followed in the wake of the success of the 1989 Batman (along with The Rocketeer, Dick Tracy, The Phantom, etc.) The production design and costumes are lovely - Miller has never looked better - and Alec Baldwin's good. And there's an interesting early film role for Ian McKellen.

To add a very late comment to the Road To Perdition discussion, if you think seeing Daniel Craig as Connor is strange, check out Infamous - the other film about Truman Capote and Harper Lee and the writing of "In Cold Blood". Craig plays one of the killers!

(I like both Infamous and Capote equally - they make a fascinating compare/contrast - though there's no question Phillip Seymour Hoffman's Oscar-winning performance goes deeper than Toby Jones' more broadly caricatured take on Capote. All the different takes on the same characters - Sandra Bullock vs. Catherine Keener as Lee, Jeff Daniels vs. Chris Cooper as the sheriff, etc. - are fascinating.)

Blackthorn · Apr 7, 2017

PeterGunnLives said:
While I wouldn't call it a masterpiece, I think "The Shadow," with Alec Baldwin and Penelope Ann Miller, should have gotten more recognition. It was the way I had always pictured that universe in my mind when listening to the radio program and reading the pulp stories. The movie really brought it all to life for me. But then, I'm a sucker for style over substance.

I loved that movie, too, and still watch it once a year. I had hoped there would be sequels. As I walked by my bookshelf earlier this week I saw that I still have 7 paperbacks of The Shadow, from when I was a kid in the sixties. I keep them out of sentimentality. That was a fun movie!

Blackthorn · Jun 17, 2017

In Bruges
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0780536/?ref_=nv_sr_1

The first time I saw it, I thought it had great scenery and a few funny lines. Since then I've seen it twice more, and I'm blown away by the writing and characterization. It goes from side-splitting comedy to heartbreak in quick succession, and then back again, time after time. I love how they have Colin Farrell as a complete imbecile beside Brendan Glesson's intellectual hit man. There is a lot more depth in the movie that can only be seen by viewing several times. And the movie has never gotten the respect that it deserves, therefor it's...an unappreciated masterpiece.

Seb Lucas · Jun 18, 2017

LizzieMaine said:
For a recent movie depicting the Era the way I like to see it depicted, I'm fond of "Me And Orson Welles," from 2008. It's not so much a self-conscious masterpiece -- despite its subject, who was the unquestioned king of Self-Conscious Masterpieces -- so much as it's a story of the people who came together to create the vibrant New York experimental theatre movement of the late 1930s. Its evocation of that precise moment in time is about as flawless as a movie is capable of generating, and Christian MacKay as Welles is absolutely dead-on perfect in his portrayal of the Boy Wonder's sweeping hubris. There's a simple, rather corny love story that drives the basic plot, but the real fun of the picture is seeing how Welles's own infinite gravitational field swallows up anyone and everything in his path.

For a wonderful double-feature, watch this along with "Ed Wood," with Johnny Depp as the Bizarro Orson Welles --- whose impact on his circle and whose absolute dedication to his own genius is precisely that of Welles himself, albeit in a Woolworth's bargain counter kind of way.

Totally agree. A wonderful film - MacKay effortlessly inhabits Welles: the voice, the genius, the energy, the narcissism. Extraordinary.

DNO · Jun 27, 2017

The Taking of Pelham One, Two, Three (1974)...the original one with Walter Matthau, Martin Balsam and Robert Shaw.

Benzadmiral · Jun 27, 2017

DNO said:
The Taking of Pelham One, Two, Three (1974)...the original one with Walter Matthau, Martin Balsam and Robert Shaw.

Saw it on TV some years ago, and was very pleasantly surprised by the mixture of humor and action. Seems to me I read the novel back in '73 or so, but don't recall any humor to speak of. (Could have been because I read it in the Reader's Digest Condensed Books, and they regularly reduced every author to the same basic style. Only one who ever defeated them was Glendon Swarthout with Bless the Beasts and Children.)

Fading Fast · Jun 30, 2017

"People Will Talk"

This is my favorite "not known" Cary Grant movie. He plays a doctor with an otherworldly demeanor and approach to medicine. He is a healer who cares about the patient holistically - way before that was common (as a theory, still not a practice today).

The movie has a light but spiritual touch that carries you along on its thin plot but wonderful vibe. You either buy in or not, but if you buy in - there's a Story-of-Christ echo that is warmly uplifting (says this agnostic who never practiced religion a day in his life) - it's a pleasant and inspiring tale.

N.B. It also has my first or second favorite movie model train scene ("Holiday Affair" is the other one).

Nathaniel Finley · Aug 5, 2017

LizzieMaine said:
For a recent movie depicting the Era the way I like to see it depicted, I'm fond of "Me And Orson Welles," from 2008. It's not so much a self-conscious masterpiece -- despite its subject, who was the unquestioned king of Self-Conscious Masterpieces -- so much as it's a story of the people who came together to create the vibrant New York experimental theatre movement of the late 1930s. Its evocation of that precise moment in time is about as flawless as a movie is capable of generating, and Christian MacKay as Welles is absolutely dead-on perfect in his portrayal of the Boy Wonder's sweeping hubris. There's a simple, rather corny love story that drives the basic plot, but the real fun of the picture is seeing how Welles's own infinite gravitational field swallows up anyone and everything in his path.

For a wonderful double-feature, watch this along with "Ed Wood," with Johnny Depp as the Bizarro Orson Welles --- whose impact on his circle and whose absolute dedication to his own genius is precisely that of Welles himself, albeit in a Woolworth's bargain counter kind of way.

Thank you so much for the "Me and Orson Welles" recommendation! I watched it with some friends a few nights back and it was magical! I didn't find the love story to be corny at all - it was really appropriate and actually added to the total ambience of the film. And I LOVED the hats!

This movie has inspired a fresh interest in Orson Welles for me - particularly his early work on the stage. Thanks again for mentioning this!

Blackthorn · Dec 4, 2017

Mr. Brooks, another one I can't believe I never heard of before:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0780571/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_18

MagsRags · Dec 28, 2017

I've been enjoying this thread - reminding me of many old favorites that I want to see again.

I have an under rated masterpiece to suggest: 1955's The Night of the Hunter. The only movie Charles Laughton ever directed - supposedly, he was so angry with the lack of success that he said he'd never direct again. A rare talkie performance by Lillian Gish, and Shelley Winters in a supporting role. Robert Mitchum is chilling as the psychopathic preacher with L-O-V-E tattooed on the knuckles of one hand and H-A-T-E on the other: "You see these fingers, dear hearts? These fingers has veins that run straight to the soul of man. The right hand, friends, the hand of love. Now watch, and I'll show you the story of life. Those fingers, dear hearts, is always a-warring and a-tugging, one agin t'other."

MagsRags · Dec 28, 2017

And as long as I brought up Charles Laughton, I nominate Hobson's Choice and Ruggles of Red Gap - neither movie is all well known as some of his commercial successes like Hunchback of Notre Dame or Mutiny on the Bounty, I love watching him in comic roles, and they are both wonderful movies IMO.

Inkstainedwretch · Dec 28, 2017

Inkstainedwretch said:
A movie I think richly deserves digital remastering and redistribution is "The Warlord"(1965). This film was a labor of love for its star, Charlton Heston. Based on the play "The Lovers," by Laslie Nielson, it tells the story of an 11th century Norman knight who is given a small fief to defend on the North Sea coast. The Normans are still intruding Christian conquerors while the locals still cling to paganism. He claims his droit du seigneur on a peasant girl's wedding night and won't give her up the next morning. Much mayhem ensues. The movie Heston envisioned was different because of interference from the head office, but what he managed to make was a small masterpiece. Very hard to find now. My dvd is Brazilian and a little fuzzy, but I watch it often.

Just a heads-up to inform you that "The Warlord" is available again. I went looking because my old Brazilian DVD literally fell apart because I had viewed it so much. The new edition is from the Universal Vault series. It's not completely remastered but the picture is much crisper than my old Brazilian copy, with more vibrant colors, though still a bit hazy in places. Well worth the money.

Blackthorn · Dec 28, 2017

Inside Man, with Denzel Washington is one I just saw recently. Very well done thriller, and I never heard of it when it was in the theaters.

Blackthorn · Jan 20, 2019

The Grifters, a phenomenal movie. But you really can't go wrong with writers like Donald Westlake and Jim Thompson

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0099703/reference

Blackthorn · Aug 23, 2019

Tonight I watched Man Who Loved Cat Dancing, one of. the best westerns I've ever seen.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0070363/reference

Seb Lucas · Aug 25, 2019

Session Eight - a psychological thriller set in a disused mental hospital. A bunch of workers show up at the huge creepy asylum to remove asbestos and gradually things grow sinister. It's not what you think.

Blackthorn · Dec 25, 2019

Eye of the Needle, with Donald Sutherland. I loved the book and they did a great job of keeping the spirit of it. A flawless movie, in my opinion. I won't be deleting it from my DVR.

Seb Lucas · Dec 25, 2019

Blackthorn said:
Eye of the Needle, with Donald Sutherland. I loved the book and they did a great job of keeping the spirit of it. A flawless movie, in my opinion. I won't be deleting it from my DVR.

Yeah, it was great. Always wanted one of those automatic knives.

Harp · Dec 26, 2019

LizzieMaine said:
For a recent movie depicting the Era the way I like to see it depicted, I'm fond of "Me And Orson Welles," from 2008. It's not so much a self-conscious masterpiece -- despite its subject, who was the unquestioned king of Self-Conscious Masterpieces -- so much as it's a story of the people who came together to create the vibrant New York experimental theatre movement of the late 1930s. Its evocation of that precise moment in time is about as flawless as a movie is capable of generating, and Christian MacKay as Welles is absolutely dead-on perfect in his portrayal of the Boy Wonder's sweeping hubris...

I caught this on a plane and was quite struck by MacKay's Welles portrayal. Always meant to see this again.

Blackthorn · Jan 4, 2020

I'd say Gorky Park belongs on this list.

Unappreciated masterpieces?

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