Ongoing: Ron's Blu-Ray Discoveries Thread (renamed) (1 Viewer)

[Robert Crawford]

The main theme about Monte Walsh is about that the life of a cowboy has come to an end. The old West has died with a new West taking over.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

....and I thank you for recommending this title. Now one of my favorites!

 

[Robert Crawford]

....and I thank you for recommending this title. Now one of my favorites!

Ron,


You say you're not a fan of Lee Marvin or Jack Palance. Have you seen the following films that are on Blu-ray?


The Professionals

Shane

Point Blank

Panic in the Streets

Emperor of the North

 

[macdaddy]

Emperor Of The North is a really fine movie. I blind purchased it on TT's sale last month. What a surprise! And how could i not mention the late great Ernest Borgnine at his absolute meanest !

 

[Johnny Angell]

Also, I also highly recommend that you purchase the Criterion Collection DVD of Spartacus for the 2 extremely informative, and entertaining running commentaries it contains.


And if you haven't already seen Trumbo in a theater yet, I recommend it as a blind buy as well.

It's been a while since I've listened to it, but on one of those commentaries, the speaker spends considerable time trashing Kirk Douglas's acting chops. I was really shocked to hear it. Commentaries are very seldom critical of the participants. I disagreed with the speaker too.

 

[Reed Grele]

It's been a while since I've listened to it, but on one of those commentaries, the speaker spends considerable time trashing Kirk Douglas's acting chops. I was really shocked to hear it. Commentaries are very seldom critical of the participants. I disagreed with the speaker too.

I think I know who you mean.

Back when the laserdisc first came out, a friend and I listened to BOTH commentaries in one marathon session! Many times during the second commentary track, we each chanted in unison: "Oh shut up, Howard!"

What a fun, and memorable evening that was!

 

[Greg Krewet]

Ron, since you enjoyed Monte Walsh. You might wish to consider two other "end of the west" films. You may enjoy Will Penny with Charlton Heston and Blake Edwards film of The Wild Rovers with William Holden. Admittedly Ryan O Neal can be a minor distraction in Wild Rovers but William Holden's performance more then compensates. Thanks.

 

[Dr Griffin]

Will Penny, unfortunately, is not on Blu-ray. It's a good film and the DVD gives a good presentation.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

Ron, I am curious, a lot of your "discoveries" are great films that have been around for some time. I mean, Spartacus is not exactly some hidden gem. What were your movie watching tendencies over the years?


I will say this thread is great because it is always fun to hear what somebody thinks of a great film when they have seen it for the first time and I know for me when I discover something I had never seen before I am thrilled to experience it for the first time. Ride the Pink Horse was a blind buy for me too as I had only seen Robert Montgomery's strange noir experiment Lady in the Lake which was also fascinating to watch.


You certainly got a great introduction to Spartacus because I have seen the film many times over the years including on film projected in a theater and honestly...I never have seen it look as stunning as it does on the new blu-ray. Truly an amazing job that shows what can happen when a group of true professionals get their hands on a classic film.


You are getting great recommendations here for further watching. All the films on Robert Crawford's Lee Marvin/Jack Palance list above are must see classics as far as I'm concerned. Also Greg and Stanley's recommendation of Will Penny makes a great double feature with Monte Walsh. I am hoping somebody brings Will Penny to blu-ray as it is also a beautifully shot film and Heston is fantastic in it.


I'll admit I'm biased when it comes to Westerns as that is one of my favorite genres so I could make endless recommendations there. I will just stay out of throwing more films into the mix because what you already have on your list is great stuff.


Also I love Lee Marvin and his catalog of films includes a lot of impressive works. Exploring his films would be fun for you I think.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Ron, I am curious, a lot of your "discoveries" are great films that have been around for some time. I mean, Spartacus is not exactly some hidden gem. What were your movie watching tendencies over the years?

I have talked about this a few times in the past.


Growing up, classic films, for me, were The Marx Brothers and Jerry Lewis. The rest, I watched on the 4pm movie. However, those films were mostly science fiction.


I never tolerated westerns or B&W films. As a teenager, anything that was in B&W or mostly "talk" over action, played havoc with my short attention span.


In the 80s, when I worked in a video store, I really tried to watch many of the popular classics on VHS. However, it wasn't until the advent of DVD that I really became interested in catching up on classic film. DVD changed everything. For the first time, the studios were doing amazing restorations of old films and presenting them in their proper aspect ratio. I was no longer watching films in the confines of a 4x3 screen.


Starting Home Theater Forum and meeting people like Robert Crawford, and the rest of you, helped to immensely expand my film interests.


However, I still have this mentality that prevents me from broadening my classic film horizons....


It took me forever to watch SPARTACUS, because I was in the mindset that it was some "hokey" Gladiator movie. I was really not a fan of Kirk Douglas, either.


To this day, I avoid HITCHCOCK films for the most part because I am still under the mindset that they are too boring.


But I will say that there was a time I would never watch a western. Today, I can't get enough of them. In fact, I much prefer to watch a classic movie over something new which is why I am always looking for suggestions from HTF members on what to watch.


So all you guys can do me a favor...


If you see something on sale worth purchasing, let me know. I am always looking for new stuff to watch. The Kino titles went on sale a few weeks ago and Crawdaddy was there to recommend three of them. Know what? I bought 'em.

 

[Robert Crawford]

So all you guys can do me a favor...


If you see something on sale worth purchasing, let me know. I am always looking for new stuff to watch. The Kino titles went on sale a few weeks ago and Crawdaddy was there to recommend three of them. Know what? I bought 'em.

Ron,

Links below on my recommendations. Emperor of the North is currently available from Twilight Time, it's a little expensive so you might want to wait on a sale for that title.


http://www.amazon.com/Professionals-Blu-ray-Ralph-Bellamy/dp/B000HEVZ76/ref=sr_1_1?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1453223752&sr=1-1&keywords=the+professionals


http://www.amazon.com/Point-Blank-Blu-ray-Lee-Marvin/dp/B00IY1T8T6/ref=sr_1_1?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1453223828&sr=1-1&keywords=point+blank


http://www.amazon.com/Shane-BD-Blu-ray-Various/dp/B00C1TOTK0/ref=sr_1_1?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1453223861&sr=1-1&keywords=shane


http://www.amazon.com/Panic-Streets-Blu-ray-Richard-Widmark/dp/B00AQMGRJ0/ref=sr_1_1?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1453223902&sr=1-1&keywords=panic+in+the+streets


http://www.twilighttimemovies.com/emperor-of-the-north-blu-ray/

 

[skylark68]

Great thread. Glad to see what someone can build on a budget! Love the recommendations too!


I'm a fan of westerns nowadays too although I couldn't stand them when I was younger either. There seemed to be too many bad ones out there that would show on the local UHF stations... Hard to weed out the chaff if you know what I mean...

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Ron,

Links below on my recommendations. Emperor of the North is currently available from Twilight Time, it's a little expensive so you might want to wait on a sale for that title.

Thanks for the links. Going to look at those now.


Meanwhile, you might want to look at this.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

I already own and have seen SHANE.



I just ordered all the other films you just linked to, with the exception of EMPORER OF THE NORTH.


Not bad for $35...

The Professionals [Blu-ray]
by Ralph Bellamy
$7.27
Sold by:HOLLYWOOD DEALS



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Panic in the Streets [Blu-ray]
by Richard Widmark
$11.34
Sold by:Amazon.com LLC



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Point Blank (BD) [Blu-ray]
by Lee Marvin
$13.89
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[Konstantinos]

To this day, I avoid HITCHCOCK films for the most part because I am still under the mindset that they are too boring.

OMG, Hitchcock boring?

I would say it's anything BUT boring.

The first time I watched Hitchcock movies, I literally didn't want to go to the bathroom (while I had the need to), because I was anxious to see what happens!


Hitchcock is the reason I turned to old movies.

Up until my 26-27 years old, i watched mostly contemporary films.

Then one day, I say "why don't I watch a Hitchcock to see what is all the fuss about?"

And then I was hooked. I watched his complete filmography from 1935 and on (still haven't seen Secret Agent from 1936 and I have to see the pre-1935 films too), and then turned to more old movies of various genres.

Now, in my 36 years old, 99,99% of the movies I watch are 1930-1995. (and I try to watch one movie per day)

 

[TravisR]

Hitchcock is the reason I turned to old movies.

Yeah, Hitch (specifically Psycho) was my gateway to older movies too.

 

[Walter Kittel]

Curious to hear your impressions of Point Blank Ron. It and The Professionals are two of my favorite Lee Marvin films.


A few recommendations...


If you want to see Marvin in a smaller, supporting role I would recommend The Big Heat. A pretty terrific film noir from Fritz Lang. Marvin is a real bastard in this film.


Also, another Western well worth your time is The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance with John Wayne, Jimmy Stewart, and Lee Marvin.


- Walter.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

Well, the Will Penny DVD is only $5.96 from Amazon. Maybe you are only doing blu-rays but because this film is from Paramount this may be the only way you can get your hands on it.

 

[David_B_K]

Ron, after checking out Point Blank, you might be interested in Payback Straight Up-the director's Cut. The novel that served as the basis for Point Blank was also used for Payback.


Payback was not released in its director's cut originally. A lot of new stuff was shot and new characters added for the theatrical cut. I like the director's cut. Many people hated it because it is gritty and dark. I thought it was in the tradition of film noirs like The Killers, so I wasn't bothered by the dark turns of the story. The director's cut came about year's later and was released to HD DVD and Blu-ray.


The source novel was The Hunter, by Richard Grant. The protagonist - Parker - is called Walker in Point Blank and Porter in Payback. There is also a loose Asian adaptation with Chow Yun Fat in the Parker role.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

I will consider the other titles mentioned. Not certain about the DVD, however if you feel Will Penny will never be on Blu-ray....


I misspoke. There are a few Hitchcock titles that I like: North By Northwest, Psycho, Rear Window and The Birds.


...but I don't go out of my way to watch his films even though I just bought the Import Boxed Set this past holiday.