Yellow Sky (1948)

An American western directed by William A. Wellman, starring Gregory Peck, Richard Widmark and Anne Baxter.
A group of outlaws rob a bank and cross salt flats to escape. They end up in a ghost town inhabited by a violent, young woman and her gold mining grandfather. The outlaws fight over gold and the woman.
This is the last film I'm watching from the acid western page. The plot and visuals mark it as the first acid western. There is a surprise ending which really breaks expectations. Lots of the film was shot during the day and underexposed or edited to create night. Usually, clouds are not that visible in a night sky. Generally, I found the whole film just odd enough to be cool. Those looking for a traditional western may not notice, but those versed in acid westerns will recognize the beginnings of the outlandishness which would follow. I rate it adequate. You might want to watch it.

Moby Dick (1956)

An American adventure film directed by John Huston, starring Gregory Peck and Orson Welles.
A man intent on joining the crew of a whaling ship meets a harpooner at an inn. Together they board the Pequod under the command of Captain Ahab who is in search of a white whale.
The film itself wasn't too bad. The plot and characters kept me interested and it was alright technically. I can see why it is famous because it was almost enjoyable. Unfortunately for this film, I have read the book. The actual action that takes place in this megalithic tome would barely fill a childrens' picture book. That is why it is so disconcerting that they got most of the plot wrong. They got the right characters on the right boat and there was a white whale, but that's where the similarity ends. It's like if I asked someone to make coffee and they turned the switch on without plugging it in, tossed some grounds in the glass pot, spilled water on the table and placed a filter on top of the machine. They had so little to do and should have gotten everything right. I'm rating this poor because it's an alright movie, but it isn't Moby Dick by any stretch of the imagination. I would only recommend this to those who will never read the book.

The Snows of Kilimanjaro (1952)

An American romantic adventure drama directed by Henry King, starring Gregory Peck.
A man is injured on a journey in Africa. While lying on his cot and waiting for help to arrive, he reflects on his life up to that point. This mostly focuses on his romantic relationships.
The plot and characters kept me interested, but I had some difficulty discerning one girlfriend/wife from another. The flashbacks worked wonders for this film and I thought that they were appropriate and used well. There were some areas where the production quality was not so great, but these were very few. The sets and costumes were top notch and I wouldn't change a thing there. Some of the music was really good and some of it was negligible, so good there too. In fact, I liked this movie. I think that it was made very well, the story was good and the presentation was clear. I rate it good.

Cape Fear (1962 & 1991)

An American thriller directed by J. Lee Thompson and then Martin Scorsese, starring Gregory Peck and Robert Mitchum then Robert De Niro and Nick Nolte.
A man gets out of jail and goes to see the lawyer who was supposed to be defending him, but lost the case. He stalks the lawyer and kills his dog, so the lawyer sends his cop friends to torment the ex-con whenever possible. The lawyer hires men to beat up the ex-con and gets into trouble. He fakes leaving for a meeting and has his wife and daughter wait in a boathouse where his friend leads the ex-con because the lawyer knows that the ex-con wants to kill them.
The 1962 version was coherent and flowed smoothly. Everything made sense and fit together perfectly. The 1991 version was bastardized Hollywood bullshit. Nothing fit and the flow was crappy. Adequate and shit seem to be good ratings for differentiating remakes and that's the case here.