The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh

   And this week's Friday night movie has been... The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh!

Original image located here. Accessed 7th August 2026

When I was a little boy, my father had a copy of Winnie the Pooh on the bookshelf. This was a copy of the original text by A. A Milne and I read it many times. Indeed, a book where the titular character is far from the sharpest tool in the shed but is still able to succeed is something that spoke deeply to me. 

So we come to this: An anthology of previously animated shorts and indeed the most widely recognised of the Disney adaptations of Milne's work. I do recall seeing one of them on TV when I was a lad - the one where Tigger is stuck up a tree - but I never got to see how it ended. 

Looking at this collection of shorts, I can certainly recognise the stories from the source material. And I especially love the playful nature of the animation, with the incorporation of the story book framework. 
Given the ubiquitous nature of these characters, one will would they would grow tiresome easily but that is not the case. 
This has been a lot of fun to watch and hasn't aged at all.

My Brilliant Career

 And this week's Friday night movie has been... My Brilliant Career!

Original image located here. Accessed 17th July 2026

Given the passing of Sam Neill earlier this week, this is an obvious watch: His breakthrough role that brought him to attention of the movie-going public. 

And honestly it couldn't have happened in a better film: It seems that this is indeed a classic of Australian cinema, boasting an impressive cast, wonderful cinematography, and showing this country, and indeed the world, how to make a movie about us. 
The thing that stood out of me is just how quiet this movie is: It's telling a story of defying the gender roles of the day but it's less interested in beating the audience over the head with it and more interested in letting everything on screen sink in (case in point: that striking wide shot that ends Sybylla and Harry's final scene). And that's the greatest strength of this movie. 

It's fair to say that Harry Beecham is the Australian answer to the likes of Mr. Darcy and Rhett Butler. And Neill delivers the quiet charisma the role demands - and some. But even then, this movie is still Judy Davis' show, giving her all.

Seems this is a classic of Australian cinema for a damn good reason. 

A Star is Born (1976)

And this week's Friday night movie has been... A Star is Born (1976)!

Original image located here. Accessed 20th March 2026

AKA: The one with Barbra Streisand in it.

Let us, for a moment, go back to that question I posed last week: Given that Hollywood has produced four versions of this movie, what is it about A Star is Born that keeps bringing people back to it?
One likely reason is that it can easily be adapted to fit the times it was made: If the 1937 original was a snapshot of the Golden Era of Hollywood, and 1954 version came out at a time when musicals were popular, then this one brings something it's own to the table: It ditches the movie approach for one about music. In particular rock music and the industry attached. 

It may be a new approach but let's be honest here: This is all Streisand's show. She stars, is the executive producer, used her own clothes for her wardrobe (as the credits seem eager to point out) and has her then-hairdresser-turned-boyfriend Jon Peters as producer (well before his obsession with mechanical spiders). It would be easy to say this is her bid for some credibility/An Oscar, taking some tried-and-tested material and bringing her own stamp on it - but the question is, does it work? 

When I was a young lad in the nineties, I had a view of the seventies as being one borne of derision: There were hippies everywhere, the hair was bad, the fashion was worse and a lot of the music was over-produced and over-bearing. Granted such a perception was a product of a narrow one but I bring this up because this movie does nothing to challenge said perception. 
Sure the source material does translate well into a music environment, sure Kris Kristofferson plays the role of 'washed up and self destructive' rock star well, sure Streisand does indeed get chances to flex her vocal prowess (the final eight minutes being of particular note). But does this work as a whole? 
Honestly I'm torn here: For every strength this movie has, a weakness emerges: The Oreos. Streisand not quite cutting it is a rocker type. It's meandering nature. The aforementioned aesthetic. 

Still, there's always next week.....

The Wicker Man

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

Original image located here. Accessed 31st October 2025

It's Halloween night so what better way to see out this year's clutch of horror movies than to go on hard mode?

In a way this movie surprised me: I was expecting to have some dread, the building of tension and Christopher Lee at his freakish best. Certainly I did get that but what I wasn't expecting was some musical numbers. And some bright colours. And some truly bizarre behaviour.
I have to wonder: has time been kind to this movie? True we know how it's going to end (even though it still hits like a truck) and somehow the movie comes across as more comical than threatening. Or maybe this inspired a line of imitators so long that the original's power has faded

I also found myself wondering: is this a movie about being threatened by a cult? Because one may come away with the impression that the cult looks appealing...

Black Christmas

 And this week's Friday night movie has been... Black Christmas!

Original image located here. Accessed 17th October 2025

Its well documented that I have a strong distaste for slasher movies. But, for some reason I will never understand, I still ended up watching this one. 
In this case, this movie has reputation for being one of the earliest entrants in the slasher genre. Some even say that the mighty Halloween owes a considerable debt to.

Watching this movie, there is a lot going for it: The 'dumb teenagers' trope that so frustrates me with slasher movies is thankfully absent. The tension is unbearable. The trick of 'what you can't see' is put to good use. And the killer is nothing less than unsettling.
The real treat however is the cast - in particular there are some names I have seen previously: Olivia Hussey (1968 Romeo and Juliet), Keir Dullea (2001: A Space Odyssey) and Margot Kidder (Superman). It is indeed a treat seeing these faces in roles completely different from what I' knew them from. Kidder in particular is a treat to see as a smoking/hard drinking curmudgeon. 

So yeah, a slasher that does things differently is always welcome in my book. 
Still not sold on the genre though...

Young Frankenstein

 And this week's Friday night movie has been... Young Frankenstein!

Original image located here. Accessed 15th August 2025

Seems that this is one of Gene Wilder's fondest remembered performances alongside Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory. Being well aware of the other movie, this seems like a challenge.

But this is still a Mel Brooks movie, so expect some biting satire walking hand-in-hand with jokes that bounce from hilarious to the inane. And this one delivers: Right from the get-go this is clearly paying homage to the Frankenstein mythos, and not just the original movie. The mood is still the same and I recognised some scenes from the James Whale movie but this time it's loaded with jokes.
Jokes that range from the dumb to the side-splitting. 
So yeah, this was kinda dumb but still pretty funny. 

Straw Dogs

 And this week's Friday night movie has been... Straw Dogs!

Original image located here. Accessed 8th August 2025

This is another stab at the oeuvre of director Sam Peckinpah. I have had previous experiences with this guy and I admired his work - so lets go with his most controversial film: This British-made film that has been labelled as violent and misogynistic.
Looks like this will be a fun time.

Much has been written about this movie and what it was trying to get across: It's a fish-out-of-water story about a couple entering in a foreign environment. It is the clash between tradition and liberalism. It is both misogynistic and a criticism of misogynism. It is the story of a quiet, civilised man stepping up and becoming a violent monster. 
Valid criticisms to be sure but my main takeaway from this movie is just how soulless it is. It is just so dull and lifeless that watching it became a chore. Matters aren't helped with the nasty moments are difficult to sit through (granted that may be the point) and there is no catharsis whatsoever by the end. 

Am I missing something here? Sure fifty-plus years may have lessened the shock value it originally had - especially considering that many film-makers may have actively tried to top it since - but I know for a fact that Peckinpah can do better than this. 

Solaris

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

Original image located here. Accessed 30th May 2025

Here we are folks: The classic 1972 Soviet movie that was intended to be a response to 2001: A Space Odyssey but has since become something of a classic in it's own right. Certainly I knew of this film and I had seen the remake that starred George Clooney so what do I make of this?

It's long that's what. Nearly three hours and it comes across as something of an endurance test, with some pointless scenes and a pace that moves faster than a molasses flood. I will give credit to the director Andrei Tarkovsk for demanding that the audience approach the movie on his own terms but that is still quite a demand.

Still, I will give credit for this movie for it's ideas and the hypnotic approach. And the final scene is indeed one I never saw coming. 

Dark Star

And this week's Friday night movie has been... Dark Star!

Original image located here. Accessed 24th January 2025

Here's a question: Can anyone tell me, without looking it up, who created the Alien franchise?
My experience with sci-fi nerds - or any nerds for that matter - is that they tend to venerate creators who come up with successful IP. By way of example: George Lucas gave us Star Wars, Gene Roddenberry gave us Star Trek, J. Michael Straczynski gave us Babylon 5 and Joss Whedon gave us Firefly.
All recognisable names to be sure - so who created Alien?

The answer is two people: Dan O'Bannon and Ronald Shusett. The former wrote a movie called Dark Star and it impressed the latter to a point that they joined forces, worked on some of the ideas from said movie and gave us the horror/sci-fi hybrid that we all know.
And if that isn't enough, this movie was the directorial debut of one John Carpenter. It was originally a student film but, with some additional funds, it was expanded upon.
Quite a pedigree one would think.....

Let's get this out of the way: This is a B-Movie. The sets look shoddy, the sfx are cheap, the premises are ludicrous and there is no attempt to hide it. The monster in this movie is a beachball and the cast act like they're stoned. Certainly there are some elements that will crop up again in Alien - blue-collar space-farers working for a faceless corporation - but both films are so removed from each other it's hard to make the connection both came from the same writer. 
And yet, this movie still works: There are plenty of laughs and the cheap nature of it makes it endearing. It certainly does say a lot about doing a lot with limited resources and you must give props to a student film that made the leap into a full feature. 
Funny how big things would come to those behind a mere student film....

Gimme Shelter

And this week's Friday night movie has been... Gimme Shelter!

Original image located here. Accessed 17th January 2025

Behold: one of the most famous (infamous?) documentaries, music or otherwise, ever made. It's the chronicle of the Altamont Free Concert - a show put on by the Rolling Stones that ended in disaster.

For those who don't know: Altamont happened in 1969, four months after Woodstock. It was put together by the Rolling Stones and had them headlining with some other acts. During the show however the crowd was unruly and the security, provided by the Hells Angels, were very hostile to them. Needless to say, it descended into chaos and an attendee, one Meredith Hunter, was stabbed to death.
Since then, there have been varying accounts of the event but it has gone down in history as a catastrophe and, most significantly, the endpoint of both the sixties and the hippy ethos of 'peace and love' it inspired.

Of  course, this documentary does nothing to challenge such a narrative: the planning process is shown to be haphazard and the event is shown to be utter mayhem. And it is the latter that is the key selling point of this documentary: it is terrifying to watch and the alarm shown by the Stones is genuine. 

But the main strength of this feature is seeing Mick and Charlie being confronted with the footage. Granted the Stones may forever be the benchmark for pop music 'bad boys' but rarely are such 'bad boys' shown the consequences of their actions. And it is downright harrowing. 
Was that the intention of this documentary? Hard to say but what I do know is that this was a far from easy watch - but much like car crash, hard to look away. 

Kramer vs Kramer

 And this week's Friday night movie has been... Kramer vs Kramer!

Original image located here. Accessed 4th November 2024

Best Picture Oscar winner no.: 52 (1979)

Actually forget what I said about The Sting: This has a more compelling case for being the 'forgotten' movie of 70s Best Picture winners. So while everyone props up the other eight, The Sting and Kramer vs Kramer are left fighting over the table scraps.

Still, this movie has plenty going for it: Firstly it is showing a divorce in process which is already a ballsy move.
Secondly, we are seeing a lousy dad slowly improving himself to become a better dad.
And thirdly there is a degree of nuance that would be foreign to modern audiences: Both the mother and father are treated well and not made out to be the bad guy. 
Its certainly a bold move to show divorce on screen and how it effects the people involved, socially and psychologically. Certainly it seems that a lot of people can relate to the situations being put forth on the screen - so if the film has resonated in such a manner, it must be doing something right.

It seems to me that other people are annoyed that this won Best Picture over Apocalypse Now. But to me, there's something to be said for the long, bombastic film losing out to smaller film. 

And with that, we leave the 1970s, it's cynicism and the era of New Hollywood behind. Ahead lies.... *checks schedule*....Hoo boy....

The Deer Hunter

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

Original image located here. Accessed 4th November 2024

Best Picture Oscar winner no.: 51 (1978)

I was dreading watching this movie. Largely for two reasons:
Firstly, this movie is notorious for being the progenitor of 'Oscar Bait'. For those who don't know this movie, upon release, was deemed a hard sell due to it's depressing nature and it's length. Producer Allan Carr decided that if the movie was nominated for Best Picture, then people will go and see it. So the movie received a nomination after achieving the bare minimum requirement - along with Carr's own heavy campaigning for the movie. And it worked - The movie won Best Picture and, in turn, has inspired similar campaigns in it's wake.
And secondly, this is the movie that gave director Michael Cimino success - which he followed up with Heaven's Gate. This one was a notorious flop, with a oversized budget and seemingly never-ending production cycle. And it was enough to bring about the end of the New Hollywood era. I personally have never seen Heaven's Gate but my dad did - and he hated it, regaling me with stories of pointless scenes that dragged on. 
Thing is though, these two obstacles are ultimately outside factors: They don't say much about The Deer Hunter itself so there is still grounds for me to assess this movie on it's own terms.

What is striking is that there are three parts to this movie. The first introduces the protagonists and their bonds. The second catapults into the Vietnam War and gives us the infamous Russian Roulette scene. And the third examines the fallout of our protagonists retuning home and struggling in various forms. 
Really this movie left me with a lot of mixed feelings: On one hand there are some sequences that drag out and seem pointless. But on the other hand, there are some intense scenes (like the war portion) and some moments of sensitivity - both of which prove that Cimino knows what he's doing and the cast are delivering some career best performances. 
Some strong ideas to be sure but sadly bogged down with some baffling meandering.

Still, I will give props that the Academy awarded Best Picture to a movie about the Vietnam War - long regarded as 'the unpopular war'. Seems they were going against the grain but, as it would turn out, it's not the last time the Vietnam War would walk hand in hand with the Best Picture Oscar...

Rocky

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

Original image located here. Accessed 12th July 2024

Best Picture Oscar winner no.: 49 (1976)

It's the ultimate underdog story: A guy who has lost his way is presented with a opportunity at redemption and he approaches it with hard work and dedication. Really, how could this not win the Best Picture Oscar?

Despite my distaste for sports movies, I did enjoy this one in that is well shot, it is filtered through the lens of seventies cynicism/realism, the outcome isn't obvious and it is genuinely inspiring. It also helps to have one of the most unforgettable movie themes supporting it.
But what did surprise me is that there is some degree of goofiness at work here, with Rocky's tendency to talk about random stuff and to anyone in a nonstop fashion (this goofiness, apparently, will be amplified in the sequels). 

Still this movie is, for the lack of a better choice of words, a knockout.

The Sting

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

Original image located here. Accessed 5th July 2024

Best Picture Oscar winner no.: 46 (1973)

Given the 1970s are regarded as one of, if not the, strongest decades of Best Picture winners, it does raise an interesting question: Which of the ten winners is the weakest? 
Such a question is by no means a slight against the movie in question. It just sits besides some titans that would easily overshadow it. So would The Sting be the weak point of the 70s? 

Well I will admit it certainly stands on it's own. Whereas 70s cinemagoers embraced the New Hollywood movement and cynicism, The Sting is a deliberate throwback to the 1930s style of film-making. And it's not just in the aesthetic: the structure and direction is undeniably lifted from an earlier, long-gone era of film-making. If anything this seems to be a flipside to The French Connection: if that movie embodies the realism and cynicism of New Hollywood, then The Sting seems oddly resistant to them.  
But that is by no means a bad thing: This is a solid crime caper based around building up a con-game to take down a crime boss. Certainly the narrative is bogged down by multiple double-crosses but I do admire the effort gone into making this movie. After all, it has the most compelling poker game I have ever seen on celluloid. 

The French Connection

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

Original image located here. Accessed 28th June 2024

Best Picture Oscar winner no.: 44 (1971)

Hey, did you now that the director of The Exorcist made other movies? And he has a Best Director Oscar to his name?!

Okay, sarcasm aside, this is very much a product of it's time: the era of New Hollywood was underway and the Academy voters has discovered cynicism. And here we do indeed have a more realistic approach to film-making and film-makers more than willing to take risks. 

And it works. There's so many highlights I don't know where to start: Gene Hackman on fire. An opening scene that has our protagonist dressed as Santa Claus chasing down and beating up a guy. A detective protagonist that is less Dirty Harry and more Captain Ahab. An intense car chase that was famously illegally shot. Some truly stunning location photography. The template for countless police procedural movies to follow. And an ending that hits like a truck.

Speaking of which, is this the bleakest movie to win the Best Picture Oscar? One would think so but that's what makes it a unique entry compared to it's brethren. And all the better for it. 

Blazing Saddles

And this week's Friday night movie has been... Blazing Saddles!

Original image located here. Accessed 29th December 2023

So how do I see out 2023? By watching one of the most funniest/offensive movies ever made.

It's a popular statement nowadays to declare that this movie wouldn't have a hope in hell of being made today but I feel such a declaration is selling the movie short. Because it is still really funny. There are some genuinely laugh-out moments and there is some biting satire. I knew from watching Spaceballs in my youth (many many times) I thought I'd know what to expect from Mel Brooks' brand of humour but this movie still manages to surprise.
Indeed, I do remember, quite vividly, seeing the climax but seeing it now, and with proper context, it is still a riot (pun intended).

Anywho, this concludes this series for 2023. Thank you for joining me on this journey and for following these ramblings over the past twelve months.
Next year will be 2024 - and thereby making it ten years since I started this series. So do I have something special planned for the tenth anniversary? Well it's funny you should mention that..

The Exorcist

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

Original image located here. Accessed 27th October 2023

And so we reach the end of this year's clutch of horror movies. And what better way to see it out then to go on Hard mode.

So yeah, approaching this movie, it is a given that it bears the label of one of - if not the - scariest movie ever made. That's all well and good but at the same time, it is difficult for this movie to shake off such a tag. So much so, it may be intimidating for a newcomer like myself. What I do know however is that movie has been referenced and parodied so many times that it provides a degree of familiarity as I head into uncharted waters...

First up, I do like how this movie relies on the atmosphere and the sense of creeping dread. And I will favour such movies over those that rely on jump scares.
Having said that though, it seems that this movie's reputation relies heavily on it's final half hour. It is gripping indeed but for me that's when the movie feels like a horror movie. That's not to disregard the build-up beforehand but it's odd that The Exorcist's status only applies to a quarter of it's running time.
I suppose I could put this down to the many references (as mentioned above) but also to the notion that this movie threw down a gauntlet that numerous film-makers have picked up since.

So yeah, not bad but I was left wanting more...

McCabe and Mrs Miller

And this week's Friday Night movie has been... McCabe and Mrs Miller!

Original image located here. Accessed 19th May 2023

If there has been a theme in my movie watching for this year (thus far) it is me addressing my to-watch list: watching the stuff that have been on there for a long time, and finally striking said movies from the list.
And this is one such movie: No idea how long it's been on my to watch list so that's a good reason to watch it.

So what we have here is a western (not gonna complain there) but with a difference: This is a western that takes a realistic approach. Instead of deserts, we get snow. Instead of the gunslinger protagonist we have a gambler-turned-businessman. Instead of a desolate, weather beaten town, we have a village on the grow.
Indeed it is that refusal to go with the grain of tried and tested western conventions that is the main strengths of this movie. And that the movie is beautifully shot is an added bonus.
The best moment for me is the final showdown, which plays much differently than one would expect and where the tension is milked for every drop.
So yeah, it's different but it's certainly compelling

Dersu Uzala

And this week's Friday Night movie has been... Dersu Uzala!

Original image located here. Accessed 21st April 2023

I have previously spoken about my efforts to explore the oeuvre of Japanese director Akira Kurosawa. So we come to this: One of his lesser-known works.
This came about because Kurosawa wanted to do an adaptation of the novel by Russian author Vladimir Arsenyev. And he got a chance to do so when he was given Russian backing - so, with a Russian cast and crew, along with the opportunity to shoot in the wilderness of Siberia, Kurosawa came up with this movie.

When one thinks of Kurosawa, his samurai epics come to mind as well as his ability for orchestrating action scenes. But that is selling him short: He had a strength for his humanist approach to filmmaking and his subjects. And that is well and truly at play here. The titular character is a Mongolian man, well at home in the wild, and how he assists, and eventually bonds, with the captain of a Russian surveying expedition. It does make for a fascinating character study, with we the audience learning a lot about Uzala both as a character and his survival skills. Which makes the ultimate conclusion hit like a truck.
Another one of Kurosawa's strengths is his ability to conjure up beautiful shots. And here we have plenty of shots of the Siberian wilderness - it's all looking magnificent, especially considering that much of it isn't really accessible to human presence.
So yeah, an excellent movie with Kurosawa doing what he does best. Thoughtful and compelling tied with moments of beauty.

Long Weekend

And this week's Friday night movie has been... Long Weekend (1978)!

Original image located here. Accessed 7th October 2022

It's become something of a tradition with this series that whenever October rolls around, I watch horror movies. It may be cliche but normally I don't watch horror movies so there's something to be said about stepping out of the comfort zone for a month - and stepping out of one's comfort zone is something that horror movies thrive on, amirite?

So we have this: An Australian movie from the late seventies where a couple go on a camping trip and, through a number of irresponsible acts, end up earning the wrath of Mother Nature who mounts a revenge...
This movie is a classic case of the slow burner: The first two thirds is dedicated to get to know the couple. It may soon dull and slow paced but there is a slow sense of creeping dread. And this pays off in magnificent fashion in the final third. I've always praised horror movies that rely on dread and unease over jump scares and this one delivers. Of course, it may be easy to joke that this reaffirms the observation that the Australian flora and fauna is trying to kill you but here it works.
So we start this October's clutch of horror movies with a bang. What would be coming up next...?