"Airport" (1970) From the video vault

This is a real guilty pleasure movie. Part inspiration for the 1980 spoof "Airplane!", this cheesy disaster movie is a fun way to waste two hours.

The good stuff

• The musical score by Alfred Newman* is a standout. This was his final work. He composed sublime film music (e.g. "How Green was my Valley", "The Hunchback of Notre Dame", "How the West was Won"). An amazing body of work (40 years).
• Universal's glamour-producer Ross Hunter makes the film look lush: Edith Head costumes, location filming, "Pillow Talk" inspired split screens.
• Jean Seberg (despite her real life traumas) looks amazing. 
• Dean Martin (channelling Matt Helm) as the pilot.
• cigar-chomping George Kennedy steals ever scene.
• Maureen Stapleton, playing the mad-bomber's wife, should have received best supporting actress, rather than Helen Hayes (annoying stowaway-granny).

* An incredible musical family. Sons,  David and Thomas, are prolific movie composers of this generation. Nephew is Randy Newman.

2014's top 10 TV drama series ... with some disappointments & guilty pleasures

This is one old fart's top 10:

1. Fargo
2. Happy Valley
3. The Missing (Season 1)
4. Penny Dreadful (Series 1)
5. Lilyhammer (Series 3)
6. Peaky Blinders (Season 2)
7. Babylon (Channel 4)
8. The Fall (Season 2)
9. House of Cards (Season 2)
10. Boardwalk Empire (final season/Season 5)

Honourable Mentions:

• Ray Donovan (Season 2)
• Broadchurch (Season 1, ITV)
• Orphan Black (Season 2)
• Orange is the New Black (Season 2)
• The Newsroom (Season 3, I'm getting sick of Sorkin-based Twitter hatred)
• Ripper Street (Season 3)
• Masters of Sex (Season 2)
• True Detective (Series 1)

Disappointments (all second seasons):

• In the Flesh (BBC3)
• Banshee
• Bates Motel
• The Following
• From Dusk to Dawn

Guilty Pleasures

• American Horror Story (Season 3 and 4)
• Gotham
• Marvel's Agents of Shield
• Da Vinci's Demons (Season 2)
• The Strain (Season 1)

My list of great train movies

I have omitted some obvious ones (like "North by North West" and "Murder on the Orient Express"). This list is purely personal.

• 1932 Von Sternberg's "Shanghai Express" 
• 1945  Deanna Durbin is terrific in "Lady on a Train"
• 1951 "Strangers on a Train" (you have to have at least one from Hitch)
• 1952 "The Narrow Margin" (the little B movie that could)
• 1963 "From Russia with Love" (just for Robert Shaw)
• 1964  Frankenheimer's superb "The Train"
• 1976 "Silver Streak" (great cast, great ending)
• 1978 "The First Great Train Robbery" (ingenious Michael Crichton period piece, helped by knockout cast and Jerry Goldsmith score)
• 2013 "Snowpiercer" (imaginative sci-fi, incredible sets)

Guilty pleasures:

• 1968 "The Wrecking Crew" (cheesy Matt Helm, saved by Sharon Tate's performance)
• 1971 "Live and Let Die" (not a great Bond, but has its moments)

Films I am ashamed of liking - guilty pleasures

Howard Hughes (reportedly) watched "Ice Station Zebra" over 100 times. I have never seen it... but here are my guilty pleasures, meaning I have watched them at least twice and wouldn't mind if they popped up on TV in the near future.
In no special order:
"Airport" (1970)
"Bring It On" (2000)
"The Wrecking Crew" (1968)
"The Maltese Bippy" (1969)
"10 Things I Hate About You" (1999)
"You Only Live Twice" (1967)
"Where Eagles Dare" (1968)
"16 Candles" (1984)
"A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum" (1966)
"Gypsy" (1962)
"What a Way to Go!" (1964)
"Goldmember" (2002) the first five minutes are priceless (Cruise, Britney, Spielberg, Spacey and Quincy Jones!)
"Carry On Screaming" (1968)
"Clueless" (1995)
"The Holiday" (2006) great cast plus Eli Wallach as Hollywood yoda

any Universal Frankenstein/Dracula/Wolfman/Mummy movie before 1940

(this is a work in progress)

Can "Orphan Black" get any better?

How can you top the chop-the-tail-off-the-human scene in Episode 7? (Why would you want a tail, anyway? When would you get the chance to wag it? Kinky, Olivier)
Can this show get any better?

• Tatiana Maslany's tour de force performances - streetwise Sarah, manic but loyal Alison, intellectual hipster Cosima, "pro-clone" Rachel, tortured spoon-sucking psycho Helena .....
• The imaginative art direction, photography
• Cool, atmospheric musical score.
• The crap-I-didn't-see-that-one-coming plot twists.
• Stalwart hustler Felix (Jordan Gavaris) playing every woman's dream camp friend. Seeing him have to dress "suburban" to visit Alison was a hoot.
• Maria ("The Tudors", "Dexter") Doyle Kennedy's passionate, gutsy foster mum with a secret.
• sinister Dr Leekie (Matt Frewer, I remember him from eighties cult TV "Max Headroom")

How can Season 2 top this? Or just maintain the quality?
Best guilty pleasure TV series of 2013?

PS Hope Tatiana's agent negotiated appropriate salary for her multiple roles.

This week's guilty pleasure: "Behind the Candelabra" Liberace biopic review

Released theatrically to the rest of the world, this HBO movie is fantastic. Michael Douglas is a revelation as the flamboyant but savvy showman, Matt Damon playing Liberace's lover (one of Steven Soderbergh's go-to actors) is always good and Rob Lowe, as the creepy plastic surgeon (who isn't a great advertisement for his own work), is worth the price of admission.
Clever casting - getting Debbie Reynolds as Li's mom, Frances. Nice to see Scott Bakula and Dan Aykroyd also.
Why the major studio's turned this one down is a puzzlement. Some steamy sex scenes, juicy dialogue, great 1970/80's Vegas decor and fancy keyboard work from Mr Douglas made it a diverting two hours. Let's hear it for HBO!

From the Video Vault of Forgotten Films: "The Wrecking Crew" 1968 A guilty pleasure movie

This is a time capsule movie for the late sixties. Released at the end of 1968, this was the final of the Matt Helm spy spoof series, although the end credits promise that Matt will return in "The Ravagers". Dino got bored and it shows. He looks like he is going through the motions. He was in his fifties and looks silly with Sharon Tate (nearly 30 years younger). Sharon had great comedic talent as well as stunning looks. A few months later the Manson tribe came along. But I don't want to dwell on this.
Sharon Tate plays a klutzy agent (similar to Stella Stevens role in the first movie in the franchise). "The Silencers" (1966) was the best, but that's not saying much. Phil Karlson directed both.

The plot involves a gold heist in Denmark (looking a lot like California and the backlot), but you don't need to worry about that. Basically Dean Martin cruises (sleepwalks?) through the movie on the trail of his glamorous costars (Tina Louis - Ginger from "Gilligan's Island", Nancy Kwan (playing the evil Yu Rang, best intentional joke in the movie) and the statuesque Elke Sommer (nearly falling out of her low cut white gown).
The villain, Nigel Green, is English, of course (a prerequisite for this sort of movie).
Remember when car scenes used back projection? Matt and his boss are jiggling up and down in the back seat of a Lincoln like they're in a bouncy castle. The crew must have got carried away, jiggling the mock up car on the springboard. Perhaps Dino or John Larch was rude to them on set.

The musical score is integral to the fun. Composer Hugo Montenegro wrote infectious themes ("I Dream of Jeannie", "The Partridge Family", the third Matt Helm movie "The Ambushers"). His score is very Sergio Mendez and Brazil 66. The opening title song "House of Seven Joys" written by pros Mack David and Frank DeVol is worth seeing the movie for (complementing Wayne Fitzgerald's very sixties/split screens opening titles). The whole of 1968 comes flooding back us babyboomers. The lyrics are a worry, though: "Ah so, very, very nice".
Titles flash across the screen to show this is a groovy movie: "DENMARK.....NOW!!!!"  "ANOTHER PART OF U.S. ...... NOW!!!"
Bruce Lee was used as the karate adviser and a very young Chuck Norris has a walk-on part in the House of 7 Joys scene (blink and you'll miss him).
The 'modern' technology is fun (the portable helicopter is a rip-off of Little Nelly in "You Only Live Twice"), the villains' communication system is all giant TV screens, camera placed seemingly everywhere, suitcase size backpacks with walkie-talkies to communicate with Count Orsini.
The set design is gaudy and kitsch (look for the fake grass that rolls back in the count's sumptuous mansion),
Matt photographs models dressed in outlandish costumes (looks like the same designer as the "Springtime for Hitler" number). It is hard to look lascivious in a turtle neck with a bit of a paunch.
This movie is a guilty pleasure delight.

P.S. Play the drinking game while watching:
Dino ogling females, using a sexist pun = 1 sip
Dino mentioning booze = 1 sip
Dino looking bored = 2 sips

Why is this post so popular in Poland? Spammers? Or connoisseurs of crap movies?

Banshee Season 1, episode 8, review

Most fun l've had since Dexter Season 7 finished. You look up "Guilty pleasure" in the dictionary, you get Banshee. Starting with the obligatory sex scene, but this was edited into a marathon, when does this guy find the time to be a sheriff? The pastoral Amish scenes were straight out of Witness. Loved the scene when Proctor goes bat shit with his dad. We had the longest fight scene in television history, definitely when 'woman-on-Russian mafia-henchman' is entered into the equation. Excuse the typing, I'm on my crappy tablet.
The Amish nymphet in the shower was pushing it a bit, but this is Cinemax.
There was more plot and revelations in this episode than you get in 3 eps. Tune in just for the epic fight scene. Full marks to the sound editor.
A great episode, but I miss the gay Asian hacker accomplice.
Update, just watched episode 9. It just gets better! Last ep of season approaches.

70's TV Guilty Pleasures (10 of the best)

Not The Brady Bunch, thought it was naff. Liked the two sendup movies, though.
I did watch The Partridge Family (for Susan Dey). You must bear in mind I was between the ages of 14 and 23 in the seventies.  Here we go, in order of what I would most desperately like to see again ....

U.S. 70's shows

1. Columbo (Where do I start? I think the first few seasons are my favourite) "Er....just one more thing....." 
2. The Name of the Game (glossy Universal telemovies with rotating stars, I'm also a sucker for great opening titles/theme music)
3. Kolchak: The Night Stalker
4. Night Gallery patchy Universal horror anthology series with great guest stars and soon to be famous directors (Steven Spielberg)
5. Search (Probe was the pilot movie, loved the Dominic Frontiere theme music and the changing stars format)
6. Rich Man, Poor Man mini-series (polished Universal production)
7. Laugh In (1968-1973)
8. MacMillan and Wife (Universal again, John Schuck really annoyed me!)
9. Banacek (Cool Peppard rowing down the Charles River)
10. The Snoop Sisters (shortlived but not forgotten, those old birds were good)

British 70's shows

1. Family at War  must-see wartime melodrama
2. The Sandbaggers  I preferred this to Callan, but my wife will kill me for saying such sacrilege.
3. Bouquet of Barbed Wire  miniseries, pretty raunchy, if I remember.
4. Journey to the Unknown   another horror anthology series, creepy introductory whistling music. I know it finished in 1969 but I didn't see it until 1970, it's my blog, it wouldn't be the first time the truth has been 'bent' on the Internet.
5. Thriller (from the creator of The Avengers, Brian Clemens)
6. The Persuaders big budget Lew Grade series, Tony Curtis was great, so were the cars.
7. Doctor in the House (loved Professor Loftus)
8. Morecambe & Wise (Brit gold)
9. Doctor Who (Jon Pertwee episodes)
10. Doctor Who (Tom Baker episodes)

MGM Movies - my guilty pleasures

Image Copyright MGM corporation/fanpop.com

I am starting at 1959 (I was around 4 years old, old enough to remember a movie, I reckon).

1959  The World, the Flesh and the Devil post apocalypse  New York - stunning street scenes
1960  The Time Machine George Pal triumph, creepy Morlocks, loads of fun; Village of the Damned you will never look at fair haired kids the same way
1961  Atlantis, the Lost Continent George Pal again
1962  How the West was Won incredible cast, MGM pulled all the stops out, James Stewart segment the best, Alfred Newman's kick ass score is perfect
1963  The V.I.P.s   glossy crap but compelling, a young Maggie Smith steals the picture from Liz and Dick; The Haunting (see my post "Films that scared the shit out of me"; The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm (George Pal must have had a BIG office at MGM)
1964  The Seven Faces of Dr Lao Tony Randall has a field day so does William Tuttle (make-up chief)
1965  The Loved One (a brave try, crazy cast) ; The Hill (Sean Connery and Sidney Lumet - very tough movie)
1966  Mr Buddwing (You can't beat a good amnesiac plot.)
1967  The Dirty Dozen  Everything works in this action movie.
1968  Hot Millions (nifty caper movie with Maggie Smith and Peter Ustinov); The Legend of Lylah Clare (over the top Hollywood celebrities and secrets, campy fun)
1969  Where Eagles Dare (can be watched numerous times, much to enjoy); The Maltese Bippy (forgive me)
1970  Kelly's Heroes (I was desperate); Dark Shadows (It was released as House of Dark Shadows in Australia); Get Carter gritty Brit thriller, one of the first <R> movies I saw
1971  The Boy Friend (Ken Russell, Twiggy, Max Adrian, Glenda Jackson - an absolute delight); Shaft (blaxploitation goes mainstream); Pretty Maids All in a Row (delightfully sleazy Roger Vadim black comedy with Rock Hudson as the murderer)
1972  nil
1973  Westworld (Michael Crichton in top form, in 1973, this was so fresh and inventive - much copied - Yul Brynner as robot gunslinger, truly inspirational)
1974  nil
1975  The Wind and the Lion (John Milius's most consistent movie, knockout cast - Sean Connery, Candice Bergen, John Huston, love Brian Keith as Teddy Roosevelt) co-produced with Columbia
1976-1980  it's embarrassing, the Lion didn't roar much
1981  Clash of the Titans lots to like here, check out the Gods on Olympus (Larry, Maggy and Ursula), avoid the remake.
1982 Victor/Victoria - everything works in this film. Robert Preston, what a star. That voice!
1983 A Christmas Story Amazingly none of the studio wanted to touch this story about a kid wishing for a BB gun that is now a seasonal classic. Bob Clark had just directed teen sex comedy Porky's. Talk about a change in pace! Apparently Jack Nicholson was interested in the father part. Darren McGavin is incredible though - warm, grumpy and flawed (like most dads).

Disney movies - guilty pleasures

Copyright The Walt Disney Company/wallsave.com

As I was born in 1956, I will start when I can first remember seeing a Disney film.....

1959  Darby O'Gill and the Little People   probably saw it in 1960.
The banshees' Death Coach scared the crap out of me. Would have made a good ride ("E" ticket at Disneyland). They don't use that term anymore. Also pre-007 Connery was on board.
1961  One Hundred and One Dalmatians - liked Cruella's mansion art design
The Parent Trap the thing I most remember was the incredible queues of cars outside the drive-in to see this (this was huge in Australia) also seeing TWO Hayley Mills (split screen was movie magic). Few years later TV ripped this off with The Patty Duke Show (another guilty pleasure .... maybe another post?)
1962  In Search of the Castaways  I remember a crazy avalanche (?) scene set in New Zealand, wildly imaginative, typical Disney class, superb art direction/special effects. Hayley Mills meets Jules Verne.
1963  The Sword in the Stone You can't beat a classic story. Madame Mim is a dead ringer for a former teaching colleague (but I digress)
1964  Not Mary Poppins too long (140 mins) for kids, well I got a wriggly bum.
1965-1969 - nothing of interest to me
1970  The Boatniks only because of Phil Silvers and Joe E. Ross
1971  Bedknobs and Broomsticks only because of Angela Lansbury (117 mins, why were Disney movies so long?)
1972 -1976  to me, Disney was uncool
1977  The Rescuers;  Freaky Friday a return to form (we won't mention Pete's Dragon....)
1978  Candleshoe  Jodie Foster (again) with a great Brit cast.
1979  The Black Hole (I think I was the only one in the cinema) a brave try, great John Barry score but the ending....??!!
1980  Not Popeye  ...R.I.P.   Robert Altman directed this!!
1981  Dragonslayer - slow to develop, but a stunning film, the dragon will knock yer socks off, Sir Ralph Richardson, Alex North musical score. Highly recommended.
1982  Tron - ahead of its time, staggering design but a bit of a bore.
1983  Something Wicked This Way Comes - flawed masterpiece, not a crowd pleaser, very atmospheric, creepy Jonathan Pryce and tarantulas.
1984  Splash - finally Disney gets a hit! Forget about The Black Cauldron (has its moments, but read the three books, Lloyd Alexander's The Prydain Chronicles)
1989  The Little Mermaid using Alan Menken and Howard Ashman really paid off for Disney
1996  The Hunchback of Notre Dame superb Alan Menken/Stephen Schwartz score, too dark for kids
1997  Hercules wondrous Menken/Zippel score, reminiscent of Little Shop of Horrors, cool gospel singers/Greek chorus, James Woods as Hades. Perfect
2001  Spirited Away produced by Studio Ghibli, English version is very respectful though.
2004  The Lion King 1 and a half  Nathan Lane is hilarious, lovely movie send-ups; Howl's Moving Castle Studio Ghibli again but I found the Japanese version hazy, confusing in parts, talented voice cast - Billy Crystal, Lauren Bacall, Christian Bale
2005  Sky High fun for adults and kids - the Disney formula (entertainment on two levels)
2007  Enchanted the ending drops the ball but the rest is smart and a delightful 'Disney princess' tribute. Amy Adams is such a versatile actress. Alan Menken/Stephen Schwartz score is a delight.

Guilty pleasures movies from United Artists (apart from James Bond)

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I am starting at 1960 (I was 4 years old, old enough to remember a movie, I reckon).

1960  The Magnificent Seven (itself, a ripoff of Kurosawa's The Seven Samurai) which sporned A Bug's Life and The Three Amigos
1961  One, Two, Three (Billy Wilder, James Cagney - enough said)
1962  The Road to Hong Kong (last road movie, dated but still fun, great final gag)
1963  Call Me Bwana (nice link with From Russia With Love - sniper in Istanbul scene) Cool score, hammy Hope
1964  Kiss Me Stupid (Billy Wilder again); Woman of Straw (classy production, Basil Dearden directed, Connery was really busy in 1964 - this plus Marnie and two Bond movies)
1965  The Satan Bug (killer virus rolling around in a helicopter over L.A.; What's New Pussycat (Woody Allen, Peter O'Toole plus 60's cool)
1966  A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (Richard Lester jazzes up Sondheim musical, great cast)
1967  Billion Dollar Brain (Ken Russell doing a Harry Palmer movie! He killed the franchise, but this is my favourite. Glorious Richard Rodney Bennett score); In the Heat of the Night (stands up very well today, Poitier + Steiger, steamy small town atmosphere, sublime blues score.

1968  The Night They Raided Minsky's (Jason Robards paired with Norman Wisdom? Bert Lahr died during the filming
1969  Alice's Restaurant Late 60's time capsule, Arthur Penn had previously directed Bonnie & Clyde, cult movie with a capital C.
1970  The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (Billy Wilder, Scottish scenery, Queen Victoria and Irene Handl as Mrs Hudson, Christopher Lee as Mycroft Holmes - what more do you want?)
1971  Mrs Polifax - Spy (just for the cast: Rosalind Russell, Darren McGavin); The Hospital (Paddy Chayevsky script, George C. Scott, Diana Rigg, very black comedy
1972 Hickey and Boggs (reuniting I Spy duo, Bill Cosby and Robert Culp)
1973 Theatre of Blood (enormous fun with Vincent Price topping theatre critics, gruesome Shakespeare-themed murders)
1974  Juggernaut (Richard Lester's nifty British thriller on board luxury liner riddled with bombs)
1975  Rollerball
1976  Network (knockout script, Faye Dunaway has never been better; Carrie (great Stephen King adaptation thanks to De Palma)
1977  Annie Hall ("...la de dah!")
1978  Invasion of the Body Snatchers (love the ending, it's rude to point)
1979  The (First) Great Train Robbery (Victorian era caper movie, Connery, Sutherland, rousing Jerry Goldsmith score - recommended)
1980  The Final Countdown (nothing to do with the crap Europe song)
1981  nil
1982  The Secret of Nimh (the book is MUCH better)
1983  War Games (teenage Matthew Broderick battles a super computer, "Shall we play....?)
1984  To Live and Die in L.A. (French Connection director, flashy but empty, but I like the title)

Paramount movies - my guilty pleasures - no classics here

Image Copyright Paramount Pictures/media.photobucket.com

1961  The Ladies' Man (only for the knockout multi-level set)
1962  nil
1963  The Nutty Professor (Jerry Lewis's best solo effort - love "Buddy Love")
1964  The Carpetbaggers (delightful trashy - cross reference with The Aviator)
The Fall of the Roman Empire - Samuel Bronson productions were over-the-top historical epics with fat budgets
Seven Days in May  this is a classic, couldn't resist putting it in - haven't seen it in decades
1965  Crack in the World  great British sci-fi
1966  Assault on a Queen (only for the cool 'big band' musical score, Sinatra misfire)
1967  Oh Dad, Poor Dad, Mama's Hung You in the Closet and I'm Feeling So Sad  funniest thing in this movie is the title, the title was the theme song as well - so bad, you watch it with your mouth wide open.
1968  Barbarella .... of course, "my pretty-pretty..."   just for the opening titles, those snapping dolls and the origin of Duran Duran.
Danger: Diabolik  John Phillip Law again. Amazing 60's production design. Recommended.
No Way to Treat a Lady  Rod Steiger always plays the best nutjob.

1969  True Grit  "Fill your hands, you sonofabitch!"
The Italian Job - makes you want to buy a mini, plus Noel Coward and Benny Hill, "I like 'em big"
1970  W.U.S.A. great cast and New Orleans setting, Catch 22 (brave film adaptation, incredible cast)
1971  Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory  Gene Wilder as Wonka nails it.
1972  Play it Again, Sam  great Woody Allen romance, priceless ending
1973  Don't Look Now dig the dwarf in the red poncho, incredibly creepy Venice locale
1974  The Parallax View (great Warren Beatty political thriller) Chinatown one of those films you could watch countless times and get more out of it .... it is a classic but it's my blog and I want to include it!
1975  The Day of the Locust (30's L.A.); Three Days of the Condor (Faye Dunaway, again)
1976  Marathon Man  "Is it safe??"  The Last Tycoon another 30's Hollywood setting, great De Niro performance;  The Big Bus funny disaster movie send-up
1977  Looking for Mr Goodbar;  Black Sunday (chalk and cheese)
1978  Heaven Can Wait  Dyan Cannon is priceless in this.... plus James Mason as an angel!
1979  The Warriors  nasty street gangs, it ain't West Side Story
1980  Airplane!  see Airport 75 first for added enjoyment
1981  Mommie Dearest ...say no more, Faye Dunaway=camp classic
1982  48 Hrs  Remember when Eddie Murphy made good movies?
1983  Trading Places  Remember when Eddie Murphy made good movies? Jamie Lee Curtis = great rack
1984  Top Secret! (from creators of Airplane!)
1985  Young Sherlock Holmes  Don't miss the quick scene after the closing credits!
1986  Ferris Bueller's Day Off   John Hughes at his best.
1987  The Untouchables  3 reasons: De Palma's direction of the baby carriage scene; Sean Connery; Ennio Morricone's sublime music

Guilty Pleasures - 20th Century Fox Films

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1959  Journey to the Centre of the Earth (I saw it when I was four in 1960, giant lizards freaked me out)
1960  The Lost World (crap adaptation, but Claude Rains is fun)
1961  The Innocents (creepy kids and Deborah Kerr, chilling and dripping with atmosphere - must read the Henry James story.
1962  The Longest Day gargantuan cast, a who's who of 60's stars. Beach landing scenes are truly spectacular (without CGI)
1963  Move Over, Darling (Doris Day in the role planned for Marilyn Monroe) Avoided Cleopatra

1964  What A Way To Go (overblown but check out the cast of leading men for Shirley MacLaine (Dick Van Dyke, Dean Martin, Paul Newman, Robert Mitchum, Gene Kelly - last two have the best segments - "A Lush Budgett Production" and 30's musicals send-up. Looks gorgeous, Edith Head went berserk)

1965  Flight of the Phoenix (compelling, have plenty of water on hand while watching this one)
Von Ryan's Express (Sinatra with a machine gun, Trevor Howard bristling) Omitted The Sound of Music (though I do like the concert scene finale)

1966  Fantastic Voyage inspired and imaginative, it bowled me over
Modesty Blaise utterly naff spy/ pop art mess, Dirk Bogarde is so camp, he makes Kenneth Williams look like the Duke - definitely a curiosity piece. Great music.
1966  How to Steal a Million stylish caper movie good chemistry between Audrey Hepburn and Peter O'Toole.
1966 was the zenith of spy movies, ever studio wanted to get on the Bond bandwagon. United Artists had Bond and Harry Palmer. Columbia had Matt Helm. MGM had The Man from U.N.C.L.E.  The Italian studios did some crap rip offs. Fox had Our Man Flint. James Coburn was cool, loved Lee J. Cobb's phone ring tone).
1967  Caprice (more spylarks). Doris Day trying to look mod, Richard Harris looking embarrassed, Ray Walston a cross dressing villain. I thought this was cool, but I was 11.)
1967  In Like Flint was a terrible Derek Flint sequel, but I liked the Caribbean locale and the Jerry Goldsmith score.
1968  The Boston Strangler  Everybody wanted to used split screens in movies by the late 60's. They work well. Tony Curtis is really good.
1969  Hello Dolly (Bye, bye budget), Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (first movie I saw without my parents)
1970  M*A*S*H (I never tire of this film, hilarious as well as searing, perfect movie, perfect cast)
Patton (1970 was certain a good year for Fox - let's forget Myra Breckinridge)
1971  The French Connection (best NYC chase sequence EVER)
1972  The Other (little Gothic gem, from the director of To Kill A Mockingbird)
Sleuth ....Class with a Capital C....avoid remake a decade later, awful.
1973  The Legend of Hell House (The Haunting, 1963, is a better version though)
1974  The Three Musketeers stellar cast, Richard Lester nails it. No wonder there were sequels.
Young Frankenstein (so many catch-phrases, so much to like, done with affection to the Universal 30's movies)
1975  Race with the Devil (compelling fluff, great car stunts)
1976  Silver Streak I love train movies, plus there's Gene Wilder and Patrick McGoohan (Richard Pryor was an acquired taste)
1977  High Anxiety (watch it just for Mel Brooks's lounge singer act...."Oooo... -xiety....remember, be good to your parents...")
1978  The Fury (Brian De Palma, great finale), The Boys from Brazil (an evil Gregory Peck!)
1979  the wise and sweet natured, Breaking Away; the ground breaking Alien (plus Sigourney Weaver in little knickers)
1980  All That Jazz (a bit of a wank, but the Broadway musical scenes are good, predating Smash).
1981  Southern Comfort (think Deliverance, Walter Hill is a good director, clever title), Eyewitness (same team as Breaking Away)
1982  The Verdict (flawless Sidney Lumet film, I really miss James Mason.)
1983  To Be or Not To Be (haven't seen the Jack Benny original yet, on my to-do list)
1984  The Flamingo Kid cute Matt Dillon movie with the ever-reliable Hector Elizondo

Guilty pleasures - Universal Studios films

This is an old family photo, but I got sick of citing Copyright

I am starting at 1960 (I was 4 years old, old enough to remember a movie, I reckon).

• 1960 Midnight Lace; Spartacus (chalk and cheese)
• 1961 Curse of the Werewolf (Hammer horror, with a young, but still creepy, Oliver Reed) 
• 1962 Cape Fear; That Touch of Mink (bleak black&white nail-biter meets glossy Eastmancolor fluff)
• 1963 40 Pounds of Trouble (as a kid I loved the Disneyland locations); The Birds (knockout phone booth scene)
• 1964 The Chalk Garden (had a crush on Hayley Mills); Charade (great Mancini score)
• 1965 The Warlord (Chuck Heston); I Saw What You Did (creepy little William Castle B flick)
• 1966 Gambit (lots of caper movies in the mid 60's), Blindfold (liked the bayou setting)
• 1967 Thoroughly Modern Millie (fun, but too long)
• 1968 Coogan's Bluff (Clint Eastwood, on the verge of superstardom)
• 1969 Colossus, The Forbin Project (taut sci-fi sleeper about a supercomputer - years before War Games)
• 1970 Airport (cheesy but compelling)
• 1971 The Andromeda Strain (great start, stunning production design, but God, it is so talky; Play Misty For Me (Clint's first time as director - has he ever directed a crap movie, even Hereafter?)
• 1972 Frenzy (Hitchcock back in London and a return to form - rape screen in dating agency office is a worry "....Lovely.....Lovely" - chills the bones)
• 1973 American Graffiti;  Day of the Jackal; The Sting (what a year)
• 1974 Earthquake (saw it in "Sensurround", basically big speakers under the seats so they seemed to shudder in seismic scenes.
• 1975 Jaws (of course)
• 1976 The Seven-Per-Cent-Solution (what a cast, love to see it again)
• 1977 The Last Remake of Beau Geste (very patchy, some good sight gags)
• 1978 National Lampoon's Animal House ("To-ga, To-ga, To-ga!")
• 1979 Dracula; The Seduction of Joe Tynan
• 1980 Coal Miner's Daughter; The Blues Brothers
• 1981 Ghost Story (the book's better, but look at the stars: Fred Astaire, Douglas Fairbanks Jr, Melvyn Douglas, John Houseman, Patricia Neal - like Cocoon does Horror)                                        On Golden Pond (another movie full of old fogeys - Fonda and Hepburn)
• 1982 The Thing (holds up very well compared with recent remake, mind-blowing Rob Bottin make-up)
• 1983 Scarface (boffo finale, but 170 minutes ????)
• 1984 Sixteen Candles (this film and Ferris Bueller's Day Off are John Hughes' best films - delightful throughout, great ensemble cast, great score - as you would expect in a John Hughes flick)
• 1985 The Breakfast Club (this is No3, Simple Minds music helps)

Warner Bros. movies - guilty pleasures

I will start from 1960, when I was four because I reckon from that age you can absorb and remember the film.

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• 1960 Ocean's Eleven; The Sundowners (Robert Mitchum does a passable Aussie accent)
• 1961 Splendour in the Grass (Warren Beatty + Natalie Wood)
• 1962 Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?; The Music Man; Gypsy (a good year)
• 1963 Critic's Choice (Bob Hope&Lucille Ball)
• 1964 My Fair Lady
• 1965 The Great Race (too long but great production and superb Mancini score)
• 1966 Inside Daisy Clover; Harper/The Moving Target; Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (another good year
• 1967 Hotel, Bonnie and Clyde
• 1968 Bullitt
• 1969 The Illustrated Man
• 1970 Trog (cringeworthy, Joan Crawford must have been skint)
• 1971 Dirty Harry, The Omega Man (vengeful mutants to a lovely Ron Grainer score)
• 1972 What's Up Doc?
• 1973 The Last of Sheila; O Lucky Man
• 1974 Blazing Saddles; The Towering Inferno (both comedies)
• 1975 The Yakusa (check out the talent: Mitcham, Paul Schrader, Robert Towne, Sydney Pollack)
• 1976 The Ritz
• 1977 The Late Show
• 1978 Capricorn One; Movie Movie; Superman
• 1979 A Little Romance (really sweet movie, old ham Lawrence Olivier, a teenage Diane Lane)
• 1980 Altered States (Ken Russell doing what Ken Russell used to do, Paddy Chayefsky was pissed off with adaptation)
• 1981 Body Heat; Excalibur (2 dynamite movies)
• 1982 Blade Runner
• 1983 The Right Stuff (remember when Hollywood blockbusters could still be intelligent and not comic/video game driven?)
• 1984 Razorback (giant pig demolishes house, lounge TV showing Don and Bert's Wheel segment - great first scene, Mr Mulcahy)
• 1985 Spies Like Us;  Mishimi
• 1986 Little Shop of Horrors (Steve Martin is sublime, great film adaptation)
• 1987 The Lost Boys; Innerspace

"Guilty pleasure" movies - from Columbia Pictures

I will begin when I was four years old, old enough to remember seeing the movie.

1960 Guns of Navarone *
1961 Mysterious Island
1962 The Notorious Landlady *  (great use of "A Foggy Day In London Town")
1963 Bye Bye Birdie *
1964 The Long Ships
1965 Bunny Lake Is Missing * (gripping black and white movie)
1966 The Silencers * (Dino is no Sean Connery, but Stella Stevens works)
1967 The Ambushers * (cringe-worthy dialogue, but great fun)
1968 Funny Girl *
1969 The Wrecking Crew * (last Matt Helm film - Sharon Tate is a trick)
1970 The Owl and the Pussycat * (stunning opening titles and score)
1971 The Anderson Tapes (great use of split screens); Dollars (another heist movie, ultra-long chase scene)
1972 Butterflies Are Free (Goldie Hawn again!)
1973 Oklahoma Crude *
1974 The Golden Voyage Of Sinbad (all hail, Ray Harryhausen)
1975 Bite The Bullet; Stepford Wives (another deadheat, couldn't decide)
1976 Murder By Death (wet Neil Simon effort but knockout cast)
1977 The Deep * (John Barry does disco, Nolte and Bissett in the Caribbean)
1978 The Eyes Of Laura Mars *
1979 All That Jazz *
1980 Seems Like Old Times
1981 Stripes
1982 Tootsie (a near perfect film, so I suppose it isn't a "guilty pleasure")
1983 Blue Thunder
1984 Body Double (Brian DePalma doing another Hitchcock hommage)
1985 Fright Night (stands up well, better than remake, Roddy McDowell - nice touch)
1986 Stand By Me (best ever Stephen King adaptation)
1987 Hope And Glory (watch for John Boorman's son, Charley as crashed German pilot)



1988 Vibes (Cyndi Lauper, Jeff Goldblum, Peter Falk in Machu Picchu - what is not to like?)

* denotes musical score of note (in my humble opinion)

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Vibes images Copyright www.thereelbits.com

1968 A very good year

• My first year of high school, best year.
• First disco, okay it was a social in the school library but I thought I had made it.
• Best joke of 1968 :"Have you heard about the half Japanese, half black guy?  Every December 7, he attacks Pearl Bailey?" 
• Planet of the Apes, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Get Smart, Laugh In, The Monkees, Hair! and Barbarella of course.
• first taste of Kentucky Fried Chicken.
• listening to MacArthur Park on 3XY with the transistor under my pillow - our version of i-pod.
• end of year excursion to Point Leo Beach, a strangely erotic glimpse of Diane B.'s clump of underarm hair when we were digging in the sand. Innocence.

If you want a time capsule that says "1968 cringe", watch and listen to the music in the opening titles for "The Wrecking Crew" (Dean Martin spy spoof). Guilty pleasure. You Tube it.