Didn't catch up this week, but didn't lose ground either, so I'm calling it a win. I also discovered that I really need to write up my reviews immediately after viewing - if not, I don't seem to have the drive to say much, as the Confessions of a Superhero bit below suggests.
Suspicion
Alfred Hitchcock, 1941
Easily the weakest of the Hitchcock movies that I’ve seen, Suspicion is an awkward, compromised piece. It starts off playing like a sort of light romantic comedy, which would almost work – except that our heroine, Lina, is required to be so spectacularly naïve that it’s difficult to form any sort of attachment to her. The middle segment, as the dream marriage between her and Cary Grant’s Johnny is beset by lies and increasingly sinister coincidences, is fairly enjoyable – but it manages to drag on for too long before we finally reach the great, screaming meltdown of an ending, which was apparently the result of studio interference and test screening results. The last five minutes are not only terrible as a segment in its own right, but they recast the events of the rest of the movie in a different light, and manage to sink the whole enterprise. As usual with Hitchcock, however, you do have to give some points for technical proficiency.
3.5/10
Confessions of a Superhero
Matthew Ogens, 2007
Starts off strong, and remains strong as long as it leans toward comedy. The last 20 minutes or so, however, slow things down a lot as we delve into more of the drama in the subjects’ lives. Most of it is fantastically enjoyable, however.
7/10
Progress: 17 (par -1)
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