Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Could not agree more.
And all those 'please take us seriously as artists' actors jumped in for pointless cameos just to be involved in this 'great' moment in cinema.
War has never been so.......................................... up its own arse.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Strange Cargo (1940)

This is an odd movie but still intriguing if a bit self-righteous at times.

A group of prisoners on Devil's Island plan an escape. Among them is a bible spewing man who is a Christ-like figure. I guess who he is becomes apparent at the end.

All the actors performed well especially Gable as a wise-cracking if talkative convict. Joan Crawford plays Julia a woman who has fallen on tough times. I've never thought much of Joan Crawford and her performance here hasn't convinced me otherwise. Ian Hunter as Cambreau was an interesting figure. Virtuous if alittle preachy, he was a nice constrast to the motley group of convicts assembled here. Interesting film, full of symbolism that made for an enjoyable watch.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

1/13/08

Beware, My Lovely (1952) Dir: Harry Horner

Credulity-straining thriller from the pioneering producer team of Collier Young and Ida Lupino, aka The Filmakers (with Lupino pitching in with some uncredited direction).

Robert Ryan is the ‘peril’ and Ida Lupino is the ‘woman’ in this entry in the ‘woman in peril’ style film. Ryan plays Howard Wilton, a tightly-wound psychotic handyman drifter (noooo, Ryan? I know, hard to believe). Lupino is the lonely war widow, Helen Gordon, who hires Howard to do some work around her house. Things go downhill from there as Howard makes Helen a prisoner in her own home.

Howard has a nasty secret, not that he could reveal it. You see, consciousness is a real challenge for him. He has a habit of coming to and finding his employers dead. This is part of the film’s problem. The nature of Howard’s psychosis is so extreme that it is nearly impossible to believe that he’s been free to roam from town to town unobstructed, even in the year 1918 (when the film is set). He can’t remember anything that happened ten minutes ago. His violent, threatening, anti-social tendencies are set off by the smallest and most common of things (a young girl flirting, inadequacies involving the war, due to his being rejected for service). I don’t know how he even made it past the interview with Helen. There are other implausabilities. If you were locked in your house with a madman, but nonetheless left on your own for periods of time, couldn’t you figure out a way to escape?

Ryan, I think, is defeated by the material. It feels like he’s overplaying his hand. His series of tics and spasms and the tightly coiled bursts of dementia all have a been-there, done-that robotic feel to them. At this point in his career he’d probably played this character, to some degree, ten times and it shows. We are encouraged to empathize with Howard (I didn't) through shown bits of humanity, like him being stopped in his tracks by a music box and his relating to a group of children who won’t judge him. Lupino just has to act frazzled and in distress, which she is capable of and does.

The picture had one thing going for it; what would be the eventual resolution of the conflict? So naturally there was a disappointing ending that was abrupt and ineffective.

Of slight interest was a recurring motif where the camera would catch Howard’s reflection (in mirrors, water, Christmas tree decorations). This indicated something going on, or about to go on, in his head. Horner (1953’s Vicki), who made his reputation in production design, does a fine job of making the house feel like a prison. Credit too, the always reliable RKO art department for the work on the house.

In the end, sub-standard work from the principals, who all have much better films to their credit.

out of 4





1/14/08

I Wouldn’t Be in Your Shoes (1948) Dir: William Nigh

Impressivley credentialed ‘B’ (Steve Fisher script from Cornell Woolrich story) from poverty row studio Monogram entertains on its own terms.

We open on a group of death row prisoners. No names, they refer to each other by numbers, newest to oldest. The focus is on ‘Five’, whose time is about up. His real name is Tom Quinn (Don Castle) and the film tells his story in flashback, until we rejoin present day near the end to find out his ultimate fate. Tom, along with his wife, Ann (Elyse Knox), comprise a down-on-their-luck husband-and-wife dance team. He’s unemployed and she’s an ‘instructor’ at a low-rent dance hall. One night, out of frustration, Tom throws his shoes out the window of their apartment at some wailing cats. When he goes to retrieve the shoes, he can’t find them. The next day Ann finds that the shoes have been placed outside their door. Tom runs into his own stroke of luck when he finds a wallet empty of all but a couple thousand dollars. Meanwhile, across the courtyard, there’s been a murder and all the police have to go on is a perfect shoeprint left in the mud outside the victim’s apartment. The print ends up being from Tom’s shoe and the money turns out to belong to the victim. Tom is arrested, convicted and sentenced to death. Coincidentally, one of the arresting officers, Inspector Judd (Regis Toomey), happens to know Ann from the dance club. It’s left to Ann to conduct her own investigation in a race against time for her husband’s life. Along the way she enlists the aid of Judd, who is an admirer of hers, and together they work to try and save Tom.

The acting is standard ‘B’ movie acting, with leads that don’t quite have the ability or charisma that the big studio ‘stars’ had. Regis Toomey is good, though, in a meatier role than he would normally get. Not too many other familiar faces, outside of Tito Vuolo playing a – ta da! – ethnic grocer.

This film being based on a Woolrich story, you know there’s going to be outlandish twists and wild coincidences. You either roll with it and have fun or you get bogged down in the inconsistencies. I had fun. Because films like this are so dependent on the shock-suspense quality, there’s not too much to gain beyond a single viewing. However, genre fans will find that I Wouldn’t Be in Your Shoes accomplishes its modest goals and is a nice surprise.

out of 4

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Tequila Sunrise (1988)

An interesting modern film noir written and directed by Robert Towne better known for his screenplay of Chinatown. Dale McKussic (Mel Gibson) and Nick Frescia (Kurt Russell) are attracted to the same woman restaurant co-owner Jo Ann Vallenari ( Michelle Pfeiffer). McKussic (Mac) a former drug dealer is trying to leave his old life behind after he completes one more deal. Nick, a friend of Macs, is the new head of the narcotics unit and suspects that Mac has gone back to his old life. Both romance Jo Ann, one with lies and the other with the truth.

I don't know who is prettier in this movie, Pfeiffer or Gibson. Certainly they are two of the most beautiful faces to inhabit the film world in the 1980's. The cinematographer certainly knows that and films these two stars to their absolute best advantage. Everything in this film is beautifully shot, from the sunsets to the lovely blue eyes on Jo Ann's face. This is a well acted film from the smart characters to the even smarter dialogue. 2/3 of the film works for me and then it falls apart for the last part of the movie. The problem lies with Raul Julia. Such a great actor but in this movie he hams it up especially in the last part of the movie. The final scene on the boat between Gibson and Julia was just cringe worthy. This movie is worth a watch if for the strong acting of the three leads.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Hans Christian Andersen

While not the masterpiece that The Court Jester is, this is still top-tier Danny Kaye, thanks in no small measure to the wonderful Frank Loesser songs.

Crazeologie

This was Louis Malle's student film, and as a student film, it undoubtedly deserves an A. However, just as an A paper in a college English course doesn't translate into a great novel, outside the context of a student film, this would be pretty weak.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

01/13/08

Voice of the Whistler (1945) William Castle

Fourth film in Columbia's series is once again directed by William Castle but he also co-wrote the screenplay here. This time out Richard Dix plays a rich man who will dead within a two month period. Not wanting to spend his last months alone, he offers a nurse (Lynn Merrick) a great opportunity. She marries him to bring him happiness and he'll leave her his millions. They go through with the plan but all of the sudden he starts to get healthy again. This is certainly the best film in the series so far and it works mainly due to the great story they are working with. There's a lot of twists and turns throughout the short 60-minute running time but it all leads to a highly believable ending. Dix is very good in his role as is Merrick and the two work perfectly well together. The screenplay offers both of their characters a chance to grow, which certainly isn't normal for this type of B movie. Castle does a very good job with his direction and proves he could direct something without gimmicks.

Mysterious Intruder (1946) William Castle

Fifth film in Columbia's The Whistler series has Richard Dix playing a private investigator who gets a case from an old man who is looking for his niece. Soon the old man is dead and the PI might have had something to do with it. This is a pretty good entry in the series, although the screenplay falls short when compared to the previous film. I think the biggest problem here is the plot itself, which is quite confusing and even in the end it didn't seem to work itself out very well. The film only ran 61-minutes so perhaps that's why the story didn't have time to work itself out as well as it should have. Dix once again turns in a good performance with Charles Lane, Barton MacLane and Nina Vale offering fine support. Castle's direction is good throughout, although it could have probably been better with a better script.

Bucket List, The Rob Reiner

Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman learn that they're both going to die of cancer so they set out on a trip to see and do everything they've wanted to in life. As I type this little review I've been out of the theater for about ten minutes and I must admit that my blood is boiling in anger. This is an incredibly bad, worthless, mean spirited and downright tasteless movie that really, really pissed me off. The first forty-five minutes we see the two legends on screen bleeding, puking and slowly dying. Is this a good way to start a comedy? Seeing this stuff gets one in a rather depressed mood and at the same time we have childish acts going on, which are meant to make us laugh but all these jokes did was come off very distasteful to me. When the road trip/buddy picture starts the material was just weak and not very funny. We of course then come to the forced ending, which begs us to cry but by this point I was wanting out of the theater as quick as I could get out. This movie jerks the viewer around so much that it's rather shocking to see the talent involved. If it weren't for the two stars then i'd probably be ripping this film a lot more but I'll be respectful to them and say I hope this isn't their last film. Nicholson is all over the place and really delivers one of the worst performances I've seen from him since his pre-fame era. Freeman seems to be sleepwalking through the role but I suspect both actors knew this material was weak and were doing whatever they could to try and save it. Freeman plays the wise, quiet guy and Nicholson goes over the top to try a milk any laugh that he can get out of the script. It just doesn't work. A really big misfire as far as I'm concerned.

01/14/08

Crime Wave: 18 Months (2008) Unknown

History Channel documentary about an eighteen-month period from 1933 to 1934, which are considered the most violent period in American history due to an outbreak of organized crime, which included Dillinger, Machine Gun Kelly, Bonnie & Clyde, Baby Face Nelson and various others. This documentary does a great job with the timeline of events, which all these things happened and it also discusses the rise of the FBI, which itself was an interesting story. The FBI had to be among the biggest idiots in the history of American considering some of the mistakes they made while trying to bring down these gangsters. Several secret missions were blown, innocent people killed and even Dillinger got away from them countless times. I found it interesting that when they finally killed Dillinger he was at a gangster movie, Manhattan Melodrama, with Clark Gable.

Secret Bride, The (1935) William Dieterle

The governor's daughter (Barbara Stanwyck) secretly weds the D.A. (Warren William) but hours after the wedding he receives information that the governor has been taking bribes for paroles. This is your typical, fast paced drama from Warner that has a decent story but works mainly to the star power. William was born to play these types of roles and he steals the film delivering a very strong performance. William has such a calm, cool and collective way to deliver these types of performances and most of them are always worth watching. Stanwyck is also very good, although she delivers a few truly campy moments including one scene where she gets upset and punches a table. You'll know the scene when it happens. The two of them work well together and really carry the story which isn't the strongest in the world but it makes for a fun 64-minutes.

Wild Elephinks (1933) Dave Fleischer

Popeye and Olive Oyl land in the jungle and must fight off various animals including a wild elephant and a gorilla. I'm really shocked to see how much I'm enjoying these early Paramount cartoons but so far they've all been a lot of fun with this one here being one of the best. There's some great action, nice animation and a lot of funny lines including a great exchange of words between Popeye and the King of the Jungle. It seems the gorilla kidnapping Olive subplot is a homage to King Kong.

Sock-A-Bye, Baby (1934) Dave Fleischer

Weaker but still entertaining Popeye vehicle has him babysitting and beating up anyone or anything that dares to wake the kid up. There's plenty of action in this short but there aren't as many laughs as normal. The highlight is a great sequence where Popeye punches a radio, which sends his fist across the country to the actual guy singing and knocks him out. There's another rather funny moment where the baby steals Popeye's pipe and begins smoking it. The baby falls asleep right after his few hits so I'm guessing Popeye was smoking something other than tobacco.

Let's You and Him Fight (1934) Dave Fleischer

Popeye and Bluto in the ring fighting it out. I think this is the first of the Popeye shorts that didn't make me laugh a single time. If all you want is action then there's quite a bit here but most of the jokes fall flat on their faces. Wimpy makes a cameo here, which is the highlight of the film.

01/15/08

Val Lewton: Man in the Shadows (2008) Kent Jones

Martin Scorsese produced and narrates this documentary that takes a look at the life and career of producer Val Lewton who hated the horror genre but become best known for his horror titles like The Body Snatcher, Bedlam, I Walked with a Zombie and Cat People. I personally find many of Lewton's horror movies overrated but they are popular so I understand the need to do a documentary on them but to do one on Lewton never really made much sense to me. It's even more senseless when you consider that another documentary, Shadows in the Dark was just made in 2005. As with that documentary, there really isn't much to Lewton so we learn very little. He didn't do interviews, didn't have any on camera stuff and in reality there's very little known about him so we don't learn a thing. When they discuss the movies we still don't learn anything outside the fact that Lewton hated horror movies and didn't want to work with Boris Karloff. Since there's nothing to Lewton I just can't justify having two documentaries about him and in the end neither of them do much. Roger Corman, Robert Wise and Japanese director Kiyoski Kurosawa are the only movie people interviewed and both only get a few clips.

Youth Runs Wild (1944) Mark Robson

Val Lewton produced this WW2 drama about teenagers who start getting into trouble while the older folks are either working or fighting in the war. Lewton hated horror films and wanted to be taken more serious and I guess this film was his attempt to do that but the movie is really boring and bland. The strange thing is that Lewton's horror films didn't contain much horror and this juvenile film doesn't contain too much stuff dealing with the subject. There's a subplot of a tire stealing ring, another story dealing with teenage love and yet another dealing with a soldier returning home. None of them work and together they just make for a mess of a film. The film should have centered on one story and followed it but as it is the film just becomes tiresome even at 67-minutes. Bonita Granville of Warner's Nancy Drew series gets top billing but she too is rather bland, which was a disappointment since I enjoyed most of her early roles. Glenn Vernon, Kent Smith and Lawrence Tierney co-star.

White Buffalo, The (1977) J. Lee Thompson

An all-star cast highlights this rather strange tale of Wild Bill Hickok (Charles Bronson) who goes looking for the albino buffalo that is haunting his dreams. I'm a die-hard Bronson fan but this film has always left me rather disappointed, which is a shame because the story is there for a classic action film but what we end up getting is a rather bizarre movie that doesn't know what it wants to be. The film has all sorts of characters coming and going, which is part of the problem because the hunt for the buffalo is the most interesting thing yet we get very little of it. The final twenty minutes are certainly the best thing about the movie as the action finally starts going and it's pretty exciting as well. Bronson is good in a way only Bronson can be but it's Jack Warden who steals the show as his sidekick. The supporting cast includes Will Sampson as Crazy Horse, Clint Walker, Slim Pickens, Stuart Whitman, Kim Novak and John Carradine. The buffalo itself looks very silly and sometimes brings laughs but it looks marginally better in the long shots. Some of the dialogue is also very silly including a hilarious sequence where Bronson tells a man to watch his mouth while in the presence of a lady. Even though the film doesn't work as a good movie it does manage to be somewhat interesting as a real head scratcher but Bronson and director Thompson would go onto some better films.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

I like "The White Buffalo". A clever melding of fact and fiction with great atmosphere a sense of pathos, a great cast and some fun blood spattered attacks. Needs a good DVD release.




Death Sentence

Stupid logic (or lack of) in the writing and almost as liberal as I was fearing. Glad I only rented it.


***SPOILERS*****




The fact is Bacon was PUNISHED for not allowing a guy who nearly sliced off his son's head to get a lousy 3 years in prison for it was annoying enough. But there was more.

For most of the film Bacon is not even getting revenge (one clumsy kill aside that was almost accidental) he's running for his life and defending himself. That's not revenge.
That same plot would work if there had been no dead son.
That set-up would still work out the way it did if he was just a witness to a crime, or had a microfilm the bad guys wanted...whatever.
It was nothing to do with being a vigilante and getting revenge.


Warning Spoiler! Click to show
He's been punished to such an extent it was a 'criminals have human rights too, don't take the law into your own hands', liberal wet dream!

The final 30 minutes was the only time any real revenge was taken. And this is how the film should have been after his Son was killed!

Warning Spoiler! Click to show


Warning Spoiler! Click to show

And then we had that old chestnut..."You're just like me, look what I made of you".
Well no, he's not.
The bad guy killed Bacon's son for no reason at all, he killed his son for fun.
Bacon or his family had done nothing to him and would have never entered his life if he had not gone out with his gang and killed his son.

Bacon killed for what was done to him and his family.
They killed Bacon's son for absolutely nothing.


Warning Spoiler! Click to show
More liberal crud.
I was amazed we didn't have that other farcical old liberal chestnut "it won't bring them back" (well no, but not killing the scumbags wouldn't bring them back either!)

Bacon should have gone bad-ass on them after his Son's death.
Such a shame, as the mad as hell, gun-toting, ass-kicking Bacon is the one we should have had from the start. We should not have had to wait
Warning Spoiler! Click to show

This is why the "Death Wish" films will always remain the ultimate vigilante flicks. Because Kersey does nothing until hurt is done to him or his, and then he walks off a free man, unpunished for doing what was right. THAT is the vigilante flick people want!
They want to at least see on the screen what they can't see in real life. Such is the nature of cathartic entertainment.

Warning Spoiler! Click to show

And the fact the film spent all its time punishing Bacon and tut-tutting at him and what he was doing means it was hypocritical as well, as it was tut-tutting and wagging its finger at him even as it was laying on the 'cool' vigilant visuals and attitude at the same time!
It delivered gory vengeance, lost of guns, a mean car to drive and mad new look for bacon...while all the time rubbing our noses into how 'wrong' he was.
Talk about having your cake and eating it!

And as for the script...
Warning Spoiler! Click to show

Could have delivered, should have delivered, but in the end the vigilante crowd pleasing was too late
Warning Spoiler! Click to show

How I miss the 70's and 80's where almost all vigilante film had the vigilante walk away unpunished with the job done. But in the fetid PC environment of the 21st century even the good guys and the ones wronged, need to be punished.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Michael

Why did you give The Bucket list 1 1/2 stars if you absolutely hated it? As much as I like the two stars involved, if I'd seen it and hated it, the movie would get zero stars from me. Just curious.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Lost Angel (1943)

This movie is a film that begs to be loved but it was too cutesy for my taste. I'm not a fan of young Margaret O'Brien like others. There is just something about her that bothers me and I can't explain it, still the movie was watchable if for James Craig's performance. He's an actor I'll have to look for in other movies.


The Seventh Victim (1943)

Entertaining story about a young woman who travels to New York to search for her missing sister. While there she discovers that her sister may have fallen in with a group of satanists and also may have murdered someone.

A creepy little film that seems disjointed in spots but still makes for an enjoyable watch.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

There's really no rhyme or reason as to how I award star ratings. The film mainly pissed me off due to the talent involved and how it just had that fake Hollywood written all over it. It's a bad movie no matter how you look at it but seeing two legends doing such bad work kept the movie somewhat interesting for me. It's not often you see Nicholson doing such a bad movie. It's not the worst movie I've seen from 2007 but it would probably get my award for the worst just because of the talent involved.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

1/15/08

Follow Me Quietly (1949) Dir: Richard Fleischer

Superbly paced thriller from Fleischer (The Narrow Margin) with some terrific moments.

It’s getting personal for Lt. Harry Grant (William Lundigan). There’s a sicko loose in the city, strangling people to death. Always at night, always in the rain. In the taunting letters he sends to Lt. Grant, our boy calls himself the Judge. “I have been ordained to destroy all evil,” one of the letters said. “The wages of sin is death,” said another. On top of that, there’s that pesky female reporter, Ann Gorman (Dorothy Patrick), who writes for that third-rate crime rag and is always snooping around for a scoop. Yeah, it’s getting to Harry alright. The police have been powerless to stop the Judge. They have a whole file of clues, they know his method, when he strikes, etc. They’ve even made a dummy of his height and build, with the clothes he wears, glasses, everything but the face, and yet he remains free to kill again and again. These attention-hungry cranks aren’t helping either. The stress is starting to affect Harry, he talks to the dummy as if it were the real thing. His partner, Sgt. Collins (Jeff Corey) notices: “You know something? You’re getting more like the Judge every day.” Harry needs a break in this case before he cracks up. Will more people die? Will the Judge get sloppy and give the cops the opening they need?

One of the reasons why Follow Me Quietly succeeds is the fine acting from the leads. Lundigan is excellent as the weary detective, giving off a kind of Bruce Bennett vibe. Okay, it’s not exactly a groundbreaking role to play a run down cop, but we feel his frustration. Patrick (in the Priscilla Lane mold), as the persistent and resourceful reporter, kind of recedes into the background in the last third of the film as the police close in on the Judge, but there’s good chemistry between her and Lundigan. Yes, they may (predictably) fall for each other, but it’s believable and arises within the flow of the film.

At just about an hour long, Follow Me Quietly doesn’t have an ounce of fat. The story (with a credit to Anthony Mann, who may have done some directing as well) may be a bit worn, but it’s executed so flawlessly that it delivers the goods down to the last minute. It exhibits a hint of style, has a couple of chills and an exciting climax. For a minimum investment, you get a very good picture.

out of 4




1/15/08

Lady Scarface (1941) Dir: Frank Woodruff

Fairly unremarkable film with one brilliant idea: Judith Anderson as a ruthless crime boss. Unfortunately she is wayyyyy underutilized.

The notorious Slade gang of Chicago has just pulled off another big heist and Lt. Bill Mason (Dennis O’Keefe) is gunning to finally shut them and their elusive Mr. Big down. By following spunky Quip Magazine photog and frequent sparring partner, Ann Rogers (Frances Neal), Mason and the police manage to nab one of the Slade gang and his share of the loot, just as he’s sending the rest to New York where it will be claimed. The plan is for the money to be sent ahead to a friend of the gang to hold. A coded message will appear as a classified ad in the New York papers with further instructions on how to get the money. Mason allows the plan to go through so he can set a trap and capture Slade (Judith Anderson), who is not what he expects.

This could have been an interesting film if they focused more on ‘Lady Scarface’. Instead there’s too much time devoted to various dopey antics, like the back-and-forth banter between Bill and Ann and the interminable shenanigans of a hapless hotel detective. The film has slightly more success with a character (played by the amusing Eric Blore) who keeps answering the gang’s classified ads as if they were real. In fact, if it wasn’t for this terrific nasty character they have on their hands with Slade, this would practically be a light-hearted romantic comedy about how Bill and Ann eventually get together. Then there’s the serious stretch in the plot that involves a young couple accidentally getting the gang’s money (the woman’s name coincidentally is the same as the ‘front’ name used by the woman who is actually supposed to pick up the money ).

Dennis O’Keefe is always capable, and he’s fine here, if a bit of a meathead. But then that’s always the impression he leaves, isn’t it? Frances Neal is more annoying than endearing. Judith Anderson is great, but there’s just no screen time. Marc Lawrence plays one of the gang, and he’s appropriately weasel-y.

Nicholas Musuraca, who was one of the architect’s of the look of noir, is behind the camera here. There’s little flourish, but there is one scene that hints at things to come, if you look hard enough (the cops close in on a hideout, with plenty of shadows to go around).

A letdown. Avoid.

out of 4

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

The Trouble With Harry

Continued introducing my son to the great Hitchcock films. He really enjoyed this one a lot. He's still too young to appreciate Vertigo or Psycho, but we'll get there eventually.

Solaris

Posted my thoughts in the S&S thread.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Miracle of Morgan's Creek - really I haven't finished my revisit of this film yet, but I've decided on this second viewing that there are really only three straight up comedies that are better. Some Like it Hot, The Princess Bride, and A Christmas Story. I may fit this into my top twenty next time I work it up. Brilliantly funny with truly incredible performances and perfect direction, Sturges' masterpiece, by a mile (though Palm Beach Story is pretty close and I want to revisit it too soon).

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Earth vs. The Flying Saucers (1956)

The title says it all. Actually one of the better sci-fi movies to come out of the 50's along with The Day the Earth Stood Still, War of the Worlds and Fantastic Planet. Loved the final scene with spacecraft crashing into various Washington buildings. Definitely a B-movie but an entertaining one.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

"Sleeper"

A lesser Woody Allen film, but one with some very funny moments.

The slapstick is a bit silly (for a FAR funnier, slapstick based, straight ahead comedy from Allen "Take the Money and Run" is a better bet) and the supposed sci-fi elements are rather funnier for the wrong reasons I think (as with most 70's versions of the future), but there are a few Woody Allen verbal gems and it's fun enough.



"Love and Death"

A far smarter film than "Sleeper" and funnier with it.
It falls apart at the end a bit and some of the European Arthouse homages are rather cumbersome and indulgent at times, but overall it has some marvelous moments that blend astute observation with straight ahead comedy.
The "My father owned a piece of land" gag is still hilarious.



"Midway"

One of the last big budget, all star war epics and one of the best. As this was late into the 70's the bloodshed was stronger than usual for such films (as was some of the language), but this gives the film an effective punch.

As they tell you at the opening that real footage is used where possible the jumps from fictional footage to real footage is overcome as they have already warned you.
Smart.
This real footage also adds a real depth to the picture as it's used very well and importantly does not feel like it was a cheap get-out to save money...If you are going to use stock footage this is the way to do it.

Despite the length (just over 2 hours) the film rarely drags and there is lots of fascinating stuff here to watch.
It's also very faithful with only the Charlton Heston character elements being full-on fiction.
Thankfully the pointless, overly soap opera, sluggish sub-plot (probably done only for TV, given the 'deleted scenes' full frame look) with his Wife was removed.

A top cast are well used and underused depending who they are (Mitchum has two very enjoyable scenes despite being stuck in a hospital bed, Fonda is great, Coburn is rather wasted though as is Mifune, who is also sadly dubbed) but they get the job done.

Some great action (real and not), a well told tale well made and the flaws are few.
It all gets a bit Hollywood at the end with Chuck Heston's role and Hal Holbrook's 'yee haw' accent and good ol' boy attitude is overused, and it would have been nice to have the Japanese speaking Japanese, as some sound very American indeed (obviously Japanese American actors).
Otherwise this is excellent stuff and a fine example of the dying all-star Hollywood epic.

Shame you lose that 'Sensurround' experience though!

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

I may have to revisit Miracle. Frankly, as of now, I certainly rank it after Sullivan's Travels, Hail the Conquering Hero, Palm Beach Story and others.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Are you watching these on AMC? If so, did you notice any different/alternate scenes in DW3? Apparently there is a TV version with different footage but I'm not sure if AMC is using that print or an edited MGM print.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

No, but I thought you might be curious. My friend came over the last couple of nights to watch American Idol with my wife and me, and after it was over on Tuesday night, we were flipping around the stations and came across the middle of DEATH WISH II on AMC. This gave us the spontaneous urge to want to watch it, so I went and used my own DVD. We did the same thing the next night with Part 3. We'll probably be getting to 4 and 5 also -- on DVD, that is.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

01/13/08: RETURN TO OZ (Walter Murch, 1985)

This is just one of a number of follow-ups to the classic 1939 version of THE WIZARD OF OZ, but it’s only the second I’ve watched – after the animated feature JOURNEY BACK TO OZ (1974). Here Dorothy (played by 11-year old Fairuza Balk when Judy Garland herself had been 17!) has different companions throughout her journey: a hen called Billina instead of Toto the Dog, Jack Pumpkinhead rather than The Scarecrow, a Tin Soldier named Tik-tok replaces the Tin Woodsman and Gump, a Moose (or, rather, Moose’s head), stands in for the Cowardly Lion. There’s a new good fairy as well (she goes by the name of Ozma!) – not to mention fresh villains: the Wizard this time around is the evil Gnome King (who doubles as a maverick psychiatrist in real life – Nicol Williamson appears as both) and, of course, we get yet another witch (played by Jean Marsh and who’s also the strict nurse at the institution where the disturbed Dorothy is being treated). Piper Laurie and Matt Clark are saddled with the somewhat thankless roles of Dorothy’s relatives.

While featuring splendid claymation effects by Will Vinton, this is somewhat macabre for a kiddie film – with the witch storing a variety of living heads in a showcase (which she can exchange at will, though it’s never explained for what reason); it’s also dreary-looking, with the general tone being rather somber throughout (there are no cheerful songs to be heard here)! This was famed editor/sound designer Murch’s sole stint at direction; he also co-wrote the script, which was inspired by two of L. Frank Baum’s “Oz” books (one of which – “The Land Of Oz” – I’ve owned since childhood).


01/13/08: MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE (Gary Goddard, 1987)

I first watched this one on VHS in the late 1980s…so it’s another nostalgic trip down memory lane for me; besides, as a kid I used to love watching the animated series on TV – along with its short-lived predecessor, BLACKSTAR (1981) – and even owned toys of some of the characters! This is a juvenile live-action version and although watchable, it’s still among the least adventure epics of its day: to begin with, the characters don’t look much like their old selves and there’s little use of the mythical Greyskull setting or He-Man’s trademark “I have the power” line. Besides, the time-travel convention adopted for the film’s main plot feels as ill-advised now as it seemed then, but is more like than not a measure of budgetary constraints on the part of the penny-pinching Cannon Group.

Dolph Lundgren is a stolid He-Man; Frank Langella a campy yet unconvincing Skeletor (especially when he exchanges his typical hooded attire in blue for a mask and golden costume); Courteney Cox is the present-day heroine; Billy Barty’s Gwildor replaces Orko from the animated series (but, then, there’s no sign of Battlecat…or, for that matter, He-Man’s mild-mannered alter-ego Adam either!); Meg Foster comes off best as Evil-Lyn, with the good sorceress (who has been turned into an old crone by Skeletor) at the other end of the scale; admittedly, James Tolkan, is quite fun as the tough but bewildered modern-day cop. While there’s plenty of mindless (if uninspired) action throughout, Skeletor’s army is lazily depicted as a black-clad variant on the ‘stormtroopers’ from the STAR WARS saga – while his gallery of mutants is, at best, a forgettable lot! Skeletor even remerges from his watery grave after the end credits had rolled – thus promising a follow up which, perhaps unsurprisingly, never materialized…


01/14/08: DON’T BOTHER TO KNOCK (Roy Ward Baker, 1952)

Fox was one of the leading purveyors of film noir during the 1940s and 1950s – this melodrama is done somewhat in this style, though British director Baker inserts a couple of Hitchcockian touches (a little girl is about to be thrown out of a window, a pan down to this same child reveals her being tied-up in bed). It’s compact at a mere 76 minutes, with a FATAL ATTRACTION (1987)-type plot (Richard Widmark quarrels with chanteuse Anne Bancroft and flirts with young nanny Marilyn Monroe, who turns out to be mentally unbalanced – though the eventual violence isn’t directed towards him) occurring in a single setting – a hotel – during the course of one night.

Both female leads bring a welcome freshness to the proceedings (Monroe, who is surprisingly good here, would soon reach stardom in the Technicolor but noir-tinged NIAGARA [1953]); Elisha Cook Jr. – like Widmark, a genre fixture – is the hotel’s elevator boy and Monroe’s well-meaning uncle; Jim Backus appears as the distressed girl’s father (who has to attend a dinner at ground level). The rushed finale sees confused Monroe being talked out of committing suicide by both Widmark and Bancroft – who, predictably, end up back together.


01/15/08: THE VALIANT (Roy Ward Baker, 1962)

This was one of a number of Italian WWII-set collaborations with English-speaking countries, a couple of which I watched recently – namely THE CAPTIVE CITY (1962) and TORPEDO BAY (1963). While the handling is fairly dull, the film’s main plot develops into a sustained suspense situation as a British vessel (commandeered by stiff-upper-lipped John Mills) is planted with explosive charges by Italian naval officer Ettore Manni and his (wounded) companion, who are then imprisoned on the ship itself after refusing to give details of their mission including the whereabouts of the bomb itself

An underwater search at night fails to reap the desired results and Mills – with the help of officer Robert Shaw (who’s married to an Italian girl) – determines to retrieve the necessary information which could save the ship and the life of more than a thousand men on it. Doctor Liam Redmond opposes his treatment of the P.O.W.s, but remains on board to cure the injured man even after the vessel has been evacuated. The explosion eventually occurs early the next morning – when the ship was scheduled to set sail for war duty; the film, then, ends with Mills awarding Manni for his integrity and loyalty to his cause three years after the fact.

As I said, the film is generally interesting (like the same director’s DON’T BOTHER TO KNOCK [1952], it’s mostly confined to a single setting) though the interrogation/confrontation scenes do get repetitive; it’s also bogged down by resistible comic relief provided by two marines appointed to guard the saboteurs.


P.S.I’d love to revisit Mills’ previous effort with Baker (in all, they worked six times together) i.e. the eccentric psychological Western THE SINGER NOT THE SONG (1961) – which I acquired some time ago.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

1/16/08

Desperate (1947) Dir: Anthony Mann

Steve Randall (Steve Brodie) is an ex-GI with a young wife, Anne (Audrey Long). He’s an honest guy. He owns a truck and has his own hauling business. The most important thing on his mind is celebrating his 4-month wedding anniversary. But when he gets a call that night from someone offering $50 to use his truck, Steve can’t say no. Turns out it’s a couple of hoods led by Walt Radak (Raymond Burr), an old acquaintance of Steve’s. They want to use his truck to move some hot merch but the whole plan goes awry and a cop gets killed exchanging gunfire. The thug that did it, Walt’s kid brother, Al, gets pinched. Everyone else escapes back to the gang’s hideout. Walt is not happy and he wants Steve to take the fall for Al. If Steve doesn’t cooperate, Walt threatens to hurt Anne. Steve manages to get to Anne and escape. But now he’s also a suspect wanted by the police. How long will he be able to elude Walt and the police? Will Walt get to Steve before Al gets put to death for the murder of the cop?

The film spends a lot of its time setting up what it is exactly that Steve has to lose. We’re sort of hammered over the head with it. We get the scenes of his idyllic marriage and home life. Ann will give birth to a daughter. Even when they’re on the run, Steve and Ann manage to settle into a ‘perfect’ life on the farm with their aunt and uncle. They even have another marriage ceremony. It’s all standard stuff and not very interesting. And it’s virtually half of a relatively short movie (about 1hr 10min).

The film comes alive whenever Walt enters the picture. At the beginning, Steve takes a brutal beating from the gang in their hideout. During the attack there is a single bulb hanging from the ceiling that gets knocked into and splashes light back and forth. Mann always has something interesting visually at the most dramatic moments (think of Wallace Ford’s scene in T-Men and the climatic scene in Railroaded!). The climax here is also nicely shot.

There are other problems here, some inherent in the typical ‘innocent man on the run’ storyline. To sustain this kind of plot, the ‘innocent man’ has to make bad decision after bad decision; ie. don’t go to the police right away, commit other crimes (like car theft) in furtherance of your fleeing, etc. They get magnified when the rest of the picture isn’t exactly dazzling. There is also some confusion with respect to the amount of time that passes at certain points as well as some narrative gaps (probably just messy editing).

Steve Brodie (Out of the Past) and the very pretty Audrey Long (Born to Kill) are both game, but their limitations become even more prominent when compared with the splendid Raymond Burr. The authentic menace that Burr portrays here presages a similar role he will play in Raw Deal, perhaps Mann’s finest noir. Jason Robards, Sr. plays the police lieutenant with the odd habit of fiddling with an emery board whenever interrogating Steve.

Better pictures are on the horizon, but Desperate is interesting as perhaps Mann’s first step at putting together his noir style.

out of 4

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

01/16/08

"It's Alive" (1969) BOMB Larry Buchanan

A farmer kidnaps people and throws them into his cave where he also stores a prehistoric creature. Buchanan has the reputation of being one of the worst filmmakers in the history of films and this movie is just proof of that. I'm really not sure what the hell this film is trying to do except throw a monster into the mix ever so often. The movie is all over the place and really doesn't have a single thing going for it. The monster outfit is very cheap but rather curious looking since it appears to be a rubber mask of the Gil Man from Creature from the Black Lagoon. Tommy Kirk must have really needed the money to be in this thing but he gives a terrible performance either way. The film runs 80-minutes and just keeps dragging and dragging but the dumbest thing is that for the majority of the picture they have our female hero being chased by the farmer. It looks like the director would have used the monster but then again it's Buchanan we're talking about.

He Was Her Man (1934) Lloyd Bacon

James Cagney plays a safecracker who goes on the run after his latest job goes bad. While hiding out he meets a woman (Joan Blondell) who's running away from her life to marry a man she hasn't met. I'm really not sure what the history of this film is but it was either rushed into production or the screenplay wasn't done when filming started. There are about three or four genres going on here and none of them mix well together and in the end the film comes off as a rather big mess. The most shocking thing is how bland and boring Cagney is. I'm not sure if he was trying a new acting style or what but his laid back and calm approach comes off pretty bad. Blondell is somewhat better in her role but she isn't given too much to do except sit around and feel sorry for herself. Victor Jory plays her soon to be husband and comes off the best in the film. This isn't the worst Cagney/Warner picture I've seen as that honor would go to Boy Meets Girl but this is perhaps the worst performance I've seen from the legend.

Dimmer (2005) Talmage Cooley

Short film takes a look at the life of a guy named Mike who has been blind since birth. He spends most of his day either working at a pizza joint, talking with his girlfriend or hanging out with a gang of friends who are also blind. This film runs only ten-minutes but it feels a lot longer. Seeing how this blind boy goes through life is an interesting thing but the director never really makes us care for the guy and I'd say he comes off looking bad rather than good. There's really nothing here to connect with either.

After Office Hours (1935) Robert Z. Leonard

A hard nosed editor (Clark Gable) hires a society girl (Constance Bennett) as a reporter but he's actually using her to try and crack a story on a playboy (Stuart Erwin). The editor gets in over his head when a murder takes place and might put the girl in danger, which is even worse when he falls for her. This is certainly minor fair but it's made entertaining by the terrific performance by Gable. It's somewhat shocking to see how great he is even though the story is pretty bland and unoriginal. For the most part Gable plays the part as a fast talker and he comes off very charming in doing this. He certainly keeps the film going with his performance and almost makes the viewer forget how silly the actual story is. Bennett is also very good in her role and the two stars work well together. The film borrows some from Gable's Oscar winning role in It Happened One Night and there's also a funny scene where Gable plays Popeye. The first thirty-minutes are actually pretty involving but the second half of the movie completely falls apart when the love story is brought in. There's also some slapstick comedy that comes out of no where and really seems like a scene from another movie accidentally edited into this one. Henry Travers of It's a Wonderful Life has a small role.

01/17/08

Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942) Michael Curtiz

James Cagney won his only Oscar in this bio pic of George M. Cohan. This is my third viewing of this musical and I must admit that it keeps getting better and better. I use to think that Cagney probably won the Oscar for this film because he showed that he could do something other than slap women around and fire a gun but after this viewing it really comes across that this is one of the actors greatest performances. I read that he originally wasn't the first choice to play the role but what a shame if he didn't get the call. The energy he brings the character, which I've read is mostly made up, does great justice to the film and really keeps things moving. What's so great about this movie is that it works perfectly as a bio and a musical. In other words, if you took the music out you'd still be left with a great film or if you just showed the music then you'd also be left with a great film. Having the two together makes this one of the better films of the decade. The music is great throughout and I'd probably say this is the greatest soundtrack to any film ever made. Each of the music numbers are terrific and they are constantly topping themselves with the next one. The ending is also one of the greatest scenes in the history of cinema and certainly puts a big smile on your face no matter how you see it. Joan Leslie and Rosemary DeCamp are both great but next to Cagney it's Walter Huston who steals the show. I'm not sure how many musicals he made or if he even made any others but he certainly does a great job with the songs and dancing.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Three Wise Fools (1946)

Another so-so Margaret O'Brien vehicle. Actually it's more bearable than other movies I've seen of hers. She plays well with the three old fools playing her guardians.


The Last Gangster (1937)

Joe Krozac is sent to prison for 10 years for tax evasion. While in prison his son is born and Joe becomes obsessed with the baby and finding his boy when he gets out of prison. His wife who discovers what her husband is really like, quietly gets a divorce and marries good guy Jimmy Stewart.

Edward G. Robinson is excellent in this role and sells the movie. He's a hardened criminal who thinks nothing of bumping off his opposition yet the soft spot he holds for his son is very apparent. He makes for quite a strong presence on the screen. Jimmy Stewart was fine in his small role but the woman who plays Joe's wife was the weak part of this movie. I just didn't buy her in this role. Overall not a bad movie though.

Abducted (2007)

Average tv movie about a woman whose husband arranges to have her kidnapped by an inmate of a prison that he runs. Standard fare and very predictable and forgettable. Still I was mildly entertained.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

"Man from Deep River" -

Beardy Freak Reviews

Umberto Lenzi's Euro Cannibal well-spring from which many beastly brews did flow.

It's more of a jungle based take on "A Man Called Horse" (with nods to "The Naked Prey" and 60's Mondo), with a love story tagged on, than a Cannibal film but the general violence, the Cannibal gore later on and the nasty animal snuff are the early elements that would be taken up later on to a greater degree by others, and Lenzi himself.

Italian Cannibal flick stalwart Me Me Lai looks extremely lovely, the location footage and cinematography are stunning, Ivan Rassimov goes all out as the captured White interloper, the (then pretty revolutionary) gore scenes are good and well handled and if the film does plod a bit in the middle, and lacks that truly vicious bite later entries would have, it still makes for interesting viewing.

The animal snuff is pretty hardcore though so be warned. But basically from an Exploitation history point of view this is an essential watch, at least once.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

"NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN" - Stunning Coen brothers thriller with crackling dialogue and superb performances all around. See it! 9/10

"CLOVERFIELD" - Cool monster movie in B-movie tradition. Fairly gripping but hype was bigger than the movie. Also "shaky"-cam was wearing. Still worth seeing. 7/10

"BUCKET LIST" - O.K. A bit trite but well acted. Freeman and Nicholson in fine form. 7/10.

"UNTRACEABLE" - Very effective thriller with lots of suspense and intense set pieces. One of the better thrillers with similarities to "SE7EN" and "SILENCE OF THE LAMBS". Diane Lane stars. 8/10.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

The Edge of the World (1937)

A real oddball movie but gripping nonetheless. The way of life on a small Scottish island is coming to an end but some are resisting the move to the mainland.

The location shots are stunning and the acting is stellar. The editing seems a bit rough at times with abrupt scene changes that is jarring. The film also seems too short in order to tell this story but still a fascinating watch.


Rebecca (1940)

Atmospheric Hitchcock movie that's my favourite from a long list of great movies from that director. There are outstanding performances in this movie most notable being Dame Judith Anderson as Mrs. Danvers and Laurence Olivier as Max de Winter. Joan Fontaine was also good as the young naive bride that Max brought home to Mandalay. In fact the whole supporting cast was great. This movie is full of suspense, foreboding, dark gloomy shadows, perfect film noir. The cinematography is outstanding as well as the sets. The most outstanding prop though was Rebecca herself. She inhabited this film right from the beginning, giving this movie its somber, gloomy feel. Awesome film which I can't recommend enough.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

1/17/08

Johnny Apollo (1940) Dir: Henry Hathaway

When wealthy financier Robert Cain (Edward Arnold) is arrested for embezzlement, it does more than leave the family name in tatters. It also opens the eyes of his privileged and sheltered son, Bob Cain (Tyrone Power), to reality. “Codes are for suckers,” his father tells him, by way of explaining his misdeeds. “There’s only one rule, eat or be eaten.” Angry words follow, leading to an estrangement between father and son, although both regret it. Robert goes to prison where he is humbled while Bob finds that his name is mud and can’t get steady work. Frustrated and bitter, Bob becomes Johnny Apollo and seeks help for his father from an unscrupulous lawyer, Brennan (Charley Grapewin). Soon he’s entangled with the lawyer’s big time gangster client, Mickey Dwyer (Lloyd Nolan) and his moll, Lucky Dubarry (Dorothy Lamour). Johnny falls under the influence of Dwyer and becomes a hood of some repute in his own right. But his essential goodness also has an effect on Brennan and Lucky. As the two sides fight for Johnny’s soul, it seems inevitable that he will meet his dad again…in prison.

Seemingly a clichéd gangster picture, Johnny Apollo is set apart from the convention by what’s at its heart: the tenuous, continually changing relationship between ‘Pop’ Cain and his son. The elder Cain is a wealthy and accomplished man who is undone by a human weakness. But his mistake also destroys the son, who follows in the father’s disgraceful footsteps. The film is about them (as well as Brennan and Lucky) each seeking and possibly gaining their own measure of redemption. Also, featuring a white-collar crime was at least a different angle for a gangster movie of the time. It's interesting that while the movie wears its distaste for the white-collar criminal on its sleeve, it's Pop who is reformed while Mickey (the blue-collar criminal) is irredeemable.

I like Tyrone Power as an actor. But as a mobster, he’s only slightly more threatening than an Abercrombie catalog model. If only he could’ve tapped into some of that ambiguity he displayed in Nightmare Alley. But hey, as a viewer you’re rooting for the protagonist, so he’s done his job. Lloyd Nolan brings his patented brand of lunk-headed mediocrity to the mob boss role. He does get to rub somebody out in high style, though. The rest of the cast is terrific. Edward Arnold, as you would expect from one of the great supporting actors of Hollywood’s studio era, is strong as the complex, unyielding man who accepts his punishment and fate with seeming alacrity. Charley Grapewin is great as the lawyer whose betrayal of his own code drives him to drink, until he makes a last stab at self-respect. The ridiculously hot Dorothy Lamour gives her own very good performance as the weary B-girl who finds it increasingly harder to live with herself the more Johnny is corrupted.

My biggest issue with the film is that, near the end, it comes close to making a bold decision on the fate of a character before ultimately backing off for the easier way. After that, say the last ten minutes or so, it devolves into a typical way-too-tidy Hollywood ending. There’s also a small mystery contingent on the fact that the prison, and legal system at large, is not aware that Johnny Apollo is Bob Cain, which is frankly preposterous.

Caught somewhere between gangster pic and noir, Johnny Apollo strains beyond the standard genre trappings and succeeds. In fact, I believe it stands shoulder to shoulder with Hathaway’s higher profile efforts. A DVD release is called for.

out of 4

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

The Da Vinci Code

Introduced my wife to this film.

Boy, Did I Get a Wrong Number

Not the best film Bob Hope ever made, but a solid film for those who like his comedy style.

The Matchmaker

Not bad, but I have to say that Hello, Dolly!, which is a musical remake of this, is better in every way - keeping most elements of the story and dialogue, but ending up even better and funnier, and with some great music.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

01/14/08: RESTLESS KNIGHTS (Charles Lamont, 1935)

The Three Stooges offer themselves as musketeers at the service of the Queen of France, whose Captain of the Guards is, unsurprisingly, planning to usurp the throne. After a bright start featuring Walter Brennan as The Stooges’ dying father, this soon degenerates into a lengthy but unfunny wrestling bout among the boys; luckily, it picks up again when the Queen is abducted eventually, and much of the action in the second half involves the stars contriving to get rid of her captors.

Even though little is actually done with the medieval setting, it is nevertheless interesting as a spoof of many a costume piece/swashbuckler of its day – especially “The Three Musketeers”; for the record, director Lamont would helm many an Abbott & Costello vehicle during the coming decade.


01/15/08: POP GOES THE EASEL (Del Lord, 1935)

This Three Stooges short again finds the boys jobless (a typical situation during The Great Depression) and running from the Law. They escape into an artist’s studio and cause no end of havoc, disguising themselves as painters: they not only destroy a Frenchman’s work and attempt to draw portraits of a model but, told to start at the bottom and paint the floor, they take the advise literally! The situation eventually develops into a clay-throwing free-for-all, with their ‘fellow’ painters ultimately turning on The Stooges for disrupting their activity.


01/16/08: UNCIVIL WARRIORS (Del Lord, 1935)

This is certainly one of the better Stooges vehicles I’ve watched so far, arguably lifted by its Civil War setting: the boys are Union secret agents(!) sent on a mission behind enemy lines. While the level of invention isn’t up to that seen in Buster Keaton’s similar THE GENERAL (1927) – and it would be unrealistic to expect it to be – it’s still a reasonably sustained comical piece.

The trio’s typical slapfest routine is, together with the aid of impersonation and mimicry, utilized as a means of confusing the Confederates and retrieve the information they were assigned to procure (which is summarily destroyed by Curley when he rolls the paper – used by Moe to write it all down – to make a cigarette!). The ending sees The Stooges fired out of an enemy cannon and landing on the superior officers from their own lines!


01/17/08: PARDON MY SCOTCH (Del Lord, 1935)

This Three Stooges short, revolving around the then-topical Prohibition theme, is neatly divided into two sections, each seen before in superior Laurel & Hardy efforts – the boys at work from THE FINISHING TOUCH (1928) and BUSY BODIES (1933) and the dinner-table mayhem recalling FROM SOUP TO NUTS (1928).

As usual, The Three Stooges find themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time and here, told to mind the chemist’s counter for a while, concoct an impromptu “explosive” beverage for a paying customer who, happening to be a down-on-his-luck alcohol dealer, sees a reversal of his fortunes in marketing The Stooges’ new drink! It’s a passable enough star vehicle but the stars’ typical schtick is rather unsympathetic, and gets repetitive pretty quick.


01/18/08: HOI POLLOI (Del Lord, 1935)

The Three Stooges do “Pygmalion” when two elderly upper-class types make a bet that one of them can turn three tramps into society gentry; naturally, he picks up the comic trio (the local garbage collectors) off the streets and then has them take lessons from various teachers in an attempt to elevate their social standing.

As ever, there’s a lot of mugging (especially from Curley) but the film does feature a couple of great moments: a dancing teacher is stung by a bee and starts doing somersaults in order to get rid of it – only The Stooges, unaware of what’s going on, try to keep up with her…and they all end up falling out of a window into a fountain below; then there’s the inspired final gag – where, after the boys make a shambles of the party in which the old men present them to their equals, the guests eventually start to mimic the antics of The Stooges rather than be shocked by their behavior (slapping each other around, uttering Moe’s trademark “Spread Out!”, etc.)


01/19/08: IMPULSE (William Grefe`, 1974)

If there can be such a thing as overhyping the badness (read unintentional hilarity) quotient of a film, then the reviews I’ve come across of this one on the Internet are guilty of doing just that; it’s not that I didn’t find William Shatner’s inflating hairline, outrageous clothes sense and, especially, his uncontrolled facial expressions comical…but I wasn’t exactly laughing out loud either – let alone rolling about on the floor stamping my fist in hysterics! I’m not saying I was really expecting that kind of a response but, at any rate, I was let down by the film even in this department so that little remains for me but to bemoan the loss of 90 minutes from my life and try to forget this viewing ever happened!

Sure, Shatner is hardly the ne plus ultra in psychopathically menacing and irresistibly handsome characters: seeing him threaten an obese woman for no reason at a park (while dressed in an unflatteringly sleeveless shirt), break out in tears after committing his first murder (as an adult), decked out in a completely white get-up with an oversized fedora hat to match, slip his little finger into his mouth every time he recalls his childhood trauma (shown in black-and-white during the prologue) and boyishly jump up and down (as if his bladder’s about to burst) in anticipation of being shown the safe is, admittedly, a source of amusement…but that hardly excuses the dullness of the rest of the picture.

The chase in a car wash between Shatner and ex-partner Harold “Oddjob” Sakata (here playing Karate Pete!) was a nice try but even that sequence is clumsily executed and needlessly protracted. The worst part of it is that the three female leads – Ruth Roman, Jennifer Bishop and Kim Nicholas – claim a good share of the film’s running time when they are merely boring caricatures; unfortunately, the director even contrives to waste the opportunity of the only two promising female encounters Shatner has in the movie – the sultry belly-dancer at the start and the flirtatious hotel receptionist!

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Tenement (1985)

A friend brought this DVD to my house after we got a kick of revisiting the unintentionally hilarious DEATH WISH 3. However, the goings on in TENEMENT aren't nearly as accidentally funny, as this is more of a straight-ahead gore film involving a violent gang of young junkies and losers who terrorize the people living in a slummy tenement buidling in the heart of the rapidly decaying Bronx area of New York. They are arrested and taken to jail early on, but manage to get out quickly and return to the tenement for revenge by leaving the tenants no route of escape while these punks set out to kill them for their own kicks. As far as trash cinema goes, this one has its brief moments along the way. Directed by Roberta Findlay, who used to work with her late husband Michael on exploitation fodder from the '60s like the infamous "Flesh Trilogy", and who now is one of the few female porn directors, among other things.


10 To Midnight (1983)

Revisited this Charles Bronson movie where he plays a cop determined to apprehend and exterminate a crafty young slasher (Gene Davis) who's unlucky in love and murders women. I think Bronson is better as an actor here than in the DEATH WISH series, as his character seems to have more conviction, and I'm not sure why that is. Was he just not as interested in the Death Wish movies? I wonder if director J. Lee Thompson brought more out of him, but then Thompson directed DEATH WISH 4: THE CRACKDOWN, and Chuck wasn't so exceptional. I thought Andrew Stevens was well cast as Bronson's younger partner. Anyway --- this functions very much like a teen slasher flick of the period, and I don't think Davis plays his psychotic part memorably. There's also nothing left to the imagination and mystery, but I suppose that's part of the formula. It satisfies somewhat as a vehicle for Bronson and an okay time waster for his fans.

Re: Track the Films You Watch (2008)

Too low a rating for "Tenement" imho...And I don't see why the tenants are as bad as the thugs!


I have a strange story concerning "Tenement".

I reviewed it for my site a long while back, and one day I had an Email from the actress who plays the pregnant South American girl, Anita.
She now runs a photography business that gets a lot of work for children's photos and from schools.

She had ( I sadly no longer have the Emails) come across her name listed on my review - which of course mentioned certain things that happen in the film of a rather unsavoury nature - and asked if i could remove her name as it came up in a Google search and it could damage her new family friendly business.

At first I was torn. I did not like her asking me to change something because she was suddenly ashamed of it.
I knew she had an IMDB page. And I felt it was wrong to turn your back on such an interesting time in your life.
I wrote back and told her this in fact.

She replied with a very nice Email that explained things further and she definately showed she was not ashamed of her Exploitation past. It was purely a business matter.
So I agreed and her name is no longer mentioned in the review.

But she wrote back with some interesting thoughts about the film and how she still sees Paul Calderon (gang member in this, but would of course go on to be a regular in Abel Ferrara's films. Including the traitor in Chris Walken's ranks in "King of New York").
All in all a strange but rather rewarding experience!


"10 to Midnight" is great fun! Easily Big Chuck's sleaziest film and a really nasty piece of work during the full-on Exploitation murders that carry a heavy Ted Bundy vibe during the finale.

The sight of Bronson waving masturbatory aid around is a joy!!