The Holly and the Ivy (1954)

An unhappy family gathers for Christmas. They are comprised of a parson, a rich older widow, a judgmental old woman whose deepest relationship is with her cat, an irresponsible young soldier, a drunk black-sheep young woman with secrets, and a dutiful daughter who longs to be free. 

It's just a bunch of talking and misery.

D+

Olivia (1954)

Olivia is a newcomer to an all-girls boarding school in France, run by the fragile Miss Cara and the magnetic Miss Julie. Most of the girls are under the spell of one or the other of the women and Olivia finds herself firmly in the "Julie" camp. Miss Julie herself is definitely grooming some of the girls -- "bettering" them with literature and trips to Paris and promising to come to them in the night -- only to allow them to fall into the depths of despair when her promises are broken or another girl receives attention.

I found this film to be an uncomfortable mix of titillation and confusion. I wasn't always sure what was going on, but I know I'd pull my child out of that school immediately and call the police. Those girls are gonna be screwed up for life.

C+

White Christmas (1954)

A male song and dance duo team up with a sister act, both romantically and to save a failing Vermont Inn owned by the men's former general.

I can't believe I'd gone more than 50 years without seeing this touchstone Christmas film. The story's slight and there are only a few really good songs, but it was sweet and definitely helped to put us in the spirit of the season.

B

A Star Is Born (1954)

An actor who is becoming more famous for his drunken antics than for his acting happens upon a talented but unknown singer and decides to give her a push toward stardom. Well, it works, and she quickly starts rising as he starts to wane. If there were any spark between the two leads, this could've worked. But the relationship never felt like anything other than a source of pain.

And -- oof -- those musical numbers. I could barely buy that she was becoming adored for her work when the work they showed was so bland. I think this is the least successful of the three adaptations I've seen.

C

Knock on Wood (1954)

Ventriloquist has commitment issues and is flying to Zurich to see a specialist. Meanwhile, blueprints for a doomsday weapon have been stolen and stashed inside of his twin dummies without his knowledge. Hijinks ensue.

I'm not a big Danny Kaye fan -- he's not so much "funny" as "in things that are meant to be funny" in my opinion. This certainly isn't bad, but it's just serviceable rather than truly hilarious.

C+

The Barefoot Contessa (1954)

Kicked off with a Bogart voice over, which put me in an immediate good mood...but it wasn't enough to sustain me through the entire film. The story involves a Spanish dancer being discovered by Hollywood, becoming an adored star, and falling in love with a secretive Count. Since we start with her funeral, the whole thing’s in flashback -- a device not nearly as effective here as in Sunset Boulevard.

Not a bad way to spend an afternoon, but the end product didn’t have the weight of its quality parts.

B

Robinson Crusoe (1954)

The progression of this movie is stiff → interesting → bizarre

Crusoe finds himself on a deserted island, the only survivor of a shipwreck. He’s able to rescue some supplies from the ship before it goes down for good, so he’s got oil and guns and grain and a Bible. He also winds up with the ship’s cat and dog (were dogs common on ships?). Although he was a privileged/useless guy when he arrived, over the next 18 years or so he gets it together as a survivalist.

Once Crusoe acquires a servant by rescuing him from his cannibal brethren, things get downright weird. He names the dark-skinned man “Friday” (after the day he found him...though we earlier heard him say he’d lost track of days when sick, so “whenever” might have been better) and tells Friday to call him “master.”

All in all, it's not bad, but our hero is so unlikable that it was pretty hard to root for him.

C+

Three Coins in the Fountain (1954)

Three American secretaries in Rome -- one a 40ish Girl Friday for a reclusive author, another just finishing up a stint in an office and heading back to the states, and a newcomer to take over the spot being left by the second -- find love...but not without a few bumps and misunderstandings along the way (of course).

Some surprisingly serious passages, but fine.

B-

Rear Window (1954)

I'd guess this is my eighth viewing -- but I can quote huge sections, so that's probably a conservative estimate. This time I was introducing my younger son to this near-perfect movie.

Simply put: it's one of my favorites. Jimmy Stewart, Grace Kelly, and Thelma Ritter make a terrific trio as, respectively, a restless photographer with a broken leg stuck staring out of the window in his stuffy apartment, the society belle hopelessly in love with him, and his no-nonsense nurse.

Even if they never saw anything interesting through the window, I think I'd still enjoy a couple of hours in the company of these characters (and actors). Funny, romantic, and suspenseful -- a treasure.

A+

Dial M for Murder (1954)

It's really enjoyable seeing a movie I know well in the company of someone watching it for the first time. I can't help but steal looks every so often to make sure they got just how terrific a certain line was or to make sure they're not napping (a common problem in my husband's case).

This was the fourth or fifth time I'd seen this film, but the first for my older son -- though I doubt it'll be the last. Grace Kelly is just as lovely, the script just as tight, and the detective just as droll as they've always been. Such a reliable movie -- never changes despite my mood or age.

A

The High and the Mighty (1954)

A rather empty flight from Hawaii to California encounters some problems (engine giving out/loss of fuel) past the "point of no return" and everyone on board deals with this potential crisis in their own way -- though most choose to deal with it rather calmly.

This is the quietest, most uneventful disaster movie I've ever seen. And, despite the fact that we are helpfully introduced to almost all of the passengers as they collect their boarding passes, I still had trouble telling several of the auburn-haired impeccably-lipsticked women apart.

C+

Genevieve (1954)

Fluffy English comedy about two obsessive vintage car owners and their increasing competitiveness during an annual classic car rally. Their efforts to sabotage each other are rather low-key -- it all seems a little too genteel.

Another problem is that the women in their cars seem a little too patient to be believed. Every once in a while they let out exasperated sighs and roll their eyes -- but so what? If one of them had thrown a full-on fit or started scheming WITH their partner, that would have been far funnier. As it is, they're just the voices of patient reason. Yawn.

I mean, it's cute, but in a very mild way.

C+

Carmen Jones (1954)

A musical in operatic style (which I hate) with ebonic lyrics (which is condescending - especially when the characters speak better English than they sing). The leading lady is heartless and the leading man is a dishrag.

D+

Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954)

Adam Pontifee comes down from his mountain farm to do his shopping for the next five months — he wants the usual staples: meal, tobacco, wife… He tells the skeptical shopkeeper, "I haven't set my mind to somethin' yet but what I've gotten it…I'm here today to get me a wife!" Well, he finds one and she finds out, too late, that he comes with six brothers.

Really fun, great choreography, and it comes with built-in bathroom breaks (any time the women folk break into song, it gets a tad slow). But, all in all, this one's a winner. Great pick for “Family Film Night.”

B