Movie thoughts and fiction updates.
#33 in my ranking of Fritz Lang's filmography. I feel like there are two opposing and competing movies within the bounds of While the City Sleeps. The first is obvious from the opening prologue where we watch a woman killed by an invader into her apartment. The second is a look at the sausage-making of… Continue reading While the City Sleeps
#37 in my ranking of Fritz Lang's filmography. Sometimes you see an entry on a list that boggles the mind. There's no accounting for taste, for sure, but when I read that Cahiers du Cinema placed Fritz Lang's Moonfleet at number thirty-two on its list of greatest films of all time I was simply confounded.… Continue reading Moonfleet
#35 in my ranking of Fritz Lang's filmography. Man Hunt was a pretty obvious effort to mimic Alfred Hitchcock's adventure thrillers to some modest effect. Secret Beyond the Door is an obvious attempt to imitate Alfred Hitchcock's gothic romance Rebecca to much less effect. Uneven with sparks of genuine interest, it effectively descends into complete… Continue reading Secret Beyond the Door
#31 in my ranking of Fritz Lang's filmography. Freed from any kind of fealty to reality, Fritz Lang's sequel to Henry King's original Jesse James is a huge improvement, that is, until it becomes a shockingly dull courtroom drama in its third act. I've read that courtroom finales often end up because of budget issues.… Continue reading The Return of Frank James
#32 in my ranking of Fritz Lang's filmography. This is the second time that I've seen Fritz Lang's follow up to Metropolis, and I was still not that into it. This tale of espionage in the interwar period is simply too loosely told to hold the kind of interest with me that, it seems, it… Continue reading Spies
David Vining, Author 