This batch was half in color for the first decade and I found a few more additions to the decades best (IMO anyway). Here's a look at my ride through the 1950s.
1950.)
Title: Winchester '73
Runtime: 92 Minutes
Director: Anthony Mann
Plot: A specially made gun changes hands several times, often with deadly consequences when it is stolen from the winner of a shooting competition.
What I Thought: I thought it was a nice change of pace to see James Stewart get a little rough with somebody. The sequences are like little vignettes that put together this wonderful puzzle.
Rating:3.5/5
1951.)
Title: Death of a Salesman
Runtime: 115 Minutes
Director: Laslo Benedek
Plot: A salesman is out of touch with his work and his family as he slowly unwinds into madness.
What I Thought: It has the feel of a stage production on camera at times, but Fredric March brings his A-game in this Oscar-nominated performance.
Rating:3/5
1952.)
Title: Invasion U.S.A.
Runtime: 73 Minutes
Director: Alfred E.Green
Plot: A group at a bar witness a Soviet invasion that overtakes America.
What I Thought: Not spoiler, it's all part of hypnosis and the people vow to do better in the fight against Communism. I assume HUAC was responsible for this.
Rating: 0.5/5
1953.)
Title: Indiscretion of an American Wife
Runtime: 63 Minutes
Director: Vittorio De Sica
Plot: An American woman on vacation tries to end her affair with an Italian playboy.
What I Thought: So this movie is not great, but it's because of the tumultuous behind-the-scenes activity. Producer David O. Selznick and De Sica butted heads throughout causing him to heavily edit the movie in post-production. Selznick's wife, Jennifer Jones, was struggling to deal with the death of her previous husband and collapsing marriage with Selznick. Also, Montgomery Clift is Italian?
Rating: 2/5
1954.)
Title: Johnny Guitar
Runtime: 110 Minutes
Director: Nicholas Ray
Plot: A saloon owner is wrongly accused of murder and bank robbery and must fight off a lynch mob led by her nemesis.
What I Thought: What a fantastic film. The colors pop, Joan Crawford and Mercedes McCambridge are top-notch in their feud against another, and Sterling Hayden oozes cool. The final showdown between the two leading ladies is unlike anything I've seen in a Western.
Rating: 4/5
1955.)
Title: The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell
Runtime: 100 Minutes
Director: Otto Preminger
Plot: A general in the Army openly complains to the press about his superior's efforts to ignore the pilots and their planes. This leads to his court-martial and a showdown with the men he accused of negligence.
What I Thought: I didn't look at how accurate this is, but it would be disheartening if most of it happened. If you enjoy talking and no action, then this is the movie for you.
Rating: 3/5
1956.)
Title: The Brave One
Runtime: 100 Minutes
Director: Irving Rapper
Plot: A journey of a young boy and his pet bull as they embark on a collision course with a famous matador.
What I Thought: It was kind of meh throughout, but that final 20 minutes are pretty intense and I was satisfied with the ending.
Rating: 3/5
1957.)
Title: Gunfight at the O.K. Corral
Runtime: 122 Minutes
Director: John Sturges
Plot: Doc Holliday and Wyatt Earp take on a cattle rancher at the O.K. Corral.
What I Thought: Not once did Kirk Douglas say, "I'm your Huckleberry." This was unacceptable.
Rating: 3/5
1958.)
Title: Cowboy
Runtime: 92 Minutes
Director: Delmer Daves
Plot: An ideal hotel clerk (Jack Lemmon) wants to become a cattle rancher to win the approval of the father of the girl he loves in Mexico. He butts heads with the famous trail boss that eventually hardens him along the way.
What I Thought: Well this was the second movie in the batch ghostwritten by Dalton Trumbo after he was blacklisted. Unlike The Brave One, this one didn't win for screenplay, despite another scene with a bull.
Rating: 2/5
1959.)
Title: Attack of the Giant Leeches
Runtime: 62 Minutes
Director: Bernard L. Kowalski
Plot: Giant leeches (allegedly) wreak havoc on a backwoods community.
What I Thought: The picture says it all.
Rating: 0/5
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