Favorite Movies of 1950

Most of the movies featured on this list are ones I haven't seen in years, but here's a very very brief countdown of my favorites of 1950. More of these lists to come.


10. Cinderella
One of the early Disney classics that's more part of my childhood than it is something I go out of my way to watch now, but still a lovely movie with beautiful animation.

9. In A Lonely Place

200 Items Or Less: The Vault Of Horror (1973)

A few thoughts: Sixth of the seven horror anthologies released by Amicus during the '60s through the '70s, and the only one that doesn't feature Peter Cushing. Uh oh, that can't be good. Well, it actually was good, though not quite on the level of several others. As could be expected, this movie has cool production design, atmospheric music, and plenty of fun tales to tell -- one of which is only about 5 minutes long and because of that doesn't even feel worth mentioning. The other four, however, are all pretty solid, if slightly unoriginal. There's a story about a man trying to find and kill his sister, one about an overly controlling husband, a story about a magic rope, and the final being about an artist (played by Tom Baker, the fourth Doctor Who) who finds revenge through his paintings. Since the segments are all so short, none of them ever overstay their welcome, and the concepts are solid enough to be entertaining even when they aren't they most mindblowingly unique. The framework is very basic, but it ties the whole thing together. Overall, this is a pretty standard anthology, but an entertaining one.

TV Alley: Rome

Rome

Created by John Milius, William J. MacDonald, and Bruno Heller
2005 - 2007

HBO had a brief lapse and good judgment during the mid 2000s where they prematurely cancelled several of what are now considered some of the best shows they've ever produced. One, the western drama Deadwood. Two, the supernatural dust bowl fantasy Carnivale. And three, this historical drama about politics and life in ancient Rome.

200 Items Or Less: The Old Dark House (1963)

A few thoughts: An unfortunate misfire from one of my favorite horror directors (William Castle) and my favorite horror studio (Hammer). Where do I start with this movie? I guess with the acting. Pretty much everyone in the cast didn't seem to know what the hell they were doing -- with the exception of Robert Morley, who actually got a few laughs out of me. Tom Poston, in particular, seemed like a very poor casting choice, too self-aware and "comedic", while still never being even remotely funny. This was a strange horror comedy that had potential to be actually funny, but instead drowned in its weak attempts at slapstick and wackiness. It was very awkward. The murder mystery part of the story was also pretty easy to figure out, rounding out a pretty feeble script and ending in a predictably unsatisfying sort of way. Again, I really enjoyed Robert Morley's performance, and the set-up was a nice difference from the 1932 James Whale adaptation, but this loose remake is really unnecessary and actually less funny than the original -- which ironically wasn't even fully trying to be a comedy. Go figure.

TV Alley: House

House

Created by David Shore
2004 - 2012

A brilliant, egomaniacal, drug-addicted, misanthropic diagnostic doctor and his team take on bizarre and mysterious cases with no clear-cut cures. While it took me forever to actually get into this show, considering my general disinterest in medical dramas, now that I've finished it I can safely say it was one of the most satisfying shows I've ever seen.