How Stella Got Her Groove Back

How Stella Got Her Groove Back

20th Century Fox

August 14, 1998

Romcom

DVD
C-

I'm giving the movie the same grade I gave the Terry McMillan novel (reviewed here https://rereadingeverybookiown.blogspot.com/2013/10/how-stella-got-her-groove-back.html), although it did not, as least in the first quarter hour, have the same flaws.  Well, I didn't care about Stella in either version, but here she's just dull, and Winston doesn't show up until later.  Kevin Rodney Sullivan directed, seven years before Guess Who.

How I Won the War

How I Won the War

United Artists

18 October 1967

War Comedy
DVD
D+

Not even worth watching for the occasional Lennon line.  This is based on the Patrick Ryan novel and directed by Richard Lester.

Houseboat

Houseboat

Paramount

November 19, 1958

Dramedy
DVD
C-

Grant is a widower suddenly raising his estranged children.  Melville Shavelson directed and co-wrote.

House of D

House of D

Lionsgate

April 15, 2005

Historical Drama, Historical Comedy

DVD
D+

A man flashes back to his messed-up life at 13 in 1973.  David Duchovny wrote and directed.

The Hours (2002)

The Hours 

Paramount

December 15, 2002

Historical Drama

DVD
D+

Probably the most depressing movie I ever saw in the theater.  (I couldn't walk out because I was with a friend, and we kept hoping it would get better.)  Still, the first quarter hour is almost bearable and the period details are nice.  This is based on the Michael Cunningham novel and directed by Stephen Daldry, nine years before Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close.  I tagged the people I recognized and have to note that this is likely the worst Julianne Moore performance I've ever seen.

Hotel Transylvania

Hotel Transylvania

Sony

September 28, 2012

Children's, Horror, Comedy

DVD
C-

I enjoyed this movie enough in the theater to see the second one (which I liked less) but on DVD, especially without the delighted surprise of recognizing the voice actors, I didn't care as much, although, as with Hop, the look is better than the story.  Genndy Tartakovsky directed.

Hotel Rwanda

Hotel Rwanda

Lionsgate

22 December 2004

Drama

DVD
C-

A country on the edge of genocide, mostly seen through the eyes of a hotel manager.  Terry George directed and co-wrote.

Hotel Mumbai

Hotel Mumbai

Bleecker Street etc.

10 October 2018

Action

DVD
D+

A true story of terrorism, directed and co-written by Anthony Maras.

Hotel Artemis

Hotel Artemis

Global Road Entertainment

June 8, 2018

Sci-Fi, Action

DVD
D-

Racist and violent but made less awful by the still tough-but-tender Jodie Foster.  Drew Pearce wrote and directed.

The Host (2013)

The Host

Open Road Films

March 29, 2013

Sci-Fi, Romance

DVD
D-

This lacks even the sometimes so-bad-it's-goodness of Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series.  And why hire the very talented Saoirse Ronan with her incredible eyes and give her such a stupid character, who wears ice-blue contacts!  Andrew Niccol directed and did the adaptation.

The Horse in the Gray Flannel Suit

The Horse in the Gray Flannel Suit

Disney

December 20, 1968

Children's, Comedy

DVD

D+

Surprisingly flat, considering the cast and the set-up, but I didn't even get up to Dean Jones meeting the title character.  This is based on the Louis Pelletier book The Year of the Horse, and directed by Norman Tokar.

The Horse Dancer

The Horse Dancer

Studio Unknown

January 7, 2017

Children's, Drama

DVD
D+

Joel Paul Reisig amateurishly directed this, with one character's face half cut out in one scene and the grandmother not knowing how to do any of her line readings.

Hop

Hop

Illumination Entertainment

April 1, 2011

Children's, Fantasy, Comedy
DVD
C-

I like the look of this but I didn't care about the story.  Tim Hill directed.

Hoosiers

Hoosiers

Orion

November 10, 1986

Historical Drama, Sports Drama

DVD
D+

A 1950s high school basketball drama starring Gene Hackman?  A default D+.  David Anspaugh directed.

Hooligan Sparrow

Hooligan Sparrow

Little Horse Crossing the River

22 January 2016

Documentary

DVD
C-

I couldn't stick with this because of the subject matter, but I wish the activists and the girls they're fighting for well.  Nanfu Wang directed and co-wrote.

Hook

Hook

TriStar

December 11, 1991

Drama

DVD

D+

The first quarter-hour is about Williams as a workaholic father.  Spielberg directed.

Honolulu

Honolulu

MGM

February 3, 1939

Comedy, Musical, Romance

DVD
C+

A big old WTF of a movie, at times hilarious and charming but also racist and nonsensical, like one minute where we're watching Gracie Allen dressed as Mae West singing with men dressed as four Marx Brothers (with two Grouchos), and then the next Eleanor Powell is tap-dancing in blackface.  George & Gracie are in separate plot threads, with Robert Young as lookalikes, so they don't meet up until three minutes before the end.  And then Gracie has a twin sister!  Oh, and did I mention the straitjacket and Sig Ruman as a psychiatrist?  Edward Buzzell directed.

Honeymoon in Vegas

Honeymoon in Vegas

New Line Cinema

August 28, 1992

Comedy

DVD
D+

Unlikable except for Parker a bit.  Andrew Bergman wrote and directed.

Honey, I Shrunk the Kids

Honey,  I Shrunk the Kids

Disney

June 23, 1989

Sci-Fi, Children's, Comedy

DVD
C

This is another one I of course heard of at the time but didn't then see.  It is very '80s and very cliched, but not enough for me to stick with it.  Joe Johnston directed, over twenty years before Captain America.

Honey AKA Miele

Honey AKA Miele

Studio Unknown

1 May 2013

Drama

DVD
D+

This seems to be about assisted suicide.  Valeria Golino directed.

Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey

Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey

Disney

February 12, 1993

Adventure, Dramedy, Children's

DVD

D+

I read the Sheila Burnford book many, many years ago (maybe as a kid), but I found this adaptation cheesy and unfunny, especially Fox's voiceover.  Duwayne Dunham directed.

Home Town Story

Home Town Story

MGM

May 18, 1951

Drama

DVD
C-

I tuned out before Marilyn showed up, although I did laugh at Alan Hale, Jr. ordering in a restaurant, since it was a proto-Skipper moment.  Arthur Pierson wrote and directed.

Home of the Brave

Home of the Brave

MGM

December 15, 2006

War Drama

DVD
F+

Very much not my kind of movie.  Irwin Winkler directed and co-wrote.

Home Alone

Home Alone

20th Century Fox

November 16, 1990

Comedy

DVD
C

I didn't have any strong feelings about the first fifteen or twenty minutes of this movie that I of course heard of at the time but had never actually watched before today.  I lost interest once Kevin realized he had the house to himself.  John Hughes wrote and Chris Columbus directed.

Hombre

Hombre

20th Century Fox

March 21, 1967

Western

DVD

D

Newman lives as a blue-eyed Indian, flatly directed by Martin Ritt, based on the Elmore Leonard novel.

Holmes & Watson

Holmes & Watson

Sony Pictures Releasing

December 25, 2018

Historical Comedy

DVD
D-

Aggressively unfunny and anachronistic, and I pitied poor Kelly Mcdonald as the landlady.  But, um, the costumes are nice?  I guess technically based on books, adapted by director Etan Cohen.

Hollywoodland

Hollywoodland 

Miramax etc.

September 8, 2006

Historical Drama, Crime Drama

DVD

C-

The story is mildly interesting, but Adrien Brody is seriously miscast, looking more like a '90s stand-up comic than a '50s detective.  Allen Coulter directed.

Holly

Holly

Easternlight Films

16 August 2006

Drama

DVD
D-

No, just no.  Guy Moshe directed and co-wrote.

[Fast & Furious Presents:] Hobbs & Shaw

[Fast & Furious Presents:] Hobbs & Shaw

Universal

July 13, 2019

Action

DVD
C-

Not my genre but I can appreciate the style and humor a bit.  David Leitch directed.

The Hoax (2007)

The Hoax

Miramax etc.

April 20, 2007

Historical Drama

DVD
C-

Gere as Clifford Irving, and therefore based on a book.  Lasse Hallström directed, about six years after Chocolat, which also had Alfred Molina.

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Buena Vista/ Touchstone, hence Disney

April 28, 2005

Sci-Fi, Comedy

DVD
C

I enjoyed this at the time and did end up watching the whole thing this time, but I do find it uneven and not as enjoyable as the '80s television series, or the books, not that I was a huge fan of either.  Some of the jokes fall flat, and Zaphod wears thin quickly, but the look is of course great and Stephen Fry's narration is almost worth the price of admission in itself (or this time the almost two hours of my extremely valuable time).  And, yes, this scores pretty high on the Harry Potter Cast graph.  Garth Jennings directed.

The Man Who Knew Too Much (1935)

The Man Who Knew Too Much

Gaumont-British Picture Corporation

4 February 1935

Mystery

DVD
C-

I wasn't really drawn into this version of the story, although it was nice to see Young and Innocent's Nova Pilbeam again.

Number Seventeen

Number Seventeen

Associated British Picture Corporation

7 November 1932

Mystery

DVD
D

There are only two characters in the first quarter-hour and one of them has a near incomprehensible accent.

The Skin Game (1931)

The Skin Game

British International Pictures

26 February 1931

Drama

DVD

D

Direction so bad it's hard to believe it's Hitchcock, with the camera just sitting there like a lump most of the time, no matter who's talking or moving.

Juno and the Paycock

Juno and the Paycock

British International Pictures

27 April 1930

Dramedy
DVD
D

What I could understand through the accents sounded like stereotypical and unfunny lines, and the direction is a little static.

Young and Innocent

Young and Innocent

Gaumont Film Company

November 1937

Mystery, Romance

DVD
B+

I thoroughly enjoyed this movie, which is warmer, sweeter, and more charming than most Hitchcock, although not without danger and suspense.  There are times it's like a romcom (with an admittedly offbeat meet-cute), and I instantly shipped Erica/Robert, she so earnest and he so playful, although a wanted man.  I also enjoyed many of the supporting performances, especially of her relatives, from her understandably suspicious aunt to her four lovable and individualized brothers, although Will the hobo offers a lot of the laughs.  I can even forgive the blackface, since it does figure into the plot and is used relatively un-racistly.  This time Hitch's cameo is, appropriately, as a photographer.  The movie is based on the Josephine Tey novel A Shilling for Candles.

The Ring (1927)

The Ring

British International Pictures

1 October 1927

Sports Drama

DVD
D

Gratuitous racism in this silent about boxing at a fair.

The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog

The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog

Gainsborough Pictures

14 February 1927

Crime Drama

DVD
D+

Everyone is talking about a murderer, but it's a silent, so we can't hear them.  I thought the policeman was going to turn out to be the killer, especially after his creepy (title-card) line about liking blondes as much as "the Avenger" does, but apparently not according to the Wikipedia synopsis.  I tuned out before Ivor Novello showed up as the lodger.  This is based on the novel (and play) by Marie Belloc Lowndes.

Blackmail

Blackmail

British International Pictures

28 July 1929

Crime Drama

DVD
D+

The first quarter hour of this early semi-talkie (which it looks like gets more violent and dramatic later) is mostly the dullest start to any Hitchcock movie I've ever seen, although I went up from a D because of, one, the cute Hitchcock cameo, and two, the joke about a movie-within-the-movie being directed by a criminal for authenticity.

Champagne

Champagne

British International Pictures

20 August 1928

Comedy

DVD
D+

A frivolous heiress, a then topical reference to Charles Lindbergh, and a sinister man in this silent.  I liked the fashions but not much else.

Secret Agent

Secret Agent 

British International Pictures

May 1936

Mystery

DVD
C

While I liked some of the writing, particularly the wit and the basic plot, the Lorre character was too creepy (even for Lorre), so I gave up after twenty minutes.  This is based on two W. Somerset Maugham short stories.

Rich and Strange AKA East of Shanghai

Rich and Strange AKA East of Shanghai

British International Pictures

13 June 1932

Comedy

DVD
C

Although I'm not really a silent-movie fan, my favorite aspects of this talkie were carryovers from the previous era, including the title cards and the way some scenes were shot.  Still, I didn't care that much about the characters or story.  This is based on the novel by Dale Collins.

The Manxman

The Manxman

British International Pictures

21 January 1929

Romance?

DVD
D+

Despite the date, still a silent.  Neither of the male leads is appealing, although their love interest is.  This is based on the novel by Hall Caine.

The Farmer's Wife

The Farmer's Wife

British International Pictures

2 March 1928

Comedy
DVD
C-

A housekeeper is in love with her employer, I think.  Also there's a comical drunk.

The Lady Vanishes

The Lady Vanishes

MGM

7 October 1938

Mystery

DVD
C-

This is on a Hitchcock collection, alphabetized under H at my library.   I didn't get up to the mystery part and it was more like mild humour at an overcrowded Swiss hotel (but I'm still using the "mystery" tag of course).  This is based on Ethel Lina White's novel The Wheel Spins.

A History of Violence

A History of Violence

New Line Cinema

September 30, 2005

Crime Drama?

DVD
D

I couldn't tell how the opening crime related to the main (?) story, not that I was likely to stick with a movie with this title anyway, especially with Cronenberg as director.

The History Boys

The History Boys

BBC Two Films

13 October 2006

Historical Comedy, Historical Drama

DVD
C-

One of those movies that's not as witty as it thinks it is.  Nicholas Hytner directed.

The Hindenburg

The Hindenburg

Universal

December 25, 1975

Historical Drama

DVD
C

I enjoyed this more than I expected, although not enough to give it more than a quarter hour.  And the best part was the opening with the newsreels of course.  This is based on the Michael M. Mooney novel, and directed by Robert Wise.