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Courier Mail (Australia)

Tomatometer-approved publication.

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Rating Title | Year Author Quote
Alice in Wonderland (1951) Nelson Burns (Te Pana) The Disney cartoon technique makes the nonsense of Carroll's books come to life with an engaging charm and delicate beauty -- but without any real heart or warmth... Nevertheless, it is still a top line piece of entertainment.
Posted Jan 08, 2026  Edit critic review
Only Yesterday (1933) Courier Mail Staff The introduction to picture theatre audiences of Margaret Sullavan, a young actress, who, by all the portents will be an acquisition to the screen, is the outstanding feature of Only Yesterday.
Posted Apr 23, 2024  Edit critic review
National Velvet (1944) Nelson Burns (Te Pana) Acting honors to little Elizabeth Taylor, looking like a miniature Jennifer Jones, and Mickey Rooney savagely wooden for this high-spirited young man.
Posted Mar 26, 2024  Edit critic review
The Dark Angel (1935) Courier Mail Staff A direct and poignant psychological problem and emotional appeal are made in the moving drama.
Posted Mar 09, 2023  Edit critic review
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953) P.D. Spooner One of the brightest moments of the film is Miss Monroe's Diamond's Are A Girl's Best Friend.
Posted Mar 07, 2023  Edit critic review
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) Courier Mail Staff Whereas the Disney, short subjects are one continuous laugh from start to finish, this first full-length feature from these famous studios, presents all the elements of fine entertainment: romance, pathos, suspense, humour.
Posted Dec 20, 2022  Edit critic review
Meet Me in St. Louis (1944) Nelson Burns (Te Pana) In a sense the film could have been taken from your own plush covered family album.
Posted Nov 10, 2022  Edit critic review
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939) Nelson Burns (Te Pana) It is as bold a venture as the screen has launched in years; a pointed and direct attack on graft in the Senate. Although it is true 'Americana' it is a project we should praise delightedly, not merely for its purpose, but for its value as entertainment.
Posted Nov 09, 2022  Edit critic review
The Shop Around the Corner (1940) Nelson Burns (Te Pana) What is known as "the Lubitsch touch" -- a mixture of whims, and sparkling comedy -- is apparent in The Shop Around the Corner. Underlying the froth and bubble, however, is a romantic theme of heart throbs and pulse beats.
Posted Nov 07, 2022  Edit critic review
Cobra Woman (1944) Nelson Burns (Te Pana) The fangs of Cobra Woman are blunt, due I think to the familiarity of the cast that played about in White Savage and Arabian Nights. Like these others it is almost, but not quite, as indistinguishable as a couple of two-up pennies.
Posted Sep 20, 2022  Edit critic review
You Can't Take It With You (1938) Courier Mail Staff The story is very much in the spirit of Mr. Deeds. Both the fun and sense of it arise from people doing things which appear to be mad, but prove to be eminently sane.
Posted Feb 07, 2022  Edit critic review
Nightmare Alley (1947) Nelson Burns (Te Pana) A picture about side-show life in America, with its rackets and ramps, and its extraordinary characters, the whole thing is cut well away from the groove.
Posted Dec 03, 2021  Edit critic review
Leave Her to Heaven (1945) Nelson Burns (Te Pana) I like a little mirth with my murders in films, but the mayheim in Leave Her to Heaven is so morbid that not even glorious technicolour can atone.
Posted Sep 29, 2021  Edit critic review
Gun Crazy (1950) Nelson Burns (Te Pana) Pace throughout is of the hand-gallop order, and there is a hard and brittle gloss to the whole thing.
Posted Sep 14, 2021  Edit critic review
The Women (1939) Courier Mail Staff The film version of Clare Boothe's stage play, The Woman, is so humorously managed that it becomes a thoroughly delightful and entertaining comedy.
Posted May 24, 2021  Edit critic review
The Power and the Glory (1933) Courier Mail Staff Not since the introduction of sound in motion pictures has the screen seen so radical a change in the manner of presenting a story as the new "narratage" technique employed for the first time in The Power and the Glory.
Posted May 13, 2021  Edit critic review
Modern Times (1936) Courier Mail Staff It says much for the genius of Charlie Chaplin that with talkies at the height of their popularity [that he could] revive, most successful, the type of silent comedy that ranked him as the screen's greatest laughter maker a decade ago.
Posted May 06, 2021  Edit critic review
The Wizard of Oz (1939) Nelson Burns (Te Pana) It is, of course, a "must" for the juveniles, and they will have a high old time. This is a real fairy tale, brought to the screen with all the trappings, colour, and wondrous charm of the printed word that has kept many a youngster late for dinner.
Posted May 03, 2021  Edit critic review
An American in Paris (1951) Courier Mail Staff The George Gershwin score is enough in itself to make the film a hit. With Gene Kelly tapping out captivating routines, and wry-faced Oscar Levant banging the piano it has added appeal.
Posted Apr 13, 2021  Edit critic review
It Happened One Night (1934) Courier Mail Staff There is so much action and change of scene that the production takes rather longer to show than the average 'A' class picture, but there is not a dull moment in it.
Posted Mar 31, 2021  Edit critic review
The Hitch-Hiker (1953) P.D. Spooner A villainous-looking character named William Talman and some tip-top directing by former actress Ida Lupino make The Hitch-Hiker a first-class suspense thriller.
Posted Feb 24, 2021  Edit critic review
Intruder in the Dust (1949) Nelson Burns (Te Pana) It's a fine film, made so by the unerringly excellent performance of an apt and able cast, under the direction of Clarence Brown.
Posted Jan 28, 2021  Edit critic review
A Night at the Opera (1935) Courier Mail Staff Rich, racy humour, with operatic interludes, is presented by the three Marx Brothers in A Night At The Opera.
Posted Nov 20, 2020  Edit critic review
The Master Race (1944) Courier Mail Staff A timely warning on rehabilitation in Europe with well sustained acting from the principals.
Posted Nov 19, 2020  Edit critic review
Storm Over Lisbon (1944) Courier Mail Staff Vcra Hruba Ralston moves through the maelstrom with lovely immobile features.
Posted Nov 19, 2020  Edit critic review
The Princess and the Pirate (1944) Courier Mail Staff Virginia Mayo, as the runaway princess, has a tuneful voice, a pretty face, and more acting ability than is needed in a swashbuckling extravaganza.
Posted Nov 19, 2020  Edit critic review
Northern Pursuit (1943) Courier Mail Staff Errol Plynn gets a change of uniform in this one, but still thoroughly enjoys his part.
Posted Nov 19, 2020  Edit critic review
Double Indemnity (1944) Courier Mail Staff A murder story that is as faultless and perfect as the crime planned by its principals,
Posted Nov 18, 2020  Edit critic review
Home of the Brave (1949) Nelson Burns (Te Pana) [The] performances and pungent dialogue make it hard to imagine a better, or more rewarding film on racial prejudice.
Posted Nov 17, 2020  Edit critic review
Men of Tomorrow (1932) Courier Mail Staff [Men of Tomorrow] gave a splendid representation of life at Oxford University, and of ragging by undergraduates.
Posted Nov 14, 2020  Edit critic review
The Invisible Man Returns (1940) Nelson Burns (Te Pana) Vincent Price, in his appearances and disappearances, handles his part with rare skill.
Posted Oct 16, 2020  Edit critic review
The Invisible Man (1933) Courier Mail Staff Claude Rains gives a convincing study in the title role.
Posted Oct 08, 2020  Edit critic review
Cyrano de Bergerac (1950) Joyce Stirling A fascinating film which you shouldn't miss.
Posted Sep 02, 2020  Edit critic review
The Bad and the Beautiful (1952) Courier Mail Staff MGM gathered together a galaxy of stars... and to my mind attempted to make another All About Eve. Instead, they just made another film with one of the most incoherent stories I've ever tried to decipher.
Posted Aug 31, 2020  Edit critic review
Untamed Frontier (1952) Courier Mail Staff I'm afraid the Untamed Frontier' is about as wild as a Thursday night euchre party.
Posted May 08, 2020  Edit critic review
True Confession (1937) Courier Mail Staff Carole Lombard's latest role is that of an inveterate liar, in True Confessions, and, tongue in cheek, she masters it thoroughly, but the real gem of the picture... is the acting of John Barrymore.
Posted May 05, 2020  Edit critic review
Zanzibar (1940) Nelson Burns (Te Pana) Snarling beasts, fighting, clawing, and scratching, crowd the jungle landscapes, and 'rip-roaring' is the only adjective I can think of to describe these sequences.
Posted May 04, 2020  Edit critic review
The Lady Eve (1941) Nelson Burns (Te Pana) It is one of the neatest comedies the screen has offered in a long time, both from the point of view of originality in theme and performance.
Posted May 02, 2020  Edit critic review
Imitation of Life (1934) Courier Mail Staff Thought-provoking.
Posted Apr 30, 2020  Edit critic review
I Want a Divorce (1940) Nelson Burns (Te Pana) Joan Blondell and Dick Powell, 'Hollywood's happiest married couple,' are responsible for the brightness.
Posted Apr 27, 2020  Edit critic review
The Texas Rangers (1936) Courier Mail Staff Action, drama, romance, comedy, and melody have been skillfully worked into a fine screen achievement in The Texas Rangers.
Posted Apr 24, 2020  Edit critic review
The Plainsman (1936) Courier Mail Staff It is history adapted for dramatic purposes. There is a vivid atmosphere of realism, and the settings accurately present the crudely picturesque conditions of life in those times.
Posted Apr 22, 2020  Edit critic review
Anything Goes (1936) Courier Mail Staff Captivating music, sparkling comedy, and lavish dance presentations are outstanding features of Anything Goes.
Posted Apr 22, 2020  Edit critic review
To Each His Own (1946) Nelson Burns (Te Pana) Strong acting studies by a select cast help to burnish and polish what at heart Is really (1) first rate escapist fare; (2) an inspirer of tear.
Posted Apr 21, 2020  Edit critic review
Lady on a Train (1945) Nelson Burns (Te Pana) [Durban's] 'fans' -- and they are many -- should respond with breathless infatuation.
Posted Apr 21, 2020  Edit critic review
The Redhead From Wyoming (1952) Courier Mail Staff This is the old, old story or the cattle baron versus the small settlers. But the film is lifted above the average Western by a new twist.
Posted Apr 16, 2020  Edit critic review
Winchester '73 (1950) Nelson Burns (Te Pana) The film is pretty much a standard Western. It is also, like most of its kind, a pleasant means of passing an hour and a half in air-conditioned comfort.
Posted Apr 15, 2020  Edit critic review
Wyoming Mail (1950) Nelson Burns (Te Pana) It's cops-and-robbers stuff in the U.S. post Civil War days, and where the film really shines is in its virility, and good acting performances.
Posted Apr 15, 2020  Edit critic review
His Girl Friday (1940) Nelson Burns (Te Pana) As motion picture entertainment of the bright and sparkling order, His Girl Friday is recommended without reservation.
Posted Apr 03, 2020  Edit critic review
Born Yesterday (1950) Nelson Burns (Te Pana) [Judy Holliday] shines brightly. Her squeaky voice, her strutting, and her romantic ideas combine to make quite a character.
Posted Mar 23, 2020  Edit critic review
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