Whispering City (1947)

An interesting Noir set in Quebec.

An actress dies in a car crash, reporter Mary (Mary Anderson) decides to do a feature on her. She discovers that the actress had complained in the past that her fiancé had been murdered. Mary interviews a patron of the arts, Albert (Paul Lukas). 

One of the artists he is funding is composer Michel (Helmut Dantine). Michel's main problem is her troubled wife, who is soon found dead, and Michel believes he was to blame, he is blackmailed by Albert. Albert wants Michel to kill Mary...

The plot is quite complicated but it all comes together and makes sense. A slow builder that ultimately rewards. Some good suspense and atmosphere help make this a very worthwhile watch.

The Weapons of Death (1981)

A rather grubby and violent martial arts film. Its not that bad but what exactly is going on?

A group of thugs including Ralph Castellanos and Louis Bailey are recruited by one of the Triads to kidnap a young woman for ransom (quite why is unknown because they seem to have enough manpower of their own). The woman's half-brother Eric Lee comes to the rescue (luckily he runs a martial arts school so has good fighting skills!) He is joined by the woman's estranged father who also seems to get in fights a lot.

It is all a bit of a car crash, which makes little sense. The fighting is entertaining enough in lieu of much direction and some rather mediocre performances. Random fights and scenes add to the confusion. Its very watchable, the fights are on the whole pretty decent, but what it all means... well?

Chinatown Nights (1929)

An enjoyable early talkie though chock full of dodgy stereotypes.

War between two rival gangs in Chinatown begins, one of the gangs being led by a white man - Chuck Riley (Wallace Beery). He also becomes mixed up with society girl Joan (Florence Vidor) and begins to wonder if a life of crime and gang warfare is the right path in life. Rival boss Boston Charley (Warner Oland) has other ideas though...

A transitional film, originally made as a silent movie and dubbed into a sound film (though Vidor did not want to return to dub her speaking parts so that was done by someone else!) Hence, the film has a mix of sometimes indifferent dialogue and silent movie physical acting. The sound scenes are often very static due to the microphones, other dubbed scenes are full of activity, this gives the film a bit of a disjointed feel.

It isn't a bad film, though the dated stereotypes also jar these days of course. Despite the shortcomings there is still plenty to enjoy from this film.

They Made Me a Criminal (1939)

A mixture of crime and heart affirming morality.

Champion boxer Johnnie (John Garfield) has a hard living lifestyle though the public image of a saint. After waking up from another heavy session with the booze he discovers a reporter who planned to expose is dead in his apartment. 

Johnnie is innocent but knows he will be blamed so he goes on the run and due to the car crash and fire which killed his manager (who actually killed the reporter), he is assumed dead. He ends up at a farm in Arizona and begins to mentor a group of reform kids (The Dead End Kids). However, the law in the form of Detective Phelan (Claude Rains) who thinks Johnnie is still alive, is not far away...

An enjoyable film though the crime part earlier on is better. The film moves smoothly and does not offend in any way. Not great maybe but fine.

Mr. Nanny (1993)

Not a great film by any means though you do get to see Hulk Hogan in a tutu. 

Tech billionaire Mason (Austin Pendleton) hires ex-wrestler Sean (Hogan) to act as a bodyguard to his two children as he fears rivals might strike. Sean soon discovers Mason's children are delightful homicidal maniacs who try and kill him on numerous occasions including electrocuting him in the shower! Meanwhile, the strange Thanatos (David Johansen) with his chrome head seeks Mason's tech secrets and soon puts all of the family in peril. Can Sean save the day?

This is a car crash of a film for sure. Mad cap antics and physical comedy save the day as otherwise it would be pretty grim. The acting is awful and the story makes little sense (and borrows heavily from Home Alone)... however, it is great fun if we are to be honest. It is nonsense and sometimes over-the-top nonsense is just what you need.

As well as Hogan a number of other 1980s wrestlers like Brutus Beefcake and George Steele also make appearances.