The Vicious Circle - 1957 *****

Caught this by chance but blimey what a whopper of a film! John Mills plays a well respected doctor, falsely framed for the murder of a German movie star found in his flat. The beauty of this film is the amount of red herrings (a bit like an Agatha Christie) and the fact you genuinely have no idea who to trust. The ending comes as a proper shock when the culprit is revealed. I really loved this, I loved the direction, the acting and the fast paced story. Tiring at time! What an unexpected treat. This is a proper suspense film.

(NOIR) Edge of the City - 1957 ****

This was a brilliantly captivating film, and I found Sidney Poitier's performance to be totally gripping and heart-breaking.
Cassavetes stars as army deserter Axel, who arrives at the waterside of Manhattan looking for work as a longshoreman. He is lucky enough to find work under a man named Charlie, who turns out to be a vicious, racist bully when he finds out that Axel has become friends with and would rather work for a kind-hearted and decent man named Tommy. Axel decides he would be a lot happier working for Tommy after he starts renting a room close by to him, makes friends with his wife and starts a relationship with the wife's best friend. Charlie on the other hand is not happy with this, and will do anything he can to break up the friendship between the two men.
The film is captivating in many ways, mainly for it's plot content (an interracial friendship which was quite a daring topic for 1950s film) and for Poitier's acting which constantly blows me away in any film I see him in. You come away from the film wishing that if everyone had a friend like Tommy, then the world would be a much happier and serene place.
Watch this.

(NOIR) Crime of Passion - 1957 *** 1/2

Barbara Stanwyck is a great actress. Completely unique. Here she plays a newspaper columnist who meets and falls in love with a police detective (Sterling Hayden). She refuses the offer of another job and moves with Hayden after they get married to Los Angeles. However, married life doesn't suit her, and she wishes that her husband would make more strides to move up in the world, instead of simply working for the sake of work. She decides to do whatever she can to push her husband up the ladder, even if it means betraying him. Worth a shot.

(NOIR) Slander - 1957 ****

'Slander' is a very interesting film. Mostly because it covers real events of the time, and also because it touches upon a subject that is sadly still prominent in the entertainment business today - that of rumor and celebrity gossip.
Desperate to get a good story for his gossip magazine, Manley draws on a down-to-earth, decent man named Martin, who has just come into the public's eye as a children's entertainer. Honing in on him, Manley decides that he will do anything to dig up dirt on Martin's past, whatever the consequences. Incredibly well acted for a little known B-Noir. Watch it.

Wild Strawberries - 1957 **** 1/2

On contrast to the last Bergman on my list (Cries and Whispers) this was absolutely superb. The acting was stunning, the cinematography was divine. For this film, Bergman was the master.

The film follows an old academic who goes on a journey to collect his doctrote accompanied by his daughter in law and an assortment of characters. Along the way he revisits his past and experiences scenes from his life in amazing detail.

To me, this movie had a hint of 'A Christmas Carol' about it. It was a story of regret, of past moments, and of excepting your choices in life. The main character spends several scenes watching his past life without anyone being able to see him (as in ' A Christmas Carol' ) and also watches himself woo his first love (again, as in CC). What I loved about this film was how some of the actors play more than one part, many in the present scenes also play characters from the academic's past and the fun part is being able to spot them.

I really enjoyed this film, and there were several scenes (including his dream at the beginning) which have not left my mind since I saw it. Amazing.

Sweet Smell of Success - 1957 *****

'Match Me Sidney', 'The cat's in the bag and the bag's in the river.'

This is probably one of the most quoted films I have ever seen. And one of the grittiest and nastiest portrayals of a columnist and his unashamed bullying and intimidating of his press agent who, despite his awful treatment, still idolizes and looks up to him, to the point where he will break up relationships and ruin people's lives to give him what he wants. It's terrifying in a way, the power of the newspaper, and the power one man can have over another man, but also utterly fascinating, with one of the most sleazy and memorable soundtracks of the 1950s, captivating New York at it's slimiest and slickest.

Lancaster is amazing to watch as the power hungry JJ, and Curtis is pitiful as the press agent Sidney Falco who can't seem to get a break, however hard he tries.

Although gritty to watch, and fairly uncomfortable, it cannot be denied that behaviour like this happens in the world of journalism, and the lengths some people will go to is astounding.

Lancaster and Curtis must be two of the greatest pairings to ever be seen on screen.