By Brett Blake I’ve noticed lists like this becoming more frequent among film fans, so I decided to try my hand at one. I watched nearly 200 movies this year, some from 2018 itself, some revisiting films I’d already seen, and some from earlier years that I saw for the first time. That third category is the subject of the following list, which consists of the ten best/favorite/most interesting “older” movies that I saw for the first time in 2018. Criteria for appearance: a movie with an American release date from any time prior to 2018 that I watched for the first time during this calendar year. Attentive readers will note that the bulk of this list consists of horror films and thrillers, but that was not intentional. It’s just the way things shook out this year! In any case, let’s get started. In no particular order... NIGHT CREATURES (1962) A half-chiller, half-nautical adventure from Hammer Films, this is one of their lesser-known offerings, probably because the horror elements (which the studio is most famous for) are mostly relegated to the background... though when they do show up, they’re suitably creepy. For the most part, however, this is an engaging mystery involving a British crew’s investigation of a smuggling operation in a sleepy English seaside town. It has atmosphere to spare, and a very fine central performance from Peter Cushing as a man with many secrets and several faces. STRAIT-JACKET (1964) A tale of axe murders and mental illness that was clearly inspired by the success of PSYCHO (and even features a script written by Robert Bloch, the author of PSYCHO!), this probably should have been pure schlock, given that it is directed by gimmick-meister William Castle. But yet... this is actually a legitimately compelling and effective thriller, boasting an impressive and fairly brave central performance from Joan Crawford. Bloch’s script rather sadistically puts Crawford’s character through the wringer, but it does so with a slightly wry, self-aware quality that offers a few moments of macabre humor in what is otherwise a fairly bleak tale. There’s also some surprisingly in-your-face (for the era) violence, with axe murders galore, and that’s never a bad thing! SUDDENLY (1954) Frank Sinatra vs. Sterling Hayden. That dynamic, alone, should be enough to get any movie buff hooked. This is a small-scale, contained noir thriller that proves to be quite effective due to the quality of its performances and the staging of its suspense by director Lewis Allen (an underrated talent who also directed the spooky classic, THE UNINVITED). Sinatra (freshly an Oscar-winner here) and Hayden make for a powerhouse duo at odds with each other, and it’s a pleasure to see such strong personalities (and screen presences) square off throughout; it’s particularly fun to see Sinatra playing such an overtly nasty, unhinged guy. Director Allen really handles the tension well, and while the script hits some pretty conventional beats (mostly in hindsight, because we’ve seen a lot of this sort of story in the decades since), Allen knows how to generate suspense in ways that keep you engaged. NIGHT SCHOOL (1981) From the director of CHITTY CHITTY BANG BANG (!) comes this slasher from the banner year of 1981. It’s set in Boston, and was filmed there, which lends it a bit of a unique flavor, and there’s some nice “early ‘80s urban environment” mood here. There are actually a couple legitimately stylish moments, mostly involving the kills, and it’s clear that director Ken Hughes - in a director-for-hire capacity though he may have been - is invested in the story and is doing all he can with it. He’s aided by a surprisingly decent screenplay, which manages to avoid some of the pitfalls of lesser slasher movies by allowing most of its characters to be reasonably intelligent. There are some missteps, but it feels like an actual movie, not just cheap sleaze. Some real effort was applied, and it pays off. WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO SOLANGE? (1972) A stylish slice of 1970s Italian genre filmmaking. As with most of these movies, this is totally sleazy subject matter dressed up in an attempt to appear classier and more elegant than it really is, while also fully embracing the weird sadism and off-putting sexual overtones (both violent and otherwise) that are sometimes prerequisites for the genre. This is a great-looking film, one that makes effective use of some strategic London location shooting, and it has a nice score from the great Ennio Morricone, which never hurts. The story follows some of the classic Italian horror tropes (a murder mystery, a black-gloved killer, a private citizen protagonist under suspicion embarking his own investigation to find the killer), and it has a solid whodunnit yarn to keep us hooked. It’s a little slow going in the midsection, but it recovers for the third act, which culminates in a shocking revelation that is either in glorious bad taste... or just regular bad taste; either way, it’s memorable. It’s not for everyone, certainly, but if you’re on the right wavelength, there’s stuff to appreciate in here. THE EDGE OF SEVENTEEN (2016) This is not particularly a film I had any burning desire to see. When circumstances conspired to make it happen, I resolved to keep an open mind and give it a fair shake. I'm glad I did, because this is a far more interesting, textured, and nuanced look at the teenage experience than I was expecting. The characterization of Hailee Steinfeld's protagonist is refreshingly honest and complex, and Steinfeld herself absolutely aces her job of walking the fine line between being a difficult, screwed-up teenager and also still being sympathetic; there is a monologue she has near the end of the film that demonstrates Steinfeld has far greater range than one might realize, and it is one of the most heartfelt, affecting, and empathy-inducing moments I've seen in this genre since the glory days of John Hughes. The movie is not perfect, but the overall package is impressive, and it shows that Steinfeld has real chops she can put to work. CAPTAIN KRONOS: VAMPIRE HUNTER (1974) Hammer’s CAPTAIN KRONOS attempts to fuse the horror film with the swashbuckler, and the result is a mostly entertaining treat. Narratively, we get a bit of an unconventional spin on familiar vampire tropes (instead of merely draining blood, victims are drained of youth), and the titular character has the air of a proper adventurer, wielding swords and engaging in duels. The villains are also fleshed-out enough to rise above merely being obstacles for the heroes. The latter-period Hammer atmosphere is here in full force (lots of location shooting in the countryside and in chilly-looking forests), and the presentation of the period setting is a little more grounded and less overtly theatrical than the early years of Hammer Horror, which gives this particular story a bit more grit that pairs nicely with its adventure tale inclinations. POSSESSION (1981) An in-your-face piece of work, this is the cinematic equivalent of a mental breakdown. It’s deeply upsetting and provocative on a number of levels... probably too much so, really. It externalizes the intimate conflicts of a marriage in visceral, hallucinogenic fashion, and curious directorial choices keep us off-balance even before the film takes a turn for the overtly hysterical and horrific. The degree of strangeness that the movie ultimately achieves basically becomes overwhelming in a way that is undeniably compelling, yes, but which also makes the film as a whole difficult to wrap ones head around. Isabelle Adjani is absolutely tremendous here; it’s a fearless, go-for-broke performance that somehow manages to also capture some emotional subtlety. I don’t know if POSSESSION is a movie that a person can actually enjoy or truly “like,” but it’s certainly an idiosyncratic and unique creation that has some truly indelible moments, and pretty much needs to be seen to be believed. Tread lightly if weird horror isn't your thing, though. ANGUISH (1987) A film that cannot be adequately described without delving into spoiler territory, ANGUISH is is a forgotten lost gem, a movie full of weirdness and interesting story angles, and one with a fabulous central conceit that I will not ruin here. It’s very well directed by Bigas Luna, who utilizes the widescreen frame quite well, and who also makes great use of some wonderful genre elements, including birds, eyes, telepathic communication, hypnosis, and psychotic murder. There are some great moments of visual and narrative juxtaposition throughout, and ultimately the film is a commentary on the power of the cinematic experience. LONE STAR (1996) A fascinating, engrossing piece of work that more people should probably be talking about, LONE STAR rather remarkably fuses together many seemingly disparate elements into a cohesive and surprisingly satisfying package. There’s so much in here: complicated and dysfunctional families, small town politics, race relations, the military, and - tying it all together - a murder mystery; on paper, that really should be too much for one film to handle, but writer/director John Sayles does a great job of keeping things from flying apart. His script boasts some incredibly well-observed writing, full of rich and nuanced characters that help create a textured portrait of life in a Texas town on the Mexican border. It has the feel at times of a classic western, with colorful dialogue, memorable interactions, and dramatic confrontations, but it also has modern (for the 1990s) concerns and sympathies. It may be a touch overlong, but overall it’s a pretty potent, even at times poignant film.
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