This 1959 classic received 11 Oscars, more than any other motion picture until Titanic. Even better, it receives acclamation as my all-time favorite film. Ben-Hur is a visual masterpiece that captures the viewer for the full 3 1/2 hours, and when you see it there is little doubt why it is the world's most honored film.

I was but a young teen the first time I saw Ben-Hur. Thankfully it was on the big screen at the Orpheum in Memphis as one of their classic summer specials. The film overwhelmed me, from the overture to the finale where Jesus' blood runs down the cross and washes away, and with it our sins, bringing a new age and a new hope.

The story is of a wealthy Jewis nobleman, Judah Ben-Hur (Heston) during the time of Christ. He incurs the wrath of the Roman military governor, Messala, who was his childhood friend. Messala knows that Judah and family weren't guilty of attempted murder, but decides to make examples of them for all of the Jewish people, out of fear he would appear weak in his new post. Ben-Hur is reduced to manning an oar on a slave galley, and his mother and sister are sent to a harsh underground prison where they acquire leprosy.

Years later Judah saves the life of a Roman general during a sea battle that was a great victory, and becomes the general's adopted out of gratitude. Now a Roman citizen and wealthy again, he returns to seek vengeance upon Messala. This culminates in the chariot race, one of the most spectacular cinematic achievements ever on film.

The secondary story involves the rise of Jesus, who provides Ben-Hur with water during a hot march to give him hope again, and strengthen Judah's spirit. We see the crowd gather for the sermon on the mount, we see Jesus in Nazareth as a carpenter, giving water to Ben-Hur while being forcefully marched as a prisoner to the Meditteranean, and we see Jesus sentenced to death on the cross. When Ben-Hur learns of his mother and sister's leprosy, he seeks out this Jesus for healing, but too late. Jesus is being led to Calvary. The director made a successful effort to show the majesty of the Christ by aiming the camera at the characters who interact with Jesus and never Jesus Himself, and even more, Jesus is never heard.

The scene of Jesus's death is a powerful moment, the skies darkening and thunder booming, the ground shaking and those watching run for safety. As Jesus' blood runs down the cross in the rain, the skies lighten and a new hope is revealed for Judah Ben-Hur, aided by the miracle healing of his mother and sister at the same moment.

Of course, this is Hollywood so there is a conventional love story. Judah falls in love with Esther, the daughter of one of his former servants. She has been faithful to the family during their troubles, taking care of the mother and sister as they existed in the leper pit, and at their request told Ben-Hur they were dead. At the end, they do find love in each other's arms. Because good things do happen to good people.

The verdict: -- My favorite film of all-time.

Brigadoon
1954, 1 hr 48 min. Dir: Vincente Minnelli. Cast: Gene Kelly (Tommy Albright), Van Johnson (Jeff Douglas), Cyd Charisse (Fiona), Elaine Stewart (Jane), Barry Jones (Mr. Lundie).

One of the more imaginative premises in film lore is of a Scottish village that appears once every hundred years. I have always been interested in seeing Brigadoon as a result of that premise, although the title brings forth visions of a World War II film in Southeast Asia rather than a village of happy and singing laddies and lassies.

The PLOT: Two American hunters, Tommy (Gene Kelly) and Jeff (Van Johnson) trek through the plush soundstages, I mean Scotland, and come across a village that isn't on any maps. That is because the townspeople made a pact with God to save them from the spread of witchcraft and evil in their country, so now every night for them is one hundred years to us.

This plot really has me bewildered, but maybe I'm putting too much thought into it. If they age one day every hundred years, then one year for them is 365 years for the world. I'm thinking that much will have changed after a week or so, and they would be discovered rather quickly and turned into a circus. Why couldn't God just make them invisible or shut out from the world? After that first jump of one hundred years wouldn't this evil be dead? Ah, forget it, it's a musical with lovely women, good music and pleasant dance, it's not a thesis!

I just don't watch enough Hollywood musical adaptations. They're all delightful and full of spirit, as is Brigadoon. The women are all attractive with great fake accents and, being in the mid-1700s for them, wearing my favorite sort of dresses. Even better for the men of the town, as one lass points out: "We do not have enough single lads in Brigadoon." *Note to self, when visiting the UK this summer, make a side trip to find the village of Brigadoon.*

Luckily for the Americans, they happen upon the town on the day of a wedding, and are welcomed by the townsfolk who are suitably wary of the visitors, but are hospitable nonetheless. As a result, Fiona (Cyd Charisse), the spirited female of the bunch who never married but is always hoping to meet that "right" man, starts feeling that biological clock ticking. Again, very lucky for Tommy. In no time the pair is sharing a duet and flowing dance number called "Heather on the Hill" amid, well, the heather on the hill.

My favorite song and dance in Brigadoon, however, is the number performed by all the men of the village called "I'll Go Home with Bonnie Jean." Along with the chorus of manly voices and ensemble dancing their local steps in ridiculous outfits, Kelly and Johnson add a tap sequence that fills out the tune. It's a weird way of bonding, but we're men! We can bond over sports or musicals, as long as it's full of testosterone!

I would be remiss if I didn't add that it is nice to hear the bagpipes playing among the festive atmosphere in Brigadoon, since lately it seems the only time Americans hear them is during a memorial ceremony for someone that died. If we only hear it at somber occasions we run the risk of dooming the instrument to accordion status.

One especially memorable scene is worth mentioning that adds spunk to the film for guys afraid of musicals. After the locals welcome the Americans, Jeff is pursued by an attractive lass who wants to marry him. He asks for a quiet spot, but to sleep, while she's hoping for a proposal. Jeff will have nothing of it and this "fairy tale" of a town. She pouts that "you men are all the same," while he replies, "I certainly hope so." With that I could just hear millions of men grunting with comedian Tim Allen of "Home Improvement" in support of Jeff's gruffness.

Brigadoon is something you might enjoy on television on a weekend afternoon. So if you catch it while flipping by TCM or AMC, give it a look-see.

The verdict: -- Delightful. But the title still sounds better as a war movie.

To Catch a Thief
1955, 1 hr 45 min. Dir: Alfred Hitchcock. Cast: Cary Grant (John Robie), Grace Kelly (Francie Stevens), Brigitte Auber (Danielle Foussard), Jessie Royce Landis (Jessie Stevens).

I really do need to watch American Movie Classics or Turner Classic Movies more often, because I cannot understand why I had not seen To Catch A Thief. But, now I have and as suspected, thoroughly enjoyed the picture.

Grace Kelly *humina, humina, humina* what a presence she carries on screen! I fell in love with her in Rear Window, but here she had me even more infatuated, in need of a cold shower because her look, her voice, her aura commands attention.

When Kelly surprises Grant with a kiss then gracefully slinks back to her room, she flashes a look that could make Liberace swoon!

Kelly also takes part in one of my favorite verbal 'Cat'fights on screen, with Danielle, the youthful and exuberant daughter of Grant's closest friend. They trade verbal jabs, while in bathing suits in the water mind you, much to Grant's outer dismay, but inside he had to be aroused by such a display.

Cary Grant, as always, is suave, cool and witty. He plays The Cat (real name: John Robie), a retired Parisian burglar who became a hero in the French resistance during World War II. He was not a Robin Hood, keeping everything he stole or the money from the jewels, but we root for him still. Now, however, there is a rash of copy'cat' burglaries and Robie is suspect No. 1.

It doesn't help that Robie lives life away from the spotlight in luxury, and of course he owns a black cat. It is a giveaway, you think? Maybe, since in the opening sequence we see the copy'Cat' strike at three homes, and instead of a person lurking on the roof, we see a black cat sneaking around.

To prove his innocence he joins forces with an insurance investigator, H.H. Houston. The insurer is a bit weary of his accomplice-"Officially, you come under the category of 'extremely bad risk,'" he tells Robie-but trusts The Cat under a non-written contract of mutual gratification should they discover the real burglar. Besides, given their respective professions, each considers the other more of a thief.

Kelly plays Francie Stevens, daughter to New Money, her mother Jessie who discovered oil on their property after Francie's father died. Both women, the only Americans of the film besides The Cat, immediately fall for Robie's charms, despite the fact that he may be a criminal. "The Cat has a new kitten. When do we start?" Francie asks Robie, obviously smitten. The women find his past terribly exciting and a serious turn on, seeing through Robie's denials of his true identity.

Naturally, Francie and Robie fall for each other. "You're an insecure, pampered woman accustomed to attracting men," he tells her as they have "The Talk." This is the scene where the future lovers sit or walk and learn about each other, or say how they know the other so well that there is no other option than for them to become a couple.

Bob Dorian, host of the movie on American Movie Classics, described To Catch a Thief as "lightly disguised frothy entertainment with some wonderful, almost suggestive dialogue between Cary Grant and Grace Kelly." Dorian also points out how director Alfred Hitchcock, the "master of suspense," must have deep down been a romantic at heart, because he pulls off these scenes as well as any intense act in his better known thrillers, such as Psycho or The Birds.

It doesn't hurt that the setting is the French Riviera, an area known for its beauty and excesses of the rich and powerful who live and visit along the picturesque Mediterranean coast. It must be natural to get a peaceful, easy feeling while surrounded by so many positive vibes of influential people drawn together by the area's splendor.

Of course, as long as Kelly wears the white dress that she wore when seducing him in her hotel room during the fireworks, it doesn't matter where the movie takes place. The future princess is absolutely stunning! But don't let it affect you during the scene, which features a great play on psychology, where as the two begin to make out, the level of passion is shown by how intense the firework display gets outside.

Hitchcock obviously had a good time making To Catch a Thief, as much as the viewer watching the picture. This may not be my favorite movie by Hitchcock, but it sure ranks near the top. He's as good in humor and goodwill as he is at suspense, and through masterful strokes of cinematography and technique, he draws in the audience. A good laugh is supplanted by a long pause of silence where he establishes a new mood, only to catch you off guard in the shadows, or a subtle reaction in a close-up. Be sure to watch for an early scene on a bus where an almost catatonic Hitchcock makes a brief cameo.

The verdict: -- Grant and Kelly. What a steal.

Vertigo
1958, 2 hrs 8 min. Dir: Alfred Hitchcock. Cast: James Stewart (Scottie), Kim Novak (Madeleine Elster/Judy Barton), Barbara Bel Geddes (Midge), Tom Helmore (Gavin Elster).

I have liked, and always will like Hitchcock's work. My favorites are Psycho, Lifeboat, The Birds and North By Northwest.

But, after recently seeing it for the first time, I don't place Vertigo among my favorites. It was a decent psychological thriller at best, but not as shocking or suspenseful as I was led to believe. First off, it just plodded along. There was little intensity, few moments where you would be sitting on the edge of your seat waiting to see what happens.

Jimmy Stewart (Scottie) is always the all-american actor, and that does not change in this movie. He should be in the top five of anybody's favorite actor list because in any role the audience feels connected to him, such as in Vertigo we feel his new fear of heights that he wants so much to get over. When the woman of his dreams is dead, he finds another woman, and tries to mold her to the woman he desires because he cannot accept her demise. You get uneasy watching this, but are riveted at the prospect of what Scottie has become.

I thought Midge (Barbara Bel Geddes) was a better character than the leading lady (Kim Novak). I wanted to know more about her and Stewart's friendship and have Midge make a substantial impact on the film. Novak's character was not very interesting, first as Stewart's love interest and later as the plot twists. She didn't draw me in to be as infatuated as Stewart was with her.

I'd also like more focus on the motivations of Stewart's friend Gavin Elster who hires Stewart to investigate his wife Madeleine's behavior. I felt like Hitchcock was leaving out a hole in the plot.

Good things: Hitchcock is the master director. His work with the camera is above all others in the industry, with cutting edge and inventive shots. The shot where we see a close up and the background quickly zooms out (also seen in Jaws of Scheider on the beach and also in the opening of Everybody Loves Raymond, one of my favorite tv shows) is a wonderful shot. It gives a sense of shock. The "Oh, crap" moment.

The verdict: -- Watch if you are a Hitchcock fan.

Paths of Glory
1957, 1 hr 26 min. Dir: Stanley Kubrick. Cast: Kirk Douglas (Colonel Dax).

Ladies and gentlemen, I have found a kink in my intense hatred of Kubrick films: Paths of Glory is a remarkable film, with a solid story, solid writing and compelling acting. So now I can no longer say that I hate all of Kubrick's work. At first, I thought it was because I enjoy any and all war films, then I remembered my dislike for The Thin Red Line, a film I would like to never hear of every again for as long as I live.

But getting on with Paths, here's a quick plot review: Set during World War I, a French general plays politics with the lives of his men, staking a promotion on having the soldiers attack a fortified hill. After failing, he has three of the men court-martialed for cowardice.

I want to see more WWI films, because it makes for some harrowing action sequences and character study. Paths is good, but second in my book to the ultimate anti-war film from WWI, All Quiet on the Western Front.

Known then as "The War to end All Wars" (Hitler showed them!), it was a conflict of stagnation, with 500 miles of trenches stretching from the English Channel to the Swiss frontier. And by 1916, as the narrator educates us in the open, "after two grizzly years of trench warfare, the battle lines had changed very little. Successful attacks were measured in hundreds of yards, and paid for in lives by hundreds of thousands."

Kubrick sums up the insanity of war in 90 minutes, where the good guys sometimes are bad, and decisions are made with men's lives without any regard for human decency. What some men will do for an advantage and to survive are showcased in Paths of Glory, and a bit exaggerated, but to make a point.

Kirk Douglas is fabulous one more time as Colonel Dax, who must lead the weary men into a sure-suicide run against Ant Hill, held by thousands of dug-in Germans. But he agrees to lead because to say no would mean that another officer would get the nod and not do as well. When it fails and three men are put on trial, Dax, who before the war was "perhaps the foremost lawyer in France," defends the soldiers in the kangaroo court.

There is one scene where I wonder if Kubrick was influenced by U.S. General George Patton (in reality, not the movie, which came out 15 years later based on his life), as General Mireau walks through the trenches to give his troops a morale boost. He comes across a shell-shocked soldier who rambles on without comprehending the General's questions, leading the General to slap the soldier while calling him a coward. While I'm sure it wasn't the first time in history it happened, you have to wonder if Kubrick didn't use that to have the audience click with the picture.

My favorite conversation in the film is between two anonymous soldiers who are preparing for the next day's battle where both could surely die. One asks the other how he wants to die, to which he responds by gun shot. The questioner then points out how that's not relevant, because if you're going to die it doesn't matter how, what people are really afraid of is pain, that bayonnet would hurt more than gunshot, and explosives could leave you without a limb or two, and that is where the fear is, not in dying. Good point, and dialogue ahead of its time.

It gets even better when the three men try to come to terms with their death sentence, awaiting execution and then having to walk in the courtyard at Versailles in front of dozens of fellow soldiers so they may be made examples of. But they were not cowards in battle, which makes it worse, and more difficult to "take it like a man." Interesting character study.

Sorry, Mr. Kubrick, I was a little wrong about you. Now, I guess I need to see Spartacus.

The verdict: -- Definitely the best Kubrick film I've seen. Maybe he was too young to screw it up like his latter ones (i.e., 2001, A Clockwork Orange, etc.).