susanctoo

I like old movies. Especially very early talkies. Yes the actors spoke very slowly and distinctly, but to my 70 year old ears it made them very easy to understand, much more so than todays young actors who all seem to mumble. This was a wonderfully clear copy so I could absorb all the tiny details of the sets and costumes. I loved the costumes of course. The short skirts, the short hair. The tiny little purse she carried. And the dessert scenes were so realistic. I wondered how they captured the caravan going across the hills in the sunset and wondered where it was filmed. It isn't written for todays audiences so perhaps only old movie buffs will really get a kick out of it. But to me it is history coming alive and it sweeps me away into the past and into foreign lands for a nice little escape.

I enjoyed this movie! It was intriguing to see Bette Davis and Humphrey Bogart 3rd and 4th in the billing order. But what fun to see Bogie as a suave smiling dapper con man who whisks the airhead "bad sister" off her feet. And poor Bette Davis, whom I almost did not recognize in her first scenes in the film. So interesting to see how the costumes helped to create the two sisters characters. Bette Davis in drab prints that made her appear very frumpy. And that younger brother!!! Oh my what a pest!! It really is a complicated story with some sad , some glad, and a bit of silliness here and there. A soap opera in a way, but a also a time capsule of simpler times. I agree with others who said the end comes rather abruptly. I had more ideas of what might have happened if it was longer, so was left feeling a bit unfulfilled. I thought it was well made overall. You can see the remnants of the silent film era in its style with a caption inserted in the middle to help us figure out the plot. And lots of long stares with the eyes expressing so much.

I found this quite good actually. I was not expecting much because the picture quality was pretty poor on YouTube. The beginning was kind of silly with a lady screaming her head off and being pretty paranoid in general. She is the "frightened lady." And you wonder why is she such a bundle of nerves. Everything really seems kind of fine....except for a few little oddities. If I tell them that would spoil it. The dialogue throughout was actually quite clever overall, and subtle at times with little jabs thrown in here and there that had me chuckling. And the plot gets pretty thick. All the good old mystery movie necessities are there but also with some twists. It had me fooled and kept me interested the whole time. A great movie for a rainy afternoon for sure!!