ukoutlaw-92465 Reviews

The Purchase Price (1932)

WAIT, HOLD ON, WHERE'S PART 2???

[7/10 · 29 January 2024]

OMG! I was so INVESTED in this film and the characters of Jim and Joan Gilson. But the film has just ENDED, right in the middle of the story!

Where is the conclusion of the story? Was this story serialized? Was the film too long for early sound features and they cut it in half? If so, what is the title of the second half? Did Warner Brothers just run out of money for this film? I seriously want to know!!!

I checked the trivia on IMDB to see if the abrupt ending was mentioned and why it occurred. Nothing.

So WHAT HAPPENED? Did the arsonists get caught and punished? Did Eddie recover from the fight and go to Vancouver? Or did he stick around to cause more trouble? Do the Gilsons get to keep their farm, or does the bank foreclose? And for goodness sake, do Jim and Joan finally fall in love and learn to trust each other???

I really liked the film and would have given it a couple more stars, but it's only half a movie.

12 Games of Christmas (2023)

ANOTHER GFAM SLEDGEHAMMER

[1/10 · 28 December 2023]

The downlow: The dialogue sucks.

The acting sucks.

The editing sucks.

The plot HAD potential.

I thought "12 Games of Christmas" would be a fun seasonal version of "Jumanji". Nope. It turns out it's a lame parody of every white-charactered Christmas movie ever produced by Hallmark or Lifetime, but with GFAM, you get a sledgehammer message to boot. Faith, prayers, family, yada yada. If the message has to be repeated VOCALLY every few minutes, your writers and actors aren't doing their jobs. (see my review of "A Christmas For the Ages")

The characters repeat each other's dialogue, GIGGLE almost constantly in each situation, and the lead actress repeats her very own moronic line, "gosh, does this game have a card???" SPOILER ALERT! All 12 games have cards!!!

The editing left huge amounts of dead air within shots, compared to competent editing.

The plot had great potential, but fell before the starting gate.

I KNOW GFAM can do better. Just look at this year's "'Twas the Text Before Christmas" and "A Paris Christmas Waltz". Engaging stories, competent acting, good plots.

I'd give this stinkeroo 0 stars if possible. And I agree with another reviewer who wrote, GFAM needs to shoot for QUALITY, NOT QUANTITY!

A Biltmore Christmas (2023 TV Movie)

HELLA GOOD MOVIE

[10/10 · 27 November 2023]

Wow! I never thought I'd see a Hallmark movie that I felt deserved top marks. Well, "A Biltmore Christmas" is the one, and so I have rated it 10/10.

It follows Lucy, a screen writer tasked with rewriting the script for a remake of a beloved classic Christmas movie from 1947. I'm screaming already! 😱 Lucy is unenthused with this assignment, so her boss pushes her into a trip to the Biltmore House in Asheville, NC, where the original movie was filmed, to get some inspiration for the rewrite.

After she tours the house, some unbelievable things begin to happen, and the plot takes some neat twists and turns. And that's as far as I'm taking you down that road! I HATE SPOILERS!

Ms. Lenz and her co-star Kristoffer Polaha have terrific chemistry together. To be honest, each of them always exudes good chemistry no matter who they're starring with.

Suspend your disbelief and just go with it!

*I grew up in NC, so I may be biased, but Biltmore House, gardens, grounds, and winery are fantastic to tour, especially for Christmas. If you do it right, it's an all-day affair. 👍*

Catch Me If You Claus (2023 TV Movie)

WELL DONE, HALLMARK!

[9/10 · 24 November 2023]

WOW! Another actual Christmas COMEDY from Hallmark Channel this year! (Please also note "Mystic Christmas" and "The Santa Summit")

The plot revolves around a TV research assistant who is hankering to become a news anchor like her famous mother. Unfortunately, she got very nervous in her audition and blew her chances.

There is also a string of home robberies being perpetrated by robbers disguised as Santa. The police can't catch them. Can a research assistant make her bones by capturing the robbers herself???

Too many of HM's rom-coms merely make make you smile or occasionally chuckle. "Catch Me If You Claus" is REALLY funny and had me actually laughing out loud! It has physical comedy as well as witty dialogue and sight gags. Luke Macfarlane, a loyal Hallmark retainer(!), and newcomer(?) Italia Ricci head up the cast and do a great job dealing with whatever wackiness comes their way.

HALLMARK CHANNEL! MORE ACTUAL COMEDIES, PLEASE!!!

Blessings of Christmas (2023)

A SACK OF COAL

[6/10 · 24 November 2023]

I had to FORCE myself to watch this movie.

Why? Because I'm still really angry at Lori Loughlin and her family. Rich people taking advantage of things designed to help poorer people, getting caught, not really paying for their crime, AND BARELY apologizing. Unfortunately, that seems to be the current "American Way".

But since I do try to watch ALL the Christmas movies, here we go:

As another reviewer mentioned, the script was pretty good, but the "mystery" was easily figured out within 5 minutes. Okay, standard Christmas fare, pardon the reference.

As for the acting, LL sleepwalked through the whole movie. Was she always this bad? I used to watch her occasionally in "Garage Sale Mysteries", but quit watching a while back, thinking the show itself was too boring? Maybe it WAS her (lack of) acting? Hard to say now, post-scandal.

The rest of the cast were great, featuring James Tupper and the always-great Jesse Hutch, having to carry LL like the sack of coal she appears to be.

6 stars for the movie and supporting cast, minus 100 stars for LL's lack of performance.

Christmas Plus One (2022 TV Movie)

THE ONLY REASON TO WATCH

[6/10 · 21 November 2023]

The only reason to watch "Christmas Plus One" is Corey Sevier's performance.

I've seen him in many TV Christmas movies, and he always strikes me as quite genuine. Without a word, he can run through a full range of emotions with just his face. If he had been born near the beginning of the Twentieth Century, I believe he would have been a major silent film actor and have had the ladies swooning as well! Move over, John Barrymore!

So why haven't I seen him in any movies at the cinema???

The other actors were okay, going through the motions, but Corey carried this film.

Special mention goes to Leighton Alexander Williams, who played Pete the coffee shop owner.

Mystic Christmas (2023 TV Movie)

A LITTLE DIFFERENT

[8/10 · 20 November 2023]

I'm not quite sure why "Mystic Christmas" isn't rated more highly.

I had no illusions going in. I expected another standard Hallmark Christmas rom-com, but I was very pleasantly surprised! This one is a little different.

The main character Juniper Jones (Jessy Schram) is an introvert. We're not talking "a little shy" like some of Hallmark's blushing maidens. We're talking full-on avoidance of human interaction whenever possible. Finally! A character I can relate to!

The writing includes some very rapid-fire, very funny dialogue. I often had to back up my recording to make sure I heard what I thought I did: "How come everyone had a better time at my wedding than I did?!?" "Because you had a terrible date." "Oooh!" "Sorry." At this point, I knew I was onto a winner!

If you have a sense of humor, give "Mystic Christmas" a shot. It had me laughing out loud in less than 5 minutes!

Carnival of Souls (1962)

An Hour and a Half of My Life I'll Never Get Back

[3/10 · 2 November 2023]

I watched this movie after hearing TCM hosts raving about it, as well as the 7 star review here on IMDB.

I'm not normally a horror movie fan unless it's pre-1940. I should have listened to my gut and skipped "Carnival of Souls".

It has some good points, such as some of the shots and angles near the end, BUT those in no way make up for what's basically bad amateur filmmaking.

For starters, my kitchen sink has more facial expressions and acting chops than the lead "actress" Candace Hilligoss. She looked as if her entire face had been botoxed into that vague expression she wears throughout "CoS". I kept expecting her to drool! I don't blame her agent for dropping her like a hot rock. S/he knew it would be impossible to get her into any actual professional production.

And the actor playing the guy who lives across the hall at the boarding house? He TEACHES ACTING??? All I can say is, he was marginally more emotive than the lead.

Most scenes ran far too long. Some righteous editing was desperately needed and not supplied.

The Foley guys should have gotten some pointers from the coconut-wielding serfs in "Monty Python & the Holy Grail" before attempting to perform running, or even walking, footsteps. And, yes, I KNOW "CoS" was made before "MP&tHG". I'm just trying to give an example of better Foley work!

I studied film & television production in college, and worked in the industry for 25+ years. In the beginning, I made my share of bad films, but no one had to pay money to suffer through them. I just hope no one involved in THIS bad film gave up their day job to join this waste of film & time!

P. U.!!! What a stinker!

Beauty and the Boss (1932)

UNDER-RATED GEM

[8/10 · 20 September 2023]

I'm amazed this film isn't rated higher than 6.8! It's a fast-paced gem with snappy dialogue and terrific performances.

As another reviewer noted, this may be one of the first, if not THE first, film in which the big boss (played with dismissive invective and pure slime by the excellent Warren William) falls for his secretary (played with ultra-efficiency and rapid fire dialogue by ugly duckling Marian Marsh) by the end of the film.

The old boss-loves-secretary scenario plays fresh and funny here, setting a standard that subsequent films fail to capture.

I was surprised how much I truly enjoyed "Beauty and the Boss", and I highly recommend it. It is laugh-out-loud funny!

If you need me, I'll be working on some research!