tony1911 Reviews

Hue and Cry (1947)

A nostalgic movie, brightened by scenes of London's blitzed buildings, before developers began to pour unsightly concrete.

[9/10 · 25 February 2006]

I found a copy of this movie in my local (Phoenix, Arizona) used book store. Ah, bliss! The sights of old London, albeit somewhat bomb-damaged, before the developers started to build ugly tower blocks. The movie itself is excellent, with good characterization for the 'kids', although Jack Warner's role as the villain seems a little overblown. Alistair Sim's role as the nervous author of comic books is an excellent vignette, showing his trademark nervous twitchy smile. The final chase and confrontation, at "Ballard's Wharf", reputedly in Wapping, was actually filmed on the opposite side of the river, as can be scene in the long shots, where St. Paul's cathedral can be seen.

Downfall (2004)

Excellent movie, but supporting characters seemed to be merely sketches.

[10/10 · 20 February 2006]

I first saw Downfall at an art house in Scottsdale. Wanting to be able to see it without the usual American movie accompaniment of gallon buckets of soda and garbage can-sized popcorn, I opted for the early, midday show. To my amazement, the place was packed! Still, to their credit, they were a very quiet and appreciative audience. The movie itself was brilliant, although the supporting cast bore no resemblance to the originals. Joseph Goebbels was small, and was known as the 'Poison Dwarf', but was played by a very tall German actor. Now, to my beef. I'm a writer (2 novels, 1 non-fiction book, many magazine articles), and I'm looking for information on Herman Fegelein, the Waffen-SS general who was married to Gretl Braun, Eva's sister. He was shot in the garden outside the bunker. I'd like to have seen more of this character, especially as he was seen in his apartment getting ready to leave town! Maybe if a 'director's cut' DVD is going to be released, we'll see more of this character.