Glenn Erickson's Reviews: Month: April 2024

Deep in the Heart aka Handgun 04/27/24

Ignore the exploitative original posters … this thriller from 1983 is a clear-eyed view of America’s gun problem, expressed, wouldn’t you know it, by an Englishman. Filmmaker Tony Garnett formats his show like a vigilante shocker, but the real subject is a culture gone awry. Karen Young makes a star-caliber debut as a Boston schoolteacher targeted for point-blank sexual terrorism . . . and who discovers that she’s one woman alone against a society that blames the victim. It’s yet another unexpected rediscovery from Fun City Editions. It’s yet another unexpected rediscovery on Blu-ray from Fun City Editions.
04/27/24

The Tin Star 04/27/24

Anthony Mann’s high-quality conventional western has top stars Henry Fonda and Anthony Perkins, plus good input from Neville Brand, John McIntire and especially Betsy Palmer. Perkins takes lessons in how to be Marshall Dillon, while the womenfolk fuss and slimy Lee Van Cleef shoots nice people in the back. We get a Cold War lesson about Law & Order — that looks sensational in B&W VistaVision. Extras include critical input from Toby Roan, Neil Sinyard and Barry Forshaw. On Blu-ray from Arrow Video.
04/27/24

Household Saints 04/23/24

Nancy Savoca belongs in the top rank of creative filmmakers of the 1990s. This unorthodox telling of a ‘neighborhood miracle’ may be her most ambitious and original work. TV comedienne Tracey Ullman surprised everyone with her unusual characterization, but Lili Taylor stole the show with the most compelling depiction ever of someone enraptured by faith — a special effect halo would be superfluous. Vincent D’Onofrio and Ullman age convincingly; the two-generation ethnic mini-epic about ‘ordinary miracles’ is difficult to synopsize. Also outstanding are actors Judith Malina and Michael Rispoli. The disc contains two early Savoca student films, and an excellent new making-of documentary. On Blu-ray from The Milestone Cinematheque.
04/23/24

Butcher Baker Nightmare Maker 4K 04/23/24

American insanity runs wild in the last movie we’d ever expect to see from the director of TV’s Bewitched and A.I.P.’s Beach Party. William Asher’s horror show has some solid casting choices — Jimmy McNichol is the confused kid, Bo Svenson is the psychotic cop, and in yet another indescribably intense performance, Susan Tyrrell is the caring aunt whose possessive attentions get wa-a-y out of hand. Severin must employ squads of experts rounding up interviews and doing research — this disc has hours of material. CineSavant’s Charlie Largent will decide if this is good berserk Susan Tyrrell, or superlative berserk Susan Tyrrell. It’s one or the other. On 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray from Severin Films.
04/23/24

*batteries not included 04/20/24

Family-friendly Steven Spielberg once again seeks out the sentimental corner of sci-fi, with memorable roles for his lovable cast and a technical workout for his visual effects experts. Cute flying saucers behave like storybook elves, to make magic for elderly evictees (Hume Cronyn, Jessica Tandy). The writers in this warm-hearted show would later specialize in fantasy, even horror — Mick Garris, Brent Maddock, S.S. Wilson, Brad Bird; they and writer-director Matthew Robbins deliver Spielberg’s positive message. Does sweetness and light still have a chance?  We can vouch for the film’s effect on little kids — it was a memorable matinee experience for my family. On Blu-ray from Viavision [Imprint].
04/20/24

Bombs over Burma 04/20/24

This Poverty Row PRC opus was thrown together in just a few weeks, in the first months of World War II. Cult actress Anna May Wong gets top billing in a pro-China thriller about keeping the Burma Road open, an issue that would later become a real wartime strategy. We’re also drawn to anything by the creative director Joseph H. Lewis. At this time still known as ‘Wagon Wheel Joe,’ Lewis distinguishes himself with almost no production resources. Both Dan Seymour and future Oscar winner Nedrick Young make their screen debuts. On DVD from Film Masters.
04/20/24

Tormented 04/16/24

The industrious Bert I. Gordon ixnays the iant-gays and instead tries his hand at supernatural/psychological horror. Richard Carlson may have thought this would finally deliver him a breakout role; Juli Reding is the phantom lover who returns from a watery grave covered in seaweed, or just as a disembodied head. The most impressive performance is from little Susan Gordon! Reviewer Charlie Largent is there to catch all the gory details. The new release has plenty of extras — a commentary, essays, featurettes. On Blu-ray from Film Masters.
04/16/24

Colt .45 – The Complete Series 04/16/24

Swing back with us to 1958, when all three TV networks were crammed with westerns, each of which needed a gimmick. Wayde Preston IS Chris Colt, a secret agent who takes on various bad guys every week, pretending to be an ordinary traveling gun salesman. The three seasons are jammed with favorite actors and actresses — wanna see Charles Bronson and Lee Van Cleef handling workaday villain chores?  With its emphasis on gunplay, the show now looks like a template for Tarantino’s Rick Dalton — you know, before Rick duked it out with Sexy Sadie and Tex Watson. The WAC’s restoration work couldn’t be bettered. On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
04/16/24

The Scarface Mob 04/13/24

Charlie Largent reviews the tough guys, see?  Nyaahh!   Desi Arnaz made TV history with this thriller about Federal Cops playing rough to nail that bootlegging Chicago gangster Al Capone. With his paint-peeling stare, Robert Stack’s special Agent Eliot Ness seem more obsessed than Ahab — he can’t wait to go all Carrie Nation on an illegal brewery with a fire axe. Neville Brand jumped from villainy in westerns and noirs, right into Al Capone’s shiny spats. The mobsters include Bruce Gordon as the enforcer Frank Nitti and Frank DeKova as Jimmy Napoli, a hit man assigned to ‘murderize’ Ness; Keenan Wynn and Barbara Nichols are fringe benefits. We’re curious to see if this 102-minute cut is the uncensored International Version that came out on a much older DVD.

Accidentally Preserved Volume 5 04/13/24

Silent screen variety: it’s what a real movie marquee might have offered in the second half of the 1920s. Disc producers Jon C. Mirsalis and Ben Model give us four ‘rescued’ attractions, which include a western, a soap opera, a zany comedy with bathing beauties, and a jungle adventure featuring a woman raised by a gorilla. Each was scanned by the Library of Congress, and each comes with a stereophonic piano or organ music score by Mirsalis. Who can resist these titles?: Lorraine of the Lions,  Love at First Flight,  Hoofbeats of Vengeance, and  The Fourth Commandment. On Blu-ray from Undercrank Films / Library of Congress.
04/13/24

3 Godfathers ’48 + Three Godfathers ’36 04/09/24

John Ford’s outlaw trio rescues an orphaned baby, evoking the sentimental innocence of silent-era westerns. With John Wayne, Ward Bond and Pedro Armendáriz on board, and photographed in blazing Technicolor by Winton Hoch, little else is needed to wow Ford fans. Plus hymns, home cooking, genuine Death Valley locations and a Christmas miracle. It’s a double-bill disc: the 1936 Chester Morris – Walter Brennan version is here as well. It’s very different, and just as good. On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
04/09/24

Snapshot 04/09/24

Pegged as a slasher-type horror, Simon Wincer’s drama hews closer to the emerging ‘artful’ trend in Australian filmmaking — with some of the bigger names associated with fancier exploitation fare, too: Everett De Roche, Brian May. Chantal Contouri gets top billing but the film is carried away by the magnetic Sigrid Thornton, who would later receive plenty of U.S. cable play in the ‘Man from Snowy River’ movies. Also making a solid impression is Hugh Keays-Byrne, in a role much different than the ones he played for George Miller. The disc includes a longer director’s cut. On Blu-ray from Powerhouse Indicator.
04/09/24

They Drive By Night 04/06/24

Warners star power triumphs in a patched-together screen classic about the hard life of truckers on the road — that turns into a murder ‘n’ madness melodrama. It’s a special picture in terms of career advancement for Humphrey Bogart and Ida Lupino. The somewhat sexist dialogue feels edgy for 1940, and Ann Sheridan is at her most adorable. Does director Raoul Walsh deserve special credit for keeping this one on its feet?  Even George Raft comes across with a good performance. On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
04/06/24

Suits: The Complete Series 04/06/24

It was slick, glamorous, sexy — the cable series tickled TV viewers with fantasies of Wall Street wealth and power, adding extra fun with a gate-crashing imposter and his photographic memory. This is how the one percenters wished they lived: beautiful people in killer fashions, in a law firm that settles most disputes out of court — they’re too cool and too talented. When Netflix picked it up in mid-pandemic, there was no surprise that its ratings skyrocketed … a major role had been played by the future Duchess of Sussex, now one of the best-known women on the planet. On Blu-ray from Universal.
04/06/24

The Panther Women — The Bat Woman 04/02/24

Lucha libre lives!  Mexican matinee madness goes daffy-surreal!  Already reeling from masked wrestlers, Aztec mummies and carboard robots, the screen reels from a pair of director René Cardona’s pop-thrillers featuring luchadoras enmascaradasthat battle monsters, gangsters, and mad doctors. The Bat Woman is a jaw-dropping provocation to DC copyrights, while The Panther Women pits two lovely luchadorasagainst a squad of female assassins. The well-researched extras offer substantial background information. Who else but Charlie Largent could interpret this wealth of cinematic treasure?  On Blu-ray from Powerhouse Indicator.
04/02/24

The Dresser 04/02/24

Directed by Peter Yates and performed with great finesse by Albert Finney and Tom Courtenay, Ronald Harwood’s adaptation of his own play is great entertainment. Touring the provinces in wartime, an eccentric Shakespearian legend is falling apart in mind and body; only the star’s dedicated, put-upon dresser can get him into a mental shape allowing the show to go on. The approach isn’t satirical or ironic, but affecting and compassionate. The freqently hilarious show is also a worthwhile account of a long-gone slice of British theatrical history. On Blu-ray from Viavision [Imprint].
04/02/24