The Great March HTF Historical Drama/Epic Challenge (1 Viewer)

[JohnRice]

The challenge is now officially open!!


We're on the downswing of February and I figured it was time to send out the warning for the March Historical Drama/Epic Challenge.

The idea is similar to other challenges. Watch at least 13 qualifying films, preferably with at least 7 first time viewings, then come here and post your opinions/ratings.


There are two qualifiers...

1) The "Historical Drama" Qualification - Films which take place in an accurate historical setting, at least 50 years prior to the date the film was produced. These do not have to be actual, historical stories. Just set in a realistic time period.

or

2) The "Epic" Qualification - Films with a running time of at least 160 minutes.


Examples...

The Magnificent Ambersons - NO, since the primary time period is only 20+ years prior to the production of the film.

Shakespeare in Love - Yes

Titus - NO, under the Historical qualification (not realistic time period) but YES under the Epic qualification.

A Room with a View - Yes.

LOTR movies - Oh, if you have to (under the Epic qualification), but the idea is to branch out.


In the spirit of the Historical Drama concept, I'd like to encourage participants to make a particular effort to seek out literary adaptations and stretch beyond their ordinary viewing habits. Everyone on earth has seen Lawrence of Arabia, so instead, venture into Doctor Zhivago or Ryan's Daughter. Pick a certain author and have a mini festival. You get the idea.


The challenge will run the month of March. Admission is limited (not really), so sign up early, subscribe to this thread and visit often.



__________________________________________________ ___________

My List - First time viewings in blue. Ratings out of
Perceptions are interesting. I read over and over how this film still glorifies James, though less than previous ones, and what a sleazy scumbag Ford is. To me, James comes across as the charismatic, repugnant individual he most likely was, and the type of person I have learned to avoid like the plague. Little more than a bullying, intimidating punk who not only believes he is entitled to commit the crimes he does, but that others should admire him for them. Ford is just someone who gets pushed around alot and has delusions of grandeur.

I admire the deliberate nature of this film, but in the end I think it is just too long. It really doesn't need almost 160 minutes to get the story and mood across. I also tend to think people take the full film title too literally. I sense more than a slight irony to it.

 

[Mario Gauci]

03/22/08: SECONDO PONZIO PILATO (Luigi Magni, 1987) :star::star:1/2

The resurgence in Italian cinema of Biblical films, particularly those dealing with the times of Jesus Christ, in the late 1970s and into the 1980s – such as Pasquale Festa Campanile’s IL LADRONE (1980), Ermanno Olmi’s CAMMINA, CAMMINA (1981), Damiano Damiani’s THE INQUIRY (1987), etc. – was an odd one and, needless to say given its title, the film under review is yet another example.

However, this is not really a philosophical meditation on those times or anything heavy like that – which one would have perhaps expected from director Magni, an expert at politically-oriented historical dramas such as NELL’ ANNO DEL SIGNORE (1969) and IN THE NAME OF THE POPE KING (1977), with his own script veering uneasily between the literary and the vulgar (apart from including ample gratuitous nudity, actors incongruously adopt modern slang in their speech when they should have probably been using Latin all along – as seen in THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST [2004])! Rather, it’s an agreeably irreverent and occasionally whimsical fictionalization of famous events (with recognizable figures such as Caiaphas, Annas, Joseph of Arimathea, and the centurion Longinus putting in sizeable appearances) and, accordingly, features a trio of stars equally adept at comedy. Magni regular Nino Manfredi is typically fine as an aging and world-weary Pontius Pilate, while perennial beauty Stefania Sandrelli is his wife Claudia – who, with Lando Buzzanca (as Pilate’s lieutenant), is revealed to have been a secret admirer of Jesus; both, actually, convert to Christianity soon after the crucifixion.

For what it’s worth, the film’s highlights all occur during its latter half: Herod Antipas (Flavio Bocci) hilariously deconstructing the myth of his father Herod The Great’s notorious massacre of the infants in his quest to eliminate Baby Jesus (coming to the logical conclusion that the victims couldn’t have been more than six at the most!) – here, too, it’s amusing that the voluptuous Salome` is never allowed to finish her proverbial Dance Of The Seven Veils!; Pilate’s meeting with a crazed and crippled Barabbas (Roberto Herlitzka) in a prison cell – where the latter dementedly claims that it was he and not the Veronica who wiped Christ’s face on the way to Golgotha!; and Pilate’s own trial before Emperor Tiberius (Mario Scaccia) – for having sent to death the King of the Jews and a God to boot! – where he miraculously cures his sovereign of leprosy by covering the latter’s face with Veronica’s…er…Barabbas’ blessed handkerchief. This is followed, at the conclusion, by Pilate himself being visited at the moment of execution by a female angel – whom he had already encountered but denied seeing in the presence of others! Italian singer/songwriter Angelo Branduardi’s folksy acoustic soundtrack provides effective accompaniment to the film.


03/25/08: FIRE OVER ENGLAND (William K. Howard, 1937) :star::star::star:1/2

Renowned and handsomely-mounted early British spectacular with imposing credentials – producers Alexander Korda and Erich Pommer, cinematographer James Wong Howe, art director Lazare Meerson, special effects creator Ned Mann – and a cast virtually assembling the cream of the crop working in the country at that particular moment – Laurence Olivier, Flora Robson, Leslie Banks, Vivien Leigh, Raymond Massey, Robert Newton, James Mason – all of which is complemented by a suitably rousing score from Richard Addinsell.

The narrative revolves around the planned invasion of England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I by the Spanish armada of King Philip II (with help from British traitors); the former is magnificently embodied by Robson (who would eventually return to the role in Hollywood for the Errol Flynn vehicle THE SEA HAWK [1940]), while the latter is played by Massey as a sleek but cagey monarch. With one of the dissidents among her ranks (Mason) intercepted, the English Queen appoints a young naval officer (Olivier) – who had just lost his admiral father to the Spanish Inquisition – to assume the conniver’s identity and travel to Philip’s court in order to obtain the names of his associates and establish the enemy’s strategy for attack. Complications arise when one of the Spanish ruler’s subordinates (Newton) is revealed to be married to the woman (pretty Tamara Desni – the German-born Russian actress died in France only last month at the venerable age of 97!) who had previously cared for the wounded Olivier, their respective fathers having been the best of friends. Torn between betraying his country or his wife, Newton engineers Olivier’s flight home – whereupon the latter receives a knighthood, before being promptly sent by his sovereign (along with the conspirators newly-swayed to patriotic duty) on a mission to destroy the approaching enemy fleet!

The film maintains a good balance throughout between romance (thanks to Olivier’s matinee` idol looks, he’s briefly involved with Desni apart from his love interest in England – provided by future wife Leigh, as the Queen’s lady-in-waiting, in the first of three on-screen collaborations…though Robson herself is shown carrying a hesitant torch for veteran and devoted chief advisor Banks!), intrigue (in effect at both camps), action (including raids by pirate ships, a couple of chases, discreet swordplay and culminating in the final elaborate fiery offensive) and propaganda (WWII was already looming at this point). While the print I viewed turned out to be anything but pristine, I was grateful to have finally caught this altogether splendid historical epic; incidentally, I’d become acquainted with several wonderful Korda productions over the years on both Italian TV and VHS – but, oddly enough, FIRE OVER ENGLAND itself seldom turned up until now in my neck of the woods!


03/25/08: FLESH AND THE WOMAN (Robert Siodmak, 1954) :star::star:1/2

Not really epic material, this is a fated romantic drama (a typically French quality) set against the exotic background of the Foreign Legion – and, actually, a remake of Jacques Feyder’s 1934 film LE GRAND JEU (also this version’s original title).

The plot involves a successful young lawyer (Jean-Claude Pascal) who, due to a shady deal, finds himself penniless and separated from his wife (Gina Lollobrigida). Stranded in Algeria, he’s persuaded to join the Foreign Legion – where he befriends a couple of similar losers (played by Raymond Pellegrin and Peter van Eyck). All three lodge in the tavern run by an ageing fortune-teller (Arletty) and occasionally go out in search of a good time with the local girls…eventually meeting up with one who’s a dead-ringer for Lollobrigida! Soon, the buddies fall out over her (and one of them even winds up dead, an event which Arletty had actually predicted!) – though the girl, naturally, is drawn to the hero (even if her sweet-natured character differs from that of his materialistic wife). At the end, Pascal does run into the latter and discovers that they have nothing more in common – which, therefore, gives him free rein to start life over with his new-found love.

This was one of the first international efforts Siodmak made following his spell in Hollywood (to which he returned sporadically thereafter). Consequently, while his best work may have been behind him, the director manages to lend a reasonable amount of style to the melodramatic (even unlikely) proceedings. That said, the wretched print I watched didn’t do the film any favors – being not only muddy and exceedingly scratched, but was besides distressingly plagued by any number of missing frames!

 

[SteveGon]

Gettysburg (1993)

Viewed 3/26/2008

Revisited this epic chronicle of the battle of Gettysburg. Long and speechy, but also engrossing and quite moving.

:star: :star: :star: 1/2 out of :star: :star: :star: :star:

 

[Mario Gauci]

03/26/08: IMPERIAL VENUS (Jean Delannoy, 1963) :star::star:1/2

Turgid historical saga, a semi-biopic of Napoleon Bonaparte’s courtesan sister(!); the overall effect is as improbable as the Hollywood version, DESIREE` (1954), which had focused on the life of the famed French leader’s ‘girlfriend’.

Gina Lollobrigida is monotonous in the title role (not to mention unconvincing when it comes to the dramatic passages of the plot); incidentally, she had previously worked for the director on THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME (1957). In support of the star are the likes of Stephen Boyd (who would fare much better playing alongside the Italian sex symbol’s rival, Sophia Loren, in THE FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE [1964]), Raymond Pellegrin (making for a pretty good Napoleon) and Massimo Girotti – while Micheline Presle (playing Josephine) and Gabriele Ferzetti put in ‘guest appearances’.

At an interminable length of almost 2½ hours, for what amounts to a largely unexciting narrative, the film – which, at least, has the virtue of expansive locations and attractive widescreen photography – understandably adopts an episodic structure throughout. In fact, the heroine is seen being involved with various lovers (including officer Ferzetti and roguish Hussar Boyd) and husbands (General-turned-Viceroy Girotti and a wimpish Italian Prince)…apart from facing such calamities as war, plague, deaths in the family and, finally, the humiliating abdication of Napoleon himself!


03/27/08: THE ROVER (Terence Young, 1967) :star::star:

Given a very limited distribution (despite the people involved) this international production remains, even now, an obscure (and unappetizing) historical piece; not all that much of a surprise, however, since it just isn’t very good – either as drama, adventure, or as an adaptation of the Joseph Conrad novel.

Director Young was an expert at action (having pretty much cemented the style of the James Bond extravaganzas); however, this is a largely talky and stodgy affair – which, perhaps in keeping with the film’s very title, doesn’t seem to know where it’s headed! Ennio Morricone provides the suitably melancholic music; the main cast seems impressive on paper but, for the most part, it has very little to work with here – resulting in generally awkward performances. The titular seafaring character is played by Anthony Quinn – a veteran of (much better) pirate sagas, such as the prime THE BLACK SWAN (1942), the vintage AGAINST ALL FLAGS (1952; with which I should be re-acquainting myself over the next week-end, incidentally) and the similarly meaningful but more successful A HIGH WIND IN JAMAICA (1965) – whose exploits, typically for the larger-than-life actor, end in self-sacrifice (albeit a recurring motif in the author’s fatalistic work as well, as can be judged from the likes of “Heart Of Darkness” and “Lord Jim”).

Rosanna Schiaffino has the most difficult – and self-conscious – part as the unstable yet voluptuous woman (whose odd behavior is eventually explained in a brief flashback) protected by Quinn from harassment by the locals and the lustful attentions of her ageing ‘guardian’. For an actress who had been the personification of allure and glamour, Rita Hayworth is here saddled with an unenviable frumpy look and, even worse, a thankless characterization (by the way, she and Quinn had last appeared together 26 years previously in BLOOD AND SAND [1941])! Richard Johnson’s earnest officer, then, supplies belated antagonism to Quinn in the fields of both romance and patriotic duty (the setting is post-Revolutionary France).


03/27/08: THE CHASTITY BELT (Pasquale Festa Campanile, 1967) :star::star:

Comic medieval romp which, as can be surmised from the title, concerns the battle of the sexes; not bad overall, but not sufficiently inspired either (despite willing performers and interesting credits – while an Italian production, the script was co-written by Larry Gelbart!).

The film is generally entertaining, flavorful, even mildly saucy and, yet, emerges as a somewhat hit-or-miss affair – with at least as many flat spots as bright ones (the latter thanks largely to the delightful presence, in both senses of the word, of Monica Vitti…even though, in retrospect, her modern style of acting seems incongruous within this particular milieu!). The male lead is played by Tony Curtis – spoofing his own image in Hollywood films of this type (incidentally, I should be watching him presently in THE BLACK SHIELD OF FALWORTH [1954]). Also in the cast is Englishman John Richardson (a “Euro-Cult” regular during this era) as an errant knight who loses a contest with Vitti (disguised as one herself in an attempt to reach Curtis, currently engaged in Holy War) and thus sworn to undying loyalty…even if he’s himself eventually revealed to be royalty operating incognito! Nino Castelnuovo appears as Curtis’ jovial yet frustrated squire – since the latter is seen exercising his droit de seigneur with the ladies at every opportunity, leaving Castelnuovo “the leftovers”! Towards the end of the film, Hugh Griffith also pops in for an unremarkable bit as a Muslim who abducts both Curtis and Vitti to his palace – one to convert to Islam, the other to add to his harem.

Buoyed by a lively Riz Ortolani score, this takes a light comedy approach to the subject matter wherein Curtis and Vitti’s consummation of their relationship is continually thwarted – either by tradition, exigencies of State, or their own selfish pride. Even when the two have finally made up and are willing to honor their marital vows, they first lose the key to the chastity belt and, when eventually retrieved, discover that it has been exchanged with that belonging to the Empress herself!

 

[PatW]

The Saddest Music in the World (2003) :star: :star: :star: :star: 1/2

The Director Guy Madden is certainly one of the most unique artists in the world and his style isn't for everyone, this film included but it is one of the most unique and yes bizarre films that I've seen in a long time. (David Lynch could take a few lessons from this fellow.)

The story is set in Winnipeg in 1933 during the depression. A legless beer baroness played wonderfully by Isabella Rossellini is holding a global contest to find the saddest music in the world with the prize being $25,000. Chester Kent, a Canadian is one of the entries representing the US. His lover, a nymphomaniac amnesic, has a muse in the form of a telepathetic tapeworm in her bowels. She also happens to be the missing wife of Chester's brother Roderick, a Canadian who is also a contestant representing Serbia. Their father who is a contestant representing Canada, happened to be a former lover of the baroness and was responsible for her condition. In a car accident, one of the Baroness legs was pinned under the automobile and the father Fyodor Kent is too drunk to realize he is cutting off the wrong leg. He ends up making the Baroness a new set of legs made of glass and filled with beer which he has his son Roderick present to her at the contest. Crazy enough for you?

The look of this film is quite surreal. Guy Madden has a fascination with the old silent films of the past and this film has that grainy black and white look that is interrupted at times with scenes of gaudy colour. Some of the images are quite bizarre. What am I saying, this whole movie was bizarre. What really took the cake for me was Rossellini appearing in Chester's last musical number as the Statue of Liberty maybe, standing on those bubbling beer filled glass legs. Also the final scene where Chester is playing his sad song sitting on the piano bench with a piece of the Baroness's shattered glass leg sticking out of his belly with a raging fire behind him. Absurdist cinema at its finest. I loved this film but I certainly know that I can't recommend it to anyone that I know.


Damn the Defiant (1962) :star: :star: :star: :star: 1/2

This British made movie takes place during the end of the 1700's during the Napoleanic wars and is a work of fiction but based around a true incident that occurred, namely the mutiny of the British Channel Fleet. What makes this better than most is the performances of Alec Guinness as the sympathetic Captain and Dirk Bogarde as the sadistic first officer. This is beautifully shot with great battle scenes and is a better story than Mutiny on the Bounty in my opinion, of course.

 

[Ruz-El]

Bah! I failed this challenge! Harumph!

MY DARLING CLEMINTINE 4.5/5 - Still my favorite telling of the Wyatt Earp legend. Fonda is the man, and Mature is a bit miss cast as the sickly Doc Holiday, but you look past it all. this was the release version, and a first time viewing. I prefer the pre-release to this.

THE ASSASSINATION OF JESSE JAMES BY THE COWARD ROBERT FORD 4.5/5 - I really enjoyed this one. Reminded me a lot of "My Darling Clementine" since it's such a quiet film and the characters are allowed to tell the story, as opposed to relying on action. Casey Affleck nearly steals the whole thing away from Pitt, and Rockwell almost sneaks it away from the two of them. Nice stuff, and shot in my back yard, which made it extra fun.

And that's it for me, a rather busy month and watching a bunch of non-qualifiers made it a bust. 4 movies, BAH! still a lot of fun though, and nice to hear about all the others watched.

Final Tally

http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htf/...ml#post3330552

 

[JohnRice]

For several reason I haven't been able to participate much lately. In fact, I went an entire week and watched only one movie. I don't know when was the last time I did that.

23) Atonement (2007) - :star::star::star::star::star:
Gothic, surprisingly brutal and tastefully melodramatic tale of a young girl misperceiving several events she witnesses and the profound consequences of her resulting actions. This is a surprisingly literary story, with splashes of the Brontës in its theme of romantic doom, Franz Kafka in its sense of helpless persecution and Thomas Hardy in its tragic foibles of human frailty and selfishness. It is a tough story for those who become involved, as I did. I must also say, Joe Wright is turning out to be one of the most exciting filmmakers to appear in years. His films are simultaneously accessible and artistic. Plus, he is an absolute artist with epic, seemingly impossible, complex shots. The beach scene roughly in the middle of the film goes on for just over 5 minutes, with not a single cut, and not only involves thousands of extras, but is incredibly complex and well done. Truly mind boggling stuff.

 

[Adam_S]

Love Atonement. my favorite of 2007 my dvd should be arriving any day now. I'm actually reading Jane Eyre for the first time now for my book club and I'm surprised at how enthralled I am by a type of book I always dreaded reading when it was assigned. I definitely sense the Bronte association you mention as well, in Atonement, but I can also see Eyre's influence on so many other works of fiction, from The Turning of the Screw to Rebecca even in Agatha Christie a little, I think. I've got the film from netflix and can't wait to finish the book so I can watch Welles take on Rochester.

 

[JohnRice]

Well Adam, my deep dark secret is that I think Jane Eyre may be the greatest novel ever written, in English at least. The prose is just stunning. I suspect a lot of people expect Jane Austen style literature with any classic female author, but the reality is, in addition to Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, Jane Eyre (Charlotte B) and Wuthering Heights (Emily B) are probably the greatest Gothic novels ever written.

BTW, I already said, but Charlotte Gainsbourg is hands down my favorite Jane Eyre.

 

[Malcolm R]

THE LION IN WINTER (1968) :star::star::star:1/2

It's Christmas 1183 and Henry II (Peter O'Toole) and his dysfunctional family gather at one of his many palaces to celebrate. Imprisioned wife, Eleanor of Acquitaine (Katharine Hepburn), is released from her tower and sons John (Nigel Terry), Richard (Anthony Hopkins), and Geoffrey (John Castle) are summoned. Also joining the family is the young King of France, Phillip (Timothy Dalton).

Having just turned 50, Henry is feeling his age and hopes to set a plan of succession to pass his crown to his son John. But everyone in the family has ambitions of their own, Eleanor (who favors Richard) and the boys themselves crossing and double-crossing everyone in sight for a chance at the crown. Meanwhile Phillip is another player as he struggles to regain at least part of occupied France from Henry.

Adaptation of the stage play by James Goldman, the film provides some fine performances and dialogue, with Katharine Hepburn being especially engaging. O'Toole seems the weakest of the cast, coasting along mostly on bombast and volume, cheerfully chewing the scenery of each frame he's in (but was still nominated for an Oscar, so I guess that was what audiences of the period wanted).

A couple of production goofs: You can see the wake of the camera boat during Eleanor's sail to the Christmas court. Also, despite their best efforts to convince the audience that the castle at Christmas was very cold (shivering, furs and heavy clothing, big fires in the fireplaces, breaking ice in the water bowl), you couldn't see the breath of any of the actors and the males frequently had beads of sweat on their foreheads.

Historical Wrap-Up: Henry II was eventually succeeded by his son Richard (1189-1199), who was then succeeded by brother John (1199-1216). Geoffrey died in 1186.

 

[Mario Gauci]

03/28/08: THE BLACK KNIGHT (Tay Garnett, 1954) :star::star:1/2

In my opinion, the finest cinematic renditions of the Arthurian legends have all been revisionist in nature – Robert Bresson’s ascetic LANCELOT DU LAC (1974), the uproarious MONTY PYTHON AND THE HOLY GRAIL (1974) and John Boorman’s visceral EXCALIBUR (1981) – but, for an entire generation of youngsters during the 1950s and 1960s (that to which my father belongs to be exact), the idealized, heroic Hollywood version of Camelot, its sovereign and inhabitants was the only one there was. In fact, they were spoilt for choice when it comes to depictions of pageantry in those days with Mel Ferrer, Brian Aherne (twice) and Richard Harris being among those who assuming on film the role of King Arthur.

In this modest, fairly routine but equally enjoyable British production, it is Anthony Bushell who gets to play the ruler of Camelot but the actor’s relative anonymity implies (correctly as it turns out) that his role in the narrative is merely a peripheral one. In fact, the leading man here is diminutive Hollywood star Alan Ladd: curiously cast as a taciturn English blacksmith with ideas above his station (generally directed towards aristocratic Patricia Medina), he is wrongly accused of both treason (by duplicitous Saracen knight Peter Cushing) and of cowardice (by Medina herself, after a Viking attack on her castle leaves her mother dead and father, played by Harry Andrews, half-crazed with grief)! However, with the help of a prescient knight (Andre` Morell) and after adopting the titular disguise, our commoner hero saves the day by routing the villains (who also include a dastardly Scottish royal – portrayed by yet another future Hammer horror stalwart Patrick Troughton, as well as Cushing’s laughing, would-be deaf-mute giant stooge), earning himself an official knighthood and, it goes without saying, Medina’s hand in marriage. Incidentally, the tale is set off by a ballad sung in a brief prologue by a minstrel (Elton Hayes) approaching a castle but, unexpectedly enough, rather than featuring in the upcoming narrative (as a singing squire or something), he quickly vanishes never to be seen or heard from again!

Apart from the film’s unsurprising reliance on cliché, it also contains elements of camp (particularly a Pagan rite being performed at Stonehenge and the cumbersome insignias worn on their helmets by the various knights) and leads up to a curiously clumsy climax (with an ostensibly unnoticed Ladd conspicuously overhearing the scheming Troughton and Cushing from a secret passage leading right behind the former’s throne; Ladd seemingly taken aback by the aforementioned giant falling to his death in spite of himself from the castle rooftop, not to mention Cushing apparently tripping in his own armor when turning up for the final showdown with the hero)! Actually, this only increases the film’s fun factor and, over fifty years later, one can still understand how this stuff was eagerly lapped up by thrill-seeking schoolboys during their weekly matinees. Incidentally, given Cushing’s reputation as a horror star, it may come as a surprise to some that he appeared in numerous costumers over the years – including THE MAN IN THE IRON MASK (1939), ALEXANDER THE GREAT (1956), JOHN PAUL JONES (1959), SWORD OF SHERWOOD FOREST (1960), THE HELLFIRE CLUB (1961), FURY AT SMUGGLER’S BAY (1961), CAPTAIN CLEGG (1963) and SWORD OF THE VALIANT (1984)!

For what it’s worth, the screenplay involves some notable names – Alec Coppel, future director Bryan Forbes and film noir star Dennis O’Keefe(!) – and its plot of King Arthur vs. The Vikings would come in handy once more that same year in the equally inauthentic but even more popular PRINCE VALIANT. Other distinguished crew members include composer John Addison, cinematographer John Wilcox, art director Vetchinsky and producers Irving Allen and Albert R. Broccoli(!) – this was actually the latter’s third and last picture with Ladd following THE RED BERET (1953) and HELL BELOW ZERO (1954). By the way, THE BLACK KNIGHT itself eventually got remade by Nathan Juran as SIEGE OF THE SAXONS (1963)!


03/29/08: THE BLACK SHIELD OF FALWORTH (Rudolph Mate`, 1954) :star::star::star:

As I am nearing the end of this eclectic but erratic month-long epic film viewing marathon, I have decided to dedicate this Saturday to revisiting my fondly remembered childhood memories of two vintage (but relatively minor) Technicolor swashbucklers which, thankfully, I purposely managed to acquire only recently: one is the latter-day Errol Flynn pirate yarn, AGAINST ALL FLAGS (1952; see below) and the other, naturally, the film under review.

After all these years, THE BLACK SHIELD OF FALWORTH still emerges as the engaging romp I recalled it to be and is, in fact, a superior piece of Hollywood hokum – so much so that it’s quite a mystery to me how the film (which was even Universal’s very first Widescreen picture) is as yet unavailable anywhere on DVD and I have had to make do with a full-frame VHSrip which, in hindsight, is of surprisingly tolerable quality (with only the tell-tale excessive headroom being indicative of the fact that it was shot in a different aspect ratio). In any case, I think it is high time that, like Rock Hudson before him, Tony Curtis be given his own “Franchise Collection” DVD release from Universal which ought to contain (for starters) the equally exotic THE PRINCE WHO WAS A THIEF (1951; his first starring vehicle which was also directed by FALWORTH helmer, Rudolph Mate`), SON OF ALI BABA (1952) and THE PURPLE MASK (1955) – as well as any of the other Universal programmers Curtis starred in before emerging (if only briefly) with an altogether more adult image for Alexander Mackendrick’s superb SWEET SMELL OF SUCCESS (1957).

Anyhow, back to FALWORTH: set in England during the reign of King Henry IV (Ian Keith), Curtis is (albeit unknowingly at first) the son of an unjustly accused and executed aristocrat who, along with his lovely sister (Barbara Rush), embarks on his way to knighthood by joining the men-at-arms school situated in the castle of an old ally of his father’s (Herbert Marshall) and tyrannically overseen by cantankerous but ultimately well-meaning one-eyed warrior (Torin Thatcher). The impressive cast is further bolstered by the appearance of Curtis’ then-wife Janet Leigh (as Marshall’s daughter who, naturally, falls for the uncouth graces of this “county bumpkin”), Dan O’ Herlihy (in a drunken, buffoonish caricature of Prince Hal – later King Henry V – which is merely a front to mislead the traitors within his father’s court), David Farrar (as the villainous Earl of Alban), Patrick O’Neal (as the latter’s brother and Curtis’ chief contender at training school and for the hand of Leigh herself) and Rhys Williams (playing the loyal servant who harbors Curtis and Rush at the beginning of the film).

While some of the plot points got hazier with the passage of time, I still remembered the scenes of Curtis climbing the walls of the castle to go romance Janet Leigh during her afternoon croquet lessons, of Curtis stumbling around upon donning heavy armor for the first time and the exciting climactic jousting duel between Curtis and Farrar; needless to say, I now much preferred the various vivid sequences of training and combat to the bland romantic stuff but, still, I was disappointed that the immortal, much derided line supposedly uttered by Curtis in this film, “Yonda lies da castle of my fodda”, is never actually spoken, resulting in yet another Hollywood legend – a` la ALGIERS (1938; “Come wiz me to the Casbah”) and CASABLANCA (1942; “Play it again, Sam”) – which has, with time, grown to become accepted as fact!


03/29/08: AGAINST ALL FLAGS (George Sherman, 1952) :star::star::star:

By 1945, and after a string of solid WWII propaganda pieces, Errol Flynn’s hold over U.S. box office had started to decline so, in spite of the increased burden of waning looks, he embarked on a series of films pertaining to that genre which had earlier made his name: the swashbuckler. The first of these was a good one actually – ADVENTURES OF DON JUAN (1948) – but it also proved to be his last big-budget Hollywood starring vehicle. The rest of his sword-wielding days were spent wandering all over Europe: in England for KIM (1950), THE MASTER OF BALLANTRAE (1953) and THE DARK AVENGER (1955), in France for ADVENTURES OF CAPTAIN FABIAN (1951) and Italy for the aborted THE STORY OF WILLIAM TELL (1953) and the little-seen CROSSED SWORDS (1954). However, Hollywood did beckon him one last time to his old seafaring ways – albeit for a modestly-budgeted Universal picture rather than a Warner Brothers ‘A’ production to which he had been accustomed when at his peak…

Still, the glorious Technicolor cinematography leaps off the screen here and, while an older and flabbier Flynn may look like the pale shadow of his former self, his red-headed leading lady Maureen O’Hara has a field day as a tomboyish buccaneer leader who deep down craves romance and wants to be treated like a lady. Anthony Quinn was still a few years away from his larger-than-life starring vehicles, so here he is typically seen as the baddie – the pirate captain Roc Brasiliano, a role he attacks with gusto. Like THE BLACK SHIELD OF FALWORTH (1954) – a viewing of which preceded this one – AGAINST ALL FLAGS takes me back to my cherished childhood days of constant TV viewing when vintage Hollywood movies were the order of the day on both the local and neighboring Italian channels.

For all I know, this might well have been the very first pirate movie I’ve ever seen and I cringe at the thought of today’s generation of youngsters supposedly believing that the grossly overblown PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN trilogy is what buccaneering is all about! As I said earlier, AGAINST ALL FLAGS might not be the finest pirate yarn ever brought to the screen but it’s a solid example of this prolific genre all the same. Nowadays, the amorous persistence of the child-like Indian princess (Alice Kelley) towards her pirate captor Flynn may strike one as being awfully silly but the rest of it – despite clearly not scaling the heights of THE SEA HAWK (1940) and THE BLACK SWAN (1942), to mention the finest seafaring ventures of its respective stars – is briskly paced and reasonably engaging. Incidentally, the film would later go on to be remade as THE KING’S PIRATE (1967) with Doug McClure!

For what it’s worth, the unprecedented box office success of that unappetizing modern franchise is most probably what induced reluctant movie studios to dust off their catalogue swashbuckling titles and release them on DVD and, as a matter of fact, AGAINST ALL FLAGS itself was the one gem in a poorly-thought out “Pirates Of The Golden Age Movie Collection” set from Universal which also consisted of obscure dross like BUCCANEER’S GIRL (1950; with Yvonne De Carlo), DOULE CROSSBONES (1951; with Donald O’Connor) and YANKEE BUCCANEER (1952; with Jeff Chandler)! Value for money, perhaps but, so far, I have only acquired the Errol Flynn flick from other sources; even so, if the mood strikes me in future, I might wish to lay my hands on similar marine adventures like Edward Dmytyk’s MUTINY (1952), the afore-mentioned YANKEE BUCCANEER and PIRATES OF TORTUGA (1961).

 

[JohnRice]

24) The Assassination of Jesse James... (2007) - :star::star::star::star:
Perceptions are interesting. I read over and over how this film still glorifies James, though less than previous ones, and what a sleazy scumbag Ford is. To me, James comes across as the charismatic, repugnant individual he most likely was, and the type of person I have learned to avoid like the plague. Little more than a bullying, intimidating punk who not only believes he is entitled to commit the crimes he does, but that others should admire him for them. Ford is just someone who gets pushed around alot and has delusions of grandeur.

I admire the deliberate nature of this film, but in the end I think it is just too long. It really doesn't need almost 160 minutes to get the story and mood across. I also tend to think people take the full film title too literally. I sense more than a slight irony to it.

 

[PatW]

Atonement (2007) :star: :star: :star: :star: :star:


I agree with what both Adam and John have posted about this film. I really have nothing much to add other than it is one of the most heartbreaking stories that I've seen. Excellent film and my favourite from 2007.


Love at the Time of Cholera (2007) :star: :star: 1/2

The look of the film was magnificent, like at painting, but I find the characters in the movie unengaging and flat. I did not feel the passion of this love story and was frankly repulsed by some of the characters. Sorry to those that loved this film, but the story did nothing for me.

 

[SteveGon]

I don't have any more films queued up for this challenge, so these two will finish me off:


Rome Against Rome (1964)

Viewed 3/28/2008 (first viewing)

A rebel leader and mystic raises the dead bodies of massacred Roman soldiers to do his bidding, mainly, destroy the Roman Empire! Can a lone centurion defeat him and get the lovely slave girl? Cheesy tale mixes zombies with swords and sandals to not-so-great effect. John Drew Barrymore stars!

And I told you I'd weasel a zombie flick in here! Ha ha ha ha ha!!!!!

:star: :star: out of :star: :star: :star: :star:


Berlin Alexanderplatz (1980)

Viewed 3/2008

Rainer Werner Fassbinder's massive epic chronicles the life of one Franz Biberkopf, an ex-con trying to survive in Weimar-era Germany. Constantly looking for work, a woman to love, and friends he can trust, will he find a place for himself in this struggling society? Beautifully-filmed, but at fifteen hours it does run a bit long in the tooth. Some episodes are more involving then others; the surreal epilogue is full bore Fassbinder. Overall an impressive achievement.

:star: :star: :star: 1/2 out of :star: :star: :star: :star:

 

[SteveGon]

My list:

Aguirre, The Wrath of God ****
Angels and Insects ***1/2
The Assassination of Jesse James By the Coward Robert Ford ***
Atonement ***
Berlin Alexanderplatz ***1/2
1860 ***
Gettysburg ***1/2
Hiroshima ***
The Lady and the Duke ***
Love in the Time of Cholera ***
Mansfield Park ***
Maria Marten ***
The Naked Prey ***1/2
The Other Conquest ***
Regeneration ***
Rome Against Rome **
The Round-Up ***1/2
Sharpe's Rifles ***
Troy ***


19 films in all, with three revisits.

 

[Malcolm R]

Decided to crack the shrink wrap on my Herzog-Kinski box set that's been on my shelf for years, and was quite pleased I finally did:

AGUIRRE, THE WRATH OF GOD (1972) :star::star::star:1/2

Kinski as the mutinous titular character, seizing control of a Spanish quest into the Amazon to search for the fabled gold city of El Dorado. For someone who has watched countless kinetic, CGI-fest, action pics over the years, Herzog is like a breath of fresh air. He really understands film is a visual medium and allows the camera to linger over a scene, sometimes for nearly unbearable lengths of time. This allows the viewer to really be immersed in the story and setting, with time to take in everything about the scene from not only the acting and dialogue, but also the location and surroundings.

Many modern moviegoers might complain about the slow pace, but it really works for this film and is probably actually necessary to fully illustrate the journey that was perilous and pain-staking at best, which then slowly descends into madness and futility. The opening shot of the caravan descending the mountain was not only breathtaking, but foreshadows the psychological descent that follows. The fact that Herzog reportedly did not plan a single shot, but just framed and shot every scene spontaneously while on locaiton, is a testament to his directorial gift.

COBRA VERDE (1987) :star::star::star:

Kinski and Herzog meet for the last time in another story of one man's descent into madness set during the 19th Century African slave trade. Kinski is Francisco Manoel da Silva, a.k.a. Cobra Verde, a much-feared outlaw who comes to be employed on the plantation of a Brazilian sugar baron. During his short employment, Verde manages to impregnate all three of the baron's daughters, so the father seeks his revenge. But rather than kill him outright, a plot is hatched to send him to Africa to negotiate sales of slaves from the demented King Bossa, who has murdered every white man sent to his kingdom in the past decade. Verde manages to escape from the King before he can be put to death and trains a rebel force to depose the monarch.

However, he soon finds that one King is as bad as the next and quickly falls out of favor with the new monarch, while his contacts back home continue to doublecross him as they never had any intention of him succeeding in his task in the first place. As alliances crumble all around him, Verde's mental break is complete as he's "chased" by a crippled boy down the beach as he tries desperately to escape the madness that has enveloped him.

Not as iconic, perhaps, as Aguirre, this film is still quite an achievement in filmmaking from the opening scenes of drought and devastation in the South American deserts, to the heartbreaking scenes of slavery and their treatment, to the finale of crippled slaves signifying the crippling effects of slavery on the continent, as well as on humanity itself. Kinski & Herzog may have had a stormy and troubled relationship, but it resulted in some wonderful moviemaking.

I think I might watch Nosferatu later tonight (after it gets dark).

 

[Malcolm R]

NOSFERATU: PHANTOM DER NACHT (1979) :star::star::star::star:

Another visually stunning film from Werner Herzog as he takes on Bram Stoker's Dracula tale. He takes the vampire's look from Murnau's 1922 Nosferatu, but by and large it's an original take on the vampire tale and may now be my favorite "serious" vampire film.

As with the prior two Herzog films I watched (and probably with most of his films I haven't yet seen), he really lets the film breathe, letting the visuals and landscapes linger on-screen to create an atmosphere that practically becomes a character on its own. Harker's journey to Castle Dracula was especially stunning, with the bleak, yet beautiful, countryside and the gathering dark storm clouds signifying Harker's transition from his safe, colorful world, into the darker, foreboding, and even pitiful world of Dracula.

Kinski is amazing as the Count. Seemingly a huge departure for him, to play the character with movements so methodical and deliberate, speaking softly, slinking in and out of rooms as if he barely exists at all, from his other roles I've seen that fairly burst with energy and emotion, on the verge of rage barely contained (and sometimes not). Definitely a different take on the usual vampires of film, most of which seem to be snarling, shrieking, and crashing through doors and windows (I just watched "30 Days of Night," so perhaps that's coloring my recollection a bit ). Even the Count's death scene was refreshingly subtle. The sun alights on his form and he convulses and curls into a ball on the floor. No melting flesh. No spontaneous combustion or explosions. (Though I was a but confused whether the Count was dead at that point, or just trapped and blinded to be finished off by Van Helsing's stake?)

Some may find this version rather slow and ponderous, but if you're truly taking in the whole of the visual feast served up by Werner Herzog, you shouldn't have time to be bored. My only regrets were some of the casting choices. I found Renfield endlessly annoying (though that may just be the character itself, rather than the actor), and I didn't think the actors portraying Harker or Van Helsing really had any kind of screen presence.

 

[PatW]

The Strange Woman (1946) :star: :star: 1/2

Uneven melodrama about a beautiful young woman who can manipulate men into doing exactly what she wants. First she manipulates herself into a marriage with a wealthy older man and then having had past history with the son, renews an interest in him, and when George Sanders comes along she casts her eye towards him. Well you get the drift. They spent the whole movie building this woman up to being a sociopath and then they cast her in a sympathetic light at the end. Still the movie was watchable.

 

[PatW]

Well that's it for me. I enjoyed participating but unfortunately didn't see some of the movies I had planned for this challenge.

Total movies watched - 41

New movies watched - 23

Favourite movie in this challenge - Atonement followed closely by
A Man For All Seasons


Historical Drama/Epic Challenge - 41 watched

1st. time viewings in bold; reviews out of 5 stars

3/1 The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964) :star: :star: :star: 1/2
3/1 Mountains of the Moon (1990) :star: :star: :star: :star: 1/2
3/2 Green Dolphin Street (1947) :star: :star: :star: 1/2
3/3 Pride and Prejudice (2005) :star: :star: :star: :star: 1/2
3/3 Becoming Jane (2007) :star: :star: 1/2
3/4 Aviator (2004) :star: :star: :star: :star:
3/5 Captain Kidd (1945) :star: :star: :star:
3/5 Goya's Ghosts (2006) :star: :star: :star:
3/6 Beowulf & Grendel (2005) :star: :star: :star: :star:
3/6 Emma (1996) :star: :star: :star: 1/2
3/7 Finding Neverland (2004) :star: :star: :star: :star: 1/2
3/7 The Right Stuff (2004) :star: :star: :star: :star:
3/8 A Man For All Seasons (1965) :star: :star: :star: :star: :star:
3/8 Khartoum (1966) :star: :star: :star: :star:
3/9 Tea with Mussolini (1999) :star: :star: :star: 1/2
3/9 Vanity Fair ( 2004) :star: :star: :star: 1/2
3/10 The Assassination of Jessie James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007) :star: :star: :star: :star: 1/2
3/10 The Prestige (2006) :star: :star: :star: :star: 1/2
3/10 The Romance of Rosy Ridge (1947) :star: :star: :star: 1/2
3/11 Immortal Beloved (1994) :star: :star: :star: :star:
3/12 The Colossus of Rhodes (1961) :star: :star: :star:
3/14 Amistad (1997) :star: :star: :star: 1/2
3/14 Marie Antoinette ( 1938) :star: :star: :star: :star:
3/15 Braveheart (1995) :star: :star: :star: :star:
3/16 Rio Grande (1950) :star: :star: 1/2
3/16 Man in the Iron Mask (1998) :star: :star: :star: 1/2
3/16 The Pony Soldier (1952) :star: 1/2
3/17 Vera Drake (2004) :star: :star: :star: :star:
3/18 The Last Legion (2007) :star: :star: 1/2
3/18 Stage Beauty (2004) :star: :star: :star: :star: 1/2
3/19 Silk (2007) :star: :star:
3/19 Secret Garden (1993) :star: :star: :star: :star: 1/2
3/20 Comancheros (1961) :star: :star: :star: 1/2
3/20 Kingdom of Heaven (2005) :star: :star: :star: :star:
3/21 Quest for Fire (1981) :star: :star: :star: :star:
3/23 Gallipoli (1981) :star: :star: :star: :star: 1/2
3/27 Damn the Defiant (1962) :star: :star: :star: :star: 1/2
3/28 Atonement (2007) :star: :star: :star: :star: :star:
3/28 The Saddest Music in the World (2003) :star: :star: :star: :star: 1/2
3/30 Love at the Time of Cholera (2007) :star: :star: 1/2
3/31 The Strange Woman (1946) :star: :star: :star:

 

[Chucky P]

Final Total

First Time Viewings In BOLD
March 3
1. Doctor Zhivago (1965) (4.5/5)
2. Yojimbo (1961) (5/5)
March 8
3. The Sign of the Cross (1932) (3.5/5)
4. The Crusades (1935) (3/5)
March 16
5. Sanjuro (1962) (5/5)
6. A Fistfull Of Dollars (1964) (4/5)
March 17
7. For a Few Dollars More (1965) 4.5/5
March 22
8. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966) (5/5)
March 23
9. The Great Escape (1963) (5/5)
March 27
10. Once Upon a Time in the West (1968) (5/5)
March 29
11. Duck, You Sucker (1971) (4.5/5)
March 30
12. Becket (1964) (5/5)
March 31
13. The Lion In Winter (1968) (5/5)

 

[Malcolm R]

GINGER SNAPS BACK: The Beginning (2004) :star::star:1/2

Sisters Ginger (Katherine Isabelle) and Brigette (Emily Perkins) are making their way across the wilds of Canada in late Fall 1815 when they seek shelter at the westernmost fortress of the Northern Legion Trading Company. The men of the fort are in desperate straits as they running low on supplies as the winter approaches and the group of men who make the journey east to sell furs and bring back winter supplies have not yet returned. To make matters worse, the for is under attack by what the local natives refer to as Wendigo. The sisters become enveloped in the group's struggle for survival against the weather, their lack of supplies, and the beasts which attack each night.

Great scenery and setting for the film, but the story is pretty weak (there's no real explanation why the sisters are traveling alone through the deep woods, nor why the werewolves, if they really are shapeshifters, do not trick their way into the fort in daylight when in human form). Also, the werewolf effects aren't that convincing, most likely to the low budget nature of the film, necessitating quick editing with only fleeting glimpses of the beasts. Still, it's a decent genre film and has some good performances from Isabelle and Perkins (who have displayed convincing sisterly bond through the GS trilogy), as well as a small role for Brendan Fletcher who is always fun to watch.

**************

After a quick start, I kind of got bogged down in the latter half of the month and managed to just squeak by with 13. The most disappointing was the very first film, "The Portrait of a Lady." Best new finds were the Herzog/Kinski films, with honorable mentions to "Nicholas Nickleby" and "Being Julia." My final tally:

Five-star rating; first viewings in BOLD.

1. The Portrait of a Lady (1996) :star::star:
2. The Good, the Bad & the Ugly (1966) :star::star::star:
3. Nicholas Nickleby (2002) :star::star::star::star:
4. The Longest Day (1962) :star::star::star:
5. Giant (1956) :star::star::star:1/2
6. Being Julia (2004) :star::star::star::star:
7. U-571 (2000) :star::star::star:1/2
8. Glory (2000) :star::star::star::star:1/2
9. The Lion in Winter (1968) :star::star::star:1/2
10. Aguirre, the Wrath of God (1972) :star::star::star:1/2
11. Cobra Verde (1988) :star::star::star:
12. Nosferatu: Phantom der Nacht (1979) :star::star::star::star:
13. Ginger Snaps Back: The Beginning (2004) :star::star:1/2