L'heure magique

This won't ever be anyone's favourite movie. It sets its sights fairly low, so it doesn't have any difficulty in hitting its targets. Nevertheless, it will trump many other thrillers simply because of the sheer professionalism of its cast. Esposito is an irritation and Liev Schreiber is fantastically dull as ever, but the real joy comes from seeing the old pros, Newman, Hackman, Sarandon, Channing and Garner doing their thing. Authority oozes from the screen whenever any one of them is on, which fortunately is nearly all the time. Hackman is particularly fine, especially considering he has virtually nothing to do.

This must be the oldest cast since Cocoon!

7 out of 10. It would be nothing without its principals.

This movie didn't do well with the critics or at the box office but if you're in a nostalgic mood I'll think you'll enjoy it. The nostalgia is not just for the stars, Newman, Hackforth and Garner but for the whole private eye genre of the forties. All three stars show why they have been tops for so long. At 73 Newman can still make the action and the sex scenes creditable. It gives new hope to men of a certain age everywhere! It is a film that probably plays better on TV than in a movie house. The pace is leisurely but there is some nice sharp dialogue and atmospheric camera work. All this plus a moody score by Leonard Bernstein make for a highly professional entertainment. The more I think about it the more I like it.

Twilight is a slow burn modern film noir. A more laid back version of LA Confidential. The first scenes feature a young Reese Witherspoon and Liev Schreiber in Mexico with Paul Newman that leaves Newman injured. We then go forward a few years.

Harry Ross (Newman) is a down on his luck detective with an injury and not much money. He lives in California in the guest quarters of Witherspoon's wealthy parents who are his old friends and former film industry executives now in the twilight of their years. Jack (Gene Hackman) is dying of cancer and he and Ross pass time playing cards.

Jack asks Harry to deliver a package in Los Angeles. When Harry arrives to deliver the package he encounters a shot man named who turns out to be a former detective. This begins a chain of events involving a past case that led to the disappearance of Catherine's (Susan Sarandon) ex- husband.

Harry realises that his friends have been deceitful and manipulative of him. His old colleague Raymond (James Garner) tries to persuade Harry to get away from it all.

The film is about immoral people who are wealthy and wish to stay ahead and use others for their own means. As a pot boiler its slow, even meandering as there are betrayals and double crosses. What sustains it is the acting and with the four leads and some rising stars you watch it for the actors and the depth they provide.

In a world where sex, violence, and sleaze in movies seems to dominate, it is refreshing to find a film that is the caliber of movies made from a much earlier decade, when cinema was intended to be a work of art. You could not ask for a better cast than in this movie. All are very well-respected for their acting abilities and their professional demeanor. The score is excellent; the story line captivating. Paul Newman is indeed more than believable in his role as a sexy, no-nonsense gumshoe. Susan Sarandon is sultry in the style of Susan Hayward and Lauren Bacall. Gene Hackman is, well, Gene Hackman. I only wish there were more movies coming out of Hollywood of this nature.

A retired Detective is given a simple job, but his seemingly easy task soon turns into a complex mystery.

It's just wonderful to find a film called Twilight that I actually liked.

It's a bit of a pot boiler, and by modern standards, it is somewhat old fashioned, but it works, I've read a few savage reviews, but I quite liked it.

It's quite a mature cast, but I enjoy that for a change, it's nice to see a group of Detectives that aren't fast tracked children for a change. Newman, Hackman and Sarandon are all great, the acting is faultless.

Overall, I would say, a decent story is elevated by a particularly capable cast, 7/10.