If you love the Warner Archive's DVD and Blu-ray releases, you won't be able to resist their streaming service, which offers hundreds of retro movies and TV episodes. The Archive is offering one month free for new subscribers. Click on the banner above of Duke Wayne as "Chisum" to visit the site.  

The Shout! Factory video company has launched an excellent new streaming site, www.shoutfactorytv.com that features dozens of classic TV episodes and cult movies every month. Best of all, you can view them for free! This month we recommend the 1970 Amicus horror flick "The House That Dripped Blood", a 1970  anthology of terror tales by Robert Bloch, author of "Psycho" and starring Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing, Ingrid Pitt and John Pertwee. Click here to view. 

BY LEE PFEIFFER

By 1963, Vincent Price was generally recognized as the heir apparent to Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi as the undisputed king of the horror film genre. Somewhat lost in discussion's of Price's work is the fact that, until he starred in "House of Wax" in the mid-1950s, he had a long career as a popular and respected supporting actor in mainstream Hollywood productions. If there is a sad aspect to his international success as a horror star, it's that his talents were rarely used henceforth in films of other genres. Nonetheless, Price knew a good thing when he saw it. His collaborations with producer Roger Corman on cinematic versions of classic Edgar Allan Poe stories had proven to be wildly successful. Price wasn't overly selective about working with other producers who sought to capitalize on those films by making blatant imitations of Corman's productions. One such title is "Diary of a Madman", released in 1963 and based on a story by French writer Guy de Maupassant.  In some ways, the film is a worthy rival to a Corman/Price collaboration in that it's intelligently scripted, well-cast and has a relatively creative production design that somewhat masks the movie's threadbare budget. As with the Corman flicks, Price is given a meaty role and he makes the most of it. He plays Simon Cordier, a respected French judge in the late 19th century. He has a reputation for fairness and an obsession with studying the criminal mind in the hope of understanding what motivates some men to commit horrendous crimes of violence. The film opens with Cordier receiving a request to meet with a prisoner who he has sentenced to die on the guillotine. The man is a serial killer and Cordier is interested in taking the opportunity to speak to the prisoner, whose behavior has left him baffled. The man was a pillar-of-the-community type with no criminal background a stable profession. Upon meeting the condemned prisoner in his cell, the doomed convict informs Cordier that he welcomes his imminent execution because he has been inexplicably possessed by an invisible being known as the Horla. He relates an incredible story about this creature periodically taking over control of his body and mind and forcing him to commit acts of murder. As the incredulous Cordier tries to absorb this fanciful tale, the man suddenly attacks him. In defending himself, Cordier hurls the prisoner against a wall, killing him instantly. 

Back in his chambers, Cordier is haunted by the experience but doesn't think much more of it- until some strange occurrences leave him disturbed. Seems that Cordier's irresponsible behavior had somehow been responsible for the accidental death of his wife and young son years before. Cordier has tried to block the bad memories from his mind by locking away all mementos relating to them, including a large framed photograph that had been stored in his attic. He is shocked to find it hanging prominently on the wall of his study. His loyal butler (Ian Wolfe) denies having placed it there. Other strange occurrences lead Cordier to question his mental stability. A psychiatrist assures him that he is suffering from fatigue and urges him to delve back into his passion for sculpting, which he has ignored for years. Cordier follows his advice and begins to feel more relaxed. Things only get better when he has a chance encounter with a vivacious and flirtatious young woman named Odette (Nancy Kovack), who agrees to be a paid model for him. She begins a campaign to seduce Cordier, never telling him that she is actually married to a financially-strapped artist, Paul (Chris Warfield). When Paul objects to the amount of time that Odette is spending in Cordier's studio, she assures him she is only trying to earn money that they desperately need. In reality, she is a heartless gold digger who is weighing the option of leaving Paul for the older man. Oblivious to all this, Cordier is happy to have found love once again. His mood, however, is rudely disrupted when he realizes the cause of the strange things that have been going on in his house: it seems that the Horla has chosen to possess him in retribution for killing the prisoner whose body it once inhabited. Although Cordier can not see the Horla, he discovers it is a physical presence who can not only speak to him, but can also utilize a number of cruel witticisms that he uses to mock and humiliate the esteemed  jurist.  From this point on, Cordier's life is a living hell. In rational moments, he tries frantically to figure out how to rid himself of this ghoulish presence, but the Horla retains control of his mind and body at will. This leads to Cordier carrying out a particularly gruesome murder, leaving him desperate to find a way out of his tortured existence. He devises a last-ditch effort to lure the Horla into his study where he hopes to kill him through use of his one vulnerability: fire. The resulting consequences are dramatic but have tragic results even for Cordier. 

"Diary of a Madman" is mid-range Price fare from this period. The entire enterprise rides on the actor shoulders, but they prove to be broad enough to carry it off. Price looks dashing and, as always, puts his best efforts into even a modest enterprise such as this. Nancy Kovack also gives a fine performance as a bad girl who, refreshingly, never learns to redeem herself as she cuckolds both of her lovers in turn. The film is not exceptional on any level, but it is consistently entertaining an reasonably engrossing.

The MGM made-on-demand DVD features a very impressive transfer and an original trailer is included in which Price (in character) breaks the "Fourth Wall" and addresses the viewer directly.  

By Lee Pfeiffer

A film that became a legendary bomb, the 1977 Western The White Buffalo has been re-evaluated by movie fans in recent years and many consider it to be an underrated classic. Count me out of this assessment. The film is certainly unique: an ambitious attempt to blend the Western and horror film genres, but it falls short on most counts.The United Artists production stars Charles Bronson as Wild Bill Hickcok, who- for reasons never adequately explained- is haunted by terrifying nightmares involving him in a life-or-death confrontation with a giant white buffalo. I didn't know that buffalo come in colors, but I'll cede the point. (Given the dreadful styles of the 1970s, it's surprising the film wasn't titled The Plaid Buffalo.) Simultaneously, Chief Crazy Horse (Will Sampson) is having his own white buffalo problems. Seems the actual rampaging beast wreaked havoc on his village and killed his child. In order to restore his pride and stature among the tribe, he must hunt down and slaughter the animal- or be stuck with the monicker of "The Worm" henceforth. (This must be the Indian equivalent of "nerd".)

The two men are on obsessive journeys and are destined to meet up - but both feel they have the singular right to kill the buffalo. Hickcok meanders through some cow towns under an alias and hooks up with a mountain man geezer (Jack Warden, channeling the ghost of Gabby Hayes) who decides to accompany him on his quest. When Hickcok and Crazy Horse do meet up, they end up saving each other's life in respective ambushes and declare themselves blood brothers. Despite this, each man is determined to be the one who slays the white buffalo.

The film is moody and atmospheric and at times is offbeat enough that, if it weren't for the Colorado scenery, one might suspect this is an Italian Western. Nevertheless, the screenplay by producer, screenwriter and director Richard Sale (based on his novel) is erratic and contains many disparate elements that never blend together in a satisfactory manner. The film is peppered with welcome appearances by many Western favorites (Stuart Whitman, Slim Pickens, John Carradine) but their characters are superfluous and smack of gimmicky cameos. Clint Walker shows up briefly, well-cast and playing against type as a villain. There is also the rather odd presence of Kim Novak in a nothing role as a good-hearted hooker who suffers the humiliation of being rejected by Hickcok even as he shares her bed. (This must be the first case of erectile dysfunction caused by a white buffalo.)

The movie was an attempt by producer Dino De Laurentiis to exploit the dying Western genre by finding a way to incorporate elements of Jaws. De Laurentiis seemed to have a fixation on giant, mythic animals taking vengeance on mankind, as he produced "King Kong", "Orca" and "The White Buffalo" all within a two-year period. Despite the prestigious cast and the fact that this was a United Artists production, the budget was clearly skimpy. The film abounds with shoddy rear screen projection shots and some amateurish sets, particularly in the mountain sequences set at night. There's plenty of plastic snow and the sets are somewhat less realistic than a Christmas window display at Macy's. Then there is the titular character of which much has been written in movie lore. Apparently devoid of anything other than a $20 bill for special effects work, the white buffalo is generally shot in extreme closeup in very brief cuts to mask its ludicrous appearance. Although the buffalo is seemingly immortal and can crash through mountains of snow and cave walls, it never looks any more menacing than a slightly perturbed mountain goat. The analogies to Moby Dick also become a bit too obvious especially when Crazy Horse rides atop the beast, flaying at it with a knife. (just like Ahab and the whale- get it?) All of this is set to an atmospheric if somewhat low-key score by John Barry that fits the proceedings well.

Perhaps the most unintentionally amusing aspect of the movie is the initial meetings between Hickcok and Crazy Horse. The two men face each other and gesture with elaborate Indian sign language- despite the fact they are simultaneously speaking to each other in perfect English! This is as practical as using signal flags to communicate with a dinner companion and seems more suited to an episode of Police Squad.

Despite all of these criticisms, there is something admirable about the concept of The White Buffalo in that the film at least tries to be an original take on an age-old genre. It also represents one of the last movies in which Charles Bronson at least tried to stretch his acting muscles. With his saggy eyes and droopy mustache, he's perfectly cast as Hickcok. The failure of this film seemed to discourage his professional ambitions. With a couple of exceptions (Telefon, Death Hunt) Bronson went happily into B movie hell, churning out low-rent but profitable potboilers aimed at inner city and drive-in audiences. The shame of it is that he also encouraged once respected directors like J. Lee Thompson and Michael Winner to go along with him.

The White Buffalo was one of those major failures that initiated the virtual end of the Western film genre, and it was Heaven's Gate three years later that nailed the coffin shut. The Bronson film has grown in stature as a curiosity in the ensuing years and apologists claim that the chintzy set pieces must have been intended in order to convey the dream-like quality of the plot. Much the same has been said of Hitchcock's Marnie, which was also heavily criticized for its abysmal sets, rear screen production work and use of matte paintings. However, in both cases the hypothesis seems unlikely. They were simply troubled productions overseen by directors who seem to have lost interest in their respective projects. Universal ended up losing money on the Hitchcock drama while United Artists was forced to pick up the tab for the buffalo bill, if you'll pardon the pun.

The White Buffalo has recently been re-released by Kino Lorber Studio Classics. The new transfer is superb, which only makes the white buffalo look even phonier, but that just adds to the fun.  An original trailer is included and this time around, a commentary track has been added by Paul Talbot, author of the terrific "Bronson's Loose" books. Talbot admits he's obsessed by Bronson and his films and provides a master class on the making of The White Buffalo. His track is highly informative, if lacking in humor, as he discusses the career credits of virtually every actor who appears in a speaking role. Talbot's contribution makes the film worth obtaining, even if you had the earlier version.

BY LEE PFEIFFER

The popular John Wayne flick "McLintock!" has had a long, tortured history in terms of its video releases. The film fell out of copyright for a while in the 1980s and 1990s, resulting in any number of cheapo VHS and DVD editions being sold in "dollar stores". Recently Olive Films released a Blu-ray edition of the film, sans any  special features. Shortly thereafter, Paramount released a Blu-ray of a previously issued "Authentic Collector's Edition"  DVD that is loaded with fascinating extras. The film represented the first time Wayne had been directed by Andrew V. McLaglen, son of his old John Ford stock company buddy Victor McLaglen. Both Wayne and Andrew's careers owed their very existence to Ford and they learned well from the master in terms of how to make comedy/action films that would have broad appeal. "McLintock!" is basically the best John Ford film that Ford never directed. It has all the elements of a traditional Ford production: a battle of the sexes between a strong-willed leading man and an equally strong-willed leading lady; eccentric characters played by eccentric character actors; a snappy musical score and at least one big brawl played out in a humorous manner (in this case, the famous group fight scene in a mud pit). 

"McLintock!" reunited Wayne with his favorite leading lady Maureen O'Hara, who had co-starred with him in Ford's "The Quiet Man", "Rio Grande" and "The Wings of Eagles".  (They teamed for the final time in 1971 for "Big Jake".) O'Hara was one of the few actresses who could stand up to Wayne in terms of screen presence. Here, they play the familiar roles of an estranged couple. Wayne is George Washington McLintock (known by one and all as "G.W."), a cattle baron so successful that the town he lives in bares his name. He is separated from his fiery-tempered wife Katherine (O'Hara), who returns to town unexpectedly to try to convince McLintock to allow their teenage daughter Becky (Stefanie Powers) to live with her in the big city. That's pretty much the entire plot. Before long, G.W. and Katherine are battling like boxers going the full fifteen rounds. The film is an obvious western-based adaptation of Shakespeare's "The Taming of the Shrew", which means that although Katherine is allowed to be seen initially as a strong, independent woman, in the end she is pacified by her husband and becomes a compliant Stepford-like wife.  In a finale guaranteed to cause Hilary Clinton agitta, G.W. subjects Katherine to the humiliation of being spanked in public in front of a cheering crowd. Anyone who has progressed from a Neanderthal state will find this element of the film a bit cringe-inducing, but if viewed within the context of its era, it is undeniably amusing. In between the shouting and the spanking, G.W. and Katherine alternate between insulting each other like a frontier version of Ralph and Alice Kramden and making goo-goo eyes at each other. There's no doubt that the film will have a storybook ending and the corn quotient is fairly high. Nevertheless, "McLintock!" is such rollicking good fun that its charms are almost impossible to resist. Much of the film's charm comes from its sheer exuberance in portraying amusing people in amusing situations. There is no gravitas on display and the closest we get to some meaningful drama is when G.W.and Katherine stare longingly into each other's eyes after a period of estrangement, indicating that, despite their fiery tempers and constant arguments, these are two people who are not only madly in love but also quite lustful toward each other. Director McLaglen keeps the action flowing in true Fordian style and it's safe to say there isn't a dull moment. A lot of people get punched and some guns get fired, but no one really gets hurt. All of the shenanigans are set to composer Frank De Vol's lively and catchy score. The film was in theaters the same week that President Kennedy was assassinated. Perhaps the presence of John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara in a feel-good movie like this provided some solace to a grieving nation. In any event, "McLintock!" proved to be one of the Duke's biggest boxoffice hits. It also had a long, successful run on television in the pre-cable/home video era. Over the years, it was shown on prime time by all three major networks and enjoyed big ratings each time. 

Original trade magazine ad.

The Paramount Blu-ray  carries over the extras from the DVD release and is the definitive home video version of the film. Extras include:

• Audio commentary that is jam-packed with vintage interviews with the film's producer, Michael Wayne; director Andrew V. McLaglen, film historians Leonard Maltin and Frank Thompson and cast members Michael Pate and Stefanie Powers. 
• A "making of" documentary is broken down into three sections. One provides some interesting insights into Michael Wayne's decision to devote the years after his father's death to raising money for the cancer foundation that bares the Duke's name. Another featurette spotlights Maureen O'Hara and Stefanie Powers and the third delves into shooting the famous mud pit fight.
• Another featurette shows veteran stuntmen Tom Morga and Wayne Bauer demonstrating how to throw punches convincingly.
• An odd but entertaining mini-documentary about the corsets women wore back in the 19th century. Today, we would call the procedure for getting into one of these contraptions "torture".
• Photo gallery
• Original trailer

The quality of the transfer is simply terrific. "McLintock!" never looked so good. 

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BY DARREN ALLISON

Alexander “Sandy” Mackendrick had enjoyed a succession of triumphs in England. Working out of Ealing studios, he directed such memorable comedies as The Man in the White Suit, Whiskey Galore and the deliciously dark The Ladykillers. As the Ealing factory system began to dry up, Mackendrick made an arguably unlikely move to America. It was through a number of mishaps, unfulfilled projects and (one could argue) a degree of ‘fate’ that Sweet smell of success eventually fell into the lap of Mackendrick. 

Whilst there was little doubt of Mackendrick’s immense ability as a director, there was perhaps an element of doubt whether he could actually undertake a film such as Sweet Smell of Success. After all, those subtle British films were about as far removed as one could possibly imagine when compared to the media dynamics and fuelled corruption of this screenplay. However, Mackendrick had a good eye; a very good eye in fact. Given time to observe the city he knew how to capture it at its best. Through the camera lens, Mackendrick presented Manhattan better than any other contemporary film had done and as a result, undoubtedly influenced esteemed future directors such as Woody Allen.

The film’s ‘master and dog’ relationship between newspaper columnist J.J. Hunsecker (Burt Lancaster, playing a thinly-disguised Walter Winchell) and the Machiavellian press publicist Sidney Falco (Tony Curtis) is the only one of importance. Lancaster was never more imposing as Hunsecker, whilst Curtis displays a slimy charm and a sickening depravity as Falco. As the relationship unfolds, it becomes a battle of wits and power - Falco believes himself to be in a symbiotic relationship with J.J. — he provides him with the stories he needs - but, by the close, the power imbalance is made depressingly obvious. Feeding off the crumbs left by Hunsecker, Sidney is always destined to be consumed by J.J.’s domineering dictatorship. Whilst Sweet Smell of Success remains a stunning piece of work, it is also not without its flaws - specifically in the romantic relationship between Hunsecker’s sister Susan (Susan Harrison) and Steve (Martin Milner) an aspiring young a jazz musician. Not that there is anything wrong with this coiling plot- the story of Susan’s sinisterly over-protective brother and his scheming through Falco to dishonour Steve’s reputation provides the film’s central narrative. All of it works perfectly. However, it is sadly the performances from the inexperienced Harrison and Milner that hamper the film’s vibrant energy and pace – they are both limp and damp. In contrast, such powerhouse performances from both Lancaster and Curtis, and the provision of a razor sharp script by Ernest Lehman and Clifford Odets – still cements Sweet Smell of Success as one of the greatest films of its kind. Combined with James Wong Howe’s sumptuous deep-focus cinematography and Elmer Bernstein’s brassy musical score and you are left with something damn near close to a perfect movie.

Arrow’s newly restored High Definition (1080p) presentation is a 4K digital transfer from the original 35mm camera negative – and frankly it looks incredible. As Sweet Smell of Success is such a personal favourite of mine, I have followed its evolution on home video - through VHS, laserdisc, DVD and now Blu-ray. it’s been an interesting journey but I feel confident that I have finally arrived at my destination. The film has never looked so crisp and clean. It is spotless and always deserved to look this good. There are a couple of location scenes that look a little ‘too’ real for my liking. I’ve always considered there may be a few lengths of stock footage involved here, but I can’t be sure. Regardless, these random shots fall seamlessly in line with the general atmosphere and harsh realism of the urban setting. Wong Howe’s photography is defined by deep dark blacks, varying arrays of grey shade and subtle use of intelligent lighting. Pin- striped suites and intense close ups are all solid and reveal sharply defined detail. Lancaster’s face and glasses (permanently lit from above) creates a near ‘skull like’ shadow upon his cold gaze, the results of which look rather spectacular in this new Blu-ray edition.

Arrow continue to supply the audio in an original untampered and uncompressed PCM mono 1.0, which is clean and free from any distortion. Extras consist of an appreciation by critic and film historian Philip Kemp, author of Lethal Innocence: The Cinema of Alexander Mackendrick. Kemp appears in the top left of screen presenting a detailed analysis of the film while several scenes are presented. He also provides a selected scene commentary, taking several key and expanding on detail. It does nevertheless raise the question – why didn’t Kemp provide a full commentary track? The man is obviously an expert on the movie and his knowledge would have been very welcome (and valuable) throughout.

The bonus highlight for me is Mackendrick: The Man Who Walked Away – Dermot McQuarrie’s 1986 Scottish Television documentary which features extensive interviews with Mackendrick, Burt Lancaster, producer James Hill, Gordon Jackson and many others. It’s a great example of how documentaries of this kind use to be made – rather than the quick, cross cutting MTV style of documentary making today. It’s certainly one to take time over and enjoy fully.

The film’s original theatrical trailer is also included.

Arrow has again spared no expense in terms of packaging. They have provided a reversible sleeve featuring both an original poster and newly commissioned artwork by Chris Walker. The collector’s booklet (40 pages) includes new writing on the film by Michael Brooke and Mackendrick’s own analysis of various script drafts. It is also illustrated throughout with original stills and posters. It all makes for a wonderful package and one that should be savoured – ‘I love this dirty town!’

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http://www.arrowfilms.co.uk/

BY DOUG OSWALD

Nicolas Cage is a workhorse and may be one of the busiest actors today. In an era where big name actors might release a single movie per year, Cage typically comes out with three, four or even five. At any given time he may have over a half dozen movies in various stages of production. Cage is a good actor, often a very good actor, and has made some very entertaining movies that stand up to repeat viewings. I enjoy much of what he does from the over-the-top supernatural action-horror movies “Ghost Rider” and “Drive Angry,” to the adventure-mystery “National Treasure” franchise and his voice work for about a half-dozen animated movies. His list of credits and genres is vast and, if his movie output is any indication, he’s a very busy guy. This can be a good thing for Cage fans, but may result in a mixed bag for movie fans when an actor has too much exposure. Fortunately for Cage, he’s pretty good in just about everything he does.

In “Outcast,” Cage plays Gallain and he’s teamed with Hayden Christensen as Jacob. Gallain and Jacob are 12th century crusader knights who are becoming increasingly weary of killing as they travel from the Middle East to the Far East. We witness the ruthlessness of Jacob through the eyes of his mentor Gallain as he kills the members of a defeated Moorish army that refuses to surrender. Even women and children are not spared Jacob’s murderous wrath. When we meet Jacob again three years later, he’s an opium addict searching for his former mentor as well as redemption for his past sins. He finds this redemption as the protector of a princess and her younger brother who is the rightful new king. Both are fleeing the terror of their older brother and warrior, Prince Shing, played by Andy On, who was passed over in favor of his younger brother for the throne and murdered his dying father, the king. Shing is very similar to Jacob in his bloodlust and this is what his father wishes to avoid in a new king.

The relationship between Jacob and the young king is right out of the classic American western genre playbook. While this movie is no “Shane,” it is an interesting melding of American and Chinese action adventure and, fortunately, everyone speaks perfect English. Jacob agrees to safely transport the princess Lian, played by Chinese model/actress Liu Yifei, and her younger brother Zhao, played by Bill Su Jiahang. The boy forms the expected bond and the princess falls in love with their protector as they make their way to safety while fleeing the older brother who has sent out an order to kill his younger siblings. The young king begs to learn how to use a bow as expertly as Jacob and they pause for a time. During this training we see a flashback of a young Jacob undergoing training by his mentor, Gallain, who we have not seen since the opening scenes. Cage eventually returns and he turns out to be the near mythical “white ghost” referred to throughout the first part of the movie.

The big news for Star Wars fans is the release this week of the digital movie collection consisting of the six film entries in the legendary saga. For full details, click here. 

BY JOHN WHALEN 

An eleven-year old Indian girl is sold by her father to a thirty-year-old man for a cow and a rusty bicycle. Torn from her mother’s arms the child is taken home, beaten, raped and turned into a slave, all the while being abused and taunted by the local villagers because she is from a lower caste. She runs away and tries to go home, but is looked upon as an outcast.  In a society where women are considered lower than cattle, she grows up enduring terrible punishment, including more beatings, rapes and eventual homelessness. She is kidnapped by bandits falls in love with the bandit leader and becomes a legend known throughout India as “Bandit Queen,” stealing from the rich and giving to the poor. She kills the 21 men she accused of gang-raping her, and surrenders to authorities before a crowd of 10,000 supporters. She serves 11 years in prison and when freed, runs on her popularity as a champion of the poor, and is elected to Parliament, only to be assassinated by a member of a higher caste at age 37.

This is the story of Phoolan Devi, played as an adult by Seema Biswas, and although it sounds like something that happened hundreds of years ago in a dark age of ignorance and cruelty her story took place in India, between 1963 and 2001. She was 37 years old when she died. Some of the things that happen in Shekar Kapur’s biographical film “Bandit Queen” (1994) were disputed by the Indian government, which sought to have the film banned. Even Devi sued to block the film’s release, claiming it made her look too much like a “sniveling woman.” But if only half the incidents portrayed in the movie are true, it is not only an unflinchingly realistic drama of a woman’s guts and determination to survive and overcome unbelievable adversity, it is also a searing indictment of a nation whose laws and culture create an environment where such things can happen. One can only hope that the situation in the rural areas of India, where this story occurred, have improved by now.

Kapur’s indictment starts at the top, by attacking the mindset and religious beliefs that permit a social system that divides people into upper and lower castes. The film begins with a quote from a sacred Hindu text that states: “Animals, drunks, illiterates, low castes and woman are worthy of beating.” The powerlessness of women is shown when the 11-year old girl’s mother can only watch in sorrow as her daughter is taken away and again when the bridegroom’s mother can only sit silently outside the room listening to Phoolan’s screams as her son beats and rapes the child.

The film is deliberately infuriating and at times difficult to watch. And if all Kapur wanted to do was create a diatribe against India’s caste system, and extol the virtues of its central character, it wouldn’t be much of a film. But his theme is larger. As he explains in audio commentary provided on the disc, the central vision that guided him through what he admits was a challenging and difficult movie to make, can be summed up in two words: oppression and survival. No matter how difficult Phoolan’s circumstances became, she never submitted to it willingly. Through everything she maintained an inborn defiance, and a spirit of rebellion that got her through it all, though at considerable cost.

In the middle of the film she falls in love with her bandit gang co-leader, but by now she cannot stand the touch of a man. At first all she can do to respond to him is to hit him and let him hit her back. He understands her psychology and eventually breaks through to her. But by now her mind is saturated with revenge and blood lust because of all the hardships she endured and the climax of the story comes when she orders the massacre of the 21 higher-caste men in a village who raped her. Significantly, in almost a Sam Peckinpah-ish touch, Kapur has a naked baby standing at a well crying in the midst of the carnage. It’s a telling image.

Twilight Time has released a limited edition BluRay of “Bandit Queen.” The image is for the most part sharp and clear though some night scenes had too much grain, which are probably in the original film elements The only special features are the director’s audio commentary and a separate track containing the score by composer Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. There is also a booklet containing an informative essay by Julie Kirgo.

No film has ever presented such a realistic, disturbing, and uncompromising portrayal of oppression and survival than “Bandit Queen.”

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By Lee Pfeiffer

The word of mouth on this 1947 Warner Brothers thriller is that it was a disappointment at best and an outright dog at worst. The powerhouse teaming of superstars Humphrey Bogart and Barbara Stanwyck seemed to promise more than audiences and critics felt the film delivered. Consequently, it's generally put near the bottom rung of achievements in both star's careers. In viewing the Warner Archive DVD release, I had few expectations regarding its merits. However, I came away pleasantly surprised. This is a superior, moody and atmospheric film with both Stanwyck and Bogart at their best. Bogart had long played villains, but this is one of the most complex and fascinating characters he has ever brought to life. The movie is based on a hit stage play and its stage origins are quite apparent: it's quite a claustrophobic affair, with only a single sequence shot outside of the WB back lot. However, because most of the story takes place within the confines of a mansion, the lack of wide open spaces only enhances the atmosphere.

Bogart is cast against type as Geoffrey Carroll, a sophisticated and successful painter who has one weakness: he is an incurable womanizer. The film opens with Carroll and his girlfriend Sally (Barbara Stanwyck) enjoying a romantic trip to the mountains of Scotland. While there, she discovers he is actually married and breaks off the relationship. Shortly thereafter, Carroll's wife dies, leaving him in custody of their precocious young daughter Beatrice (a remarkable performance by Ann Carter). Now a widower, Carroll resumes his relationship with Sally, telling her that his wife was an invalid who died from health problems. The couple marry and enjoy a life of privilege in a manor house in the English countryside. Carroll's career is thriving and things seem to be going well- until another woman, Cecily Latham (Alexis Smith) enters their lives. Sally recognizes instantly that her husband has been smitten and correctly suspects the two are having an affair. Jealousy and heartbreak turn to fear when she also begins to suspect that Geoffrey had murdered his former wife and might be planning to do the same with her. Adding to the complexities is a local chemist who is blackmailing Geoffrey on the basis that he may have sold him the lethal mix that resulted in his first wife's death. 

The Two Mrs. Carrolls has many similarities to Hitchcock's Suspicion including a key plot device involving a potentially fatal glass of milk served to the wife who may have been designated for murder. The film's primary strength is the genuine chemistry between Bogart and Stanwyck, who are terrific together. The suspense builds gradually to a chilling conclusion. Bogart is especially good in this film, which allows him to break some new ground as an outwardly charming, but narcissistic personality who will stop at nothing to get what he wants. Alexis Smith smolders as the bad girl who pretends to be Sally's friend so she can enjoy the company of her husband. There is also a very competent cast of supporting actors including the always reliable Nigel Bruce, playing a bumbling doctor in a role that doesn't veer very far from his portrayal of Doctor Watson in the Sherlock Holmes films. Director Peter Godfrey keeps the action flowing at a brisk pace and the movie is enhanced by a typically impressive score by Franz Waxman. 

This writer is one of the few who will defend this film, but my belief is that, while it is certainly not a classic for the ages, it stands up well as consistently good entertainment. By all means, you could do worse than spend a couple of hours with Mr. Bogart and Ms. Stanwyck.

The burn-to-order DVD contains the original trailer.

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Amazon is selling the Hitchcock Masterpiece Collection Blu-ray edition at a savings of $200.

The set consists of 15 classic movies:

• Rope, Shadow of a Doubt, Rear Window, The Trouble With Harry, The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956 version), Vertigo, North By Northwest, Psycho, The Birds, Marnie, Torn Curtain, Topaz, Frenzy and Family Plot. 

 Every film is packed with sensational bonus features. 

CLICK HERE TO ORDER AND TO VIEW PROMOTIONAL VIDEO FOR THE SET 

BY DARREN ALLISON

Day of Anger is an enjoyable spaghetti western that top-lines a legend of the genre, Lee Van Cleef, as aging gunfighter Frank Talby. In an attempt to regain his fearsom reputation, Talby shoots and kills a local Sheriff. He then finds he must contend with his own young protégé, a street cleaner Scott Mary (Giuliano Gemma), who happened to be the sheriff's close friend. The climactic showdown finds Talby in a classic face off with his former pupil, with each man knowing the other's every move and thought.

This lively, intelligent western, notable for the chemistry between its charismatic leads, some memorable action set-pieces (including a rifle duel on horseback that has to be seen to be believed) and a jazzy Riz Ortolani score, is presented here in an exclusive high-definition restoration from the original Techniscope negative. Day of Anger remains a superior and much-loved Italian western and was directed Sergio Leone’s original assistant, Tonino Valerii.

Arrow Video’s dual format release comes in both a High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) and Standard Definition DVD presentation. The set also contains two versions of the film, the original Italian theatrical release and the shortened version that was screened internationally. Day of Anger boasts visuals that are both impressive and detailed, especially in close-up shots of Van Cleef’s chiselled facial features. As you would expect from this particular genre of film, colours are bright and vivid with true, tanned skin tones. Director Valerii makes excellent use of the 2.35:1 Techniscope frame, without ever feeling the need to use extreme close ups - unlike his original influence, Sergio Leone. The film has a minimal amount of grain. Audio is presented in the form of a clear, uncompressed mono track, with English or Italian soundtracks on the longer cut and an English soundtrack on the shorter version. There are also newly translated English subtitles for Italian audio track. The film really benefits from the brand new restoration struck from the original 35mm Techniscope camera negative. It is both clean and free of any major defects.

The disc's extras are also enjoyable. They include a deleted scene, which in honesty, is nothing more than an extension of an existing scene. There is a selection of trailers (all in varying quality) which serve their purpose well. Then we get to the really good stuff. There is a brand new interview with screenwriter Ernesto Gastaldi, who reveals many interesting stories. Gastaldi speaks in his native tongue (enthusiastically) with his responses presented in the form of English subtitles. There is a previously unreleased 2008 interview with director Tonino Valerii – a little less enthusiastic then Gastaldi – but it is interesting nevertheless. The interview which is arguably the most engrossing is that of Tonino Valerii’s biographer Roberto Curti – which is conducted in English. Curti provides a fascinating insight into the director and provides detailed analysis on films, the genre and Sergio Leone –all of which proves very enlightening.

Arrow’s superb packaging again includes a reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Reinhard Kleist and a detailed booklet featuring new writing on the film by Howard Hughes (author of Spaghetti Westerns) and illustrated with original poster designs. Fans of the genre will love it.

CLICK HERE TO ORDER FROM THE ARROW VIDEO WEB SITE (UK-BASED) 

USA CUSTOMERS: CLICK HERE TO ORDER FROM AMAZON

Cinema Retro has received the following press release:

CELEBRATE FRANK SINATRA’S 100TH BIRTHDAY WITH

FRANK SINATRA: 5 FILM COLLECTION

MARCH 31 ON DIGITAL HD AND MAY 5 ON BLU-RAYTM FROM WARNER BROS. HOME ENTERTAINMENT

First time on Blu-ray and Digital HD for Anchors Aweigh, On the Town And Robin and the 7 Hoods

3. Anchors Aweigh (1945)

4. Till The Clouds Roll By (1946)

5. Kissing Bandit, The (1948)

6. On the Town (1949)

7. Guys and Dolls (1955)

8. Tender Trap, The (1955)

9. The Man with The Golden Arm (1955)

10. High Society (1956)

11. Some Came Running (1958)

12. Never So Few (1959) – first time on Digital HD 13. Ocean's 11 (1960)

14. Robin and the 7 Hoods (1964)

15. None But The Brave (1965)

CLICK HERE TO ORDER THE BLU-RAY SET, TO BE RELEASED MAY 5

BY DARREN ALLISON

Nurse Coffy (Pam Grier) grieves over a sister ruined by drugs and takes murderous revenge on the pimps and pushers who victimized her. When her former policeman boyfriend is beaten for refusing to take bribes, Coffy blasts her way up the corruption trail to drug kingpin Arturo Vitroni (Allan Arbus) and the fabulous pimp master King George (Robert DoQui). But her disillusion is complete when she discovers that her classy politician boyfriend Howard Brunswick (Booker Bradshaw) is also part of the syndicate. Considering “Coffy “was made on a shoestring budget, the film still works very well, which is probably down to Jack Hill’s witty, jive talking script and fine direction. The action is great, probably some of the best to ever emerge from the Blaxploitation / Soul Cinema genre.

Arrow’s Blu-ray release boasts a lush transfer with rich colour detail; the film’s opening pin sharp credits appear to almost leave the screen. The film makes its world début on the Blu-ray format - with a fully restored High Definition (1080p) presentation. Daytime scenes in particular look fresh and revived – with my eyes drawn continuously towards the film’s beautiful solid blue skies. Internal scenes such as the sordid night club sequences retain a balanced warmth without ever losing fine detail. Night shots, however, do vary to some degree with some milky greys appearing in place of solid blacks, but this is no doubt due to the production values and original lighting conditions. Actually, it provides a nice little reminder that the viewer is watching a low budget, genuine grindhouse movie. “Coffy”’s near-perfect re-mastering process more often than not leads us to believe we are watching a much larger budgeted production.

The film’s audio is presented in its original uncompressed mono, which is clear and very acceptable. The masterful soundtrack (produced, composed, and arranged) by Roy Ayers is allowed to flow naturally. Free from any forced tweaking, the film unfolds better for it - while also keeping the purists among us completely satisfied.

Pam Grier as Coffy: the cover story for Cinema Retro issue #31.

The disc's extras are also very impressive. Writer-director Jack Hill’s audio commentary is both enthusiastic and informative. Hill doesn't pause for a second, continuously narrating each shot with production stories, background information on cast and crew and an incredibly interesting insight into the whole social scene including racism and feminist issues – it is both a joy and a first-hand education. Other bonus extras include:

• “A Taste of Coffy“– is a brand new interview with Jack Hill, a few stories are repeated from the audio commentary, but there is also a lot of additional material to digest.
• “The Baddest Chick in Town!” – A brand new interview with Pam Grier on Coffy and its follow up, Foxy Brown is a great little featurette and full of fascinating stories.
• The  original theatrical trailer and an image gallery are also included.

There is also a very good video essay, simply titled ‘Blaxploitation!’, presented by author Mikel J. Koven. I thought this would be the weakest link among the extras, but I was pleasantly surprised – it’s actually a joy from start to finish and had me hanging on to every word. The presentation is also packed with stills and lots of beautifully produced film posters that were representative of the genre.

Arrow have provided an informative booklet and produced a very cool, reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Gilles Vranckx – Overall, it’s all just about perfect.

"COFFY" WILL BE RELEASED ON 6 APRIL. CLICK HERE TO ORDER FROM AMAZON UK 

BY LEE PFEIFFER

The feature film version of the landmark WWII TV documentary series "Victory at Sea" has been remastered and released by Film Chest. The original  NBC TV series consisted of 26 half-hour episodes that were broadcast between 1952-1953. The show was one of the most acclaimed from the early days of television and was honored with Emmy awards and a Peabody award. Given the abundance of videos and documentaries about WWII that have been released and telecast over the decades, you have to put yourself in the mindset of how revolutionary this show was in 1952. Until then, the men who fought WWII could only see periodic glimpses of the conflict in abbreviated newsreels that were shown prior to the main feature in movie houses. "Victory at Sea" represented the first time most Americans got to see the war in all of its ugliness. With the conflict over, the Pentagon was more liberal about showing the extent of Allied deaths and casualties, something that was initially deemed to be bad for public morale especially in the early days of the war when the tide was certainly against the Western democracies. Imperial Japan controlled huge areas of Asia and only England stood between Hitler's complete domination of Europe. America's entry in the war was unintended due to the attack on Pearl Harbor. While Americans sympathized with the British, the USA was primarily an isolationist country until December 7, 1941. The first six months of the nation's involvement in the war was anything but promising. Seemingly every day brought a major defeat to the Americans and British in the Pacific. With the Battle of Midway in 1942, however, the tide turned with a major defeat of the supposedly invincible Japanese fleet.  Still, government censors continued to restrict images of dead and wounded soldiers, 'lest they serve enemy propaganda purposes. By the time "Victory at Sea" aired, the war was an unpleasant, if recent, memory. Now the truth could be told and shown. Make no mistake, the series was definitely propaganda. The half-hour running time of every episode didn't leave much time for in-depth examination of the war and the giant figures who dominated that era. Nuances were few and there  were scant examinations of questionable military strategies of the Allies.  Still, the show was unique in the sense that it presented the war from the standpoint of the average soldier and sailor, not the top brass. Because of this, the average veteran of the conflict could identify with the remarkable footage that was shown in every episode.

In 1954, a feature film condensation of footage from the episodes was released theatrically. The film is an achievement of impressive editing by Issac Kleinerman, who is also credited as director. Wading through seemingly endless miles of footage, Kleinerman managed to compile a reasonably representative depiction of the conflict. The film does not attempt to be a comprehensive examination of the causes of the war. One should keep in mind that the film was released only a decade after the conflict so no one needed to be schooled in primal reasons the world went to war for the second time in the century. The film includes sobering footage of casualties and heartbreaking scenes of maimed soldiers crying in agony. It remains very moving to view these scenes and realize the sacrifices that were made to save the world from tyranny. Most of the film accentuates the naval aspect of war but there are also scenes depicting the horrors of the concentration camps and the horrendous attempts to conduct warfare in the midst of jungles filled with enemy troops as well as insidious natural dangers. Although Victory At Sea accentuates the American experience, it pays homage to all the Allied troops and takes special pains to honor the sacrifice and courage of the British military and civilian population, both of which showed almost surrealistic courage throughout the ordeal. Some of the footage shown in the documentary is clearly based on re-enactments. There are some shots that are just too incredible to have been shot in real time. Others, such as U.S. sailors lounging around Pearl Harbor right before the attack seem to have been staged for dramatic intensity. Nevertheless, the vast majority of footage is real- and you will emerge from the experience with  much respect for the cameramen who put their lives on the line to shoot it.

Actor Alexander Scourby's masterful narration adds immeasurably from the experience, as does the now classic musical score by Richard Rodgers (yes, that Richard Rodgers.) In fact, Rodgers' score, conducted by Robert Russell Bennett,  proved to be so popular that it resulted in the release of  several "Victory at Sea" soundtrack albums based on the TV series. 

This release of "Victory at Sea" has  plenty of artifacts and splotches on the film but this is due to the age of the raw materials it has been mastered from. Anyone interested in the study of WWII will want to add this to their collection.  

CLICK HERE TO ORDER 

Cinema Retro has received the following press release. We don't generally delve into the world of grunge horror flicks but it is interesting that there is a market that is nostalgic for new releases in the VHS format:

The moment gore hounds have been waiting for is here. You can now visit CultMovieMania.com and snag pre-sale copies of our latest VHS tapes - CANNIBAL FEROX and CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST - two super sickies we've teamed up to release with legendary Grindhouse Releasing.

There is one version of Cannibal Ferox. And, there are 3 different artwork versions for Cannibal Holocaust. Each tape comes with an 11" x 17" poster of the artwork. And frankly, they are going to look awesome on your walls.

All of these tapes are limited edition and expected to go fast. 

Want all of them? Pay less when you purchase all 4 tapes at once here.

The CANNIBAL FEROX tape will include the ultra-nasty, completely uncut feature film along with bonus video of the Cannibal Ferox Hollywood Premiere, an interview with director Umberto Lenzi, and trailers. It will also feature exclusive new artwork painted and designed by horror director Marcus Koch (100 Tears, ROT) and a poster only available with this edition of the movie. 

The CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST tapes will include the uncut feature film in its nauseating entirety, plus the Cannibal Holocaust music video and trailers. The striking new special edition artwork, featuring design by Chamuco ATX and illustration by Vader Paz, will come in three different collectible color variants. Each tape also comes with a matching poster exclusive to this release.

(*Please make sure you select your preferred CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST color variant in the store.) 

Both tapes feature official pan-and-scan transfers from Grindhouse Releasing, to add extra slime to the VHS violence.

These tapes are available in our store for Pre-Sale now. They are expected to start shipping April 20th. 

Get all 4 tapes here now.

Or visit the CultMovieMania.com now to pick your favorite.

Have fun...and thanks!

--

Cult Movie Mania

cultmoviemania.com

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@CultMovieMania

BY TIM GREAVES

(The following pertains to the UK Region B release)

Utilising more than a smidge of poetic licence, Countess Dracula is the 1971 Peter Sasdy/Hammer offering that recounts the true-life visceral misdemeanours of Hungarian murderess Countess Erzsébat Bathory. The late Ingrid Pitt, who portrayed the titular harridan, was quite outspoken in her disdain for the results, one of her key grievances being director Sasdy’s overly-restrained approach to blood-letting. Given the subject matter’s potential for sanguinary splatter, one has to concur that it’s a fairly coy production, more romantic costume drama with an insidious undercurrent than your traditional Hammer horror fare. Yet, that said, a cleaving aura of doom coupled with some efficient injections of nastiness prevent the film from being a wholly anaemic affair.

When, in a fit of ire, the ageing Countess Elizabeth (Ingrid Pitt) lashes out at her inept maid, she inadvertently discovers that the virginal girl’s blood harbours properties able to restore her youthful beauty. Slaying the girl and bathing in her blood, Elizabeth deigns to assume the identity of her own daughter, Ilona (Lesley-Anne Down), who has not been seen at the castle since being shipped off to boarding school as a child. But no sooner has Elisabeth met and fallen in love with handsome soldier Imre Toth (Sandor Eles), than she realises that the regenerative effects of the maid’s blood are far from permanent and she is only able to sustain her façade by seeking fresh donors to fend off her true, haggard appearance. Finding a willing accomplice in her faithful companion, Captain Dobi (Nigel Green), the slaying begins.

The shortcomings of Jeremy Paul’s slightly lethargic and excessively talky Countess Dracula script can be all but forgiven due to a magnetic performance by Ingrid Pitt, who overcomes questionable post-synch dubbing to be both sensuously provocative in her younger incarnation and frighteningly sadistic (under the increasingly unpleasant layers of Tom Smith’s crone make-up) in her foul, older guise. If there’s less engaging input from Sandor Eles and Lesley Anne-Down, that too is compensated for by excellent character work from Nigel Green (in his penultimate big screen role) and Maurice Denham as a scholarly elder whose discovery of Elisabeth’s secret pegs him for an early exit.

For more original images from the film, visit www.theblackboxclub.com

In spite of a few failings – not least its outrageously misleading title, which would certainly have had audiences anticipating some fanged action – Countess Dracula is a lush fairy-tale accompanied by a silken Harry Robinson score which in summation, though not perhaps as worthy of frequent revisit as some of the Hammer classics, is estimable enough evidence of their Gothic cinema supremacy.

Countess Dracula is now available in the UK as a Region B Blu-Ray release as a constituent of Network Distributing’s “The British Film” collection. The hi-definiton transfer is pleasing if not perfect, with occasional minor damage and a fair amount of grain in evidence during darker scenes. It is, however, still a marked improvement on Network’s earlier DVD release. The generous supplementary features are carried over from said DVD, specifically comprising a commentary track featuring Ingrid Pitt, Kim Newman and Stephen Jones, a TV interview with Pitt and a news item on a Bray studios open day back in the late 90s, an episode of the 1970 TV show Conceptions of Murder (starring Nigel Green), an episode of the recently deceased Brian Clemens’ excellent TV series Thriller (showcasing yet another fine Pitt performance) and a number of stills galleries.

CLICK HERE TO ORDER FROM AMAZON UK

NOTE: IN THE U.S, SYNAPSE FILMS HAS RELEASED A VERY IMPRESSIVE BLU-RAY/DVD COMBO PACK OF "COUNTESS DRACULA"

Special features include:

• Commentary track with Ingrid Pitt, Peter Sasdy, screenwriter Jeremy Paul and film historian Jonathan Sothcott.
• Vintage audio interview with Ingrid Pitt
• A featurette about Pitt's life and career
• Stills gallery
• Original trailer.  

CLICK HERE TO ORDER FROM AMAZON USA

Cinema Retro has received the following press release:

Revisit 1939, Hollywood’s Greatest Year, with 4 New Blu-ray™ Debuts

THE GOLDEN YEAR COLLECTION JUNE 9

Features Newly Restored Blu-ray Debut of The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Starring Charles Laughton, and Blu-ray Debuts of – Bette Davis’ Dark Victory, Errol Flynn’s Dodge City and Greta Garbo’s Ninotchka. Collection also includes Gone With the Wind.

Burbank, Calif. March 10, 2015 – On June 9, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment will celebrate one of the most prolific twelve months in Hollywood’s history with the 6-disc The Golden Year Collection. Leading the five-film set will be the Blu-ray debut of

· Prophet Without Honor – Also on the Ninotchka disc

· Sword Fishing – Vintage 1939 WB Short

· Detouring America – Vintage 1939 WB Cartoon

· Peace on Earth - Vintage 1939 MGM Cartoon

· Trailers

CLICK HERE TO PRE-ORDER FROM AMAZON

By Lee Pfeiffer

In the wake of unexpected critical acclaim for director Richard Lester's A Hard Day's Night in 1964, studios scrambled to emulate the success of that first feature film starring The Beatles. Over a period of a few years, many bands found themselves top-lining major feature films. Most were mindless exploitation films, a few others more ambitious in their goals. Fitting snugly into the latter category was Having a Wild Weekend (released in the UK under the title Catch Us If You Can.)  The film represents the only movie starring the Dave Clark Five, one of the more popular bands to emerge during that marvelous era in the 1960s when Great Britain shed its post WWII doldrums and came to dominate international pop culture. The band was one of many who rode the coattails of The Beatles to the top of the charts, but they had their own unique style of songs and music that resulted in some memorable hit songs that still hold up well today. At one point, the DC5 was so popular that they appeared on The Ed Sulllivan Show more than any other British band. Their feature film debut is impressive only in the sense that it afforded a young documentary maker named John Boorman the opportunity to make his feature film directorial debut. There is scant evidence that Boorman possessed the kind of unique vision that would result in Point Blank only two years later and Deliverance five years after that, but Weekend is different from most teen idol movies of the era both in terms of its visual content as well as its message. The script is also unique in that the DC5 don't appear as themselves, thus its the only film of its kind that doesn't showcase the band members playing music on screen. In fact, they don't even play musicians, but rather, stuntmen who are employed to appear in an expensive nationwide British ad campaign designed to encourage meat eating. This rather uncommercial message is prettied up by having the campaign center on a perky, sexy young blonde named Dinah (Barbara Ferris), who is an omnipresent force in London, appearing on billboards and TV ads to promote the meat industry in a fun way. The DC5 appear with her as window dressing, always in the background of the ads. During the shooting of a particularly frustrating TV commercial taping, Dinah and her boyfriend Steve (Dave Clark) engage in an abrupt act of rebellion by stealing a sports car they drive in the ad and absconding to an island that Dinah hopes to retire to. This sets in motion a massive search by the advertising agency executives that becomes a nationwide obsession. Rumors circulate that Steve has kidnapped Dinah, something that turns out to be an unexpected boon for the ad agency since it results in a great deal of free publicity for "The Meat Girl". Steve and Dinah's directionless meanderings around the island prove to be less joyful than expected. They encounter a colony of hippies but find they are as shallow as the Establishment types they are rebelling against. They also blunder into the middle of military war games in the film's zaniest and least credible sequence. Ultimately the other members of the DC5 join them but even they are being pursued by agents for the advertising agency as well as local police. Steve brings them to a farm run by a boyhood idol who he used to visit as a child only to find he has "sold out" too and is looking to use Dinah as a tourist attraction. Disillusioned, Steve and Dinah ultimately come face to face with their employers and Steve gets a downbeat life lesson on how shallow even Dinah's principals can be.

Having a Wild Weekend is a strangely humorless film with the DC5 songs rather awkwardly interwoven. Even a sequence (filmed in Bath) that depicts a massive, wild costume party doesn't deliver the amusement you might expect. However, it does offer the unique opportunity to see people dressed as Stan Laurel, the Marx Brothers and Frankenstein cavorting in the ancient Roman baths.  Dave Clark has movie star looks and admirable screen presence. He should have pursued a career as an actor. However, the other band members have scant opportunity to present themselves as individuals. This includes lead singer Mike Smith, who sang most of the group's hit songs even though Clark would lip synch to them in live appearances to appear as though he sang them on the recordings. Plot angles appear promisingly but get dropped abruptly including a potentially promising sequence in which Steve and Dinah are invited home by a middle aged couple (excellently played by Robin Bailey and Yootha Joyce) who turn out to be setting them up for some sexual swinging. Director Boorman eschews studio sets for actual locations and this gives the movie a sense of vibrancy it might otherwise have lacked. Manny Wynn's black and white cinematography does justice to the British countryside and he presents the action through some interesting camera angles.

The downbeat storyline won praise from critics at the time because it so deftly avoids emulating the ridiculously cheery productions that were generally aimed at teens. It holds up well as a curiosity and affords some nostalgic insights into a time when the counterculture movement was on the verge of exploding. The DVD presentation by the Warner Archive presents a crisp, clean transfer sans any extras. One hopes that someday, Dave Clark might be asked to participate in a special edition of the movie.

CLICK HERE TO ORDER FROM AMAZON

CLICK HERE TO WATCH ON WARNER ARCHIVE STREAMING SERVICE (SUBSCRIPTION REQUIRED)

SECOND TAKE: ALTERNATE OPINIONS ON FILMS PREVIOUSLY REVIEWED BY CINEMA RETRO 

BY TIM GREAVES

William Castle’s Strait-Jacket was a pretty big deal for Joan Crawford. Her biggest successes lay behind her, but she was shrewd enough to understand that even a low-budget horror film was money in the bank and, with the alternative for many actresses of her age (and younger) being protracted unemployment, she put her heart and soul into it. She participated in a pre-production featurette entitled “How to Plan a Murder”, alongside director/producer (and unsurpassed gimmick maestro) William Castle and writer Robert Bloch, jovially discussing the best ways to dispose of someone on screen. And, upon its release in 1964, she toured with the film, making a number of personal appearances that drew crowds in their droves. As to her performance within, if nothing else she should be applauded for having the temerity at the age of almost 60 to play not only a character some 15 years her junior, but (in flashbacks) a character some 35 years her junior; the latter, it has to be said, she monumentally fails to pull off!

In front of her terrified little girl, Lucy Harbin (Crawford) takes an axe to her philandering husband and his lover, after which, despite protestations of her innocence, she is hauled off – in a strait-jacket, no less – to an institution for the criminally insane. Twenty years later she is deigned fit for release and goes to stay on a ranch with her brother (Leif Erickson) and his wife (Rochelle Hudson), and her own daughter (Diane Baker) who has been in their care and is now an adult on the verge of matrimony. But as Lucy struggles to exorcise the demons of her past and attempts to forge a relationship with the daughter whose growing-up she has missed, she begins to have visions of decapitated heads and bloodied axes. Is she losing her mind, or is something far more sinister going on? Suffice to say it isn’t long before the murders begin…

A touch creaky by today’s standards and riddled with some pretty clunky dialogue, it’s nevertheless easy to conceive that Strait-Jacket was fairly shocking stuff back in the day. However, it’s fair to say that it’s still a very watchable little chiller, with a tangible snifter of Psycho running through its veins. Beyond the fact it emerged from the pen of Psycho-scribe Robert Bloch and was shot in crisp black and white (which served to lessen the impact of a number of its sanguinary sins), the premise of an elderly woman with a penchant for hacking up those who cross her prowling about a remote property certainly has a ring of familiarity about it. And, as with Psycho, it’s just possible that not everything is as it first seems. Anyone familiar with the twists in 1964’s Bette Davis starrer Hush…Hush Sweet Charlotte (which, it should be noted, Strait-Jacket preceded into theatres by some 11 months) will probably cotton on to what’s going on.

The cast is strong, particularly Diane Baker as Crawford’s daughter and George Kennedy as a bad-toothed ranch-hand-turned-blackmailer (who, despite carrying an axe everywhere, may as well have “red herring” tattooed on his forehead). Watch out, too, in the opening scenes for the uncredited screen debut of Lee Majors in the role of Crawford’s so-to-be-headless hubby. But, make no mistake, this is 100% Crawford’s show, effortlessly traversing personality swings that vacillate between pitiably timid and contrite and vampishly gregarious and carefree. Proof, were it needed, that regardless of the quality of the material at hand, she always gave it her all. (For further compelling evidence on this score, check out 1970’s Trog.)

Where What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?, released two years earlier, remains this writer’s favourite Joan Crawford film, for undemanding chills and spills – or simply to see the actress firing on all dramatic thrusters – they don’t come much better than Strait-Jacket. And be sure to keep your eyes peeled to the screen for the closing Columbia Pictures logo, slyly tinkered with by Castle in a wickedly comic wink that none of this stuff should be taken too seriously.

The film is available on disc as part of Sony Pictures’ Choice Collection and comes with a respectable array of supplementary goodies. Along with “Battle Axe” (an entertaining retrospective that runs just shy of 15-minutes and includes an interview with Diane Baker), there’s the vintage promo featurette mentioned at the start of this review, some 1963 Crawford wardrobe test footage, brief axe test footage (conspicuously more gruesome than anything that made it into the finished film) and a TV spot. Regrettably the transfer of the film itself is a little disappointing, the image often resembling that of an old VHS recording desperately in need of a tweak on the tracking; not a deal-breaker, but certainly worth keeping in mind.

CLICK HERE TO ORDER FROM AMAZON

CLICK HERE TO READ LEE PFEIFFER'S ORIGINAL REVIEW OF "STRAIT-JACKET" 

BY LEE PFEIFFER

Although he was regarded as a comedy genius, the sad truth is that Peter Sellers was more often than not misused in big screen comedies. After making it big on British TV  and in feature films in the late 1950s, Sellers became an international sensation with his acclaimed work in big studio feature films such as "Lolita", "Dr. Strangelove", "The World of Henry Orient" and the first entries in the "Pink Panther" series. Through the mid-Sixties, he did impressive work in films like "After the Fox", "The Wrong Box" and "What's New Pussycat?" If the films weren't classics, at least they presented some of Sellers' off-the-wall ability to deliver innovative characters and comedic situations. By the late Sixties, however, his own personal demons began to get the better of him. Sellers was the epitome of the classic clown: laughing on the outside but crying on the inside. His insecurities began to affect his work habits and he became known as moody, temperamental and unreliable. Producer Charles K. Feldman was so fed up with Sellers' behavior on the set of "Casino Royale" that he fired him, even though Sellers had not yet completed pivotal scenes for the movie's climax. After this, Sellers seemed adrift. He found steady work, to be sure, but the quality was sagging. Even when he attempted to do something daring like improvise his role throughout an entire feature film in Blake Edwards' "The Party", the result was a misfire. By the mid-1970s, Sellers was struggling to regain his cinematic mojo and reluctantly agreed to re-team with Blake Edwards to revive "The Pink Panther" franchise. The two men despised each other personally but they knew that there would still be an audience for Sellers' immortal depiction of Inspector Clouseau. They were right. The revived "Panther" films did well at the boxoffice but both Sellers and Edwards got lazier with each successive film until it was clear they were simply going through the motions in search of an easy pay check. Sellers would die young at age 55 in 1980. Fortunately, his career saw at least one last triumph with his Oscar-nominated performance in Hal Ashby's 1979 classic "Being There". The film revived interest in his career and suddenly Sellers was a hot commodity again. Death cheated us from knowing if he would have successfully capitalized on the momentum. Certainly,his last credited starring role in "The Fiendish Plot of Fu Manchu" should give us pause when considering whether his new found respectability was merely a fluke.

One of Sellers' final films was "The Prisoner of Zenda", a comedy version of the classic 1894 adventure novel by Anthony Hope. The Sellers version came and went rather quickly and was eclipsed by the acclaim accorded him for "Being There". Universal has released "Zenda" as a burn-to-order title and in viewing the film for the first time, I was pleasantly surprised at how enjoyable it is. The movie affords Sellers the opportunity to do what he did best: play multiple roles, as he did so brilliantly in "Dr. Strangelove". The film, set in the Victorian era, opens with the accidental demise of Rudolf IV, king of a fictitious European nation. Sellers plays the bumbling monarch, who perishes in a balloon accident. We next see Sellers as the heir to the throne, Rudolf V. He is a prissy, self-absorbed playboy who is more suited for frequenting London gambling clubs than governing a nation. He gets word that he must return home immediately to be coronated. He reluctantly agrees but evil forces are out to thwart him from taking the throne. Rudolf's younger brother Michael (Jeremy Kemp) is not about to let his bumbling ingrate of a sibling rule the country and devises a method to murder him. The plot goes awry thanks to the intervention of Sydney Frewin, a humble London Hansom cab driver, who saves Rudolf's life. Sydney is, remarkably, almost an exact double for Rudolf.  Knowing that Michael will try another assassination attempt,  Rudolf's loyal bodyguard, General Sapt (Lionel Jeffries), comes up with an audacious plan. He enlists a reluctant Sydney to pose as Rudolf while the real heir to the throne is smuggled without fanfare back to his kingdom-in-waiting. It is only after Sydney is almost assassinated himself that General Sapt comes clean about the plan and his motives. Sydney is persuaded to continue masquerading as the hapless Rudolf but before the coronation can take place, Rudolf is kidnapped by Michael and his confederates and held in a dank cell at remote Zenda prison. When the coronation day arrives, however, Michael is thwarted when Sydney appears in the guise of Rudolf and is crowned king. Realizing that a charade is taking place because the real Rudolf is a prisoner, Michael and his conspirators engage in elaborate and increasingly ambitious plans to kill both Sydney and the real king. 

The film, which was shot in Austria, features some lush landscapes and impressive  costumes and production designs. Director Richard Quine gets a far more inspired performance from Sellers than his frequent collaborator Blake Edwards had been able to get, at least since Sellers'  in "The Party"  a full decade before. Sellers' Sydney is a refreshingly normal man, not prone to being courageous and also not prone to make bumbling errors. In fact, he's downright quick-thinking when trouble arises. Sellers plays him with a Cockney accent and invests in the character some admirable traits. As Rudolf, Sellers reverts to one of his more traditional impersonations. The would-be monarch is very much a boob, as well as a self-centered elitist. As is the norm with a Sellers creation, Rudolf has a notable eccentricity: he suffers from a speech impediment that makes him sound like Elmer Fudd. Yet, Sellers ultimately manages to convey some admirable qualities in him especially in the zany, chase-filled finale in which both characters get to engage in some derring-do. The movie has an impressive supporting cast topped by Sellers' "Shot in the Dark" co-star Elke Sommer. There are deft comedic turns by Lionel Jeffries, Jeremy Kemp, Norman Rossington, Simon Williams and Stuart Wilson.  Gregory Sierra is especially funny as an insulted Count who thinks the new king is carrying on with his wife. His numerous attempts to kill the monarch are the stuff of slapstick but are nonetheless consistently amusing. Sellers' real-life wife Lynne Frederick and Catherine Schell provide additional sex appeal and Sellers' "Pink Panther" co-star Graham Stark also turns up in a bit role. Henry Mancini provides a sweeping and highly enjoyable musical score. 

The film is very funny throughout and Sellers is in top form. Unlike most of the gross-out comedies released today, "The Prisoner of Zenda" has a quaint sweetness about it and it's perfect for family viewing.  It's a truly underrated gem from the latter part of Sellers' career.   

The film is available through the Universal Vault's burn-to-order DVD line.  

BY DOUG OSWALD

I’m a sucker for military movies. I’ve enjoyed the genre since I was a kid and that pleasure continues to this day. As a former military guy, it matters very little to me the time period or whether the movie is attempting to present a message as long as the story is good and holds my interest.  Director Tom Jeffrey's “The Odd Angry Shot” is a military movie about the Vietnam War which certainly held my interest and with great enthusiasm.

Many see the Vietnam War as America going it alone and for the most part that’s true in terms of troops sent and the high cost. Almost forgotten now and little discussed at the time is that there was an alliance between South Vietnam and America which included South Korea, Thailand, Laos, Taiwan, Philippines, Iran, West German, Spain, UK, Canada, New Zealand and Australia.

Australia is among the members of this alliance to send troops to Vietnam and “The Odd Angry Shot” is about a fictional deployment of Australians in the late 1960s. The movie is based on the novella of the same name by William R. Nagel who served as a cook in the Australian Army and deployed to Vietnam. He was a keen observer during his time in Vietnam and created an award winning story of military service.

The movie is notable as one of the earliest movies to deal directly with combat during the Vietnam War and specifically the soldiers of the Australian Army. Sets for the movie were built on the Sydney Showgrounds in Sydney, New South Wales, and later transported to the Australian Army’s Jungle Warfare Training Center in Canungra, Queensland. This is where those serving in the Australian Army trained before deploying to Vietnam.

The movie is in a different category from Vietnam movies like “Apocalypse Now,” “The Deer Hunter” and “Platoon” which take their subject very seriously and have much to say about the war. The movie isn’t quite a comedy or even dark comedy, but the tone is unusual compared to most movies about this war. “The Odd Angry Shot” is a more light-hearted and even snarkier than those movies and resembles “M*A*S*H” with a bit of “Catch-22.” Its focus is a group of men as we follow them from pre-deployment at home in Australia to engaging the enemy in Vietnam. When not out on patrols, where some receive the literal odd angry shot, they deal with the inevitable boredom of deployments with beer drinking, writing home to family, receiving “Dear John” letters, joking around, friendly brawls and passing the time with a scorpion/spider fight.

The movie features a mostly Australian cast, some of them recognizable as character actors in Australian movies made over the past 35-years. John Jarratt plays the central character, Bill, and has appeared in a wide variety of mostly Australian productions from “Picnic at Hanging Rock” to the recent “Django Unchained.” Probably the biggest name outside of Australia is Bryan Brown as Rogers in one of many fine performances. Fans of “Mad Max” will recognize Tim Burns in a “blink or you’ll miss him” part as a birthday party guest at the beginning of “The Odd Angry Shot.” He was memorable as Johnny the Boy in “Mad Max,” the guy faced with sawing off his own foot at the end of that movie.

The Blu-ray includes a nice pile of extras including the trailer, an interview with stunt man Buddy Joe Hooker and one of the better audio commentary tracks I’ve listened to in a while with director Tom Jeffrey, producer Sue Milliken and actor Graeme Blundell. It’s entertaining and the contributors are enjoying their time discussing and reminiscing about their work on the movie.

The movie looks terrific and sounds great. Regardless of your personal feelings of the Vietnam War, this movie is an outstanding addition to any war movie collection or fan of Australian cinema and certainly worthy of repeat viewings.

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By Lee Pfeiffer

There are those who consider the Peter Sellers/Blake Edwards 1968 collaboration "The Party" to be an underrated comedy classic, while others feel it is a complete misfire. Count me among the latter. I can appreciate the audacity of making a minimalist comedy that was largely designed to be improvised- but there lies the rub. Sellers and Edwards succeeded in their quest to make this experimental film based on a threadbare script (60 pages) but the movie has a patchwork, almost desperate feel about how to fill up 99 minutes of screen time with what amounts to approximately 15 minutes of inspired material.  Sellers is in top form, performance-wise, playing Hrudni V. Bakshi, an almost surrealistically polite Indian actor who we first see playing the title role in a big budget remake of "Gunga Din". With millions of dollars on the line, it's up to Bakshi to carry off his pivotal death scene so that a massive explosion can be detonated that will destroy an expensive set. In the film's funniest scenes, Bakshi drives the director crazy by screwing up even the simplest of tasks and prolonging his death scene for an absurd period of time. Then, carrying through on the age-old "Ready when you are, C.B" joke, he inadvertently ends up detonating the explosives and destroying the set before the cameras are rolling. Bakshi is immediately fired and his name is added to a studio blacklist so that he will never be hired again. Through a slight error, however, the studio boss, Fred Clutterbuck (J. Edward McKinley) mistakenly assigns his name to the invitation list of a party he is holding at his posh L.A. home. Thinking he has been forgiven for his costly mishaps, Bakshi is all too happy to attend the party, where the Hollywood "A" list crowd will be assembled. 

Things start off promisingly as Sellers' ability for clever improvisation pays off. His initial Maxwell Smart-like bumblings are low-key enough to be believable. He mingles with the ever-growing crowd of snobbish party-goers and makes the acquaintance of a beautiful actress, Michele Monet (Claudine Longet), who is constantly being sexually harassed by her date, a hyper-mode, chauvinistic studio executive, C.S. Divot (Gavin MacLeod) who becomes increasingly desperate to bed her right there in the house where the party is taking place. For reasons never explained-and which defy credibility- she finds herself smitten by the innocent Bakshi and the two flirt, much to the consternation of Divot, who is the executive who fired Bakshi only the day before. In another strained plot device, he fails to recognize the same bumbling man he chastised and fired. The film traces Bakshi's increasingly disastrous mishaps at the party, which become more surrealistic with every passing minute. Comic actor Steve Franken appears as a tuxedo-clad waiter who walks about serving champagne on a tray but who has a nasty habit of taking liberal gulps of the bubbly himself. Edwards features the character in interminable amounts of footage, as the waiter becomes increasingly drunk. Although the scenes are skillfully played by Franken, the one-note joke becomes another repetitious absurdity. By the end of the film Edwards pulls the plug on any semblance of sanity and resorts to pure chaos. The midst of over-flowing toilets, sexual escapades, overbearing kids and their drill instructor-like nanny (a woefully underutilized Jean Carson), Edwards centers the action on a large swimming pool where, inexplicably, the household teenagers arrive with their hippie friends and a baby elephant (!) in tow, though it is never explained how suburban kids get their hands on a baby elephant. Then the pool is submerged in a never-ending sea of soap bubbles as everyone parties with the semi-submerged elephant. Keeping in mind that the film was released at the dawn of the hippie era, every major studio tried desperately to tap into the youth market, Blake Edwards included. Devoid of any meaningful concept of how to end the movie, he obviously decided that if he put in blaring music and a bunch of drunken or drug-induced party goers, the psychedelic imagery would mask the lack of genuine comedic content. The epilogue of the movie finds Bakshi mercifully back in real life, but driving a vintage 1930s three wheel classic British sports car by the Morgan Motor Company. (The car's appearance in the film became somewhat iconic.) He pays a visit to Michele's apartment and it becomes clear the two will form an unlikely romance. 

Despite my reservations about "The Party", I can heartily recommend the new Blu-ray release from Kino Lorber. The first reason is because there are many people who seem to think this film is terrific and the opinion of this reviewer is definitely in the minority. The second reason is the quality of the Blu-ray itself, which does justice to one of the film's greatest assets, its creative production design by Fernardo Carrera. The transfer looks great and the colors practically leap out of the screen. Over a decade ago, MGM, which initially released the film on DVD, commissioned extras to be shot for inclusion in a special edition of "The Party". For reasons unknown, those extras were never released in the United States but were included on a UK DVD release. Why MGM didn't feel the extras were worth including in the North American market is a mystery because they feature extensive insights from Blake Edwards and other cast and crew members. Fortunately, Kino Lorber managed to rescue some of these bonus extras for inclusion on this release. One featurette details the over-all making of the film, while another is particularly fascinating, as it points out how this movie marked the first time that a video assist technique was employed on a major studio film. The innovation involved attaching a video camera to the main 35mm camera, thus allowing Edwards to view what he had just shot instead of having to wait for the dailies. It was a refinement of a technique that Jerry Lewis had been experimenting with for years. Edwards realized this would change how films were shot and at one point ended up buying the rights to the technology before relinquishing them back to the inventor, who by this point, had found a way to build a video camera inside the 35mm camera. Edwards states that he simply didn't have time to run the company while in the middle of making films, though he acknowledges that his decision probably cost him a small fortune in future profits. The Blu-ray also includes the original trailer and career over-views of Edwards and producers Walter Mirisch and Ken Wales. 

So there you have it: a rare case where I can't recommend the main feature but enthusiastically recommend the Blu-ray special edition.  

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

A long time ago in our own galaxy, major American television networks once aspired to raise the quality of the medium through the presentation of prestigious TV movies and mini-series. The trend began in earnest in the 1970s and continued through the next decade before a new generation of executives decided to dumb down the quality in favor of sensationalism. Ironically we are living in what many consider to be a new "Golden Age" of television- but the caveat is that most of the good stuff requires viewers to pay to view it through HBO, Showtime, Amazon Prime and Netflix. American network "free" TV is pretty much worth what we're paying for it with an endless array of smutty sitcoms, various "reality" shows that star real-life miscreants and a largely indistinguishable batch of urban cop shows that have so exhausted the premise that I expect CBS to announce "NCIS: Mayberry" as a new series. Add to this the interminable number of commercials and you have a medium that is self-destructing before our eyes. Even if you can become engrossed in a mystery show, the mood is rather negated by seeing countless ads for male sexual stimulants coupled with warnings that a dangerous side effect might be a four hour erection. (I have yet to meet a middle aged male who wouldn't welcome this particular "ailment".)  Yet we still have visual records of the glory days of American television and that includes the availability on DVD of many high quality TV productions that were known as the "Movie of the Week". All three major networks sank a lot of money into these ventures and attracted top names to star in them. The format also afforded many aspiring young talents behind the cameras to emerge in prominence, the most notably Steven Spielberg', whose 1971 TV thriller "Duel" remains a timeless classic.

The Warner Archive has released the 1973 TV movie "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark" as a burn-to-order title. The film was originally telecast in 1973, an era when some fine work was being done in the realm of the horror genre. (Both "Don't Look Now" and "The Exorcist" were released theatrically that year.)  Kim Darby gives a fine performance as Sally Farnham, a young wife who has inherited a large,  old world house that had once belonged to her grandparents. She moves in with her husband Alex (Jim Hutton), an up-and-coming executive whose workaholic ways causes some occasional tension in the marriage (this being an era in which the standard role for women was to keep the house tidy until her hubby came home.) The couple begins a vigorous and ambitious redecorating project and hire an interior designer (Pedro Armendariz Jr.) to redo most of the rooms. Things go well enough initially but when Sally pokes around a long-neglected study she ponders why the fireplace has been bricked up to make it as secure as a bank vault. Mr. Harris (William Demarest), a long-time handyman who worked for Sally's grandparents, informs her that he bricked up the fireplace at the insistence of her grandfather. Without telling her precisely why, he advises her to leave well enough alone and not pursue plans to make the fireplace operational. In true horror movie tradition, she instantly ignores his advice and breaks through part of the brickwork, opening a vent to a seemingly bottomless drop below. Before you can say "Vincent Price!", strange things start happening. Sally feels as though she is being watched and she hears eerie voices whispering throughout the house. In another tried-and-true horror movie tradition, her husband instantly dismisses her concerns- even when she realizes her imagination isn't playing tricks on her. 

From almost the very beginning of the film, director John Newland lets the viewer in on the fact that the house is indeed haunted, though her forestalls showing us the intruders. Instead, we hear them whisper and giggle among themselves as they celebrate being free to roam the house. They know Sally by name and make it clear that they intend to steal her soul and make her one of them. The action picks up when Sally and Alex host a prestigious dinner party for his business contacts. The party goes disastrously off course when Sally catches her first glimpse of who is menacing her. It is a gnome-like little creature that stands about one foot tall and he is perched directly beneath her at the dinner table. She screams in panic and of course the creature slips away before anyone else can see him, leading Alex to chastise her later for ruining a perfectly good dinner party. She is later menaced by the creatures while she is in the shower (another horror movie tradition). This is followed by what appears to be the accidental death of visitor to the house, but Sally knows it was murder caused by the gnome creatures. With Alex leaving on a business trip, Sally does defy one horror film tradition by vowing to get the hell out of the house instead of staying around to see what happens next. Before she can leave, however, the little devils manage to incapacitate her with a sleeping pill. Only the presence of her friend Joan (Barbara Anderson) prevents them from taking her into their lair beneath the house. Joan begins to believe that everything Sally has feared is actually true and in a tense climax, the house is plunged into darkness and Joan races against time to save her friend from an unthinkable fate. 

"Don't Be Afraid of the Dark" has built a loyal following over the decades after it's sensational initial telecast in 1973. The film is extremely well-made and intelligently scripted by Nigel McKeand. Darby and Hutton offer some real star power and William Demarest, who was primarily known for playing cranky old guys in comedies, is well-cast in a highly dramatic role that he carries off very effectively.  Director Newland, an old hand at supernatural tales (he hosted the TV series "One Step Beyond") might have milked more suspense from the script by never actually showing the creatures that menace Sally. However, given the fact that he chose to do so, it must be said they are genuinely creepy. The special effects are all the more impressive given the fact that the film was made in the pre-CGI era. The cackling little demons sound like Munchkins but there's nothing cute about them. Thanks to some very good makeup effects, they provide some memorably chilling images. 

The Warner Archive edition contains a bonus audio commentary track with horror movie screenwriter Jeffrey Reddick ("Final Destination", "Day of the Dead") and film historians Steve "Uncle Creepy" Barton and Sean Abley. The three are definitely in full "Mystery Science Theatre" mode, joking and mocking various aspects of the production. They pounce on the casting, saying that Darby looks like Jim Hutton's daughter instead of his wife and take some very funny potshots at the awful '70s styles Darby is seen sauntering around in. (They refer to her wardrobe as a form of birth control.) Just when their sarcasm  about the film seems to be going into the realm of disrespect, they make it clear that they very much admire the film  as a whole and appropriately commend key aspects of the production. Their commentary is consistently insightful when discussing its place within the horror genre but at least two of them seem a bit ignorant of movie history in general, as evidenced by the fact they have no idea that Jim Hutton was a major star in the 1960s and 1970s. One of the commentators does at least know that "he's Timothy Hutton's father". In all, the commentary track is a very nice bonus feature one would not readily expect to find on a title such as this. 

"Don't Be Afraid of the Dark" is a bit dated in concept and execution but it stands light years ahead of most of the gore-drenched "dead teenager" movies that define the horror genre today, as evidenced by the lackluster response accorded to the 2010 big screen remake.  

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

Vinegar Syndrome has released a limited edition (1,500 units) dual format edition of the 1978 adult movie hit "Pretty Peaches" by director Alex deRenzy, who was perhaps the most prolific director the medium had ever seen. deRenzy didn't crank out cheapo grind house movies. Instead, he tried to incorporate relatively high production values, often shooting in outdoor locations. He also had an eye for attracting some of the most exotic actresses of the era. "Pretty Peaches" is one of deRenzy's most notable achievements. The movie introduced Desiree Costeau, who would go on to be a legendary name in erotic cinema. deRenzy made hardcore movies with some substance and style and this title is no exception. The plot finds the title character, Peaches (Costeau), an amiable but air-headed young beauty,  racing along in her jeep  in a hurry to get to Virginia City, Nevada, in the hopes of attending her father's civil wedding ceremony to his second wife, a young black woman with an insatiable sexual appetite. Peaches arrives just in the nick of time for the ceremony but after making some small talk with her father, she speeds off again in her jeep en route to San Francisco. Along the way, her jeep goes off the road and she is knocked unconscious. Two young men race to her assistance but, upon examining the scantily-clad Peaches, become sexually aroused. One of them goes so far as to violate her while she is still unconscious. When she finally awakes, she has complete amnesia. The men use this to their advantage by convincing her that they own the jeep and offer her a ride to San Francisco, where they coincidentally share an apartment. Peaches goes along but is troubled by the fact that she can't recall her name or anything about her background. While in the big city she tries to find professional help but ends up receiving treatment from a mad, sex-crazed doctor  whose "therapy" consists of inducing enemas! She doesn't fare much better when she applies for a job as an exotic dancer and ends up being violated by a gang of lesbians. Peaches is also uncomfortable living with her two male companions, who have a steady stream of loose women over to the apartment who they bed down without any regard for privacy concerns. Ultimately, she meets a handsome, kindly psychiatrist who offers to help her if she drops by his house that evening. Naturally, this offer isn't what it seems, either, and Peaches ends up in a major orgy where her memory is jolted back in an unpleasant way when she sees her own father (!) participating in the goings-on.

"Pretty Peaches" is very much from the school of 1970s erotica that blended slapstick comedy with hardcore sex. As the title character, Desiree Costeau is quite a find- at least in terms of her physical qualifications. She also gives an amusing performance, though it's doubtful Katharine Hepburn lost much sleep about her entry into the acting profession. The film is populated with other mainstays of the adult film industry of that time period including John Leslie, Joey Silvera and Paul Thomas. Juliet Anderson (aka "Aunt Peg") also makes her screen debut in this flick playing an assertive maid who ends up in a threesome with Peaches' dad and his new bride. Director deRenzy has good instincts when it comes to turning down the comedy elements when the action gets hot and he does provide some genuinely erotic sequences- but in the aggregate, the film will probably appeal most to those who like to mix laughs with their salacious cinematic thrills.

The Vinegar Syndrome transfer is just about perfect, having been remastered from a 35mm source print. Chances are the film looks better today than it did on the big screen. The release contains some special features including three trailers for other deRenzy films and an interview with film historian Ted Mcilvenna, who knew deRenzy since the 1960s. Mcilvenna was a social activist in San Francisco who was fighting for sexual freedom and crusaded against the archaic laws in Britain that criminalized homosexuality until 1967. he relates how deRenzy was so prolific in his work that he once discovered 19 completed feature films in his archive that the director had not gotten around to editing. There is also a rare interview with deRenzy himself, shot on VHS tape shortly before his death in 2001. Vinegar Syndrome believes this is the only known filmed interview with deRenzy. 

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

Director/screenwriter Richard Linklater's "Boyhood" has been released by Sony as a dual format Blu-ray/DVD package that also includes a digital edition of the film. The film lives up to the almost unanimous acclaim it has received since it opened last year. It is also a front-runner for this year's Best Picture Oscar. What Linklater did was nothing short of historic: filming the same story in real time with the same actors over a twelve year period. The audaciousness of the project makes the mind reel, in terms of the physical logistics alone. Linklater had to shoot around his actor's other filming schedules, ensure that the production funds wouldn't dry up and work with an ever-revolving crew in varying locations throughout Texas. To be fair, director Michael Apted's historic "Up!" series has been filming updates every seven years for his series that has traced the lives of schoolchildren he first met in 1964. However, Apted's amazing achievements are in relation to a documentary, while Linklater has crafted a fictional, big studio release. 

The film traces the life of a young boy named Mason (Ellar Coltrane), who we first meet as a toddler. The script, which is based on challenges Linklater experienced in his own childhood, allows us to witness Mason growing up on camera through his 18th birthday. There are plenty of speed bumps encountered along the way. When we first meet him and his sister Samantha (played by Linklater's own daughter Lorelei), the kids are already the product of a single mother household, his parents having split up shortly after he was born. Their mom (Patricia Arquette) and father, Mason Sr. (Ethan Hawke) have a fractured relationship. Seems dad has been less-than-attentive to his family's needs and disappeared for a year to Alaska for vague reasons. He's now back in their lives and hoping to establish a civil relationship with his ex. She's having none of it. With their father back in their lives, he tries hard to make up for his past negligence, taking them for weekend excursions and giving them the few luxuries he can afford: arcade games, bowling and fast food. However, the kids witness the emotionally shattering experience of seeing their mother and father fight whenever they are in each other's presence. (Note to divorced parents: even if you hate your ex, don't let your kids know it. They already have enough psychological trauma to deal with.) Meanwhile, mom is trying hard to improve her kid's lives but the results are not encouraging. She has to rely on her mom to watch the children while she tries to juggle going to work and attending night classes in order to get a college degree. (The film succeeds in providing a moving look at the plight of single parents.) An attractive woman, she has virtually no time for herself and nothing akin to a social life. Thus, she is vulnerable to any man who seems sincere. She goes through more failed relationships and marriages, all of which leave her growing children in a constant state of uncertainty. The family moves frequently, disrupting whatever stability the school system had provided to the kids. They constantly have to make new friends but when they do, relationships always prove to be temporary. With the passage of the years, dad remarries and fathers a baby with his new wife. The relationship between him and their mother becomes more accepting and cordial as the kids go through the normal cornerstone moments of their lives: grade school, high school and on to college. The fact that we are watching the actors age in real time adds profoundly to the emotional impact of the story. 

"Boyhood" is so brilliantly realized as a cinematic concept that you forget you are watching a work of fiction. Most of the credit must go to Linklater, whose direction is superb and whose script is written the way people act and talk in real life. The characters are sincere, flawed people who find it hard to cope with the pressures of everyday life. The kid's father is an overage juvenile; their mom is a long-suffering woman who has gotten old before her time. Every time she thinks she has found a tiny sliver of happiness, it turns out to be an illusion. She gets her degree and begins teaching at a community college where she meets an established professor, Bill (Marco Perella), who is an affable, divorced dad with two kids the age of her own son and daughter. Things start off swimmingly but over time deteriorate as he falls victim to alcoholism and becomes physically abusive. The sequence in which their mother tries to extract from the house against the wishes of her threatening husband is a disturbing reminder of what so many women must deal with in real life. The film ends with Mason heading out on his own for college dorm life. By this point, we think we know him personally, having watched him mature through the years. As played by Ellar Coltrane, Mason is an admirable and polite, if not occasionally sullen, young man who is already somewhat cynical about life and who seeks to walk to his own drumbeat. The film ends on an optimistic note, which is appropriate after suffering along with him through so many years. Coltrane gives an assured, self-confident performance and he is more than matched by Lorelei Linkater as his sister. In fact, the performances of every actor in the film, right down to the minor supporting roles, are nothing less than superb. Linklater provides them with some sterling dialogue but the film does feature a couple of sequences that feel forced and out of place. They depict the kids assisting their dad in campaigning for Obama in the 2008 election. Nothing wrong with that, but he shoehorns a superfluous character into a brief scene to depict him as a right wing fanatic who implies he would shoot the kids if they ever stopped on his property again to campaign for "Barack Hussein Obama". The country certainly has no shortage of such lunatics but the scene is the only one that feels artificial because it implies an ugly generalization about anyone who didn't support Obama. (Linklater doesn't see the irony in the fact that, in another sequence, it is the dad who encourages his kids to illegally remove a campaign sign from the law of a John McCain supporter.) It's a minor quibble but the scenes risk alienating part of the audience for a film that, otherwise, is apolitical and speaks truth to people of all beliefs and backgrounds. 

The video release is curiously short on bonus extras. There is only a featurette about the making of the film in which we are treated to behind the scenes footage of the cast throughout the years. There are also extensive interviews with Richard Linklater and the major cast members that have far more poignancy than those found in the usual "making of" production shorts.  The featurette has a particularly moving moment when Linklater finally shoots the last scene for the film: a sequence in which Mason is driving to college on a remote desert highway, surrounded by stunning vistas. It's moving to watch Ellar Coltrane put the finishing touches on a project that had been part of virtually his entire life. The inclusion of this segment only makes us wish all the more than Linklater and his cast had provided a commentary track. Undoubtedly, this will be made available on a future "Super Duper Deluxe" release of the film. For now, however, this edition of "Boyhood" merits "must-see" status.

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Warner Home Video has made good on its promise to rectify some glitches on its otherwise magnificent recent release of the entire "Batman" TV series. Two episodes were accidentally included that were incomplete. The "Marsha's Scheme of Diamonds" episode was missing its epilogue and the "Hi Diddle Riddle" episode lacked its opening narration. Additionally, some fans complained that Warner's did not include the very brief tags at the end of episodes that promoted who the villain would be in the next telecast. Anyone who purchased the set on either Blu-ray or DVD was invited to register for replacement discs, which have now been sent out. In addition to providing complete versions of the aforementioned episodes, the two new discs also have an extended bonus section featuring the previously missing "villains" promos. Additionally, Warner's has included a couple of brief but cool bonus segments that weren't included on the original release. These are a promotion advising viewers to tune in the for the next evenings broadcast to see the unveiling of some new additions to Batman and Robin's arsenal. These included the Batboat and the Batcycle. Another brief segment is a promo for a rebroadcast of the very first episode of the series. 

For more on the "missing footage" advisory, click here for Warner's original press release. 

Click here to order Blu-ray limited edition.

Click here to order standard DVD set.  

BY LEE PFEIFFER

"Sex is only dirty if you're doing it right."- Woody Allen

Well, "Fifty Shades of Grey" has finally opened and- predictably- it looks to be an international blockbuster. All over the world, BDSM ("Bondage, Discipline, Submission and Masochism", for the uninitiated) will be the flavor of the week as couples dabble in getting naughty. But the very notion that the real world of this peculiar sexual fetish could be accurately presented in a none-threatening, Harlequin romance-like manner is negated by the fact that the film is rated R and has been released by a major studio. True, there was a brief period of time when major movie studios did push the envelope in terms of depicting raw sexual freedoms. Bertolucci's "Last Tango in Paris" was made over forty years ago but would be considered un-releasable by the Hollywood suits who run the industry today. Even United Artists, which had the courage to distribute the X-rated sensation back in the day, tried to have it both ways by re-issuing the film a few years later in a "safe", R-rated version, which was about as pointless as re-cutting "The Sound of Music" and eliminating the songs.  As with the source novel, the film version of "Fifty Shades" will become a sensation with people who think they're being daring by tying up their giggling partner to a bed post while playfully spanking them. Meanwhile, look for this Disneyfication of a sexual fetish to reach into other mediums- especially network television, which hasn't produced a truly original idea in decades. You can almost see the executives sitting around the long tables trying desperately to figure out how to work a bondage and discipline theme into mainstream fare:

"Hey, let's do a kinky TV remake of "My Fair Lady". We can have the leading actress sing "The Pain in Spain Falls Mainly in the Plain"!

"Forget that, we have to find out how to merge this stupid Duck Dynasty craze in with kinky sex. How about reviving "The Beverly Hillbillies" and calling the lead characters the Clamp-etts?"

It all leads to the question of whether any sexual practice can still be edgy if you can picture your parents and grandparents indulging in it. Small wonder that those who participate in the "real" world of BDSM have scoff at the pure vanilla depiction of their fetishes in "Fifty Shades". 

Anyone who considers for a minute whether to explore the world of sado-masochism would be well-advised to see director Christina Voros's 2013 documentary "Kink", which has just been released on DVD, appropriately, by Dark Sky Films. The movie, produced by actor James Franco, caused a buzz and won acclaim on the film festival circuit (including Sundance)  for its unstinting look at how BDSM is marketed to those who find it stimulating. Director Voros deserves praise for going all the way and not sanitizing the shocking depictions of these dark and generally sinister practices. The film makes no judgments either for or against those who indulge, but concentrates entirely on the business aspect of marketing BDSM-themed videos. The movie centers on the company Kink.com which is located in a gigantic building in San Francisco that was once used as an armory. The company's founder, Peter Acworth, an affable, forty-something Brit, relates how he got very wealthy by catering to people's darkest sexual desires. He takes us on a tour of the cavernous facility, pointing out that the foreboding nature of the huge, empty rooms suits his purposes just fine, as they provide ready-made film sets. The film observes some productions- in- the making, both straight and gay-themed. Voros interviews both cast members and directors, all of whom take their work very seriously and take pride in turning out slick, professional productions. It becomes abundantly clear that this is no longer your father's version of S&M films, which were generally relegated to old B&W 16mm loops in which naked guys in black socks and garters lamely "whipped" bored actresses, who had one eye on their wristwatch to see when quitting time was. Within the bowels of the Kink building, any number of productions are going on simultaneously. A surprising number of the directors are females, including at least one butch lesbian. They come across as generally intelligent and likable. All of the participants maintain that the secret to Kink.com's success is that they only hire real life adherents of BDSM both in front of and behind the cameras. They have female casting directors who go through a massive array of available "talent" to weed out actors who might only be motivated by money. The theory is that such individuals can't fake finding pleasure in pain and generally have to be fired. Other actors are eliminated because of objections from the leading actresses. (One male co-star is eliminated on the basis that "He's a vagina hog- he never wants to get out!")  Acworth states with pride that his productions are also very well monitored in attempts to ensure that all participants are healthy and enthused. He acknowledges that there is a certain danger of someone going too far and hurting a submissive, especially when said submissive routinely cries "Stop!" but really means "Keep going!" Thus, every submissive must employ a "safe" word that, if uttered, means that all action must cease immediately. The film humanizes the participants in this peculiar practice as much as possible. In between takes on a film in which a woman is being ravaged by a group of men, the cast chats amiably about such mundane topics as organic diets and the lure of a good chicken pot pie. A few minutes later, we watch people willingly subject themselves to almost unspeakable tortures. A gay "bottom" is submerged in a bathtub while an innocent-looking young woman is violated by a sex toy mounted on what can only be described as an automated piece of industrial machinery. This is not for the squeamish. Voros doesn't go so far as to show actual penetration, but doesn't hold back on showing full frontal nudity and sexually aroused males. 

Fans of The Andy Griffith Show can now escape those chopped-up re-runs on cable TV by purchasing the complete series on DVD. Now you can relish 6400 minutes of one of the great sitcoms in TV history - all uncut on 40 DVDs! As Don Knotts' Barney Fife would say- "This is big!" Click here to order discounted from Amazon at save $160!

Cinema Retro has received the following announcement:

The most celebrated lawman of the Old West rides again in the complete series (1955-1961) of the popular classic television Series The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp.  Hugh O'Brian stars as the famed marshal whose exploits with Doc Holliday, Bat Masterson and the Clanton Gang are boldly brought to life in episodes based on actual events. With his signature Buntline Special pistol in hand, Wyatt Earp held posts in a series of increasingly lawless towns and battled dangerous men in his efforts to keep the peace. Through Ellsworth, Wichita, Dodge City and Tombstone, Wyatt's reputation as a just and formidable marshal grew, culminating in a storied gunfight that would seal his legend.

The success of the TV series spawned a series of comic book tie-ins.

This complete series includes all six seasons on 30 DVDs, approximately 100 hours of content. Also included in this collectors set are interviews with stars Hugh O’Brian and Mason Alan Dinehart III and an historical timeline of The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp.

Available through major on-line retail outlets.  

If you haven't yet picked up Timeless Media's fantastic boxed set, Gene Autry: The Complete Television Series, we're happy to present the original press release from December, 2013:

One of the most influential performers in American history, Gene Autry is the only entertainer with all five stars on Hollywood's Walk of Fame, one each for Radio, Recording, Motion Pictures, Television and Live Performance. In a career that spanned more than three decades, Autry built a media empire, thanks to his box-office smash musical Westerns, cross-country rodeo tours and a diverse music career that included the million-selling hit Christmas classic ‘Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer.’ 

Timeless Media Group, a division of Shout! Factory, has released The Gene Autry Show: The Complete Television Series on DVD. For the first time, all 91 episodes from the show’s five season run, uncut and fully restored from Autry's personal film and television archive, will appear together in a 15 DVD box set. The collection also boasts a bevy of bonus content, including select episodes of Autry’s Melody Ranch radio show, vintage Autry commercial appearances, film trailers and photo galleries; as well as a bonus DVD showcasing classic episodes from Autry’s other Flying ‘A’ Pictures television series The Range Rider, Annie Oakley, Buffalo Bill Jr. and The Adventures of Champion.

Originally airing on CBS from 1950-1956, The Gene Autry Show features a wide range of guest stars, including Gail Davis, Denver Pyle, Sheila Ryan, Clayton Moore, Donna Martell, Alan Hale Jr., Elaine Riley, Harry Lauter, William Fawcett, Gloria Winter, Lee Van Cleef, Lyle Talbot, Chill Wills, John Doucette, Fuzzy Knight, the Cass County Boys, and Dick Jones.

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BY DON STRADLEY

“Paper Mask” is a movie that reminds me of those dreams we all have, the ones where we show up at work or school and aren’t prepared for a major meeting or test.  I think these dreams show our terror of being exposed as frauds.  I also think they serve another function – they’re the brain’s way of telling us to wake up. The brain knows we have to get out of bed, so it creates an unpleasant scenario to jolt us from our sleep.  In a way, our brain knows what buttons to push to get us moving in the morning.

Still, it’s interesting that so many of us fear being revealed as a fraud. It must be a universal dread.

I imagine lawyers have dreams where they aren’t prepared for a trial.  School teachers, too, must have dreams where they enter a classroom without knowing the day’s lesson. I suppose the most well-known of these dreams is the one where an actor has to go onstage but doesn’t know his lines. But these dreams must be especially terrifying for doctors, for few things could be more horrible than entering surgery and not knowing what to do.  

“Paper Mask” never quite approaches the atmosphere of a nightmare – it’s about a young man who sneakily assumes the identity of a doctor and gets a job at a small London hospital.  At times he probably wishes it was all a dream, such as his first night of duty when he’s met by badly wounded people, people crying out for pain killers, and a man who’s nearly lost a leg in a motorcycle accident.  The phony doctor looks the part, but even rookie nurses can see he’s overwhelmed by the blood and agony of the emergency ward.   

 The sham artist, played by Paul McGann, had previously worked as an orderly in another hospital. He resented doctors, insisting to his pals that they were arrogant, overpaid jerks. Early in the film he sees an ex-girlfriend and her new doctor boyfriend in a car crash. He pulls them from the wreckage; she’s alive, but her beau is dead.  McGann finds the fellow’s application to a nearby hospital; as if to prove his own theory that doctoring is easy, he takes the dead man’s place at the job interview.  

McGann has, as one character tells him, the luck of the devil. He passes the interview, even as he stumbles when asked about the posh school he allegedly attended. 

Strangely, we’re compelled to celebrate along with McGann as he endures his horrendous first night on the job and gradually passes himself off as a doctor. He’s cagy, learning how to read X-rays by betting an older nurse she can’t identify certain problems. He loses each bet, but slowly learns his way around an X-ray. All is well until he eventually botches a procedure and causes the death of a patient. 

 As in the best novels of Cornell Woolrich or Patricia Highsmith, the plot thickens and the body count rises. Director Christopher Morahan, a veteran of BBC dramas and comedies, doesn’t go for laughs or dark humor in “Paper Mask.” Instead, he keeps things quick and tight until we know McGann will have to do something desperate to keep up his ruse. McGann is quite good as an ego-driven man who dives into a charade and always seems on the verge of cracking.  I like how he occasionally plucks out an old American tune on a banjo, sometimes jubilantly, sometimes forlornly.  His favorite song, not surprisingly, is ‘The Great Pretender’.  Amanda Donahoe is very good as a feisty nurse who falls in love with McGann, as is Tom Wilkinson as an older doctor who suspects McGann isn’t legit. (Yes, it’s the same Wilkinson who taught the blokes how to dance in “The Full Monty”.)

I also loved how the movie subtly touched on the ever present British class divide.  The working class McGann had begrudged doctors, but when he arrives at his new job, he finds that certain doctors resent the high-class schooling found on his phony credentials.  “We just want someone who cares,” hisses Wilkinson. “We don’t care about your bloody superior education!” When McGann sneaks into his alleged alma mater to research his “past”, a boy accosts him. “I don’t believe you went here,” the boy says. “Your clothes look cheap.” McGann ignores him. “I could report you,” the boy says. “And I could break your neck,” McGann answers.

 The movie succeeds because we get to know McGann so well that we identify with his fear of discovery.  But are we supposed to feel alarm at the movie’s end, when he’s still out there, putting more people at risk?  That’s where the movie gets a bit muddy. Who is the real villain of the piece? Is it McGann, or the medical profession?  In retrospect, the most frightening moment of the movie is when Wilkinson informs McGann that he won’t be fired, for it would make the hospital look bad.  The idea that a hospital would rather keep an inept doctor than attract attention for having hired him in the first place is enough to make one shudder.

(This DVD is region-free format)

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BY DOUG OSWALD

Infidelity, homophobia, suicide, prostitution, sex, blackmail, racism, pompous military officers, family disagreements, GI bar fights and inter-racial relationships. “Pearl” dips into all this and more in a three-part TV mini-series from 1978. The series borrows liberally and literally from movies like “From Here To Eternity,” “In Harm’s Way,” “Tora! Tora! Tora! and “Midway,” and also serves as a forerunner for one of the best TV mini-series of this kind, “The Winds of War.”

Each episode opens with narration by Joseph Campanella explaining the impending Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and the oblivious nature of Americans enjoying their stay in paradise. John Addison’s title music evokes the tropical locale and plays over scenes of vintage Honolulu photos prior to America’s entry into WWII. Hawaii was a much more exotic place even after WWII.

The melodrama of the series is focused on the American residents of Honolulu in the days prior to the attack interspersed with scenes of the Japanese Navy making its way across a stormy Pacific ocean. The Japanese are depicted as all business in this series, which is a shame because it would have been interesting to get a sense for what the characters were thinking personally about the audacious military strategy..

The Japanese carrier scenes and most of the aerial attack scenes are represented by footage literally taken from the classic 1970 movie, “Tora! Tora! Tora!” The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor occurs halfway through the second episode, after we’ve met the characters and know all of their dalliances in paradise.

The series features a “Who’s Who” of some of the well-known movie and TV stars from the late 1970s: Angie Dickinson, Dennis Weaver, Robert Wagner, Lesley Ann Warren, Tiana Alexandra, Gregg Henry, Katherine Helmond, Adam Arkin, Brian Dennehy, Max Gail, Char Fontane, Audra Lindley, Richard Anderson, Marion Ross, Allan Miller and Mary Crosby.

The series was written by Stirling Silliphant, no stranger to melodrama, as he wrote the screenplays for “In the Heat of the Night,” “The Poseidon Adventure,” “The Towering Inferno” and “The Swarm” as well as thrillers like “Shaft in Africa,” “The Killer Elite,” “The Enforcer” and “Telefon.” The story is entertaining and held my interest throughout. The more salacious topics are handled as one would expect from a late 1970s TV production which means there’s a lot of talking about sex, but we see very little action other than the military type.

The battle scenes are also sanitized for a late ‘70s TV audience and limited mostly to nurses aiding men in bandages, the main characters discussing the attack and scenes the attack taken from the aforementioned “Tora! Tora! Tora!” In the era of “Saving Private Ryan” and “Fury”, the series feels a bit lacking in this respect, but this was typical of TV at that time.

The performances are pretty one dimensional, but the cast is engaging with their allotted time on camera. The period costumes and vehicles help as does the on-location filming in Hawaii. The popularity of “Pearl,” a Warner Bros. production broadcast on ABC, may have influenced the choice by Columbia and NBC to produce the similar six episode TV mini-series remake of “From Here to Eternity” in 1979 which then became a short lived 11 episode series in 1980.

I watched “Pearl” when it was first broadcast back in 1978 and I’m glad it’s available for those who enjoy this type of war time melodrama. The two-disc set is part of the Warner Archive collection and is manufactured on demand. There are no extras on this three part mini-series which clocks in at four-hours and 39 minutes.

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BY DOUG OSWALD

“Fraulein” begins with a close-up shot of the spires of a Gothic cathedral, organ music playing on the soundtrack and air-raid sirens blaring as a statement appears on screen: “Cologne on the Rhine during the last weeks of World War II.” The scene moves down to street level as German civilians and soldiers run for bomb shelters as destruction rains down on them. An American prisoner of war makes his escape during the chaos and he stumbles upon the home of a college professor and his daughter.

Mel Ferrer plays the American POW, Captain Foster MacLain. He meets the Fraulein of the movie, Erika Angermann, played by Dana Wynter. She helps him evade capture during a search of her father’s home. We learn about a fiancé she has not seen in over two years. She learns later  from a letter that he has been wounded and is in a hospital. McLain thanks her and the professor, who gives him a coat- a precious gift under the circumstances. After McLain departs, shots are heard and Erika fears he was killed or wounded. While she is grappling with that scenario, another air raid takes place, during which her father is killed..

Erika heads for the safety of her uncle’s home in Berlin at a time when many Germans are fleeing the Russian advance and heading to the American lines. A middle-aged married couple has also taken refuge in her uncle’s home and soon a group of Russian soldiers move in as well. The Russians get drunk and murder Erika’s uncle who has hidden her in a bedroom. The married couple discloses her location and a soldier is killed in a fall from the roof while trying to rape Erika. Taken into Russian custody and charged with murder, Russian Colonel Dmitri Bucaron (Theodore Bikel) takes a liking to Erika and orders her release.

The war is over, but Colonel Bucaron’s kindness comes at a price. He fancies the shy and beautiful Erika as his mistress and while out drinking, Erika befriends Lori, played by Dolores Michaels, a piano player in a Berlin nightclub entertaining Russian soldiers. Lori helps Erika escape and make her way to the American line where she is taken in by the married couple from her uncle’s house. They’re living well as pimps and seek to make Erika one of their prostitutes. Erika flees yet again after being harassed and aided by an American soldier. She ends up meeting up with Lori, who gets her a job in the nightclub where Lori plays piano and Erika is one of several girls waiting her turn to get dunked while sitting on a chair over a dunk tank as American GIs take turns tossing balls at a target. Erika’s humiliation and her situation seems hopeless when McLain, now promoted to Major, re-enters her life.

The movie is episodic and melodramatic in this story of a German woman preserving her dignity amid the degradation many German women had to endure in the final days of the war and its immediate aftermath.. She swallows her pride several times throughout the movie in order to survive and she bends, but never breaks.

The movie is directed by Henry Koster, known for many classic movies from light-hearted favorites such as “The Bishop’s Wife,” “The Luck of the Irish,” “The Inspector General” and “Harvey” to more dramatic fare like “The Robe,” “A Man Called Peter,” “The Virgin Queen,” “D-Day the Sixth of June” and “The Story of Ruth.” At the end of his career he directed several enjoyable comedies with James Stewart, “Mr. Hobbs Takes a Vacation,” “Take Her, She’s Mine” and “Dear Brigitte.”

The story, based on the book by James McGivern, was almost certainly sanitized in typical Hollywood fashion of the day. Contrary to the provocative image depicted on the advertising art for this June 1958 release, Erika maintains her virginal purity throughout as her dignity and future happiness is challenged.

Dana Wynter is terrific as the shy German girl Erika. Interestingly, Wynter was born Dagmar Winter in Berlin, Germany, grew up in England, moved to Rhodesia after WWII and studied medicine at Rhodes University in South Africa. She was discovered on the English stage and signed a seven year contract with 20th Century Fox in 1955. Retro movie fans will remember her from “Invasion of the Body Snatchers,” “D-Day the Sixth of June” (working with Koster for the first time), “Sink the Bismarck!,” “On the Double,” “The List of Adrian Messenger,” “Airport,” “The Questor Tapes” and appearances in dozens of TV series from the 1950s to the early 1990s.

Dolores Michaels is very good as Erika’s less shy friend Lori, a piano playing bar maid who is the complete opposite of Erika, but with the stereotypical heart of gold. Another great female supporting role is Maggie Hayes as Ferrer’s military aid, Lt., Berdie Dubbin.

Mel Ferrer is charming and good natured as the American soldier who finds Erika and falls in love with her. Theodore Bikel is underused but still memorable as the Russian Army Colonel Bucaron. Pivotal to the story is James Edwards as Corporal Hanks in an important supporting role. Edwards is probably best remembered for playing noble military characters in many movies including “Home of the Brave,” “The Manchurian Candidate” and “Patton.”

John Banner, fondly remembered as Sergeant Schultz in “Hogan’s Heroes,” appears in a brief scene as a health inspector delivering bad news about Erika which is intercepted by Lori. Unknown to Erika is that she’s been registered as a prostitute,a development that adds considerable drama to the story and her hopes of immigrating to America.

“Fraulein” is a burn to order DVD released as part of the 20th Century Fox Cinema Archives and there are no extras on the disc. The sound quality on the disc is crisp with a score by Daniele Amfitheatrof. The colors look good, if a bit washed out in some scenes. The movie was filmed in CinemaScope, but is presented full frame for this release. It is a pity that Fox didn’t see fit to preserve the widescreen image for this release. While much of the movie appears to have been filmed on sets, there are several second unit shots of the Rhine River that would have looked very nice in widescreen. I really enjoyed “Fraulein” and it is recommended for those who enjoy WWII melodrama.

BY LEE PFEIFFER

I have seen virtually every James Bond clone released by major studios during the 1960s but "Assignment K" had eluded me until it was released as a burn-to-order title by the Sony Choice Collection. I was expecting another low-brow effort done on a small budget and perhaps affording some guilty pleasures throughout. However, "Assignment K" was a pleasant surprise. It's an intelligently written, well-acted espionage yarn that goes to some lengths to avoid Bondisms in favor of a realistic scenario populated by realistic characters. The film was directed by the woefully under-rated Val Guest, whose talents were generally dismissed at the time as workmanlike competence but which today seem much more impressive. (Guest had some spy movie experience, having previously directed key segments of the multi-director farce "Casino Royale".) 

Stephen Boyd stars as Philip Scott, a high-powered executive of a London-based toy company. When we first meet him, he is attending an international trade show in Munich. We learn very quickly that the dapper, charismatic Scott is actually a secret agent of sorts. There are cryptic messages passed and even more cryptic conversations that take place at the toy fair as well as Scott's luxury hotel. (He seems to have a Bondian expense account, if nothing else.) The plot centers on a real MacGuffin: something about sneaking a strip of vitally important microfilm back to MI6 in London. Naturally, there are bad guys who want the microfilm, too, though I was never clear about precisely what information the strip contains. Nevertheless, Scott is not above mixing business with pleasure and during the course of his visit to Munich he meets Toni Peters (Camilla Sparv), a gorgeous young Swedish woman on holiday at a ski resort. She initially resists his attempts to get a date, but finally she relents. Scott goes all out to show her a good time and his substantial expense account certainly aids in the effort. He takes her a non-stop, dizzying agenda before succeeding in getting her back to luxurious villa. It isn't long before the undercover man is literally under the covers with his new flame. Before long, the two are madly in love- and Scott doesn't seem to be bothered by that gentleman's code for secret agents that dictates you shouldn't get too romantically involved with any "civilians".  Scott's selfish obsession with Toni is understandable. (Hey, she looks like Camilla Sparv!). However, his judgment proves wrong when he continues to date her even after one of his contacts is murdered on a ski slope by adversaries who are after the microfilm. Ultimately, Toni is kidnapped and held for ransom, the price being that Scott must identify his key contact in Munich. Surprisingly, he agrees to do so, though the resolution of the problem is a little confusing in terms of his motivation. Throughout the plot, Scott keeps assuring the perplexed Toni that the real danger is over and the couple returns to London. Here, we see Scott report to his MI6 boss, Harris (played with amusing world-weariness by Michael Redgrave), who reminds him that he is putting an innocent girl in jeopardy. Sure enough, Toni is kidnapped once again, thus forcing Scott to follow in 007's footsteps in one key respect: he goes to the "toy company's" version of gadget master "Q"  (Geoffrey Blaydo,n in an amusing reprise of virtually the same character he played in "Casino Royale") in order to use hi tech methods of tracking down where the kidnappers are located. He also imposes on the branch to devise a time bomb in a desperate attempt to free the innocent woman whose life he has now placed in danger. That's the extent of the hardware and gadgetry used in this film. Scott doesn't drive fantastic cars, nor does he have the ability to press buttons to get himself out of jams. He loses fist fights and takes beatings in a refreshing nod to realism. 

Boyd's character is in the mode of Harry Palmer: he's clearly not enamored of moonlighting as a secret agent. (Unlike Palmer, he freelances, and thus can quit the profession at any time.) His cynicism, however, never reaches the depths of Alec Lemas, the despondent protagonist played by Richard Burton in "The Spy Who Came in From the Cold". Lemas was so cynical and disillusioned that you felt all the joy had been sapped from his life. Scott, however, adopts Palmer's ability to thumb his nose at his superiors but has not lost his joie de vivre when it comes to his vices: smoking, drinking and bedding beautiful women. The character is very well played by Stephen Boyd, an actor who could go over-the-top occasionally (see "The Oscar"!) Here he delivers one of the most restrained and impressive performances of his career. Sparv provides the kind of old world, spy girl glamour that is in short supply nowadays- and she is a more than competent actress, as well. The supporting cast is terrific and includes the great Leo McKern and Jeremy Kemp as heavies, as well as an appearance by Jan Werich, who originally filmed sequences as Blofeld in "You Only Live Twice" only to be replaced by Donald Pleasence. The film has an exotic look to it, as director Guest maximizes locations in London, Austria and "West Germany". (Isn't it satisfying that we can now eliminate "West" and "East" when describing Germany?) The plot is a bit confusing but the characters and dialogue are intriguing and there are some genuine surprises that are unveiled at the climax of the story. The only complaint is the musical score by Basil Kirchin, which is far too lightweight and zippy for a film with this somber premise.

"Assignment K" didn't make much of an impact during its initial release. Perhaps audiences were so jaded by the tidal wave of spy movies. In the U.S., the film was released as the second feature on the same bill with the horror film anthology "Torture Garden" and was dismissed by the New York Times in a few sentences that indicated it was nothing more than a glorified travelogue. It's a pity because if the film had received the reception it deserved, Boyd could have continued to play the character of Philip Scott in some well-warranted sequels.

The Sony Choice Collection DVD has a fine transfer, but is devoid of any extras, including a trailer or even a menu. Can't this film get some respect?  

BY LEE PFEIFFER

Vinegar Syndrome has released another double bill of vintage erotica. "Three Ripening Cherries" is a 1979 production that centers on three high school girls with a cougar mom who sits them down for a frank discussion about sex. It's clear the young women are eager to enter this aspect of their adult lives so mamma decides to give them some blunt "dos and don'ts". Sitting around the kitchen table, mom dispenses some cautionary tales based on her own experiences. Seems she was once lured to the home of a trusted middle-aged man who drugged and seduced her. Mom explains that the experience was terrible and advises her daughters to save themselves for the right man. Fine up to now. However, she then almost gleefully recounts an abundance of other sexual experiences throughout her life, all of which were seemingly far more exciting and satisfying. By the time she is through, her daughters are so worked up that they retire to bed early and can't contain themselves. Since this is a movie made by males for males, the anticipated cliches are in abundance beginning with the sexually frustrated girls engaging in a lesbian threesome. Ultimately they attempt to get some male lovers but find their frustrations only increase. Some of the hunks they approach turn out to be gay. Another guy can't perform and a third potential lover ends up being an S&M addict who ties one of the sisters to a bed and whips her. If there is a moral aspect to the kinky tale it's that the sisters learn that mamma was right and they should wait patiently for the right man to come along. The film, directed by Carlos Tobalina, has a good deal of humor but the sex scenes are played for maximum erotic impact, as Tobalina shuns the slapstick elements that defined many porn films of the era. The film's female leads are Misty, Mary Ryan and Dorothy LeMay, all of whom are refreshing in the sense that they are not gorgeous goddesses but really do look like "the girl next door". I confess to never having heard of any of them but the trailer for the film (included on the DVD) plays up their teaming like it is an Irwin Allen all-star production. None of the actresses can actually act but that's academic in a movie like this. 

The second half of the double bill is "Sensual Fire", another Carlos Tobalina production with the director working under the nom de plum of Troy Benny. The story finds the ubiquitous porn presence of the era, Elliott Gould look-a-like Jamie Gillis, as Roy, a self-employed businessman who is happily living with his gorgeous girlfriend, a young widow named Laura (Jessica St. James), who seems to have no other daily activity other than luring Roy into bed. Things go awry when- in a tweak on the "Lolita" story line- Laura's teenage daughter Teena (Dorothy LeMay) returns from school to live with them. Roy is instantly obsessed with the young girl, especially when he spies on her through a secret peephole in her bedroom wall,  in true Norman Bates style. This being a porn flick, what he observes isn't Teena studiously poring over textbooks in anticipation of exams. Instead, she prances around stark naked and constantly pleasures herself. At various other times Roy endures the frustration watching her get it on with male lovers. His mind becomes so tormented that he seeks counsel from a psychiatrist (John Seeman) who advises him to satiate his desires by going to a bordello and seeking out a girl who looks like Teena. The ploy works- but only temporarily. Before long, Roy can't concentrate on his work and his love life with Laura is also suffering, as he constantly fantasizes about Teena. Determined to make love to the teenager, he devises a plot whereby he says he has to leave town on a business trip, knowing that Laura and Teena have been invited to a kinky costume party. He turns up at the party dressed as Zorro (!) and in one of the film's more amusing scenes, neither mother or daughter recognize him as he calculates how to use the disguise as a vehicle for seducing Teena. "Sensual Fire" is an above average porn flick for the era, as it boasts a fairly engrossing story line and production values and the sex scenes are fairly erotic. Director Tobalina turns up in a small part playing a hip priest who counsels Roy on his sex problems. An original trailer that is included that features scenes not in the final cut.  The transfer is quite good, as is generally the case with Vinegar Syndrome releases.  

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By Lee Pfeiffer

The Warner Archive has released the 1962 feature film Hitler as a burn-to-order DVD and it is also now available on the Warner Archive streaming service. The film was perhaps the first cinematic attempt to present Adolf Hitler's story in a dramatic biographical format. However, the project was sabotaged by the fact that it was produced by Allied Artists, then a "B" movie factory. The resulting budget appears to be somewhat less than that afforded by home movies of the day. The B&W film also suffers from a ridiculously curtailed screenplay that attempts to do justice to all aspects of one of the most dramatic lives in history. The production's running time of 107 minutes undermines any serious attempt to do justice to Hitler's remarkable, history-changing life. The film does boast a reasonably effective performance by Richard Basehart in the titular role- no small achievement, as most cinematic impersonations of Der Fuhrer tend to inspire giggles. (It is not without irony that Hitler's trademark mustache was shared by the most iconic comedic figure of his era, Charles Chaplin.) The story opens with Hitler dictating Mein Kampf from his jail cell in 1923, having failed to seize power in Germany via a violent coup. In a blink of an eye, we see him perched to take power as Chancellor when the aging Von  Hinderburg dies. The screenplay dispenses with the historical context of all this in order to concentrate on the real reason for the movie's existence, which is Hollywood's long-time fascination with mingling sex and Naziism. Thus, a good deal of the movie is spent watching Adolf fawn over his niece Geli (Cordula Trantow). If you believe the story, their relationship remained chaste, which indeed it may have. Historians have long pondered over Hitler's sex life, or lack thereof, without finding any evidence that he did not die a virgin. He loved the company of attractive women and did indeed have a rather scandalous relationship with Geli, even sharing an apartment with her during his early rise to power. The film introduces the first of some outlandish historical "facts" when Geli is murdered in a staged suicide, under orders from Hitler. In fact, there has never been any concrete evidence that Hitler was responsible for her death. 

The next fraulein in the Fuhrer's sphere of influence is Eva Braun (Maria Emo), a young girl with a bombshell body who willingly devotes her life to being Hitler's arm candy. Here again, the script deviates from what we know about Braun, presenting her as a strong-willed woman of impressive intelligence. In fact, Braun was an apolitical airhead, as evidenced by Hitler's real life musing that men of great power should only be involved with stupid women so their careers are not interfered with. The movie blazes through historical events with blinding speed (documentary footage is unconvincingly interwoven in an attempt to give the claustrophobic production some scope.) The movie accurately presents Hitler's deadly betrayal of his old friend,  SA chief Ernst Rohm and even overtly acknowledges the fact that Rohm and his men were engaging in widespread homosexual activity during a weekend retreat, something that repelled Hitler,who ordered mass executions. The film is obsessed with the sexual aspects of Hitler's life but, as stated previously, this area remains a mystery to historians and biographers. Even after Hitler and Eva Braun were living under the same roof at the Fuhrer's Bavarian retreat, they kept separate bedrooms. The house staff was so titillated by the prospect of investigating Hitler's love life that they routinely inspected the bedding for evidence of any sexual interaction. None was ever found. Nevertheless, the screenplay takes bold liberties in presenting speculation as fact. It assumes Hitler was impotent and that this was attributed to latent homosexuality. This is another myth that historians have dismissed.  Hitler once shared an apartment, and possibly the same bed, with another impoverished young man in his early days, but this was probably due to economic necessity and was not at all unusual at the time. Indeed, Hitler's disdain for homosexuals put them on his hate list along with Jews and political dissidents. In Nazi Germany, being gay meant the concentration camp. Whether the screen writer actually believed this theory is not known but there is certainly the possibility that this plot point was included simply to be provocative. Another historical incident is depicted, albeit inaccurately, with the July 1944 assassination attempt on Hitler by his generals. The ring leader of the plot, Col. von Stauffenberg is shown being hanged along with his confederates. In reality, he was shot by a firing squad.

One has to have some admiration for Richard Basehart, whose performance rises above the mediocrities that surround him. He makes for a mesmerizing Hitler and never overplays the more hysterical aspects of the Fuhrer's personality that so often inspire actors to go "over the top." The pedestrian direction by Stuart Heisler doesn't provide much inspiration for him. Nevertheless, Hitler is a odd little film that bares viewing if only for the wrong reasons.

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

Among the tidal wave of DVDs and Blu-rays sent to Cinema Retro every month by video labels requesting reviews are some very quirky titles, not all of which make it onto these pages or into our magazine's review section. That's because some are completely outside the mainstream of our reader's interests. For example, we shy away from most blood-splattered "dead teenage" movies unless they have a unique status among retro movie lovers. Additionally, we get inundated with erotic titles, some of which we do routinely cover primarily if they are also from the distant past. One exception to this is "The Clair Sinclair Show", released on the Cult Epics label. I'll freely admit I was baffled upon looking over the packaging of the screener DVD. A buxom, attractive young woman adorns that box and that's generally enough to at least temporarily get my interest. What intrigued me most, however, was the name of Bunny Yeager on the box and an indication that the DVD contained her final interview. First things first. Who the hell is Clair Sinclair? I confess I  had not a clue. Turns out she came out of obscurity as an 18 year-old and in short order caught the eye of Hugh Hefner. Before she was in her twenties, she proved to be so popular in her Playboy photo layout that she earned the exalted status of Playmate of the Year. The DVD features a bizarre gimmick: Ms. Sinclair arrives at a studio where she is interviewed by....herself. Her doppleganger is dressed in a retro Bettie Page look (more about that later) and the two Claire's get along fabulously, as you might imagine. It's a blatant, self-serving tactic that is little more than a video calling card for Sinclair, who makes it clear that she hopes to maximize her moment in the spotlight. Claire assures Claire that she adores the by-gone era of traditional pin-up models, especially Bettie Page, who posed mischievously in some now classic images in the 1950s and 1960s. They were provocative in the day, with Page working with photographer Irving Klaw in scenarios that generally found her bound and gagged in photos that were often lesbian-themed. This was hot stuff back in the era of repressed sexuality but Ms. Page never indulged in anything hardcore or overtly distasteful. It's a standard that Claire Sinclair obviously follows.

Now on to the second question: who is Bunny Yeager? She was a groundbreaking female photographer who specialized in shooting female pin-up models, including Bettie Page. Yeager was pin-up material herself, a former model in the 1950s who was not adverse to posing for cheesecake photos. She was also known for her photographs of exotic locations and in 1967 published a well-received book titled "Camera in Jamaica", which included fascinating photos she took on the set of the first James Bond movie, "Dr. No" in 1962. Yeager appears in a segment of the DVD in which Claire Sinclair conducts a respectful and enlightening interview with her that explores her early days as an erotic photographer when such work for a woman was almost unheard of. Sinclair scores a coup but in a bittersweet way: this turns out to be the final interview Yeager gave, as she passed away shortly thereafter.

The DVD features Yeager conducting her last photographic session as she and her crew photograph Sinclair, who is in full Bettie Page mode, as she poses scantily clad and completely starkers. The director of the documentaries, credited as "Nico B", also had the good sense to keep the retro atmosphere going by filming some of the session in Super 8, which provides the welcome look of the old grindhouse film days. This is a low-budget production shot in conjunction with "The Erotica Channel", a web-based network that provides, well, video erotica.  As with Yeager's vintage photos, the nudity depicted is never more than a bit naughty and actually looks downright wholesome by today's standards. As for Claire Sinclair, the former Playmate of the Year comes across as engaging, likable and possessing a "girl next door" quality even if virtually none of us ever had a girl next door who actually looked like her. 

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

In her excellent analysis of the 1962 Elvis Presley film "Follow That Dream"- which is included in the limited edition Twilight Time Blu-ray release- film historian Julie Kirgo concisely but thoroughly explores the one aspect of The King's career that brought him more frustration than satisfaction: his stature as an international movie star. When Elvis first exploded on the international music scene in the 1950s, Hollywood came calling immediately. Presley, under the guidance of his Svengali-like manager Colonel Tom Parker, found himself starring in films that were primarily designed to promote his music but which afforded him intelligent story lines and the opportunity to showcase his considerable charms as a leading man. The word on Presley was that, given the proper nurturing from established screenwriters and directors, he could become an acclaimed actor in his own right. Then Uncle Sam intruded and Presley was drafted. Elvis' two-year stint in the U.S. Army became the stuff of pop culture legend. Without any fuss or any attempt to dodge the draft, he did his duty and was honorably discharged. When he re-entered civilian life, however, the Colonel had a different vision for his star's big screen career. Instead of holding out for roles that would have allowed Elvis to progress as an accomplished actor, the Colonel signed him to a long contract with legendary producer Hal Wallis, who agreed with the Colonel that the main objective would be to quickly crank out low budget flicks that would be highly profitable. If that offended Elvis' sensibilities, too bad. They pointed out that on the few occasions where Elvis had been allowed to play mature characters in intelligent films, the boxoffice receipts lagged behind his upbeat, teen-oriented musicals. Thus, the King found himself not in control of his own destiny, at least when it came to the silver screen. Before long, he was churning out indistinguishable lightweight fare that served as little more than an extended music videos to sell the accompanying soundtrack albums. The ploy worked, financially, at least, but left Elvis feeling frustrated and betrayed by the two mentors he had entrusted to guide him to a long, satisfying movie career. 

One of Elvis' more accomplished and satisfying films was the aforementioned "Follow That Dream". The story was based on a humorous novel titled "Pioneer, Go Home!' by Richard Powell, who also authored the source novel for the fine 1959 Paul Newman film "The Young Philadelphians". It's an amusing, whimsical yarn that finds Elvis as Toby Kwimper, a hunky young man who is traveling through Florida with his father, known as Pop (Arthur O'Connell) and a comely teenage companion, Holly Jones (Anne Helm), who- for all intents and purposes- is his adopted sister. Also in tow are two young twin toddlers. Seems like Pop has a soft spot for caring for orphans and inviting them into his home. His motive, however, isn't entirely based on compassion. In the case of the twins, he has been getting child welfare payments from the state. Pop is adverse to doing an honest day's work and is systematically exploiting "The System" itself, figuring out how to maximize government handouts that are designed to help the genuinely poor. Pop and Toby are poor, alright- but it's by choice. They live a spartan, nomadic existence and learn to do without materialistic things. All the while, Pop prides himself on maintaining a staunch conservative political viewpoint- that big government is bad and corrupt and that everyone should fend for themselves. As Julie Kirgo points out in her liner notes, he is not unlike some hypocrites today who denounce all aspects of the government but seem to be first in line for any payouts when it comes to exploiting government programs. Pop's car breaks down on a patch of remote government land in central Florida. With the car immobile, Pop announces that the group will simply make this their home. Before long, he and Toby have constructed a ramshackle home complete with outhouse.   When a local official tries to evict him, the wily Pop discovers that the precise land he is squatting on falls under an archaic law that allows him a loophole to claim it as his own. Much of the film is dedicated to Pop using his guile to outfox the city slickers who want him to move on. Meanwhile, he finds it beneficial to declare his one room shack a legal "community", which necessitates the appointment of a sheriff. Toby reluctantly accepts the job. The young man is more honest than his father but is naive in the ways of the world. Like the Clampetts of "The Beverly Hillbillies", Toby is more innocent than stupid and somehow finds a way to get the upper hand in every attempt made by others to undermine his family's homestead. Before long, he and Pop have built a successful fishing business that begins to thrive and deliver some legitimately-earned cash into their coffers.

British movie edition paperback tie-in.

The film is a bit off-kilter when it comes to explaining why Toby is so adverse to getting involved with girls. The explanation is shallow especially when one considers how hormones rage at that age. Joanna Moore is a social worker who attempts to seduce him but he turns her down. This sets in motion a major plot device in which she attempts to use loopholes in the law to take the twins away from the household unless they agree to leave the state. Meanwhile, "Sheriff" Toby has another problem: two big city gamblers (Simon Oakland and Jack Kruschen) have opened a adjoining all-night gambling den next to the Kwimper household. The two men pretend they want to be friends with the naive Toby, who they actually exploit to their benefit. The film climaxes in Toby taking on both the threat of the gamblers as well as the local officials, the latter in an amusing courtroom sequence.

"Follow That Dream" has Elvis croon a relatively light load of only five songs. They are of varying quality and, frankly are presented in ridiculous fashion. Elvis will be laying on the grass staring dreamily into the sky and when he begins singing, the sound of a band appears out of  nowhere as he unconvincingly lip-synchs the lyrics. Nevertheless, the paucity of songs does allow Elvis to emote and he gives a fine, low-key and self-assured performance. He is helped by the fact that there are so many good character actors in the film and that the entire production is under the hand of an accomplished (if criminally underrated) director, Gordon Douglas. The screenplay is by another respected screen veteran, Charles Lederer. 

Elvis sang five songs in the film but so hated the one titled "Sound Advice" that he refused to include it on the soundtrack album.

The film does end on a relatively uncomfortable note, with Toby and Holly becoming a romantic couple. They might not be blood relatives but they have been living in a brother/sister relationship, which gives this aspect of the story a bit of a disturbing aspect, much as similar relationship did in John Huston's "The Unforgiven" in which Audrey Hepburn seemed to have the hots for her adopted big brother Burt Lancaster. Still, "Follow That Dream" is one of Elvis' more impressive movies and illustrates the potential he would have had if he continued to be nurtured as an actor by seasoned professionals in the industry. What isn't explored in the Twilight Time liner notes are the specific missed opportunities. He had been offered a key role in "The Rainmaker" but the Colonel insisted that Elvis get top-billing in any motion picture- an absurdity considering this production wasn't a musical and top-lined two screen legends, Burt Lancaster and Katharine Hepburn. Years later, Hal Wallis did consider him for the second male lead in his 1969 production of "True Grit" but the Colonel would have none of it because Elvis wouldn't get top billing over John Wayne. The part went to Glen Campbell and the film was internationally hailed as a classic western. Frustrated, Elvis finally put his foot down and did his own western, a production called "Charro!" that was inspired by the Italian westerns made famous by Clint Eastwood and Sergio Leone. It wasn't half bad and Elvis acquitted himself well enough but by then his boxoffice appeal had dwindled. He would make only two more feature films, although he was the subject of two other acclaimed documentaries about his concert performances in the 1970s. The legendary performer had managed to salvage his musical career by ignoring the Colonel and getting back to basics with his sensational 1968 comeback TV special. Sadly, the same fate did not await him in the film industry and we are left to ponder what could have been. 

The Twilight Time release of "Follow That Dream"  is right up to the company's  usual high standards. In addition to an illustrated collector's booklet, there is an isolated score track and an original trailer. 

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BY FRED BLOSSER

Learning that a nuclear attack is imminent as international tensions escalate past the tipping point, James (voiced by John Mills) and Hilda (voiced by Peggy Ashcroft) prepare for the worst.  From their nostalgic memories of the World War II Blitz, the elderly English working-class husband and wife anticipate that “the worst” will be inconvenient but survivable. Consulting the government’s civil preparedness brochures, James constructs a lean-to shelter inside their cottage and lays in a supply of tea, crackers, and tinned food. When the bomb falls, the lean-to protects the couple from the immediate heat and concussion of the blast, but the house is in a shambles, the power is out, the taps have gone dry, and the toilet doesn’t work anymore. Gamely enduring, the couple settles down to wait for “the powers that be” to bring relief that never comes as the insidious effects of radiation sickness set in.

“When the Wind Blows,” an animated feature by Jimmy T. Murakami, faithfully reproduces the deceptively simple visual look of the 1981 graphic novel by Raymond Briggs on which it was based. As the story progresses, the bright, cozy tones of the early scenes give way to the darker, grayer shades of James and Hilda’s post-blast environment, and the texture of the images becomes richer and grittier. The story is poignant and its quietly angry message still resonates, even if we’ve swapped the Soviet bogeyman of the movie’s Reagan-Thatcher era for a new array of heebie-jeebies on the 6 o‘clock news. Remember, not so long ago, Homeland Security reassured us that we had nothing to fear if terrorists were to attack the U.S. with biological weapons: just stock up on dust masks and put duct tape around the windows.

Twilight Time’s new Blu-ray release packages a windowboxed, 1.33:1 transfer of the movie in 1080p hi-def with a wealth of supplementary materials, notably a making-of featurette, a 2010 documentary about animator/director Murakami, an interview with author Briggs, isolated music and effects tracks, audio commentary by First Assistant Editor Joe Fordham and film historian Nick Redman, and a handsome souvenir booklet by Julie Kirgo. The Blu-ray, which is limited to 3,000 units, can be ordered HERE.

BY DOUG OSWALD

The DVD cover art for “The Accursed!” states that the story is “from the files of the world’s most fabulous secret society: 1958’s sensational spy shocker!” The movie has the look of a low budget thriller from Hammer studios and features several alumni of that studio.

Eight members of a German underground resistance group meet annually on the anniversary of their leader’s death. Colonel Price, played by Donald Wolfit, became their new leader during the war and years later receives a call from his contact in Germany informing him that one of their members is a traitor and responsible for their former leader’s death. The man making the call says he wants to deliver the name of the traitor in person at Colonel Price’s home in England where the resistance group is also gathered. The man arrives, but dies after being stabbed before he reveals the name of the traitor.

“The Accursed!” features Wolfit, Robert Bray, Jane Griffiths, Anton Diffring and Christopher Lee in a post-WWII suspense thriller that’s mostly armchair mystery,as most of the movie takes place in one room of Colonel Price’s mansion. Among the members of the resistance group are Vicky, played by Griffiths, Joseph, played by Diffring and Doctor Neumann, played by Lee. Joseph is a pianist working on his next concerto and was in love with Vicki.

Shortly after the murder, American intelligence officer Major Shane, played by Robert Bray, arrives along with his British aid and proceeds to try and unravel the mystery and uncover a traitor. It turns out he knows the members of the group and it’s more than a coincidence that his car breaks down near the home of Colonel Price.

The movie moves at a brisk 74 minutes and the mystery is solved in a satisfactory manner. The film, directed by Michael McCarthy, includes a fine score featuring the piano solo “Prelude Without a Name” composed by Jackie Brown and played by Dennis Wilson. Wolfit and the rest of the cast are entertaining and the resolution is very enjoyable.

“The Accursed!” was completed in June 1956 and originally titled “The Traitor” when released in the UK in March 1957. It didn’t receive an American release until July 1958 via Allied Artists along with a title change. The title change is curious because the original title better connects to the story while “The Accursed!” reminds one more of a title for a horror movie.

There are a few scratches and artifacts found throughout the movie and a couple scenes go almost black, but overall this black and white movie looks pretty good. “The Accursed!” is a burn to order DVD released as part of the WB Archive Collection and there are no extras on the disc. The movie is presented in a widescreen format preserving the original aspect ratio of the movie. This is a good rainy day movie and a welcome addition for any fan of British murder mysteries.

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Out of This World: Little Lost Robot

DVD release from British Film Institute

Review by Adrian Smith

(This review pertains to the UK Region 2 DVD release)  

Alongside the recent BFI release of the BBC television series Out of the Unknown comes this oddity; the only completely surviving episode of Out of This World, a science fiction series produced in the early 1960s by independent television channel ABC. The series was created by Irene Shubick and produced by Leonard White, who would achieve lasting fame through his co-creating The Avengers. Like other anthology shows before it such as Armchair Theatre, this was conceived as an opportunity to present a variety of quality writing to mainstream audiences. It was Shubick's belief that science fiction contained some of the 'most original and philosophical ideas' in modern fiction.

Boris Karloff was employed as the presenter for the show. By this time he was seventy-five but was still regularly working in both the US and the UK despite deteriorating health. He was no stranger to the anthology format, having previously hosted the shows The Veil (1958) and Thriller (1960-1962), the latter running to sixty-seven episodes. Out of This World itself only ran to thirteen episodes, despite being a success at the time. Irene Shubick was poached by the BBC where she was able to spend the next several years working on her love for science fiction by producing the aforementioned Out of the Unknown, that time not using a presenter.

Sadly, due to budgetary constraints, it was common for television recordings to be erased after broadcasts, so only one episode of Out of This World remains, an adaptation of Isaac Asimov's Little Lost Robot. As with all of Asimov's robotic tales, the story deals with the problems that arise when the rules governing robot behaviour are tampered with. When an irritated engineer tells a highly-sophisticated robot to, "Get lost!" this is exactly what it does. Obeying every instruction, it proceeds to blend in with a hanger full of identical robots. However, as this robot had its rule to not allow harm to come to humans revoked, this poses something of a problem for those in charge. Dr Susan Calvin, a robot psychologist, is called in to devise a series of tests which will allow her to flush out the real lost robot in order that the whole batch need not be destroyed. Despite the small sets and slightly laughable robot costumes, it is an intriguing tale.

Fragments of other episodes have survived, and in attempt to be the most complete release possible the BFI have included them here: an audio recording of Cold Equations, starring Peter Wyngarde and Jane Asher, and an incomplete audio recording of Imposter, an adaptation of a Philip K. Dick story which would later become a Hollywood movie in 2001. Also included is the shooting script for Dumb Martian, adapted from John Wyndham, and a brand new audio commentary with the series producer Leonard White. White, now aged 98, is on remarkable form and has an excellent memory for his work in British television. Rounding out the DVD package is a booklet containing a full history of Out of This World including plot details for each episode.

Leonard White, photographed at age 95 at a UK "Avengers" event. (Photo copyright Adrian Smith. All rights reserved.)

This latest BFI release is the last in their current "Sci-Fi: Days of Fear and Wonder" season and is a must for completists and genre fans, and demonstrates that TV science fiction in the 1960s could be more than just Doctor Who.

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Cinema Retro has received the following press release:

ON THE EVE OF THIS YEAR’S SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL,

PAST GRAND JURY PRIZE NOMINEE, HOLY ROLLERS, STARRING NOMINEE JESSE EISENBERG, MAKES ITS FREE VOD DEBUT EXCLUSIVELY ON SNAGFILMS

Available Beginning January 20^th, this Ripped-from-the-Headlines Crime Drama,

Directed by Award-Winning Filmmaker Kevin Asch (Affluenza), Co-Stars Justin Bartha

(The Hangover), Ari Graynor (TV’s “Bad Teacher”), Danny A. Abeckaser (The Wolf of Wall Street), Q-Tip and Hallie Kate Eisenberg (Paulie); it Will Be Available to View Online

at SnagFilms.com, and All Supported Devices, Including Their Multi-Platform App

NEW YORK, NY (January XX, 2015) – Inspired by actual events in the late ‘90s in which Hasidic Jews were recruited as drug mules, HOLY ROLLERS was a Gotham Award winner and Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize nominee in 2010. On the eve of Sundance 2015, the crime drama, starring Oscar® nominee Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network, Now You See Me) makes its free VOD debut on January 20, exclusively on SnagFilms, the award-winning social video-viewing platform and 2014 Webby® nominee. It will be available to view online at SnagFilms.com, and all supported devices, including their multi award-winning app.

In HOLY ROLLERS, directed by award-winning indie filmmaker Kevin Asch (Affluenza), mild-mannered Sam Gold (Eisenberg) is a young Rabbinical student from an ultra-Orthodox Jewish community in Borough Park, Brooklyn. Looking to make some extra money, Sam and his best friend Leon (Jason Fuchs, Ice Age: Continental Drift) accept a job from Leon’s brother Yosef (Justin Bartha, The Hangover) to retrieve a suitcase in Amsterdam and walk it through customs in New York. Yosef has ties to an Israeli drug cartel, the mysterious cargo turns out to be pure MDMA (ecstasy), and the promise of easy cash lures Sam into becoming a smuggler and dealer. The film co-stars Ari Graynor (Celeste and Jesse Forever), Danny A. Abeckaser (The Wolf of Wall Street), Q-Tip (Cadillac Records), and Hallie Kate Eisenberg (The Insider)

About SnagFilms

SnagFilms’ award-winning streaming video platform offers entertainment lovers an extensive library of over 5,000 free movies, TV series and web originals on demand. The platform provides members the tools to discover, watch and recommend a wide range of professional online video content. The SnagFilms viewing experience is available everywhere, enabling audiences to watch movies on the web (including thousands of affiliate sites) as well as on sector-leading applications that are available on mobile, set-top box and home entertainment devices.

SnagFilms, Inc., also owns Indiewire, the independent film industry’s leading news service and blog network, twice named top entertainment site by the Webby Awards. Founded by Ted Leonsis, SnagFilms, Inc. was named as one of Red Herring’s 2013 Top-100 Technology Companies in North America. Snagfilms.com was a Webby finalist as 2014’s top entertainment site and a 2013 Webby Honoree. SnagFilms, Inc. is headquartered in Washington, DC with offices in New York and Los Angeles. For further information, visit snagfilms.com.

BY FRED BLOSSER 

Producer Robert Stigwood ended the 1970s with three major musicals in a row, “Saturday Night Fever,” “Grease,” and “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Band,” and then stumbled in 1980 with “Moment by Moment,” a dumb romantic melodrama with Lily Tomlin and John Travolta. “The Fan” (1981) was expected to revive his winning streak, headlining Lauren Bacall and James Garner in a suspense thriller about a Broadway star (Bacall) stalked by the deranged title character, played in fine creepy fashion by newcomer Michael Biehn. But “The Fan” also did mediocre box office. Some observers believed the timing was bad. Three real-life tragedies involving stalkers were still uncomfortably fresh in peoples’ minds -- the murders of John Lennon and actress/centerfold Dorothy Stratten, and the attempted assassination of President Reagan. Other critics blamed the studio’s marketing of the production as a “Bacall and Garner movie.” The two stars drew an older fan base that perhaps expected a sedate show-biz suspense drama, and instead were surprised and turned off by scenes of slasher violence and homosexuality.

Despite co-billing with Bacall, Garner has hardly more than a walk-on role as Jake, the ex-husband of Bacall’s character, Sally Rice. He doesn’t even show up in the denouement when Sally has her big confrontation with knife-wielding Douglas Breen (Biehn) in an empty theater. Garner’s absence from this key scene must have confounded his followers. Surely Jake would pull a Jim Rockford and show up in the nick of time to rescue Sally.

Thirty-plus years on, viewers who come to “The Fan” by way of its new release as a Warner Archive Collection DVD may find it far more interesting than moviegoers in 1981 did. This was director Edward Bianchi’s first feature film (he’s since gone on to a prolific career directing TV dramas), and instead of investing the movie with his own style, he clearly borrows from Brian de Palma for the stalker scenes and from Bob Fosse for the backstage rehearsal scenes and Sally’s big number for opening night. It isn’t that Bianchi doesn’t borrow well, with the debt to de Palma underlined by the fact that the movie is scored by de Palma’s resident composer, Pino Donaggio. It’s that the jarring slasher scenes seem to belong to a different movie than the slinky, “All That Jazz”-flavored song-and-dance routines. Adding to the tutti-frutti mix, Bacall’s spotlight number, “Hearts, Not Diamonds,” sounds like a Saturday Night Live parody of a 1981-era Marvin Hamlisch/Tim Rice show tune. In fact, it actually is a Hamlisch/Rice composition.

Where the 1981 audience may have been disappointed by this scrambled omelet of over-the-top moments, it’s a lot more entertaining than the predictable, star-driven suspense movies that followed later in the ‘80s, such as “Still of the Night,” “Jagged Edge,” and “Suspect.” Younger viewers now may get a kick out of the movie’s vanished world of land-line rotary phones, typewriters, and people smoking in hospital waiting rooms. Pay attention and you’ll see Griffin Dunne, Dana Delaney, and Dwight Schultz in minor roles. A scene of Douglas cruising a gay bar, with unfortunate results for a young man he picks up, has chilling implications on a symbolic level that would not have been apparent to audiences when the movie opened in May 1981; the first reports of a real-life scourge stalking the gay community, AIDS, had not yet surfaced.

The Warner Archive Collection edition of “The Fan” is a manufactured-on-demand DVD. It has a scene-selection menu and English captions for the hearing-impaired, but no other extras. The image is a little soft, which may be unavoidable for older source material, and it’s only a drawback in the “Hearts, Not Diamonds” number where a crisper image would add to the fun.

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BY JOHN M. WHALEN

Violence in American football has been a big issue during the last year. After former Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice was videotaped knocking his girlfriend unconscious in an elevator and other players were reportedly involved in incidents of domestic abuse, the National Football League issued a Code of Conduct for players. Violation of the code can result in a player being suspended or kicked out of the sport altogether. In Great Britain, however, it’s not the players who are guilty of off-the-field violence, it’s the fans. “Football hooliganism” as it is known, is and has been a problem for years. Nick Love’s 2008 film, “The Firm” tells a story set in the midst of this violent world.

For those who don’t know, football hooliganism refers to the organized gangs of young soccer fans, almost all young men, who meet one another when the mood strikes them to have a go at bashing each other’s heads in. These organized groups, sometimes consisting of 100 or 200 young men, are known as “firms.” According to Nick Love’s film, however, football has little to do with the violent encounters these groups instigate. In fact, there was not a single frame of film shot at a soccer stadium during a game.

“The Firm” was originally a television play broadcast in the 1980’s and featured Gary Oldman as Bex, the leader of one of the firms. Reviews indicate it was told from Bex’s point of view. Love’s adaptation keeps the time frame, but changes the point of view and makes it more of a coming of age story. In this version, the viewpoint character is Dom, a boy in his teens who still lives with his parents, and encounters Bex and immediately succumbs to a kind of hero worship.

Paul Anderson plays Bex in this version, and Calum MacNab is Dom. Both give very good, very real performances. And the shifting point of view between the two main characters provides an interesting contrast between the two characters’ lifestyles. By day Bex wears a suit and tie and sells real estate. At night, he wears Adidas and bright-colored jogging suits. He hangs out at a local pub with members of his “firm,” and sets strategy for the next coming fight.

Dom, on the other hand, lives in an “estate,” an ugly housing project. and works with his father in a construction business. Dom’s parents are shown to be mindless cogs in the lower class of society. A chance encounter in a pub brings Dom and Bex together, and the younger boy is impressed with the older man’s ferocity and ruthlessness. When he’s invited to join Bex’s firm he jumps at the chance. He immediately goes out and begs for money from his dad to buy the kind of clothes Bex wears. He leaves his former best friend in the dust, and begins using hooligan slang, that his parents don’t understand.

But it is this emulation of Bex that leads to the beginning of Dom’s disenchantment with his idol. The turning point comes in a scene where Dom shows up at a firm meeting wearing the same exact red jogging suit and shoes that Bex is wearing. When the rest of the firm ridicules Dom for this faux pas Bex simply shrugs his shoulders and lets them rag on him until they’ve had enough. When he finally tells the others to leave him alone, you can see the disappointment in Dom’s eyes.

As the story progresses, Dom begins to see the man he thought was so cool is actually some kind of psychotic, a man full of violent rage. He leads his firm in several clashes with another group, the Setis, with the violence escalating with each encounter. Dom watches as Bex’s lieutenants try to reason with him, but to no avail. He seems determined to lead his gang and himself into suicidal disaster.

“The Firm” is an interesting film, and keeps you glued to the screen to see how it finally turns out. And unlike so many films today, it’s about something real, not spaceships and superheroes. I give Love credit for carrying on a long tradition of realism in British films that dates back to the days of Tony Richardson, John Osborne and Alan Sillitoe. Love is not as good a writer as any of those three. This film contains none of the indicting dialogue of England’s so-called “Angry Young Men” characters who were so prevalent in films of the 1960s.

Love tells his story visually. Dialogue is minimal and what there is of it can barely be understood because of the characters’ heavy accents. It’s all surface level action. That combined with the loud soundtrack full of music from the ‘80s results in an accurate portrait of the England of Margaret Thatcher, but it does not go very deep into what really motivates men like Bex and Dom.

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Still, it’s a film well worth watching. The Twilight Time limited edition Blu-ray transfer is first rate. The disc contains extras, including the usual deleted scenes and “making of” featurettes. Another on how the gang fights were choreographed also was of interest. A booklet containing notes by Julie Kirgo i also illuminating. The disc also has an isolated soundtrack score. All in all, a nice package.

This release is limited to only 3,000 units. Click here to order. 

(John M. Whalen is the author of "Hunting Monsters is My Business: The Mordecai Slate Stories" . Click here to order the book from Amazon) 

In a major coup, Amazon Prime's video streaming service has signed Woody Allen to write and direct a full season of half-hour programming. The new series has not been titled nor has a concept even been finalized. Allen- presumably in jest- said that his lack of vision for the project may make Amazon regret its decision. That seems unlikely. Allen is one of the most prolific filmmakers in the world and has a track record that is unrivaled: he has released at least one major film every year since he made his directorial debut with "Take the Money and Run" in 1969. Allen is also arguably at the pinnacle of his career, with some of his recent films earning major awards and kudos from critics.

Amazon Prime is going toe-to-toe with Netflix in terms of dominating the video streaming business.  Polls show that viewers are rapidly defecting from watching traditional TV broadcasts in favor of utilizing streaming, which allows them to watch what they want whenever they want on TVs and mobile devices. The signing of Allen gives a boost in prestige to Amazon. For more click here.

BY ROD BARNETT

The Warner Archive continues to serve film fans very well by remastering and releasing a continual stream of little-known and under-appreciated movies from their huge vault. Terror on a Train (1953) (titled Time Bomb for its UK release) certainly fits the “little-known” category and once it's seen by more people I think it will be quite well appreciated by fans of tight B cinema.

The film takes place in England where a sharp-eyed police officer catches a man skulking about a train yard at night. The fellow assaults the cop and runs off leaving behind a bag with the components of a bomb. Quickly the police realize that the escaped man must have planted a bomb on the munitions train he was seen near. Looking over the train's schedule they surmise the bomb must be on a timer and would probably be set to explode when the train reached the most populous spot on its trip - the Royal Navy Yard in Portsmouth.

Inquirers for a demolitions expert lead the authorities to Canadian national Peter Lyncort (Glenn Ford) who was trained in World War II as a explosives defuser and his help is enlisted even though he tells the government men he is not at his best, as his wife Has just walked out on him minutes before! The railway authorities divert the train onto a line in a residential area and the people nearby are evacuated as Lyncort tries to find and disassemble the explosives hidden among the dozens of large mines before the time bomb will explode. At the same time, the cop who was assaulted by the saboteur is allowed to play a hunch that the bomber might want to observe his handiwork. He goes to the train station in Portsmouth in the hopes of spotting the man and possibly getting more information out of him about the bomb's location. Will Lyncort succeed or will all his marital problems be solved in a loud ka-boom?

This is a short, sharp thriller that moves along very quickly and maintains interest throughout its 72 minute runtime. Although the film has a pretty good score it is used very sparingly until the end. The tension of the film is built through good editing and direction (by Ted Tetzlaff) instead of musical stings and the movie is the better for it. Many films are undercut by layering the score over every scene but here the natural, ambient sounds of the hunt for both the bomb and the saboteur are used to make things more realistic. It could be argued that the martial discord story element is superfluous but I enjoyed the tension it added to the ending as Mrs. Lyncort realizes that it is her husband that is risking his life to defuse the explosives. The film was shot on location and that adds verisimilitude to the proceedings as does the inclusion of several nice eccentric characters who seem to mainstays of British cinema from this era.

The Warner Archive DVD presents the film in its original aspect ratio looking and sounding crisp and clean. The only extra offered is the trailer which might best be skipped until the feature has been enjoyed so that spoilers are avoided.

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By Don Stradley

The final image of Arthur Penn’s “Night Moves” certainly gets the movie pundits in a lather. The scene consists of Gene Hackman as private eye Harry Moseby, shot to pieces but still trying to steer his motor boat to shore. Bleeding badly from his wounds, he’s unable to reach the gears; he ends up setting the boat in a circling motion. From above, we see Harry’s boat circling aimlessly in the Gulf Stream. This scene, which brings the film to a finish, has been described as a metaphor for many things, including America’s lost identity after the Watergate era, to Moseby’s own fruitless search for the truth, to Penn’s own floundering career. To me, it always looks like the boat is going down a drain (or a toilet). It’s the sort of ending that leaves a viewer wondering if you’ve missed something, and leaves critics tripping over their tongues trying to explain it. It’s a bummer, that’s for sure.

But don’t let your aversion to despair prevent you from watching “Night Moves”. I think it actually trumps the self-conscious “Chinatown” as an example of neo-noir, mostly because it doesn’t dress itself up in period garb; instead, it settles into its own time period, 1975, with Moseby being as much a man of the ‘70s as he is of the noir tradition. Moseby isn’t above roughing a guy up for some information, and he certainly beds down his share of women, but he also deals with such modern ‘70s elements as a cheating wife, an estranged father, and his share of shattered dreams. Poor Harry is not only a failed football player, but he’s even failing in his second career, that of a private investigator. What actor from noir’s golden era could play Moseby? Bogart was too self-assured. Alan Ladd was too much the tortured angel figure. Widmark? Maybe. Mitchum? Never. Hackman, raw-boned but intelligent and slightly melancholy, was born to play Moseby. He’s just about in his prime here, on the heels of those great performances in “The French Connection”, “The Conversation”, and “Scarecrow”. As Moseby, he’s the private eye as working class mug. He’s too good for the work he’s in, but not too good to mingle with the people he’s investigating.

The screenplay, by Brit novelist turned Hollywood writer Alan Sharp, borrows all of the right elements from the noir cannon: A faded actress hires Moseby to locate her missing daughter, Delly. The search brings Moseby to Florida where he finds Delly with her step-father Tom, a charter pilot who seems to be part of a smuggling operation. It’s all a bit vague and confusing, but it’s so beautifully played by Hackman and company that you won’t mind not getting it all. When you get to the end, don’t try to figure out what just happened, because the movie wasn’t designed to be understood. Just absorb it and walk away.

The supporting cast is up to the challenge of keeping up with Hackman, especially a young James Woods as a slippery mechanic who knows more than he lets on, and a 17-year-old Melanie Griffith as the sinfully attractive Delly (short for Delilah). John Crawford plays Tom as a blubbery middle-aged doofus, but his climactic fight scene with Hackman is splendid, one of the unsung fight scenes of the ‘70s, right up there with Ernest Borgnine attacking Lee Marvin with a hammer in “Emperor of the North”. Jennifer Warren is Tom’s girlfriend Paula, a slightly faded hippie chick whose resume includes such varied jobs as teaching, stripping, and hooking. Warren is one of those actresses who didn’t act in many movies, but looks familiar because she did so much TV work. Either that, or it’s because she resembles that other faded hippie chick, Susan Anspach.

Melanie Griffith as the wayward teenager.

The shoot took place during the second half of 1973 in Los Angeles as well as at Sanibel and Captiva Islands in Florida. It was a troubled production. Hackman, a sullen sort to begin with, was enduring some personal problems; Sharp was unhappy with the handling of his script, and later complained about Penn’s “indecisiveness”; and Penn was in a dark mood due to the darkness of the material, which he described as being about “a country gone boundless.” The director cut scenes that slowed the action, assuming the audience could figure out what was happening. This is what gives the film its quick pace, but may also add to the sense that we’re losing something. Penn also admitted that halfway through the shoot he stopped caring so much about creating a detective story, and became more interested in revealing Harry Moseby’s inner-self.

“We didn’t pay that much attention to plot,” Penn said at the time of the movie’s premiere in 1975. “We thought that plot was not going to be achievable, that there was never going to be way of saying ‘Ah-ha!’ in the last reel when you find out that so-and-so did so-and-so. And my only excuse or explanation for that is that we’re part of a generation which knows there are no solutions.”

Ironically, nine days after the release of “Night Moves” came the release of “Jaws”, a movie that set records at the box office and forever changed the way movies were made and distributed. Steven Spielberg’s shark may as well have eaten every print of “Night Moves”, for the arrival of “Jaws” more or less marked the end of contemplative stories like the one about Harry Moseby. There was nothing vague about the ending of “Jaws”, that’s for sure. The good guys killed the shark, and that was that. There were certainly no conversations as you left the theater about whether the shark really died or not. The era of introspective characters and vague endings was over. No solutions? Just blow it up, Jack.

In the years since “Night Moves” first hit theaters, its supporters have praised it as an underappreciated gem, and I agree. There are some great lines here, like when Moseby’s wife walks in as he’s watching a football game. She asks, “Whose winning?”

“Nobody,” he says. “One team is just losing more slowly.”

Little nuggets like that one keep the movie afloat, even as the story becomes harder to follow.

“Night Moves” is available on the Warner Bros streaming service. 

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

When one considers the films of the late, great French director Louis Malle, soul-searching dramas such as "Au Revoir, Les Enfants", "Lacombe, Lucien", "Pretty Baby" and "Murmur of the Heart" come to mind. Malle also had a whimsical side and was not adverse to inserting a good deal of wit and humor into some of his films such as the remarkable "My Dinner With Andre", which consists almost entirely of a conversation between two old friends presented in real time. Then there is Malle's masterpiece "Atlantic City", a witty and moving look at aging with dignity set within the world of petty criminals in the dilapidated New Jersey resort town. One genre you would not associate with Malle is action/adventure. Yet, in 1965, Malle improbably delved directly into that genre with "Viva, Maria!", an expensive production that top-lined two of France's most popular home-grown national treasures, Brigitte Bardot and Jeanne Moreau. The film is a weird entry in Malle's body of work but it is nonetheless a great deal of fun and Kino Lorber has, thankfully, just released a stunning transfer of the film on Blu-ray.

The film opens in Europe in 1907 where we find a little girl named Maria shamelessly exploited by her Irish terrorist father, who utilizes her innocent persona to help him carry out deadly attacks against the British government. It's a sordid relationship that extends over many years, as Maria comes of age but remains devoted to her father's cause. The pair's war against government oppression ultimately leads them to the fictitious Central American nation of San Miguel. Here, the duo wreaks havoc on the corrupt government, which is controlled by a brutal dictator named Rodriguez (Carlos Lopez Moctezuma). Eventually one of their plots goes wrong and the father is killed in a shootout with government forces. Maria (Bardot), now a stunning beauty in her twenties, makes a narrow escape and finds refuge inside the wagon of a traveling circus. Here, she holds one of the performers, also named Maria (Moreau), at gunpoint while she gorges herself on food and drink. Despite the hostage-taking scenario, the two women bond in friendship. Bardot Maria is unsophisticated but courageous and self-reliant. Moreau Maria recognizes her as a diamond in the rough and sees elements of her own personality in her. Both are single women trying to survive in a world dominated by men. Knowing that Bardot is wanted by the law and the subject of a nationwide manhunt, Moreau convinces the owners of the circus to bring her on board as a partner for Moreau in her dance act. They perform their relative benign act in  wild barrooms  in front of sex-starved men who shoot each other at the drop of a hat. When a minor wardrobe malfunction reveals more skin than anticipated, the audience goes wild. The two Marias decide to incorporate this accidental bit of  bawdiness into their act. Before long, they become a sensation with their mild striptease act. The entire nation has heard about them, even if the majority of peasants will never get to see their act. The Marias prove to be lucrative for the circus and both women are content. Bardot Maria looks enviously on Moreau Maria's active love life as the traveling show attracts hunky guys in every town. Soon, the virginal Bardot decides to give men a try. She is instantly hooked and outdoes her mentor in the boudoir. (This is another unusual aspect of the film for its day: the notion of women enjoying fulfilling sex lives without any shame or guilt).  

The blissful lives of the two Marias come to a crashing halt when the circus troupe is arrested by goons who work for Rodriguez after the women interfere with the ransacking of a village during which numerous innocent people are murdered and enslaved. The circus performers are imprisoned, presumably to await certain execution. While in jail, Maria Moreau meets a prominent revolutionary, Flores (George Hamilton, somewhat out of place in the proceedings.) Although tied to a cross and in terrible pain, he is not immune to Maria's charms- especially when she - shall we say- alleviates him from some of his stress. Before long, both Marias are influenced by Flores to join the revolution. They help the circus performers orchestrate an escape that is amusingly staged, as each performer utilizes his or her unique talents in order to overcome the guards. Before long, the two Marias are national icons for the peasant class, who mobilize an army behind them. The final act of this bizarre "western" finds the Marias boldly leading their new army into battle against the forces of Rodriguez.

"Viva Maria!" (the Blu-ray sleeve omits the exclamation point) is wacko concept grandly executed by Malle. Both Bardot and Moreau seem to be having a grand time playing out the proceedings and foreshadowing the Women's Lib movement by portraying kick-ass action heroes. In the latter stages of the film, Malle goes for comic book heroics and blatant cartoon-like scenarios, but it all works very well indeed. Some of the battle sequences take on an almost epic feel but never overshadow the unique wit and style of the basic story line. I was surprised at how impressed I was by this film and the Kino Lorber transfer is most welcome.

The original trailer is included as a bonus extra. 

Highly recommended.  

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

Vinegar Syndrome has released yet another retro erotica double feature on one DVD. Both flicks are from the big hair era of the 1980s and both features center on similar themes: a frustrated young woman whose workaholic lifestyle leaves virtually no time for their love life. "Purely Physical" (1982) is the more impressive feature, largely because it has some production values and a reasonably intelligent plot, coupled with relatively accomplished actors and actresses. Laura Lazare plays Kathy, a young, overworked college girl who needs extra income. She applies for and gets  a job as the night clerk at a local motel. It doesn't take long for the outwardly prim and proper Kathy to observe that the place's primary source of income is as a "hot sheet" destination for people who want to carry out their sexual fantasies. She keeps a poker face even when confronted with the obvious intentions of her clients. There is a nervous young teenage boy who has barely cobbled together the $32 room fee in order to finally consummate his love for his cute girlfriend. There is a dorky, chunky guy who believes the hot number who picked him up in a bar really just wants to sit around the motel room and indulge in his passion for movie trivia. (She turns out to be a conniving hooker.) There is the frustrated traveling saleswoman (Juliet Anderson as "Aunt Peg", the original screen cougar) who finds she has no time for lovers so has to take sexual matters into her own hands. Finally, there is an exhausted businessman whose friend sends up two hookers to please him. He rejects their offer but when they inform him that they are actually lovers, he relents and let's them indulge. Predictably, his exhaustion fades pretty quickly and he gets in on the action. Then there's the attractive and wealthy young woman who want to indulge in her fantasies by renting a room and bringing in her two male tennis instructors. Faced with this sexual tidal wave on her doorstep every night, Kathy finally succumbs to make her own fantasies come true.  "Purely Physical" was apparently filmed, at least in part, at a sizable motel, though one wonders if the owners who consented knew exactly what kind of movie was being made on their premises. The opening credits are actually rather impressive, with some good photography of Kathy bicycling through busy city streets. Lazare, who appeared in numerous porn films throughout the 1980s, overcomes the bad hairstyles of the day and gives a fairly accomplished performance. The film only disappoints on one level: the much-hinted-at match-up between Kathy and Aunt Peg never occurs, beyond some mild flirting. Still, "Purely Physical" is one of the better porn efforts of the era.

"Cathouse Fever" (1984), on the other hand, is a lazy "quickie" feature with Becky Savage as a young L.A. secretary whose work hours deprive her of any romantic relationships. She makes the bold decision to join a bordello in Las Vegas. Aside from some "B" roll footage of Vegas in the era, the rest of the film is shot in one-room settings with the exception of a few beach scenes in which Becky is seen walking on the beach. Once at the bordello, Kathy enthusiastically embraces her work, bedding and pleasing an oddball selection of guys, some of whom probably mirror the real life experience of hookers in that they are decidedly unattractive. The movie stresses comedy, with some slapstick sequences inserted into the action. The routine script includes the usual standard sequences involving lesbians and group sex but most of it plays out in mundane fashion.

Both features boast excellent transfers and include the original trailers.

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