245 of 1001 Movies: The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)

Robert Wise brought quite the classics like The Sound of Music, and the motion picture of Star Trek, and even earlier on he brought to the screen some creative CGI use in The Day the Earth Stood Still. Really, I was impressed with how the movie looked. The plot though is very stretched in a lot of ways, and since it's a B movie I don't think thoroughly thought through in some ways. The story is entertaining, and Michael Rennie makes for a very compelling alien that is just trying to save earth!

Summary: A spaceship causes quite a disruption in Washington D.C. when it lands in the middle of the city. Klaatu, an alien, has landed to give earth a warning, but he won't reveal what he is there to warn of until he can get the attention of the people he knows will listen. With the help of a boy, Bobby, he leans about the city he is in, and the people there that is informative to him in how he will get his point across. After World War II has just ended, and with the Cold War era just beginning Klaatu's message is more urgent than ever.

14 of 1001 Books: J.D Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye

Holden Caulfield might be one of the saddest characters I've read. His character also seems to be a huge draw of a line between whether you hate or love the book though. As I was reading though all I found was a boy who probably had some severe trauma happen in his past, and now as a teen his rebellion toward has what has happened is manifesting itself. I understand not particularly liking Holden, but I feel it would be difficult to not be empathetic to what he hints has happened to him. J.D. Salinger uses his talent for the first person and dialogue though to bring a book that feels real and is controversial.

Summary: Holden Caulfield feels alienated from the world. His peers he thinks are phonies, the girls seem not too interested in him, and his parents could be less than observant about their son. After getting kicked out of another prep school, Caulfield decides he will rent a motel room in New York where he will spend time till Wednesday, when he is supposed to return from school. His time in the city only further depresses him though. The only person that he seems to be set on being around and cares about is his sister, Phoebe.

88 of 1001 Movies: Ace in the Hole (1951)

Billy Wilder has shown his ability to capture witty, and modern characters in The Apartment, and in his earlier work he proves he was just as good at his directing style then with Ace in the Hole. The difference is none of the characters are hugely likable except poor Leo who is the one trapped in a hole in a cave. Kirk Douglas continues his streak of being the unlikable guy who will do anything to gain just like his son, Michael Douglas, seems to do in his movies, and even the other characters are just as unlikable. It turns out to be a movie to see what people will do just for a little fame, and it's a sad look especially since people haven't changed much in the digital age.

Chuck Tatum is a former big time journalist looking for a job, and the only thing that seems open to taking him in is a small-town newspaper in Albuquerque. He is warned though that while working for them that they value the truth, and want him to uphold a good standard. It isn't long before Tatum finds himself something to get into though. On the way to a rattlesnake hunt, he spots some things to investigate happening. After dropping in he finds a man is stuck in a cave-in, and believes this is his big chance to revive his career. He begins exploiting the story by controlling it through the sheriff so no one else has access to the stuck man, Leo, and begins enlarging details. The situation grows so big even a circus arrives to entertain the people who have traveled for the story.