Murder Most Foul (1965)

Miss Marple forces a hung jury by being the single juror to have enough reasonable doubt about the accused. The suspect was found in the same room with a hanged woman, fiddling with the rope. Before the next trial can be scheduled, she's off to solve the crime by going undercover as a thespian with a small theater troupe in which the deceased had particular interest.

It's a very slight -- and occasionally silly -- little mystery.

B-

The Sound of Music (1965)

This was coming on network television when Gary and I were flipping around and we looked at each other and kind of shrugged and just settled in. What a trip to watch this that way: with ads and everything! It kind of made the viewing feel festive -- I was reminded me of growing up and gathering around and using the breaks to run to the bathroom and rummage for snacks.

Gary wasn't sure he'd ever seen it before, but this was at least my third time & it's still just as watchable as it was when I first saw it at no more than 5 years old. Julie Andrews is winning as the naive initiate serving as a governess for the brood of a stern military widower. No surprises where it goes, but the getting there is lovely. Almost every song is a masterpiece.

B+

Darling (1965)

The story in short: a very pretty model behaves like a spoiled brat cheating with someone's husband then on her husband, then on her boyfriend and then another husband. I’m not sure if I was meant to empathize with her, but my reaction was one of annoyance.

At one point, she refused a proposal from a prince with an explanation that went something like “I can’t possibly leave my life.” Since the life at issue was so unfulfilling and lonely, I can’t imagine why she balked.

Yeesh.

C-

Kwaidan (1965)

Kwaidan consists of four separate Japanese ghost stories and it's pretty difficult to find reviewers who will say anything bad about it. Well, allow me to be an exception.

The film's praised for its beauty. Well, I guess if you're into Japanese art (and I'm not), it could be considered pretty. For the most part, the sets are sparse and monochromatic -- not a bad thing, by any means -- but not visually stimulating either. It's also praised for choosing to be "disturbing" rather than going for cheap shocks. Well, excuse me for wanting to be scared when I see a ghost story...and excuse me again for pointing out that what may be disturbing when told around a campfire (and left to the imagination) can morph into kinda silly when put on film. A smiling man's face in a cup of tea is more "what the...?" than "Aiiiieeeeee!"

It just didn't entertain me -- and nearly three hours of non-entertainment is pretty irritating. Does that make me shallow?

D+

Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines or How I Flew From London to Paris in 25 Hours 11 Minutes (1965)

Based on an actual event -- the 1910 London to Paris air race -- this is overstuffed with broad, quickly tiresome types: the drawling aw-shucks American, the British fop, the villainous mustache-twirler, the German militants, etc. Each participant has their own running gag...which gets run right into the ground.

To put it in a nutshell: just look at that title. It's unnecessarily long and not very funny, which just about sums up my opinion of the film.

D+

Othello 1965

Laurence Olivier took on the role of the title character. And, apparently, he translated "black man" as, you know, BLACK MAN, and used up all of the black spray paint at the Home Depot. Is anyone this color?

Anyway. I'm not really what could be called a Shakespeare fan -- I can take him or leave him. This one, I'll leave. The framework's not bad: very much in love newlyweds Othello and Desdemona become the victims of Iago's plan to destroy Othello. The filming is also quite interesting - it's basically staged as though being performed in a theater. The sets are as you'd find them on a stage in front of footlights. It's certainly an cool idea, but it makes a hard-to-relate-to play that much more unreal.

Olivier, for me, is the biggest problem. He plays Othello as a confident man -- sure of his decisions and his wife and his control over his men. For some reason, though, he chooses to trust Iago implicitly and becomes a jealous maniac in no time flat. I hated the scenes in which he's whining and simpering to Iago as though he'd lost all ability to be a MAN. It's an uneven and kind of disgusting interpretation of this proud character.

Maggie Smith is luminous as Desdemona. She's not the beauty the script calls for, but she is the heart of the film. She's hurt, confused, trusting, helplessly in love, and defensive of her lover until the very end. Beautiful work.

C-

The Loved One (1965)

Wants to be a biting satire on American (specifically Hollywood) excess and its extension into even the business of death. It rather ruins the effect, though, by inserting true believer Aimée into the mix. She doesn't come off as an innocent so much as an idiot.

There's no one to root for -- no one to like at all. Even the hero is just a coattail riding layabout who wants the pretty girl...but doesn't bat an eye once she's gone. Way too over-the-top and ugly to make any lasting statement and not nearly funny enough to be a pleasant diversion.

D

The Spy Who Came in From the Cold (1965)

Overwrought spy movie that's too morose for its own good. I didn't hate it, but I was itching for it to end.

C+

Ship of Fools (1965)

An overblown piece of garbage. Watchable, but only just.

D+

The Collector (1965)

Terence Stamp does an amazing job (and he wasn't nominated?!) of conveying madness while inspiring compassion. Nicely done film…now I see where Stephen King got the idea for "Misery."

B

The Knack...and How to Get It (1965)

Leonard Martin calls this "extremely funny." Leonard Maltin's a filthy liar. Extremely uncomfortable at times. I didn't enjoy it one whit - and Michael Crawford does his "Hello Dolly" dumb guy schtick. Hated it then. Hate it now.

D+

Inside Daisy Clover (1965)

Alright, who thought it was a good idea to cast the almost 30-year-old Wood as a tomboy startlet not yet 16? The best thing about the film was Roddy McDowall – and that's only because he seemed to have the same disdain for everyone on the screen that I did.

D