Cinema Retro has received the following press release from Kino Classics:

Groundbreaking Adaptation of the Jules Verne Classic Novel and "The First Submarine Photoplay Ever Filmed"

Available on Blu-ray and DVD July 28, 2020

Includes audio commentary by film historian Anthony Slide and musical score by Orlando Perez Rosso

"Fans of the Silent Era will appreciate this impressive 4K restoration via the Kino Blu-ray. I loved stepping back and time over 100-years to enjoy this adventure. I hope you get the same pleasure." -- Gary Tooze, DVDBeaver

New York, NY -- July 6, 2020 -- Kino Classics proudly announces the Blu-ray and DVD release of the landmark 1916 silent version of Jules Verne's classic novel, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, in a stunning new 4K restoration conducted by Universal Pictures, with restoration from the 35mm nitrate print provided by UCLA Film & Television Archive and restoration services provided by NBCUniversal StudioPost.

Directed by Stuart Paton and produced by Universal Pictures, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea was a groundbreaking production for its time, gaining much acclaim for its pioneering use of the underwater photography process developed by Ernest and George Williamson, making it one of the big-budget special effects epics of its day and a screen classic that has endured over the last century since it was first released.

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea will become available on Blu-ray and DVD July 28, with a SRP of $29.95 for the Blu-ray and $19.95 for the DVD. This Kino Classics edition includes a musical score by Orlando Perez Rosso, and features an insightful audio commentary by noted silent film historian Anthony Slide.

Synopsis:

Stuart Paton's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1916) is an epic retelling of Jules Verne's classic novel, shot on location in the Bahaman Islands. Allen Holubar stars as the domineering Captain Nemo, who rescues the passengers of an American naval vessel after ramming them with his ironclad, steampunk submarine, The Nautilus. Incorporating material from Verne's The Mysterious Island, the film also follows the adventures of a group of Civil War soldiers whose hot-air balloon crash-lands on an exotic island, where they encounter the untamed "Child of Nature" (Jane Gail).

Calling itself "The First Submarine Photoplay Ever Filmed," the film is highlighted by stunning underwater photography (engineered by Ernest and George Williamson), including an underwater funeral and a diver's battle with a giant cephalopod. In honor of the film's extraordinary technical and artistic achievement, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea was added to the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress.

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1916)

Blu-ray and DVD Street Date: July 28, 2020

Director: Stuart Paton

Starring: Allen Holubar, Matt Moore, Edna Pendleton, Jane Gail, Howard Crampton

Produced by the Universal Film Mfg. Co.

Musical Score by Orlando Perez Rosso

Special Features:

Audio Commentary by Film Historian Anthony Slide

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BY FRED BLOSSER

Universal Pictures released three horror films about Paula Dupree, the Ape Woman, as it attempted to refresh its aging portfolio of monster series in the early 1940s. “Captive Wild Woman” debuted in 1943, followed by two sequels, “Jungle Woman” (1944) and “Jungle Captive” (1945). Paula Dupree never made a lasting impact on popular culture as other Universal horror characters did, coming too late in the studio’s 15-year horror run to gain much traction. By 1945, when “Jungle Captive” was dumped onto a double-bill with “The Frozen Ghost,” the cycle was on its last gasp. There was never an Aurora scale-model kit for the Ape Woman in the mid-1960s as there were for the studio’s more famous monsters, and nary a word about Paula when Universal started making noises a few years ago about reviving its trademarked monsters for a new “Dark Universe” film franchise. The “Dark Universe” concept has since tanked. Maybe they should have thought about the Ape Woman. At any rate, even if Paula never made much of a stir in the public imagination at large, she was seriously creepy and unforgettable for us impressionable kids who saw the trilogy on late-night “Shock Watch” TV packages in 1961. Now, Scream Factory has released the Ape Woman series in a new Blu-ray set, “Universal Horror Collection: Volume 5,” its fifth licensed compilation of vintage Universal horror and thriller films. “The Monster and the Girl,” also in the package, is an unrelated 1941 Columbia Pictures melodrama that shares the theme of a killer ape with vengeful human emotions in a noirish 1940s setting. It’s an unexpected fit with the other three pictures, but a good one.

“Captive Wild Woman,” directed by Edward Dmytryk, introduces Paula. Big-game trapper Fred Mason (Milburn Stone) returns from Africa with new lions for the John Whipple Circus. His prize find, though, is a friendly female gorilla, Cheela. A demented but outwardly urbane medical scientist, Dr. Sigmund Walters (the inimitable John Carradine), meets Fred and Cheela through Fred’s fiancee, Beth (Evelyn Ankers), whose sister he is treating for a hormonal disorder in his isolated clinic, the Crestview Sanitarium. Fred proposes to become Cheela’s personal trainer, but the gorilla mysteriously disappears -- stolen by Dr. Walters, who sees unusual potential in the ape’s high level of intelligence. Using hormones from Beth’s sister Dorothy (Martha MacVicar, who later changed her screen name to Martha Vickers) and human brain tissue from another unwilling donor, Dr. Walters secretly transforms Cheela from gorilla into human as a beautiful brunette, whom he calls Paula Dupree (Acquanetta). When Paula saves Fred from an attacking lion by giving the lion her Cheela stare, Fred decides that her uncanny ability would be an asset in his act, having no clue that Paula was once Cheela. It doesn’t hurt her chances in show biz, either, that she looks gorgeous in a sparkly, short-skirted circus outfit. But Paula remembers Cheela’s fondness for Fred, and when she becomes jealous of Beth, her anthropoid tendencies return and she reverts partway to gorilla form.

Undiscriminating audiences in 1943 may not have thought much about the film’s ping-pong between the John Whipple Circus and Crestview Sanitarium. B-movie escapism was B-movie escapism. Nor would they have been bothered by Fred Mason’s lion-taming techniques, which would now fall within PETA’s definition of animal cruelty. As a cost-saving measure, those scenes were recycled from “The Big Cage,” a 1932 Universal production starring Clyde Beatty. For the new footage of Fred in close-up, Milburn Stone’s hair was styled to make him look, not very convincingly, like Beatty. It takes an awfully long time before the Ape Woman actually appears, 45 minutes into the picture’s thrifty 61-minute running time. When she does, it’s in an effective time-lapse scene, Mr. Hyde or Wolf Man style, in which the beautiful Paula grows fangs, develops leathery skin, and finds her hairdo stiffening into a gorilla bouffant. The wonderful Jack P. Pierce makeup almost redeems the delay in bringing the character on stage. The Ape Woman immediately claims a victim in a nighttime home-invasion and murder, reminiscent of the linchpin horror scene featuring Erik the Ape in Universal’s 1932 Bela Lugosi thriller, “Murders in the Rue Morgue.” The aftermath of the killing sets up the crowning scene of the film for John Carradine, when Dr. Walters berates the monster for her indiscretion: “They’ll put you on trial, throw question after question at you,” the great Carradine storms. “You won’t know what anyone’s saying.” The actor delivers the lines with all the sincerity and intensity of a soliloquy from “Macbeth.” Since Paula is still in full Ape Woman mode, the disconnect between what Walters is saying and who he’s saying it to is sublimely surreal. You may not even have to be a fan with warm, half-century-old memories of “Shock Watch” to enjoy “Captive Wild Woman” on those terms.

“Jungle Woman” starts off well with an attack by a half-human figure shown entirely and impressionistically in shadow, but it suffers from the problems often inherent in sequels. Paula Dupree (Acquanetta) comes under the care of kindly Dr. Carl Fletcher (J. Carroll Naish) through circumstances that allow director Reginald LeBorg to reuse footage from “Captive Wild Woman,” including scenes already recycled from “The Big Cage.” This front-loading of familiar footage, combined with a framing story of Dr. Fletcher testifying before a coroner’s jury on a murder charge, gets the story off to a lethargic start after the promising opening scene. Milburn Stone and Evelyn Ankers, returning as Fred and Beth, have more screen time in the recycled footage than they have in LeBorg’s new footage, as witnesses at the coroner’s hearing. As in “Captive Wild Woman,” Paula reverts to murderous Ape Woman form when she becomes jealous of Dr. Fletcher’s daughter Joan (Lois Collier) over the affections of Joan’s fiancee Bob (Richard Davis). “Jungle Woman” shares a 61-minute running time with “Captive Wild Woman,” but it seems a much longer movie.

BY LEE PFEIFFER

It may be hard to believe in our era of sweeping worldwide populist movements, but there was a time when movie-goers adored fairy tale-like comedies centered on the impossibly rich. The genre made it possible for an entire generation of British actors and actresses to shine and few had shone so brightly as Rex Harrison, who was seemingly born with a crystal wine goblet in his hand. Harrison and his wife at the time, acclaimed comedy star Kay Kendall, top-line director Vincente Minnelli's 1958 film adaption of playwright William Douglas Home's hit Broadway farce "The Reluctant Debutante", retaining Home's services to write the screenplay. The film is veddy, veddy British in tone and style to the extent that non-Brits may find some of the dialogue, delivered with machine gun rapidity, hard to decipher. Ironically, this most British of stories was shot in Paris due to Harrison's status at the time as a tax exile. Reviewing the film in the New York Times, A.H. Weiler described it as "thin and boneless but nonetheless giddy and diverting." That description remains apt, though the movie is dated in style and content.

Harrison and Kendall play Jim and Sheila Broadbent, better known as Lord and Lady Broadbent, who are nervously awaiting the arrival from America of 17 year-old Jane (Sandra Dee), Jim's daughter from a previous marriage, who is making her first trip to London to meet her new stepmother. Jane has been invited by Sheila to arrive in "The Season", a term used by the lifted pinky crowd to describe the time of year when young women are formally introduced to society through an elaborate Cinderella-like ball that each family must hold. Jane, whose American background and upbringing is at odds with such pretentious spectacles, is a reluctant participant but she gets on with Sheila so well that she goes through the motions of being enthused about fitting in with the snobs who are now surrounding her. Sheila wants to match her with David Fenner (an amusing Peter Myers), who holds a revered position as a member of the Queen's Horse Guards. The fact that he's an obnoxious lecher doesn't matter because he's well-connected. However, Jane rebuffs his crude advances and finds herself falling for another American, David Parkson (John Saxon), who is a humble drummer in an orchestra that performs at some of the balls. Sheila is appalled that she has eyes for a commoner but her father is more accepting, as he finds he likes the young man's unpretentious nature. In such fables, there's little doubt who Jane will end up with, but there are some amusing moments as the film gravitates towards the inevitable.

Director Minnelli has kept true to the production's origins as a play, eschewing any exteriors except for some brief second unit footage over the opening credits. This strategy tends to wear thin, however, as it becomes a bit monotonous watching the same characters saunter through the same rooms, opening bottles of wine and champagne, surreptitiously snooping on young lovers or bickering about love and marriage. The saving grace is the fine cast with Harrison and Kendall in top form, the former always cool and collected and the latter in a constant state of panic. (Tragically, Kendall would pass away the following year from cancer.) Angela Lansbury pops up briefly in an amusing role as a nosy, intrusive matchmaker. In films of this type, everyone seems older on screen than they were  in real life, partly because of the styles and social customs of the era. Kay Kendall was only 32 at the time of filming and Sandra Dee, astonishingly, was going on 15 years-old. Although the movie was probably a bit edgy for a comedy in 1958 because of its watered-down references to premarital sex, it's rather disturbing to realize that a young woman's character was primarily defined by her ability to remain a virgin while young men were given free rein to "play the field".

The movie isn't quite a top notch comedy but it's consistently pleasurable enough to merit viewing, even if the protagonists engage in the kind of elitist behavior that inspired the peasants to storm the Bastille. The Warner Archive region-free Blu-ray looks terrific and does justice to the opulent production values that are presented during the grand ball scenes. The original trailer is also included.

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

The life and career of Burt Lancaster are covered in the 1996 documentary "Burt Lancaster: Daring to Reach", which originally aired on the American TV network A&E. Lancaster had died in 1994 so the show was a timely look at the man and his career while his passing was still fresh in the minds of moviegoers. The  program consists of interviews with some of the screen legend's co-stars and colleagues including actresses Rhonda Fleming, Terry Moore and Virginia Mayo, James Hill, who partnered with Lancaster and Harold Hecht in their initially successful production company, directors Sydney Pollack and Ted Post and actors Earl Holliman and Peter Riegert. There are also insights from biographer Gary Fishgall. Directed by Gene Feldman and Suzette Winter, the documentary is a no-frills affair consisting mostly of talking heads and film clips, mostly comprised of well-worn footage from public domain trailers, though some apparently licensed film snippets also appear. The show also presents occasional audio excerpts from a late-in-life interview with Lancaster, who is refreshingly humorous about his human frailties, admitting that he was headstrong and bossy to the point of directing his directors. The 50-minute running time allows ample opportunity for the participants to present the basics of Lancaster's humble New York upbringing to his early life as a performer in the circus, his lifelong friendship with boyhood pal and fellow trapeze artist Nick Cravat (discussed by Cravat's daughter Tina) and the formation of Hecht-Hill-Lancaster, the production company that allowed Lancaster to call his own shots in terms of his career. The company also produced the Oscar-winner "Marty" before going broke in 1959 after funding a number of fine films that nonetheless failed to gel with the public. While Lancaster's colleagues lavish praise on his professionalism and acting ability, as well as his willingness to appear in worthy non-commercial films, they also acknowledge his could be difficult to work with due to his stubborn personality. Earl Holliman recalls working on "Gunfight at the O.K. Corral" with Lancaster and Kirk Douglas and noticed how the two old friends and frequent co-stars bickered endlessly as well as tried to instruct each other about acting techniques.

The documentary reinforces the fact that Lancaster had an extremely interesting career that allowed him to play a widely diverse assortment of characters. Even in his later years, he made his age an attribute, delivering marvelous performances in "Atlantic City", "Local Hero" and "Field of Dreams". His work continues to resonate today. Lancaster fans will find this documentary an interesting and rewarding experience.

(Available for streaming on Amazon Prime. Subscribers can view it for free but it is also available for streaming rental or purchase.)

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Cinema Retro has received the following press release from Kino Classics:

New York, NY -- July 9, 2020 -- Kino Classics is proud to announce the Blu-ray and DVD releases of two pioneering films in the history of Queer cinema: Reinhold Schünzel's dazzling romantic musical Victor and Victoria (1933), and Leontine Sagan's landmark of lesbian cinema Mädchen in Uniform (1931). Both films have been restored by the Friedrich-Wilhelm-Murnau-Stiftung.

Kino Lorber released both of these important films (along with Carl Theodor Dreyer's 1924 silent classic Michael) as part of the "Pioneers of Queer Cinema" virtual cinema program on Kino Marquee for Pride Month.

Victoria and Victoria (1933) is now available on Blu-ray and DVD. The Blu-ray and DVD feature audio commentary by film historian Gaylyn Studlar.

In this dazzling musical romance, a young woman (Renate Müller), unable to find work as a music hall singer, partners with a down-and-out thespian (Hermann Thimig) to revamp her act. Pretending to be a man performing in drag, Victoria becomes the toast of the international stage. But she soon finds that her playful bending of genders enmeshes her personal and professional life in a tangle of unexpected complications. Produced in the final days of the Weimar Republic, Victor and Victoria received limited exposure in the United States, and is today best known by Blake Edwards’s 1982 remake and the 1995 Broadway production. Viewers will be delighted to discover that the original is every bit as charming and outrageous, reminiscent of the sly sex comedies of Ernst Lubitsch and Billy Wilder.

Directed by Reinhold Schünzel

Starring: Renate Müller, Hermann Thimig, Friedel Pisetta, Fritz Odemar, Aribert Wäscher, Adolf Wohlbrück

Blu-ray and DVD Street Date: Now Available

1933 | Germany | B&W | 99 Min. | Not Rated | 1920x1080p (1.20:1) | German with English subtitles

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Mädchen in Uniform (1931) will be available on Blu-ray and DVD July 14, 2020, and includes audio commentary by film historian Jenni Olson.

As a new student at an all-girls boarding school, Manuela falls in love with the compassionate teacher Fräulein von Bernburg, and her feelings are requited. Experiencing her first love, lonely Manuela also discovers the complexities that come with an illicit romance. This artfully composed landmark of lesbian cinema – and an important anti-fascist film – was the first of just three films directed by Leontine Sagan.

Blu-ray and DVD Street Date: July 14, 2020

Directed by Leontine Sagan and Carl Froelich

Starring Hertha Thiele, Dorothea Wieck, Emilia Unda, Erika Mann, Hedy Krilla

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

From the mid-to-late 1970s, American football was the subject of quite a few high profile Hollywood studio productions. Burt Reynolds starred in two: "The Longest Yard" and "Semi-Tough". There was also "North Dallas Forty" and two similarly-themed thrillers set at the Super Bowl: "Two-Minute Warning" and "Black Sunday". Even Warren Beatty's "Heaven Can Wait" had a tie-in to the sport. The aforementioned "Semi-Tough" has been released on Blu-ray by Kino Lorber. The 1977 production has a lineup of top talent including a script by the estimable Walter Bernstein ("Fail Safe", "The Front"), who adapted Dan Jenkins' bestselling novel. The director was Michael Ritchie, who saw a meteoric rise in stature after once being fired as a director on "The Man from U.N.C.L.E." after arguing over the artistic merits of a single episode. Ritchie was coming off a string of eclectic films including "Downhill Racer", "Prime Cut", "Smile" and "The  Bad News Bears". His acclaimed 1972 satire "The Candidate" is back in the news, as it seems prescient today with its tale of an unqualified aspirant to high political office who succeeds largely because he learned how to be media-savvy. "Semi-Tough", which was a boxoffice hit, boasted three leading actors at the peaks of their careers: Burt Reynolds was arguably the top male movie star in the world, Kris Kristofferson was riding high from the success of "A Star is Born" and Jilly Clayburgh was very much a hot property, having appeared in numerous high profile films.

The plot can be written on the head of pine: Billy Clyde Puckett (Reynolds) and "Shake" Tiller (Kristofferson) are best buds and NFL stars on a (fictitious) Miami team. They live together with Barbara Jane Bookman (Clayburgh), daughter of the team's mercurial owner Big Ed Bookman (Robert Preston). Strangely, while the trio consistently flirt and make sexual references, they live a platonic lilfestyle, largely because Barbara has suffered a string of bad relationships and broken marriages that she is not eager to repeat. Things are going swimmingly until one night, on a drunken impulse, Shake and Barbara break the rules and have sex. The next day they announce their engagement. Although Billy Clyde tries to put on a poker face, he's fighting depression because he realizes he has loved Barbara all along and should have made the first overture to her. Tensions only rise when Shake and Barbara begin to have second thoughts, leaving Billy Clyde tempted to intervene for selfish purposes. The movie has plenty of yucks and presents Reynolds at his best and in full towel-snapping, wise ass mode. He enjoys genuine chemistry with Kristofferson and Clayburgh and there are a wealth of amusing contributions from the fine supporting cast that includes Brian Dennehy in his first noticeable role as a numbskull NFL star who at one points memorably dangles a woman by the ankles from the roof of a hotel. There's also a priceless interlude between Reynolds and Lotte Lenya (in full Rosa Klebb mode) as a sadistic chiropractor.)Refreshingly, this is one 1970s film that doesn't demand nude scenes from its leading lady. Instead, director Ritchie finds numerous excuses for his male leads to doff their tops.

For all the talent involved, however, "Semi-Tough" never amounts to much and seems rather dated today. The concept of a menage-a-trois was already old hat in 1977 and at times the movie begins to resemble "Paint Your Wagon" with some shoulder pads tossed in. Director Ritchie and screenwriter Bernstein almost salvage the proceedings with a sub-plot that satirizes the craze for wacky self-help movements that swept America in the late 1970s. Bert Convy is very funny as  the deadpanned dictator-like leader of a spiritual cleansing movement clearly modeled on EST. The three main characters end up attending a meeting and it's quite amusing to see art imitate life as dozens of well-heeled but naive souls pay money to be insulted and made to listen to pompous lectures, followed by ridiculous physical exercises. However, things go askew in the final scene which finds a chaotic wedding descending into slapstick. The movie never finds a consistent theme. Is it a sex comedy? Is it a social satire? Is it a poignant statement about the shallowness of relationships in the modern era? However, it is fun to spend time with the three leads, who were at top of their game. Sadly, over the next few years, their big screen careers would nosedive as Reynolds and Clayburgh chose unsatisfying films to star in and Kristofferson would find his career among the wreckage of the "Heaven's Gate" financial debacle.

The Kino Lorber presents a fine transfer. Bonus features are limited to a stills gallery and a variety of trailers. Kudos to Kino for retaining the marvelous and politically incorrect poster art by the great Robert McGinnis.

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

Sean Connery fans will be delighted that his 1957 film "Action of the Tiger" finally gets an official video release in America through the new Warner Archive Blu-ray. Although Connery only makes a few fleeting appearances in the movie, it did allow him to work with director Terence Young. The two men would be reunited in 1962 for the first James Bond film, "Dr. No". Young initially opposed the choice of Connery for the role Bond, feeling he was too inexperienced and unsophisticated. However, the two men worked well together and Connery would later credit Young for acting as a mentor and giving him personal instructions about how to properly dress and dine. There's no indication of Connery's future star power in "Action of the Tiger", largely due to his limited screen time, but the film itself is an above-average "B" movie starring Van Johnson, who made the movie under the auspices of his own production company. Johnson, who specialized in playing urbane romantic leads, was obviously trying to toughen up his screen image by taking on the role of Carson, an independent sea captain and adventurer who sails in European waters with his first mate Mike (Sean Connery). Carson is approached by a fetching blonde, Tracy Malvoise (Martine Carol), who offers him a great deal of money to induce him to take her on a dangerous mission: enter Communist Albania to rescue her brother, a political dissident who is being held captive. Initially reluctant, Carson finally agrees, as Carol assures him she has contacts in Albania who will help effect the escape. Mike drops them off on the coast and receives instructions to pick them up again when he sees Carson flash a signal from the shore in a couple of day's time. Things go awry quickly. When they meet Tracy's brother, they discover he has gone blind. Through various plot devices, Carson not only has to guide him back to the ship, but finds he is also taking a group of desperate refugee children. They are being pursued by a brutal security officer played by Anthony Dawson, who would also go on to appear in "Dr. No" as the Spectre agent Professor Dent. Along the way, they are saved by Trifon (Herbert Lom), the larger-than-life leader of a tribe of bandits. However, the price of his benevolence is that Tracy must stay on as his wife.

"Action of the Tiger" is a Cold War thriller based on the novel by James Wellard. The film is consistently entertaining and benefits from some exotic location scenery, mostly filmed in Spain. The film is nicely photographed in CinemaScope by Desmond Dickinson. Terence Young's direction is assured and he handles the action sequences especially well. If there is a weak link in the movie, ironically, it is Van Johnson as the leading man. He's adequate in the role, but he is essentially miscast in a part that would have suited the likes of Humphrey Bogart or Robert Mitchum very well. You can see Johnson straining to emulate the tough guys seen in similarly-themed films and he doesn't entirely pull it off, as I still kept imagining him more comfortable in a designer suit, sipping cocktails at the Waldorf. Martine Carol is quite good as the feisty, courageous catalyst of the adventure, though she is made up to look like a clone of Lana Turner and somehow manages to keep perfectly coiffed even while hiking across deserts and mountains. The scene-stealer is Herbert Lom as the tribal leader. He gives a delightful performance as a likable rogue. Sean Connery's appearances bookend the film and his only notable scene occurs when he tries to drunkenly assault Carol.

The region-free Warner Archive Blu-ray is up to the company's usual high standards, with an outstanding transfer. The release also includes the original trailer, which is amusingly in line with others of the era in that it boasts bombastic graphics and narration. Recommended.

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BY JOHN M. WHALEN

There’s an old axiom often quoted by writers that once you find a winning formula for putting stories together, stick with it. That certainly must have been the case back in the 1940s when the films collected together by Kino Lorber for its “Western Classics I” three disc box set were made. “When the Daltons Rode” (1940), “The Virginian” (1946), and “Whispering Smith” (1948) are all different movies, made by different writers and directors, with different settings, characters and plots, but when all is said and done they all basically tell the same story. Two guys who are pals have their friendship strained when they both fall in love with the same woman. It’s obviously a formula that worked.

In “When the Dalton’s Rode,” Tod Jackson (Randolph Scott) is a lawyer who comes west to set up his practice in Oklahoma, but finds he’s needed more in Kansas where his old friends, the Daltons, live. The Dalton family is having the kind of trouble that homesteaders usually have in these flicks—land grabbers. Tod decides to stay in Kansas and help them out. He and Bob Dalton (Broderick Crawford), especially, were good friends in their younger days, and the romantic triangle in this movie arises from the fact that Bob is engaged now to Julie King (Kay Francis). But when Tod meets her, it’s love at first sight. Tod’s inner conflict between loyalty to Bob and his attraction to Julie is played out against the background story of the Dalton’s fight with the Kansas Land Development Company. Bob, Emmett (Frank Albertson,) Ben (Stuart Erwin), and Grat Dalton (Brian Donleavy) are a wild bunch, and probably responsible for all that grey hair in their Ma’s (Mary Gordon) head. So it’s no surprise when one of the men working for the Land Development Company is accidentally killed in a fight with the Dalton boys and Ben is charged with murder. When they bring him into court for a speedy trial, the movie which had been pretty tame up to now, goes into high gear.

The second half of the film’s 82-minute length is one action sequence after another executed by a team of veteran stuntmen including Eddie Parker and Bob Reeves. There’s a breakout from the courthouse, an attempted lynching, a rescue of Emmett Dalton by Tod on buckboard, and a sequence of the four Daltons stealing a stagecoach, pursued by a posse of about 20 men. The Daltons jump off the front of the coach, unharness the horses pulling the stage and lead the posse on a merry chase. This is followed by several more high action scenes, including the Daltons leaping off a mountainside onto a passing train and later jumping their horses off the moving train. Yakima Canutt shows up in archival footage jumping a horse off a cliff into a river.

Director George Marshall and screenwriter Harold Shumate used Emmett Dalton’s biographical novel as the basis for the film—a book that was considered a complete whitewash of the Daltons—to create what is basically an entertaining B-western that has as very little to do with the actual Dalton gang. Do Randy and Kay find happiness? What do you think?

The Blu-Ray disc bonus features include audio commentary by film historian Toby Roan and the theatrical trailer for the movie. Picture and sound are good. While it’s not a restoration, the black and white photography of Hal Mohr looks clean and textured.

In “The Virginian,” the title character (Joel McCrea), who apparently does not have a real name and Steve Andrews (Sonny Tufts) are best buds, working as cowhands on a cattle ranch in Medicine Bow, Wyo. They’re having a fine old time until Molly Wood (Barbara Britton) arrives by train. She’s the new school teacher and when she sees the Virginian herding some cows off the train tracks, she likes what she sees. But Steve wastes no time moving in and offers to take her luggage to the hotel. While Steve is lugging suitcases. Molly is startled by a Brahma bull, and the Virginian rides to her “rescue.” The two cowboys spend the rest of the movie trying to outmaneuver each other.

In “When the Daltons Rode,” the main complication was the battle between the Daltons and the Land Development Company. Here instead of land grabbing, the problem is cattle rustling. Cattle have been disappearing off the ranches around Medicine Bow and the Virginian suspects a man named Trampas (Brian Donleavy) is the one behind it all. Well, why wouldn’t he? He not only wears a black hat, he dresses in black from head to foot. The Virginian’s also a bit suspicious of his friend Steve who lately seems a bit too friendly with the man in black. The plot draws these lines of tension to a final confrontation when The Virginian must choose between friendship and adherence to the Code of the West and possibly losing Molly’s affections. The penalty for rustling is hanging.

This is the movie where Trampas calls the Virginian a name and the Virginian draws his gun and tells him “Smile when you call me that.” To which Trampas replies: “With a gun against my belly, I always smile.” Personally I thought it sounded better when Gary Cooper said it to Walter Huston in the 1929 version made by Victor Fleming, but McCrea and Donleavy aren’t bad. “The Virginian” has been filmed at least five times, going all the way back to a silent version in 1914 by Cecil B. DeMille, starring Dustin Farnum. Based on a classic western novel by Owen Wister, The Virginian was made into a TV series in the 1960s, which is still running today on cable.

Kino Lorber’s Blu-Ray of “The Virginian” is very good in terms of picture and sound, with colors bright and details sharp and clear. An audio commentary by author/film historian Lee Gambin and actress/film historian Rutanya Alda is provided on a separate soundtrack. The theatrical trailer is also provided.

By Hank Reineke

There are times I wish my failing memory could serve me better, and here’s one example. I have a vague memory of staying up one night – circa 1980, I guess - to catch Roger Moore on one of those late night talk-shows. I was a huge James Bond fan and, as such, always desperate to mine any news, no matter how trivial, on any upcoming oo7 adventure. This was, of course, in the pre-internet era when insider information was relatively scarce outside of a morsel or two shared in fanzine or with a subscription to Variety. (As an aside, today I often wish there was less information available when a film is still in still production). In any event, don’t recall if Moore shared any information that night on the next scheduled Bond opus For Your Eyes Only (1981). I do clearly recall him discussing Andrew V. McLaglen’s ffolkes (better known in the United Kingdom, where the film was originally released, as North Sea Hijack).

In this new suspense-thriller Moore shared he would co-star with actors James Mason and Anthony Perkins. That night Moore attempted a small joke, first noting – factually - that the film was based on a Jack Davies novel titled Esther, Ruth and Jennifer. He explained that Universal had – perhaps understandably - balked on putting the film out under that title. This original title was, to be fair, a film publicist’s nightmare. The former Saint reasoned (and I’m paraphrasing here), “Could anyone imagine the promotional posters and newspaper advertisements: “Roger Moore, James Mason and Anthony Perkins in Esther, Ruth and Jennifer?” Well, Moore’s joke got a laugh that night, anyway. Decades later Moore would recall in his memoir that Universal actually balked as they thought the original Davies title sounded “too biblical.” Moore, never one to waste a punchline, would recall in his memoir, “I’ve yet to come across a Jennifer in the Bible.”

Whether you prefer the title ffolkes or North Sea Hijack, the story was, as discussed, based on the Davies’ novel Esther, Ruth and Jennifer (W.H. Allen, 1979, UK). Davies was actually somewhat new to novel writing, though his earlier novel involving terrorism, Paper Tiger (W.H. Allen, 1974, UK) was subsequently turned into a film in 1975 film starring David Niven and Toshiro Mifune. Davies seems to have turned to the craft of writing novels in the latter years of his life, though he had been steadily employed as a writer during most of his 80 years. He had churned out dozens upon dozens of screenplays from the mid-1930s through the very end of the 1960s and even a bit beyond that. As a child I was already familiar with two of the slapstick comedies he co-penned, though I certainly wasn’t aware of his contributions at the time. But we of a certain age will certainly recall with fondness Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines (1965) (for which Davies and co-writer Ken Annakin would receive Academy Award nominations) and Those Daring Young Men in their Jaunty Jalopies (1969).

Brought onto the project to direct the ffolkes project was Andrew V. McLaglen who too boasted an impressive resume of directorial duties (having already steered a dizzying amount of television westerns and contributing to such touchstone dramas as Perry Mason). He had grown up immersed in the ways of Hollywood’s film industry. His father, Victor McLaglen, was a celebrated feature film actor, having long been a favorite casting choice for the great John Ford. Indeed, McLaglen, the elder, would go on to win the “Best Actor in a Leading Role” Oscar for Ford’s 1935 film The Informer. McLaglen, the son, would learn nearly every aspect of the trade from an early age, starting out as an actor but finding himself more comfortable on the other side of the camera - often working as a director’s assistant or principal director. Though he had been especially involved in television work in the 1950s through 1965, he decided to try his hand at feature filmmaking. He did so for a decade or more with mostly modest to mixed success.

He returned to television work in the mid-1970s until 1977 when he signed on to direct a number of internationally financed features which would include the three films for which he is probably best remembered, at least among devotees of action films: The Wild Geese (1978), ffolkes (1980) and The Sea Wolves (1980). This trio of old-school filmmaking would, not coincidentally, feature a number of aging Hollywood stars. These were the actors who were no longer the hottest of commodities at the box office but were still well-respected and loved by generations of filmgoers: Richard Burton, Richard Harris, Stewart Granger, James Mason, Anthony Perkins, and Gregory Peck to name a few. The connecting thread to all three of these films was, of course, Roger Moore whose big-screen career had re-blossomed since the 1972 announcement of his being cast as the new James Bond.

Moore’s Rufus Excalibur ffolkes was the antithesis to the womanizing character he was usually tasked to play. An ex-Navy man, the often pompous – and bearded - ffolkes resided in a small castle just off the coast of Scotland, (Ireland, in reality). It was there he would exhaustively train a small hand-chosen band of elite commandos – dubbed “ffolkes fusiliers” – in the art of counter-terrorism. The hard scotch whiskey-drinking ffolkes professed a distinct chauvinistic distaste for woman (there’s an offhanded reference such animosity was the result of a failed marriage). He only expressed warmth, kindness and tenderness to his pet cats to whom he was doting and devoted. He also puzzled several colleagues – as it’s so out of character – when he would, on occasion, pull out a needlework canvas that he allowed he’d been working on for some “seventeen years.” When questioned about his unusual hobby, he coldly responded in his usual misanthropic manner, “It helps me to think… providing people don’t talk to me.”

His services are reluctantly activated when the British government are informed that a band of terrorists, disguised as members of the international press, have taken control of the Esther, a Norwegian supply ship charged with ferrying parts to two deep-sea ports-of-call: the drilling rig Ruth, and the production platform Jennifer, the latter platform of which sits in the North Sea and produces 300,000 barrels of oil for the UK per year. When the Esther reaches its destinations, the terrorists subsequently send in a stealth scuba team to plant limpet mines on the bases of both Ruth and Jennifer. The group’s unhinged leader, Lou Kramer, played with convincing, unpredictable mania by Anthony Perkins, is demanding the government pay him – within twenty-four hours - a ransom of 25 million GBP in five different currencies to not go through with the detonation. The terrorist has assessed that such destruction would bring the economy to the brink of ruin, cause an environmental catastrophe, and in doing so take the lives of some seven hundred men working on the platforms.

BY LEE PFEIFFER

The Warner Archive has released MGM's 1954 costume drama "Beau Brummell" on Blu-ray. The film had previously been made in 1924 starring John Barrymore as the real life 18th century British dandy whose name would go on to become synonymous with charismatic ladies men. The origins of both film versions had been the 1890 play by Clyde Fitch, which proved to be a popular production for actor Richard Mansfield. MGM had announced the film would be made in 1939 starring Robert Donat, but the onset of WWII put the project on hiatus. Plans to revive the film for Donat a few years later also fell through. Meanwhile, Kirk Douglas announced he would play Brummell in a movie titled "Beau" but this never came to fruition, either. Perhaps MGM could have viewed these aborted plans to bring the character back to the big screen as cautionary warnings, but instead the studio spent a bundle on the lavish color production which was filmed entirely in England at a variety of historic locations.

Stewart Granger plays the titular character and provides a delightful performance as a man who is driven by a passion to live a life of luxury and to be the toast of the town, so to speak. Through his charm, sarcastic wit and willingness to take on authoritative figures, he becomes the 18th century version of a pop culture sensation. When we first meet him, he is a respected officer in the British army on his way to an illustrious career. However, he dares to insult the Prince of Wales (Peter Ustinov), a vain, weak and childlike man who retaliates by stripping Brummell of his commission. Now destitute, Brummell and his loyal manservant Mortimer (James Hayter) continue to lives of privilege, even as the debts mount and the creditors threaten. Brummell's social status improves when the Prince unexpectedly reaches out to him and forms a close friendship. From Brummell's standpoint, it is an opportunistic way of making the weak heir-to-the-throne become reliant on his advice and counsel. Through the prince, Brummell becomes enamored of Lady Patricia (Elizabeth Taylor), who is alternately repulsed by his arrogance but also smitten by his self-assured demeanor. Brummell is determined to become her lover, despite the fact that she is engaged to Lord Edwin Mercer (James Donald), who is part of his social circle. Much of the film follows the "will she or won't she?" scenario regarding which man will ultimately prevail: the larger-than-life cad Brummell or the bland but noble-minded Mercer. Ultimately, when the Prince's father, King George III (Robert Morley) is removed from the throne because of mental disabilities, the Prince becomes king. However, a snarky remark by Brummell offends the new sovereign and results in a fracture to their friendship. Excluded from the royal court, Brummell is once again destitute and moves to France where he is stricken by a severe illness. In his final days, he is visited unexpectedly by the king and the two men share a sentimental reconciliation, thus allowing Brummell to die in peace.

"Beau Brummell" was promoted as an epic film by MGM, but aside from some occasionally impressive locations, most of the action unfolds on studio sets. The film was criticized for adhering too stringently to its origins as a stage production. It has also been slighted for being dull, as there are literally no action scenes at all. However, the film does possess plenty of sparkling dialogue, as Brummell dispenses bon mots and double entendres with equal abandon. Yet, it wasn't enough to salvage the production from a dire fate. Even a Royal Command Performance for Queen Elizabeth backfired when Her Majesty told her intimates that she didn't like the movie and, in fact, wrote to Winston Churchill that she resented seeing her ancestors depicted in such a clownish manner. Audiences were disappointed, too. Stewart Granger had found recent success as a man of action on screen in swashbucklers like "Scaramouche" and "The Prisoner of Zenda". Although he cuts a dashing figure as Beau Brummell, his fans didn't want to see him in drawing rooms matching wits with other snobby characters. Elizabeth Taylor, though stunningly beautiful, is largely wasted in an underwritten role and it falls to Peter Ustinov to steal the scenes through his marvelous performance as the manchild ruler of England. The movie has a pedestrian pace and at times it appears it exists to simply showcase the exquisite costumes and production design. It was also mocked for the sentimental ending that allowed for a tearjerker scenario to play out for what much of the story really is- a love story between two men. In fact, Brummell did die in poverty in France but the king never visited him there to reconcile their relationship for the simple fact that he predeceased Brummell by a decade. Despite all these flaws, I found the film to be consistently entertaining.

BY LEE PFEIFFER

The Warner Archive has released the 1965 film adaptation of Agatha Christie's oft-filmed Ten Little Indians.  It's hard to imagine that the scenario of a disparate group of exotic strangers being summoned to a chateau by a mysterious host once seemed like a fresh concept. Certainly, the concept already had moss on it when this film was made. However, there is something timeless and intriguing about such a story line, primarily because it generally affords a star-studded cast to interact. There are no superstars in this European version of the story, but the movie is packed with wonderful actors. This time around, the individuals are invited to an opulent chalet atop a snow-covered mountain top, accessible only by cable car. (The location is never specified, but the exteriors were filmed in Austria and the interiors were shot in Ireland.) The victims-to-be include square-jawed American hero Hugh O'Brian, sexy Brit Shirley Eaton, fresh from making a sensation in Goldfinger, exotic Israeli actress Daliah Lavi, one-time teen idol Fabian, Swiss actor Mario Adorf, German actress Marianne Hoppe and a wonderful array of great British character actors: Wilfred Hyde-White, Leo Genn, Dennis Price and Stanley Holloway. Each of these people has a secret they are hiding and all are accused of being responsible for the death of an innocent person by their unseen "host" Mr. Owen (the voice of an uncredited Christopher Lee). The crisply-photographed B&W production evolves predictably under the competent, if unexciting direction of George Pollock, who had helmed the hit Miss Marple films starring Margaret Rutherford. The film is more serious in tone than those popular mysteries, but there is still a good deal of witty byplay as the diverse people try to find out what secrets their companions are shamefully hiding. The gimmick of murdering them off one by one revolves around the old Ten Little Indians children's rhyme. There are also some decorative figurines of Indian braves that adorn the dining hall and one of them vanishes each time a person is killed. In the time-worn tradition of such thrillers, as the group is reduced in size, they vow to all stay together in the same room. This logical solution to thwarting the murderer among them is dispensed with regularly, as the women saunter off into dark basements and up ominous staircases to investigate strange noises. 

The film is curiously lacking in any genuine suspense, but it's glorious to revel in the sight of some legendary British actors trying to upstage and outwit each other in this deadly cat-and- mouse game. The story is consistently entertaining and the star power is more impressive today than it was back in the day. The climax of the film is surprising, if a bit of a stretch. It's all accompanied by a hip jazz score by Malcolm Lockyer that sometimes seems a too jaunty and upbeat for a tale revolving around serial murders. For sex appeal, O'Brian gets to walk around shirtless while Eaton has two (count 'em, two) opportunities to strip down to her bra and panties, reminding us why her early retirement from the film industry deprived young men of countless unrealized fantasies. 

The Warner Archive region-free DVD is a crisp, clean transfer with only a few minor artifacts evident. There are some nice bonus features including a "Who-dunnit" gimmick that was obviously inserted into some prints of the film before the real murderer is revealed. The angle is worthy of an old William Castle horror flick as bombastic graphics and film clips are used to remind viewers of who was murdered and how they met their demise. The clip challenges them to take this 60 second slot to discuss with other audience members who they feel the culprit is. It's a hokey, but wonderful touch. There are also trailers for this movie and the Miss Marple films, as well. In all, an irresistible treat.  

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

Although Great Britain had emerged as victors in WWII, the aftereffects of the war had an immediate and substantial impact on British society. In addition to massive damage to cities and infrastructure, the necessities of life were in short supply, resulting in an extended period of rationing. Although the population was eager to flock to cinemas as a distraction from the harshness of reality, the British film industry suffered as well. Consequently, the post-war years were largely characterized by low-budget movies often shot in haste with minimal production values. However, necessity proved to be the mother of invention, as some of these Poverty Row productions provided a fertile training ground for estimable talents both in front of and behind the cameras. Kino Lorber has released a much-welcomed second set of such films titled "British Noir II", containing five modestly-budgeted gems.

The films included in the set are:

"The Interrupted Journey" (1949) Directed by Daniel Birt. This micro-budget production opens with John North (Richard Todd) and his mistress Susan Wilding (Christine Nordern), who is also in a strained marriage, sneaking away to take a nighttime train in order to start a new life together. John's wife Valerie (Carol North) has been pushing him to give up his career as a failed writer and to take more conventional employment. Susan is married to Jerves Wilding (Alexander Gauge), an ogre of a man. On board the train, however, John begins to have second thoughts about deserting his loving and loyal wife. When Christine falls asleep, he pulls the train's emergency brake and jumps off near his house. Minutes after returning home, there is a terrible disaster when the train he had been aboard is hit by an oncoming locomotive on the same track. Blaming himself for the resulting carnage and many deaths, John has to keep a poker face even as he and Valerie help tend to victims of the crash. The next morning, an investigator for the railroad (Tom Walls) appears to inform John that he has been linked to Susan, who died in the crash. Shockingly, he informs John that she had been murdered by a gunshot prior to the accident and John's name was mentioned numerous times in her diary. Valerie put two and two together and confronts John about his affair. Meanwhile, he appears to be the prime suspect in Susan's murder. Despite the low production values, this intelligent mystery/thriller works well for most of its running time, thanks to the fine performances. Director Daniel Birt ratchets up the suspense but he is almost undone by a late, bizarre plot twist that is gimmicky and not very believable. When the story gets back on track, John confronts Susan's husband, who he suspects might be behind her murder. As played like a poor man's Sidney Greenstreet, Alexander Gauge overdoes the obnoxious, obese drunk to the point that you expect to reach over and put a lampshade on his head. Despite these flaws, the movie is impressive because of the more intriguing aspects of the script. 

"Time is My Enemy" (1954) Directed by Don Chaffey. Based on the play "Second Chance", the film opens with Barbara Everton (Renee Asherton) living a content life as wife and mother. She was widowed when her scheming, ne're do well husband Martin Radley (Dennis Price), was reported to be killed during the war, though his body was never found. She is now living a life of comfort with her successful husband John (Patrick Barr), as they both dote on their young son. Barbara's dream world turns into a nightmare with the shocking appearance at her house by Martin, who admits to having feigned his death and assumed a new identity. He's now the leader of a band of robbers who are wanted by the police for a bank job that has gone awry, resulting in the death of a security guard. Dennis demands that Barbara give him the sum of 4,000 pounds (ludicrous by today's standards, but a large amount in 1954) so that he can flee the country. If she refuses, he will make it known that he is still alive and that Barbara's marriage to John is invalid, thus making her a tainted woman and afflicting her young son as the product of an unmarried couple. The plot has plenty of surprising twists including another murder and Barbara's frantic attempts to raise the money without divulging the dilemma to her husband. Well-directed by Don Chaffey, who would go on to direct "Jason and the Argonauts", the movie is most compelling when Dennis Price is on screen. He's in the grand tradition of erudite villains who remain polite even as they are threatening someone's life.

"The Vicious Circle"  (aka "The Circle") (1957) Directed by Gerald Thomas. One of the best titles in this collection stars John Mills as Dr. Howard Latimer, a successful physician with an upscale lifestyle who is engaged to beautiful Laura James (Noelle Middleton). However, his life is disrupted when he becomes the key suspect in the murders of two women, both of whom he barely knew. The fine script by Francis Durbridge uses the tried-and-true Hitchcock formula of making the protagonist an innocent swept up into a fantastic and deadly plot that becomes increasingly bizarre as he tries to find out who is framing him and why. It all leads to any number of suspects, false identities and deadly situations. The budget for this film was adequate enough to allow for on location filming in London and director Gerald Thomas takes full advantage of shooting at such sites as the Thames, Cleopatra's Needle and the Embankment, thus giving the production a glossier look than many other "B" movies of the era. John Mills is in excellent form throughout and there are marvelous supporting performances by Ronald Culver as as the dapper, dry-witted police inspector who is closing in on our hero and Wilfred Hyde-White, in full lovable, tweedy character mode as a man of mystery. The film is thoroughly engaging throughout.

"Time Lock" (1957) Directed by Gerald Thomas. Another gem from director Gerald Thomas, this time collaborating with producer Peter Rogers, with whom he would go on to make the classic "Carry On" comedies. "Time Lock" is a tense, believable thriller based on a Canadian TV production written by Arthur Hailey ("Airport"). The film retains the Canadian setting, though it was shot entirely in the UK. Another microbudget production, "Timelock" is arguably the best title in this British film noir collection, even if this particular movie hardly merits being included in the noir genre.The plot is simple: a young couple and their six-year old son are inside a bank where the father works. The young boy wanders into the bank vault and is accidentally locked in. The vault cannot be opened until the timing mechanism is enacted automatically 48 hours from the time of incident. Knowing the boy will suffocate by then, the police, bank manager and a local welding company all work frantically to try to bore through the seemingly impregnable wall, with time slipping quickly away. Ultimately, only one man is deemed to be able to save the day: bank vault security expert Pete Dawson (Robert Beatty), but he is in a remote region on holiday and can't be reached. Director Thomas builds the suspense slowly until it reaches a full boil. The performances are all believable and the film's supporting cast includes young Sean Connery as a welder on the rescue team.

"Cosh Boy" (1953) Directed by Lewis Gilbert. Although virtually unknown in the United States where the film was ridiculously titled "The Slasher" (no one is slashed in the film), this early directorial effort by Lewis Gilbert has won considerable appreciation from UK film critics over the years. It's another claustrophobic production this time dealing with juvenile delinquency. In an outstanding performance, James Kenny plays Roy,  a 16 year-old punk who reigns as a gang leader in a working class neighborhood. He's being raised by a single mom, who he can manipulate at will and turn into an enabler for his abhorrent behavior. Only is grandmother is wise to the fact that behind the innocent demeanor is a sociopath. The film explores how Roy holds sway through bribes and intimidation to ensure that his mates remain his unquestioning servants. He puts on the persona of a gentleman to woo his classmate, Rene (Joan Collins) into dating him but she learns quickly enough that she will pay a terrible price for what she mistook to be a loving relationship. "Cosh Boy" is expertly made, never melodramatic and paints a picture of working class boys in the aftermath of WWII who grew up fatherless due to the war. Director Lewis Gilbert would go on to far more prestigious productions but the seeds were sown in modest films such as this- and his talent is quite evident. (Kino Lorber has released a stand along Blu-ray edition of the film under the title "The Slasher". Click here for review.)

The quality of the prints used for the transfers are all over the place. Most are satisfactory though "The Interrupted Journey" shows a good deal of wear. Of course these were films that were largely neglected over the decades and one must assume that Kino Lorber used the best elements available. The only bonus extras as some trailers. However, one would hope that a Blu-ray upgrade might be on the horizon. If so, it would be appropriate to have commentary tracks accompanying these films primarily to discuss the wealth of young talent that emerged in titles such as these.

"British Noir II" is highly recommended.

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

The 1960 British crime film, "The Criminal", has been released on Blu-ray by Kino Lorber. Despite being burdened with a bland and unimaginative title (it was released as "The Concrete Jungle" in America), the production has many merits, not the least of which is an inspired cast of up-and-coming actors. Directed by Joseph Losey, the film opens in a dank prison where we find Johnny Bannion (Stanley Baker) about to be released on parole after doing a stretch in stir. Johnny is top dog in his cell block and his disarming personality is backed up by brute force when he is challenged. Upon arriving home, he finds his apartment filled with drunken men and willing women, all there to celebrate his return. Johnny doesn't waste any time planning his next caper: an easy robbery of a racetrack. He approaches his well-connected friend Mike Carter (Sam Wanamaker) to use his connections to get backing for the ambitious plan which will be carried out by Johnny and his loyal band of followers who hope to snare a jackpot of 40,000 pounds. He also has to contend with a messy romantic life. Maggie (Jill Bennett), the girlfriend he ditched, is determined to win him back but she is outmaneuvered by the seductive Suzanne (Margit Saad), a continental beauty who has already worked her way under the sheets. Johnny initially resists. He doesn't want any distractions from planning his new caper, but his resistance quickly fades. The robbery itself goes well but in the immediate aftermath there are betrayals and double-crosses as some of Johnny's partners attempt to relieve him of the proceeds. Johnny manages to bury the loot in an open field before he is re-arrested and sent back to the same prison. This time, he finds a hotter reception, with corrupt guards and a crime kingpin threatening his and Maggie's lives if he doesn't disclose where the money is hidden. Johnny makes a deal: in order to have his escaped arranged, he will dig up the money and hand the entire amount over to the kingpin's men, while at the same time taking revenge on those who double-crossed him. 

"The Criminal" is by no means a classic. There are some elements that don't quite jell, for example, the indication that Jill Bennett's character will play a vital role in the film, only to disappear early on. Additionally, the carrying out of the racetrack caper is done in a rather perfunctory manner with virtually no suspense. Also, Johnny makes a seemingly daft decision to bury his suitcase with the proceeds in a vast open field just off a roadway where any passersby could see him. He also never marks the precise spot where it is buried, thus making it rather difficult to ever locate it again. Nevertheless, the real value of the movie is in presenting a gritty, mature look at career criminals and the women who are attracted to them. The film offers some excellent performances led by Stanley Baker and Sam Wanamaker, but there are also impressive turns by Margit Saad's odd-but-fascinating "bad girl"; Patrick Magee as a corrupt prison guard and Gregoire Aslan as the crime lord who still rules his empire from prison. Other soon-to-be-familiar faces include Rupert Davies, Patrick Wymark, Nigel Green, Edward Judd, Murray Melvin, Laurence Naismith and Paul Stassino, who would go on to play an ill-fated Spectre agent in "Thunderball". Director Losey keeps the action moving at a brisk clip and is especially good at building tension between the disparate characters. The screenplay by Alun Owen (who would go on to win an Oscar for writing "A Hard Day's Night") rings true throughout with these British "goodfellas" socializing and backslapping with each other, even as they plan to deceive or kill their comrades.The jazz score by Johnny Dankworth and a sad song crooned throughout by Cleo Laine add immeasurably to the atmosphere. The film also presents a more mature depiction of sex than American movies of the era. Johnny's bedroom is adorned with a painting of a nude woman and his seduction by a naked Suzanne leaves little to the imagination, which was daring, given the restraints of censorship in British films during this period.

Kino Lorber offers an excellent Blu-ray edition that presents the film's B&W cinematography by Robert Krasker in a glorious manner. The release also features an excellent commentary track by film historian Kat Ellinger, who provides interesting background on Losey and Wannamaker, both of whom were Americans living in exile in England due to having been blacklisted. She also emphasizes that the film was made for today's equivalent of only $165,000, which was peanuts even in 1960, and how production designer Richard MacDonald worked wonders building the prison set and employing mirrors to make it look even larger. The release also includes the original trailer and trailers for similarly-themed KL titles.

"The Criminal" is another forgotten British gem that is now available in America. Recommended.

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

Casting young Robert Mitchum in a crime thriller opposite two beautiful leading ladies would seem to be a recipe for a successful film. However, "Foreign Intrigue" manages to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory by saddling the actors with a cumbersome, confusing screenplay. Mitchum is cast as Dave Bishop, an American personal secretary/press agent in the employ of Victor Danemore (Jean Galland), a mysterious rich man who lives lavishly on the French Riviera. When Danemore dies from a heart attack, Bishop becomes intrigued by the mysteries of the man's life and how little he actually knew about him. Even Danemore's young trophy wife Dominique (Genevieve Page) claims to have been a wife in name only and was, in fact, a "kept woman" intended to give Danemore a respectable social status. When Bishop is approached by an assortment of strange characters all of whom are concerned about secrets Danemore may have kept pertaining to their lives, he begins to investigate who his employer really was and why there is consternation in some circles regarding his death. In the process, Bishop not only becomes romantically involved with Dominique but also with Brita (Ingrid Thulin, billed here as "Ingrid Tulean"), a vivacious young woman whose father was being blackmailed by Danemore for reasons unknown. Bishop's investigation turns deadly as he gets nearer the truth with attempts made on his life by mysterious strangers. It turns out that Danemore had been blackmailing prominent European men who had been secretly in league with Hitler. Ultimately, Bishiop is kidnapped by intelligence officials who ask him to volunteer to unmask the collaborators on a mission that could cost him his life.

"Foreign Intrigue" was the brainchild of producer/director/screenwriter Sheldon Reynolds, who had produced a successful TV series of the same title. He saw potential in spinning off the property to a feature film and shot the production on some exotic European locations in color, though the bulk of the movie was filmed in a studio. The story starts off on an intriguing note but soon becomes confusing with the addition of seemingly countless minor characters and red herrings. Even when the main mystery is solved, I found myself still uncertain as to certain characters' relationship to the plot and each other. Although the role of Bishop would seem tailor-made for Robert Mitchum, director Reynolds doesn't showcase the actor's trademark persona as a cynical wiseguy. He can handle himself well in the action scenes and Reynolds makes sure Mitchum has the requisite opportunity to parade around shirtless, but what is missing is the actor's "bad boy" image. His leading ladies are well-cast and Frederick O'Brady is marvelous as a Peter Lorre-like man of mystery but Mitchum and his co-stars suffer from the film's often slow pace. The movie picks up steam towards the finale but the climax is undermined by an absurd scene that is unintentionally funny. It involves Bishop meeting the villain one-on-one in the dead of night on a street in Vienna. Due to plot contrivances, virtually every other character manages to show up, making the secret meeting look like a convention. Adding to the absurdity is the fact that although the scene is set in one of the world's bustling cities, the landscape looks like the opening  of "The Omega Man" with nary a single living soul or moving vehicle seen anywhere. "Foreign Intrigue" will mostly appeal to Mitchum enthusiasts who will welcome the film's availability on Blu-ray. The Kino Lorber transfer is adequate but not overly-impressive, displaying some wear and quite a bit of artifacts. The only bonus features are the original trailer and trailers for two other KL Mitchum titles.

(Incidentally, although the film's credits state that Genevieve Page and Ingrid Thulin were "introduced" in this film, in fact, both actresses had a number of screen credits prior to appearing in "Foreign Intrigue". This was a common - if deceitful- marketing ploy frequently used by movie studios during the era.) 

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BY DOUG OSWALD

William Holden commands a newly formed commando group in “The Devil’s Brigade,” available by Kino Lorber on Blu-ray. On the heels of the successful “The Dirty Dozen” from the previous year, “The Devil’s Brigade” is based on the 1966 book by Robert H. Adleman and Colonel George Walton. It chronicles the true events of the 1st Special Service, a joint American and Canadian commando unit assigned to the United States Fifth Army. Inspired by true events, the movie follows the standard tropes of this type of action adventure men- at -war movie. A rag-tag group of soldiers are brought together for a mission, they initially mistrust each other, get into a fight, train together, get into another fight this time working together against another group, graduate from their training and then deploy on their mission to fight the enemy (usually Germans, Italians or Japanese). I recall seeing this for the first time on American broadcast television with commercials advertising “The American misfits and the proud Canadians…” The commando group starts training at an American base where the two groups learn to work as a single unit. The action switches to German occupied Italy in the second half as they battle the Germans in close combat action sequences.

The movie features a “Hollywood Who’s Who” cast of leading men and character actors: William Holden as Lt. Colonel Robert T. Frederick, the commander of the unit. Cliff Robertson as the Canadian commander, Major Alan Crown. Vince Edwards as the American commander, Major Cliff Bricker. The supporting cast gets even better with the American misfits and proud Canadians portrayed by: Claude Akins as Private Rocky Rockman, Richard Jaeckel as Private Omar Creco, Andrew Prine as Private Theodore Ransom, Richard Dawson as Private Hugh MacDonald, Luke Askew as Private Hubert Hixon, Tom Troup as Private Al Manella, Jeremy Slate as Sergeant Pat O’Neill, Jack Watson as Corporal Peacock, Harry Carey Jr. as Captain Rose, Michael Rennie as Lt. General Mark Clark, Carroll O’Connor as Major General Maxwell Hunter, Dana Andrews as Brig. General Walter Naylor, Michael Rennie as Lt. General Mark Clark, stunt man and future director Hal Needham as a sergeant. I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Karl-Otto Alberty as the German officer interrogating Claude Akins. Fans of retro classics will remember him as the German tank commander in “Kelly’s Heroes” and the German officer who captures Richard Attenborough in “The Great Escape” and orders, “Hands UP!”

Holden give a stoic, yet one-dimensional, performance as the commander. This is a year prior to his iconic performance as Pike in Sam Peckinpah’s classic “The Wild Bunch” in 1969. While “The Devil’s Brigade” is not as highly regarded as that movie, or even “The Dirty Dozen,” it stands on its own as a minor classic in the genre. Richard Jaeckel steals every scene he appears in. Cliff Robertson is terrific as the Canadian commander, just a year away from his Academy Award-winning performance in “Charly.”  Vince Edwards was transitioning back to the big screen following his run on television in “Ben Casey” which was a very popular series in the first half of the 1960s. However, the abundant cast makes it difficult for anyone to really stand out as the face behind this movie, as Lee Marvin did in “The Dirty Dozen.”

Directed by Andrew V. McLaglen, a veteran director of many popular movies, the film looks and sounds terrific and clocks in at 130 minutes. Released in May 1968 by United Artists, it was filmed in widescreen Panavision on location in Utah. The Utah location doubles for the training base during the first half of the film and some of the action when the brigade get to Italy in the second half. From the appearance of the buildings, it appears to have been filmed on an active military base in Utah. The buildings look live in and may have been left standing from the WWII period, which was not uncommon. Much of the second half was filmed on location in Italy in actual WWII battle locations, using much of the same armaments used in countless other WWII-themed movies filmed in the 60s and 70s. The production value in the location filming really elevates this movie. Look through the windows in the interior scenes during the first half of the movie and you’ll notice that McLaglen ensures there is stuff going on outside, making the location come alive.

Unfortunately, the movie was not a major hit during its initial release. Subsequent broadcast television, cable TV and home video releases have elevated its status over the years as a solid action adventure movie. The film is often compared to “The Dirty Dozen” which came out the previous year. There are definite similarities and this may have been part of the movie’s shortfall a the boxoffice. Also, the Vietnam War was raging and military movies were falling out of favor. It’s hard to know for certain, as movie audiences can be fickle. However, the “men on an impossible mission” genre remains popular to this day.

The Kino Lorber Blu-ray comes with an audio commentary by film historians Steve Mitchell and Steven Jay Rubin. The commentary is an entertaining trivia and  Mitchell and Rubin know their stuff when it comes to military movies. Rubin is an expert on the various armaments used in the film and has a knack for identifying Hollywood military weapon sound effects and the differences between the studio libraries. The audio commentary is compelling enough to justify watching the Blu-ray twice. The other extras are the trailer for this and other Kino Lorber Blu-ray titles.

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(For extensive coverage of "The Devil's Brigade", see Cinema Retro's Movie Classics Films of WWII special issue.)

BY LEE PFEIFFER

You can't judge a book by its cover and you can't judge a movie by its poster. Case in point: "Blood on the Moon", a 1948 western that was marketed with a poster depicting star Robert Mitchum in a ten-gallon hat along with an image of Barbara Bel Geddes wielding a rifle and a tag line that read "A Woman's Bullet Kills as Quick as a Man's!" At first glance, one would be forgiven for assuming the movie was yet another of the "Poverty Row" one-day wonders that flooded theaters in the 1930s. Indeed, the image of Mitchum has him somewhat resembling good ol' Hopalong Cassidy. However, looks can be deceiving and "Blood on the Moon" is actually a superior western, thanks in part to its director, Robert Wise, who had recently transcended from being a highly-acclaimed film editor to the director's chair.

"Blood on the Moon" is an adaptation of a serialized story by Luke Short that ran in the Saturday Evening Post. Robert Mitchum is cast as Jim Garry, a mysterious drifter who is invited to meet with an old friend, Tate Riling (Robert Preston). Riling informs Tate that he needs his abilities with a gun to aid him in a scheme. He has partnered with a corrupt local federal agent, Jake Pindalest (Frank Faylen)  who oversees an Indian reservation to ensure they can get the impressive cattle herd of rancher John Lufton (Tom Tully) at cut-rate prices. This they contrive to accomplish by having Pindalest terminate the long-standing contract by which Lufton sells his beef to the U.S. government, which in turn, uses the meat to feed the Native American population on the reservation. A side-swindle is that Riling wants to intimidate farmers to vacate land that they and Lufton occupy so that he can own the enormous acreage. Garry is not your typical white-hat cowboy hero, despite the fact that he favors wearing one. At first he accepts coming in as a partner on the scam and using his skills with a gun to drive off the farmers. However, when he witnesses the brutality Riling is using to further his goals, he changes his mind and ends up siding with Lufton. He's also come to the realization that Riling has been wooing one of Lufton's daughters, Carol (Phyllis Thaxter) as a way to wear down Lufton's resistance. Garry thinks this is particularly egregious. He also has a tense introduction to Lufton's other daughter, Amy (Barbara Bel Geddes), who is a sharp-shooting tom girl who tries to intimidate him by showing off her skills with a gun. As in all films in which the leading male and female characters start off with an acrimonious relationship, they ultimately fall in love. Garry's switching to the other side causes a rift with Riling and leads to a sensational knock-down, drag-out fight between that is a highlight of the film. (Mitchum and Preston choreographed the scene themselves and performed most of their own stunts.) Ultimately, the two old friends must square off in a final shootout that finds Garry, Amy and a local farmer, Kris (Walter Brennan), trapped in a cabin and surrounded by Lufton and his goons during an extended shoot-out that allows Amy to demonstrate her courage and skills with a rifle.

"Blood on the Moon" is a conventional western in some ways but what allows it to rise above the pack is the direction of Robert Wise, who gives the production a moody, film noir-like atmosphere, which is unusual for this genre. The film benefits from the creative B&W cinematography of Nicholas Musuraca, who makes nondescript shots of Garry riding in the moonlight look like frame-by-frame works of art. Mitchum is well cast as the protagonist, a complex man who is a bit of a scoundrel. Preston makes an excellent villain and Bel Geddes and Thaxter thrive in unusual roles for women in this era of filmmaking in that they are more than window dressing and are quite capable of humiliating the male characters. Walter Brennan also delivers a fine performance, cast in a role of a tragic farmer that is devoid of his usual amusing mannerisms. 

The Warner Archive region-free Blu-ray presents an excellent transfer and the original trailer. Recommended.

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

Way back in the 1970s while in college, I took a course dedicated to classic films. The teacher was Herbert J. Leder, an affable, if eccentric, professor who also had the distinction of having directed some films for major studios. They were all "B" movies, but they did get wide release. One of them was titled "The Frozen Dead", a 1967 Hammer horror wanna be with Dana Andrews as a mad Nazi doctor who plans to use cloning to revive the Third Reich in modern day England. As a joke, Herb showed the film one day in his "Classics of the Cinema" class. It was mildly diverting fare, no better or worse than much of what Hammer itself was releasing during this time period. A couple of years later, Fox released "The Boys From Brazil", a major adaptation of Ira Levin's bestselling thriller. The plot centered on a mad Nazi doctor who was using cloning to revive the Third Reich in modern society. I was rather shocked at the similarity of the story lines and discussed it with Herb Leder, who was dismissive of pursuing any possibility that Levin's novel might have been influenced by his "B" movie. Today, of course, the mindset would probably be different and a lawsuit, frivolous or not, would probably have been brought against all parties concerned with "The Boys From Brazil". The film version of Levin's novel was greeted with mixed reviews. I recall arguing the movie's merits (or lack thereof) with my mentor, Playboy film critic Bruce Williamson. I found the movie to be highly enjoyable and I was particularly impressed by Gregory Peck's refreshing change of pace, playing an outright villain, the infamous Dr. Josef Mengele. Williamson said he felt that Peck reminded him of a drunk at a party who puts a lampshade on his head in an attempt to bring attention to himself. Nevertheless, upon seeing the film again through the Blu-ray release from Shout! Factory, my admiration for the movie remains undiminished.  

The film begins with a series of suspenseful sequences in which a determined young American, Barry Kohler, (Steve Guttenberg) in South America doggedly and surreptitiously tracks and photographs the activities of suspected former Nazis.He becomes increasingly audacious and manages to bug one of their meetings. He is shocked to learn that they have launched a plan to revive the Third Reich through the efforts of the world's most wanted man, the infamous Dr. Josef Mengele, who oversaw barbaric "medical experiments" at Auschwitz. Kohler makes contact with the legendary Nazi hunter Ezra Lieberman (Laurence Olivier), who runs a drastically underfunded operation with his sister (Lili Palmer) that attempts to bring war criminals to justice. Lieberman is sarcastic to the young man and dismisses his information- until he suspects that he has been murdered. Lieberman then launches his own investigation, traveling internationally to interview parties who might shed light on the conspiracy. He finds that the ex-Nazis have ordered the murder of 94 civil servants around the globe who are all in their mid-60s. As the investigation continues, he suspects that Mengele has cloned DNA from Adolf Hitler and that there are now teenage boys coming of age as sons of the men who have been marked for murder. Mengele needs to replicate the exact occurrences in the life of Hitler, including the death of his father when he was a teenager. By doing so, he hopes that at least one of the 94 boys will become a leader for the revived Reich.

The premise of the plot is an unlikely one to involve the talents of Gregory Peck, Laurence Olivier and James Mason, who plays another ex-Nazi who pulls the plug on Mengele's plans, thus forcing the arch villain to act independently to see his scheme through to fruition.  Indeed, there are times the film seems like a dusted off vehicle for old time character actor George Zucco, who reveled in playing mad doctors. However, under the direction of Franklin J. Schaffner, the pace is brisk, the story involving and the performances are compelling. Add to all this a superb musical score by Jerry Goldsmith and it's hard to resist the movie, despite its abundance of guilty pleasures. The finale is a bizarre doozy in which  Mengele and Lieberman (who is obviously supposed to be real life Nazi hunter Simon Wiesenthal) end up in a wrestling match in the presence of bloodthirsty hounds! Olivier overdoes the feeble old Jewish guy routine (a performance he would recreate practically verbatim as Neil Diamond's cantor father in "The Jazz Singer" a couple of years later). Nevertheless, he's fun to watch. An irony is that, although Gregory Peck gives the superior performance, it was Olivier who got a Best Actor nomination. Adding to the irony, Olivier had been nominated for Best Supporting Actor two years before for playing a thinly-veiled Mengele in "Marathon Man". There are plenty of fine supporting performances including Anne Meara in a rare dramatic role, Bond baddie Walter Gotell, John Dehner, Rosemary Harris, Uta Hagen, Denholm Elliott, Bruno Ganz and Linda Hayden. Young Jeremy Black is especially creepy as the teenage boy who doesn't realize he is carrying Hitler's DNA. 

The Shout! Factory Blu-ray does justice to this opulent production that is dripping in atmosphere. An original trailer is also included.

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BY JOHN M. WHALEN

In “My Gun Is Quick” (1957), Mickey Spillane’s famous private detective Mike Hammer (Robert Bray) meets a sad young hooker named “Red” (Patricia Donahue) in a greasy spoon and rescues her from a goon trying to put the muscle on her. Hammer slaps him around and kicks him out the door and gives her bus fare plus change to go back home and start over. He’s a hardnose but he’s got a tender spot somewhere under that tough exterior. He writes down his name and number on a slip of paper and tell her to call him to let him know she made it okay. Before they part he notices a very ornate ring on the third finger of her right hand. Hammer has been up for 52 hours and just wants to go home and get some sleep, but police detective Pat Chambers’ (Booth Colman) sends a patrolman to bring him downtown. The sad young hooker was found dead—broken neck from a hit and run “accident”—with Hammer’s name in her purse.

Hammer explodes in anger. “She was a nice kid,” he tells Chambers, who pours out the contents of the girl’s purse on his desk. “Where’s the ring?” Hammer asks. He describes it to Chambers, the silver letter “V” in a black antique setting. Chambers pulls a file out of a drawer and shows him pictures of some jewelry. “It’s the Venacci Collection,” Chambers says. The jewelry was stolen in Italy during the war by a Colonel Holloway, who was caught and served 10 years in prison. The jewels were never found, but Holloway was just released. Hammer says he doesn’t give a damn about the jewels, he just wants to find the girl’s killer. He goes back to the diner and slaps around the ex-con who works behind the counter until he coughs up a lead on the girl. He tells Mike to check out the Blue Bell Strip Club and ask for Maria (Gina Core), one of the dancers there. She and Red were pals.

What follows next is a very long stretch of film showing Hammer tailing a goon from LA to Long Beach. You might find such a sequence kind of dull, despite the jazzy music on the soundtrack. But I found it fascinating. Seeing the freeway as it was in 1957, with that Fairlane 500 cruising down the highway with the oil derricks on the left side of the road and the beach rolling in on the right. Seeing the cars moving so freely, with lots of space for everybody, the houses along the way with plenty of room between them, well, it was fascinating. It gave me a nostalgic feeling, a memory of a time when the air was still clean and there weren’t any killer viruses taking people out by the thousands. I almost hoped the ride wouldn’t end. But it does end- albeit, not before Hammer gets involved with another sensuous dame, Nancy Williams (Whitney Blake) and some exotic heavies. I won’t reveal any more of the plot. It doesn’t matter anyway. Plots are not what private eye stories are all about. They’re about the confrontations between one incorruptible man and a world of complicity.

The actors do a fairly good job in their roles. Bray fills up the scenery adequately with his size and broad shoulders, although there isn’t much fire in his performance. Mike Hammer in the novels is a primal force. He galvanizes the books with his anger and hatred for punks, rats, and commies. Bray and Whitney Blake (best remembered for playing the Mom on the “Hazel” TV series), just seem to coast through the film on roller skates. Still there’s enough tension in the plot to hold your interest and co-directors Victor Saville as Phil Victor) and George White make good use of the LA locales. Harry Newman’s noir photography makes the movie visually interesting, especially the climax filmed at night on the docks at Long Beach.

Kino Lorber has done a nice job transferring “My Gun Is Quick” to Blu-ray in a brand new 2K transfer with a 1.85:1 aspect ratio. Picture and mono sound are excellent. One of the surprising treats is checking out the jazz background score provided by Marlin Skiles, which features a combo of unnamed west coast players. They do a little tune called “The Blue Bells,” which is played during Gina Core’s strip number and reprised in several other scenes. It’s a dumb little tune, but once you hear it, you can’t get it out of your head. Kino has included the trailer for “My Gun Is Quick” on the disc. It shows a six-foot model of the paperback version of the book that opens, then has Whitney, Gina, and a couple of the other good-looking babes from the movie come crashing out through the pages. There are a half-dozen trailers for other crime films in KL’s vaults as well.

To sum it up “My Gun Is Quick” is not the best Mike Hammer film ever made (that would obviously be Robert Aldrich’s “Kiss Me Deadly”) but it’s cool watching Hammer driving that Fairlane on the mean streets of LA. Recommended.

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John M. Whalen is the author of "Tragon of Ramura". Click here to order from Amazon.

Cinema Retro has received the following press release from Virgil Films concerning the outstanding documentary 40 YEARS OF ROCKY: THE BIRTH OF A CLASSIC

From Virgil Films & Entertainment comes Director Derek Wayne Johnson’s new documentary film 40 Years of Rocky: The Birth of a Classic. The film – narrated by ‘Rocky’ star and creator Sylvester Stallone, who shares insights from his battle to get the story of a down-on-his-luck boxer greenlit and onto the big screen – will premiere on digital HD June 9^th.

In 1976, a low budget movie written by an unknown actor was released, inspiring audiences around the world to go the distance. Rocky became the ultimate underdog film. Over forty years later, Sylvester Stallone recounts the making of the beloved classic through rare home movies provided by Director John G. Avildsen and Production Manager Lloyd Kaufman.

Sylvester Stallone pitched the idea of this film to director Derek Wayne Johnson and producer Chris May after a private screening of their documentary ‘John G. Avildsen: King of the Underdogs,’ in which Stallone is also featured. This new documentary features behind-the-scenes footage that Oscar-winning director John G. Avildsen shot as well as footage never-before-seen found in ‘Rocky’ Production Manager and Troma Entertainment President Lloyd Kaufman’s basement nearly forty years after it was filmed.

(The film is now available for streaming. Click here to access streaming options.)

About Virgil Films – Virgil Films & Entertainment is an independent distribution company that was founded in 2003 by Joe Amodei to acquire, market and distribute feature films and episodic television programming into the digital, TV and DVD/Blu-ray market on a worldwide basis. Over the years the company has enjoyed relationships with Sundance Channel Home Entertainment, National Geographic Cinema Ventures, Pure Flix Entertainment, Sight & Sound Theatres, Network Entertainment, PCH Films, Warrior Poets and other high-profile entertainment companies. Releases from Virgil Films include the Oscar-nominated documentary Glen Campbell…I’ll Be Me and the critically acclaimed, timeless, best-selling Forks Over Knives. They have also released the award-winning documentary Miss Representation; the critically acclaimed, timeless, best-selling Forks Over Knives; and the Oscar-nominated documentary Restrepo,its sequel Korengal, I Am Chris Farley and the recent We Are Columbine. Follow them on twitter: @virgilfilms www.VirgilFilms.com

Cinema Retro has received the following press release from Paramount Home Entertainment:

A masterpiece of off-the-wall comedy, AIRPLANE! celebrates its 40th anniversary in 2020 with a brand-new Blu-ray in the Paramount Presents line, as well as a limited edition Blu-ray Steelbook.  Originally released in July of 1980, AIRPLANE! was a major hit and become a pop culture touchstone.  Voted “one of the 10 funniest movies ever made” by the American Film Institute, the film continues to be widely referenced and quoted 40 years after its theatrical debut.

The Paramount Presents Blu-ray and limited edition Steelbook each includes the newly remastered film from a 4K transfer supervised by writers/directors Jim Abrahams, David Zucker and Jerry Zucker, a new Filmmaker Focus on the directors, a new Q&A with the directors recorded at the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood in January 2020, and an isolated music score by Elmer Bernstein.  The discs also include previously released audio commentary with the directors and producer Jon Davison.

Robert Hays stars as an ex-fighter pilot forced to take over the controls of an airliner when the flight crew succumbs to food poisoning.  The all-star cast also includes Julie Hagerty, Robert Stack, Lloyd Bridges, Peter Graves, Leslie Nielsen, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.  The outrageous comedy spoof skewers airplane disaster flicks, religious zealots, television commercials…and everything else in its path.

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Cinema Retro has received the following press release:

 Universal Horror Collection Vol. 5 will scream to life on Blu-ray on June 16 from Scream Factory.

The collection includes four tales of terror from the archives of Universal Pictures, the true home of classic horror. A mobster's brain is transplanted into an ape who carries out his revenge in The Monster And The Girl. A mad scientist turns an ape into a beautiful, but deadly woman in Captive Wild Woman. Jungle Woman, the sequel to Captive Wild Woman, is an eerie thriller with all the danger of wild animals on the loose and a sexy killer on the prowl! And in The Jungle Captive, a scientist has experimented on re-animating animals ... but now he has decided to go one step further and re-animate a human!

Universal Horror Collection Vol. 5 Includes:

THE MONSTER AND THE GIRL

Special Features:

• NEW 2K scan of a fine grain film element
• NEW Audio Commentary with film historians Tom Weaver and Steve Kronenberg

CAPTIVE WILD WOMAN

Special Features:

• NEW Audio Commentary with film historian/author Tom Weaver
• Theatrical Trailer
• Still Gallery

JUNGLE WOMAN

Special Features:

• NEW 2K scan of a fine grain film element
• NEW Audio Commentary with film historian Gregory William Mank
• Still Gallery

THE JUNGLE CAPTIVE

Special Features:

• NEW 2K scan of a fine grain film element
• NEW Audio Commentary by film historian Scott Gallinghouse
• Theatrical Trailer

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BY HANK REINEKE

Without question, this brand new Blu-ray edition of director Michael Curtiz’s The Mystery of the Wax Museum will be heralded as one of the Crown Jewels of Warner Bros. Archive Collection series. This creaky but historically significant 1933 classic – once believed to be a “lost film” – has been painstakingly restored to its original two-color Technicolor glory. Such restoration was made possible through the financial resources of the George Lucas Family Foundation and the combined technical and artistic interventions of the UCLA Film & Television Archive and Warner Bros. entertainment.

The Mystery of the Wax Museum was not the studio’s first foray into what is now revered as the Golden Age of horror films. One year earlier, Warner Bros. had released Dr. X (1932), another atmospheric horror vehicle co-starring the villainous Lionel Atwill and 1930’s Scream Queen Fay Wray. Like its predecessor, The Mystery of the Wax Museum was green-lit by studio brass to syphon off at least some of the box-office energy of several contemporary blockbusters: Universal’s Dracula and Frankenstein and Paramount’s Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde (all three having been released in 1931). Indeed, Glenda Farrell’s character in Wax Museum makes a no-so-oblique comparative reference to the competition when she describes the mysterious caped and scarred figure in Wax Museum as a fiend that makes “Frankenstein look like a lily.” It was, perhaps, the first popular culture reference to confuse the monster with the monster’s maker.

For several decades the original Curtiz cut of The Mystery of the Wax Museum, the first horror film to feature the revolutionary, but only briefly in vogue, two-color Technicolor treatment, was believed lost. In his authoritative tome “Classics of the Horror Film” (Citadel Press, 1974), cinema historian William K. Everson suggested that a damaged and deteriorating print of Wax Museum was still making the rounds of cinemas in war-torn London of the 1940s. In any event, with the exception of a few surviving dupey and tattered black and white television prints, the original film as envisioned by Curtiz was considered lost.

The situation may have remained that way had it not been for the success of the studio’s celebrated 3D remake of the original, House of Wax. This more familiar version, directed by Andre DeToth and famously featuring Vincent Price as the mad and scarred wax-figure artisan, would prove to be one of the biggest blockbuster scores of 1953. The film’s popularity would summarily – at least among horror aficionados and film historians – reignite interest in the 1933 version. Indeed, as in the case of many “lost” films, the reputation of the original – stoked by the hazy memories of those who had actually had the opportunity to see the film two decades earlier – was, perhaps, slightly over-praised and over-cherished.

It hardly mattered as the original Curtiz version would remain a stubbornly elusive treasure. It wasn’t until the late 1960s that a serviceable, though far from perfect, copy of a nitrate original – apparently cobbled together from several different prints – was found in the collection of studio boss Jack Warner’s personal library. It’s from this print that the reconstruction team could use as their primary source in the film’s restoration. A secondary source was an inferior and later surfacing French work print that helped fill-in the gaps where frames or lines of dialogue from the Warner print were determined to be missing or damaged beyond repair.

Cinema Retro has received the following press release from Paramount Home Entertainment:

Relive all the incredible drama, passion and music of the hugely influential hit URBAN COWBOY, arriving on Blu-ray for the first time ever June 2, 2020 from Paramount Home Entertainment.

Originally released on June 6, 1980, URBAN COWBOY celebrates its 40th anniversary this year. Starring John Travolta and Debra Winger, the movie chronicles the rocky love story of Bud and Sissy, set against the backdrop of Houston’s famous honky-tonk bar, Gilley’s. Based on a 1979 Esquire Magazine story and brought to the big screen by writer/director James Bridges, URBAN COWBOY kicked off a Western fashion and country music craze. The hit soundtrack spawned multiple Top 10 hits, including “Looking for Love” by Johnny Lee, “Stand by Me” by Mickey Gilley, and “Look What You’ve Done to Me” by Boz Skaggs, and the album was ultimately certified triple platinum by the RIAA.

The URBAN COWBOY Blu-ray features new bonus content, including a retrospective piece called “Good Times with Gilley: Looking Back at Urban Cowboy” featuring a new interview with Mickey Gilley, and multiple deleted scenes. The Blu-ray also includes outtakes and rehearsal footage previously released on DVD, as well as access to a digital copy of the film.

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

The western "Cattle Annie and Little Britches" wasn't released, it escaped, as the old Hollywood joke goes. The film was unceremoniously dumped at a smattering of theaters by Universal in 1981 and then largely faded into obscurity. The general implication of such treatment is that the movie was a dog. In fact, it's a charming, well-made (if traditional) lighthearted adventure with much to recommend about it. Universal's disdain for the title is rather inexplicable especially since the movie represented Burt Lancaster's first starring role since his triumphant, Oscar-nominated performance in Louis Malle's "Atlantic City" (although he made the movie before shooting the Malle production). Lancaster, in a marvelously wry peformance, stars as legendary outlaw Bill Doolin in a tale that is loosely based on actual people and events. Doolin ran the infamous Doolin-Dalton gang with his late partner Bill Dalton but when we first see the notorious outlaw band, they are a mere shadow of their former selves. Most of the gang has either been arrested or killed (including Dalton himself) and the remnants are desperately trying to survive by outwitting Sheriff Tilghman (Rod Steiger), the lawman who relentlessly pursues them. The focus of the script, however, is the journey of two plucky runaway teenage girls, Annie (Amanda Plummer) and her younger friend Jenny (Diane Lane). The two free spirits have been drawn to Oklahoma from the east, having been weened on largely exaggerated tales by Ned Buntline about the exploits of famed outlaws. The girls are determined to meet these legendary figures in the flesh and join a gang. A chance meeting with Doolin and his dwindling fellow misfits allows them to do just that. Doolin admires their courage, especially when they help the gang escape a bloody ambush by Tilghman. They earn the nicknames Cattle Annie and Little Britches. The script follows their adventures as their ingratiate themselves into the gang. Both girls are virgins but the feisty and fearless tomboy Annie is determined to fix that and manages to do so when she catches the eye of Bittercreek (John Savage), a hunky gang member who is part Indian and whose indulgence in mysticism and love of nature appeals to her. (The family-friendly nature of the movie ensures that all sex occurs off screen.) Ultimately, the impressionable Jenny develops a crush on Bill Doolin, but fortunately he recognizes she simply yearns for a father figure and gently finds a way to rebuff her advances while leaving her with her dignity intact.

The movie, ably directed by Lamont Johnson, is a leisurely-paced tale with a fine script by David Eyre and Robert Ward, based on the latter's novel. Apparently, the book was based on two real life young women who did travel with the gang. The performances are uniformly marvelous, with Lancaster giving a charming performance as the world-weary outlaw who finds new inspiration from his young female admirers. Rod Steiger, who was often guilty of chewing the scenery, gives an unusually understated performance, and it's all for the better. I loved the byplay between Lancaster and Steiger's characters. They are old warriors, determined to take each other down but they've also grown to admire each other in the process. Even when Tilghman finally captures his man and prepares him for his execution, he seems genuinely depressed by the prospect of losing an adversary who has become almost a friend. The most impressive performance is by Amanda Plummer, who made her screen debut with this film. She's pure dynamite as the fearless young female who refuses to be intimidated by any man. Had the film been more widely seen, she might have been a contender for an Oscar nomination. In a rave review for the film, New York Times critic Vincent Canby called Plummer's performance "smashing". Another hard-to-please critic, Pauline Kael of the New Yorker, was also charmed by the movie and Plummer's performance. Plummer may have emerged as the only winner from the film, though it has developed an appreciation among retro movie lovers who will be delighted by the fact that Kino Lorber has released the film on Blu-ray. The quality is very good indeed, although the bonus extras are confined to a trailer gallery and a short interview with producer Rupert Hitzig, who defends his movie and still bemoans the fact that Universal simply tossed it into the celluloid trash bin. We share his frustrations, as "Cattle Annie and Little Britches" is a highly enjoyable western that will hopefully find a wider audience through this Blu-ray release. Recommended.

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Cinema Retro has received the following press release from Mill Creek Entertainment:

Exclusive Release For Ultraman Day Featuring Cover Art By Alex Ross!

Minneapolis, MN (June 17, 2020) Mill Creek Entertainment is pleased to announce, “The Birth of Ultraman Collection”, a Blu-ray set containing some of the best episodes of the original ULTRAMAN series with both the original Japanese language and the classic English dub audio tracks plus THE BIRTH OF ULTRAMAN – ULTRAMAN Pre-Premiere Special, the very first appearance of the hero that would become famous across the world as Ultraman. 

This exclusive Blu-ray release also features art created by Alex Ross which is also featured on THE RISE OF ULTRAMAN cover for Marvel Comics and Tsuburaya Production’s recent collaboration with the debut issue releasing September 2020.

This exciting, special-edition comes off the back of Mill Creek Entertainment’s license of the entire available Ultraman back-catalog via international distribution company Indigo Entertainment, from the revolutionary team at Tsuburaya Productions Co., Ltd. 

Mill Creek Entertainment now brings a selection of ULTRAMAN episodes in high definition video with DTS-HD Master Audio of the original Japanese soundtrack plus the uncut United Artists English dubs. Each episode will also come with two English subtitle options; one for the Japanese audio and a second matching the English audio track. “The Birth of Ultraman Collection" will include the following episodes...

Episode 1 – ULTRA OPERATION NO. 1 – The story begins as the heroic alien Ultraman pursues the space monster Bemular to Earth, leading to a fateful encounter with Shin Hayata, an agent of the SSSP.

Episode 2 – SHOOT THE INVADER – Ultraman’s iconic foe, Alien Baltan, makes its first appearance in a tale narrated by Ide, the SSSP's genius inventor.

Episode 19 – DEMONS RISE AGAIN – An ancient time capsule unleashes the red-skinned monster Banila and its blue-skinned rival Aboras, who wage a titanic battle in the National Stadium.

Episodes 26 & 27 – THE MONSTER HIGHNESS Parts 1 & 2 – The only 2-part ULTRAMAN story features the Ancient Monster Gomora, who escapes captivity and overwhelms Ultraman as it rampages towards Osaka.

Episode 33 – THE FORBIDDEN WORDS – When Alien Mefilas tries to convince a boy to give him the Earth, even Ultraman may not be able to stop him.

Episode 37 – A LITTLE HERO – Ide suffers a crisis of faith as the Friendly Monster Pigmon warns that the evil creature Geronimon is reviving an army of monsters to destroy Ultraman and the SSSP!

Also included is THE BIRTH OF ULTRAMAN – ULTRAMAN Pre-Premiere Special. Airing in Japan on July 10, 1966, one week before the series premiere, this stage show was filmed before a live studio audience and introduced viewers to the story, cast and characters of ULTRAMAN. This July 10 debut of ULTRAMAN on television is now celebrated annually and known throughout the world as “Ultraman Day.” Never before released in America, this special is presented in black & white (as originally broadcast) in standard definition with Japanese audio and English subtitles.

ULTRAMAN premiered on Japanese television on July 17, 1966 and was an immediate ratings smash. While the series was still in production, the North American rights were licensed to United Artists, who in-turn commissioned voice director Peter Fernandez (Speed Racer) to supervise the English dubbing of the show. The English language version was syndicated to American television in 1967 and went on to air in various markets across the country into the early 1980s.

"The Birth of Ultraman Collection" Blu-ray will be exclusively sold on DeepDiscount as part of the launch of a dedicated Ultraman storefront that will offer up all of Mill Creek Entertainment's current Blu-ray/SteelBook® releases in addition to other Ultraman related merchandise and product.  Available July 10, 2020, the set retails for $25.99.   Pre-order today: https://bit.ly/DDUltraman

Cinema Retro has received the following press release from Paramount Home Entertainment:

Originally released in 2000, director Ridley Scott’s GLADIATOR celebrates its 20th anniversary.   Winner of five Academy Awards®, including Best Picture, the film is an unparalleled combination of vivid action and extraordinary storytelling.  Russell Crowe won the Oscar® for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his portrayal of a Roman general who is betrayed by a corrupt prince (Joaquin Phoenix) and comes to Rome as a gladiator to seek revenge. 

The 4K Steelbook includes access to a digital copy of the film and both theatrical and extended versions of the feature on 4K Ultra HD, along with two separate commentaries.  The two Blu-ray Discs included in the set boast over four hours of previously released bonus content, including commentaries on both versions of the film, a comprehensive documentary about the making of the movie, featurettes, deleted scenes, and more.

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BY DOUG OSWALD

John Wayne is Joe January, an American living in late 19th century Timbuktu, in “Legend of the Lost,” released on Blu-ray by Kino Lorber. We first meet Dita (Sophia Loren) when she attempts to steal a watch from Paul Bonnard (Rosano Brazzi) who is speaking with the local magistrate, Prefect Dukas (Kurt Kaznar). She is chased and soon surrenders to Dukas’s men. Paul drops all charges and pays her fine which pleases the greedy Dukas. He also gives Dita the watch. How can one resist? This is Sophia Loren after all. Meanwhile, we meet Joe making himself at home in an open jail cell in order to pay off a fine, presumably for public drunkenness. Paul Bonnard agrees to pay his debt as well, but in return for Joe agreeing to guide him through the Sahara Desert to an as yet unknown destination. Dita asks to join them, but is turned away by Joe and he departs with Paul with six supply laden mules.

Shortly after setting off, Joe and Paul encounter a group of nomads who depart as quickly as they arrived. Except they leave someone behind. It’s Dita, who has followed them to join Paul. The three of them survive a desert sand storm followed by thirst as their water runs low. Along their journey, Joe begins to fall for Dita, who spurns him, but that doesn’t stop him from trying to offer her a drink. As their water runs even lower, Joe is ready to return to Timbuktu, but Dita empties their canteens and Paul reveals he is looking for the Holy City of Opher, which his father discovered when Paul was a boy. His father told Paul stories of riches, but his father never returned. Paul has been obsessed with finding the lost city and solving the mystery of his father’s disappearance. They find an oasis with help from one of their remaining mules and they can rest and refresh themselves.

Paul comes to them saying he found the city. It turns out to be the ruins of an ancient Roman city, but it’s actually much more than that. They make another discovery which has devastating results for Joe, Dita and Paul. Rosano Brazzi gives a credible performance as Paul, the man both obsessed with and haunted by the answer to the secret of his long lost father. Sophia Loren is beautiful and gives a stoic performance as a former prostitute and lost soul in search of a way out of her existence in Timbuktu. The Duke rounds out this trio as Joe, another lost soul, presumably a former member of the French Foreign Legion. Three lost souls in search of a lost city.

According to IMDb, director of photography Jack Cardiff states in his autobiography he thought the Duke was playing a former Foreign Legionnaire, but the Duke arrived on set wearing western gear and a cowboy hat. Cardiff asked director Henry Hathaway, who responded to Cardiff with the obvious response, “He always wears the cowboy outfit!" Cowboy or French Legionnaire? It matters very little either way. Maybe he’s a cowboy who joined the Foreign Legion.

Directed by Henry Hathaway, who directed the Duke in six movies starting with “The Shepherd of the Hils” (1941), “North to Alaska” (1960), “Circus World” (1964), “The Suns of Katie Elder” (1965) and finally “True Grit” (1969), for which the Duke won his Best Actor Oscar. He also directed three of the five segments in “How the West Was Won” (1962), but the Duke appears as General Sherman in the Civil War segment which was directed by John Ford. Hathaway is a greatly under-appreciated director, but his collaborations with the Duke alone are worthy of repeat viewing and are very entertaining. “Legend of the Lost” is no exception. The screenplay is by Robert Presnell, Jr. and Hollywood legend Ben Hecht. Hecht collaborated with Hathaway on three movies featuring the Duke.

Jack Cardff filmed on location in Libya at the Roman city Leptis Magna, Zliten (Timbuktu) and in the Libyan Desert. The scenes filmed in the Roman ruins of Leptis Magna have a dream like quality and the desert locations are beautifully photographed which up the ante on the production value.

Released by United Artists in December 1957, the Kino Lorber Blu-ray looks and sounds terrific and clocks in at 109 minutes. The only extras on the disc are the trailer for this and other Kino Lorber releases. The movie is a leisurely adventure outing for the Duke, unique in his canon of films, and he’s teamed with two titans of Italian cinema, Brazzi and Loren. The Duke is as stoic as ever and gives a fine performance.

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Cinema Retro has received the following press release from Paramount Home Entertaiment:

Originally released in 1980, FRIDAY THE 13TH captured audiences’ imaginations and permeated our collective psyche.  The film spawned one of the longest-running and most successful horror franchises in film history with 11 subsequent movies and, 40 years later, the iconic machete-wielding killer continues to haunt, fascinate and terrify new generations. 

FRIDAY THE 13TH follows a group of young counselors preparing for the reopening of Camp Crystal Lake, where a boy drowned years earlier.  One by one, the counselors are stalked by a mysterious and violent killer.  The film stars Betsy Palmer, Adrienne King, and Kevin Bacon. 

The FRIDAY THE 13TH Limited Edition Blu-ray Steelbook features artwork from the original movie poster and includes the uncut, unrated version of the film, as well as access to a digital copy of the original theatrical version.  Plus, plunge deeper into the film with previously released bonus content including commentary, interviews with cast and crew, and behind-the-scenes featurettes.

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“ADULT WITH SIDEKICK”

By Raymond Benson

Perhaps what might have been an unexpected Oscar nominee for Best Picture of 1965 was A Thousand Clowns, an adaptation of the Broadway play written by Herb Gardner (who also penned the screenplay and was nominated for his work). Fred Coe had directed the stage production, which garnered Tony nominations for Best Play, Best Featured Actor (Barry Gordon, who was around 14 at the time), and awarded Sandy Dennis a trophy for Featured Actress. Just about everyone involved in the Broadway production went on to make the film, also directed by Coe, except, oddly enough, Dennis (who was replaced by Barbara Harris, who is quite wonderful in the part). Martin Balsam is also new to the film, replacing Larry Haines, and Balsam walked away with an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Jason Robards’ savvy brother and manager.

While Jason Robards (Jr.) as Murray Burns is the tale’s protagonist, it is indeed young Barry Gordon as Murray’s nephew, Nick, who steals the movie. Gordon went on to star in a few other films, several television series episodes and programs, and eventually served the longest as a president of the Screen Actors Guild.

The year is 1965. Murray is a comedy writer who used to work for a Soupy Sales-type children’s comic, Leo “Chuckles the Chipmunk” Herman (Gene Saks), but he quit in frustration and is enjoying life as an unemployed bum. His nephew Nick lives with him in a cluttered studio apartment in the city (Murray’s sister left Nick with Murray six years earlier and disappeared). The pair have lived together comfortably and have become a sort of adult-with-sidekick team. One day, the State Child Welfare board becomes concerned by Nick’s unusual intellectualism at school, so they send two social workers, Sandra Markowitz and Albert Amundsen (Barbara Harris and William Daniels) to investigate Nick’s living situation and interview his guardian. It does not go well. While stuffy and self-righteous Albert wants to take Nick away from Murray, Sandra sympathizes with what she views as a healthy relationship between the uncle and nephew—and she also begins a relationship with Murray. The expected crisis does come, though—and either Murray must get a job or Nick will indeed be removed.

While A Thousand Clowns is 75% comedy, there is a serious through-line about responsibility, conformity, and what it means to be “family” that elevates the picture to more meaningful fare. Coe directs the picture in the style of the French New Wave (e.g., radical editing and jump cuts), which was hot at the time but had not yet been fully embraced by Hollywood as a way to make mainstream pictures. This could be one reason why the movie was honored by the Academy at Oscar time.

Another plus with the film is the “opening up” of the play’s one-room setting by taking the characters onto the streets of mid-sixties Manhattan. This is a joy, especially for anyone who knows the city. At one point, Murray and Nick are strolling past Lincoln Center—and it’s under construction! The Metropolitan Opera building can be seen in the background covered by scaffolding and machinery. Amazing.

Kino Lorber’s new high definition restoration looks remarkably good and clear in its widescreen black and white glory. Of note is the supplemental video interview with today’s Barry Gordon, who is still recognizable as Nick, 55 years later. He provides some wonderful insights into his career as a child actor and the making of the film. The disk also includes the trailer for this and other Kino Lorber releases.

A Thousand Clowns is a slice of life, a piece of history, and a good time for anyone interested in excellent stage-to-film adaptations, fine acting, and a New York City milieu.

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BY GIACOMO SELLONI

There are so many clichés in the film world. So many of today's films are formulaic. Heck, before there even was a film world there was theater. That Shakespeare guy, even he reworked older stories. For example, Romeo and Juliet. The plot is based on an Italian tale translated into verse as The Tragical History of Romeus and Juliet by Arthur Brooke in 1562 and retold in prose in Palace of Pleasure by William Painter in 1567. Othello comes from the Hecatommithi, a collection of tales published in 1565 by Giraldi Cinthio. Cinthio in turn had been influenced by the Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio. Shakespeare's source for Macbeth is the account of Macbeth, King of Scotland, Macduff, and Duncan in Holinshed's Chronicles from 1587, a history of England, Scotland, and Ireland. And so on and so on.

Angelfish, writer and director Peter Lee's first full-length feature suffers from a few cliches. Star-crossed lovers from two different worlds. First love. Time-consuming siblings. MOTHERS. The Irish-American Brendan's (Jimi Stanton) mom, Mary (a terrific Erin Davie) is the cliché: selfish, alcoholic, good-time seeker who doesn't take care of her children's needs. La Boricua Eva's (Destiny Frasqueri aka rapper Princess Nokia) mom is the pushy kind. She wants her daughter to go to college, become an accountant and marry her ersatz boyfriend Rafael who "comes from a good family, and the mother... (insert kissing noise here.) However, Rafael is partying in Puerto Rico and isn’t calling Eva. Brendan has a younger brother who is running with the wrong crowd. Eva has a disabled brother who can barely walk, cannot vocalize and needs constant supervision. This could be a match made in heaven…or, somewhere else. The two meet in the deli section of the small supermarket where he works. He's enthralled. She, not so much. They meet coincidentally at the movie theater he walks her home. Eventually, they start seeing each other and begin to shirk their familial responsibilities. Ah, young love. They're both just barely out of high school.

Set in the Bronx in 1993, Lee claims the film is "inspired by a true story." If I tell you the details here, it may give away the ending. He makes a few mistakes in regard to his directing. How many dialogue-free, musical montages can you stand? Not unlike that 500 word essay we all wrote back in high school stating the same thing in as many different ways to reach the magic number, Lee turns what could have been an 84-minute film into a 96- minute one. That being said, it's a good movie and it marks an admirable feature film debut for him. He certainly has excelled in his casting choices. Destiny Frasqueri, a.k.a. the rapper Princess Nokia, is transcendent. Luminescent. She plays the emotionally torn Eva with sympathy that's palpable, having to make life-altering choices regarding career, a lover and her family. I hope we'll get to see more of her on the silver screen. Jimi Stanton plays the responsible Brendan, a young man, wise and controlled beyond his years, who feels the weight of the world crashing down upon his shoulders. His only peaceful moments come with Eva. The chemistry between Stanton and Frasqueri is something to see.

I look forward to Peter Lee's next film. He shows the ability here to add the tiny touches that let you see interesting insights into a character's personality, as evidenced in a scene in which Eva purchases a phone card for her mom. The best line in the film is delivered by one of Eva's friends, Ricky (a twitchy and funny Sebastian Chacon) to the three girls he hangs with all the time: "It doesn't make sense, waiting to do something that's going to make you happy." If only the majority of us could live our lives following that advice.

"Angelfish" is now streaming on Amazon Prime and Tubi.

Cinema Retro has received the following press release from Paramount Home Entertainment:

Produced and written by John Hughes and directed by Howard Deutch, the beloved teen classic PRETTY IN PINK is the latest addition to the Paramount Presents line.  Newly remastered from a 4K transfer supervised by Deutch, the film arrives on Blu-ray for the first time ever June 16, 2020.

Designed for collectors and fans, the Paramount Presents Blu-ray Discâ„¢ line showcases the studio’s renowned library, from film-lover favorites to celebrated classics. Presented in collectible packaging that includes a foldout image of the original theatrical poster, and an interior spread with key movie moments, the PRETTY IN PINK Blu-ray also includes a new Filmmaker Focus with director Howard Deutch and, for the first time, the film’s isolated score track from composer Michael Gore.  Also included is the previously released featurette “THE LOST DANCE: The Original Ending.”

Teen sensations Molly Ringwald (Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club) and Andrew McCarthy (St. Elmo’s Fire) drew rave reviews for their starring performances in this timeless love story. Andie (Ringwald) is a high school girl from the other side of town. Blane (McCarthy) is the wealthy heartthrob who asks her to the prom. But as fast as their romance builds, it’s threatened by the painful reality of peer pressure.  The film also stars Jon Cryer, James Spader, Harry Dean Stanton, and Annie Potts and features a phenomenal new wave soundtrack, including the title track by the Psychedelic Furs.

Additional titles available in the Paramount Presents collection on Blu-ray include: Fatal Attraction, King Creole, To Catch a Thief, Flashdance and Days of Thunder.

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

One of the great strategic blunders of the Cold War was the Western powers' decision to not militarily challenge the building of the Berlin Wall. Under the post-WWII treaty, Berlin was divided into four sectors with each one governed by a different nation : the Soviet Union, America, England and France. The terms of the treaty called for the former Allies to have free and unfettered access to each other's section of the city. Although Berlin was located inside Communist East Germany, it remained a symbol of freedom and liberty. This was a poke in the eye to the Soviets, who were determined to resolve the situation by simply building an imposing wall that blocked off East Berlin from the other sectors controlled by Western democracies. The world was outraged but in the end, no action was taken beyond exchanging some heated telegrams and phone calls. Thus, in a matter of days, Khrushchev's gamble had paid off. He would later confess in his memoirs that even he was skeptical he would get away with it. Suddenly, the entire population of East Germany was sealed off from other parts of the city. In many cases, families were now divided and would not see relatives for decades until the Wall finally fell in 1989. The building of the Wall was a particular blow to the new American president, John F. Kennedy, who was widely seen as having mishandled the situation. With the additional bungling of the Bay of Pigs invasion in Cuba that failed to topple Castro, JFK was increasingly being seen by the Soviets as a push-over, which is probably why Kennedy was willing to risk nuclear war to prevent a third Soviet triumph by not allowing their missiles to be based in Cuba.  The Berlin Wall did backfire in one sense, however. It came to symbolize the repressive nature of the Soviet regime that was being imposed even on their puppet states. No amount of propaganda could negate what people could see with their own eyes: valiant and desperate East Berliners risking their lives to find ways to get past the heavily fortified wall into the safety of West Berlin. Countless people lost their lives in the process but many others managed to escape. Occasionally, an East Berlin border guard would defect in plain sight. The Wall also provided a backdrop for countless Cold War novels and movies, most notably John Le Carre's classic "The Spy Who Came in From the Cold". Most famously, the Wall allowed another American President to win some propaganda points for the West when Ronald Reagan stood atop it and demanded, "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!". 

The first film to deal with the Berlin Wall crisis was "Escape From East Berlin" (aka "Tunnel 28"), an MGM production that was rushed into production to take advantage of a story that had made international headlines: the escape of 28 people who dug a tunnel directly underneath the Wall. The effort was led by a daring young man whose effort resulted in freedom for his family and friends. Although this clearly is  an exploitation movie in one sense, we should not diminish its considerable merits. The film is tightly scripted and, considering its limited budget, highly engaging and suspenseful, thanks in no small part to the admirable direction of Robert Siodmak, who had brought to the screen two suspense classics: the original versions of "The Killers" and "The Spiral Staircase". Shot in B&W in West Berlin, the only "big budget" aspect to the production was the construction of a section of the Wall that plays such a pivotal role in the story. 

The movie opens with a harrowing scene of a young man who tries to drive a truck through a barrier at the Wall in a desperate attempt to get to West Berlin. His effort almost succeeds but he dies in a hail of bullets. The next day, his concerned sister Erika (Christina Kaufmann) searches for him near the Wall. She assumes his quest has been successful and begins an attempt to cross over. She is stopped by Kurt (Don Murray), a young man who lives with his mother, younger brother and uncle in the shadow of the Wall itself. Kurt, who worked with Erika's brother, tries to inform her that he has been killed but he cannot bring himself to do so. She is deluded by the notion that he has escaped and is determined to join him. Meanwhile, border guards are relentlessly searching for Erika because of her attempt to get into West Berlin. She is now confined to hiding in Kurt's home indefinitely, with the family living in fear that the next house check might result in them all being arrested. Kurt's family is also routinely visited by a young mother with a baby who relentlessly tries to convince the family to attempt to escape. Her motive is understandable: when the Wall went up, she was isolated from her husband, who is in West Berlin. Reluctantly, Kurt agrees to begin an escape attempt by tunneling underneath the wall, which is only a few dozen yards from the family basement. In doing so, the family must cope with the logistical problem of finding supplies as well as storing the immense amount of dirt from the digging operation. Additionally, there is the constant presence of border guards outside their window, snooping neighbors who might inform and the unexpected arrival of another man, Brunner (Werner Klemperer) who claims to be a participant in the dig but who may have other motives. The film does manage to present how an authoritarian regime can affect even the most mundane of daily activities, as people must consider the consequences of everything they do and say. 

"Escape From East Berlin" is a consistently suspenseful tale that is extremely well-acted, with Murray particularly good in the kind of role that somehow eluded Horst Bucholz, who seemed to have a lock on every part that required a handsome young German back in the day. Murray even provides a convincing accent. Christine Kaufmann is largely wasted, however, in a part that is pure window dressing. Fortunately, the screenplay doesn't saddle her character with having the anticipated romance with Kurt, although they do pose as lovers to escape the scrutiny of border guards. Even the smallest roles are expertly filled with Werner Klemperer as impressive as always as the mystery man. The film builds to a nail-biting conclusion as the plot is revealed by an informer and there is a race against time to get across the border as authorities break into Kurt's family home.

The region-free Warner Archive release boasts a fine transfer and an original trailer that is played for pure sensationalism. Highly recommended.  

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BY HANK REINEKE

On the surface it appeared somewhat brave of Kino Lorber to greenlight a Blu-ray edition of Peter Hunt’s 1974 conspiracy-thriller Gold. It’s not that the film isn’tt deserving of such treatment, in this case an almost flawless restoration from original elements courtesy of Pinewood Studios. It’s only that this film has already been exhaustively exploited on peddled by every budget VHS and DVD label over the last several decades. So fans of the film would surely have this title – perhaps in multiple editions and action-film multi-packs – already sitting on their collection shelves. If so, I can promise your copy is a greatly inferior version to what we’ve been happily provided with here.

The back story of this film’s production, as so often the case, is nearly as interesting as the film itself. Michael Klinger, the British film producer who had given us the great Michael Caine spy thriller Get Carter in 1971, had previously optioned the film rights to such novels as Gold Mine (1970) and Shout at the Devil (1968). Both of these adventure-thrillers had been authored by the Rhodesian novelist Wilbur Smith. Smith would, alongside co-writers, later share screenwriting credit for both films. Klinger was able to raise funds for the film’s production through South African investments and a promise – soon to be controversial - to shoot both of his films in Johannesburg and neighboring communities.

Klinger brought on Peter Hunt to direct the film – whose working title of Gold Mine was soon shortened to Gold. In doing so, Klinger would not-so-coincidentally rescue Hunt’s career as a director of big-screen adventures. Following production of the Hunt helmed sixth James Bond film On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969), the former editor was sadly offered only two subsequent directorial assignments, both far more modest efforts for British television. In what everyone hoped would be his deserved return to big screen respectability, Hunt would bring on a number of veterans from the James Bond series to assist him on his return to big feature filmmaking: editor John Glen, sound recordist Gordon K. McCallum, camera operator Alec Mills, title artist Maurice Binder and production designer Syd Cain amongst them.

It was likely a Godsend to Cain that he wasn’t tasked to replicate an actual working mine in full scale. Klinger had been able to secure the full cooperation of South Africa’s General Mining Corporation for the film’s production. The British souvenir program for Gold, later sold at cinemas in the UK, boasted that the GMC was “one of the great mining and finance houses in the world,” adding the production team was given unfettered use of their mines at West Rand and Bufflesfontein. It was at the latter location that most of the surface photography was shot, with filming having commenced “beneath the 160-foot high shafthead and above the 500 miles of tunnels which twist 9,000 feet below and from which are torn 5,000 metric tons of rock every month.” Cain did impressively replicate portions of the gold mine to film interior action scenes at Pinewood Studios.

Tapped to portray Rod Slater, was another – if more recent – member of the James Bond film family: Roger Moore. Moore’s character in the film was recently promoted – or perhaps one should say “set up” – from “Underground Manger” to General Manager of Sonderditch GMC Ltd. It’s a South African mining company that will soon fall victim to a nefarious plot hatched in London by a board room of ruthless financial investors led by Sir John Gielgud. Their plan is to covertly flood the mine to manipulate prices on the gold market in an effort to increase their own fortunes… even if their windfall would come at the at the expense of the miner’s lives. I’m not giving away anything here, this film is by no means a mystery; the protagonists are identified nearly from the film’s very beginning. Gielgud has many accomplices in his plot including the mine’s very own Managing Director Manfred Steyner (Bradford Dillman).

There was little doubt that the producers of Gold hoped their film might ride the coattails of Moore’s surprising international success as James Bond in Live and Let Die (1973). The lobby cards for Gold, one guesses not unintentionally, would boast “Everything They Touch Turns to Excitement!” Which may have been a great line of ballyhoo, but one whose promotional zing would seem awfully familiar to the one found on the Goldfinger (1964) one sheet: “Everything He Touches Turns to Excitement!” I suppose it can also be argued that Gielgud’s intention to create a crisis to manipulate gold prices and increase his fortune by “five thousand million dollars” (whatever amount that is) is essentially an idea torn from Auric Goldfinger’s playbook. Interestingly, Gold would later be paired in the UK as a double-feature with Diamonds Are Forever (1971). The very collectible British Quad poster assembled for this odd cross-studio pairing would trumpet “At last! Moore and Connery Together in One Terrific All-Action Programme!”

Moore wasn’t the only actor on hand to bring a little star power to the marquee. Actress Susannah York was cast to play Terry Steyner, the Cessna piloting wife of conspirator Dillman, and Slater’s immediate boss. If Dillman’s Steyner is a complete tool, Moore’s Slater is, to be honest, a bit of an anti-hero himself: he’s a philandering rapscallion, who carries a checkered past of broken marriages, debt and high-living tastes that he can ill afford. Moore easily seduces York and their ill-advised affair begins... though, to be fair, she was desperately unhappy in her marriage to begin with. Ray Milland, who plays York’s father, is also on hand as the curmudgeonly but amiable CEO of Sonderditch. Also working on the film was famed composer Elmer Bernstein, whose emotive score would earn him (and lyricist Don Black) an Academy Award nomination in the Best Music, Original Song for “Wherever Love Takes Me”… but they would lose out to “We May Never Love Like This Again” from The Towering Inferno.

So the film certainly doesn’t lack for talent. The problem with Gold is that the story is a maddeningly meandering slow burn. Every stage of the nefarious plan and every criminal and marital double-cross is dutifully documented at length… at the expense of the film’s action which is relegated to the film’s final fifteen minutes. Hunt’s best and most dramatic moments are captured in scenes involving the dangers of the dank, claustrophobic mines, all groaning beams of lumber, dynamite fuses, trapped miners and unsettling cave-in catastrophes (one which includes a grim on-site medical amputation).

As already mentioned, there were a lot of film technicians associated with the James Bond franchise who would work on Gold. The most notable, perhaps, was this film’s Editor and Second Unit director John Glen. There’s little doubt that this film would later prove influential to Glen when chosen to direct the fourteenth Bond film A View to a Kill (1985). Much of the visual mayhem on display in Max Zorin’s soundstage mine was eerily similar to those in Hunt’s Gold. Glen would go on to direct Moore in three James Bond adventures from 1981-1985. Hunt, on the other hand, had previously worked with Moore on a single episode of The Persuaders (“Chain of Events,” 1971), but would work again with the actor on Gold and Shout at the Devil (1976). Despite their friendship, Hunt would confess in a fascinating interview with the short-lived sci-fi magazine Retro Vision, “I love Roger, he’s a lovely man and I’ve done three films with him. But he was never my idea of James Bond.”

The World Charity Premiere (“In Aid of the Star Organisation for Spastics”) of Gold was held on the evening of Thursday, September 5, 1974 at the Odeon Leicester Square. On Friday, September 6^th, the film was to set to enjoy a limited roll out to just short of two-dozen theaters across the UK. Hemdale, the corporation set to distribute the film in the UK afterwards took out a full-page ad in the trades trumpeting “Gold is proving to be 24 carat – 1^st Week Box-Office Total in 23 Cinemas: 81, 660 GBP. Every situation held over. Mr. Exhibitor Make Sure You Get Your Share of Gold.” The film would make less of a splash in the U.S. Though the US would not see a version of the colorful souvenir program brochure that British audiences were offered, Pyramid Books would publish a paperback movie tie-in with a promise their pulp edition would include “an 8-page photo insert from the film.”

Unfortunately for the producers, critical reaction to the film in the U.S. was less enthusiastic, with many newspapers writing off Gold as one more run-of-the-mill “disaster films.” There was some morsel of truth in that. The success of The Poseidon Adventure (1972) had kicked-off in its wake a rash of box-office and pop-culture disaster-film successes as The Towering Inferno (1974) and Earthquake! (1974). One critic would, incorrectly, but understandably, describe Hunt’s adaptation of Gold “as one of the cataclysm of disaster movies that have lately been making cinemas look like Red Cross centers.”

BY LEE PFEIFFER

Most urban crime thrillers made today are indistinguishable blood baths that consist of mindless car chases and pretentiously tough characters. Every now and then, however, a real unsuspected gem surfaces. Such is the case with the 2015 film "Criminal Activities". Despite its generic, computer-generated title that sounds like it was created to emulate one of the endless CBS crime series, the film is expertly made and superbly acted. It also has some very clever plot twists and turns that play out logically and very surprisingly. Most impressive is that this marks the directorial debut of character actor Jackie Earl Haley, who has been kicking around the industry for decades mostly in minor roles. Now in his fifties, he's made a dynamic impression both on-screen and behind the camera with "Criminal Activities".  One must proceed gingerly in reviewing a film like this, 'lest some of the spoilers be divulged.

The film opens with the death of a seemingly troubled young man who is killed by a bus in front of horrified on-lookers. It's presumed to have been a suicide. After his funeral, some of his friends gather to discuss the tragic event. They are Warren (Christopher Abbott), Bryce (Rob Brown) and Zach (Michael Pitt). They are unexpectedly joined by Noah (Dan Stevens) , a nerdy financial investment analyst who was the butt of jokes in high school among some of his friends. He's still very much a nerd but is reluctantly accepted into the group's social orbit partly out of compassion for the way he was treated by them so many years ago. Over drinks the group analyzes why their friend might have ended his life. It's revealed that the dearly departed had been complaining about being followed by some unknown person or persons in recent days...something that unnerved him. Is it possible this stalker might have actually been responsible for his death? The conversation soon turns to money...and the common goal of everyone in the group to attain a successful life style. Bryce says he has a sure-fire investment scheme based on insider trading. There is a stock that is about to skyrocket but they would need to come up with $200,000 to get in on the deal. Collectively they don't have anywhere near that amount. However, Noah advises that he can definitely front the money, as long as they all share the risk as well as the profit. Assuming Noah is putting up his own savings, the young men readily agree. Weeks later, the "sure-fire"  investment goes to hell when the company involved is raided by the feds and its CEO is arrested, causing the stock value to plunge to virtually zero. The panicked group gets together and learns more bad news: Noah didn't put up his own money. Instead, he borrowed it from a local crime kingpin, Eddie (John Travolta) who now expects to be repaid. He meets with the terrified men and they find him to be a smooth operator. He's quiet, calm and witty- but alerts them that the "interest" on the loan is another $200,000. The men advise him that they can't possibly come up with $400,000. He then makes them an offer they literally can't refuse - or they will pay with their lives. Eddie explains that a local rival crime boss has kidnapped his young niece and he's desperate to get her back. He advises them that he will forgive their entire debt if they successfully kidnap his rival's nephew. Eddie will then ensure the release of his niece by arranging a trade of hostages. The four men are understandably frightened by the proposition. After all, they are every day guys with no experience in criminal activities. Nevertheless, Eddie leaves them no choice. He makes it abundantly clear that failure is not an option-at least if they value their lives. The men concoct a scenario to kidnap the nephew, Marques (Edi Gathegi) from a local sleazy nightclub he hangs out in. The men bungle key aspects of the plan but, against all odds, succeed in capturing Marques and bringing him to a vacant apartment they have access to. They advise Eddie that the plan was a success and he tells them everything is looking good- just keep Marques on ice until he gets his niece back. Marques proves to be a handful. He speaks in street jive that is a far cry from the vernacular used by his Gen X white captors. Although tied to a chair, he exudes significant enough charisma to possibly talk his kidnappers into releasing him on the basis that they can still get away with no criminal charges. From this point on, it would be a disservice to detail more of the plot except to say that things wrap up in a startling manner that this viewer didn't see coming.

Director Jackie Earl Haley, who wrote the screenplay based on a script by the late Robert Lowell that had been gathering dust since 1977,  provides himself with a plum supporting role as the most memorable of a two-man team of hit men who are in Eddie's employ. The concept of two eccentric hit men had moss on it even before Travolta and Samuel L. Jackson played such roles so memorably in "Pulp Fiction". In fact, Lee Marvin and Clu Gulager were terrific in similar parts way back in Don Siegel's 1964 remake of "The Killers"- and Robert Webber and Gig Young were also quite good in Peckinpah's "Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia". However, Haley is superb in his brief scenes on screen as a chatty, seemingly friendly street guy who can jump from making quips to blowing someone's head off in a nanosecond. The entire cast is superb, with Dan Stevens particularly memorable as the hapless Noah and Edi Gathegi almost stealing the entire show with an extremely good performance. Travolta, who also served as Executive Producer, seems to be having a blast as the villain. His screen time is limited but he makes the most of it, appearing at key points in the plot. In essence, he's playing a low-end version of a Bond villain. He lives in comparative wealth, has adoring women around him and sucks down dreadful kale-based milk shakes as part of a bizarre diet. He never loses his temper and becomes even scarier the more friendly he acts. As director, Haley keeps the action flowing at a swift pace and credible reactions by the "kidnappers" that evoke the way most of us would feel if we found ourselves caught up in such extraordinary circumstances. However, Haley-who is too obsessed with Tarantino-izing his film- puts style over substance during the movie's surprising final sequence. It proves to be a near fatal error. When the surprises are revealed, Haley does so in a lightning-fast sequence that is almost impossible to comprehend. Worse, he jumps back and forth in time and introduces a key character we haven't seen before. I had to revisit the ending several times in order to comprehend exactly what was being unveiled. Once I understood the plot development, I found it highly satisfying- but no viewer should have to rely on taking such measures just to figure out what is going on. "Criminal Activities" was denied a theatrical release and went straight to home video. Perhaps the incomprehensible nature of the ending was a factor in this. Nevertheless, if you are willing to stick with it (and possibly re-review scenes on the Blu-ray), you might well agree that this is a highly entertaining film and that Haley shows considerable promise as a director.

The Blu-ray from RLJ Entertainment features some deleted scenes and an all-too-brief joint interview with Haley and Travolta. The film should have included a commentary track, as Haley's late break into directing and his nurturing of an almost ancient un-filmed screenplay  would have made some interesting points for discussion.

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On June 9, Kino Lorber will release the boxed set collection “Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema III”.

The set consists of these three films:

ABANDONED (1949) - Noir great Dennis O'Keefe (T-Men, Raw Deal, Cover Up) and Gale Storm (Between Midnight and Dawn) expose a baby-selling racket in the searing crime drama Abandoned, co-starring Jeff Chandler (Man in the Shadow) and Raymond Burr (Pitfall). When Paula Considine (Storm) arrives in Los Angeles to find her sister Mary, she soon learns the unwed mother is dead and her newborn infant is missing. Teaming up with a cynical reporter named Mark Sitko (O'Keefe), Paula discovers Mary was the victim ofa black market adoption ring run by Mrs. Leona Donner (Marjorie Rambeau, Torch Song) and her sleazy assistant Kerric (Burr). Hoping to entrap the pair, Paula and Sitko devise a plan but the sting operation proves to have deadly consequences. This classic film noir was beautifully shot by William H. Daniels (Woman in Hiding) and wonderfully directed by Joseph M. Newman (711 Ocean Drive), with top-notch supporting performances by Jeanette Nolan (Macbeth) and Mike Mazurki (Murder, My Sweet).

THE LADY GAMBLES (1949) - From Michael Gordon, the outstanding director of The Web, An Act of Murder, Woman in Hiding, Cyrano de Bergerac, Pillow Talk and Portrait in Black, comes this classic film noir starring screen legend Barbara Stanwyck (Double Indemnity, Witness to Murder) as a once respectable and vibrant wife who has become a desperately out-of-control high-roller gambler. A chance visit into a Las Vegas casino introduces Joan Boothe (Stanwyck) to the seductive allure of poker and the craps table. All too soon, she ignores her devoted husband (Robert Preston, Wake Island, This Gun for Hire) and older sister (Edith Barrett, I Walked with a Zombie) as she compulsively chases after hard-hearted Lady Luck. Beautifully shot by Russell Metty (Touch of Evil) and featuring a stellar supporting cast that includes Stephen McNally (Diplomatic Courier), John Hoyt (O.S.S.), Leif Erickson (On the Waterfront) and Tony Curtis (6 Bridges to Cross).

THE SLEEPING CITY (1950) - Drug pushing and gambling set the stage for murder in The Sleeping City, a hardboiled film-noir thriller shot on the streets of New York. When a doctor is shot dead outside Bellevue Hospital, detective Fred Rowen (Richard Conte, Cry of the City, Thieves' Highway) is assigned to find the killer. Posing as an intern, Rowen is befriended by the hospital's elevator operator and a ward nurse (Coleen Gray, Kiss of Death, Nightmare Alley) he begins to date. As his investigation continues and potential witnesses wind up dead, Rowen finds himself next on the murderer's list when he uncovers a narcotics ring. Suddenly, everyone is a suspect and he doesn't know whom he can trust! Written by Jo Eisinger (Gilda, Night and the City) and directed by George Sherman (Larceny, Big Jake).

* Bonus Features: NEW Audio Commentary by Film Historian Samm Deighan (Abandoned) | NEW Audio Commentary by Film Historian Kat Ellinger (The Lady Gambles) | NEW Audio Commentary by Film Historian Imogen Sara Smith (The Sleeping City) | Optional English Subtitles | Theatrical Trailers

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BY GIACOMO SELLONI

How far down can one go in life? How deep is the bottom - the point at which the only direction to go is up? And, what can get you there? This deeply introspective Canadian film, Red Rover, brings these questions to the forefront. The film opens with a musical countdown, if you will, while the opening credits run. In a 75 second montage we're introduced to Damon Pierce, the film's underdog protagonist. He's played by Kristian Bruun (Orphan Black and The Murdoch Mysteries) in a wondrously understated performance. We see Damon walking the beach with a metal detector, sitting dejectedly in his office cubicle and finally going to bed, on a couch, in an extremely cramped space with a palpable depression evident on his face. He turns the tiny lamp out... and TITLE.

We join him at work. His boring presentation of a survey to his boss, Brad (played with the perfect amount of selfish, materialistic insensitivity by Josh Peace), eventually gets him fired. "Remember when I poached you... you were the man. But I'm letting you go." What happened to Damon to turn his fortunes so, from being a geologist so respected he was stolen from another company, to the unconfident man he is just one year later?

As we learn more about Damon we find his cramped living space is actually the basement of a house he owns with his ex, Beatrice. She is now living with another man, Mark from Australia, who doesn't seem to own any shirts, in the upstairs of the house. He's a total ass. A selfish unemployed jerk, played to perfection by Morgan David Jones. Megan Heffern, as Beatrice (in another lovely performance) represents the duality that is Woman (at least to a man) whose feelings for Damon are very complex. She's at turns mean, sympathetic and caring.

On an evening sweep of the beach (what is Damon searching for with such an intensity? Will we ever find out?) he meets Phoebe. She's... different. I mean, she's wearing a space suit. She's searching the beach, flashlight on, wearing a space suit. Helmet and all. "Find any treasure?" she asks, scaring the heck out of Damon. She shows him a lone earring, a blue star and asks him "If you find another star like this will you let me know?" She gives him her phone number on a flyer for Red Rover. She's currently working as a temp publicizing it. It's a multiphase competition to find the first 4 people to go on this one-way mission to Mars." As she bounds away down the beach, yes, bouncing like she's walking on the moon, "Red Rover, Red Rover, we're calling you over!" Damon examines the flyer.

Eventually he investigates the website: "Those going won't be coming back. But, imagine a human settlement on the planet Mars. We're looking for strong and intelligent applicants willing to enrich their lives by giving them over to the greatest adventure in the history of our species."

You got it. Damon decides to apply. He goes whole hog. While jogging to get into shape, he runs into Phoebe busking, playing guitar and singing. "I'm trying to get into better shape," he tells her. Later, when he finds Phoebe's other earring, and she sees his attempt of a video introduction, "That was terrible..." she decides that that's how she'll pay Damon back for finding her earring. "I'll help you make this video!" Basically, Damon now has a "Fairy Godmother in a Space Suit." If Walt Disney had lived to see men on the moon he may have had a new movie.

Cara Gee as Phoebe is a revelation. Phoebe has her own back story, now just Damon's fairy godmother and friend. She's also the complete opposite of Damon. She's wild and open emotionally. A 21st century hippie with long black hair laced with purple braids. She's a singer/songwriter who, when this gig's up, is going to tour around, living in her car and playing music.

She films Damon working out (if you can call not being able to do one pull-up working out) in the park and on the beach. She interviews him on her iPhone:

"Tell us about your sisters. Are you going to miss them; that sort of thing," she asks.

"I'm... really not... close with my family."

"Why do you want to go to Mars?"

"I dunno."

"So why not just take off? You can go to another city or another country?"

"I.. du..," he stammers. "I just don't feel like that would be far enough away."

Filming continues at night in an amusement park. He asks her why she's not going to Mars. She replies she's not "done here" while Damon is. He's "hitting the escape button."

She submits her video to Red Rover, unbeknownst to Damon and much to his surprise, he's made it to round two where he will be interviewed by the Red Rover team in a world-wide streaming event. Yeah, gulp! Mission accomplished, Phoebe now wants to move on.

Red Rover is a terrific film. Murray and Belcourt have written a unique script that plays with one's emotions. It's not just a late coming of age tale, Damon is 33, but in its own way a mystery we follow along with. Damon's past year is told in flashbacks that show his descent into depression. Some of this will hit home with many viewers. Filmed in the lovely city of Toronto, with a small crew, (many fill multiple positions), with deft direction by Shane Belcourt, editing by Luke Higginson, a musical score by Anthony Wallace and lovely original songs by Belcourt and Wallace, Red Rover is one of those film gems that sometimes fall between the cracks. Try not to miss it.

Red Rover is currently available for streaming on Youtube, Google Play and Amazon Prime.

BY LEE PFEIFFER

The Warner Archive has released a Blu-ray edition of its previously issued DVD of "The Set-Up". The acclaimed 1949 film noir was directed by Robert Wise at the end of his contract with RKO, where he was championed by Val Lewton and made a name as a very capable editor ("Citizen Kane" was among his credits.) When Wise graduated to directing, he felt hampered by RKO's low budgets and production values and yearned to work for the major studios. Ironically, it was the low budget and production values that enhanced "The Set-Up". Wise may have been handed some lemons but he knew how to turn them into lemonade. The film has all the earmarks of a great film noir experience: a fine cast, dark, moody atmosphere, crisp black-and-white cinematography that emphasizes the shadows and a cast of roughneck characters that ring all too believable, especially if you grew up in an inner city. Wise, working with a fine screenplay by Art Cohn that was, perhaps improbably, based on a poem by Joseph Moncure March.

Possibly because of the abbreviated running time of only 73 minutes, the story is simple and the stakes are laid out quickly. The film opens in a seedy hotel in a honky tonk area of an undefined city. Stoker Thompson (Robert Ryan), an aging boxer who is past his sell date, prepares to cross the street to an arena where he will compete in one of several boxing matches on the card. Stoker is no longer a big draw and his bout is considered to be an added attraction. He's fighting a brash young up-and-comer, Tiger Nelson (Hal Baylor). What he doesn't know is that his manager has agreed to insure that Stoker throws the fight in the third round in return for a bribe from a local crime lord. The manager assumes that Stoker wouldn't agree to toss the fight and gambles on the premise that he will lose anyway and the crime boss will be none the wiser. Stoker is comforted as he heads out by his devoted by long-suffering wife Julie (Audrey Totter), who begs him to give up boxing. But Stoker wants another shot at the brass ring in the hopes of winning a large enough purse to retire from the sport and open a cigar shop with Julie. He feels in his bones he can beat his younger opponent. Much to his disdain, Julie refuses to attend the fight on the premise that she can no longer witness the beatings he has been taking. In the ring, however, the brutal match finds Stoker in better form than anyone could have imagined. Despite the severe punishment he takes, he delivers a spirited performance...as his manager sweats over the prospect that he might win. The outcome of the bout has serious implications for the well-being of everyone involved. Wise ensures that that the production is appropriately gritty, with sweat-drenched locker rooms and an arena packed with street-wise dames and fat, bellowing men sucking on thick cigars. He turns the lack of financial resources into an asset, presenting the events in real time and eschewing a musical score. The boxing bouts are so fast-paced they don't allow for a minute of rest for the combatants, something that would be a physical impossibility in real life. However, it adds to the building tension and excitement. It must be said that the performances are uniformly excellent, with Ryan (who was the Dartmouth College boxing champ for four years in a row), in particularly fine form as the down-but-not-out would-be champ.

The Warner Archive Blu-ray looks superb, allowing the viewer to appreciate the excellent cinematography of Milton R. Krasner. There is only one bonus feature, but it's impressive: the original commentary track recorded by Robert Wise and Martin Scorsese for the previous DVD release. Prior to his passing in 2005, Wise had enthusiastically embraced the idea of participating in such tracks. Thanks to his foresight, we now have numerous commentaries for several of his best films that allow us to hear his personal memories of making them. In this track, Scorsese recalls being impressed by the movie when he first saw it as a film student. He also points out that "there isn't a wasted frame". Some viewers might be annoyed that the duo allow long gaps without speaking but stick with it, because this is a golden opportunity to enjoy two great directors of succeeding generations celebrate the art of filmmaking. Highly recommended.

CLICK HERE TO ORDER THE REGION-FREE BLU-RAY FROM THE CINEMA RETRO MOVIE STORE.

Cinema Retro has received the following press release from Shout! Factory:

Los Angeles, CA – Shout Select is proud to present one of the greatest films of all time with the release of The Deer Hunter (Collector’s Edition) on 4K UHD for the first time. The 2-disc UHD + Blu-ray combo pack will arrive May 26, 2020, loaded with bonus features including new interviews with actors John Savage and Rutanya Alda and producer Michael Deeley. Fans who preorder this Collector’s Edition set from shoutfactory.com will also receive an exclusive 18”x24” poster, while supplies last.

Winner* of five Academy Awards®, including Best Picture and Best Director, and one of AFI's Top 100 Films of All Time, The Deer Hunter follows a group of Pennsylvania steelworkers from their blue-collar lives, hunting in the woods of the Alleghenies, to the hell of Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War. Academy Award® winners** Robert De Niro and Christopher Walken star in this unforgettable saga of friendship and courage. Experience the brutality of war and the depths of emotional strain on the human spirit in this extraordinarily powerful film classic.

Special Features:

DISC 1: 4K UHD – Feature Film

Audio Commentary with cinematographer Vilmos Zsigmond and journalist Bob Fisher

DISC 2: Blu-Ray - Feature Film

NEW We Don’t Belong Here – an interview with actor John Savage

NEW The War At Home – an interview with actress Rutanya Alda

NEW A National Anthem – an interview with producer Michael Deeley

NEW This is Not About War – interview with post-production supervisor Katy Haber and Universal Marketing executive Willette Klausner

Audio Commentary with cinematographer Vilmos Zsigmond and journalist Bob Fisher

Interview with film critic David Thomson

Deleted and Extended Scenes

Theatrical Trailer

Radio Spots

Still Gallery

*1978: Best Picture, Best Director (Michael Cimino), Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Christopher Walken), Best Sound, Best Film Editing

**De Niro: 1974: Best Actor in a Supporting Role, The Godfather: Part II; 1980: Best Actor in a Leading Role: Raging Bull

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DVD REVIEW: ' STILL A REVOLUTIONARY- ALBERT EINSTEIN' FROM FIRST RUN FEATURES

REVIEW: "DON'T DRINK THE WATER" (1969) STARRING JACKIE GLEASON AND ESTELLE PARSONS; BLU-RAY RELEASE

KINO MARQUEE STREAMING PROGRAM BENEFITS LOCAL THEATERS

STREAMING REVIEW: "NOBODY'S FOOL" (1994) STARRING PAUL NEWMAN, BRUCE WILLIS AND JESSICA TANDY

REVIEW: "PLAY DIRTY" (1969) STARRING MICHAEL CAINE; TWILIGHT TIME BLU-RAY RELEASE

REVIEW: BILLY WILDER'S "AVANTI!" (1972) STARRING JACK LEMMON AND JULIET MILLS; BLU-RAY SPECIAL EDITION

REVIEW: "HITLER'S MADMAN" (1943) STARRING JOHN CARRADINE; WARNER ARCHIVE DVD RELEASE

REVIEW: "THE TALL MEN" (1955) STARRING CLARK GABLE, JANE RUSSELL AND ROBERT RYAN; TWILIGHT TIME BLU-RAY RELEASE

REVIEW: “CANYON PASSAGE,” (1946), STARRING DANA ANDREWS, BRIAN DONLEVY, SUSAN HAYWARD; A KINO LORBER BLU-RAY RELEASE

REVIEW: "ASPEN EXTREME" (1993); KINO LORBER BLU-RAY RELEASE

SHOUT! FACTORY TO STREAM GENE AUTRY MOVIES

SHOUT! FACTORY TO RELEASE "THE EVIL OF FRANKENSTEIN" SPECIAL EDITION BLU-RAY