The Medicine Man (1930)

IMDb plot summary: The son and daughter of an abusive shopkeeper turn to a medicine show salesman for help.

Directed by Scott Pembroke. Starring Jack Benny, Betty Bronson, and E. Alyn Warren.

The Medicine Man tells the story of a young woman who works for her overbearing father in his store, but then she falls in love with a swindler from a traveling circus, played by Jack Benny. There's really very little to this movie -- there is some light conflict where she worries that her father will not let her leave or will treat her younger brother badly if she does, but overall the stakes are pretty light and it's mostly just people wandering around the traveling circus. It was one of those movies where I could feel myself forgetting about it while I was in the middle of watching it. For some of the other ones in this project, I've been able to lean into an interesting film history component even when I've been bored by the narrative, but there wasn't much to grasp onto for this one. There's just nothing remarkable or worth caring about in this one.

How it entered my Flickchart:

The Medicine Man < Frank

The Medicine Man < Madeline

The Medicine Man > Lady in Cement

The Medicine Man < Spider-Man 3

The Medicine Man > Little Italy

The Medicine Man > Hannibal

The Medicine Man < Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging

The Medicine Man < Brokeback Mountain

The Medicine Man < Marathon Man

The Medicine Man < Paramount on Parade

The Medicine Man < You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger

The Medicine Man < Maggie's Plan

Final spot: #2972 out of 3590, or 17%.

Sundown (2021)

IMDb plot summary: Neil and Alice Bennett are the core of a wealthy family on vacation in Mexico until a distant emergency cuts their trip short. When one relative disrupts the family's tight-knit order, simmering tensions rise to the fore.

Directed by Michel Franco. Starring Tim Roth, Albertine Kotting McMillan, and Samuel Bottomley.

Sundown tells the story of a man vacationing in Mexico with his sister and her children. When he and his sister learn that their mother has died, they immediately make plans to return, but the man pretends he has lost his passport so he can continue on his vacation. Tim Roth plays the main character here, and he plays it so interestingly, without even an inkling as to what purpose or motivation he might have. We see him enjoying his time and lying to his sister about the difficulties of replacing his passport in a foreign country, and we can't figure out whether he's selfish or hurting or running from something or some entirely different explanation. The film spends most of its time on this part of the story and then goes in two unexpected directions at the end that I'm not convinced add much to the narrative, especially since they're such a drastic departure from the laidback tone of the rest of the movie. Overall, despite an interesting concept and some good performances, the film doesn't quite gel for me, particularly in how it chooses to end.

How it entered my Flickchart:

Sundown > Fahrenheit 451

Sundown < The Black Cat

Sundown < The River Wild

Sundown > Source Code

Sundown > The Recruit

Sundown < Wristcutters: A Love Story

Sundown > Toy Story 2

Sundown < Blazing Saddles

Sundown > Were the World Mine

Sundown < The Crying Game

Sundown > Albert Nobbs

Final spot: #1420 out of 3588, or 60%.

Raffles (1930)

IMDb plot summary: A distinguished English gentleman has a secret life--he is the notorious jewel thief the press has dubbed "The Amateur Cracksman". When he meets a woman and falls in love he decides to "retire" from that life, but an old friend comes to him with a predicament that entails him committing one last job.

Directed by George Fitzmaurie. Starring Ronald Colman, Kay Francis, and David Torrence.

Raffles tells the story of a charming man-about-town who happens to be at a dinner party on a night when the police suspect a home robbery will take place. We begin to learn that he might have criminal ties himself, putting at risk his relationship with another rich socialite. There's something about Raffles' roguishness that absolutely endears him to the audience, despite learning he is clearly being a thief partway through the film. He seems to wish the people around him no ill will and even see them with fondness while also making plans to steal their valuables. The actual narrative arc is a little thin, and the cinematography is not especially noteworthy, but watching these characters interact is more enjoyable than I expected, and the final showdown scene is satisfying, if tied up a little too neatly. It's certainly not the BEST gentleman thief movie around, but it's an adequate one.

How it entered my Flickchart:

Raffles < Fahrenheit 451

Raffles > Annie (1999)

Raffles > Adventures in Babysitting

Raffles > Venom

Raffles > Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam

Raffles < The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini

Raffles > Unbroken

Raffles > Kate

Raffles > Smokin' Aces

Raffles < The Librarian: Quest for the Spear

Raffles < Free Guy

Raffles < Maverick

Final spot: #1857 out of 3587, or 48%.

King Richard (2021)

IMDb plot summary: A look at how tennis superstars Venus and Serena Williams became who they are after the coaching from their father Richard Williams.

Directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green. Starring Will Smith, Aunjanue Ellis, and Jon Bernthal.

King Richard is a biopic about Richard Williams, the very involved father of tennis sensations Venus and Serena Williams. Will Smith plays him in this film, and we see him coordinating opportunities for his daughters, setting the parameters of their training, and occasionally making controversial decisions to bring them to stardom through unconventional means. Smith is pretty great in this role -- he did a lot of research and spent a fair amount of time with the actual Richard Williams, and it pays off in the way his character feels more fleshed out than a lot of biopic leads. There are few narrative surprises here if you know the Williams sisters' story already but it does a lovely job of bringing it to life. The young actresses playing Venus and Serena just radiate confidence and positivity, which is charming, even if it sometimes reach the point where sometimes they don't entirely feel like real teenagers so much as symbols of success for Richard to guide. I would have liked to see a little bit more focus on the girls and their relationship with tennis, each other, and their father. The few moments we do see of that are by far the most compelling pieces. Overall a very watchable movie that directs the viewers' attention back to the subjects, as it should.

How it entered my Flickchart:

King Richard < Frank

King Richard > Annie (1999)

King Richard > Adventures in Babysitting

King Richard > Venom

King Richard > Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam

King Richard < Poulenc: Dialogues des Carmelites

King Richard > Unbroken

King Richard < New Faces

King Richard < All the Money in the World

King Richard > The Morning After

King Richard > Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood

King Richard < JFK

Final spot: #1872 out of 3586, or 48%.

The Blue Angel (1930)

IMDb plot summary: An elderly professor's ordered life spins dangerously out of control when he falls for a nightclub singer.

Directed by Josef von Sternberg. Starring Emil Jannings, Marlene Dietrich, and Kurt Gerron.

The Blue Angel is about a strict professor and the nightclub singer his students have become enamored with. He goes down to meet her after scolding his students about the attention he pays to her, but he ends up falling in love himself. This is rather a fascinating little tragedy that doesn't take at all the path I expected it to. It's such an interesting twist to see the stern professor not only fall in love with the woman he's been warning his students about, but for that to be his downfall ultimately as well. And while it definitely paints the woman, played by Marlene Dietrich, as the primary cause of his demise, it does a surprisingly good job of humanizing her as well. She seldom seem malicious, just unhappy, and used to finding her own happiness where she can take it. I also really liked how the film used Dietrich's musical numbers to paint the story's emotional tone, from risque to sweet to ominous. Overall definitely a good watch from director Josef von Sternberg.

How it entered my Flickchart:

The Blue Angel > Fahrenheit 451

The Blue Angel > The Game

The Blue Angel < The Goodbye Girl (1977)

The Blue Angel < The Pawnbroker

The Blue Angel < The Secret of Santa Vittoria

The Blue Angel > Rounders

The Blue Angel < Detroit

The Blue Angel < This Boy's Life

The Blue Angel > Mr. Brooks

The Blue Angel > The Man in the Iron Mask

The Blue Angel < Mixed Nuts

Final spot: #830 out of 3585, or 77%.

With Byrd at the South Pole (1930)

IMDb plot summary: Account of Admiral Byrd's 1928 expedition to the South Pole. Academy award winning cinematography.

No director listed.

With Byrd at the South Pole is an early documentary following-- well, exactly what the title suggests: Admiral Byrd's expedition to the South Pole. As makes sense with the technology of the time, it's mostly silent footage with a voiceover explaining what's going on -- what the explorers are looking for, how they're doing their research, and what their plans are when things go wrong. There is something historically fascinating about documenting such early exploration of such a remote place in the early days of film. It feels almost like something that shouldn't exist. As far as the narrative or historical information conveyed through the documentary, it's fine. It's thorough. We get to see all the different precautions they had to take to be able to go beyond their base and how they studied the wildlife around them, and even a time or two where something goes extremely wrong. Stories like this have been told since then, so the connection I had to it now was very much like going to a museum and realizing the artifacts you're looking at came from an era of history that seems long gone. Definitely an interesting watch.

How it entered my Flickchart:

With Byrd at the South Pole < Frank

With Byrd at the South Pole > Annie (1999)

With Byrd at the South Pole > Adventures in Babysitting

With Byrd at the South Pole < Venom

With Byrd at the South Pole < Deep Red

With Byrd at the South Pole > Easy Rider

With Byrd at the South Pole > Legends of the Fall

With Byrd at the South Pole < The Shop Around the Corner

With Byrd at the South Pole < The Fourth Kind

With Byrd at the South Pole < Office Space

With Byrd at the South Pole > The Illusionist

With Byrd at the South Pole > Val

Final spot: #2153 out of 3584, or 40%.

Walk on the Wild Side (1962)

IMDb plot summary: A man arrives in New Orleans searching for his former girlfriend, an artist who now works in a bordello.

Directed by Edward Dmytryk. Starring Laurence Harvey, Capucine, and Jane Fonda.

Walk on the Wild Side tells the story of a man returning back home to reunite with his girlfriend after spending the last few years taking care of his dying father. His girlfriend, however, moved on from him after he left and is now living and working in a brothel in New Orleans, and she is certain when he finds her that he won't want to be with her anymore. While the melodrama in this film is at extremely high levels, I found it captivating, and when I dug down as to why, I realized it was because most of the key players in this were women. Yes, our central protagonist is a man, but the women around him are fascinating, particularly the characters played by Barbara Stanwyck and Jane Fonda, who are just mesmerizing and I could watch an entire movie about just the two of them. That adds a new slant to what feels otherwise like a very familiar story and captivated me the whole way through. And while the story is tropey, it's not told badly by any means, just predictably. This is one I'd recommend if only to see some great performances from some great actresses.

How it entered my Flickchart:

Walk on the Wild Side > Frank

Walk on the Wild Side < The Black Cat

Walk on the Wild Side < Poltergeist

Walk on the Wild Side > Source Code

Walk on the Wild Side > The Recruit

Walk on the Wild Side > Wristcutters: A Love Story

Walk on the Wild Side < Phone Booth

Walk on the Wild Side < The Parent Trap (1961)

Walk on the Wild Side < Renaissance Man

Walk on the Wild Side < Chaos Theory

Walk on the Wild Side < Death at a Funeral (2007)

Walk on the Wild Side > 12 Years a Slave

Final spot: #1398 out of 3582, or 61%.