Reviews – CineSavant

Captains of the Clouds 03/29/22

The Warner Archive Collection

Blu-ray

Michael Curtiz’s flashy and splashy wartime morale booster began as a pre-Pearl Harbor show of support of our Canadian friends’ contribution to the war effort. A vehicle for James Cagney, its script is a trifle about bush pilots competing for a woman and then showing The Right Stuff when it comes time to join the fight. Cagney’s ‘bad boy’ act is always good, but what slays us now are the stunning Technicolor images filmed in and over the vast Canadian forest country with its endless crystal clear lakes. The aerial work in 3-Strip Technicolor is breathtaking, especially in this full new digital restoration. On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
03/29/22

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Broken Lullaby 03/29/22

KL Studio Classics

Blu-ray

The lasting horror of war is the blight it leaves on the lives of those left behind. Early sound pictures tried to deal with the guilt and pain of WW1, and the great Ernst Lubitsch took time out from romantic comedies and musicals for this very grim rumination on lies and responsibility. A French soldier decides to contact the family of a German he killed in the trenches; with no clear purpose or plan, he’s apt to make things worse for everybody. Lionel Barrymore and Nancy Carroll are wonderful, but you’ll choke up in the scenes with the German mother, played by Louise Carter. The film is best known for its opening montage, in which Lubitsch openly attacks the hypocrisy of militarist patriotism. It’s an exceedingly effective, non-hysterical piece of anti-war filmmaking. On Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
03/29/22

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Ordinary People 03/26/22

Paramount Presents

Blu-ray

This celebrated dysfunctional family story won four Oscars, the most deserved easily being Alvin Sargent’s superb adapted screenplay. The viewer buzz initially centered on the surprise of Mary Tyler Moore’s unexpected casting against-type, but even more alarming was author Judith Guest’s scary message that ‘perfect’ families are an illusion. We found the drama absorbing and bought the performances 100% — Sutherland, Hirsch, Hutton, McGovern. It’s clearly Robert Redford’s best job of direction. On Blu-ray from Paramount Presents.
03/26/22

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Le cercle rouge 4K 03/26/22

The Criterion Collection

4K Ultra HD + Blu Ray

Jean-Pierre Melville in 4K? That’s an inviting idea. All of Melville crime pictures are memorable, and this is one of his best-remembered, a traditional caper drama with a wordless heist scene that lasts almost half an hour. The color production stars three big French actors and one Italian. Alain Delon and Gian Maria Volonté are the career thieves, joined by the conflicted Yves Montand as an alcoholic ex-cop. Comedian Bourvil is enlisted in a surprise role as the completely serious and less-than-ethical police inspector on their trail. We have to admire producer-writer-director Melville’s skill — he achieves a high-budget sheen with a minimum of production resources. On 4K Ultra-HD + Blu-ray from The Criterion Collection.
03/26/22

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Shakedown 03/22/22

KL Studio Classics

Blu-ray

There’s always somebody new in the rat race trenches whose motto is ‘how to make friends and deceive people.’ Howard Duff’s photographer uses his camera to extort money from criminals while polishing his image as a grabber of Pulitzer-worthy news photos. But how long can he maintain his charade with mobsters Brian Donlevy and Lawrence Tierney, and how soon will his kissing partners Peggy Dow and Anne Vernon see through his lies? This efficient noir was the first feature directing job from the prolific Joe Pevney. On Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
03/22/22

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RoboCop 4K 03/22/22

Arrow Video

4K Ultra HD

Arrow Video bumps yet another of its top special edition titles up to 4K Ultra HD, just for home theater enthusiasts after the best and brightest of big screen experiences. The movie looks better than ever, and although the unrated version still packs too much gore overkill for average viewers, we respect the Horror-Comic vibe it was meant to conjure. As sci-fi satire Robo still carries a big stick: Edward Newmeier’s anti-corporate, anti-privatization message comes through loud, clear, and profane. On Blu-ray from Arrow Video.
03/22/22

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Outrage 03/22/22

Viavision [Imprint]

Region Free Blu-ray

The only woman director to work in Hollywood in the 1950s, Ida Lupino earned full marks as a creative innovator and a positive force in the industry. It was a restrictive time for the movies, politically, socially, every which way. But Lupino’s independent film about a rape victim passed through the censorship gauntlet — as long as the ‘R’ word was never spoken, of course. Mala Powers is the distraught victim who tries to run away from life in the powerful drama, which remains valid and topical. On Blu-ray from Viavision [Imprint].
03/22/22

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The Flight of the Phoenix 03/19/22

The Criterion Collection

Blu-ray

Now up for grabs in Region A, it’s the Robert Aldrich movie that wins over all that see it. The epitome of Men In Peril adventures, the tale of 14 random oil men marooned in the Sahara is brutal yet optimistic about human cooperation — please, the world needs more of that right now. James Stewart is at his best, stretching his hard-bitten loner persona and tapping into his flying experience. Also with an English-language-best performance from Hardy Krüger. The male group dynamics are absorbing and the suspense powerful — especially when seen cold. No spoilers here! On Blu-ray from The Criterion Collection.
03/19/22

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A Star Is Born (1937) 03/19/22

The Warner Archive Collection

Blu-ray

They’ve hit us with three remakes of this one, one about another actress and two about music stars — maybe the next will be about a TikTok star. Thanks to an unexpected full digital restoration from original Technicolor elements, this 1937 original once again plays like a winner. Silent legend Janet Gaynor is Esther Blodgett, soon to become the famous Vicki Lester. Fredric March gives one of his best performances as a matinee idol running his career into the ground with drink. David O. Selznick’s classy production takes some cynical jabs at The Biz yet characterizes Adolph Menjou’s producer as an all-wise, all-forgiving saint. The WAC adds great extras in full HD — a swing musical short and a saracastic Merrie Melodie cartoon that spoofs the main feature. On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
03/19/22

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The Godfather Trilogy 4K 03/19/22

Paramount Home Video

4K Ultra HD + Digital

The most prestigious franchise in the Paramount corral hasn’t dimmed in esteem or popularity despite its somewhat lesser third installment. The whole trilogy was given an impressive restoration by Robert A. Harris, and this new remastered 4K set retains that very good work. Francis Coppola can’t be faulted for not wanting to revive the old expanded ‘Saga’ cut from network TV — and this release gives us sparkling 4K and digital presentations, including all three variants of Godfather III: theatrical, the 1991 recut and the recent director’s cut Mario Puzo’s The Godfather, Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone. On 4K Ultra HD + Digital from Paramount.
03/19/22

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The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm 03/15/22

The Warner Archive Collection

Blu-ray + Smilebox

The big-scale Cinerama fantasy once thought lost is back — a terrific restoration brings us George Pal’s ode to fairy tales, filmed on Bavarian locations with an international cast. Laurence Harvey and Karl Boehm are the brothers that compiled the famed tales of princesses, witches, magic spells and fiery dragons. Their idealized biography is interspersed with three full fairy tale stories, about a magic cloak of invisibility, a cobbler’s helpful elves, and a pair of fearless dragon slayers. The show has dancing, beautiful locations, a sequence with Puppetoons and a terrific animated dragon. Featured stars are Claire Bloom, Walter Slezak, Barbara Eden, Oscar Homolka, Martita Hunt, Yvette Mimieux, Russ Tamblyn, Jim Backus, Terry-Thomas and Buddy Hackett; a long-form docu goes into fascinating detail explaining how Dave Strohmaier and Tom March accomplished the mind-boggling restoration. On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
03/15/22

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What Color is Green Hell? 03/15/22

The proof is in.

CineSavant Article

Or is it in color at all? In the immortal words of Criswell, ‘now it can be told.’ CineSavant asked for expert advice to get to the bottom of a ’50s monster show mystery that, uh, nobody asked us to investigate. Let’s see, there’s the interesting color on the new disc from The Film Detective, the WTF color on a YouTube encoding — which has an added selective color trick in the dark cave sequence — and some original color samples from a completely unexpected source. But other questions need to answered too: how can Giant Wasps have confidence in their sex appeal when they don’t even know what color they’re supposed to be? If I had their problem, I’d give up and wait for a lava flow to wipe me out, too. Does anybody read these ravings? Not on Blu-ray, this is a CineSavant Article.
03/15/22

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The Devil Strikes at Night 03/12/22

Kino Classics

Blu-ray

It’s the most impressive ‘new’ movie we’ve seen this year: Robert Siodmak’s 1957 political thriller fictionalizes a true mass murder case in 1943 Berlin — one that a high-ranking Nazi wants to justify the extermination of ‘undesirables’ for the furtherance of Aryan white supremacy. The snapshot of home-front Berlin is fascinating, and also the depiction of a complacent public, going along with official lies nobody fully believes. Produced on a big scale, the unjustly obscure show stars Claus Holm, Mario Adorf, Hannes Messemer, Peter Carsten, Karl Lange, Werner Peters and Annemarie Düringer. The illuminating audio commentary is by Imogen Sara Smith. On Blu-ray from Kino Classics.
03/12/22

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Little Rascals Volume 4 03/12/22

ClassicFlix

Blu-ray

The ClassicFlix Restorations! The fourth volume of restored and remastered Hal Roach ‘Our Gang/Little Rascals’ short subjects sees the kids in bigger and funnier trouble than ever. Twelve full two-reelers range from 1932 to 1934, when little Scotty Beckett joins the mob, becoming comic wingman to George ‘Spanky’ McFarland. Plus the antics of Dickie Moore, Wally Albright, Bobby ‘Wheezer’ Hutchins, Dorothy DeBorba, Matthew ‘Stymie’ Beard, Tommy Bond and Billie ‘Buckwheat’ Thomas. Almost four hours of entertainment . . . On Blu-ray from ClassicFlix.
03/12/22

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Lies & Deceit: Five Films by Claude Chabrol 03/08/22

Arrow Video

Blu-ray

Claude Chabrol was the most prolific of the New Wave directors. He didn’t only do murder thrillers; this fine selection of Chabrols from the ten year period 1985-1994 begins with a pair of detective tales but moves on to a masterful adaptation of a great book and two engrossing experiments, one of them picking up where an earlier French master left off. The players are terrific as well: Jean Poiret, Stéphane Audran, Jean-Claude Brialy, Bernadette Lafont, Isabelle Huppert, Jean-François Balmer, Christophe Malavoy, Jean Yanne, Marie Trintignant, Jean-François Garreaud, Emmanuelle Béart, François Cluzet. On Blu-ray from Arrow Video.
03/08/22

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Monster from Green Hell 03/08/22

The Film Detective

Blu-ray

Remembered fondly as a permanent resident on all-night movie channels, this patchwork concoction has just enough ‘good stuff’ to qualify as a fun monster show. Jim Davis’s stock-footage safari arrives just in time to be irrelevant to the fate of the title monsters; some good actors are along for what amounts to a picnic in Griffith Park’s Bronson Caverns. There’s still not a full accounting of who did what, special effects-wise. But Hey! The picture has stop-motion animation, which always guarantees viewer interest. On Blu-ray from The Film Detective.
03/08/2

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Expresso Bongo 03/05/22

Cohen Collection / Kino

Blu-ray

Showbiz in Soho is artificial, gaudy and vulgar, but Laurence Harvey’s slick promoter-con man thinks he can cheat at the pop music game. Cliff Richard is his new discovery, a teen crooner who digs the bongo drums. Wolf Mankowitz’s portrait of talent, glitz, and double-dealing in music and TV showbiz also stars Sylvia Syms as a Soho stripper and Yolande Donlan as a singing star trying to make a comeback. Finally in Region A — the disc contains director Val Guest’s uncut original version. On Blu-ray from Cohen Film Collection.

03/05/22

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An American Werewolf in London 4K 03/05/22

Arrow Video

4K Ultra HD

The smash ’80s monster-gore popcorn flick comes to 4K Ultra HD two years and four months after a deluxe Blu-ray, so we do a pointed comparison for purchase-crazy fans that want official sanction for their madness. Happily, you don’t need to be full-moon looney to go for the 4K: David Naughton and Griffin Dunne’s descent into a lycanthropic nightmare is as wrenching as ever. John Landis’s big & bloody hit comes with acres of extras. On 4K Ultra-HD from Arrow Films.
03/05/22

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Shake Hands with The Devil 03/01/22

KL Studio Classics

Blu-ray

Fierce Irish rebels go head-to-head with Brit occupation forces, and James Cagney is first on the barricades. Michael Anderson’s thriller about terror violence in 1921 Dublin has suspense, beautiful cinematography in real Irish locations, and a standout cast: Don Murray, Glynis Johns, Dana Wynter, Michael Redgrave, Cyril Cusack and Sybil Thorndike — plus added-value players Richard Harris, Donal Donnelly and Niall MacGinness. Cagney’s surgeon-turned guerilla doesn’t yell “Top of the World!” but he’s as psychotic as Cody Jarrett: he wants to shoot both the leading ladies. Included is a good interview with Don Murray. On Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
03/01/22

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Delta Space Mission 03/01/22

Deaf Crocodile Films

Region A Blu-ray

It’s an animated outer space adventure from Romania, made in the Cold War era but minus political messages. Old-school cel animation techniques conjure colorful futuristic visions, thanks to beautiful background art and a spacey ’80s synth music score. The Bucharest artists bring a novel point of view, populating alien planets with weird flora and fauna, both carnivorous and amusingly amorous. For love of a slinky blue-green alien named Alma, a giant crystal computer goes rogue and runs amuck. Giant monsters, space battles and rampaging robots are also on the interstellar agenda. One extra is an additional pair of Delta Space Mission adventure short subjects. On Blu-ray from Deaf Crocodile Films.
03/01/22

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