Reviews by Annabelle Lee

What should you call toughies who like to jump, shuffle, clap and pirouette at the slightest provocation? Hit the high notes at the flick of a pen knife? That would be the Jets or Sharks, while this here policeman is Officer Krupke. Maria and Tony, the starcrossed lovers. Protective brother Bernardo. Jealous beau Chino. Tony's bestfriend Riff. And there you have it, a musical based on the timeless plot of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Say it with music!

A little-known western (search for it and you'll get Julian Sands' Warlock), it's pretty predictable, with the usual western recipe of a small town and the even smaller town mentality that goes with it, bandits and dames with secrets and secret agendas. Throw in the marshall and the marshall's bestfriend and you've got Warlock, generic western dead man's town. But I love it for two reasons: Henry Fonda and Anthony Quinn. Chauvinist BFFs. That or an inch shy of brokeback. Anyway, so best friends for life, until you guessed it--a dame gets in the way of your best buddy's best-laid plans. In other words, Henry Fonda does what you wish your boyfriend would do when his buddies ask him to choose between spending time with you or drinking witht he boys.

I am ever so thankful I saw this movie as a child instead of an adult. Had I seen it at 30 instead of at 10, it would never have invaded my childhood daydreams the way it did. However, seeing it as an adult made me want to glorify the movie all the more. If you're above 20, then see it for the location shoots, music, cinematography, natural acting, minimal dialogue and the intensity of The Black. Kids, just saddle up and enjoy the ride!

Okay, just so you know, it gets the 4 stars and not 5 only because I don't quite get the Arab world conflict then, and that's after actually reading his Seven Pillars of Wisdom (what can I say--I went through an intellectual phase). It's uncanny how Peter O'Toole looks exactly like the effete (onscreen, at least) former cartographer, T.E. Lawrence, and then there's David Lean's amazing vistas of the desert, which words fail to describe (he, along with a stellar cast which included Alec Guinness, Jack Hawkins, Anthony Quayle and Claude Rains--no females in the cast, at all--took two years to finish the movie). Of course, I'll always remember this as the movie where I fell in love with the young Omar Sharif--but like him or not, I guarantee you'll never forget his grand entrance. For cinematography alone, this one is classic, ditto for the majestic soundtrack.

Hilarious movie, one of my all-time favorites. Great setting, fantastic cast, and impeccable timing of puns. Michael Caine's a schemer, Steve Martin a scalawag, but there's a scoundrel there somewhere...

Golden boy William Holden bagged an Oscar for his portrayal of resident entrepreneur/stool pigeon (?) in a POW camp during WWII. Entirely deserved it too, and I suppose Billy Wilder deserves most of the credit. Though not a fan of war movies, this is one of two favorite war flicks--the other being The Bridge on the River Kwai (another Holden flick, but he's not the reason I like it--Alec Guiness is).