July was a busy month for me, but I still squeezed in a movie every day and even watched several that have been on my watchlist for a while. This will be another short post, so onto my month in movie-watching!

New-to-Me: 31

Re-Watched: 2

New-to-Me Films by Decade:

• 1920s – 0
• 1930s – 9
• 1940s – 4
• 1950s – 9
• 1960s – 6
• 1970s – 0
• 1980s – 1
• 1990s – 0
• 2000s – 2
• 2010s – 0

List of New-to-Me Films:

1. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)
2. The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939)
3. The Fallen Idol (1948)
4. Julius Caesar (1953)
5. A Woman’s Secret (1949)
6. Love Me or Leave Me (1955)
7. Dream Wife (1953)
8. Sabotage (1936)
9. The Whole Town’s Talking (1935)
10. Footlight Parade (1933)
11. The Taming of the Shrew (1967)
12. Diary of a Chambermaid (1964)
13. A Life of Her Own (1950)
14. Show Boat (1951)
15. Dance, Girl, Dance (1940)
16. Witness to Murder (1954)
17. Picture Snatcher (1933)
18. Princess O’Rourke(1943)
19. Jewel Robbery (1932)
20. La dolce vita (1960)
21. Scarface (1932)
22. Rendezvous (1935)
23. Au hasard Balthazar (1966)
24. Bull Durham (1988)
25. Night Must Fall (1937)
26. Far From Heaven (2002)
27. The End of the Affair (1955)
28. Blowup (1966)
29. Belle de jour (1967)
30. The Journey (1959)
31. The Ladykillers (1955)

Monthly Tallies

• Best Picture Nominees Watched: 2
• Movies Watched from The Criterion Collection: 5
• Movies Watched via the Watch TCM app: 18
• Movies Watched on TCM: 0
• Movies Watched on Hulu: 1
• Movies Watched in theaters: 0

Trends and Notes

• Watched 3 films starring or featuring Maureen O’Hara, as she was TCM’s Star of the Month for July.
• Watched 5 films starring or featuring Deborah Kerr (one was a re-watch).
• Watched 3 films from the year 1953 (one was a re-watch).
• Watched 3 films starring James Cagney, 2 of which were directed by Lloyd Bacon and released in 1933.
• Watched 3 films from the year 1955.
• This month I watched my first couple of films directed by Luis Buñuel, a filmmaker whose work I’ve been meaning to check out.

A Few Favorite Discoveries:

The Fallen Idol (1948), directed by Carol Reed

I hadn’t heard much about this film previously, only that it came from the director and writer behind The Third Man. With that in mind, it still exceeded my expectations, it’s a very interesting mystery movie that really looks at a child’s point-of-view of a crime and the frustration behind someone so young trying to tell what he believes to be true. A great performance from the young Bobby Henrey; I’ve read a number of people found him to be annoying because he is so young, but I thought he was just fine.

Far From Heaven (2002), directed by Todd Haynes

Julianne Moore is one of my favorite modern actresses, and in this film, she gives a truly stellar performance. I haven’t seen many movies with Dennis Quaid, but this is the best I’ve seen of him (aside from my childhood favorite, The Parent Trap). Dennis Haysbert and Patricia Clarkson also give good, understated performances, and I really enjoyed their interactions with Moore. What’s so great about this film is that it’s a tribute to the Douglas Sirk melodramas (namely All That Heaven Allows), but it still feels fresh and not like a copy of his films. The colorful cinematography by Edward Lachman (look at those autumn leaves!) and a beautiful score by Elmer Bernstein really elevate the film as well.

Belle de jour (1967), directed by Luis Buñuel

This is one film that I’ve heard so much about, so I’m glad I finally got around to watching it (thank you, William Friedkin, and Robert Osborne). Catherine Deneuve is perfect as the elegant housewife who loves her husband but is physically unsatisfied with him. It blends surrealism and reality seamlessly, always keeping viewers enticed with what’s going on.