Crawdaddy's "Random Thoughts" about Home Video, Film & TV (3 Viewers)

[Robert Crawford]

Watching it now - it appeared on my TCM's On Demand last night for some reason

I just realized this documentary was already shown on TCM as I remembered it while watching it this afternoon.

 

[Cranston37+]

I just realized this documentary was already shown on TCM as I remembered it while watching it this afternoon.

Yep, it first aired on TCM toward the end of 2019

 

[Robert Crawford]

Yep, it first aired on TCM toward the end of 2019

I think I have some posts about it back in December, 2019.

 

[Cranston37+]

I think I have some posts about it back in December, 2019.

Having now finished it, I was a bit disappointed. They kept going off on these tangents about Trump, and they felt so out of left field for what I thought I was going to be watching.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Another Holy Grail movie title of mine that might be coming to Blu-ray as I watched it this morning on HBO Max and it looked fantastic in HD. This was the best video presentation of this particular "Technicolor" movie that I have ever seen in my lifetime. Hell, iTunes and Vudu only has it in SD. IMO, a fine movie about Marine pilots during WWII fighting the Japanese in the Pacific. The movie has a wonderful cast especially Jay C. Flippen and was directed by Nicolas Ray.

 

[Robert Crawford]

View attachment 76285
Another Holy Grail movie title of mine that might be coming to Blu-ray as I watched it this morning on HBO Max and it looked fantastic in HD. This was the best video presentation of this particular "Technicolor" movie that I have ever seen in my lifetime. Hell, iTunes and Vudu only has it in SD. IMO, a fine movie about Marine pilots during WWII fighting the Japanese in the Pacific. The movie has a wonderful cast especially Jay C. Flippen and was directed by Nicolas Ray.

This afternoon, I took a second look at "Flying Leathernecks" and there is no doubt in my mind that Warner Archive is going to release this title on Blu-ray this Fall. This film contains many actual battle sequences in it and I concentrated on watching those sequences very closely compared to my earlier viewing this morning. IMO, a lot of recent work went into making those actual battles scenes look more seamless with the rest of the movie. I was going to compare the 2004 DVD to this HBO Max HD digital, but I quickly realize after watching this HD digital again that I didn't need to do such a comparison. The differences video-wise were so drastic that doing any type of scene to scene comparisons between the two video formats would be a total waste of time.

There are several Astaire and Rogers musicals listed below on HBO Max this month. From my sampling of those new titles, I'm starting to wonder if a Blu-ray box is coming this Fall. I think other Warner Archive BD release possibilities that just arrived on HBO Max are The Candidate, Jim Thorpe All-American and Murder at 1600.

• Top Hat
• The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle
• Barkleys of Broadway
• Carefree
• Flying Down to Rio
• The Gay Divorcee

 

[AnthonyClarke]

Great news, if correct about those Fred and gigner movies. Top Hat, The Gay Divorcee and Flying Down to Rio are amongst my must-haves. A box set with them all (except I guess for Swing Time) would be so so good.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Great news, if correct about those Fred and gigner movies. Top Hat, The Gay Divorcee and Flying Down to Rio are amongst my must-haves. A box set with them all (except I guess for Swing Time) would be so so good.

It's purely speculation on my part, but we'll find out soon enough one way or another. I'm talking about the Fred and Ginger box set.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Not a good movie, but I always liked this 1934 movie because of the actors involved in it. As I stated beforehand, Stanwyck and McCrea made a good screen couple. Pat O'Brien and C. Aubrey Smith were good in this movie too. Claire Dodd, played another her part as a society "bitch" well. Stanwyck playing a lady gambler with ethics was an interesting film concept.

 

[Mark-P]

Wow. Leathernecks looks awesome. When did that get added to the service? If it‘s very recent, I would bet that it may be in the very next batch of WAC announcements.

 

[Matt Hough]

It happens two months a year, but it always feels strange when we don't have to set the DVR for Noir Alley.

 

[Astairefan]

This afternoon, I took a second look at "Flying Leathernecks" and there is no doubt in my mind that Warner Archive is going to release this title on Blu-ray this Fall. This film contains many actual battle sequences in it and I concentrated on watching those sequences very closely compared to my earlier viewing this morning. IMO, a lot of recent work went into making those actual battles scenes look more seamless with the rest of the movie. I was going to compare the 2004 DVD to this HBO Max HD digital, but I quickly realize after watching this HD digital again that I didn't need to do such a comparison. The differences video-wise were so drastic that doing any type of scene to scene comparisons between the two video formats would be a total waste of time.

There are several Astaire and Rogers musicals listed below on HBO Max this month. From my sampling of those new titles, I'm starting to wonder if a Blu-ray box is coming this Fall. I think other Warner Archive BD release possibilities that just arrived on HBO Max are The Candidate, Jim Thorpe All-American and Murder at 1600.

• Top Hat
• The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle
• Barkleys of Broadway
• Carefree
• Flying Down to Rio
• The Gay Divorcee

Great news, if correct about those Fred and gigner movies. Top Hat, The Gay Divorcee and Flying Down to Rio are amongst my must-haves. A box set with them all (except I guess for Swing Time) would be so so good.

While I definitely look forward to seeing the rest of the Astaire-Rogers films on Blu-ray, I seriously have my doubts that we will see a box set (of course, I've been known to be wrong before, so we'll see). But, so far, we have yet to see WAC release any box sets with COMPLETELY new-to-blu content (and since the only Astaire-Rogers film available is Swing Time, which was licensed out to Criterion, that would squelch that). I just can't see it happening, though, not with 8 of the remaining nine films being from the thirties, a decade that is still barely represented on blu through WAC (plus, RAH's comments on all of the previous thirties films being full restorations, which I assume translates to "expensive," considering how few we have gotten). That, and not all the Astaire-Rogers films so far are reported to have new transfers (at least, some on the other forum have said the previously available Shall We Dance was an old transfer, and the newly available Flying Down To Rio is also an older transfer). Still, these are the movies I have wanted for a long time, so I hope they give me enough time to beg, borrow or steal (only joking) enough to pay for these! Just don't count too much on box sets, or we may not get them all!

 

[Robert Crawford]

Wow. Leathernecks looks awesome. When did that get added to the service? If it‘s very recent, I would bet that it may be in the very next batch of WAC announcements.

It was just added yesterday, August 1st. It will be a shock if it's not being released on BD by Warner Archive in the near future.

 

[Robert Crawford]

It happens two months a year, but it always feels strange when we don't have to set the DVR for Noir Alley.

Very strange!

 

[Robert Crawford]

While I definitely look forward to seeing the rest of the Astaire-Rogers films on Blu-ray, I seriously have my doubts that we will see a box set (of course, I've been known to be wrong before, so we'll see). But, so far, we have yet to see WAC release any box sets with COMPLETELY new-to-blu content (and since the only Astaire-Rogers film available is Swing Time, which was licensed out to Criterion, that would squelch that). I just can't see it happening, though, not with 8 of the remaining nine films being from the thirties, a decade that is still barely represented on blu through WAC (plus, RAH's comments on all of the previous thirties films being full restorations, which I assume translates to "expensive," considering how few we have gotten). That, and not all the Astaire-Rogers films so far are reported to have new transfers (at least, some on the other forum have said the previously available Shall We Dance was an old transfer, and the newly available Flying Down To Rio is also an older transfer). Still, these are the movies I have wanted for a long time, so I hope they give me enough time to beg, borrow or steal (only joking) enough to pay for these! Just don't count too much on box sets, or we may not get them all!

As I stated earlier, I'm just speculating about a box set. I still think another Astaire-Rogers film might be released on BD in the future.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Mike Clark's BD review of "Mystery of the Wax Museum":

The Mystery of the Wax Museum - Media Play News

BLU-RAY REVIEW: Available via Warner Archive; Warner; Horror; $21.99 Blu-ray; Not rated. Stars Lionel Atwill, Fay Wray, Glenda Farrell, Frank McHugh. Forced to choose, I’d say this above-and-beyond restoration by … Continue reading "The Mystery of the Wax Museum"

www.mediaplaynews.com

A real bummer for me as the above BD review will be the last one from Mike Clark. Unfortunately, he passed away at 73 years of age. This freaking year has been a real downer with so many deaths along with this horrible pandemic. May Mike R.I.P.

Goodbye, 'Movie Mike': Former USA TODAY film critic Mike Clark dies at 73

Mike Clark, the former USA TODAY film critic, died July 31 after a fall and a battle with liver disease.

www.usatoday.com

 

[Matt Hough]

If Warner Archive didn't release a box set of The Thin Man films or the Mickey-Judy musicals, I doubt Astaire-Rogers will get one either, but I'd LOVE to be wrong.

 

[Hollywoodaholic]

Meet John Doe. Well, with no Noir Alley, I had to satisfy my Sunday afternoon B&W movie fix with another presentation by TCM of a Barbara Stanwyck film by Frank Capra. Essentially, this is an anti-noir film of pure idealism. But one that also goes to some pretty dark places at the end when you consider this and It's A Wonderful Life both pivot around a possible suicide. The themes of big bad rich powerful versus the ordinary worker are fully intact, with the little guy overcoming (and getting the girl).

While watching this, I couldn't help but think of all the films that perhaps were strongly influenced by this or the same theme, but with a more cynical approach. The Great McGinty comes to mind. The rise of an everyday schnook, controlled by a mob boss who runs the political system, who finally gets the gumption to do right.. but loses everything (including the girl) because of it.

The Face in the Crowd tells the story of a schnooks rise to fame and power and how it ultimately corrupts him, and how he's brought down when he belittles or insults (via live mike) the minions that put him there. Oh, would that to happen in real life today!

Network tells the story of another promised suicide (on the air), and the rise of an unlikely prophet, and his threat to the powers that be (media bosses).

Meet John Doe more overtly pushes the Christ metaphor button, actually referring to the power brokers (D.B.) as Pontius Pilates. But if the original story of the ultimate sacrifice had the same ending, it might not be resonating still powerfully 2,000 years later.

On a complete unrelated note, I saw Edward Norton's attempted Noir Motherless Brooklyn on HBO. While it had many of the same motifs; 50s period, fedoras, complex shenanigans by city power brokers (sheesh, Chinatown was easier to follow), voiceover, girl in trouble, etc. it just didn't work for me. Alex Baldwin is a good actor, but it was just hard to take him as the big baddie when he's yucking it up as the host on The New Match Game every Sunday. Lionel's affliction with Tourette's Syndrome somehow doesn't have the same gravitas as Jake Gittes' slashed nose. But I did enjoy the Wynton Marsalis muted trumpet throughout which, if you were listening from another room (as my wife was), you would swear was giving us a stroll down Noir Alley. It wasn't. And there are no real spoilers here if you haven't seen.

 

[Robert Crawford]

A real bummer for me as the above BD review will be the last one from Mike Clark. Unfortunately, he passed away at 73 years of age. This freaking year has been a real downer with so many deaths along with this horrible pandemic. May Mike R.I.P.

Goodbye, 'Movie Mike': Former USA TODAY film critic Mike Clark dies at 73

Mike Clark, the former USA TODAY film critic, died July 31 after a fall and a battle with liver disease.

www.usatoday.com

Another tribute article regarding Mike Clark's passing on July 31st.

Mike Clark, Veteran Film Critic and 'MPN' Columnist, Dies - Media Play News

Film critic and Media Play News contributor Mike Clark died July 31 due to complications from a fall a few days earlier. He had been suffering health issues for some … Continue reading "Mike Clark, Veteran Film Critic and ‘MPN’ Columnist, Dies"

www.mediaplaynews.com

 

[Robert Crawford]

I'll be busy with the following Blu-ray Boxsets that arrived today: