Come to the talkies with me

Nobody goes to the movies any more They sit at home and stream But deep down everyone misses the movies How do I know Because every new tweak of technology promises to deliver an even more authentic movie hall experiencemdashlarger screens and surround sound to name two Add popcorn and you might even believe you were back at the talkies againIrsquom a shameless unrepentant lover of old gold This week I want to tease you with a short partial list of some movies I have watched and cherished over and over wallowing in the plot the performance the cinematography or even the sheer pleasure of watching a good story well toldTo make the experience exquisitely torturous I will withhold the moviersquos name but leave more than enough clues for you to discover it for yourself with a little Googling Using ChatGPT would be considered cheatingOh and all of them are available in full length free for viewing on YouTubeMovie 1 Itrsquos easy to scare people using loud sounds gruesome images and special effects think The Exorcist Here is a spinetingling blackandwhite movie from 1967 where just the story and the acting will bring you to the edge of your seat The late great Dame Audrey Hepburn then a bewitching young actor plays a blind woman alone in a London basement who becomes the unwitting owner of a doll stuffed with heroin Three criminals take turns trying various strategies to get the doll back When all fails the main villain terrifyingly played by an understated Alan Arkinenters the houseHepburn was nominated for an Oscar for her performance Alan Arkin passed away exactly two months ago to the day todayMovie 2 Have you noticed how every detail seems a little larger than life in childhood memories People rooms trees everything looms Moments last longer expressions are more severe and life has an exaggerated comicbook quality Now imagine a film that captures these ethereal magical slightly puffedup memories laced with nostalgia wry humour and affection and you would be thinking about this unsung masterpiece by Italian maestro Federico Fellini A movie hall in Calcutta screened itmdashby mistake Irsquom suremdashfor three days in 1973 but I was lucky to see it then I have watched it with pleasure over 30 times sinceMovie 3 Everyone knows this magnificent actor by his one grisly turn as a cannibal serial killer in The Silence of the Lambs But a much younger Sir Anthony Hopkins starred in a nailbiting psychological thriller based on the novel of the same name by William Goldman He plays a shy introverted man who comes into his own only as a ventriloquist in conversation with his puppet which constantly derides and belittles him to everyonersquos delight One day the puppet begins controlling him giving him chilling instructions Both the book and the movie are obscure masterpieces hard to come by The movie was directed by the late Sir Richard Attenborough who made Gandhi and played Dr Hammond in Jurassic ParkMovie 4 While on Anthony Hopkins let me introduce another unknown gem I picked it up because the name suggested it was somehow about Indians It wasnrsquot and it was In this uplifting meticulous 2005 film based on a true story Hopkins plays a downandout but tenacious New Zealander who loves motorbikesmdashand wants to race his Indian Scout motorcycle on the Utah salt flats in the USA And thatrsquos all Irsquom telling youMovie 5 A black teacher from British Guyana is hired to teach a class of angry delinquent teenagers in a seedy East London district What could possibly go wrong Sidney Poitier already a name by then stepped into the limelight with this heartwarming and uplifting 1967 movie A few months ago I watched it with a brilliant 12yearold child with Aspergerrsquos Syndromemdashit lit his face up just as it did mineThis movie also introduced the singer Lulu The theme song To Sir With Love topped the US Billboard Hot 100Movie 6 The name Anthony Quinn may not mean anything to you To me he is a hulking bushyeyebrowed ebullient actor who brought amazing energy and subtlety into his acting This movie hardly remembered even though it was directed by the legendary Stanley Kramer and nominated for two Oscars tells the story of the Italian village of Santa Vittoria towards the end of World War II The retreating Germans want to seize the townrsquos cache of wine To protect their treasure the town elects the bumbling town drunk Quinn as its mayor Crafty canny obsequious but determined not to surrender the precious wine Quinn is a treat to watch as he outwits the GermansThere are a few more gems where those came from but Irsquom close to my word limit You may have to wait till next week Meanwhile if you want to check out your answers scan the QR code alongside and type in your guesses to get the correct answersNow go watch the movies Donrsquot forget the popcornYou can reach C Y Gopinath at cygopigmailcomSend your feedback to mailbagmiddaycomThe views expressed in this column are the individualrsquos and donrsquot represent those of the paper