Glenn Erickson's Reviews: Archives: Reviews

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Ladies They Talk About 12/27/21

The Warner Archive Collection
Blu-ray

You can’t beat pre-Code Barbara Stanwyck, who glows as a knockout thieves’ accomplice, tough prison convict and deceitful lover of an incorruptable revivalist preacher-politician. She’s matched by the sassy, naughty Lillian Roth. In this Warner crime-tale-duel between piety and sin, darned if Stanwyck and Roth don’t make the crooked path seem cozy. There’s a girl-girl punch-out and an ill-fated prison break, but just watching Barbara ooze attitude as she saunters through the prison is worth the price of admission. Even more eye-opening is a positively lewd cartoon extra, also from the pre-Code halls of joyful infamy. With Preston Foster, Lyle Talbot, Dorothy Burgess and Ruth Donnelly. On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
12/28/21

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The Learning Tree 12/21/21

The Criterion Collection
Blu-ray

The triple-threat talent Gordon Parks gets carte blanche to film his own autobiographical novel back in his old home town — and the result is one of the better depictions of growing up black in the Midwest. Parks’ memories don’t wield a fiery political agenda, nor does he say that ‘there were good people on both sides.’  It was what it was and it wasn’t always pretty. As young Newt, Kyle Johnson ‘does the right thing’ and his experience helps explain the pervading lack of faith in justice, to put it mildly. Parks’ beautiful film remains positive, reflecting his warm memories, and his direction gives us a full ensemble of black talent at work: this is said to be the first Hollywood film produced and directed by a black man. On Blu-ray from The Criterion Collection.
12/21/21

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The Ultimate Invaders from Mars 12/21/21

CineSavant Essay
From 1999
Sorry, this is not for a new disc. From 23 years ago, this was the first article that convinced me that there might be a real audience for my review page, then called DVD Savant. It’s about time that the illustrated essay was brought up to date and moved to CineSavant. It probes the ‘primitive sophistication’ and weird appeal of William Cameron Menzies’ most accomplished job of direction: the paranoid nightmare that haunted our childhood dreams. It’s slightly rewritten and has improved images. There’s so much to talk about:  Near-experimental visuals!  Strange editing choices!  The idea for the essay is the same as ever, to inspire somebody to properly remaster the show . . . it’s not like we’re going to live forever.

12/21/21

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The Red Shoes 4K 12/18/21

The Criterion Collection
4K Ultra HD + Blu Ray

The only sales pitch needed is “The Red Shoes has been encoded in 4K.” Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger’s 1947 masterpiece conquered America as had no previous English film. This is one artsy dance show that captivates nearly everybody: audiences can be counted on to ooh and ahh the film’s dazzling hues, striking dance artistry and endless visual creativity. Cameraman Jack Cardiff took first position as the world master of Technicolor, and Moira Shearer’s dancing is recorded forever, celebrated as with no other ballet artist. Criterion’s 4K remaster includes all the extras of their 2010 restored Blu-ray. On 4K Ultra HD + Blu-rayfrom The Criterion Collection.
12/18/21

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The Abbott and Costello Show Season 1 12/18/21

ClassicFlix
Blu-ray

ClassicFlix comes forward with an entire 26 original episodes of the comic duo’s 1952 TV show, all fully remastered by the 3-D Archive people. That’s 13 + hours of Abbott and Costello comedy, looking better than new — even the original opening logos have been restored. The repeating leads are fully attuned to A&C’s style of comedy — Sid Fields, Hillary Brooke, Joe Besser, etc.. The full set comes with numerous audio commentaries and featurettes. For A&C fans it’s a must, especially as we await the same group’s restoration of the comedians’ color kiddie show Jack and the Beanstalk. On Blu-ray from ClassicFlix.
12/18/21

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The Mystery of Picasso 12/14/21

Milestone / Kino Lorber
Blu-ray

Art theaters of the 1950s art theaters often featured documentary films about great painters and this may be the most significant example. Fresh from his shocker Diabolique director Henri-Georges Clouzot instigated an ingenious filmic experiment that works in surprising ways. We don’t just see Pablo Picasso paint, we see him on task through highly creative means, sketching and painting in a way that we can often watch his face at the same time. Some of it done by painting on glass, and other filming methods are more mysterious. Clouzot changes the screen format halfway through, from flat 1:37 to anamorphic CinemaScope. Milestone has combined the short feature with a number of useful extras, creating a special treat for followers of art. On Blu-ray from Milestone/Kino.
12/14/21

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The Wolf of Wall Street 4K 12/14/21

Paramount Viacom CBS
4K Ultra HD + Digital

The Mean Street for this Martin Scorsese picture is Wall Street. His show pushes the hard- R rating to depict the wild life and times of a stock-selling pirate who bilks investors for millions that fuel a ten-year spree of obscene consumption, Bad Boy decadence and absurd levels of sex and drug abuse. Leonardo DiCaprio plays Jordan Belfort beautifully, surrounded by a corps of terrific players (including Margot Robbie) given clear characters by Terence Winter and superb direction by Scorsese. The surprise is that the show is not a facile take-down of the American Dream. Screaming greed is the lure and the joke’s on us. Co-starring Jonah Hill, Matthew McConaughey, Kyle Chandler, Rob Reiner, Jon Bernthal, Jon Favreau, Jean Dujardin and Joanna Lumley. The show looks fantastic on 4K Ultra- HD + Digital from Paramount Home Video.
12/14/21

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The Long Goodbye 12/14/21

KL Studio Classics
Blu-ray

And it just got added to the National Film Registry!  Can Robert Altman and Leigh Brackett honestly find a place for Philip Marlowe in the laid-back 1970s?   Vilmos Zsigmond’s even more laid-back ‘pushed and pre-flashed’ cinematography made industry news by shooting in places that normally needed three times more artificial light. The characters are vivid, as portrayed by Nina Van Pallandt, Sterling Hayden, and Mark Rydell. It’s also a terrific Los Angeles film, from Marlowe’s Hollywood apartment to the Malibu Colony, and a gangster’s Sunset Blvd. tower office suite. Elliott Gould’s mellow Marlowe may be unfocused and sloppy, but he still subscribes to the old ethics, particularly where friendship and betrayal are concerned. And darn it, he cares about his pet cat. On Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
12/14/21

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Reds 12/11/21

Paramount Viacom CBS
Blu-ray + Digital

Warren Beatty’s show is a beautiful, one of a kind epic. Never mind that it is sharply critical of John Reed, an American who was buried in the Kremlin — Hollywood never approached the title subject directly: (whisper) Commies. Beatty’s production idiosyncrisies raised eyebrows but his picture is quite an achievement in filmic storytelling, cleverly accessing a political scene sixty years gone through testimony by notables that lived it. Beatty and Diane Keaton provide the romantic fireworks that make the film commercially viable, amid all the revolutionary fervor and political chaos. Co-starring Jack Nicholson and Maureen Stapleton. On Blu-ray + Digital Code from Paramount Home Video.
12/11/21

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Homebodies 12/11/21

KL Studio Classics
Blu-ray

This remarkable black comedy is often listed as a horror film, yet it has more nervous laughs than shivers. It’s a solid idea: cruelly maginalized old folks get madder than hell and just won’t take it any more. Or maybe they simply go nuts. The cast of ‘over seventies’ playing over eighty is just marvelous, and one murderous little pixie is a delight: Paula Trueman. Things do become absurd, but the universally-understood premise stays firm: we’ll all be there sooner or later. “A Murder A Day Keeps the Landlord Away.” With Peter Brocco, Frances Fuller, William Hansen, Ruth McDevitt, Paula Trueman, Ian Wolfe, Linda Marsh, Douglas Fowley, Kenneth Tobey. On Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
12/11/21

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Mill of the Stone Women 12/07/21

Arrow Video
Blu-ray

That’s how things ought to work — give this reviewer EXACTLY the great disc he wants to see and wait for the flood of praise. This Italian-French gothic gem can hold its own in the Eurohorror Renaissance of 1960, with fine direction, an attractive cast, a seductive heroine/villainess, and lush color cinematography that turns a Flemish windmill into a young lover’s Garden of Horrors. It’s a period picture with fairy tale overtones, atrocious medical crimes and a sensual romance that leans heavily on squeamish Victorian taboos . . . yes, it’s irresistible. So is the lavish presentation, one of this disc label’s very best. Call it Holiday Horror, perhaps. Starring Pierre Brice, Scilla Gabel, Herbert Böhme, Wolfgang Preiss, Dany Carrel and Liana Orfei. On Blu-ray from Arrow Video.
12/07/21

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Ivanhoe 12/07/21

The Warner Archive Collection
Blu-ray

Chivalry!  Vows of loyalty and honor!  Combat action that will impress today’s Marvel fans!  The violet eyes and super-damsel figure of Elizabeth Taylor!  MGM’s made-in-Merrie Olde England tale of Knights and knaves and forbidden love is yet another suits-of-armor sword-basher about ransoming King Richard from those European Union swine across the channel. Everything clicks, from Miklos Rozsa’s most stirring anthem to the righteous justice of the finale. And it’s restored from 3-strip Technicolor. Robert Taylor is terrific as the stalwart Ivanhoe, backed by Joan Fontaine, George Sanders, Emlyn Williams, Robert Douglas, Finlay Currie, Felix Aylmer and Guy Rolfe. On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
12/07/21

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All or Nothing 12/04/21

Severin Films
Blu-ray

U.K. director Mike Leigh makes films with a wide range of moods, but his working-class dramas are what made his name. All or Nothing is an emotionally punishing story of everyday life on a lower rung of a stagnant economy, where nobody has dreams and pessimism is the order of the day. The bitterness and anger are most evident in the abusive attitudes and verbal brutality from one generation to the next, even with the caring, sensitive Penny (Lesley Manville) and the inoffensive Phil (Timothy Spall). Leigh’s players craft heartbreaking characters whose individual miseries can’t be dismissed. We invest heavily in the hope of a positive outcome, even as everything we see says, ‘no.’  Yet the film’s honesty doesn’t want us to give up on these people. On Blu-ray from Severin Films.
12/04/21

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Mulholland Dr. 4K 12/04/21

The Criterion Collection
4K Ultra HD + Blu Ray

This one delivers the 4K ‘experience’ — and David Lynch’s mesmerizing visuals and Angelo Badalamenti’s seductive music once again pull us into a different dimension. Four or five viewings down the line, the ‘storyline’ of this TV show-become-feature film is if anything less understandable. But it’s no less pleasantly weird — we can’t keep our eyes off of Naomi Watts and Laura Harring. My ‘quality’ section debates a question I’m getting more often: are 4K discs worth the upgrade?  On 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray from The Criterion Collection.
12/04/21

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Unearthly Stranger 12/04/21

Network/BFI
Region B Blu-ray

CineSavant reaches back to a U.K. disc released in 2014, because the subject is (what else) a semi-obscure science fiction gem. Favorite John Neville stars as a scientist opposite newcomer Gabriella Licudi, a beauty who may be an invader from outer space. This is the one with the teardrops that burn; not having seen it since 1966 or so, evaluating a ‘new’ Blu was an imperative. The main takeaway — it’s awfully small-scale and the fantastic content is mostly confined to dialogue. But the performances are good, and actress Jean Marsh is terrific. On Region B Blu-ray from Network/BFI.
12/04/21

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Citizen Kane 4K 11/30/21

The Criterion Collection
4K Ultra HD + Blu Ray

A thousand releases down the line, Criterion gives us a special edition of the most creatively brilliant & innovative movie in history, as the label debuts selected 4K releases. It’s a four-disc set, with three Blu-rays that hold a huge quantity of well-chosen and well-produced extras. What can be said about Kane that hasn’t been debated decades ago?  Our Declaration of Principles is to just try and tell the truth: we try a ‘civilian’ approach, sketching the film’s wonderments without assuming the reader is already a true believer in the Cinema God Orson Welles. Which Welles definitely is. On 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray from The Criterion Collection.
11/30/21

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The Little Rascals Volume 3 11/30/21

ClassicFlix
Blu-ray

The third disc in The ClassicFlix Restoration series takes us from 1932 into 1933, with 11 more comedy short subjects that introduce George ‘Spanky’ McFarland, one of the series’ most popular characters … before his fourth birthday. Parts of McFarland’s Hal Roach audition reel were incorporated into one of the shorts seen here. We’re looking forward to Charlie Largent’s take, as he knows vintage screen comedy inside and out: “Man, you don’t talk to Charlie, you listen to him.” On Blu-ray from ClassicFlix.
11/30/21

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It’s a Wonderful Life 75th Anniversary 11/30/21

Paramount Viacom CBS
Blu-ray + Digital

 It’s the Gold Standard of Christmas movies and likely the oldest feature still broadcast on network TV during the holidays: Frank Capra’s sentimental favorite is his most human movie, the kind of show that convinced people that raising a family is a great idea. Although we’re now a full three generations removed from the world events that surround the story of George Bailey, his problems haven’t dated. Paramount’s anniversary disc gives us a new encoding from a 4K scan, a repressing of the older colorized version, a good making-of piece by Craig Barron and Ben Burtt, a reel of home movies from the film’s wrap picnic in the summer of ’46. . . and a set of ‘Bailey Family Recipe Cards.’ On Blu-ray from Paramount.
11/30/21

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Kino Noir Times Four 11/27/21

KL Studio Classics
Blu-ray Separate Purchases

Let’s shout our approval for this foursome of vintage noirs, all of which have been scarce since Eddie Muller was old enough to rob candy stores. Three Paramounts and one Universal give us four notable directors and a gallery of attractive stars, including a swoon-worthy array of actresses: Marta Toren, Loretta Young, Susan Hayward, Gail Russell, Frances Farmer and Marina Berti. The selection includes one of the key ‘just prior to the official style’ titles, a thriller with supernatural overtones, a ‘woman in jeopardy’ story and a gangster tale reportedly inspired by Lucky Luciano: Among the Living, Night Has a Thousand Eyes, The Accused and Deported. On Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
11/27/21

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Bloody Pit of Horror 11/27/21

Did these filmmakers have any idea how twisted a picture they were making?  It doesn’t matter because this Italo torture orgy has has remained a freakout favorite ever since. Mickey Hargitay likely asked, ‘do you really want me to act this nuts?’ and then fully complied with Massimo Pupillo’s request to burn, stab, choke and roast his mostly female victims in orgasmic glee. It’s all still more than a little disturbing — or screamingly funny depending on one’s orientation. Severin’s Blu-ray sources original printing elements, lending incredible video and audio quality to this artless yet stunning exercise in sex & death insanity. We also recall an interpretation given this gem by Brit film critics. Co-starring Walter Brandi & Luisa Barrato, plus eight willing special guest torture victims. On Blu-rayfrom Severin Films.
11/25/21

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Party Girl 11/27/21

The Warner Archive Collection
Blu-ray

This colorful gangster tale was made by a studio in transition, in the middle of a crippling musician’s strike. Robert Taylor and Cyd Charisse were MGM’s last contract stars; her costumes and dance numbers are wildly anachronistic for the period setting and she refused to take direction from Nicholas Ray, whose career was coming apart at the seams. Yet the maverick director must have done something right, as the show has remained a favorite of audiences and critics. The WAC’S remastered Blu-ray is a beauty. Co-starring Lee J. Cobb, John Ireland and Corey Allen. On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
11/27/21

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The Addams Family 4K 11/23/21

Paramount Viacom CBS
4K Ultra HD + Digital

Barry Sonnenfeld leaped from hot cinematographer status to A- list director with this sure-footed big screen adaptation of the TV show based on Charles Addams’ marvelously morbid New Yorker cartoons. The cast is ideal: Anjelica Huston and Raul Julia complement TV’s Carolyn Jones and John Astin without inviting comparisons. Winning an imaginary award for making sick jokes safe for PG-13, the script has true wit. The characters have depth as well, which is wonderful. Daring to be out of step with the times, the elaborate production, costumes and special effects are all on the same page: director Sonnenfeld and producer Scott Rudin see to it that the goofy premise never wears thin. The 4K encoding is a dazzler. On 4K Ultra-HD + Digital from Paramount Home Video.
11/23/21

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Number Seventeen 11/23/21

KL Studio Classics
Blu-ray

One of Alfred Hitchcock’s so-called lesser films bounces back in an immaculate restoration. Say goodbye to blurry, indecipherable Public Domain versions — now we can fairly evaluate this amusing early talkie. An odd cross-section of underworld characters gathers amid the staircases and dark shadows of an abandoned house and proceeds to play games of identity and coercion. What happened to the body that was on the third floor landing?  Who is the mysterious mastermind whose note warns about a cop, and promises a diamond necklace?  Who is the mysterious woman who cannot hear or speak?  And is our hero a random passerby who followed his hat blown by the wind?  Kino’s deluxe disc features audio excerpts from Hitchcock and a longform French documentary about his early sound career. On Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
11/23/21

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The Hills Have Eyes 4K 11/23/21

Arrow Video
4K Ultra HD

Wes Craven’s getting a 4K Ultra HD workout this year, what with his monster hit Scream arriving in 4K last month. This 1977 franchise-starter is a down & dirty slaughter-fest out in the desert, with bloody jeopardy its one and only reason for being. It can attest that it was quite a nail-biting experience in the theater, and we know this show has a legion of fans — think of the hundreds of films that imitate its concept. Starring Susan Lanier, Robert Houston, Martin Speer, Dee Wallace, Russ Grieve, John Steadman and Michael Berryman. On 4K Ultra HD (only) from Arrow Video.
11/23/21

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The Assassination Bureau 11/20/21

Viavision [Imprint] (Region-Free)
Blu-ray

Veterans Michael Relph and Basil Dearden try a hip ‘n’ flip costume comedy about an 1899 consortium that’s the equivalent of Murder Inc.: Killings for hire done with veddy proper civility and good taste. The charming Oliver Reed and Diana Rigg lead a notable cast — Telly Savalas, Curd Jürgens, Philippe Noiret, Beryl Reid, Clive Revill — through mayhem-filled chases in several European capitals. Tossed off in tongue-in-cheek style, it’s shallow but cute, and if you like the stars it can be a lark. Its saving grace is the spirited Ms. Rigg. On Region-Free Blu-ray from Viavision [Imprint].
11/20/21

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Fury (1936) 11/20/21

The Warner Archive Collection
Blu-ray

Fritz Lang’s first American picture is a searing social statement out of message-averse Hollywood. It’s also a cinematic landmark, packed with innovative visual concepts. Sylvia Sidney and Spencer Tracy have great appeal as lovers torn apart by vigilante violence, and Tracy’s very Langian hero pulls off a ‘return from the dead’ to serve as an avenging angel. It’s one of the talkies’ earliest direct attacks on America’s plague of lynching, a liberal assault that even the Production Code couldn’t stop — the show took the ‘social issue drama’ to new heights, even as Fritz Lang didn’t find favor with the Hollywood studio system. Also starring Walter Abel, Bruce Cabot and Walter Brennan. CineSavant presents the evidence of MGM tampering at the conclusion, that changes the film’s message and meaning. On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
11/20/21

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W.C. x Three 11/16/21

KL Studio Classics
Blu-ray

Almost a ‘best of’ selection of W.C. Fields delights is this trio of truly hilarious films. The Old-Fashioned Way sees Fields as a carny performer with a juggling act that always elicited applause at screenings. It’s A Gift makes him a sweet and unassuming sap of a grocer who goes West in a real estate swindle. In The Bank Dick’s 70 minutes of hilarity Fields is a pompous security man who gets no respect from nobody. Charlie Largent weighs in on Mr. Fields’ gifts — these are the ones to see to understand his appeal. Separate Purchases on Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
11/16/21

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Frankenstein’s Daughter 11/16/21

The Film Detective
Blu-ray

Richard Cunha’s third of four horror item for Astor Pictures is perhaps the most marketable: in 1958 almost anything with the name Dracula or Frankenstein could get a big release. The Film Detective’s new disc (remastered from a 4K scan) shows the picture at its absolute best and confirms Cunha as a decent director. The monsters are dire but most of the acting is rather good: Sandra Knight, Donald Murphy, Wolfe Barzell and Sally Todd in particular. It’s core nostalgia for monster fans, and much gorier than we remembered. On Blu-ray from The Film Detective.
11/16/21

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Argentine Noir 11/16/21

Flicker Alley
Blu-ray + DVD

From beneath the Southern Cross come a pair of genuine noirs that happen to have been made in Argentina, where film art flourished in a system almost totally divorced from the American awareness. The Beast Must Die is a hardboiled tale of tragedy and murder told in an upside-down way that would make Orson Welles applaud; its star was called the Vincent Price of Argentina. In the visually bizarre The Bitter Stems a generous crook makes plans to murder his cheating partner in fraud, only to fall into a whirlpool of guilt. Expert testimony from Guido Segal, Fernando Martín Peña and Daniel Viñoly introduce us to an exotic film world almost unknown in the U.S.. Hear Eddie Muller try out his Spanish language pronuciation skills!  Separate Purchases Blu-ray + DVD from Flicker Alley.
11/16/21

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The Harry Palmer Collection 11/13/21

Viavision [Imprint] (compatible with Region A)

We loved James Bond but diehard ’60s spy fans hold a secret admiration for Len Deighton’s ‘thinking man’s secret agent’ Harry Palmer. Viavision pulls off a slick trick by assembling the three top Michael Caine Harry Palmer pictures, each from a different studio, in a single deluxe gift box. Harry fights the Brain Drain, encounters criss-crossing conspiracies at the Berlin Wall, and witnesses a privatized invasion of the U.S.S.R., in The Ipcress File, Funeral in Berlin and Billion Dollar Brain,three great pictures by three very different directors. The presentations come with a glut of special edition extras. With Nigel Green, Sue Lloyd, Eva Renzi, Oscar Homolka, Karl Malden and Françoise Dorléac. On Region-free Blu-ray from Viavision [Imprint].
11/13/21

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Some Came Running 11/13/21

The Warner Archive Collection
Blu-ray

Vincente Minnelli’s best non-musical drama hits on a magic combination — a tough tale of small-town malaise, his patented hyper-expressive sense of visual design, and a triple-win in casting, including Frank Sinatra in his most committed performance this side of The Manchurian Candidate.Frankie may even have said Yes to a Take 2 now and then. The fireworks begin when ex-soldier, lapsed intellectual writer and self-styled gambling bum Dave Hirsh inadvertently returns to his hometown. This is also Dean Martin’s best picture, with a breakout role for Shirley MacLaine as the pathetic woman with the purse made from a stuffed toy. With Martha Hyer, Arthur Kennedy and the great Nancy Gates. On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
11/13/21

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Invasion of the Body Snatchers ’78 4K 11/13/21

KL Studio Classics
4K Ultra HD + Blu Ray

This first remake of the 1956 sci-fi classic retains many of the original’s story points, clears up the biological minutiae for literal-minded viewers and adds a fascinating social commentary about ’70s lifestyles that’s almost as depressing as the idea of being ‘replaced’ by an alien simulacrum. Philip Kaufman’s first big hit is a worthy picture that’s maintained its high reputation … and it’s even scarier in today’s socio-political climate. The cast is terrific: Donald Sutherland, Brooke Adams, Jeff Goldblum, Veronica Cartwright, Leonard Nimoy, Art Hindle and Lelia Goldoni. On 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
11/13/21

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The Deceivers 11/09/21

Cohen Media / Kino
Blu-ray

Nicholas Meyer’s ‘other’ fantastic film project was ignored for all the wrong reasons; Pierce Brosnan fills a heroic leading role in a revisit of The Stranglers of Bombay, but filmed on location with great attention to authentic details. An officer of the East India Company detects an incredibly murderous cult of Kali-worshipping Thugs, a criminal underclass of thieves that practice ritual mass murder. The story has roots in history, snarled in colonial injustice and xenophobia. It’s a period picture unafraid to be controversial. Also starring Saeed Jaffrey and Helena Mitchell, on Blu-ray from The Cohen Group/Kino.
11/09/21

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Midway 11/09/21

Powerhouse Indicator
Region B Blu-ray

Walter Mirisch’s slam-bang, eardrum-pounding Sensurround stock footage orgy for the Centennial Year gathers an impressive lineup of big stars to celebrate the U.S. Navy’s biggest aircraft carrier battle: Charlton Heston, Henry Fonda, James Coburn, Glenn Ford, Hal Holbrook, Toshiro Mifune. Director Jack Smight manages the talky, exposition-laden account of a sprawling, complicated battle rather well, at least in terms of clarity. What is unwatchable pan-scanned on TV isn’t half bad for fans of big-scale war movies. PI gives us an approximation of Sensurround (I think), and also John Ford’s short subject The Battle of Midway from 1942. On Region B Blu-ray from Powerhouse Indicator.
11/09/21

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The Window 11/09/21

The Warner Archive Collection
Blu-ray

A genuine ‘sleeper’ hit, this ‘all in the family’ noir pits innocent childhood against cold blooded murderers. Little Bobby Driscoll witnesses Paul Stewart and Ruth Roman committing a murder, and can’t get Mom and Dad to believe him because of a habit of crying Wolf. But the killers believe him … and they live right upstairs. The beautifully made film evokes a rough, broken-down block in New York City in great detail. RKO’s new boss Howard Hughes did what he always did with a hot feature ready to release: he shelved it for almost two years. The WAC’s restoration is eye-opening. With Barbara Hale and Arthur Kennedy, on Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
11/09/21

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The Naked Spur 11/06/21

The Warner Archive Collection
Blu-ray

MGM sends James Stewart and Anthony Mann to Colorado high country locations for their third big-ticket western, a tight & tense psychological drama with a select cast: Janet Leigh, Robert Ryan, Ralph Meeker and Millard Mitchell. Stewart’s anguished bounty hunter is a sick man on a mission he knows is self-destructive and just plain wrong; it’s the actor’s most fraught western performance. The landscape itself is psychological, with treacherous rocky outcroppings and a dangerous river. Even more impressive is the new restoration from Technicolor elements: this is one of the most beautiful westerns yet out on disc. On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
11/06/21

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La Strada 11/06/21

The Criterion Collection
Blu-ray

It’s a pleasant thing to revisit an old favorite and discover that it’s better than you remember. The tale of Zampanò and Gelsomina is Italo neo-realism 2.0: it’s got poverty, misfortune and misery but also a bankable American star or two. The visually revamped presentation of Federico Fellini’s international breakthrough picture is a wonder — no more distorted audio and images that look as if they were filmed yesterday. Several of the extras are new, but the main charm is still provided by Giulietta Masina, Anthony Quinn and the Nino Rota music. Co-starring Richard Basehart. On Blu-ray from The Criterion Collection.
11/06/21

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An Angel for Satan 11/06/21

Severin Films
Blu-ray

Barbara Steele has one of her better performance showcases in Camillo Mastrocinque’s classy ghost story with a somewhat dispiriting twist. Steele’s fan-collectors won’t need extra encouragement, as she’s in most every scene and gets to play a variety of moods from delicate to seductive to outright poisonous. Quality performances flatter a flawed screenplay, and the fine direction and attentive cinematography clearly inspired Steele to give it everything she had. Severin’s quality HD transfer is everything we’d want, with dual language tracks and good extras including a Kat Ellinger commentary and a second track featuring stellar input from Ms. Steele herself. With Anthony Steffen, Claudio Gora, Mario Brega, Marina Berti, Ursula Davis, Vassili Karis, and Aldo Berti. On Blu-ray from Severin Films.
11/06/21

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Scream 4K 11/02/21

Paramount Viacom CBS
4K Ultra HD + Digital

Nobody did better with horror franchises than Wes Craven, who re-envigorated the genre in this relentlessly bloody thriller. Its self-referential gimmick should have been exploited decades before: what if the teenagers in movies were like real teenagers that watch horror movies. . . and that must rely on their movie knowledge when confronted with R-rated carnage? 25 years later the show holds up well, at least until the final revelations. Kevin Williamson’s screenplay and Mark Irwin’s camerawork make Drew Barrymore, Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox and Rose McGowan the most attractive and intelligent horror scream queens since Peggy Cummins tried to kick some sense into Dana Andrews. No Blu-ray included. On 4K Ultra HD + Digital from Paramount/Miramax.
11/02/21

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Fritz the Cat + The Nine Lives of Fritz the Cat 11/02/21

KL Studio Classics
Blu-rays

Yes, we shameless college students saw these pictures when they were new. If I recall, Robert Crumb sued, rightly or wrongly; National Lampoon did a comic strip dissing the randy Fritz for selling out to the suits. Ralph Bakshi’s shot at adult animation (the first with an X-rating) is a rather dispiriting mess that doesn’t miss Crumb’s dirty-old-man anarchy. But the rough & ready animation and crude, semi-authentic dialogue were definitely something new. Charlie Largent gives the shows his perspective, animation art-wise; the two discs are being sold separately. On Blu-ray from Scorpion Releasing / Kino.
11/02/21

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Deep Red 4K 11/02/21

Arrow Video
4K Ultra HD

Dario Argento in 4K — that sounds like a good idea, especially for his more visually jolting giallos. Arrayed in garish reds and blacks, this blood-soaked mystery shocker emphasizes exotic murders — stabbings, scaldings, lacerations from broken glass. David Hemmings is again the investigator, digging into evidence sourced not in photographic details, but the hidden artwork of a disturbed child. Techniscope images by Luigi Kuveiller and music by Goblin, with abbondante gore orchestrated by Signor Argento at the top of his form. With Daria Nicolodi, Gabriele Lavia, Macha Méril. No Blu-ray included. On 4K Ultra HD from Arrow Video.
11/02/21

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Children of the Damned 10/30/21

The Warner Archive Collection
Blu-ray

Charlie Largent takes on the ‘Kiddie Damned’ movie that reverses everything in ‘Village of the Damned’ — the mutant telepath moppets in this 1963 follow-up are terrestrial in origin and benign: it’s the nasty militarists in ‘the system’ who are the real threat to humanity. The John Wyndham semi-sequel has a New Cinema look and wears its liberal heart on its sleeve — a sci-fi horror a couple of years too early for a ‘give peace a chance’ love-in. Stars Alan Badel, Ian Hendry and Barbara Ferris provide the anti-militarist sentiment. On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
10/30/21

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The Mad Doctor 10/30/21

KL Studio Classics
Blu-ray

When did murder thrillers become horror pix?  This one is horror only by association, and star Basil Rathbone would be a suave leading man if he wasn’t slaying wives left and right. He sets his sights on the rich, conveniently suicidal Ellen Drew, yes (sigh) that Ellen Drew. This atypical Paramount thriller has glamour to spare and also some unexpected sideways sexuality with the sinister Martin Kosleck, who almost steals the movie. But not our hearts — in that department it’s Ellen Forever and Ever. With a commentary by David Del Valle. On Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
10/30/21

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The Ghost Ship + Bedlam 10/30/21

The Warner Archive Collection
Blu-ray

New remastered restorations of Val Lewton pictures?   We’re there. This terrific double bill gives us two Lewton shockers that are in no way ‘lesser’. The progressive psycho killer picture The Ghost Ship suffered a legal setback and disappeared for almost fifty years; it’s a masterpiece of taste and tone. Bedlam is a costume picture with an ideal role for Boris Karloff, and multiple eerie moments worthy of Edgar Allan Poe. Both movies exhibit interesting storytelling techniques, too. RKO should have promoted Lewton to A pictures, as they did his collaborators Jacques Tourneur, Robert Wise and Mark Robson. Bedlam has a commentary by Tom Weaver. On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
10/30/21

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Mad Love 10/26/21

The Warner Archive Collection
Blu-ray

What a Halloween treat!  Karl Freund stopped directing after this classic, which is a shame — it’s German expressionism’s most exciting foray into classic Hollywood horror of the ’30s. Peter Lorre is incredible as Dr. Gogol, making himself as creepy and repulsive as possible while retaining a giddy audience sympathy. It’s Grand Guignol all the way — macabre, funny and irresistible. The screenplay toys with uncomfortable Body Horror and psychological weirdness; Colin Clive must contend with becoming the recipient of murderous hands. Frances Drake is the beauty that drives Dr. Gogol mad, and comedian Edward Brophy is a highlight in a non-comedic scene. “I have conquered science. Why can I not conquer love?!” On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
10/26/21

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Kolchak: The Night Stalker 10/26/21

KL Studio Classics
Blu-ray

Fresh from his TV movie triumphs battling the forces of darkness, Darren McGavin’s intrepid Carl Kolchak takes on assorted ghouls, demons and monsters threatening Chicago in this TV series, a full twenty episodes. Kino’s four-disc special edition is loaded with commentaries, interviews, TV spots, the works; we learn that series writer David Chase went on to create the cable series The Sopranos. The episodes are beautifully transferred, too, says CineSavant reviewer Charlie Largent. Guest monsters stars include Julie Adams, Carolyn Jones, Tom Bosley, William Smith, Tom Skerritt and Scatman Crothers. On Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
10/26/21

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Freud 10/26/21

KL Studio Classics
Blu-ray

John Huston plays every narrative card in the deck for the difficult task of expressing the great doctor’s insights into psychoanalysis. His actors personalize the concepts of neurosis, etc., investing us in Sigmund’s search for answers in long-ago Vienna. The fascination has multiple levels: in investigating the nature of ‘hysteria’ Dr. Sigmund Freud finds that he shares to a degree the same mental aberrations, as does his mentor. Actor Montgomery Clift was fighting numerous personal demons at the time, and Huston’s directing methods were described by some as cruel. Superb production values and Jerry Goldsmith’s music score enhance the experience. The scan on view is Huston’s director’s cut, not Universal’s shorter original release version. Also starring Susannah York, Susan Kohner, Larry Parks and Eric Portman. On Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
10/26/21

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High Sierra + Colorado Territory 10/23/21

The Criterion Collection
Blu-ray

An old favorite receives a quality restoration: Raoul Walsh, John Huston, W.R. Burnett and actress Ida Lupino launch Humphrey Bogart as an A-list star deemed strong enough to carry romantic leads. Bogart’s gangster Roy Earle is a classic anti-hero; audiences in 1941 surely thought the film’s play with wrongdoing and heroism was edgy material. Lupino’s loser-turned-lover is a dynamite asset for a man on the run, and the sentimental touches don’t mar the spectacular finale: this all-American bandit meets his end on a California peak, not a dirty urban gutter. A second disc carries the full feature Colorado Territory, a remake/transposition of the Bogie classic into an excellent western with Joel McCrea and Virginia Mayo. On Blu-ray from The Criterion Collection.
10/23/21

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Say Amen, Somebody 10/23/21

The Milestone Cinematheque
Blu-ray

Talk about raising the roof with song — George Nierenberg’s documentary is still considered the best on gospel music. Made in the early 1980’s, the show caught the greats of decades past, now happy to describe the history and future of their work: Thomas A. Dorsey, Mother Willie Mae Ford Smith. The testimony of singers and groups just getting established is good as well, but of course it’s the spirit-raising performances — here caught as never before — that make the show unforgettable. Milestone includes outtakes, interviews and input from the director. On Blu-ray from The Milestone Cinematheque.
10/23/21

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Onibaba 10/19/21

The Criterion Collection
Blu-ray

“Put on the MASK!” That line comes from a different horror movie, but its impact is a tight fit for Kaneto Shindo’s harrowing costume creepshow about mother & daughter feudal peasants that make a living by murdering lost soldiers that drift their way. Mix superstition with greed and murderous revenge and the result is some big shocks, combined with eerie, unforgettable imagery. Put on the mask, alright… but can you take it off?  I’m looking forward to reviewer Charlie Largent’s take on this horror classic, in a new special edition, on Blu-ray from The Criterion Collection.
10/19/21

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Audrey Hepburn 7 – Movie Collection 10/19/21

Paramount Viacom CBS
Blu-ray

It’s been said that American women of the 1950s admired Marilyn Monroe, but they wanted to be Audrey Hepburn, who projected an entirely different appeal. Hepburn had talent, grace, a dazzling smile and the strength to overcome any obstacle. Paramount now rounds up their Audrey Hepburn holdings to release this seven-picture ode to the great actress, the sentimental favorite. Several are near-perfect entertainments, great films everybody should see. All are handsomely remastered in HD, in their proper aspect ratios: Roman Holiday, Sabrina, War and Peace ’56, Funny Face, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Paris When It Sizzles and My Fair Lady. I’d consider this definite holiday gift-giving material. On Blu-ray from Paramount Home Entertainment.
10/19/21

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Ad Nauseam 10/19/21

1984 Publishing
Book Review

Charlie Largent dares open the pages to the sleaziest of the sleazy — the movie ads that found 101 ways to dare us to take in the who-the-hell-knows-what? abominations playing at the drive-in, promising all manner of horrors and sometimes delivering them. Author Michael Gingold ushers us into the smeary newsprint realm of the ‘ad mat’ — which for aberrant horror meant come-on lines like, “If this movie doesn’t make your skin crawl. . . it’s on too tight!” and “To avoid fainting just keep repeating it’s only a movie, it’s only a movie. . . ”  Charlie assures us that these 368 pages of pure guignol nostalgia also constitute good reportage — it’s amazing how many re-titlings some of these pictures incurred. Now In Print from 1984 Publishing.
10/19/21

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Corridor of Mirrors 10/16/21

Cohen Media Group
Blu-ray

Let loose some airy English film aesthetes with a big budget, a French film studio and a theme somewhere between Marcel Proust and Jean Cocteau, and back comes this strange, slightly off-balance but extremely impressive objet d’art. Eric Portman is really good, Edana Romney not so much. English actresses Barbara Mullen and Joan Maude compensate greatly — they’re haunting, actually. For his first job of direction Terence Young gives us a flash of Christopher Lee in his first film, along with pretty Lois Maxwell. Content-wise this has the screwiest construction … its style and obsessions are split between the two films presently rated the best ever made!  Expect something different: the baroque style may prompt some viewers to reach for the ‘eject’ button. On Blu-rayfrom The Cohen Group.
10/16/21

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Gray Lady Down 10/16/21

Powerhouse Indicator
Region B Blu-ray

Military ensemble pictures work well when the excitement is all about the job and working under pressure: Charlton Heston, Stacy Keach, Ned Beatty and even David Carradine are excellent in this credible story about a near-impossible rescue of submariners trapped 1400 feet below. It’s a solid Navy disaster scenario, unusually authentic and realistic — until the dramatists require actor Ronny Cox to act like an emotional idiot. Those U.K. disc producers do it justice with some excellent extras, including a piece with a Navy specialist who worked with the rescue craft seen in the movie… and who later became a well-known film historian, author and film series organizer. On Blu-ray from Powerhouse Indicator.
10/16/21

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Universal Classic Monsters Icons of Horror Collection 4K 10/12/21

Universal Pictures Home Entertainment
4K Ultra HD + Blu Ray + Digital

Dracula, Frankenstein, The Invisible Man and The Wolf Man get the boost to 4K. Those Blu-ray sets nine years ago were pretty darn impressive; what’s the improvement here?   The deluxe gift-ready package naturally comes with all of Universal’s many extras accumulated over the last twenty years. I haven’t seen Karloff for a while, and he’s more impressive than ever; plus this time we can appreciate how much performing Bela Lugosi does with just his hands. Also starring Claude Rains and Lon Chaney Jr., in their top Universal horror appearances. On 4K Ultra-HD + Blu-ray + Digital from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment.
10/12/21

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A Night at the Opera 10/12/21

The Warner Archive Collection
Blu-ray

Charlie Largent takes on the Marx Brothers’ biggest hit for MGM, a combo operetta and Marx Mania laugh fest that includes some of Groucho’s best comic interactions with Margaret Dumont. A pack of notable writers contributed to this with and without credit; Metro must have wanted to ‘raise the culture level’ one way or another. And heck, we love Kitty Carlisle, and Allan Jones sang here around the same time he was in Showboat over at Universal. Will Otis B. Driftwood ever have his way with Mrs. Claypool?  Who knows, this time the movie may be different. On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
10/12/21

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Inglourious Basterds 4K 10/09/21

Universal Pictures Home Entertainment
4K Ultra HD + Blu Ray + Digital

“We in the killin’ Nazi bizness. An’ cousin, bizness is boomin’!” Brad Pitt scalps his enemies, Mélanie Laurent serves up a killer double bill for the Führer, Michael Fassbinder is a movie critic turned secret agent, and the amazing Christophe Waltz makes all previous movie villains seem lightweight. Now on 4K Ultra HD, Quentin Tarantino’s brutal-but-funny war movie is really a critique of Hollywood escapism. It’s the ultimate wish fulfillment fantasy for every trigger-happy Audie Murphy Jr. who ever attended a matinee. I thought the movie would be tarred and feathered by America’s guardians of war nostalgia; instead it took eight Oscar noms plus a win for actor Waltz: “That’s a Bingo!”  With Eli Roth, Diane Kruger, Daniel Brühl, Rod Taylor and Mike Myers. On 4K Ultra-HD + Blu-ray + Digitalfrom Universal Pictures Home Entertainment.
10/09/21

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The Fortune Cookie 10/09/21

KL Studio Classics
Blu-ray

Billy Wilder and I.A.L. Diamond’s comeback comedy performed decently enough at the box office, but its real accomplishment is vaulting Walter Matthau into mainline stardom. Matthau embodies the most venal ambulance chaser alive: Whiplash Willie Gingrich. His sad insurance scam scramble for unearned, undeserved loot is more of an exposé of sagging American values than anything particularly satircal. Jack Lemmon is the straight man this time around. He spends much of the movie in a medical collar, being victimized to make a fast buck. But Matthau hits the laughs out of the park — it’s an inspired performance that won him a Best Supporting Oscar. “You know Willie. He could find a loophole in the Ten Commandments.” With Ron Rich, Judi West, and Cliff Osmond. On Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
10/09/21

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The Incredible Shrinking Man 10/05/21

The Criterion Collection
Blu-ray

Criterion gives this classic its first exposure on Region A Blu-ray!  A new 4K remaster puts the story of a guy too tiny to escape from his own cellar in its very best light — Scott Carey’s combat with the spider is still a scary delight, with a newly-fixed imperfection. Criterion’s extras lean toward fan-oriented fare: Tom Weaver tops the stack with a fine commentary and we get good input from Ben Burtt, Craig Barron, Richard Christian Matheson, Joe Dante and Dana Gould — plus thoughtful liner notes by Geoffrey O’Brien. And don’t forget those excellent movie trailers narrated by a breathless Orson Welles. Robert Scott Carey should have his own statue in Los Angeles, like Rocky Balboa in Philadelphia. On Blu-ray from The Criterion Collection.
10/05/21

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The Last Sunset 10/05/21

KL Studio Classics
Blu-ray

Kirk Douglas and Rock Hudson can’t quite bring this all-star western fully to life, even with Robert Aldrich at the helm and a storyline that toys with (then) lurid, adult subject matter. Screen-written by Dalton Trumbo and filmed in Mexico, it perhaps packs too much edgy psychodrama into a simple cowboys & sixguns saga. Dorothy Malone and Carol Lynley give fine support and the locations are nice, as is Ernest Laszlo’s cinematography. Also with Joseph Cotten, Neville Brand, Jack Elam and Regis Toomey. On Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
10/05/21

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The Silence of the Lambs 4K 10/02/21

KL Studio Classics
4K Ultra HD + Blu Ray

The best horror film of the 1990s and perhaps the only serial killer picture post- Psycho that can stand on equal terms with Hitchcock’s classic, Jonathan Demme and Ted Tally’s adaptation of the Thomas Harris novel is a standout experience in every way. Not all 4K Ultra HD encodings are worth crowing about but this one is — the added visual detail and especially the contrast range really make a difference. Kino offers a good selection of extras as well, including a teaser trailer I haven’t seen for years and a fine Tim Lucas commentary. Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins, Scott Glenn, Ted Levine star in this multiple Oscar-winner. On 4K Ultra-HD + Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
10/02/21

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As Good as It Gets 10/02/21

Viavision [Imprint]
All-region Blu-ray

Once upon a time a movie could really send you out of the theater with a smile on your face (Don’t make me explain what a movie theater was). James L. Brooks scores here with another fine entertainment, creating yet another character for Jack Nicholson to hit out of the park. But the generosity of characterization anoints the entire cast, especially Helen Hunt, the most emotionally deserving working woman since Shirley MacLaine’s Fran Kubelik. Nicholson’s miserable curmudgeon is once again a guy who learns how to be a mensch, at least a little bit. It’s an old story but Brooks makes it new again; both Nicholson and Hunt won as Best Actors and the film nabbed five other nominations. On Region Free Blu-ray from Viavision [Imprint].
10/02/21

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The Damned (La caduta degli Dei) 09/28/21

The Criterion Collection
Blu-ray

Sex and swastikas! — that combo shows up in both trash cinema and high art. Luchino Visconti’s searing look at Nazi corruption sees an industrialist family torn apart by murderous greed and ambition worthy of the Borgias. The fiendish Countess Ingrid Thulin has raised a twisted son (Helmut Berger) to serve her deadly schemes; her path to power involves framing one heir for a killing while another rival is sacrificed in an SS massacre for the good of the Reich. The chilling treachery plays out at family dinner tables, in the offices of a steel mill, and in various bedrooms; Nazi fervor is equated with sex perversion. The uncut original version, remastered, also stars Dirk Bogarde, Helmut Griem, Renaud Verley, Umberto Orsini, René Koldehoff, Charlotte Rampling and Florinda Bolkan. On Blu-ray from The Criterion Collection.
09/28/21

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Hot Saturday 09/28/21

KL Studio Classics
Blu-ray

Core pre-Code excellence!  This movie delivers sexy situations while nailing small town intolerance and hypocrisy. When push comes to shove, the slighted and slandered Nancy Carroll makes daring, socially unacceptable choices that would never be allowed after the Production Code was enforced. Gorgeous Carroll is a vivacious blend of Clara Bow and Claudette Colbert. She must choose between slick playboy Cary Grant and hunky geologist Randolph Scott. What she really needs is a bus ticket out of her Town Without Pity. The picture is funny, well observed and well written. And it has Grady Sutton — ooh!  On Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
09/28/21

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Cold War Creatures: Four Films from Sam Katzman (Part 2) 09/25/21

Arrow Video
Blu-ray

Charlie Largent finishes off this grueling, Pulitzer-worthy task: reviewing the second half of Arrow’s fancy-box ode to Hollywood’s pennypinching producer, good old Jungle Sam Katzman. Are these two titles the better of the four?: Creature with the Atom Brain (incredible title!) and The Werewolf. In the first cheapie radiation-powered corpses function as robot assassins — you know, the story Jésus Franco remade 40 times. Filmed in woodsy locations, the  second tale of a sympathetic, drug-induced wolf man transcends its own cheapie-monster genre boundaries. Part one of the review from September 9 is here. On Blu-ray from Arrow Video.
09/25/21

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Vera Cruz 09/25/21

KL Studio Classics
Blu-ray

Hollywood’s most macho liberals pack this action western with cheating, double crosses, rampant greed, uncouth heroes and decadent sneering villains… and that’s not counting the wall-to-wall revolutionary carnage. Toothy Burt Lancaster and philosophical Gary Cooper double-deal with cannon-fodder Juaristas and Cesar Romero’s decadent Frenchman, to steal a fortune in gold. Robert Aldrich’s direction emphasizes wince-inducing violence. The ‘dirty dozen’- like supporting freebooters include Ernest Borgnine, Charles Bronson, Jack Elam and Archie Savage. Francois Truffaut called it ‘the first cynical western;’ it strongly influenced Sergio Leone’s Italo westerns made ten years later. On Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
09/25/21

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Dementia 13 Director’s Cut 09/21/21

Vestron/Lionsgate
Blu-ray

One of the best director debuts of the 1960s is Francis Coppola’s earnest effort to deliver a marketable thriller to producer Roger Corman, a gory, sexy horror show that will get past the censor. The 21-year-old student filmmaker comes through in high style. The spirited tale of axe murders on an Irish estate brings back a time when a talented beginner could hit a $40,000 movie out of the park. It’s been reconstituted to Coppola’s preferred cut after sixty years in Public Domain purgatory, and he provides a new commentary that will please his fans as well as lovers of the horror genre. With a great cast, too: William Campbell, Luana Anders, Bart Patton, Mary Mitchel and Patrick Magee. On Blu-ray from Vestron-Lionsgate.
09/21/21

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The Straight Story 09/21/21

Viavision [Imprint]
All-region Blu-ray

He’s not your typical David Lynch protagonist… Alvin Straight is a well-adjusted old Iowan with the same kinds of regrets that most people have. Taken from a true story, Alvin can’t drive and hasn’t much money, and he undertakes an eccentric Odyssey that in different circumstances might get him committed. But there’s the rub — his ‘impossible’ 5 mph trek across Iowa becomes a voyage of affirmation. Lynch is no cheater: we may expect bloody disaster but he instead gives us a statement about common decency and goodwill from his own Midwestern roots. This one movie will lower your blood pressure by 10 points. With Sissy Spacek, Harry Dean Stanton, James Cada and Barbara Robertson. On Blu-ray from Viavision [Imprint].
09/21/21

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Mona Lisa 09/18/21

The Criterion Collection
Blu-ray

Bucking the trends for ’80s crime films, Neil Jordan’s tale of a low-rung hood attached to Cathy Tyson’s ‘complicated’ call girl becomes a love story about meaningful relationships. Sort of the ‘anti- Travis Bickle,’ Bob Hoskins’ low-class mug discovers emotions and an ability to commit that could even be called Chivalric. Michael Caine chills as an all-too real villain, the boss that doesn’t think Hoskins worthy of a straight answer. Topping it off, cinematographer Roger Pratt makes this possibly the best-looking British crime film in color. With a new interview with director Jordan and star Cathy Tyson. On Blu-ray from The Criterion Collection.
09/18/21

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The Herculoids: The Complete Original Series 09/18/21

The Warner Archive Collection
Blu-ray

Wikipedia tells of the mighty struggle of a family of ‘space barbarians’ that with their fighting monster pets — Zok, Tundro, Igoo, Gloop and Gleep — fight off marauding ‘Faceless People, Destroyer Ants, Raider Apes, Mutoids, Arnoids, Zorbots, Mekkano men and the Ogs.’ Yes, let’s not forget the Ogs. A great show for the Vietnam generation, Hanny Barbera’s disc contains all 18 original episodes from the 1967 series on three discs. Every kid needs his territorial imperative reinforced: “We must defend Planet Quasar!”  On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
09/18/21

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Prince of the City 09/14/21

The Warner Archive Collection
Blu-ray

Sidney Lumet’s harrowing film is a true-life account of a NY narcotics detective- turned goverment informant; its length and intensity can be emotionally overpowering. Treat Williams is the idealistic cop who blows up his whole life and ends up betraying all the people he hoped to protect. He doesn’t seem to understand the ruthless, opportunistic nature of ‘systemic reform’ as he goes from good guy to the object of hate for both crooks and cops, and a target for the very same system that welcomed his help. The WAC made an excellent choice with this one — it’s one of the most deserving, underappreciated films of the early 1980s. On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
09/14/21

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Columbia Noir #4 09/14/21

Powerhouse Indicator
Region B

Powerhouse Indicator moves forward to their fourth fancy box of noirs from the studio of Harry Cohn, six pictures stretching from the postwar boom to the end of the original classic noir era. This time around we have some notable directors, and a nice selection of stars — Dennis O’Keefe, George Murphy, Fred MacMurray, Kim Novak, Jean Simmons, Rory Calhoun and Richard Conte. Kim Novak makes her starring debut as a femme fatale; noir icon Richard Conte shines in a movie that marks a turn into a new kind of existential, paranoid thriller. And speaking of paranoid, we again get to lighten up with another selection of theme-appropriate Three Stooges shorts. The contents:Walk a Crooked Mile, Walk East on Beacon, Pushover, A Bullet is Waiting, Chicago Syndicate, and The Brothers Rico. On Region B Blu-ray from Powerhouse Indicator.
09/14/21

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Cold War Creatures – Four Films From Sam Katzman (Part One) 09/11/21

Arrow Video
Blu-ray

Yes, sometimes a producer could earn ‘auteur’ status making B pictures. A name that’s never going to be uttered in the same breath as Val Lewton is Sam Katzman, who for the 1950s settled into a profitable tenure making Columbia program pictures. They pretty much stayed in the category of ‘obvious junk’ yet include a number of endearing favorites. And Katzman deserved to slip through the pearly gates just for helping get Ray Harryhausen’s feature career into motion. Besides their minimal production outlay, Katzman’s horror/sci fi attractions have one strange thing in common: they don’t carry Columbia torch Lady logos. PART ONE of this review takes on two of the four features in Arrow’s gorgeously appointed boxed set; reviewer Charlie Largent will follow with reviews of the second pair of creature features. On Blu-ray from Arrow Video.
09/11/21

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The Heroes of Telemark 09/11/21

Sony Home Video
Blu-ray

Any WW2 action adventure involving the Norwegian resistance is OK in my book, and this big-star saga about sabotage efforts to stop the Nazis’ atom research is a natural — much of what happens in the story is true. The show can boast marvelous locations and excellent action scenes but the script and characters aren’t very strong. Did Columbia curb epic director Anthony Mann’s greater ambitions, or did star Kirk Douglas interfere to enhance his leading character into a combo scientist, playboy and sure-shot action man?  Also starring Ulla Jacobsson, Richard Harris, Michael Redgrave, and every over-fifty English name actor not nailed down. On Blu-ray from Sony Home Entertainment.
09/11/21

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The Little Rascals Volume 2 09/07/21

ClassicFlix
Blu-ray

The ClassicFlix Restorations hits us with eleven more Hal Roach ‘Our Gang’ short subjects (averaging 25 minutes each), starting with ‘Pups is Pups’ in 1930 and ending with ‘Dogs is Dogs’ in 1931. Every one of these little hoodlums is here, from Jackie Cooper, Allen ‘Farina’ Hoskins, Mary Ann Jackson, to kids given the PC-poison names ‘Wheezer,’ ‘Stymie’ and ‘Chubby.’ Director Robert F. McGowan worked with Charley Chase in preparation for these crazy pictures, and wrangled kids and fought off stage parents for over eighty partly improvised Our Gang/Little Rascals shorts spread over four years. Charlie Largent continues the Our Gang / Rascals story. On Blu-ray from ClassicFlix.
09/07/21

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The Grifters 09/07/21

Paramount Viacom CBS
Blu-ray

Every once in a while a movie makes me think, ‘this one’s too good to review, just tell them to see it and they’ll understand.’ John Cusack is a penny-ante small stakes cheat, his girlfriend Annette Bening hooks on the side while seeking a partner for ‘long cons,’ and his mother is an operative for the Mob, placing large bets at the race track to manipulate the odds on select horses. Each worships the ‘left-handed form of human endeavor’ and depends on it to the degree that human trust just can’t be maintained. Paramount’s plain wrap re-issue touts the film’s four Oscar nominations; the Stephen Frears film is the best adaptation yet of a Jim Thompson crime novel. With great acting contributions from Pat Hingle and J.T. Walsh. On Blu-ray from Paramount Home Entertainment.
09/07/21

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Illustrious Corpses 09/04/21

KL Studio Classics
Blu-ray

Yet another masterpiece from the Italian director Francesco Rosi, adapting a fiction novel about a political murder conspiracy that is altogether too much of a good fit for the troubled Italy of 1975. Crime star Lino Ventura is the incorruptible detective investigating a series of killings of high-level judges, who begins to intuit that his superiors want the murders to continue. Dark and moody, Rosi’s picture is impeccably directed for a kind of nagging, uneasy suspense, with frightening hints that Ventura is being drawn into a bigger, more sinister frame. With Charles Vanel, Max von Sydow and Fernando Rey, and music by Piero Piccioni. The insightful audio commentary is by Alex Cox. The original Italian title is even more blood-curdling: Cadaveri eccellenti. On Blu-rayfrom KL Studio Classics.
09/04/21

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A Life at Stake 09/04/21

The Film Detective
Blu-ray

It’s low-rent Noir A Go-Go: Angela Lansbury is a double-crossing femme fatale in this independent cheapie with modest charms. You can’t trust anyone these days, especially real estate developers with plans to collect YOUR life insurance. Lansbury is the seductive ‘motivator’ with a preference for late-night rendezvous in the high mountains, where everything is a long drop, nudge nudge wink wink. She makes with the hotcha come-ons but rugged Keith Andes is the one who goes around topless for an entire reel. One of the most obscure ’50s films noir, this one gives us a peek at an evocative Hollywood location or two. On Blu-ray from The Film Detective.
09/04/21

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Dune 4K 08/31/21

Arrow Video
4K Ultra HD

Ignored, maligned and hammered out into an ‘Alan Smithee’ extended cut for TV, David Lynch’s outstanding Sci-fi epic arrives on 4K Ultra HD, finally achieving the visual opulence on home video that it had in 70mm prints at the end of 1984. The fractured, de-Lynched storyline can be argued over, but the amazing design and arresting characterizations never fail to impress — Lynch attracted a world-class cast of movie stars and used them well. Even if it’s described as a hundred fragmented scenes from a larger narrative, they’re superlative fragments. Lynch should have been authorized to make an alternate cut, his own completely personal ‘impressionist’ version of the Frank Herbert story. On Blu-ray from Arrow Video.
08/31/21

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Peter Ibbetson 08/31/21

KL Studio Classics
Blu-ray

Surreal delirium in cinema!  Gary Cooper and Ann Harding are a tragic romantic pair, but even when separated by space, time and the law they manage to live a full life together as virtual dream lovers. The odd art film out in Henry Hathaway’s career, this unabashed spiritualist fantasy was adopted by French surrealists as emblematic of their values. It’s beautifully filmed by cameraman Charles Lang, avoiding overdone expressionist effects… reality is a dream, folks, and this star-crossed pair makes dreams real by a simple force of will. Spiritual Nirvana or pretension?   It’s crazy, but it connects with real life as we experience it — with our romantic memories and regrets. On Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
08/31/21

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Hammer Horror Four Gothic Horror Films 08/28/21

Viavision [Imprint] (Region-Free)
Blu-ray

The glossy selection of celebrated horror fun from the Boys at Bray covers a quartet of titles directed by the second generation of Hammer helmers. Peter Sasdy takes the credit for Countess Dracula, with Ingrid Pitt and Nigel Green, and also Hands of the Ripper with Eric Porter and Angharad Rees. John Hough called ‘action’ on Twins of Evil with Peter Cushing and Madeleine & Mary Collinson; and Robert Young was ringmaster for Hammer’s Vampire Circus with Adrienne Corri and Lynne Frederick. Each feature comes with two commentaries, the reviewer is Charlie Largent. On Region-Free Blu-ray from Viavision [Imprint].
08/28/21

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Corruption 08/28/21

Powerhouse Indicator
Region B Blu-ray

Foreseeing a relaxation of censorship on the horizon, England’s Titan Films filmed this mad surgery opus with far more gore and cruelty than was the norm in 1967-68, and their gambit paid off. Horror favorite Peter Cushing stars with Sue Lloyd, a pair nobody expected to show up in a shocker with such a high sleaze quotient. PI’s special edition gives us three versions of the show including the continental cut with Cushing’s most lurid scene ever, and heaps of comment and analysis. With David Lodge, Noel Trevarthen, Anthony Booth and Kate O’Mara. On Region B Blu-ray from Powerhouse Indicator.
08/28/21

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Union Pacific 08/24/21

KL Studio Classics
Blu-ray

Cecil B. DeMille delivers a satisfying western epic starring Barbara Stanwyck, Joel McCrea, Robert Preston, Brian Donlevy & Akim Tamiroff; the story of the building of a railroad is historically bogus but highly entertaining and action-filled. Joel McCrea is our favorite ethical frontier lawman; here he’s a troubleshooter keeping crooks, Indians and proto-Bolsheviks from delaying construction. The huge cast includes Fuzzy Knight, Lon Chaney Jr., Don Beddoe, Monte Blue, Ward Bond, Iron Eyes Cody, Richard Denning, Will Geer, Noble Johnson, Elmo Lincoln, Nestor Paiva, Jack Pennick and Joe Sawyer — although the screen is so busy some of them will be hard to spot. On Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
08/24/21

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Rancho Deluxe 08/21/21

Fun City Editions
Blu-ray

Another unexpected comic treasure from the mid ’70s!  Jeff Bridges and Sam Waterston make an irresistible pair of would-be outlaws in a tale set in modern high-country Montana, where a gentleman rancher from New Jersey owns all the land and making an honest living is just too boring. Thomas McGuane’s hilariously laid-back dialogue pits our slacker cattle rustlers against society, but only in the pursuit of having a good time. Frank Perry’s beautifully directed show gives choice roles to a fistful of actors: Clifton James, Elizabeth Ashley, Harry Dean Stanton, Slim Pickens, Charlene Dallas, Richard Bright, Joe Spinell, Patti D’Arbanville. Call it ‘literate’ country comedy, with musical accompaniment by Jimmy Buffett. The extras include a great new interview with star Jeff Bridges. On Blu-ray from Fun City Editions.
08/21/21

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The Blind Beast (Moju) 08/21/21

Arrow Video
Blu-ray

Yasuzo Masumura takes horror into kinky territory in an Edogawa Rampo shocker about obsession, namely, mixing sex and death. Michio is the tactile-fixated blind sculptor who imprisons model Aki to serve as an ultimate objectified ‘body’ — but she eventually joins him, taking the lead on a delirious suicidal journey of discovery. Probably once considered pornographic, the 1969 show is fairly tame by today’s NC-17 standards, and not as radically violent or abhorrent as one might expect — but it’s still loaded with weird, Dangerous Ideas. The sets are not to be believed — the unhinged artist lives in a surreal workspace surrounded by hundreds of oversized sculptures of body parts. Arrow’s revival Blu-ray optimizes the nightmarish visuals and provides expert comment. On Blu-ray from Arrow Video.
08/21/21

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Silver Screams Cinema 08/17/21

Viavision [Imprint] (Region-Free)
Blu-ray

Fans of Republic horror take note of ths boxed collection of 6 — count ’em Six — horror and sci-fi curiosities from the ’40s and ’50s, aimed straight at covetous fantasy film addicts. Wacky scripts, strange characterizations and poverty row production values are on view, but the fine transfers reveal professional cinematography and occasional impressive direction. The films are definitely of their time — the censor-inhibited 1940s pictures rely on spooky situations because they can’t show blood or too much violence. And a pair of low-end B&W ‘scope thrillers from the ‘fifties drive-in era do more with less, cutting corners in interesting ways. Viavision anoints the shows with expert commentaries and a couple of real surprises: an entire extra feature and a rare 1950s TV show. The horror Beat goes On: Return of the Ape Man, The Phantom Speaks, The Vampire’s Ghost, Valley of the Zombies, She Devil and The Unknown Terror… and a special SD encoding of Erich von Stroheim in The Lady and the Monster On Blu-ray from Viavision [Imprint].
08/17/21

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Encounter of the Spooky Kind 08/17/21

Eureka Entertainment
Region B Blu-ray

Guest reviewer Lee Broughton returns with an assessment of Sammo Hung’s groundbreaking Hong Kong hit: comedy, horror and martial arts elements are brought together in a wholly successful way. This show has it all: kung fu action, duelling mystics, hopping vampires, hungry zombies, haunted mirrors and a sympathetic everyman whose danger-fraught narrative trajectory is littered with moments that are genuinely funny. Sammo Hung is a sensational Hong Kong action personality; excellent production values grace what shapes up as a near- perfect picture. On Region B Blu-ray from Eureka Entertainment.
08/17/21

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The Daimajin Trilogy 08/14/21

Arrow Video
Blu-ray

This new 3-disc Limited Edition is a real labor of love for Daiei’s trio of 1966 costume thrillers with a unique star: a ‘Shogun-Golem’ 25 feet tall, with an attitude meaner than a mythological demon. Revenge, righting wrongs, and mostly striking back against evil are Daimajin’s prime directives; Daiei’s production surrounds this bruiser with terrific art direction and special effects: “You will believe a giant statue can impale a man on a ten-foot pike.” The two sequels are so similar — they basically tell the exact same story with a few changes — that they’re almost variations on a theme. Reviewer Charlie Largent sics his gaijin praises on this lavishly appointed release. On Blu-ray from Arrow Video.
08/14/21

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Ashes and Diamonds 08/14/21

The Criterion Collection
Blu-ray

Andrzej Wajda’s most celebrated film in the West is a serious thriller about postwar doubt and corruption in a Poland ‘liberated’ by the Soviet Union. It has a cerebral script and a hero with a hipster attitude befitting a window of relative freedom briefly given to Polish filmmakers. Touted as the James Dean of the Eastern Bloc, the dashing Zbigniew Cybulski cuts an image as clean as J.F.K.. But his character, an assassin working for the reactionaries, undergoes a crisis of conscience. The miracle is that the Party censors allowed any doubt as to what our hero’s path should be. Given a stylized, almost expressionist B&W look, Wajda’s masterpiece is an intelligent thinkpiece that lays off the direct propagandizing. The new disc has significant new extras. On Blu-ray from The Criterion Collection.
08/14/21

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The Last Man on Earth 08/10/21

KL Studio Classics
Blu-ray

Charlie Largent  honors Vincent Price’s chilling A.I.P.-Italo production, the best version so far of Richard Matheson’s I Am Legend. The world has succumbed to a vampire plague, and only Price remains, barricaded in his house and going out by day to stake the undead and burn their bodies. Great cinematography by Franco Delli Colli almost obscures the Rome locations standing in for Middle America, and the atmosphere is quite good. The special edition features a Richard Harland Smith commentary (he knows the undead by their first names) and an interesting alternate ending.  “MORGAN… COME OUT!”  On Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.

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F.P. 1 Doesn’t Answer 08/07/21

Kino Classics
Blu-ray

“Es ist eine schwimmende Plattform!”  Here’s something for committed Sci-fi followers, a lavish German production with big drama, big emotions, and impressive, ambitious special effects. Hans Albers makes sure his pal Paul Hartmann’s artificial mid-Atlantic airport becomes reality, only to lose his new girlfriend Sybille Schmitz to him. The Murnau Foundation’s superb restoration makes the giant Flugplatform seem real. UfA produced the show in three languages with three different casts; Kino’s handsome disc gives us excellent renderings of two of them. Plus glorious German songs about the joy of flying!  On Blu-ray from Kino Classics.
08/07/21

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The Raven + The Comedy of Terrors 08/03/21

KL Studio Classics
Blu-ray

Separate Releases.  Kino continues its round-up of Vincent Price / American-International hits with two outright comedies in the Poe series. Karloff, Price, Lorre and Jack Nicholson (?) team up for a spoof about dueling wizards in a decidedly liberal interpretation of Poe’s poem The Raven. Then Jacques Tourneur tries his hand at graveyard laughs in the broad farce The Comedy of Terrors. Price, Lorre, and Rathbone rattle the coffin handles while Karloff and Joe E. Brown clown about in the margins; Hazel Court and Joyce Jameson simmer on the sidelines. Reviewer Charlie Largent looks for the laughs — but will his essay be a autopsy for comedy?  On Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
08/03/21

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Counterblast 08/03/21

Savant Revival Screening Review
Not on Home Video

A review for a movie not on video disc. CineSavant bears down hard on a now-obscure UK thriller that proves a crossroads for several key themes of modern terror: Nazis, bacteriological warfare and paranoid conspiracies. ‘007’– associated writer Jack Whittingham scripted a tale that connects old-school espionage to visionary super-crimes against humanity, the thriller genre of ‘The Unthinkable.’  Who’s the threat?  An innocuous little doctor with a horrendous secret background and a somewhat preposterous ability to go undetected as he kills to assume and protect a new identity. The techno-chiller was released in 1948 yet seems screamingly relevant now. The cast includes stars from Dead of Night, 2001: A Space Odyssey, The Man Who Knew Too Much, Things to Come and Pygmalion.
08/03/21

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Line of Demarcation 07/31/21

KL Studio Classics
Blu-ray

Claude Chabrol’s ‘minor’ wartime drama is one of the best movies of its kind I’ve seen. A French town under German rule lies on a river straddling occupied and Vichy territories, and becomes a hotbed of intrigues. Yes, there’s resistance activity, but we also see that most people avoid involvement — and some find ways to profit from the desperation of refugees fleeing the Nazis. It’s a case of small town, everyday terror. The stellar cast is subordinated to the powerful, non-exploitative drama: Jean Seberg, Maurice Ronet, Daniel Gélin, Jacques Perrin & Stéphane Audran. Samm Deighan’s informative commentary is a big +Plus. On Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
07/31/21

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Objective, Burma! 07/31/21

The Warner Archive Collection
Blu-ray

Errol Flynn goes to war!  One of the last major direct-combat pictures to come out of Hollywood during the war, Raoul Walsh’s ode to the jungle fighters in Burma is a finely-crafted show that lets loose a powerful, almost frightening blast of anti-Japanese rage. Errol Flynn earned his pay slugging it out through the swamps, George Tobias provides the Brooklyn humor and Henry Hull the outrage over combat atrocities. And the English were none too happy either, claiming that the movie made it look as if America had done the heavy fighting in what was largely a Brit field of battle. With Mark Stevens, Richard Erdman, Anthony Caruso & Warner Anderson. On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
07/31/21

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Thunderbolt 07/27/21

KL Studio Classics
Blu-ray

This ‘dawn of sound’ classic from Josef Sternberg is an important early entry in the gangster genre, a romanticized tale of urban crime with little violence but a full measure of romantic revenge. Star George Bancroft is the title underworld kingpin, who risks everything to hold his girlfriend Fay Wray the way he holds onto power — with his fists and with his gun. The highly sentimental story has some odd ideas about prison rules on Death Row; although packed with ‘Sternbergian’ touches the visuals aren’t as overtly poetic as is his norm. It’s an interesting study from the first year of ‘all talkie’ pictures: the audio is highly creative but the dialogue delivery is slow — perfect for anyone learning English! On Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
07/27/21

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Step by Step 07/27/21

The Warner Archive Collection
Blu-ray

More or less ignored for 75 years, this curious ‘B’ program picture now finds its way directly to a Warner Archive Blu-ray release. Cult actor Lawrence Tierney has an atypical ‘swell guy’ role as a Marine veteran thrust into a murder mystery and made the fall guy for nefarious foreign spies. Anne Jeffreys becomes his co-fugitive when the villains frame him for murder. It’s like a fancy 1960s romantic thriller, except the scale is so small. Just the same, Phil Rosen’s movie crams a lot of incident into its brisk 62 minutes. Consider it a gift to Lawrence Tierney fans — they might like him in a role that Cary Grant could play. On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
07/27/21

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Master of the World 07/24/21

KL Studio Classics
Blu-ray

One of Jules Verne’s most fantastic sci-fi fantasies got the big screen treatment from American-International, which hopped on the Verne bandwagon that raked in big $$ for Disney and others. A production challenge given a minimum of resources, the colorful show is still admired for the performance of Vincent Price as Robur the Conqueror, a mad terrorist. Charles Bronson also gets high marks as the proto- G-Man dispatched to put an end to Robur’s Albatross, an aerial ‘weapon of mass destruction.’ We also fell in love with art director Daniel Haller’s magnificent design for the airship — even if the special visual effects no longer seem as special as they should be. Also with Henry Hull, Mary Webster, David Frankham, Vito Scotti, Wally Campo, and Richard Harrison. On Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
07/24/21

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The Bird with the Crystal Plumage 4K 07/24/21

Arrow Video
4K Ultra HD + Blu Ray

The newest addition to the stable of horror and sci-fi on Ultra HD is Dario Argento’s debut feature, the game-changer that launched the full-blown giallo thriller. Argento takes a few twists from the Hitchcock playbook but otherwise shapes his whodunnit with a new, slick style of his own. Cinematography by Vittorio Storaro and design by Dario Micheli emphasize visual texture and tactility — we contemplate soft skin, slippery plastic and sharp straight razors. The horrors embrace architecture and high fashion, exchanging visual fetishes for psychological depth. And don’t forget a typically eccentric Ennio Morricone music score. As always, Arrow includes a full menu of extra delights. Starring Tony Musante, Suzy Kendall, Enrico Maria Salerno, Eva Renzi and Mario Adorf. On 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray from Arrow Video.
07/24/21

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La piscine 07/20/21

The Criterion Collection
Blu-ray

It’s French!  It’s hot!  Jacques Deray’s most unusual film is an intimate, minimalist murder story that digs deep into the affairs of four very superficial people. Among the wealthy set are four pleasure seekers with a laissez faire take on relationships, that think they’re above basic drives — jealousy, possessiveness, resentment. The movie also makes book on the fame & notoriety of the off-on show biz couple Romy Schneider and Alain Delon — the film’s opening seems to celebrate their bigger-than-life glamour and beauty. A notable extra is a 2019 documentary with Delon and his co-star Jane Birkin, plus the film’s famous writers. On Blu-ray from The Criterion Collection.
07/20/21

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