The Misfits

And this week's Friday night movie has been... The Misfits!

Original image located here. Accessed 16th January 2026

It is impossible to discuss this film without mentioning the fates of it's three stars: Clark Gable, Marilyn Monroe and Montgomery Clift. 
For Gable this was his final film: he would suffer a heart attack shortly after completion. Prior to that the one time King of Hollywood had a string of failures and was looking washed up. Similarly, this was also the final film for Monroe as she was in the middle of drug abuse during filming. And Clift would eventually suffer a car accident that ruined his good looks, derailed his career and led to five years of drug and alcohol abuse before his own passing. 
Because of this, I was reluctant to tackle this film: Sure nothing sells like a story to go with the product but would the tragedies surrounding the stars dwarf the film itself? I mean, it's right there in the title....

There's no way around this: This movie is bleak. Sure the three leads are at the top of their game here but this movie is effectively a musing on the collapse of both the American Dream and the Old West. 
Ultimately however I did find this movie somewhat directionless, as I was somewhat stumped as to where it was going and why I should care.
Granted the three stars are compelling to watch but perhaps there's a reason as to why their real-life fates seem more important than the movie itself. 

The Guns of Navarone

And this week's Friday night movie has been... The Guns of Navarone!

Original image located here. Accessed 14th November 2025

As is often the case, this has been sitting on my watchlist for a considerable amount of time - well over two decades to be precise. And I have only gotten around to see it through the accessibility that streaming provides. 

I was led to this movie on the impression that this is one of the best war movies ever made. Some may disagree on that one but what I got from this movie is that it is a great example of a genre crossbreed: war and adventure. 
In this case, a group of soldiers, of varying backgrounds and unique talents, go through enemy territory to complete an objective. Sure that set-up may seem tried and tested but it is for a reason: it works. 
And this movie does deliver on it's premise: Exotic locales (Greece), high stakes, great set pieces, gripping tension and a cast giving committed performances. Gregory Peck is in fine form but somehow David Niven steals the show.
I was worried that a two and a half hour runtime may be a slog to get through but, against the odds, this was anything but a dull watch.

West Side Story

   And this week's Friday night movie has been... West Side Story!

Original image located here. Accessed 10th May 2024

Best Picture Oscar winner no.: 34 (1961)

And now we enter the sixties. A decade where the musical dominated the Academy Award for Best Picture. Seriously: Four of the Best Picture winners decade were musicals. Still, when I started this year long undertaking, I knew I would be stepping out of my comfort zone. And I am willing to be surprised.

And surprised I was with this one.

I guess it's a given that anyone would attempt a rewrite of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Hey I did it myself when I was young and dumb. And who wouldn't? The scenario of 'young lovers separated through forces beyond their control' certainly is potent and will immediately secure a teen audience. 

But's let cut to the chase: I was impressed by this movie. The dancing sequences are jaw-dropping in their fluidity, the songs are immediate and recognisable (Maria, Tonight, America, I Feel Pretty) and the direction is engaging. And I can't help but think this was the progenitor of the modern musical in that it introduced the tropes of 'people in street suddenly launching into well choreographed dance number' and 'song concluding with laughter'. Can anyone confirm this?

So in the end, this film is indeed superb and a well-deserved winner of Best Picture.