Vertigo (1958)

Starring James Stewart, Kim Novak, Barbara Bel Geddes, Tom Helmore, Henry Jones
Directed by Alfred Hitchcock
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)

A police detective who's entered into retirement due to his crippling vertigo is asked by an old friend to follow his wife, whom he fears has been possessed by a spirit from the dead.

One of the great films of any era, this is not just a mystery or a love story, but a tale of obsession on the level of a Greek tragedy, beautifully filmed and acted.  Stewart's character is imbued with the actor's natural charm and delivery, but also requires he goes into the darker corners of the man's psyche, and the actor does an excellent job of showing how desperate his mind his is to recover what he loses.  Novak, in dual roles, playing the upper-crust and refined Madeleine, and later the more earthy and independent Judy, is also exceptional, and Bel Geddes is endearing and amusing as Stewart's former flame who still has a friendly relationship with the detective.  Relying less on expository dialogue than the camera and clever editing by George Tomasini to tell the story, Hitchcock takes the audience into the narrative perhaps more personally than any of his other films.  Bernard Herrmann's excellent score also heightens the emotional tension and is an important component in the film's storytelling, particularly his wonderful cue "Scene d'amour," which underscores Stewart and Novak's passionate romance.  It's a great film, and one worth revisiting again and again.

The Time Machine (1960)

Starring Rod Taylor, Alan Young, Yvette Mimieux, Sebastian Cabot, Tom Helmore
Directed by George Pal
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)

On the eve of the 20th century, an inventor creates a functional time machine, which he uses to travel into the far future to escape the horrors of war in the present.

The classic novel by H.G. Wells becomes a classic film in the hands of fantasy filmmaker George Pal, whose credits include Destination Moon, The War Of The Worlds, and Atlantis: The Lost Continent.  Featuring distinctive art direction and good special effects, highlighted by a wonderful imagining of the time machine of Wells' novel, Pal's film makes an impact and has a wonderfully nostalgic sheen to it, abetted by Russell Garcia's charming music.  The makeup of the Morlocks, the film's fearsome villains is well-done as well, and Taylor makes a believable and worthy voice for Wells' ideas.  It stands up with each viewing, and remains one of my favorite sci-fi adventures.