Lizzie

Eleanor Parker plays a woman with multiple personalities.  She does a good job.  Frankly, The Three Faces of Eve is just better.  It was released at the same year and there's a reason why it's more popular.  This was based on a Shirley Jackson novel The Bird's Nest.  I didn't think it was one of Shirley's best.  That was just ok too.  If you're interested in movies about mental illness this might interest you.  It isn't essential though.

Light in the Piazza

Olivia de Havilland fans might want to watch this movie. (She died this week and this magnificent actress will be missed.)  It's one of her great last movies.  She plays the mother of a beautiful handicapped girl played by Yvette Mimieux.  Her husband wants to be realistic about their daughter.  However, when a handsome Italian male expresses interest assuming the girl is just an airhead the mother can't resist.  Olivia wrestles with her conscience and she debates whether she should tell the young man the truth.  This movie was also made into a musical later on.  

What every woman knows

Helen Hayes plays a smart woman who is in love with aspiring politician Brian Aherne.  He's not all that bright and she is really the brains behind his success.  He has an affair with Madge Evans.  Moviegoers weren't pleased with Madge playing the other woman as she usually had the girl next door roles.  But she's good in this and it shows her range.  However, the real star is Helen Hayes.  This was based on a J.M. Barrie play.

You Never Call Tell

I got because I'm a fan of Peggy Dow, one of the loveliest actresses from the '50s.  The plot of this movie is weird, a murdered dog comes back to life in the form of Dick Powell.  He wants to help out his friend Peggy and clear her name from the murder.  He is accompanied by a horse who also returns in the form of a human.  This was played by Joyce Holden and I thought she did a good job.  This movie would probably appeal more to kids but it was all right.  There were some funny scenes. It was later remade as Oh, Heavenly Dog with Chevy Chase.

The Big City

When I was a teenager I watched a couple of Satyajit Ray movies.  I found them boring.  However, the feminist angle to this movie made me curious.  I liked The Big City and I think it's about time for a rewatch of Satyajit Ray's movies.   That was around twenty years ago and a person's perspective can definitely change in that amount of time.  This movie is about a housewife who gets a job as a salesperson.  When her husband unexpectedly loses her job it's up to her to support the household and their relationship will never be the same.  But when she sees a fellow co-worker being discriminated against by her boss the woman has to make some tough decisions.  It's pretty long two hours and sixteen minutes but I found it rewarding.  The acting in it is pretty solid.   

A Double Tour

This movie was a mess.  It's a want to be Hitchcock movie about an affair and a murder.  It's trashy and doesn't say anything new.  Frankly, Claude Chabrol made much better movies (and so did Jean-Paul Belmondo).  You're better off with Chabrol's Les Bonnes Femmes and Le Boucher.  

Day of Reckoning

I like Madge Evans and I've been going through her filmography.  My twin sister calls her the drier Norma Shearer.   She plays a woman who spends too much of her husband's money.  He resorted to embezzling to provide for her.  While in jail she has an affair that has unexpected consequences.  Madge Evans is awesome in this.  She's not playing her typical girl next neighbor role.  It shows the range this actress had.

The Swan

The fact that Grace Kelly was a princess and she played a princess is awesome. That's my main motivation for watching this movie.  However, it was really boring.  Grace Kelly is planned to marry Alec Guinness.  Things don't go as planned though when she falls in love with a regular guy Louis Jourdan.  At least Grace Kelly is pretty here.  

The Spirit of the Beehive

In this Spanish movie, a little girl becomes fixated with the movie Frankenstein.  I think that the main strengths of the movie are her interactions with her friend.  It shows her being a regular kid. The obsessions with Frankenstein may be the main plot of this movie but it has far more to it than that.  It's a layered movie.   

Purple Noon

Alain Delon kills his friend, then takes on his identity and his girlfriend Marie Laforet.  I decided to watch this again after five years since I own a collection of Marie Laforet.  But the movie belongs to Alain Delon, I think of the most handsome men in the cinema.  He plays an excellent Tom Ripley.  I prefer this to the remake The Talented Mr. Ripley with Matt Damon. The French got it right.