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SNAM Video Trailer Collection Alphabetical Listing
Video Trailers from picks on TVOntario's Saturday Night at the Movies
The Bicycle Thief (1948)
“The Bicycle Thief” (1948), is a small masterpiece on celluloid that captures the human drama of a family man struggling to maintain his livelihood and his dignity by recovering a stolen bicycle in post-war Rome. This Italian language film by Vittorio de Sica maintained my interest even with the English subtitles. Taking in a film through translation may be akin to listening to a symphony orchestra through a tin can telephone. One is sure to miss something in the translation. However, the acting on the part of the father and son duo (played by Lamberto Maggiorani and Enzo Staiolo respectively) is so convincing both through dialogue and the non-verbal, that one can forgive the ongoing necessity of the subtitles. Following the everyman character about the streets of Rome in his desperate search for his bicycle gives us the full range of an emotional workout and a depth of sociological analysis that the “official bus tour” of the famous Eternal City would never afford.
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See a trailer for "The Bicycle Thief" (1948)
The Deadly Affair (1966)
In “The Deadly Affair” (1966) IMDb, John le Carré’s spy novel turns into a cinematic adventure for everyday secret service man, Charles Dobbs (played by James Mason). Even though he has a nymphomaniac wife at home, Charles Dobbs’ career as a British intelligence officer is nothing like that of James Bond. A suspicious looking suicide after an apparently unfounded accusation of communist sympathies leads down a trail of cold war intrigue. As the plot thickens, Dobb’s finds the answers in places that strike close uncomfortably close to home.
See a very interesting SNAM “Interview” that includes material on John le Carré’s more famous spy novel, “The Spy Who Came in from the Cold”, a film starring Richard Burton, also screened on the same evening on Saturday Night at the Movies.
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Catch the opening credits and opening scene for “The Deadly Affair” (1966) here.
The Lady Eve (1941)
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Catch the TVO video preview of "The Lady Eve" (1941) here.
See the video trailer for "The Lady Eve" (1941)
The Lady From Shanghai (1947)
“The Lady from Shanghai” (1947) stars Rita Hayworth as Elsa Bannister and Orson Welles as Micahel O’Hara. Welles does it all as principle actor, writer and director of the movie. It is an interesting film from more than one angle (à la crazy fun house mirrors of the climax scene). Hayworth and Welles were in the final phases of their off-screen relationship at the time of filming, Welles reported that he did the film simply as a way of financing other projects in jeopardy, and the complicated plot of the original Sherwood King novel is just, well, hard to follow. But then, Michael O’Hara’s Irish brogue is rather hard to follow and even harder to swallow at times.
Rita Hayworth’s character is the rather too obvious femme fatale who spices up the exotic scenery and even indulges us with a musical number and a spectacular cliff diving scene for the benefit of box office sales. It’s film noir with more than the usual twist at the end with a visually discombobulating fun house scene that is all “Orson”. It can be fun, if you just relax and get into the genre and the period of Hollywood film making.
>>More to see: Looking for more out of life?
>>Real Life Story: Katie and Nathan realized that they were driving each other into someone else’s arms. See the real life turnaround in their marriage.
Orson Welles as Michael O’Hara gives us his rendition of the poetic Irish soul in this famous “shark scene on video clip. See below a re-cut, remixed video trailer for “The Lady From Shanghai” (1947)
The Late Show (1977)
“The Late Show” (1977) with Art Carney and Lily Tomlin pairs a cranky has-been detective with a kooky young woman who hasn’t quite got her life under control. The odd couple is formed when minor crimes and misdemeanours escalate to a major blackmail and murder case. Things become unexpectedly serious both on the investigation front and the personal relationship side of things. Two slightly out of step and lonely individuals find that they have something to contribute to one another’s lives. Robert Benton directs this backward glance at the hardboiled detective film noir movies of the 1940’s à la Raymond Chandler/Philip Marlowe. The film leaves behind a surprisingly touching picture of the subject of aging thanks to good acting on the part of the lead characters and the support of Benton’s direction as well as a decent script.
See the TVO video preview for the "Never Too Late" presentation with "Nobody's Fool" and "The Late Show"
The companion piece in this series, "Nobody's Fool" with Paul Newman, Jessica Tandy, Bruce Willis and Melanie Griffith was also reviewed on Midnight Oil.
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Don't miss the entire TVOntario Interview for the "Never Too Late" episode. Included is a discussion of "Nobody's Fool" and "The Late Show" in the conversation about Hollywood films and the subject of aging.