Top Ten Post-WWII Femme Fatale Characters

On the commentary track of Angel Face, Eddie Muller names his top ten femme fatale characters of the post-WWII period. Muller notes that the one common characteristic of all these women is that they did not work.

1. Jane Greer — Out of the Past

2. Rita Hayworth — The Lady from Shanghai

3. Joan Bennett — Scarlet Street

4. Ava Gardner — The Killers

5. Gene Tierney — Leave Her To Heaven

6. Yvonne De Carlo — Criss Cross

7. Marie Windsor — The Killing

8. Ann Savage — Detour

9. Claire Trevor — Murder, My Sweet

10. Jean Simmons — Angel Face

Movies Watched -- Dishonored (1931)

91 minute running time … von Sternberg and Marlene Dietrich yet again … Marlene as war widow turned streetwalker turned spy for Austria (World War I) … she’s clearly enjoying herself, and isn’t a bad actress … it’s not terrible, but I can’t recommend it either.

Jonathan Rosenbaum's Alternate List of the 100 Greatest American Movies (sorted chronologically)

I like movies and I like lists, so I especially like lists of movies, especially iconoclastic lists of movies, like this one by Jonathan Rosenbaum from 1998 (sorted chronologically) … there are a lot terrible movies on this list, but also a few good ones:

Intolerance (1916)

Broken Blossoms (1919)

Foolish Wives (1922)

Nanook of the North (1922)

Sherlock Jr. (1924)

Greed (1925)

Sunrise (1927)

The General (1927)

The Crowd (1928)

The Docks of New York (1928)

Lonesome (1929)

Thunderbolt (1929)

Laughter (1930)

Freaks (1932)

Love Me Tonight (1932)

Scarface (1932)

Trouble in Paradise (1932)

Hallelujah, I’m a Bum! (1933)

Man’s Castle (1933)

Judge Priest (1934)

The Black Cat (1934)

The Scarlet Empress (1934)

Bride of Frankenstein (1935)

Sylvia Scarlett (1935)

Make Way for Tomorrow (1937)

The Great Garrick (1937)

Christmas in July (1940)

The Shop Around the Corner (1940)

The Strawberry Blonde (1941)

Cat People (1942)

The Magnificent Ambersons (1942)

The Palm Beach Story (1942)

The Seventh Victim (1943)

This Land Is Mine (1943)

Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)

Scarlet Street (1945) Gilda (1946)

Monsieur Verdoux (1947)

Force of Evil (1948)

Letter From an Unknown Woman (1948)

The Lady From Shanghai (1948)

Panic in the Streets (1950)

Stars in My Crown (1950)

The Sound of Fury/Try and Get Me! (1950)

Ace in the Hole/The Big Carnival (1951)

The Steel Helmet (1951)

My Son John (1952)

Park Row (1952)

The Big Sky (1952)

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)

The Naked Spur (1953)

Johnny Guitar (1954)

The Barefoot Contessa (1954)

Track of the Cat (1954)

Kiss Me Deadly (1955)

The Night of the Hunter (1955)

The Phenix City Story (1955)

Bigger Than Life (1956)

The Killing (1956)

While the City Sleeps (1956)

An Affair to Remember (1957)

The Wrong Man (1957)

Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? (1957)

The Tarnished Angels (1958)

Anatomy of a Murder (1959)

Rio Bravo (1959)

Shadows (1960)

The Hustler (1961)

The Ladies’ Man (1961)

Confessions of an Opium Eater (1962)

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)

The Nutty Professor (1963)

Vinyl (1965)

Point Blank (1967)

The Shooting (1967)

Tom, Tom, the Piper’s Son (1969)

Scenes From Under Childhood (1970)

Woodstock (1970)

Zabriskie Point (1970)

McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971)

Reminiscences of a Journey to Lithuania (1971)

Wanda (1971)

Avanti! (1972)

The Heartbreak Kid (1972)

Eadweard Muybridge, Zoopraxographer (1974)

11 x 14 (1976)

Mikey and Nicky (1976)

The Killing of a Chinese Bookie (1976)

Last Chants for a Slow Dance (1977)

Eraserhead (1978)

Killer of Sheep (1978)

The Scenic Route (1978)

Real Life (1979)

Love Streams (1984)

Stranger Than Paradise (1984)

Housekeeping (1987)

Do the Right Thing (1989)

To Sleep With Anger (1990)

That’s Entertainment! III (1994)

Dead Man (1995)

Movies Watched -- Bigger Than Life (1956)

95 minute running time … this is a strange one from Nicholas Ray made during the McCarthy era … Ray is interested in obliquely criticizing American middle class conformity among other things: pharmaceutical drug abuse, white privilege, racism, the nuclear family, domesticity, the medical establishment, the benefits of drinking whole milk, the public education system, homosexuality (Walter Matthau’s incredible physique from smoking two packs a day), class distinctions, all kinds of stuff. What I took away from this is that Barbara Rush had great tits.

I can’t recommend this, but it was sort of interesting and definitely a movie mainstream critics would ever recommend or even mention. It’s probably considered a “cult classic” in some quarters.

“… it's only fair to tell you that if we don't get a whole lot of high-class service, and in a hurry there's likely to be a terribly embarrassing scene in this sanctum.”

Ella Grace -- Live at Parish Hall

Ella Grace a nice discovery early on in 2023… thanks to the Spotify algo. I like the lead song best.

I took a massive tax loss on my Spotify, sold the “long-term” position in the stock … still like the service though, just paid a bad price for the stock:

I've Only Known Careless Love

Bob Zimmerman song covered by some Scandinavians, My bubba with You’re Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go. I like it when the girl with crimson hair across her face takes that verse. I dig it:

Movies Watched -- How to Marry a Millionaire (1953)

95 minute running time the perfect length and it opens with six full minutes of Alfred Newman score with full symphony … Marilyn Monroe an underrated comic actress, Lauren Bacall with her sexy smoker’s voice, and I’m not familiar with Betty Grable but she also had good comic instincts … it’s a cute, feel-good movie (pre-WOKE), well-written, I enjoyed it, but it’s a little too light to recommend…

Not in the market for gas-pump jockeys

Movies Watched -- Angel Face (1952)

91 minute running time so the perfect length… this movie was GREAT … good story, good writing, good acting (Mitchum and little Jean Simmons, sort of an Audrey Hepburn-ish waif) and an INSANE ending … this was a David Lehman reco and I thank him for it … this is a green-go, highly recommended!

Ten minutes after I left Harry's I was in the sack. I can believe that.

Movies Watched -- The Getaway (1972)

123 minute running time so at least 20 to 30 minutes too long … absolutely awful early 70s score by Quincy Jones … Ali McGraw is beautiful but can’t act … Steve McQueen has beautiful blue eyes and can act … there are some interesting bits and funny bits (like getting trapped in a garbage truck), but the movie is no good in the end, too much senseless violence, and as Canby said, an “aimless enterprise that runs on and on … The action and the violence of ‘The Getaway’ are supported by no particular themes whatsoever. The movie just unravels.” I think Peckinpah was a creep, he was interested in sex and violence and more specifically violence against women, which makes for uncomfortable viewing … check out busty Sally Struthers stroking the man’s gun:

You don't always have to take your gun out.

Vanguard ETFs 2022 Year-end Total Returns

1. VDE Energy ETF 62.89%

2. VPU Utilities ETF 1.10%

3. VUSB Ultra-Short Bond ETF -0.39%

4. VYM High Dividend Yield ETF -0.44%

5. MGV Mega Cap Value ETF -1.23%

6. VDC Consumer Staples ETF -1.78%

7. VTV Value ETF -2.04%

8. VTIP Short-Term Inflation-Protected Securities ETF -2.98%

9. VGSH Short-Term Treasury ETF -3.84%

10. VFVA U.S. Value Factor ETF -3.88%

11. VOOV S&P 500 Value ETF -5.35%

12. BSV Short-Term Bond ETF -5.49%

13. VHT Health Care ETF -5.55%

14. VCSH Short-Term Corporate Bond ETF -5.61%

15. VFMF U.S. Multifactor ETF-5.70%

16. VFMV U.S. Minimum Volatility ETF -5.76%

17. VYMI International High Dividend Yield ETF -6.92%

18. IVOV S&P Mid-Cap 400 Value ETF -7.14%

19. VONV Russell 1000 Value ETF -7.65%

20. VOE Mid-Cap Value ETF -7.90%

21. VTEB Tax-Exempt Bond ETF -8.03%

22. VIS Industrials ETF -8.51%

23. VBR Small-Cap Value ETF -9.32%

24. VIG Dividend Appreciation ETF -9.79%

25. VGIT Intermediate-Term Treasury ETF -10.56%

26. VIOV S&P Small-Cap 600 Value ETF -11.25%

27. VAW Materials ETF -11.77%

28. VMBS Mortgage-Backed Securities ETF -11.89%

29. VFH Financials ETF -12.25%

30. BNDX Total International Bond ETF -12.75%

31. VFMO U.S. Momentum Factor ETF -12.87%

32. BNDW Total World Bond ETF -12.91%

33. BND Total Bond Market ETF -13.12%

34. IVOO S&P Mid-Cap 400 ETF -13.17%

35. BIV Intermediate-Term Bond ETF -13.21%

36. VCIT Intermediate-Term Corporate Bond ETF -13.98%

37. VTWV Russell 2000 Value ETF -14.65%

38. VCEB ESG U.S. Corporate Bond ETF -15.11%

39. VPL FTSE Pacific ETF -15.24%

40. VEA FTSE Developed Markets ETF -15.39%

41. VEU FTSE All-World ex-US ETF -15.60%

42. VFQY U.S. Quality Factor ETF -15.67%

43. VTC Total Corporate Bond ETF -15.72%

44. VGK FTSE Europe ETF -15.97%

45. VXUS Total International Stock ETF -16.13%

46. VIOO S&P Small-Cap 600 ETF -16.23%

47. VIGI International Dividend Appreciation ETF -16.82%

48. VWOB Emerging Markets Government Bond ETF -17.36%

49. VB Small-Cap ETF -17.63%

50. VT Total World Stock ETF -18.02%

51. VWO FTSE Emerging Markets ETF -18.04%

52. VOO S&P 500 ETF -18.15%

53. VO Mid-Cap ETF -18.69%

54. VSGX ESG International Stock ETF -18.69%

55. IVOG S&P Mid-Cap 400 Growth ETF -19.10%

56. VONE Russell 1000 ETF -19.20%

57. VTHR Russell 3000 ETF -19.30%

58. VTI Total Stock Market ETF -19.51%

59. VV Large-Cap ETF -19.69%

60. MGC Mega Cap ETF -19.93%

61. VTWO Russell 2000 ETF -20.44%

62. VIOG S&P Small-Cap 600 Growth ETF -21.25%

63. VSS FTSE All-World ex-US Small-Cap ETF -21.42%

64. VNQI Global ex-U.S. Real Estate ETF -22.99%

65. ESGV ESG U.S. Stock ETF -24.05%

66. VCLT Long-Term Corporate Bond ETF -25.56%

67. VNQ Real Estate ETF -26.21%

68. VTWG Russell 2000 Growth ETF -26.38%

69. VXF Extended Market ETF -26.49%

70. BLV Long-Term Bond ETF -26.95%

71. VBK Small-Cap Growth ETF -28.41%

72. VOT Mid-Cap Growth ETF -28.84%

73. VONG Russell 1000 Growth ETF -29.16%

74. VGLT Long-Term Treasury ETF -29.31%

75. VOOG S&P 500 Growth ETF -29.48%

76. VGT Information Technology ETF -29.68%

77. VUG Growth ETF -33.13%

78. MGK Mega Cap Growth ETF -33.56%

79. VCR Consumer Discretionary ETF -35.18%

80. VOX Communication Services ETF -38.79%

81. EDV Extended Duration Treasury ETF -39.20%