Glenn Erickson's Reviews: Month: July 2025

Quatermass 2  — 4k 07/29/25

The second Quatermass adventure sees Brian Donlevy’s pushy Professor singlehandedly quash a totalitarian takeover of England in just 36 hours — an incredible interplanetary conspiracy! The most exciting chapter of the classic series is given a massive boxed set by the ‘new’ Hammer Films, a full five discs plus the entire original BBC serial and a deluge of worthwhile extras, video and text. The resulting product is a clever ambush for Sci-fi fans, pushing the $ limit for what true believers will buy. On 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray from Hammer Films.
07/29/25

H.M.S. Defiant  aka  Damn the Defiant! 07/29/25

We’re always interested in movies about ships, and Lewis Gilbert’s accomplished Napoleonic battle epic is back in a Region B disc with some new extras. Alec Guinness’s captain is up against mutinous sailors and Dirk Bogarde’s troublemaking executive officer, a sadist who takes his anger out on the captain’s young son. With excellent visual effects by Howard Lydecker. The supporting cast is impressive too: Anthony Quayle, Maurice Denham, Nigel Stock, Tom Bell, Murray Melvin, Victor Maddern. This English movie’s been on disc for twenty years, but never from an English company. On Region B Blu-ray from Powerhouse Indicator.
07/29/25

Carnal Knowledge  — 4K 07/26/25

Jules Feiffer’s caustic look at two selfish, abusive American men makes us happy that we’re all not like that, or a mass extermination would be justified. The combination of infantility and hyper-boorishness is appalling, but too often true. Jack Nicholson and Art Garfunkel are the male misery makers; Candice Bergen, Ann-Margret, Rita Moreno, Cynthia O’Neal and Carol Kane are women who deserve much better. The reviewer is Charlie Largent. Mike Nichols’ movie, filmed by Giuseppe Rotunno, looks dazzling on 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray from The Criterion Collection.
07/26/25

Fire Maidens of Outer Space 07/26/25

Modest Z-picture Sci-fi groaners are an American staple, but this English effort is just as desperate. Landing on a moon of Jupiter, Astronauts find a verdant valley just like England, and encounter an Atlantean society with nymphs that dance to Borodin. We watched it 20 times as kids, and it never made much sense; perhaps the extras on this release will rank it in film history just behind 2001: A Space Odyssey. Or maybe not. On Blu-ray from Vinegar Syndrome.
07/26/25

Splendor in the Grass 07/22/25

William Inge’s intense drama of teenage romance comes to HD with rich Technicolor hues. Elia Kazan’s film of the ill-fated teen romance of Deanie and Bud (Natalie Wood and Warren Beatty) has only improved, with performances that couldn’t be bettered. Sexual suppression leads to emotional hysteria, all against a 1929 backdrop of prohibition and a stock market boom. Pat Hingle, Audrey Christie and especially Barbara Loden sculpt superb characterizations — the cast includes Zohra Lampert, Jan Norris, Gary Lockwood, Sandy Dennis and Phyllis Diller. It’s a powerful, relevant slice of Americana. On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
07/22/25

The Adventures of Antoine Doinel  — 4K 07/22/25

Back in the early days of DVD, the Criterion Collection found it could group films in boxed sets where appropriate. This new upgrade of a 2003 disc set gathers François Truffaut’s entire Antoine Doinel cycle, four features and one shorter piece, filmed between 1959 and 1979. All star Jean-Pierre Léaud. The Adventures of Antoine Doinel shapes up as an excellent introduction to Truffaut’s world. The boxed set also includes a short subject, many interview clips and a couple of additional documentaries, plus text essays in an accompanying booklet. On 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray from he Criterion Collection.
07/22/25

Shane  — 4K 07/19/25

Resuming his career after WW2, George Stevens assumed the mantle of Hollywood’s most serious producer-director. His ‘super-western’ is a beautiful piece of filmmaking with an optimistic view of American virtues in conflict. It’s a visual delight, and a genre throwback to unrealistic fights and a hero who may as well be the god of Pioneer justice. Alan Ladd, Van Heflin and Jean Arthur star, and Jack Palance makes a huge impact as a slimy villain. Kino got the nod to debut the show in 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray, with a transfer that accurately translates its glowing 3-strip Technicolor hues. From KL Studio Classics.
07/19/25

His Kind of Woman 07/19/25

Howard Hughes’ meddling fingerprints are all over this resort-set noir thriller. Even with RKO’s dynamite stars Robert Mitchum and Jane Russell above the title, the mogul’s endless rewrites and re-shoots guaranteed that it couldn’t earn a profit. Vincent Price, Tim Holt, Charles McGraw and Raymond Burr toil in a show split between light comedy and grim gangland torture. The production is lavish, but it’s one of the biggest cases of producer interference on record. If Hughes’ airplanes were made the way he made this movie, none of them would have flown. On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
07/19/25

The Tale of Oiwa’s Ghost 07/15/25

The Japanese horror tale ‘Yotsuya Kaidan’ has been re-interpreted many ways on film; Tai Katô’s 1961 version dials the macabre meter higher with a complex storyline and creepy disfigurement effects. Loyal wives suffer horribly in these things — Oiwa has the misfortune to marry an unscrupulous ronin who’ll seemingly commit any crime to get what he wants. Ghostly revenge evens the score. The nasty husband is played by Tomisaburo Wakayama of the later ‘Lone Wolf and Cub’ series. Director Katô really knows how to wind up the tension, in rich B&W ToeiScope!  On Blu-ray from Radiance.
07/15/25

Executive Suite 07/12/25

When the big boss croaks, veepees maneuver to take the top slot in a furniture company. Ernest Lehman’s first big screenplay was brought to the screen by Robert Wise and a cast of All Stars: William Holden, June Allyson, Barbara Stanwyck, Fredric March, Walter Pidgeon, Shelley Winters, Paul Douglas, Louis Calhern, Dean Jagger and Nina Foch. Things get rough in the board room, but don’t worry — sound judgment and good ethics prevail, as always happens in American business. On home video for the first time in its original screen shape. On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
07/12/25

The Big Heat — 4K 07/12/25

Crime fighting gets personal in Fritz Lang’s progressive police vengeance saga. It’s Glenn Ford as an ex-cop against the mob, and his only assists come from a doomed bargirl, a handicapped woman, and the moll of mobster Lee Marvin. Every scene has tension or implied violence, much of it directed toward women. It was a big picture for everyone involved, especially star Gloria Grahame. Her revenge makes an ironic connection with the ’50s homemaker ideal of womanhood: she serves her man his 2nd cup of coffee fresh and hot. Criterion brews it up in 4K Ultra HD. On 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray.
07/12/25

Danger: Diabolik  — 4K 07/08/25

Mario Bava’s big-scale fumetti adaptation hits 4K, an event of major interest in the fantasy fan-scape. John Philip Law, Maria Mell and Terry-Thomas are as brilliant as ever, and Ultra HD makes the picture even brighter and sharper. Ennio Morricone’s music is still a delight — the movie doubles as a psychedelic concert. Paramount or somebody has elected to go beyond digital cleanup, to perform a little audiovisual revisionism … which luckily is not too severe. Is it ‘can of worms’ time? This is a straight reaction to a first viewing, and a comparison with previous releases. On 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
07/08/25

The Stuff  — 4K 07/08/25

Let’s clear up a common misconception. Unlike The Blob, ‘The Stuff’ doesn’t eat you. You Eat It … and then it eats you!  Larry Cohen takes a page from Professor Quatermass for this satirical slap at blind consumerism and unregulated commerce, in a thriller packed with ooky glob-monsters and people hollowed out like Halloween pumpkins. It’s the smart side of ’80s Sci-fi: Cohen finds the genre perfect for transmitting his anti-establishment themes. Arrow’s 4K package contains an early version of the film in HD, that’s a half-hour longer. On 4K Ultra HD from Arrow Video.
07/08/25

Gwen  and the Book of Sand  — 4K 07/05/25

And now for something completely different — an art-film creation that’s a surreal delight. Jean-François Laguionie’s allegorical animated fable extends what conventional, ‘organic’ animation could do in 1985. The still images alone fire the imagination. It’s an art-house short subject writ large, that we’re grateful to have seen, especially so handsomely remastered in 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray. Thanks Deaf Crocodile!
07/05/25

I, Madman 07/05/25

Reissued for the delight of ’80s horror fans is Tibor Takács’ and Randall William Cook’s ode to bibliophile terror, subcategory facial mutilation. David Chakin’s screenplay allows a demented anti-hero from a scary book to invade our reality: Malcolm Brand gives himself a surgical mix-match appearance by straight-razoring features from the faces of his victims. The humble movie carries some good chills thanks to a macabre concept, clever direction and some really disturbing special makeup effects. On Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
07/05/25

Cheyenne  The Complete Series 07/01/25

We didn’t know that this seven-season success had racked up so many ‘TV firsts’ on its scoreboard. Clint Walker clicked with America as a roving cowboy do-gooder, solving problems and perforating bad guys on a tri-weekly basis. The series is now more impressive in this deluxe remaster; Warners entreé into broadcast TV emphasized quality in all departments. The 107 episodes co-star seemingly every supporting actor in Hollywood. On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
07/01/25

Unknown World 07/01/25

Take a cinematic trip 2,500 miles into the depths of the Earth, courtesy of a Cold War- era retelling of Jules Verne. Seven scientists search for a haven from the coming nuclear holocaust ‘deep deep down’ by traveling in a drilling submarine-tank they call a Cyclotram. Produced by effects specialists Jack Rabin and Irving Block, this early ’50s Sci-fi adventure is wrapped up in anti-Nuke anxiety and even the blacklist: the industry wouldn’t allow its main star to get screen billing. The extras by Stephen R. Bissette and C. Courtney Joyner are fascinating. On Blu-ray from Severin Films.
07/01/25