Godzilla (1954)
Directed By: Ishiro Honda
Starring: Takashi Shimura, Ahihiko Hirata, Akira Takarada, Takashi Shimura
Rated: NR
Run Time: 1h 36m
TMM Score: 3 Stars
Strengths: Theme, Legacy, Soundtrack
Weakness: Pacing, Some Poor Effects Shots
Ships off the coast of one of Japan’s islands are being mysteriously destroyed. When the cause turns out to be an immense fire breathing lizard, all of Japan seems doomed.
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La Strada (1954)
Directed by: Federico Fellini
Starring: Anthony Quinn, Giulietta Masina, Richard Basehart
Rated: NR (Suggested PG-13 for Suggestive Content and Brief Violence)
Running Time: 1 h 48 m
TMM Score: 4.5 stars out of 5
STRENGTHS: Writing, Directing, Acting
WEAKNESSES: -
A jovial girl is sold to a traveling entertainer, and learns to endure life with all it’s ups and downs.
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Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954)
Directed by: Jack Arnold
Starring: Richard Carlson, Whit Bissell, Julie Adams, Richard Denning, Ricou Browning, Ben Chapman, Antonio Moreno
Rated: G
Running Time: 1 h 19 m
TMM Score: 4 stars out of 5
STRENGTHS: Story, Cinematography, Creature Design, Old Hollywood Charm
WEAKNESSES: Some Melodramatic Moments
A group of scientists travel to the Amazon in search of a missing link in evolution, only to be terrorized by a fearsome beast that dwells there.
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Seven Samurai (1954)
Directed by: Akira Kurosawa
Starring: Toshiro Mifune, Takashi Shimura, Keiko Tsushima
Running Time: 3h 27m
Rated: NR (best guess, R)
TMM Score: 5 stars out of 5
STRENGTHS: Character Development, Cinematography
WEAKNESSES: Pacing. Maybe.
Bandit raids have brought a dirt poor village of farmers to the point of starvation. Are there any Samurai of honor who will help because of principle rather than pay?
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