'80s Class: The First Deadly Sin (1980)

Also the last one, apparently.  Today's Film is The First Deadly Sin, a 1980 Crime Thriller notable for its Casting.  There's also some juicy bits of Hollywood intrigue to boot, but I'll get to that.  10 years after his last Film, Frank Sinatra came back to do one last Film (as a Lead).  Would he regret it?  I mean, regrets...he had a few.  Yadda yadda My Way.  Not only is he the Star, but he's a Producer (with his Company behind it) and he brought in a friend to score the Film.  So this is not only Frank's last Film as a Lead, but also that of his Production Company and the Composer!  It would be the Director's, were it not for one last Film in 1983 (aka the Year that Everything Got Better).  Said Director- Brian G. Hutton- is notable for such Films as Where Eagles Dare and Kelly's Heroes.  He wasn't the first choice to make the Film, however.  That honor belongs to Roman Polanski, who fled to France (where he still resides) to avoid criminal charges.  The Film is also notable for Faye Dunaway receiving a Razzie Award Nomination (she lost to Brooke Shields) at the first Ceremony.  It's the only nomination given to the Film though, so I guess everyone else was alright.  While I haven't read them, there are four more Books in this Series- Second Deadly Sin, etc.- and none of them have Films (yet).  Is this one-and-done worthy of Sinatra?  Did he go out with a bang or a whimper?  To find out, read on...

One night, a man kills another with some sort of hammer-spike thing.  Why?  

The Lead Detective- Sinatra- who is also going through some personal issues.  His wife- Dunaway- is sick and not seeming to get better.

Perplexed by the murder weapon, Sinatra consults a Professor about Old Weapons.  He's keen to help investigate, leading to some wacky shenanigans.

As for the killer, we see glimpses of him, but never quite know his deal until the end.

It's also hard not to see similarities with Glass out and a shaved-head crazy man killing people in this Film.

They finally figure out what the weapon is, leading to some interesting detective work that's necessary as this is before DNA Testing and Super Computers.

When I saw Joe Spinell in the Credits, I thought that he must be the bad guy.  It was later I realized that this was *before* Maniac, so he's just a Doorman with an extended cameo.

Regardless, he got to act opposite Sinatra- neat.

Breaking all sorts of rules, Sinatra gets into the suspect's Apartment and finds the weapon.  He just doesn't have enough to get a real warrant though.

As things get worse with his Wife, he makes a bold decision- he just straight-up kills the guy!

Fun reminder: Sinatra was offered the lead in Dirty Harry and turned it down.  I could kind of see it.

That night, he goes and retires, brushing off a call to investigate the murder he just committed.  He reads to his Wife as she dies.  Aww.  The End.

An interesting Film, even if it isn't as great as it should be.  Sin is a curious case of perhaps adapting a Book too closely in many cases.  For instance, the Plot about the killer is almost secondary to Sinatra's personal Plot, which feels right out of a Book.  Despite having First in the name, it is actually the third Book in the Series, so I could easily see the focus shift a little there.  The fact that he's working with the Widow and an Old Weapons Expert is interesting, but also a little bit silly.  He's working on limited time and working the case differently- granted.  It just feels odd here in this otherwise serious and grounded Film.  The biggest issue is definitely the focus, as they aren't sure whether this is Sinatra's personal story, that of a killer or that of an investigation.  It tries to juggle all three and kind of stumbles a bit at times.  That said, the dramatic parts were acted well and the bits of humor (as random as they were) were nice.  Sinatra really is quite good here, so the Film is at least a nice send-off for him.  I'm just confused as to why there was so little focus on the Killer or his motivation.  They just kind of dump a bunch of it in at the end like 'Sorry- here's all of it.'  It's kind of a letdown, but the ride is still good enough to excuse many things.  Are the Books any good?  Let me know, won't you?  As for me, I'll let you know the most common bit of Trivia about this Film- yes, that is Bruce Willis in his first Film ever.

Next time, another Singer-turned-Actor.  Will they have as much success in a Film made far earlier?  Stay tuned...

Poor Bastards of Cinema: Suddenly (1954)

This is kind of a borderline choice, but I stand by it.  While there is much Plot built around it, this Death is a circumstance of purely bad luck.

In Suddenly, Sinatra and his gang hide out in house to shoot the President (then Eisenhower).  Earlier in the day, the family from said house called an Electrician to fix their TV.

Well, he's here now!

They insist that he still fix the TV while he's there, if for no other reason than to keep him busy.

As you'll recall from the Review, he's told by Grandpa to wire the TV's battery to the table, which kills the lone remaining henchman.  Sinatra figures things out.

Before he can run too far, he is shot by the villain!

He dies.

On the plus side, Grandpa (who doesn't die in this one) does ask about him and they confirm his death.  He's still dead...but at least they did give it a mention later.

So, while he died helping save the day, he only had to since the people called him to do, you know, his job.  He was not showing up to be a Hero, after all- just an Electrician.

He does have a name too...but even the random Cop shot by a Henchman does, so that doesn't mean much.

Next up, a much-less-controversial one to induct.  Since it is from an Asylum Film, you know that it will be good!  See you then...

Old School Flix: Suddenly (1954)

I finally get to see the *good* Version of this Story.  Awhile back, I did a Film requested of me by Bob- Suddenly.  This turned out to be the 2013 Remake of a 1954 Film starring Frank Sinatra.  Who said- 'Guy who made Bloodrayne- you should Remake a Sinatra Film?'  Who did he think he was, Jonathan Demme?  As a stand-alone Film, it is just not that good.  Compared to the Original, it is even worse.  It just falters in every way when it has to compare to this one.  Don't misunderstand- this isn't God's greatest creation or anything, but it does exactly what it wants to do.  Boll's Film does not.  Let's start at the top: Frank Sinatra plays the villain here (in one of the rare times he does so).  In the 2013 Film, it is Dominic Purcell.  Look- I don't hate Dominic, but he's just so damn flat in every Boll Film I've seen him in.  It's like he hates being in the Films, but has to.  I don't know if that's true, but it sure seems that way.  The Story is mostly the same, although some changes are there.  I will give you an overview of the Story and tell you what is different- two for one.  Sound good?  To find out why you would ever name a Town 'Suddenly,' read on...

The Film's B-Plot involves the Sheriff of Suddenly yearning for the Widow in Town.  They never say what War he died in, which is odd.  She is resistant.

That day, he learns that the President is going to be stopping in town briefly that evening.  Lots of work to do.

Also arriving in Town are Sinatra and his two goons.  They are there to kill a President!

His plan involves borrowing a House just up the hill to shoot from.  This stands in contrast to the Remake, where it appears to be way out in the Woods.  100 yards makes more sense than 1,000!

 While waiting for their time to strike, Sinatra and company decide to...Monologue.  ALOT!

Seriously, the Film's middle half is almost entirely Monologues and Speeches- either setting them up or executing them.

They are good, mind you, but...damn, guys!

As the time approaches, our heroes must work in secret to stop the killer trio.  The Police kill one, at least.

Thanks to some tricks with wiring (see a later Poor Bastard of Cinema), the attempt is stopped.

 They kill the one henchman with wiring and shoot Sinatra in time.  He even mugs in death.

...and unlike the 2013 Film, they don't feel the need to waste time with the 'Hiding Fireworks' Sub-Plot and to seem 'dramatic' by killing the grandfather.  The End.

Oh so much better!  The Story here is nice and simple.  There are a few key things to accept- the family situation, the Assassination Plot- and they work.  This isn't the most complex movie out there- so what?  It has good Acting, good Direction and a Story you can get behind.  The short timeline of the Story simplifies things and gives it some momentum.  Stories like this work when you don't have too much time to stop and think about little things that may not add up.  After the Uwe Boll Film, I was really hopeful that this wouldn't suck.  I didn't want to go 'Oh, this is as bad as Boll's Film,' that's for sure!  The odds of that happening were admittedly-low.  So many things in that Film- the dry Acting, the Melodrama, the silly Plot Points and the pointless Fireworks Sub-Plot- were just so bad.  Here are two Examples of how Boll does things worse- just for fun.  First, we have the set-up of the kid hiding Fireworks in the Forest...only for there to be no point.  In this Film, we have a Sub-Plot involving the kid getting a fake Gun that looks very realistic...and it plays into the Climax.  Second- in Boll's Film we get some silliness involving the power being rerouted just to shock one of the bad guys to death.  In this Film, we have them route the power from the TV to a metal table to kill one of the bad guys.  So much less stupid.  In the End, this is a nice, simple tale that still works over fifty-years later.  As a bonus, my Version wasn't the computer-colored one where Sinatra was given Brown Eyes!  Hey Grandpa, what do you think of Uwe Boll's Remake?

Next up, I take a look back to a nearly-forgotten piece of Film History.  Why settle for a Universal Classic in just one language?  Stay tuned...