Reviews
Emerald Falls (2008)
A pleasant surprise.
I do not usually associate Channel Ten with showing quality movies, at least not since Australia's number one movie buff; Bill Collins left Channel Ten in the early 1990's but when a friend ask me to tape the movie 'Emerald Falls' for him because a relative of his appeared in it as an extra, I was pleasantly surprised when the film started; the scenery, the sky diver and when the two main players, Joni Ferguson (Georgie Parker) a single mum and her teenage son Zac Ferguson (Tom Green) arrive at the Inn that Joni is buying, it became clear that that this movie was going to be better than just average. It didn't disappoint as the movie progressed and we discover sometime later that all is not right in 'Emerald Falls' with some dark secrets coming to light
When Joni soon discovers that business is not as profitable as she had hoped for and a visit from her Bank Manager brings no comfort to her financial situation, new found friends provide a helping hand
or are they? And when Dr Henry Forbes (Andrew McFarlane) is found death, Joni's teenage son, aspiring amateur sleuth Zac, decide to do some investigation of his own, only to discover some interesting facts involving various characters. The police are not impressed at first, but when Zac produces evidence indicating Steve Landers (Oliver Ackland) as the number one suspect, the police go in hot pursuit. Steve manages to escape, causing mayhem in the process and upsetting an engagement party who are enjoying themselves, dancing to beautiful Latin music, but luckily Zac is able to tell the police where Steve might be heading.
As the story unfolds, we are treated to some breathtaking views with rugged tablelands, sheer cliffs, deep inaccessible valleys, swamps and some of the beautiful scenery that the Blue Mountains has to offer. For those people not living in Sydney or Australia; the Blue Mountains are named after the blue mist which comes from the ethereal oils of the eucalypt trees, it provides for a mysterious, surreal atmosphere and is a very popular tourist attraction.
I also enjoyed the scene of the engagement party held at the Inn with its dancing and beautiful Latin music; a very entertaining addition. To sum it all up; a very pleasant and entertaining crime and mystery story, peppered with typical dry Australian humour, an excellent performing cast, beautiful scenery, photography, a lovely musical score and with good solid direction from Peter Andrikidis. It does have some adult themes however that would make it not suitable for viewing by children under the age of 14.
Fools Rush In (1949)
A forgotten treasure.
A young bride-to-be changes her mind on her wedding day and causes mayhem and confusion
The story centers around young bride-to-be Pamela Dickson (Sally Ann Howes) who is getting married to Joe Trent (Nigel Buchanan) with whom she is very much in love, but as time draws near for the ceremony to take place, Pamela is starting to get second thoughts and questions whether she is doing the right thing as her convictions dictate that marriage should be a lasting, 'till death do us Part' union. When her mother, Angela Dickson (Nora Swinburne) who has divorced her father and is now engaged to the pompous Sir Charles Leigh (Raymond Lovell) tells her that the reason for her divorce was because of her father's unfaithfulness, she gets even more confused and it convinces her all the more that she should not be getting married until she has all the right answers.
Further complications arise when her long-lost estranged father Paul Dickson (Guy Rolfe) whom she has not seen again since she was a small child comes knocking at their door to attend her wedding. Sir Charles is not at all amused by his presence and resents him being there, however Pamela is delighted; she discovers that he is opposite to the rogue that her mother made him out to be and putting her own marriage on hold, she decides to try and reconcile her father and mother.
This light-hearted romantic comedy film is a forgotten treasure; anyone who has experienced the excitement of a wedding in their family will be able to relate to some of the realistic incidents taking place. The very cleverly written storyline by screenwriter Geoffrey Kerr, who adapted the script from a play by Kenneth Horne, has so many lines of witty dialog that it begs for repeated viewing to be fully appreciated. A solid performance is given by all the cast with excellent direction and photography. The numerous comical situations and chaotic moments give this film a pleasurable viewing experience and will keep you amused from beginning to end.
Falling for You (1933)
A very enjoyable movie
Unquestionable one of the greatest and best-known all-round entertainer's in England during the1920s and 30s, Jack Hulbert had a huge following; the public adored him and cinema theaters usually reported a packed house whenever a film starring Jack Hulbert was shown. His easy going style, uncomplicated story lines provided an escape from the hardship of daily live that people experienced during the depression years and even in today's world, watching his movies provides a welcome diversion from the harsh realities facing us each day.
In this film Jack and his wife Cicely Courteneidge are playing reporters trying to outsmart each other in pursuit of a sensational story when an Archduke's Fiancée; the delectable Sondra von Moyden (Tamara Desni) disappears in Switzerland. Jack off-course falls head over heals in love with the charming girl when he first meets her on an ice-skating ring, but unbeknown to him, Sondra is on the run from the Archduke because she is unwillingly engaged to the roque and does not want to marry him and is being pursuit by the Archduke and his agents who are trying to force her to return.
A very entertaining film with so many comical moments throughout, that it needs to be viewed several times to fully appreciate the humor and funny situations Jack and Cicely Courteneidge are getting themselves into. The opening scene has Jack being upstaged by a little girl on the ski slopes, but Jack is in top form, showing off his multi talented skills; he Sings, Romances, does a delightful Tap-Dance on top of a bar and surprisingly proofs to be an excellent ice skater as well. And yes, he does get the girl in the end
Never a Dull Moment (1950)
The awful truth...
Having seen the lovely Irene Dunne perform many years ago in her better known movie "The Awful Truth" (1937), I looked with great expectations forward to watching my recently acquired DVD "Never a Dull Moment".
However, I soon realized the awful truth that this movie was much below par to any previous movie she has ever starred in. Irene Dunne who was 52 years old at the time and approaching the end of her movie career was poorly matched with Fred MacMurray who was 10 years her junior, which might also explain perhaps the lack of chemistry between the two stars.
The script writing is very poor and lacking of any clever and witty dialog for both of them to work on. In my opinion they could have made the courtship a bit more interesting with some romantic interludes included, instead what we see are a few minutes of the bottom half of legs shoveling through hallways; very unimaginative and cheaply done, but I suppose the priority might have been to get them in a hurry out into the rural country side for all the silly slapstick action.
Irene Dunne also sings in this movie but as much as I love and admire Irene for having been a great actress, singing was definitely not one of her strongest attributes and especially the first number is quite embarrassing; it would have been better if a professional singer had dubbed her voice. It is also made quite obvious that the fast horse riding and being thrown of the horse was done by a stunt person.
All in all a big disappointment, mainly due to bad directing and bad script writing and a sad end to what has otherwise been a great acting career for Irene Dunne, however this movie might appeal to children 8 to 14 on a rainy Sunday afternoon, mainly for the silly slapstick humor and uncomplicated story line which might be more appealing to this age group