Crawdaddy's "Random Thoughts" about Home Video, Film & TV (2 Viewers)

[Robert Crawford]

Another favorite actress of mine has passed away at 92 years old. Dorothy Malone may you R.I.P. People used to talk about Bette Davis eyes, but Dorothy Malone had killer eyes too. I loved her exchange with Bogie in The Big Sleep with dark hair instead of her more common hair color of blonde. My really first exposure to her was on Peyton Place when my older sisters and mother would insist on watching that night time soap opera. Luckily, my father rectify that situation by buying a new color television so I was left with the black and white TV in the den.

http://variety.com/2018/film/people-news/dorothy-malone-dies-dead-peyton-place-1202670315/

 

[Robert Crawford]

My affinity for newspaper movies goes back to my childhood, long before I ever heard of the word "Watergate". Some of those early films I watched in my childhood were Five Star Final, Deadline U.S.A., His Girl Friday and Calling Northside 777. A few years later while in high school back in the early 1970's, I used to go to my school library and read the NYT every single school day. One news story that fascinated me during those times was the publishing of The Pentagon Papers. Everyday, I would read those published stories and the legal battle that took place over them. I had a personal interest because I had an older brother that served two tours in Vietnam, who luckily survived those two years over there.

When I found out this movie was about the Washington Post involvement in this controversy, I was naturally concern that the NYT wouldn't get the proper credit for being the first newspaper to publish The Pentagon Papers. I'm very happy to say that my concerns were resolved very satisfactorily.

I was one of only four people in my 9:40 p.m. showing. This film captivated my attention and I didn't once look at my phone to see what time was it. The film was well written and directed. Furthermore, it had splendid performances from not only Streep and Hanks, but all of the supporting actors. I'm not a big Streep fan. I don't hate her like some other people hate certain actors because it's not my thing to personalize my feelings towards actors. I just wasn't a fan of many of her movies and especially the ones in which she had some kind of accent. I'm not saying they weren't good films, but some of them weren't my cup of tea. After saying that, I must say she is a great actress and she was wonderful in this film. She really brought to life, Kay Graham and her journey from being a stay-at-home wife/mother to a widow in which circumstances thrust her into running the family business. A business that isn't for the meek in any way. This film isn't just about the fight over The Pentagon Papers, but about some issues that are still being fought today, more than 46 years later. I actually had tears in my eyes the last 5-10 minutes of the film. I walked out of the theater tonight, very proud to be an American.

Newspapers and media aren't right all the time and they make their share of mistakes. However, this film illustrates without a doubt, that they are a necessary ingredient in maintaining our system of government in order to protect the people and our values. I give this film 5 on the basis of a 1-5 grading system with 5 being the best grade. I used my Movie Pass tonight and I'm going to use it again to revisit this film in the coming days.

I had my second viewing yesterday with Movie Pass. My favorite line in the movie is part of the Supreme Court's majority opinion which is the "free press serves the governed, not the governors".

 

[Robert Crawford]

The year 1955, the Blu-rays I watched from movies that were released that year are below. I must say that one BD presentation was mediocre while the other surprised me how good that CinemaScope film looked which was directed by Burt Lancaster, the star of the film.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Yippee, Hostiles and Darkest Hour has showings at my favorite local theater complex starting on Thursday night.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Heads up that ClassicFlix Blu-ray titles "Casanova Brown" and "Along Came Jones" have been delayed again until February 6th.

 

[bujaki]

Hostiles is the better film, nominations for Darkest Hour notwithstanding.

 

[Johnny Angell]

The year 1955, the Blu-rays I watched from movies that were released that year are below. I must say that one BD presentation was mediocre while the other surprised me how good that CinemaScope film looked which was directed by Burt Lancaster, the star of the film.

The Kentuckian poster looks like it’s for a 3D movie.

 

[Robert Crawford]

It's hard to believe that the same actor, Ben Piazza, played young Rune in The Hanging Tree (1959) and the frustrated father in one of the funniest scenes in The Blues Brothers (1980). That scene cracks me up every time I view it, love the Pee Wee Herman cameo. By the way, I highly recommend The Hanging Tree Blu-ray from WAC.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Today, I wasted about 90 minutes watching Proud Mary with MP. Tomorrow it's Hostiles so I expect a more rewarding movie experience.

 

[TravisR]

Today, I wasted about 90 minutes watching Proud Mary with MP.

I love me some Taraji but the reviews scared me off.

 

[Robert Crawford]

I love me some Taraji but the reviews scared me off.

I enjoyed her performance in this film and it was mediocre at best so using MP was meant for seeing films like this one.

 

[bujaki]

The more I think about Hostiles the more I like it. It's great to see a film where most of the characters grow in moral stature.

 

[benbess]

The year 1955, the Blu-rays I watched from movies that were released that year are below. I must say that one BD presentation was mediocre while the other surprised me how good that CinemaScope film looked which was directed by Burt Lancaster, the star of the film.

Do Kino blu-rays like The Kentuckian ever come down in price....? Any extras on this disc? Thanks.++

 

[Robert Crawford]

Do Kino blu-rays like The Kentuckian ever come down in price....? Any extras on this disc? Thanks.++

If you can wait, Kino has sales in which most of these titles can be bought much cheaper. Nothing, but trailers of different Kino titles on this disc.

 

[B-ROLL]

If you can wait, Kino has sales in which most of these titles can be bought much cheaper. Nothing, but trailers of different Kino titles on this disc.

I believe it was part of the last big KINO sale
For the End of year sale .. which ended
Kentuckian, The (1955) $10.49

You might want to watch this thread on this very forum for sale announcements ...
https://www.hometheaterforum.com/co...lorber-insider-read-guidelines-post-3.355034/

Their website is https://www.klstudioclassics.com/?affiliate=klscsm
Current price for the Kentuckian at KL is $17.97

Kino requires a minimum purchase of $50.00 ($100.00 CAD) for free shipping.

I checked and it does not appear to be a part of the www.deepdiscount.com 2 blu-rays for 10% or or 3 for 15% offer (for those offers they must be a part of the promotion) ... but they often are the cheapest (but not the fastest - there appears to be a requirement for each shipment to go through both the Erie and the Panama Canals before arriving at it's destination ) Also if there is code you can't use more than one (but you may be able to place multiple orders with one code ... unless it says it is only valid for one order.

Current price for The Kentuckian at DD is $16.80
https://www.deepdiscount.com/search?q=The+Kentukian&mod=AP
Minimum order for deepdiscount is $25.00 for free shipping to the US

As a comparative
Amazon https://www.amazon.com/Kentuckian-B...qid=1516931229&sr=1-1&keywords=the+kentuckian
Is currently selling The Kentuckian on bluray for $19.99

 

[Robert Crawford]

Eleanor Parker is one of my top ten favorite actresses of all-time. During my childhood, I believe the first film I ever noticed her in was "The Naked Jungle" with Charleton Heston. What kid growing up in the 1960's, wouldn't love a movie about an army of ants destroying everything in its path. At that time and still today, I thought she was one of the most beautiful actresses I ever seen in any movie. Man, she knew how to cry in movies with those beautiful eyes and trembling lips.

The following links are a two-part article about Parker and the movies she starred in. There are some things I don't agree with such as his take on "The Pride of the Marines" as I watched that film more than a few times growing up, so I disagree about his premise on the film itself and the movie disappearing from the public eye. Anyhow, this is a long read so I placed those links here so people can read them at their own leisure.

Eleanor Parker, Part 1: Dream Factory

Eleanor Parker, Part 2: Technicolor

I just got done watching The Naked Jungle from iTunes. I had this iTunes title for several years so I downloaded the movie this time instead of streaming it, so I can see if there are any differences in quality-wise in streaming vs. downloaded. I was pleased with the download except one small thing, the film was in 1.37 and not widescreen. I don't believe I ever seen this film in widescreen. The move was filmed in the summer of 1953 and released the following year. You would think it would be widescreen, but the only thing I could find about the aspect ratio was the below excerpt taken from AFI's website. HR source is the Hollywood Reporter. Bob Furmanek previously stated in his thread that because of the film production dates it should be in widescreen. As I watched the film today, it looked like it should be in 1.37 as I didn't see any framing issues. I just don't know?????

The working title of this film was Leiningen Versus the Ants . Although HR production charts list the picture as widescreen, no other source mentions the process.

By the way, Eleanor Parker really was a beautiful woman and this film showed her as such in great detail.

 

[Keith Cobby]

Another favorite actress of mine has passed away at 92 years old. Dorothy Malone may you R.I.P. People used to talk about Bette Davis eyes, but Dorothy Malone had killer eyes too. I loved her exchange with Bogie in The Big Sleep with dark hair instead of her more common hair color of blonde. My really first exposure to her was on Peyton Place when my older sisters and mother would insist on watching that night time soap opera. Luckily, my father rectify that situation by buying a new color television so I was left with the black and white TV in the den.

http://variety.com/2018/film/people-news/dorothy-malone-dies-dead-peyton-place-1202670315/

It's a shame she didn't have a bigger part in The Big Sleep as she was quite wonderful in it. Her death prompted me not to wait any longer for a UK/US blu-ray of Written on the Wind and I have bought the French release. Excellent image quality and as we all know Dorothy was wonderful in this too.

She was in so many great films and it would be nice to have Artists & Models and The Last Voyage on blu-ray.

 

[Robin9]

It's a shame she didn't have a bigger part in The Big Sleep as she was quite wonderful in it. Her death prompted me not to wait any longer for a UK/US blu-ray of Written on the Wind and I have bought the French release. Excellent image quality and as we all know Dorothy was wonderful in this too.

She was in so many great films and it would be nice to have Artists & Models and The Last Voyage on blu-ray.

I believe Quantez is out on Blu-ray in Germany. I take it for granted you have the U. K. disc of The Tarnished Angels.

 

[Robert Crawford]

I believe Quantez is out on Blu-ray in Germany. I take it for granted you have the U. K. disc of The Tarnished Angels.

I have the MOC BD release of The Tarnished Angels.

 

[Keith Cobby]

Great as Written on the Wind and The Tarnished Angels are, my favourite Douglas Sirk film has always been Has Anybody Seen My Gal - a wonderful comedy and feel-good film. Dorothy isn't in it alas but it does star Rock Hudson. Always hoping for a blu.