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A candle in the sin: "The Misfits"

Otherwise known as the "See you later" movie, since we didn't see much of the three big stars after this.

Marilyn Monroe is a divorcee in 1960-61 Reno who comes across a mechanic (Eli Wallach) and a cowpoke (Clark Gable). Despite the mechanic giving her his desert house, she takes up with the cowpoke. This odd couple -- trio if you count Eli -- soon become a foursome when an old cowboy friend (Montgomery Clift) shows up.

Other than a bunch of hanging out and sexual tension, nothing much happens until the true nature of Gable's work comes to light, and Norma Jean sees her faith in man dashed yet again. Helming this introspection is John Huston, one of our more accomplished American directors. Or perhaps you missed "Annie!"

Actually, Houston -- who has directed a ton of real movies, of course -- does all right here, and it's certainly interesting to watch Monroe as she's spiraling down to her demise. I've also decided that I'm a Clark Gable fan. Didn't much care for "Gone with the Wind," but you have to like his signature line there given all the crap Scarlett has put him through to that point. (The "should be kissed" bit is good, too.) I thought Gable was all right in "Mutiny on the Bounty" and "Run Silent, Run Deep," too. Reminds me of George Clooney, especially when Clooney was in "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" Must be the mustache.

Anyway, "The Misfits" is OK. A little too deliberate and preachy at the end, and I can't say Clift was anything special in it. But Wallach actually was, and it's a shame you don't hear people mention him when it comes to this movie. His bad luck for staying alive another 47 years (and counting).

We gotta fast car ... : "Vanishing Point"

I fully admit that I watched this movie because it came up in "Grindhouse: Death Proof." Never heard of it before, and I was curious to see what this white 1970 Dodge Challenger was all about.

Our story is simple: Guy has to drive the car from Denver to San Francisco. He bets a pal he can get there in 15 hours -- which is insane, really -- then speeds off. Hijinks ensue, in the form of cops chasing him as he comes across various folks: a desert hermit, some revivalists, some gay hitchhikers, a naked woman, etc., etc. All the while, a blind, black DJ serves as his eyes on the road. It's all very existential, man. Dig it.

Yeah, things get a little too heavy at times here, and this is definitely a movie from 1971. (See above for the people this cat meets.) But I did like the flashbacks that tell us who our hero is and why he's burned out. And the car chase stuff -- of which there is plenty -- is good. And hell, the car is cool, too.

Verdict: Not bad. Could have been better, and I might like to see a remake done just right. Our luck, though, it would be some bullsh*t with Colin Farrell, Wanda Sykes and a BMW roadster.

And yet I still must make the obligatory teenage Asian stepdaughter reference: "Take the Money and Run"

This movie is still pretty funny. Even after everything Woody Allen has been through in the nearly 40 years since. Hell, the cellist in a marching band bit is brilliant enough to make it worth watching.

In what IMDb says is the first-ever mockumentary, Woody Allen is Virgil Starkwell, a nebbish -- no! -- who also is a hapless criminal. A prelude shows how Virgil ended up in jail; how he tries to break out is another great bit. Then we just follow his life and times, from meeting a girl to having a kid to never being able to leave his life of crime.

So yeah, it's essentially a reason to string together a bunch of gags. But hey, the gags are good, and the script is sharp. (I mean, the thing with the bank robbery note? C'mon.) It's a crime -- pun originally unintended, but keeping it in here -- that there isn't more stuff in the quotes section of IMDb. I should have taken notes, some of Allen's dialogue and internal monologue was so good. Then he had to go all relationshipy on us in the next three decades. Boo.