BY FRED BLOSSER

Mill Creek Entertainment has released a double-bill of “Fort Yuma Gold” (1966) and “Damned Hot Day of Fire” (1968) in a Blu-ray + Digital edition. Mill Creek notes that the films are two of Quentin Tarantino’s favorite Spaghetti Westerns -- a shrewd strategy to attract fans who may be interested in sampling the same, often hard-to-find genre movies that Tarantino devoured in his formative years. Both pictures are above-average Italian Westerns.

In “Fort Yuma Gold,” directed by veteran Italian filmmaker Giorgio Ferroni as “Calvin J. Padget,” outlaw chief Nelson Riggs schemes with renegade Confederate Major Sanders to steal a million dollars in gold from Fort Yuma, a Union outpost, in the last days of the Civil War. While Sanders orders his troops to make a diversionary, suicidal attack on the fort, he and Riggs will sneak into the post through an abandoned mine and grab the loot. When a Union commander some days’ ride away learns about the plot, he dispatches two of his soldiers, Captain Lefevre and Sergeant Pitt, to warn the fort, guided by Lt. Gary Hammond, a Confederate prisoner of war. As a native Westerner, Hammond knows the safest route to Fort Yuma. The two Northerners don’t. Secretly, Hammond hopes to elude the two Yankees en route, locate Sanders‘ detachment, and avert disaster by warning his friend Lt. Brian, one of Sanders’ adjutants, about the Major’s treachery.

The movie’s traditional plot is reminiscent of Hollywood’s Civil War Westerns like “Escape from Fort Bravo” and “Alvarez Kelly,” reflecting the strategy generally used by Italian studios in the early days of the Spaghettis to make their films look as much like American productions as possible. The actors billed as “Montgomery Wood” (Hammond), “Red Carter” (Sgt. Pitt), and “Benny Reeves” (Juke, Riggs‘ henchman) were actually Italians Giuliano Gemma, Nello Pazzafini, and Benito Stefanelli. Gemma also used the “Montgomery Wood” alias in three other Italian Westerns, and his resemblance to American leading man and future best-selling novelist Tom Tryon may have helped further the impression that “Fort Yuma Gold” was an import from America. The deception probably worked as long as ticket-buyers failed to recognize Ferroni, Gemma, Pazzafini, Stefanelli, Dan Vadis (Riggs), Jacques Sernas (Sanders), and Antonio Molino Rojo (Brian) as homegrown veterans of the Italian sword-and-toga epics of the late 1950s and early 1960s. When the popularity of the toga spectacles waned with the rise of the Italian Westerns, many writers, directors, and actors transitioned easily from one genre to the next. The hammy, WWE-style melees between gladiators and centurions in the Hercules and Samson movies became the saloon brawls of the Spaghettis, with athletic actors like Gemma, Pazzafini, and Stefanelli doing their own stunts. By 1966, in turn, public tastes in the Italian Westerns had begun to favor the cynical, down-and-dirty violence of Sergio Leone’s massively successful Spaghettis over the American model. In Italy, “Fort Yuma Gold” opened as “Per pochi dollari ancora” or “For a Few Extra Dollars.” The moviemakers were clearly hoping to ride the recent smash success of “For a Few Dollars More,” even if Ferroni/Padget’s style bears little likeness to Leone’s. If you don’t expect a polished American picture on one hand or a nihilistic Leone clone on the other, you might enjoy “Fort Yuma Gold” on its own terms as a mostly fast-paced, sincere B-Western.

BY LEE PFEIFFER

Just in case you thought the good folks at Vinegar Syndrome only release version of vintage porn flicks, it may come as news that they are also providing another valuable social service: remastering long-forgotten grind house "classics".  Case in point: "The Muthers", a 1976 gem that plays out like the ultimate Tarantino fantasy. It's a combination of several genres: Women in Prison ("W.I.P", for the initiated), chop socky, sexploitation and blaxploitation. It doesn't get any better than this if you were weaned on this glorious type of sleaze that played routinely on 42nd Street. Directed by cult "B" movie favorite Cirio Santiago, "The Muthers" is yet another low-budget flick from the era that was filmed in the Philippines. The movie opens with a memorable introduction to the titular characters. They are Kelly (Jeannie Bell) and her equally sexy sidekick Anggie (Rosanne Katon, Playboy's Miss September in 1978), who are female pirates with an all-male crew ("You go, girls!"). We see them aboard their high speed, armed vessel as they raid a tourist boat and grab the booty. (Since these are good pirates, no one gets hurt). We know the pirates go by the name of The Muthers because their vessel is adorned with a big sign that reads "The Muthers", in what must have been the first case of branding for high seas pirates. When they return to their Hole-in-the-Wall-like village, they are informed that Kelly's teenage sister has gone missing. They start trawling the waterfront bars and learn that she has been abducted by a human trafficking ring. Working with a government agent who wants to bring down the head of the ring, a notorious crime kingpin named Monteiro (Tony Carreon), Kelly and Anggie volunteer to be captured. They are brought to Monteiro's jungle prison camp, which is guarded by a virtual army of heavily-armed thugs. Here they find dozens of young women being kept in brutal conditions. They are forced to perform manual labor and are simultaneously being groomed for sale to a procurer of girls for international brothels. Kelly manages to get a fleeting glimpse of her sister before she learns the younger girl has made a desperate attempt to escape into the jungle- a strategy which goes tragically awry. 

While in the camp, Kelly and Anggie meet Marcie (Trina Parks), another beauty who is regarded as a long-time veteran prisoner who knows all the ropes. Marcie introduces them to Serena (Jayne Kennedy), who is the privileged mistress of Monteiro (who also sleeps with his male guards). Anggie resents Serena for selling out in return for her soft lifestyle at the camp and derisively refers to her as a "house nigger". But Marcie informs her that Serena often provides what human compassion she can towards the prisoners. Ultimately, Kelly, Angie and Marcie enlist Serena in an audacious plan for them all to escape. They do so but Monteiro and his goons are in hot pursuit. As the women hide in the jungle, they face death from the elements, starvation and dangerous critters. In the film's best scenario, Marcie is bitten in the chest by a deadly snake. As Serena sucks the blood out, Marcie gets the movie's best line of dialogue: "Just like every other snake I've met-- won't leave my tits alone!" Although Parks, Kennedy and Katon frustrate male viewers  keeping their clothes mostly intact, Bell delivers the goods with two (not one, but two!) gratuitous topless bathlng sequences. She also saunters around the tropical location clad in a long-sleeve turtleneck shirt, the absurdity of which is overshadowed by the fact that she is conspicuously bra-less. The film climaxes with double crosses, a big shootout between the "good" pirates and Monteiro's forces, with machine gun slinging chicks also going hand-to-hand with the villains. (Yes, everybody is kung-fu fighting.) At one point in the movie, Bell gets to swing vine-to-vine a la Tarzan. As low grade action films go, it doesn't get much lower or better than this- and it's all set to a typically funky '70s disco score. 

Jeannie Bell displays why the questionable choice of wearing a long-sleeve turtleneck in the tropics has its good points.

The Vinegar Syndrome release has undergone a 2k restoration from the original 35mm negative, making it yet another one of their titles that probably looks infinitely better today than it did upon its initial release. An appropriately cheesy trailer is also included that doesn't even credit the actresses, though perhaps they consider that to be a positive.

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BY JOHN M. WHALEN

Back in 1978, Burt Reynolds was still at the beginning of a cycle of six action comedies that he made with director Hal Needham—a cycle that started with “Smokey and the Bandit “(1977) and ended with “Cannonball Run II” (1984).  One of the best of these films was “Hooper”—a tribute to Hollywood’s unsung hero, the Hollywood stunt man. “Hooper” was a very personal film for both Reynolds and Needham who both started their movie careers as stunt doubles. Needham started doing stunt work in the early years of live TV in New York and is best remembered for his stunt driving in Steve McQueen’s “Bullitt” (1968). Reynolds also began in TV and parlayed his athletic ability along with his good looks to become one of tinseltown’s biggest stars. In a very real way, “Hooper” is even more personal film for Reynolds, because one of the characters in the film is based on a legendary, real-life stunt man/movie star, whom Reynolds knew personally and in fact idolized.

“Hooper” begins with opening credits superimposed over Sonny Hooper (Reynolds) putting on braces, ace bandages, and padding over a body bearing multiple scars. “March of the Toreadors” plays on the soundtrack as he dons a motorcycle outfit and strides out into the sunlight to perform a dangerous stunt, skidding a motorcycle under a moving truck. He’s working on a spy movie starring Adam West who appears in the film as himself. That stunt completed, next day he takes a high fall off a roof with a dog. “Make me look good,” West tells him. But it’s after that fall we discover Sonny’s got a bad back. He gets his friend Cully (James Best) to walk him to his trailer, where he gives him a shot of Xylocaine. “You know what I’d do if I ever met the guy who invented Xylocaine?” Sonny asks. “I’d get on my knees and kiss his ass.”

In the meantime, a new younger stuntman said to be the next Sonny Hooper, arrives on the scene. Ski (Jan Michael Vincent) meets Sonny during filming of a chariot race scene. Although he sees Ski as a threat, Sonny can’t help liking the young up-and-comer. For one thing, the kid is damn good at what he does. Maybe too good. As the story progresses, Sonny realizes the new generation of stunt players coming up are smarter and tougher, if not better than he and his contemporaries were. “They don’t take pills,” he tells Cully, “they don’t drink, they don’t take shots, and they carry little pocket calculators. We don’t watch out, they’re gonna blow us right out of the tub.”

The story follows a simple straight line, the old timer trying to keep up with the younger rival even if it costs him his life. His doctor tells Hooper that his vertebrae are torn almost beyond repair. One heavy impact or fall could paralyze him for life. Naturally the film leads to a climax that calls for Hooper and Ski to perform the greatest stunt ever filmed—one that involves jumping a rocket car 325 feet over a collapsed bridge.

In addition to the main plot line there is a subplot that in a way is even more interesting than the rest of the movie, once you know the inside story. Hooper has a sweetheart, a gal named Gwen, played, of course by Sally Field, Reynolds’ main squeeze at the time. Gwen has a father, Jocko Doyle (Brian Keith) who was once known as the greatest stunt man alive. It’s no coincidence that in real life Sally Field’s stepfather was none other than Jock Mahoney one of the greatest stuntmen who ever lived. Keith first appears on horseback wearing a fringed buckskin jack, the kind that was Mahoney’s trade mark when he played the Range Rider, a Gene-Autry produced TV series that aired in the 1950s. Mahoney, who was known in the trade and by his friends as “Jocko,” had been a stunt double for Charles Starrett in the Durango Kid features. He played Yancy Derringer on a CBS series and went on to play Tarzan in two features that were filmed in Asia. Unfortunately, he contracted dysentery and dengue fever while on location in Thailand and his general health took a heavy hit. During the filming of an episode of the Kung Fu TV series in the seventies Mahoney suffered a stroke and was confined to a wheel chair for some time.

I mention all this because near the end of Act Two of “Hooper,” Jocko Doyle also suffers a stroke, mirroring the same fate suffered by Mahoney. In Gene Freese’s biography, Jock Mahoney, The Life and Films of a Hollywood Stuntman, the author tells us that both Reynold and Needham were Jocko fans, and of course he was Sally Field’s stepdad. Freese says the part of Gwen’s father was “based on Jock Mahoney himself.” Both the star and the director wanted Mahoney to play the part, but the studio didn’t want him. Some fans, who knew the Mahoney/Doyle connection thought that perhaps he wasn’t physically able to play the part. But that wasn’t it. He was fit enough, Freese writes, but the studio wanted a bigger name. However, Mahoney was on hand during filming in an advisory capacity and provided some of the “Mahoneyisms” that the actors used in their dialog.

“Hooper” is one of those special movies that really deserved to be released on Blu-Ray. For one thing it’s the kind of movie that they don’t make any more, and probably never will again. As Hooper said, the boys with the calculators and computers have taken over. A lot of stunt work has been replaced by CGI. “Hooper “is light hearted and fun to watch because everyone in it seems to be enjoying themselves. Reynolds does his usual mugging and winking into the camera, and there was real chemistry between he and Field back then. But more importantly, “Hooper” pays homage to the men and women who made the stars look good, as Adam West said. And it shows the price these legendary people paid, in terms of broken bones, chronic pain, in some cases permanent injury and even death. Yet despite the odds of surviving a career like that intact, the film conveys a sense of good humor mixed with bravado that’s hard to find in movies these days. It’s no Range Rider, but it’s a damn good movie.

Warners Home Video released “Hooper” in 1.85:1 aspect ratio. The picture is excellent. The soundtrack contains the usual country western tunes, but is in mono with too much shrill high end and not enough bass. The only extra is a standard format trailer. This is another case where an iconic film significant at least of the time period in which it was released, is presented with no commentary or documentary features. I would really have enjoyed hearing Reynolds or Field talk about it.

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(John M. Whalen's latest book is "The Big Shutdown". Click here to view promotional trailer. Click here to order from Amazon.) 

BY LEE PFEIFFER

Marcello Mastroianni has a terrific role in the little-remembered 1968 comedy caper film "Diamonds for Breakfast" which doesn't appear to have enjoyed an American theatrical release. (In the U.K., it opened on as the bottom half of a double bill with a spaghetti western.) Mastroianni excelled at playing lovable rogues and here he is in his element as Grand Duke Nicholas Wladimirovitch, a descendant of the ill-fated Romanov family that was notoriously executed in the aftermath of the 1917 Russian Revolution. Nicky has the requisite swagger of someone descended from Russia's last czar but he has fallen on hard times. His charm, charisma and good looks ensure a bevy of willing women (especially in the new era of sexual liberation) but his finances are dwindling. While in London he discovers that the Soviet Union has agreed stage a museum display of the Romanov family jewels that were seized as property of the state after the czar was overthrown. Nicky decides that he must honor his family's legacy by stealing them back, although his motives seem to based less on principal than on securing his own financial situation. He concocts an audacious scheme to enlist a wacky artist, Bridget Rafferty (Rita Tushingham) and a team of gorgeous young women as his partners in crime. The first order of business is to convince Popov (Warren Mitchell), the high-strung Soviet representative who has duty of ensuring the safety of the jewels, to allow them to be utilized in a charitable event at a manor house (actually Blenheim Palace) where they will be modeled by Nicky's team of allies. Popov initially resists but ultimately is charmed by the pleas of the young women to relent. From there the film chronicles the elaborate enactment of the crime that involves too many elements and deceptions to analyze in detail. Suffice it to say that one of the most clever elements involves carrier pigeons to secure the heisted goods are brought to a designated location.

The film is directed at breakneck speed by Christopher Morahan and in that respect, it mirrors the type of production that had emerged in movies depicting the on-going "mod" crazy that was sweeping England in the late 1960s. Morahan is also not subtle in his handling of the humor, occasionally crossing over into slapstick with a Keystone Cops-inspired chase. The screenwriters also fall short. Although the actual caper scenes, which comprise the bulk of the film, are often clever, they are also somewhat ludicrous with the crooks relying on unpredictable instances of happenstance and good luck in order to achieve their goal. The man asset of the production is Mastroianni, who once again plays a handsome ladies man who also possesses all-to-human failings. He literally slips on a banana peel and makes other bumbling mistakes even though he's quite competent at finding gorgeous bed mates. Rita Tushingham is unfortunately relegated to a minor role once the other women become more prominent in the story. (Among them: Margaret Blye, Elaine Taylor and Francesca Tu.) Leonard Rossiter is amusing as a police inspector who is beguiled by the seductive models and Warren Mitchell is encouraged to chew the scenery as the angst-filled Soviet who knows his life probably depends upon getting back the stolen diamonds.  The whole affair ends up with an ironic ending, as many of these comedic caper films do.

"Diamonds for Breakfast" is a mildly amusing farce with some good production values and some wonderful memories of the mod era with those sexy fashions and models who have the code number "007" written on their thighs. Mastroianni and some lush scenery provide the primary reasons for giving it a chance. The Kino Lorber transfer looks very good indeed and there is a generous trailer gallery of other Mastroianni and Tushingham films, though surprisingly, "Diamonds for Breakfast"'s trailer is not included.

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

Burt Lancaster fans can rejoice that his 1974 thriller "The Midnight Man" finally gets a home video release in America with Kino Lorber's Blu-ray release. Even better news is that this is a special edition with an informative commentary track. Lancaster co-wrote and co-directed (both with Roland Kibbee) the murder mystery that plays out like a TV movie-of-the-week from the era. That isn't meant as a knock, given how good so many of the TV crime productions were in the 1970s. The film is based on David Anthony's novel "The Midnight Lady and the Mourning Man" and, refreshingly, it has an offbeat quality about it due to its location filming in and around Clemson University in South Carolina, which was very much a sleepier locale than it is today. Lancaster is cast as Jim Slade, a once respected Chicago police officer who flew off the handle and shot his wife's lover (though it isn't clear if he killed him.) He's spent a lot of time in stir and when we first see him, he is arriving in a small southern town by bus to pick up the pieces of his life. He's broke with few prospects except a job offered to him by his old friend and police colleague Quartz (Cameron Mitchell), who is now retired from the police force and heading a security company that looks after the local university. Slade will be working in the seemingly boring job of night watchman on the midnight shift at the school, where crime isn't a major problem. However, his timing is right in terms of alleviating boredom. No sooner does Slade start the job than a psychiatric counselor for troubled students informs him that his office had been broken into and the only thing missing were several audio tapes in which students confessed the most troubling aspects of their lives. The highly confidential tapes had not been listened to but it becomes clear that one student in particular, Natalie (Catherine Bach) is particularly troubled. Slade befriends her and discovers she's an emotional wreck about the missing tape but she won't tell him what was so sensitive about the recording. When Natalie ends up dead in her dorm room, the local police captain, Casey (Harris Yulin) takes over the case and immediately arrests a local Peeping Tom who had an interest in the victim. Slade, however, voices his skepticism and starts his own ad-hoc investigation. Along the way he ends up romancing his parole officer, Linda Thorpe (Susan Clark), who has a big city mentality when it comes to sexual permissiveness.

"The Midnight Man" is a complex thriller with plenty of requisite false leads and red herrings. It's leisurely-paced and that's a good thing in the current era of shoot 'em up crime movies and TV series. There are some exciting action scenes in the film but it's primarily about following clues, which Slade doggedly does despite being targeted for murder and not being able to trust anyone, including Captain Casey, with whom he is in constant conflict. Lancaster provides one of his most low-key performances. Some critics said he was sleepwalking through the part but this isn't so. He's an ex-con with a lot to lose so it's appropriate that he would maintain a quiet, polite demeanor. Lancaster never gave a bad performance in his career and he's particularly good here. The film has a marvelous supporting cast and directors Lancaster and Kibbee use them well. It's great to see Lancaster teamed again with the ever-underrated Susan Clark after the two starred in "Valdez is Coming" a few years before. Clark has an important role here and she's excellent. So, too, is Cameron Mitchell as the only true friend Slade seems to have in an increasingly hostile and dangerous town. It's also good to see Robert Quarry in small, non-horror film (he's very good.) Lancaster's son Bill also has a supporting role and acquits himself well. The finale unloads an abundance of complex explanations in a voice-over by Lancaster as the mystery is solved. Your mind might end up reeling but if you stop and think about it all, the clues were provided throughout the film.

The Kino Lorber release has a typically fine transfer and the audio commentary by film historians Howard S. Berger and Nathaniel Thompson is highly engaging and their subdued manner fits with the mood of the film itself. They genuinely like the movie and provide an abundance of interesting facts and insights. There is a also a trailer gallery for other Lancaster films available through Kino Lorber. Highly recommended.

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

For decades Bob Hope was one of Hollywood's most bankable stars. In the 1940s and 1950s, his films were regarded as sure-fire moneymakers. Studios loved Hope productions. They were generally filmed on modest budgets and returned major profits. By the late 1960s, Hope was still very much in-demand on American television. His TV specials for NBC always topped the ratings and Hope was a ubiquitous presence on TV chat shows. He even had a semi-permanent gig as the most beloved of all hosts for the annual Oscars broadcast. However, his status in the motion picture industry had diminished substantially. Hope's style of old-fashioned family films was becoming outdated in an era that saw new freedoms in on-screen sex and violence. When biker movies were depicting gang bangs and Bob and Carol were under the same sheets with Ted and Alice, Hope's sitcom-like comedies seemed as though they were from distant past. One of his more promising feature films was the 1969 production, "How to Commit Marriage", one of many sex-oriented comedies that were all the rage in the mid-to-late 1960s. (i.e. "The Secret Life of an American Wife", Divorce American Style", "A Guide for the Married Man", "The Tiger Makes Out", "How to Save a Marriage (and Ruin Your Life)", "Marriage on the Rocks".) In an attempt to remain relevant to modern audiences, this was the most adult-themed of Hope's big screen comedies.

Hope plays Frank Benson, a wealthy L.A. real estate agent who seems to have an idyllic life with his wife of many years, Elaine (Jane Wyman). However, their relationship is fracturing and the two spend most of their time together griping about the other and trading cruel insults. They agree to get a divorce and file the necessary paperwork. However, before they can be officially divorced, they receive a surprise visit from their teenage daughter Nancy (JoAnna Cameron), who returns from college with her new boyfriend David (Tim Matheson). He's a clean-cut type who is studying classical music and Nancy announces they intend to marry, largely because she has been so inspired by her parent's loving relationship. Frank and Elaine don't want Nancy to become disillusioned and decide to withhold the news about their pending divorce until after Nancy and David marry. However, there is a complication: David is the estranged son of Oliver Poe (Jackie Gleason), a rich promoter of rock 'n roll bands who resents Frank for selling him a Malibu mansion that was in a mudslide zone, thus resulting in Oliver losing his entire investment. He's an obnoxious boor and braggart with a sexy mistress (Tina Louise) and when he discovers the Bensons are secretly planning to divorce, he cruelly informs Nancy and David. Heartbroken and disillusioned, the young couple decides to eschew marriage and simply live together (still a shocking concept for a "nice" girl in 1969). Making matter worse, Oliver convinces the couple to quit college and join his latest band, The Comfortable Armchair, which is becoming all the rage. Distraught by the developments, Frank and Elaine begin to live in separate houses. Frank takes up with Lois Gray (Maureen Arthur), a voluptuous widow while Elaine begins dating Phil Fletcher (Leslie Nielsen), a suave rival of Frank's in the real estate trade. When both couples accidentally end up sitting beside each other at a Comfortable Armchair nightclub concert, they notice that Nancy is very obviously pregnant. They also discover that she and David have become disciples of a con-man posing as a guru named The Baba Ziba (Professor Irwin Corey). Oliver has bribed Baba Ziba to convince Nancy and David that it is in their spiritual interests to put their baby up for adoption. In reality, Oliver is motivated by his desire that the couple stay with the successful rock band and not become traditional parents.

BY FRED BLOSSER

“The Adventures of Hajji Baba,” a 1954 Walter Wanger production for Allied Artists Pictures and 20th Century Fox, has been issued by Twilight Time in a Blu-ray limited edition of 3,000 units. At the time of its theatrical release, the film was a commercially successful entry in the popular 1950s formula of swashbuckling romances about the legendary Middle East of Sinbad, Ali Baba, and the Arabian Nights. In today’s post-9/11 world, when the American public is more aware of the region’s grim reality, the Arabian Nights genre survives, just barely, in rare efforts like “Disney’s Aladdin” and the “Prince of Persia” video-game franchise.

In the 1954 movie, Hajji Baba (John Derek), a young Persian barber, sets out to make his fortune in the wider world. Meanwhile, across town in the Caliph’s palace, spoiled Princess Fawzia (Elaine Stewart) wants to marry an ambitious neighboring prince, Nur-el-Din (Paul Picerni). Her father objects, having heard about Nur-el-Din’s cruel temper. “Think of all the wives he’s had, and how he’s treated them,” he warns. “No one can hold him.” Undeterred, the headstrong Fawzia disguises herself as a boy and sneaks out to meet the prince’s emissary at a nearby oasis. There, she encounters Hajji, whom she mistakes for the courier. She offers him a valuable emerald ring for help in evading her father’s pursuit.

As the two proceed together across the desert, they’re captured by a gang of lady bandits led by the red-haired Banah (Amanda Blake), and eventually they realize that they’ve fallen in love with each other. Escaping from Banah, the pair fall into the hands of Nur-el-Din, who exercises his prior claim on Fawzia’s affections. Surrounded and outnumbered by the prince’s armed retinue, and believing that it’s Fawzia’s preference anyway, Hajji relinquishes the princess to Nur-el-Din in exchange for the ring that had been promised to him earlier. Irked, Fawzia rides off with the prince, who secretly orders two of his soldiers to ride back, kill Hajji, and retrieve the ring . . .

Critics of the time were inclined to dismiss Arabian Nights escapism of this sort, as modern reviewers do every time a new Dwayne Johnson or Mark Wahlberg action picture debuts. In his New York times review, Bosley Crowther suggested that the movie needed “someone in it like Bob Hope to kid and lampoon the ostentation of its lush Oriental gewgawry.” But most middle-class audiences were less exacting, and looked only for “The Adventures of Hajji Baba” to provide a couple of hours’ relaxation from the grind of work and school. The kids could enjoy the widescreen swordplay and horseback chases, Mom might think tingly thoughts about John Derek, and Pop could ogle Amanda Blake, Elaine Stewart, and the numerous other starlets in the cast in their skimpy harem girl costumes. That was about as racy as Hollywood products got in those days. Compared with the boxy, black-and-white image that moviegoers were used to watching at home on TV, the film’s sumptuous CinemaScope, Color by De Luxe photography was sensational stuff.

The 2.55:1 widescreen aspect and rich color are beautifully transferred on the Twilight Time Blu-ray, a welcome upgrade from the pan-and-scan print of the film that airs now and then on cable’s Fox Movie Channel. Modern viewers may be put off that the Arab and Farsi characters are played by actors whose accents are more Parsippany, New Jersey than Persia, but that was standard practice for the day, and even today’s Millennials will have to admit, if they’re honest, that the old-fashioned romance between Hajji and the willful Fawzia isn’t much more contrived than the plot of the average confection today on the Hallmark Movie Channel, or for that matter the tortuous complications on “reality” TV’s “The Bachelor.” Fans of ‘50s lounge music are likely to be amused by the title tune that wends its way through the soundtrack -- music by Dimitri Tiomkin, lyrics by Ned Washington, arrangement by Nelson Riddle, and vocal by Nat “King” Cole. The music and effects are isolated on an alternate audio track on the Twilight Time disc. Other extras are the original theatrical trailer, SDH subtitles, and an informative insert-booklet by the reliable Julie Kirgo. The Blu-ray is available HERE.

Last September, Time Life released the ultimate Robin Williams video set. Here is the official press release:

"You know that cartoon, that Tasmanian devil that comes out and just spins --

he was that, but eloquent and hilarious."

-- Billy Crystal

"He was like something waiting to happen...a very powerful anomaly."

-- Steve Martin

"Everybody else prepared, Robin was just a natural...

and he worked on every level." 

-- Jay Leno

LEGENDARY COMEDIAN.

OSCAR®-WINNING ACTOR.

THIS SEPTEMBER, JOIN TIME LIFE FOR THE

DEFINITIVE DVD COLLECTION CELEBRATING

THE COMEDY CAREER OF A BELOVED ICON

ROBIN WILLIAMS: COMIC GENIUS

Across 22 DVDs and 50+ Hours, the Electrifying Comic Lights Up the Room in This Ultimate, One-of-a-Kind Compendium Spanning 40 Years on TV, Including All Five HBO Stand-Up Specials Together for the Very First Time, Never-Before-Released Performances and Backstage Footage, Talk Show and Late Night Appearances, Rare Archival Clips, Brand New Interviews Featuring Billy Crystal, Steve Martin, Jay Leno, Martin Short, Pam Dawber, Lewis Black, and Zak Williams, a Collectible Memory Book Featuring Archival Photos, Robin's Tour Notes, and More!

AVAILABLE EXCLUSIVELY AT ROBINWILLIAMS.COM

FAIRFAX, VA (September 25, 2018) - Robin Williams was a generational talent, graced with comedic brilliance, rapid-fire improvisation, and a deep well of warmth and compassion that translated to every role he inhabited. From his breakout role in ABC's Mork & Mindy to his Academy Award®-winning performance in Good Will Hunting, the iconic actor displayed an inimitable artistry that made him beloved by millions. This September, join Time Life, in conjunction with the Trustees of the Robin Williams Trust, in celebrating the incomparable career of the singularly innovative actor with ROBIN WILLIAMS: COMIC GENIUS. 

Available exclusively at RobinWilliams.com beginning September 25th, this definitive collection of Williams' comedy highlights arrives as interest in his life and career increases in the wake of HBO's critically acclaimed documentary, Robin Williams: Come Inside My Mind from Emmy® Award-winning director Marina Zenovich and Oscar-winning producer Alex Gibney, and Dave Itzkoff's biography Robin, a New York Times best-seller. Celebrating the actor's memorable 40-year career, from his uproarious turn as loveable alien Mork and his legendary HBO stand-up specials to his numerous appearances on late night, this handsome, 22-disc collection, housed in deluxe packaging includes: 

All five HBO stand-up specials together for the very first time, including Off the Wall (1978), An Evening with Robin Williams (1983), An Evening at the MET (1986), Live on Broadway (2002) and Weapons of Self Destruction (2009)

Never-before-released concert specials, including Robin's full MGM Grand Garden stand-up from 2007 and the Montreal stop on his last tour, a conversation on stage between Williams and comedian David Steinberg

Memorable talk show and late night TV appearances on The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, The Oprah Winfrey Show, The Graham Norton Show, Saturday Night Live and more

Rare, never-before-seen clips including early stand-up, raw footage from HBO's promo shoots, a hilarious toast to Richard Pryor by Robin as Mrs. Doubtfire, and more

Brand new interviews with close friends and family including Billy Crystal, Steve Martin, Jay Leno, Eric Idle, David Steinberg, Lewis Black and Zak Williams

11 hilarious episodes of Mork & Mindy, including the two-part pilot!

James Lipton's Emmy® Award-nominated 90-minute interview with Robin on Inside the Actors Studio, plus deleted scenes

A comprehensive collection of Robin's USO shows around the world

Original and newly created bonus features including behind-the-scenes footage, local highlights from tour stops, promos and more. Featurettes include: The Early Years, San Francisco: Where It All Started, Comic Genius, and TV's Best Guest

Critically acclaimed 2018 HBO documentary, Robin Williams: Come Inside My Mind from Emmy® Award-winning director Marina Zenovich and Oscar-winning producer Alex Gibney.

"Robin Williams: Uncensored", a collectible 24-page, full-color memory book featuring rare, archival photos from award-winning photographer Arthur Grace, reminiscences from friends and colleagues, Robin's personal tour notes and more. 

Uncensored, electric, intense and unfailingly hilarious, Williams made it his life's work to make people laugh--whether he was holding forth on culture, politics, the human body or drugs--with razor-sharp wit and insight. As his long-time friend Billy Crystal said, "In the 40 odd years he was in front of us, especially on television, he never let you down. He was always funny, he always did something new." And, in unforgettable ways, ROBIN WILLIAMS: COMIC GENIUS reveals and celebrates the wide range of his incredible talents like never before.

BY FRED BLOSSER

“The Adventures of Robin Hood,” which aired on CBS from 1955 to 1959, was an early example of a television series produced in the U.K. and imported by an American network into U.S. living rooms with great success -- a forerunner of numerous hit shows to follow from across the Atlantic, including “The Avengers,” “Secret Agent/ Danger Man”, too many “PBS Masterpiece Theater” favorites to list, and more recently “Downton Abbey.” It was also an early example, replicated as well by “Downton Abbey,” of a popular TV series leveraged into a big-screen theatrical movie. The year after “The Adventures of Robin Hood” ended its U.S. network run, its producer Sidney Cole and star Richard Greene created a feature-film version, “Sword of Sherwood Forest,” in partnership with Hammer Studios, for release here through Columbia Pictures. Although supporting roles were recast, Greene returned as Robin, and some principals from the series’ production crew were reunited as well. Director of Photography Ken Hodges returned, the screenplay was provided by Alan Hackney, who had scripted many of the episodes of the series, and the director was Terence Fisher, already a Hammer veteran, who had directed several series episodes. Media historians tend to characterize the TV and theatrical movie industries in the 1950s and early ‘60s as bitter rivals for viewership, but the two industries in fact often enjoyed a friendlier synergy of mutual convenience. In the case of “Sword of Sherwood Forest,” the popularity of the earlier series provided theaters with a built-in audience for the movie. In turn, the film reminded fans to watch for the syndicated reruns of the TV show, which continued to be broadcast on local stations well into the 1970s.

In the movie, which has been released on Blu-ray from Twilight Time in a limited edition of 3,000 units, a well-dressed, badly wounded man flees into Sherwood Forest, escaping from a posse led by the Sheriff of Nottingham (Peter Cushing). Through Maid Marian (Sarah Branch), the sheriff approaches Robin Hood with the offer of a pardon if he’ll turn over the wounded fugitive, but Robin refuses. He knows, even if Marian has yet to learn, although she quickly does, that the offer of clemency from his old enemy the sheriff “isn’t worth the breath he uses to make the promise.” The fugitive eventually dies from his wound, but not before passing along a brooch stamped with a mysterious emblem, and mentioning the name of a town, Bawtry. Leaving Little John (Nigel Green) to lead the Merry Men in his absence, Robin investigates with the help of Marian and Friar Tuck (Niall McGinnis). Gradually, they uncover a plot involving the charming but secretive Earl of Newark (Richard Pasco), his henchman the sheriff, an attempted land grab, a visit by the Archbishop of Canterbury, and plans to carry out a high-level assassination if the land grab fails.

BY LEE PFEIFFER

Kino Lober is releasing a number of value-priced Blu-ray double features with similarly-themed films. Among them is the combo of "Betsy's Wedding" and "Holy Matrimony". The first movie is a 1990 release starring and directed by Alan Alda, who had directed three previous feature films. Anyone who has been involved in planning a wedding knows that the old adage "The more the merrier!" rings hollow. In fact, the logistics of planning a wedding can become increasingly complicated and frustrating in direct correlation with the number of well-meaning people who decide to involve themselves. There's always the risk that the betrothed couple will be overwhelmed by logistics and that the wedding plans are catered to please everyone but them. Such is the case in "Betsy's Wedding". Alda is cast as Eddie Hopper, a successful real estate speculator who invests money in building homes that he hopes to sell for a quick profit. Lately, however, his instincts have been troublesome and his latest venture is proving to be a white elephant that is draining his savings. At the same time, his youngest daughter Betsy (Molly Ringwald) and her boyfriend Jake (Dylan Walsh) announce they intend to get married. Both are left-wing progressives who are also social activists who disdain blatant displays of wealth. They want a low-key civil ceremony with only a handful of guests. However, Eddie and his wife Lola (Madeline Kahn) argue that a much grander, traditional wedding is called for so as not to offend family members. Their resistance worn down, Betsy and Jake reluctant concede, which opens a Pandora's Box of bad luck for all involved. Eddie can't afford to put on the wedding he has lobbied for so he turns to his brother-in-law Oscar (Joe Pesci), a slimy business "tycoon" who, in reality, is also short of cash. Since he can't find the money to lend Eddie for the wedding, he introduces him to a local mob boss, Georgie (Burt Young), who puts up the funds but then integrates himself into Eddie's life and plans for the wedding. A parallel story line centers on Eddie and Lola's other daughter Connie (Ally Sheedy), a New York City police officer who is stuck in a perpetual mode of depression, shying away from people and bruised by the fact that her younger sister will marry before she does. She is elevated from the blues by Georgie's bodyguard Stevie Dee (Anthony Lapaglia), a slick mobster who sounds like Rocky Balboa on steroids but who curiously speaks to everyone with excessive politeness. Has is obsessed with Connie and slowly but surely succeeds in wooing her into coming out of her shell. As the wedding date nears, the pressure mounts on everyone. Eddie's business dealings with George almost get him assassinated in an attempted mob hit, Betsy and Jake are barely on speaking terms and on the wedding day and a torrential rain storm threatens to collapse the large tent structure the reception is being held in. Eddie receives solace from imaginary conversations with his dear, departed father (Joey Bishop). 

"Besty's Wedding" was not well-received by critics or audiences back in the day and proved to be the final feature film to date directed by Alan Alda. Yet, I found it to be consistently funny and Alda excels as both actor and director, milking maximum laughs from an inspired cast. The scene-stealer is Lapaglia, one of the few cast members to receive kudos from reviewers. His sensitive tough guy routine is both amusing and endearing. The film isn't hilarious at any point but it's never less than entertaining, as you might imagine any movie that teams Joe Pesci and Burt Young would be.

"Holy Matrimony" was unceremoniously dumped by Disney into a handful of theaters in 1994 before being relegated to home video. It's total theatrical gross in North America was about $700,000. As with "Betsy's Wedding", it was directed by a popular actor, in this case Leonard Nimoy. Ironically, just as "Betsy's Wedding" represented Alda's last direction (to date) of a feature film, so too did "Holy Matrimony" mark Nimoy's last directorial effort on the big screen. The premise is hardly original, centering on a protagonist who seeks shelter in a religious community to evade pursuers. This plot device dates back to the 1940s with John Wayne in "Angel and the Badman" and its unacknowledged 1984 remake "Witness". Here we find Patricia Arquette as Havana, a sultry young woman from the other side of the tracks who is fed up with being exploited by performing provocative routines at a carnival tent located in a fairgrounds. She is paid a miserly wage by the owner who she comes to resent. She and her equally impoverished boyfriend Peter (Tate Donovan) rob the owner and flee in their car, but not before being identified. With the police searching for them, they cross into Canada and take refuge in an Amish-like religious colony where Peter was raised before leaving for the outside world. They pretend to want to immerse themselves in the rustic lifestyle but Havana's coarse nature and foul mouth make the elders suspicious of their motives. Peter hides the cache of stolen loot but before he can divulge its location to Havana, he is killed in an automobile accident. The colony elders view this as a way to get rid of Havana by informing her that customs dictate that she must marry Peter's brother, in this case twelve year-old Ezekiel (Joseph Gordon-Levitt). However, Havana- who needs to stay until she can locate the stash of hidden money- agrees to the arrangement, much to the shock of all involved- especially young Ezekiel who is appalled at having to be married at such a young age. The film deftly handles the possible distasteful elements of this reverse "Lolita" situation by making it clear that both husband and wife sleep in separate rooms. The one funny sex gag involves Ezekiel trying to impress his friends that he is satisfying his new wife only to have the scenario backfire much to his embarrassment when it is revealed he is actually in the bedroom alone.

Much of what follows is predictable. As with all movie plots in which the male and female protagonists start off hating each other, there is no doubt that Havana and Ezekiel will grow to respect and like each other, with Havana acting more like a big sister than a wife. Once the money is located, Havana is told to accompany Ezekiel back to the States to return the loot to its rightful owner. What follows is a road trip in which the two share plenty of personal thoughts and have to avoid a corrupt FBI agent (John Schuck), who is hot on their trail, determined to steal the money for himself. The story climaxes back at the state fair where Havana originally worked. She's now determined to return the stolen money, all the while trying to evade the police and the FBI guy who are hot on her trail. Director Nimoy capably blends both sentiment and comedy during the course of the film, though the movie's main attributes are the performances by Arquette and especially young Gordon-Levitt who shows star power even at this early stage of his career. There is also a very fine performance by Armin-Mueller Stahl as the elder of the religious community. Refreshingly, the film doesn't mock or humiliate the members of the religious colony. Rather, it is "fish-out-of-water" Havana who bears the brunt of most of the humor. While "Holy Matrimony" is nothing very special, it does seem to have suffered an undeserved fate by being released to only a small number of theaters. It is certainly on par with most mid-range comedies but apparently Disney felt it had very little boxoffice appeal.

The Kino Lorber Blu-ray combo features very fine transfers of both films and includes their original trailers. Recommended.

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RETRO-ACTIVE: THE BEST ARTICLES FROM CINEMA RETRO'S ARCHIVES

By Lee Pfeiffer

Sony has released the 1955 crime drama 5 Against the House as a burn-to-order DVD. The little-remembered film is interesting on a number of levels and boasts an impressive, eclectic cast. The low-budget flick depicts four young ex-G.I.s who fought in Korea who return to the States and enroll in college. Al (Guy Madison) is a straight-as-an-arrow type who is engaged to sultry nightclub singer Kay (Kim Novak). Ronnie (Kerwin Matthews) is a brainy upstart with delusions of grandeur and a superiority complex. Roy (Alvy Moore) is an affable joker who is very much a follower, not a leader. Brick (Brian Keith) is the most troubled of the group. He bares psychological problems from his combat experience and has a hair-trigger temper. The guys' only vices are taking an occasional trip to Reno, Nevada and engaging in some minor gambling and womanizing. However, Ronnie concocts an audacious plan to prove he can outwit the authorities and rob a casino. He suggest that the plan be put into operation with the intention of returning the money to the casino after the fact. Ronnie wants to build his ego, not his bank account. Roy and Brick sign on to the plan, but when Al balks, Brick's anger comes through. He threatens his friends with a gun and forces them to pull off the incredible scheme. The film, deftly directed by Phil Karlson, makes effective use of on location shooting in Reno at a place called Harold's Casino. The movie works best as a character study and the performances are all first-rate, with the exception of Madison, who is a bit of a stiff in the lead role. Novak is her usual sexy self and Keith, long-underrated for his dramatic capabilities, gives a powerful performance. The film is one of the earliest to take a sympathetic look at the emotional toll war takes on returning veterans. 5 Against the House is engaging throughout and although it is unremarkable in the long run, it represents the kind of overlooked gems that  the burn-to-order DVD format is rescuing from complete obscurity. 

An original trailer is included.  

Click here to order from the Cinema Retro Movie Store.

BY JOHN M. WHALEN

If you’ve ever read one of Edgar Rice Burroughs’ Tarzan novels, you know that there has always been a big difference between Tarzan as he is in the movies versus Tarzan in the books. For some reason Hollywood has never really been able to get the character exactly right. As much fun as the Johnny Weissmuller and Lex Barker Tarzan movies are, for example, they really didn’t get close to Burroughs’ concept of the ape man. The real Tarzan didn’t speak Pidgin English for one thing. He actually spoke fluent English and French. He was as at home in an English Tea Room as the son of a British Lord, as he was in the prehistoric land of Pal-ul-don. While the movies showed Tarzan as protector of the animals, and friends with cute chimpanzees, in the books Burroughs present a world where death usually came on four feet, although man was often the most treacherous enemy. It was a jungle out there, and it was survival of the fittest, baby.

In 2016, Warner Bros. attempted to restart the Tarzan series with the $180 million “The Legend of Tarzan.” The film made double its budget at the box office worldwide, but it didn’t excite audiences or studio heads enough to continue with a sequel. So it looks like Tarzan will be on sabbatical for a while. Part of the reason for the film’s failure was the script’s presentation of Tarzan. They got the outer dimensions of the character right, but included too many politically correct ideas that weakened the Burroughs concept. For one thing, Tarzan lost too many fights, with both humans and apes. You don’t get to be King of the Jungle by losing fights. But I think it was the total reliance on CGI to create Tarzan’s Africa that was the main reason for the film’s failure. Except for the occasional aerial footage shot over the jungles of Gabon, the entire film was shot on sound stages in England. The movie lacked the reality that a fantasy like Tarzan needs to be believable.

Which brings me to the subject of this review. In the opinion of most true Tarzan fans there has only ever been one Tarzan film that really captures what Tarzan is all about. It’s not perfect, but it’s probably the closest they’ll ever get. In 1959, producer Sy Weintraub took over the Tarzan franchise from Sol Lesser after it was moved to Paramount Pictures. Weintraub injected the series with new energy and new ideas. He wanted to make an “adult” Tarzan flick and he wanted to shoot on location in Kikuyu, Kenya.

He hired a top flight cast of British actors to play the villains in the piece. Anthony Quayle, whose acting experience ranged from potboilers to Shakespeare, was cast as the main villain, Slade, an escaped con and old enemy of Tarzan. Next up, none other than 007 himself, Sean Connery, in an early role as O’Bannion, a tough Irish gunman, who, being too young for the Irish Rebellion, decides there are no causes worth fighting for because “They don’t pay well.” Next is Nial MacGiniss as Kruger, a German diamond expert who doesn’t want to be reminded of the old days of the Third Reich. Al Muloch plays Dino, captain of the boat the gang is riding up river, who has a strange attachment to a locket he wears around his neck. And finally, Italian actress Scilla Gabel as Toni, Slade’s girl. There’s plenty of internal conflict and tension among these five on board a small jungle boat as it makes its way up river to a diamond mine.

The film starts with the theft of explosives from a compound run by a doctor friend of Tarzan’s. The gang needs the gelignite to excavate a diamond mine located upriver, just north of Tarzan’s tree house. It’s interesting to note that the script by Berne Giler is based on a story written by Les Crutchfield, a veteran writer who wrote 81 Gunsmoke radio scripts, and was himself an explosives expert and a mining engineer before he started writing. Explosives figure prominently in the plot.

By Lee Pfeiffer

I have to admit that I hadn't a clue as to what Intruder in the Dust was about until I viewed the DVD released through the Warner Archive. The film is a powerful indictment of the horrors of racism, filmed by MGM during a period when the American Civil Rights Movement was just beginning to heat up. We have a tendency to accuse Hollywood studios of relegating African-American actors to being mere window dressing in films of this era, or worse, casting them as comic relief in often degrading ways. However, this 1949 achievement should be much higher on the radar of retro movie lovers. While most studio productions steered clear of the problem of racism in the American South during the period when segregation was still law, this excellent film addresses the issue head-on. There were some talented people who brought the story to the screen in 1949. Esteemed director Clarence Brown was behind the camera and the screenplay was written by the great Ben Maddow, based on a novel by William Faulkner.

The film was shot on location in Oxford, Mississippi and centers on the murder of a local white businessman who was shot in the back. The prime suspect is Lucas (Juano Hernandez), a middle-aged black farmer who has incurred the wrath of local bigots because he is proud and independent and fails to take on the subserviant persona of the "good Negro". Causing more resentment is the fact that Lucas owns his own farm, a prime piece of land that invokes jealousy from less successful local whites. Lucas maintains his calm demeanor even when he is jailed and is awaiting the inevitable murder at the hands of a mob. His one white friend comes to his aid: a teenager named Chick Mallison (Claude Jarman Jr.). Chick convinces his uncle, lawyer John Stevens (David Brian) to defend him. Stevens agrees because he doesn't want a murder committed, but even he believes Lucas is guilty. He tells the seemingly doomed man that he can't get a fair trial, that he doesn't believe he is innocent and that he should have shown proper deference to the bigots at all times. This attitude is what passed for enlightened thinking during this period. Ultimately, Stevens becomes convinced that his client is being framed and the plot turns to to who-dunnit as an oddball group of progressives fights against time to find the real murderer before Lucas is lynched or burned alive. The only whites in town who will assist Stevens and Chick are an elderly woman (Elizabeth Patterson) and the local sheriff (Will Geer), who has a condescending attitude towards blacks but is courageous enough to stand up to the worst elements of the population.

BY LEE PFEIFFER

In my review of Kino Lorber's Blu-ray release of the 1979 disaster film "Meteor",  I observed that the disaster movie genre had peaked with the release of Irwin Allen's "The Towering Inferno" in 1974. Yet, that didn't stop studios from beating a dead horse in an attempt to squeeze some more juice out of the tried-and-true formula of gathering an all-star cast, then figuring out ways to drown, bury or incinerate the characters portrayed on screen. One of the more obscure attempts to keep the disaster film cycle relevant was "Avalanche", a movie produced by Roger Corman and directed  and scripted by one of his proteges, Corey Allen, who would go on to establish a respectable career as a director of major television shows. When you approach a Corman production, you tend to give some special dispensation for certain cinematic sins that you wouldn't accord more mainstream productions. Corman, who happily embraces his legendary status as a man who made major profits from films with minor budgets, knew how to stretch the soup in the cinematic sense. Rarely armed with ample production funds, Corman cut corners whenever possible but still managed to retain a certain elegance to his productions. In 1978, he jumped on the fading disaster movie bandwagon with "Avalanche".  He hired Rock Hudson as the leading man because Hudson, at this point in his career, realized that he was no longer a hot commodity as a boxoffice draw in feature films (although he did successfully transition to a popular presence on television.) Corman also cast Mia Farrow and respected supporting actor Robert Forster for additional name recognition. He secured permission to film at a major ski resort in Durango, Colorado and out-sourced the special effects work to a company called Excelsior! 

The film follows the general formula of the disaster film genre in that the victims-to-be are gathered for a major social occasion, unaware that nature is working overtime to thwart their fun. Rock Hudson plays David Shelby, an arrogant developer who has invested his life savings to build a vacation paradise in the Rocky Mountains. He has disdain for local environmentalists who have warned him that his destruction of an an abundance of trees on his massive property has removed a natural barrier to the inevitable avalanches that will occur.  Shelby is preoccupied with his grand opening festivities and is simultaneously trying to woo back his ex-wife Caroline (Mia Farrow), who is attending as his guest. He's also busy trying to entertain his sassy, wise-cracking mother,  Florence (Jeanette Nolan), who is being shepherded around the resort by David's major domo Henry McDade (Steve Franken in a rare dramatic role.) Meanwhile, local environmental activist and nature photographer Nick Thorne (Robert Forster) becomes increasingly concerned about the massive buildup of snow on the mountain peaks that are directly in line with the resort. He attempts to alleviate some of the danger by strategically using a snow cannon to set off controlled mini avalanches. Intermingled with all of this are the expected subplots involving minor characters who are set up to be inevitable victims. Barry Primus is a TV sports announcer who is broadcasting from the grand opening and who must contend with the fact that his estranged wife Tina (Cathey Paine) is on premises and rubbing his nose in it by blatantly carrying on an affair with egotistical super star skier Bruce Scott (Rick Moses). Scott, in turn, is rubbing Tina's nose in it by blatantly sleeping with another woman, thus causing Tina to go ballistic and consider suicide. Meanwhile, David Shelby finds time to unwind by spending some quality time in a hot tub with with his naked secretary (thus allowing Roger Corman to slip in a bit of T&A). Although the story seems set up to have the disastrous avalanche occur during the opening night festivities, screenwriter Allen throws the audience a curve ball by avoiding that cliche and saving the action for the following afternoon when, amid a particularly vicious snow mobile race, a small plane piloted by one of Shelby's employees encounters bad weather and slams into a nearby mountain, thus triggering the avalanche. This is where the movie progresses beyond cliches and becomes unexpectedly enjoyable. All of the standard disaster movie shtick is present, as both lovable and loathsome characters meet predictable fates, but the film's limited production resources somehow work in its favor. We're well aware that we're watching a Corman production but somehow the inventiveness that is required to carry it all off is quite admirable. Certain plot points are introduced and inexplicably abandoned including an insinuation that Shelby has bribed local political officials to overlook his clear violation of environmental protection rules in order to build his resort. This was one of Rock Hudson's final films as an "above the title" leading man. He's grayer and a bit paunchier than we'd seen him during his heyday, but he still had star power to spare and made for a dashing leading man, whether its skinny dipping in the hot tub or personally leading rescue parties in acts of derring doo to extricate victims of the tragedy. The film's showpiece sequence is a climactic scene in which Shelby must rescue Caroline, who is dangling from wrecked bridge above a ravine.  It's well-directed and genuinely suspenseful. 

It' easy to pick apart a film like "Avalanche", as it squarely fits into the "guilty pleasure" category. However, the film does a lot with very little as opposed to other misfires in this genre that did very little with a lot (aka "The Swarm"). The Kino Lorber Blu-ray edition features the original trailer and a "making of" featurette in which Roger Corman extols the virtues of the film. He admits the effects were rather shoddy and recalls his outrage when he discovered the SFX company had added "red snow". Corman hit the roof and it was changed to a bluish substance that he admits still looks pretty phony.  Robert Forster recalls that the "snow" was actually little pieces of plastic that were strewn by the hundreds of thousands over the scenic landscape. He remembers his dismay at the realization that none of these bits were biodegradable and many must still be contaminating the landscape of the Durango ski resort where the movie was filmed. Corman makes the claim that the film was actually a major financial success. He says his budget was only $1.7 million and that a TV sale for $2 million netted him an immediate $300,000 profit. The tale sounds a bit fanciful because it seems hard to believe that even in 1978 you could make a movie like this with three relatively big names for only $1.7 million. (Other sources give unsubstantiated estimates of the budget at around $6 million, which seems more plausible.) "Avalanche" is not near the top of the heap of disaster movies but it certainly doesn't rank at the bottom of the pack, either. The Kino Lorber release has an impressive transfer and the inclusion of those bonus extras make this title highly recommended for fans of this genre. 

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

Samuel Fuller's 1959 crime thriller "The Crimson Kimono" has been released as a Twilight Time limited edition (3,000 units) Blu-ray. The film finds Fuller in full "triple threat" mode as director, producer and screenwriter. It's also fits comfortably into Fuller's oeuvre in that it's an off-beat story with quirky, well-defined characters and relationships. Set in Los Angeles, the movie opens with the shocking cold-blooded murder of a popular stripper by an unseen assassin. As with the works of Hitchcock, Fuller dismisses the notion that there is safety in numbers, as the victim is killed while fleeing her pursuer through crowded streets. The killer gets away and the story introduces us to the detectives assigned to the case. They are Det. Sgt. Charlie Bancroft (Glenn Corbett) and his partner Det. Joe Kojaku (James Shigeta), two Korean War veterans who served together in combat and who are now chummy enough to share a fashionable bachelor pad. They discover that a local artist, Chris Downs (Victoria Shaw), had some interaction with the stripper and is aware of a suspicious man she associated with. When Chris's sketch of the suspect ends up on the front pages, she finds herself the target of a failed assassination attempt. Charlie and Joe suggest that she can be safely hidden away in their apartment. Naturally, sparks begin to fly considering the three principal characters are extremely attractive. Charlie finds himself falling hard for Chris, but she is unaware of his feelings. Meanwhile, she expresses her desires for Joe, who clearly wants to reciprocate but is hesitant to humiliate the love-struck Charlie. If all this sounds like a high school romance it must be said that under Fuller' assured direction, it is anything but. The scene in which Chris and Joe slowly and almost reluctantly admit to their mutual attraction is superbly written and enacted by Shaw and Shigeta and brims with sexual tension.

The murder mystery is clearly the MacGuffin here. It's mostly a catalyst to bring this love triangle to life. Fuller places most of the action in L.A.'s Little Tokyo community and the film concentrates on the character's interactions with the Japanese-American population. The most interesting character is Joe, who is Japanese-American. When we first see him he is confident, witty and charismatic, all traits that are shared by Charlie. The Butch and Sundance-like relationship goes into a nosedive after Joe confesses his love for Chris. Although clearly heartbroken, Charlie keeps his reaction restrained, only to have the guilt-ridden Joe accuse him of latent racism. He's wrong but can't be convinced otherwise. A lifetime of battling to be socially accepted in a predominantly white society has brought out his own paranoia and reverse racism. It all leads to a tension-packed conclusion that mingles the strained relationship between the three characters and a chase for the killer through an exotic parade celebrating Japanese culture that plays out in similar style to the Junkanoo sequence in "Thunderball".

There is much to commend about this film, which- like most Fuller productions- was shot on a modest budget in B&W with actual locations favored over studio sets. Perhaps Fuller didn't have the funds to rely heavily on sets and thus filmed on location. In any event, this tactic adds immeasurable grit and realism to his movies. Glenn Corbett is likable and fine in an understated performance, Victoria Shaw is excellent as the woman who innocently becomes the instrument that divides two good friends and James Shigeta, who along with Corbett made his screen debut with this film, shows the skills that would quickly elevate him to international stardom. Anna Lee is outstanding as "Mac", an aging artist with a gruff personality who swizzles hard liquor and smokes stogies while churning out comments like "A man is just a man, but a good cigar is a smoke!"

"I, POD". 

When Olive Films released its highly impressive new special Blu-ray edition of the original "Invasion of the Body Snatchers", the initial run sold out before we even got around to promoting it. Due to overwhelming demand, however, Olive has made the title available again. Here are the details from Olive Films:

“They’re already here! You’re next!” With these chilling words, Invasion of the Body Snatchers sounded a clarion call to the dangers of conformity, paranoia, and mass hysteria at the heart of 1950s American life. Considered one of the greatest science fiction films ever made, Invasion of the Body Snatchers stars Kevin McCarthy (Academy Award® nominee, Best Supporting Actor, Death of A Salesman – 1952) as Miles Bennell, a doctor in a small California town whose patients are becoming increasingly overwrought, accusing their loved ones of being emotionless imposters. They’re right! Plant-like aliens have invaded Earth, taking possession of humans as they sleep and replicating them in giant seed pods. Convinced that a catastrophic epidemic is imminent, Bennell, in a terrifying race for his life, must warn the world of this deadly invasion of the pod people before it’s too late.

Invasion of the Body Snatchers, directed by the accomplished Don Siegel (Dirty Harry, The Shootist) and co-starring Dana Wynter (Airport), Carolyn Jones (A Hole in the Head), Larry Gates (The Sand Pebbles) and King Donovan (The Enforcer), was photographed by Academy Award nominee Ellsworth Fredericks (Best Cinematography, Sayonara – 1958) with production design by Academy Award winner Ted Haworth (Best Art Direction, Sayonara – 1958).

• New High-Definition digital restoration
• Audio Commentary by film historian Richard Harland Smith
• Audio Commentary by actors Kevin McCarthy and Dana Wynter, and filmmaker Joe Dante
• "The Stranger in Your Lover's Eyes" – A two-part visual essay with actor and son of director Don Siegel, Kristoffer Tabori, reading from his father's book A Siegel Film
• "The Fear is Real" – Filmmakers Larry Cohen and Joe Dante on the film's cultural significance
• "I No Longer Belong: The Rise and Fall of Walter Wanger" – Film scholar and author Matthew Bernstein discusses the life and career of the film's producer
• "Sleep No More: Invasion of the Body Snatchers Revisited" –  Never-before-seen appreciation of the film featuring actors Kevin McCarthy and Dana Wynter, along with comments from film directors and fans, John Landis, Mick Garris, and Stuart Gordon
• "The Fear and the Fiction: The Body Snatchers Phenomenon" – Never-before-seen interviews with Kevin McCarthy and Dana Wynter, along with film directors John Landis, Mick Garris and Stuart Gordon, discussing the making of the film, its place in history, and its meaning
• 1985 archival interview with Kevin McCarthy hosted by Tom Hatten
• “Return to Santa Mira" – An exploration of the film's locations
• "What's In a Name?" – On the film's title
• Gallery of rare documents detailing aspects of the film's production including the never-produced opening narration to have been read by Orson Welles
• Essay by author and film programmer Kier-La Janisse
• Original theatrical trailer

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

Years before Michael Cimino released his Socialist-themed Western Heaven's Gate, director Stanely Kramer took a less heavy-handed approach with his 1973 film Oklahoma Crude, which has been released on Blu-ray by Twilight Time. Unlike Cimino's dark and message-laden epic, however, Kramer made the political aspects of his film secondary to the lighthearted tone of the story. Faye Dunaway, seen here in the least glamorous role of her career, plays Lena Doyle, a bitter, man-hating independent woman who is determined to make a success of her wildcat oil drilling venture on the plains of Oklahoma during the early 1900s. Beset by the frustration of consistently having her rig dig up dirt instead of oil, she also has to contend with a bigger threat: a major oil company is determined to seize her land by hook or by crook. When she turns down the offer of a buyout from their cut throat representative (Jack Palance), the oil company moves a virtual army on to Lena's land with the intention of taking her rig by force. Although a crack shot, Lena concedes she can use help and reluctantly hires a down-and-out drifter, 'Mase' Mason (George C. Scott) to help her keep her the assailants at bay. The two have an abrasive relationship, with Lena never smiling or showing an interest in anything other than drawing oil from her rig. They are also assisted by Lena's father Cleon Doyle (John Mills), a charismatic Englishman who is trying to win Lena's love and respect after having deserted her many years ago. Lena can barely stand the sight of him, but faced with the thugs are her doorstep, she has to accept his help.The story mostly takes place on the hillside where Lena's cabin is situated. 'Mase' proves to be a courageous and innovative ally, acquiring U.S. Army hand grenades and using them with devastating effect against the heavily armed gangs from the oil company who try repeatedly to take Lena's hilltop rig and cabin by force.

Oklahoma Crude was a late career project for Kramer (he would only make two more films). Dismissed at the time as a routine Western comedy, the film comes across as a sheer delight when viewing it today. The thin story line isn't the main attraction. Rather, it's the combined talents of four Oscar winners- Scott, Dunaway, Mills and Palance- that add so much zest to what could have otherwise have been a routine experience. They are all delightful to watch, with Scott at his best and Mills in a scene-stealing, wonderful performance as a flawed but charming tenderfoot who summons incredible courage when it is needed most. Kramer hired the best of the best for his crew including cinematographer Robert Surtees, who makes every other frame look like an Andrew Wyeth painting. There is also a fine musical score by Henry Mancini which perfectly fits the "never a dull moment" mood of the movie. 

The film is a sheer delight from beginning to its finale, which features a refreshing plot twist.

The Twilight Time Blu-ray release boasts the expected excellent transfer, an informative collector's booklet with liner notes by Julie Kirgo, an isolated score track and a commentary track by this writer and fellow film historian Paul Scrabo. This release is limited to 3,000 units.

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

"The Secret Partner" is yet another unheralded gem from the cinematic past that has been made available through the Warner Archive. It's a fairly low budget British film noir that nevertheless is completing engrossing and will have viewers guessing throughout. Stewart Granger is John Brent, a successful executive at a London shipping company who we find in great distress from early in the film. It seems Brent is being routinely blackmailed by his milquetoast dentist, Beldon (Norman Bird). We don't know what he has on Brent until much later in the story, a clever device used by screenwriters David Pursall and Jack Seddon that only increases the interest of the viewer. Brent understandably despises Beldon but is intimidated enough by him that he continues to pay astronomical sums of money to buy his silence. In the interim, Brent can't explain to his wife Nicole (Haya Haraeet) why their money is disappearing almost as fast as he can earn it. She logically suspects that he is seeing another woman and their marriage very publicly goes on the rocks when she moves out. Meanwhile, Beldon himself is subject to the terrors of blackmail when a masked man with a gun demands that he follows explicit instructions to administer a drug to Brent during his next dental visit. While under the influence of sleeping gas, Brent is injected with a truth serum that results in his telling Beldon the combination of his company's safe. Additionally, Beldon follows instructions to remove Brent's office keys and make a clay impression of them. The masked man promises Beldon a payoff of 15,000 pounds if he complies- and death if he doesn't. Beldon pulls off his end of the scheme and Brent appears to be none the wiser. Predictably, the office safe of Brent's employer is rob of 130,000 quid and he is the logical suspect. The case falls into the lap of Det. Superintendent Frank Hanbury (Bernard Lee), a veteran cop who is counting the days until his imminent retirement. He questions Brent but when Brent realizes he is about to be arrested for grand larceny, he flees. Hanbury relentlessly pursues him even as his investigation leads him to believe that Brent might have been set up as a fall guy. Hanbury repeatedly interviews Nicole and discovers that she is apparently having affairs with some of Brent's most trusted friends and co-workers. Meanwhile, Brent is trying to avoid the police while he conducts his own investigation, desperate to prove he is innocent.  

"The Secret Partner" is a prime example of the kind of efficient, low-profile films that used to be turned out regularly decades ago and this one is top notch throughout. It's impressively directed by the ever-capable Basil Dearden, who helmed other gems like "Woman of Straw" and "Khartoum". Granger, who should have been a much bigger star, is dashing and determined as a leading man and he plays well off of the great British character actor Bernard Lee. Lee's slow, unemotional approach to solving the case is a joy to watch, as he patiently absorbs the facts and tries not to jump to conclusions even as he smokes what must be a record number of cigarettes ever consumed by one actor in one film. The film is peppered with fine performances from an impressive supporting cast with Harareet especially enticing as Brent's sexy, estranged wife. Even the smallest roles are well-performed (keep an eye out for Paul Stassino, the ill-fated NATO pilot from "Thunderball" as a pimp!). There is also a funky if somewhat bombastic jazz score by Philip Green and some nice period photography around London. The real pay off is a surprise revelation near the end of the film that I doubt even the most astute viewer will see coming.

"The Secret Partner" is a thoroughly enjoyable film that represents the cliche "They don't make 'em like that any more!" 

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BY BRIAN GREENE

Think of Linda Blair acting in the 1970s, and the ’73 horror classic The Exorcist will likely be the first film that comes to your mind. But while there’s ample reason for that movie to stand out as it does, Blair put on an equally memorable performance – albeit in a completely different type of movie – in 1974’s made-for-TV feature Born Innocent. In that release, which has the feel of an especially harsh ABC Afterschool Special, Blair plays an average, highly likable teenage kid who becomes estranged from her worthless parents and winds up in a rough juvenile detention facility, following some runaway attempts. Born Innocent can be lumped in with the “babes behind bars” exploitation subcategory of films, but there’s nothing campy about the TV movie. It’s downbeat, super realistic, and devastatingly sad.

Around five months after Born Innocent originally aired on NBC, the network showed Blair in a similar type of story, with their broadcast of Sarah T.-Portrait of a Teenage Alcoholic, in February of ’75. Shout! Factory has just introduced a new Blu-ray version of the film. Blair, who turned 16 a few weeks before the movie reached households, plays the troubled title character, Sarah Travis. Sarah is a lot like Blair’s character Chris Parker from Born Innocent. She’s a normal, relatable, well-intentioned teenage girl going through some rough times. Sarah’s parents divorced a few years before the outset of the story, when her materialistically ambitious mother got tired of her artistically inclined husband’s (played by Larry Hagman) unreliable ways. The mother (Verna Bloom plays her) remarried a more stable, financially healthy man (William Daniels), and the family - which includes Sarah’s older, married sister – moves from San Francisco to an upscale neighborhood in Southern California.

There are some factors that differentiate Sarah Travis’s life predicaments from Chris Parker’s. While Chris is (was, before being sent to the reform school) being raised by a physically abusive father and an emotionally absent mother, Sarah’s three parents are actually trying to be good to her. Her artsy dad doesn’t have the wherewithal to be a provider to her, and he often leaves her disappointed by not being available enough to her; but at least he loves her and sometimes has fun with her. And while Sarah’s mom is a feminist’s nightmare whose answer to every life problem is “I’ll let my husband decide what to do about that,” she means well in attempting to create a stable home environment for her daughter. Ditto Sarah’s stepfather, who tries his best to connect with the girl and see to her needs, without attempting to completely overtake the role of father in her life. Also, Sarah has a love interest – a bright, sensitive guy who is played by Mark Hamill, a couple years before Hamill’s breakthrough role in Star Wars.

But Sarah’s life is challenging for her, even if it’s not as seemingly hopeless as Chris Parker’s situation. She misses her real dad and feels alienated by how focused her mother is on social status, and how completely her mom defers to her new husband in all matters. She’s had to change high schools, and faces the same social pressures and anxiety any 15-year old would experience in having to make that adjustment at such a psychologically volatile time in life. And while the guy she likes enjoys her company and cares about her, he’s not ready to get emotionally involved with her, the way she would like. All of this leads Sarah to continually turn to alcohol, to “help me feel good.” What starts as an occasional sneaky nip during a stressful moment, becomes a debilitating habit.

The story of Sarah T. was written by the TV writing/producing husband and wife team of Richard and Esther Shapiro, who are best known as the creators of Dynasty and its spin-off series The Colbys. A novel based on the film, which shares its title and plot elements, was written by author Robin S. Wagner and published as a Doubleday paperback original a month after the movie aired on television. The book is not something anyone needs to read if they’ve seen the film, and is most memorable for its lurid cover image, that shows Sarah’s downcast face superimposed over the contents of a pint of whiskey. The Sarah T. film was directed by Richard Donner, whose other directorial efforts from the decade include The Omen (’76) and Superman (’78).

Cinema Retro has received the following press release:

This Valentine’s Day, give the special people in your life a gift they’re sure to love: film collections featuring their favorite movie stars.

The new Audrey Hepburn 7-Movie DVD Collection features the luminous actress in beloved classics including Breakfast at Tiffany’s, My Fair Lady, Funny Face, Roman Holiday, Sabrina, Paris When It Sizzles and War and Peace. This is a sensationally affordable gift that sparkles like diamonds. Click here to order from Amazon.

The new Paul Newman 6-Movie DVD Collection boasts classic films highlighted by Newman’s Oscar®-nominated performance in Hud. The collection also includes dramas Road to Perdition and Fat Man and Little Boy, the comedy/drama Nobody’s Fool, the romantic comedy A New Kind of Love, and the acclaimed whodunit Twilight. Click here to order from Amazon.

The Mark Wahlberg 5-Film DVD Collection celebrates the charisma and range of one of today’s biggest stars. Featuring action-packed thrills, dark comedy and drama, the collection includes Shooter, Pain & Gain, The Fighter, The Italian Job and The Gambler. Click here to order from Amazon.

RETRO-ACTIVE: THE BEST FROM THE CINEMA RETRO ARCHIVES

BY LEE PFEIFFER

It may seem hard to believe in an era in which every personality on screen seems to be wearing a cape and tights but there are some intelligent films still being made for discriminating, mature viewers. The problem is that you often have to search to find them. Case in point: "The Lady in the Van", a 2015 British comedy/drama that found its intended audience but was relegated largely to the art house circuits in big cities. The movie is about as off-beat as you can imagine in terms of the central premise but we are told that it is mostly based on fact. Alex Jennings plays the film's real-life British playwright Alan Bennett, on whose experience the screenplay is based. Jennings was an aspiring playwright in 1974 when he moved to a relatively upscale neighborhood in London's Camden Town section. Bennett was enjoying some success with a show on the West End and was leading a fairly comfortable existence, though - at least in the film- he was frustrated by the fact that he no significant other. As a gay man, his unease was understandable- until 1969 homosexuality was a felony crime in Britain. Coming out of the closet was not something most gay people felt comfortable doing. The film presents Bennett creating his own live-in companion- an imaginary alter-ego with whom he trades barbs and discusses problems ranging from writers block to everyday household chores. His life takes an unexpected turn when a homeless woman arrives on his street driving a barely operable old van. She identifies herself as Mary Shepherd and is about as lovable as a tarantula. Mary becomes the talk of the posh neighborhood, moving her van occasionally to park in front of various houses. Some of the locals are kindly to her while others clearly disdain her, but all of them tolerate her presence and gets used to her. Mary keeps her "alternate side of the street" lifestyle going for several years. The van is her abode and she defends it with pride. She accepts handouts from neighbors but her prickly nature never results in her uttering the words "Thank you". Alan, like most of the locals, regards her with a bit of frustration as well as fascination. When a parking ordinance forces her van off the street, Alan offers his driveway as a place she can park "temporarily". You know how these things go. Before long, Mary has not only established the driveway as a permanent residence but is also making various demands on Alan to allow more privileges. Slowly, the months turn into years and both become accustomed to the bizarre living arrangements.(Mary never enters his home and the resulting effect on her hygiene is played for laughs).  The two have a sometimes uneasy relationship but the gentle, meek Alan begins to care about her more than he will even admit to his alter-ego. He is wracked by guilt because his own aging mother is slowly deteriorating both mentally and physically and he feels guilty about having to have her committed to a nursing home. He uses Mary has her proxy so that an act of kindness towards her might help Alan alleviate some of his guilt about his mother. 

Ultimately Alan's relationship turns to caregiver. Some of Mary's demands are reasonable (jury-rigging wires from his house so she can watch TV in her van) while others are too extravagant to comply with (constructing a tent so she can indulge in more hoarding of useless objects.) He also learns what the viewer has known from the opening, shocking frames: that Mary is hiding a terrible secret and lives in constant fear of being arrested. She, too, is wracked by guilt because she once killed a motorcyclist in an accident and fled the scene. We also learn that she is being blackmailed by an eyewitness (Jim Broadbent) to the event. Gradually, Alan sees her as a source of material for a writing project. He tracks down her only living relative, a brother who is somewhat estranged from her. He relates some remarkable details about her once-promising life and how it all went wrong when she sacrificed a musical career in order to join a convent. (The Catholic Church and religion play key roles in her life.)  Nothing overly dramatic takes place in the leisurely-paced story but there is something remarkable the fact that Alan Bennett allowed this eccentric woman to spend a full 15 years residing in his driveway until her death in 1989.

Bennett published a journal about the experience titled "The Lady in the Van". In 1999, he adapted it into a play starring Maggie Smith. It was a major hit, running over 900 performances on the West End.  The play's director, Nicholas Hynter, is a frequent collaborator of Bennett's, having worked with him on adapting Bennett's plays "The History Boys" and "The Madness of King George" for the screen. In 2015 they finally brought "The Lady in the Van" to the screen as well with Maggie Smith reprising the title role. Smith was now of an age where she could be even more convincing as the elderly eccentric and Bennett  ensured that the movie was shot in the very house in Camden Town where the actual events took place. For all its charming aspects and the fact that the production presents two extraordinary performances by Smith and Alex Jennings, the end result is a mixed bag that you expect to move you in a more emotional way than it actually does. This is largely because Smith's character remains crusty, self-centered and pretty much an ingrate throughout. In the film's final moments, which details her death, Bennett and Hytner do manage to convey a softening of her persona in the final moments of her life but they then attempt to make her more lovable with an ill-advised funeral sequence in which we see the ghost of Miss Shepherd assuring us that she has found happiness in Eternity. The scene smacks of being a well-intentioned gimmick and seems somewhat out of place with the rest of the film.  Jennings, known primarily as a stage actor, gives a marvelous performance as Bennett and manages the considerable achievement of not being overshadowed by the great Dame Maggie. The film starts off rather weakly but becomes more engrossing and satisfying if you stick with it. This is largely due to Bennett slowly unveiling key details about Miss Shepherd's challenges in life and the fact that she missed out on a promising musical career. Although Smith is very amusing in the comedic sequences, she is even more impressive in these dark, dramatic scenes. The end result is a mixed bag. The film is to be commended for presenting that rarest of screen experiences nowadays: an intelligent story aimed at adult audiences who seek fine performances and dialogue rather than mindless explosions. There are uneven and unsatisfying patches throughout but the performances alone merit it for recommended viewing.

Sony has released an impressive special edition Blu-ray of "The Lady in the Van". There are numerous featurettes including extensive interviews with Maggie Smith, Alan Bennett, Alex Jennings and Nicholas Hytner that give some interesting perspectives on the long history of the real life events that inspired the play and film. There is also a director's commentary with Hytner and some deleted scenes, some of which clearly show that Miss Shepherd is actually nt only extremely eccentric but is also  suffering from dementia, as evidenced by her belief that she can be elected Prime Minister.  

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By Lee Pfeiffer

If you think extremist talk radio is a relatively new phenomenon, the release of the 1970 film WUSA on DVD by Olive Films shows just how far back the not-so-grand tradition goes. The notion of reaching out to the fringe elements of society is well-documented here, with Paul Newman as a down-and-out musician with some broadcasting experience who sells his soul by taking a job as a DJ on right wing extremist radio station WUSA in New Orleans. Newman knows he's being used as a pawn for white supremicist tycoon Pat Hingle, but willingly accepts the fame and fortune that he receives when his star begins to rise - despite personally despising the words he reads on the air. In between playing cornporn patriotic ballads, Newman's character, known as Rheinhardt, spouts incendiary rhetoric designed to empower racists who want to combat expansion of the welfare state. Along the way, he hooks up with sexy-as-hell Joanne Woodward, playing an equally down-and-out woman whose fortunes have declined so badly that she is rejected when she applies to be a stripper. If the film seems especially harsh on the right wing fringe, liberals aren't spared, either. Anthony Perkins plays a stereotypical do-gooder, a true believer that LBJ's war on poverty would result in the establishment of his Great Society. What he fails to realize is that he, too, is being used as a dupe by community leaders who are secretly being paid off by WUSA management. Thus, both the forces of right and left collaborate to ensure inertia among opportunities for the impoverished.

The mega-budget Waterworld laid a gigantic egg at the boxoffice when it was released in 1995. However, as with many commercial failures, there is considerable interest in the production even today, as evidenced by the ambitious release of a special edition Blu-ray through Arrow Films. Here is their official press release:

The most expensive film ever made at the time of its release, Waterworld has thrilled audiences through the years with its awe-inspiring action scenes, gargantuan maritime sets and ground-breaking special effects. A definitive post-apocalypse blockbuster, Waterworld stars Kevin Costner (The Untouchables) as The Mariner - a mutant trader, adrift in a dystopian future where Earth is submerged under water and humankind struggles to survive on boats and in ramshackle floating cities. The Mariner becomes embroiled with the Smokers, a gang of pirates who, led by villainous leader Deacon (Dennis Hopper, Blue Velvet), are seeking Enola (Tina Majorino, Napoleon Dynamite), a girl with a map to the mythical realm of "Dryland" tattooed on her back. Famous for both its epic scale and the controversy that swirled around its production, Waterworld is a key cult film of the 1990s, and an essential entry into the subgenre of ecologically-minded blockbusters. Presented here in an exclusive new restoration, in three different cuts, and with a wealth of extra material, this high-water mark of high-concept Hollywood can now be enjoyed as never before.

Bonus Materials

New restoration from a 4K scan of the original negative by Arrow Films, presenting the film in three cuts

Original 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and 2.0 stereo audio options

Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing

Six collector’s postcards

Double-sided fold-out poster

Limited edition 60-page perfect-bound book featuring new writing on the film by David J. Moore and Daniel Griffith, archival articles and original reviews

Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Paul Shipper

High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation of the original theatrical cut

Maelstrom: The Odyssey of Waterworld, an all-new, feature-length making-of documentary including extensive cast and crew interviews and behind the scenes footage

Original archival featurette capturing the film's production

Global Warnings, film critic Glenn Kenny explores the subgenre of ecologically aware Hollywood blockbusters

Production and promotional stills gallery

Visual effects stills gallery

Original trailers and TV spots

High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation of the extended US TV cut, which runs over 40 minutes longer than the theatrical cut

High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation of the extended European “Ulysses” cut, which includes censored shots and dialogue

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

At the time of its release in 1962 critics treated director J. Lee Thompson's "Taras Bulba" as just another action epic. Well, back in those days, every week seemed to see the release of a worthwhile action epic. However, retro movie fans have long held this film in a place of honor. It has an intelligent script, fine performances and sequences that are truly magnificent in their scope- all set to the legendary Franz Waxman's superb, Oscar-nominated score. The film is unusual on many levels beginning with the period of history it covers: the battles between the Cossacks and Poles for control of the Ukraine Steppes in the early 16th century. When the film opens, the Cossacks are fighting with the Poles to thwart an invading Turkish army. However, the Poles double-cross their allies after victory has been achieved, slaughtering many of the Cossacks, whom they fear will be a future threat. The mantle of Cossack leadership falls to the courageous warrior Taras Bulba, who vows revenge against Poland no matter how long it takes. The Cossacks spend many years rebuilding their strength. During this time, Bulba fathers two sons: Andrei (Tony Curtis) and Ostap (Perry Lopez), both of whom do instill him with pride for adapting the rough-and-tumble ways of the Cossack warriors. When tensions ease with the Polish government, Taras instructs his sons to attend university in Kiev, ostensibly to get an education. In reality, he wants them to study Polish customs and habits, all the better to serve in the forthcoming war against them that he is planning. While in Kiev, the boys suffer the indignities of ridicule, beatings and hazings. (There is an amusing, if unintended,homo erotic aspect to some of these scenes, with sweaty, shirtless men whipping each other.)  Andrei finds it's all worthwhile when he catches a glimpse of Natalia Dubrov (Christine Kaufmann), a beautiful young Polish girl who is from an influential family. Against all odds, he manages to catch her eye and ingratiate himself to her. The would-be lovers find ways to secretly meet to carry out their forbidden romance. (The notion of a Polish noblewoman carrying on a love affair with a crude Cossack warrior may seem far-fetched, but if the Cossack is Tony Curtis, I guess anything is possible.) When Andrei's interest in Natalia is discovered by her brother, a sword fight ensues in which Ostap mortally wounds the Polish army officer. The brothers escape back to the Steppes and the arms of their mother and father but Andrei still pines away for his lost love. Taras rallies the various Cossack tribes to join him in an assault on a city held by Poles. After a vicious battle, he bottles up his enemies inside the walls of the town and begins to starve them out. However, Andrei learns that Natalia is within the city and when plague breaks out, he makes an ill-fated decision to attempt to rescue her. This leads to the film's dramatic and very emotional climactic seen between Taras and Andrei.

"Taras Bulba" has been released on Blu-ray by Kino Lorber Studio Classics. The transfer is outstanding and is so clear that some of the film's technical weaknesses appear more prominent than they probably did on the big screen. The scenes within Kiev are clearly achieved through the use of studio sets and matte paintings. Some scenes have a noticeable graininess to them and in certain cavalry charges, you might observe horsemen moving at sped up motion in the manner of the Keystone Cops. Nevertheless, this is an epic film indeed when it comes to the action sequences. One scene in particular is literally thrilling: the joining of the Cossack warriors on the open plain, all galloping at high speed to Franz Waxman's addictive musical score. The performances are also first-rate with Brynner giving a larger-than-life interpretation of Bulba in  manner that no other actor of this era could achieve. Tony Curtis once again overcomes a New York accent (as he did in "The Vikings") and somehow appears completely credible. (An interesting footnote: Bulba's right hand man Shilo is played by Brynner's "Magnificent Seven" co-star Brad Dexter.)  Christine Kaufmann was only 16 years old at the time of filming and the on-screen love affair with Tony Curtis replicated itself in real life: they began dating on the set and ended up getting married, though they divorced in 1968. 

The Blu-ray disc includes an original trailer that absurdly proclaims, in the typical hyperbole of the day, that the film should be added to the list of "Wonders of the World"! Not quite. But say this for "Taras Bulba": it represents the kind of first rate action adventure epic of which it is often said "They sure as hell don't make 'em like that anymore."

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

Andrew V. McLaglen was almost predestined to be a movie director. The son of the legendary character actor Victor McLaglen, Andrew came of age on movie sets. His father often appeared in John Ford Westerns and Andrew developed a passion for the genre. He ultimately gained a foothold in the television industry during the late 1950s and early 1960s when TV Westerns were all the rage. He proved himself to be a capable and reliable director and eventually moved on to feature films. McLaglen scored a major hit with the rollicking Western comedy "McLintock!" starring John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara in 1963.  Two years later, he teamed with James Stewart for the poignant Civil War drama "Shenandoah". The film was a big success with both critics and at the boxoffice. Thus, Universal, the studio that released "Shenandoah", hoped to capitalize on the film's success and re-teamed McLaglen and Stewart for a Western, "The Rare Breed". Adding to the reunion aspect of the production, it co-starred Maureen O'Hara and Brian Keith. O'Hara had co-starred with Stewart in the 1962 comedy "Mr. Hobbs Takes a Vacation" and Keith was O'Hara's leading man in the Disney classic "The Parent Trap". Got all that? The script by Ric Hardman takes an unusual aspect of the Old West for its central plot line. Martha Price (O'Hara) and her daughter Hilary (Juliet Mills) have arrived in Texas from their home in England. They are bringing with them their prized Hereford bull, a breed not known in America. Their hope is to sell the animal at auction so that cross breeding American cows will eventually result in superior stock. The prim and proper upper-crust British ladies have endured a tragedy that isn't depicted on screen: the death of Martha's husband on the ship en route to America, although they seem fairly unperturbed, as they only fleetingly reference the dearly departed in the course of what follows. The Hereford is mocked by the cattle barons because it lacks the signature horns of traditional Texas steers. In a convoluted plot device,  a smarmy rich man (David Brian) with an obsession for seducing Martha,  bids on the Hereford to impress her. When his awkward attempts to bed her fail, somehow another unseen buyer steps forward and the beast must be transported to him via the efforts of a wrangler named Burnett (James Stewart). At this point, the story becomes difficult to follow. Suffice it to say that Burnett agrees to escort Martha, Hilary and their prized bull to the far-off destination to conclude the deal. Along the way, they are ambushed by Simons (Jack Elam), a greedy crook who causes a stampede of another cattle herd being escorted by Burnett's friend Jamie (Don Galloway.) In the resulting chaos, Simons intends to steal the Hereford as well as the money Martha has been paid to deliver the bull. If all of this sounds confusing, watching it unfurl on screen makes the plot even more fragmented when Martha accuses Burnett of also trying to swindle her. Ultimately, they all wind up at the outpost of the new owner, Bowen (Brian Keith), a Scottish eccentric who runs his own cattle empire and sees the possibility of crossbreeding the Hereford with his own herd.

Kudos to everyone at Kino Lorber for bringing about this vitally important set. Here is the official press release:

New York, NY -- November 13, 2018 -- Kino Classics is proud to announce the Blu-ray and DVD release of Pioneers: First Women Filmmakers, a monumental 6-disc collection, curated by Shelley Stamp (author of Lois Weber in Early Hollywood) and executive produced by Illeana Douglas, celebrating the ground-breaking early female directors of American cinema who helped shape the language of film.

Pioneers: First Women Filmmakers will become available on Blu-ray and DVD November 20, 2018, with a SRP of $99.95 for the Blu-ray and $79.95 for the DVD. The films in this collection are accompanied by music scores composed by Renee C. Baker, The Berklee Silent Film Orchestra, Makia Matsumura, Maud Nelissen, Dana Reason, Aleksandra Vrebalov, and others. Special Features include an 80-page booklet with essays and photos, eight short documentaries featuring Interviews with historians and archivists, and audio commentaries for select films.

Funded by a successful Kickstarter campaign, Pioneers: First Women Filmmakers continues the legacy begun by Pioneers of African-American Cinema, equally ambitious in scale, and every bit as historically significant. Presented in association with the Library of Congress (and drawing from the collections of other world-renowned film archives), Pioneers: First Women Filmmakers is the largest commercially-released video collection of films by women directors, focusing on American films made between 1911 and 1929 -- a crucial chapter of our cultural history.

Featuring 2K and 4K restorations of more than 50 films, including features, shorts and fragments, this collection includes more than 25 hours of material, not only showcasing the work of these under-appreciated filmmakers, but also illuminating the gradual changes in how women directors were perceived (and treated) by the Hollywood establishment. Included are films by such pioneering filmmakers as Ruth Ann Baldwin ('49-'17), Grace Cunard (The Purple Mask), Dorothy Davenport (Linda, The Red Kimona), Alice Guy-Blaché (Algie the Miner, The Little Rangers, Matrimony's Speed Limit, The Ocean Waif), Zora Neale Hurston (ethnographic films), Cleo Madison (Eleanor's Catch), Frances Marion (The Song of Love), Alla Nazimova (Salome), Mabel Normand (Caught in a Cabaret, Mabel's Blunder), Ida May Park (Bread), Nell Shipman (Back to God's Country), Lois Weber (Hypocrites, Suspense, Scandal, Where Are My Children?), Elsie Jane Wilson (The Dream Lady), Marion E. Wong (The Curse of Quon Gwon), and many more.

By showcasing the ambitious, inventive films from the golden age of women directors, we can get a sense of what was lost by the marginalization of women to "support roles" within the film industry.

"The names Alice Guy-Blaché, Lois Weber, Dorothy Davenport Reid, and other significant female directors deserve to have their names celebrated next to DeMille's, and Griffith's as the early pioneers of Hollywood," said Illeana Douglas. "Just as these woman told powerful stories to raise awareness and educate, we must do the same! I am honored to be a part of Pioneers: First Women Filmmakers, so that these films, and filmmakers, can be put in the pantheon of cinema where they belong."

"Women played an extraordinary role in early filmmaking, but this history has been largely forgotten," said Shelley Stamp, author of Lois Weber in Early Hollywood. "I'm so thrilled that these films have been restored and re-scored so that contemporary audiences will have a chance to see what female filmmakers were up to 100 years ago."

In the early decades of cinema, some of the most innovative and celebrated filmmakers in America were women. Alice Guy-Blaché helped establish the basics of cinematic language, while others boldly continued its development: slapstick queen Mabel Normand (who taught Charlie Chaplin the craft of directing), action star Grace Cunard, and LGBTQ icon Alla Nazimova. Unafraid of controversy, filmmakers such as Lois Weber and Dorothy Davenport Reid tackled explosive issues such as birth control, abortion, and prostitution. This crucial chapter of film history comes alive through the presentation of a wide assortment of films, carefully curated, meticulously restored in 2K and 4K from archival sources, and presented with new musical scores.

BY LEE PFEIFFER

Twilight Time has released the 1969 British anti-war comedy/drama "The Virgin Soldiers" as a limited edition (3,000 units) Blu-ray. Adapted from  the 1966 novel by Leslie Thomas,who based the tale on his personal experiences while serving in Malaya in the early 1950s when British troops were called into action to quell political unrest and violent uprisings. The film has been compared to Robert Altman's "M*A*S*H" which was released the following year and which focused on American forces serving in the Korean War. Both films were riding the wave of anti-Vietnam War protests and their geographical locations could easily be swapped for those in Vietnam. Additionally, the two movies both have a similar tone in that they mix a cynical, comedic view of life in the military with morbid scenes that display the carnage of the conflicts. In "M*A*S*H" the human toll of war is confined to scenes in the operating room where over-stressed surgical teams try to save the lives of those who were badly wounded. In "The Virgin Soldiers", the horrors of war come late in the film with a surprise attack by insurgents on a train carrying soldiers to an location where they were supposed to enjoy some leave time. But there are major differences in the way the story lines are presented. The Altman film dealt primarily with the antics of a trio of wiseguy anti-Establishment types while "The Virgin Soldiers" chronicles the personal experiences of a private, Brigg (Hywel Bennett) and a young civilian woman, Phillipa Raskin (Lynn Redgrave), who is forced to live on a military base where her father (Nigel Patrick) serves as the R.S.M. Most of the screen time is devoted to the Brigg character as he tries to get through his obligatory stint in National Service unscathed. The film presents the usual scattershot collection of men in the regiment as an eclectic bunch ranging from cowards to unlikely heroes. There is even an openly gay couple, which defies credibility since homosexuality in British society was considered to be a criminal act at the time.

The early part of the movie depicts the young soldiers as untested, naive and afraid of actually going into combat- all perfectly human concerns. They are also bored on the base due to lack of female companionship and are desperate for sex with any available woman. Amidst an atmosphere in which his fellow soldiers brag about their sexual conquests, Brigg nervously tries to arrange losing his virginity while posing as an experienced lady's man. He tries to satiate his sexual desires with a local hooker, Juicy Lucy (winningly played by Tsai Chin), whose heart of gold extends to giving credit on account to any soldier who suffers impotence from performance anxiety. The unit's sergeant, Driscoll (Nigel Davenport), instills military discipline in his charges while also acting as a father figure, recognizing that these frightened young men are far away from home and are facing a conflict in an exotic land that they don't even understand. A parallel plot centers on the miserable existence of Philippa whose father is a strutting misogynist and comically inept figure. Her mother (played by Redgrave's real-life mum Rachel Kempson) is a dippy eccentric whose primary focus seems to be on the well-being of her pet goldfish. Phillipa is much-desired by every soldier on the base, given the lack of females in their vicinity. They view her as a sultry woman of the world when, in fact, she, too, is also a virgin, much to the consternation of her father, who constantly derides her for not yet having taken up with a man. He even chides her by telling her that the local gossip speculates she might be a lesbian. Phillipa is emotionally alone in the world in a location she can't relate to and doesn't want to be in, much like the young recruits on the base. She refuses to be a temporary bed mate for soldiers who are moving on.

BY LEE PFEIFFER

Any retro movie lover would be forgiven for thinking there would be a multitude of pleasures in The Great Scout and Cathouse Thursday, a 1976 Western comedy top-lining such considerable talents as Lee Marvin, Oliver Reed, Robert Culp, Kay Lenz, Elizabeth Ashley, Sylvia Miles and the always watchable Strother Martin. Sadly, the film is a complete misfire with nary a true guffaw to be found throughout. The movie is directed by Don Taylor, who helmed some fairly good films including Escape From the Planet of the Apes, Damien: Omen II and The Final Countdown. However, comedy is not Taylor's strong suit, as evidenced by the over-the-top elements of the movie. The quasi plot finds Marvin as Sam Longwood, an eccentric plainsman who is partnered with Indian Joe Knox (Oliver Reed) and  Billy (Strother Martin) in an attempt to track down their former partner Jack Colby (Robert Culp) who fled with the haul the gold hoarde the four men had discovered years before. Colby has used the stolen loot to establish himself as a respectable politician. Sam, Joe and Billy concoct a scheme whereby they will blackmail Colby into returning their share of the money by kidnapping his wife Nancy Sue (Elizabeth Ashley), a loud-mouthed and obnoxious woman who has had romantic ties to Sam in the past. For reasons far too labored to go into, the trio of men are also accompanied by a seventeen year-old prosititute named Thursday (Kay Lenz) who is seeking to escape the clutches of her former madam (Sylvia Miles).

The film has boundless energy but the non-screenplay leads the characters to dead-ends. Taylor inserts numerous slapstick comedy bits that bring out the worst in Marvin, as he goes into his over-acting mode routinely. Most embarrassing is the bizarre casting of Reed as a Native American. Cursed by having to wear a mop-haired wig and grunting "Me Tarzan, You Jane"-style dialogue, Reed does the most harm to the image of the Indian since the massacre at Wounded Knee. The film lurches from extended fistfights to boring chase sequences, all designed to mask over the fact that the script is a bland, pasted together conconction. There is also a jaunty musical score by John Cameron that is played almost non-stop, causing you to keep the remote on "mute" mode. The only people to emerge relatively unscathed are Lenz, Culp and Martin, who provided whatever wit and charm the film boasts. On paper, the project probably looked promising, but in terms of any genuine laughs...well, they went that-a-way.

Kino Lorber has released the film on Blu-ray with a good transfer and an abundance of trailers (including one for this movie) that prove to be far more entertaining than the main feature. 

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

Racial tensions are flaring in the deep South. White supremacists are marching with members of the Klan, as progressive counter-protestors face off against them amidst a media frenzy. Confederate banners are proudly waved opposite those displaying the American flag. You would be forgiven for thinking this scenario describes the USA in the year 2018 but in actuality it's the setting for the 1996 political thriller "The Chamber", based on the novel by John Grisham. Like other Grisham cinematic tales, it's a complex story of eccentric characters, some laudable, others villainous, and its decked out with an atmosphere of Southern fried hatred. The film opens in Mississippi in 1967 when a Jewish civil rights lawyer makes the fatal mistake of taking his two young sons to work with him on the very day the Klan has placed a time bomb in his office. The resulting blast kills the boys and injures the father, who later commits suicide, leaving his widow (Millie Perkins) to cope with a lifetime of unspeakable sorrow. The story then cuts to the present day (1996) where we find Adam Hall (Chris O'Donnell),  a bright, dedicated young lawyer, determined to intervene on behalf of the man who was convicted of the hate crime and who is now about to be executed after many years of exhausted appeals while on Death Row. The culprit is Sam Cayhall (Gene Hackman) and he is Adam's grandfather, though the young man has never met him. This introduces the first problem with the screenplay by the usually estimable William Goldman: we are never really clear about why Adam is so dedicated to savING the life of a grandfather he has never met. He is clearly haunted by the fact that his own father committed suicide when Adam was a child, presumably out of the overwhelming shame of being Sam Cayhall's son. Adam's motives are left murky, especially when there is no doubt that Sam did plant the deadly device in the lawyer's office. Is Adam grasping at straws in trying to reclaim some dignity for his family's name or is he on to something more intriguing? Because this is a Grisham tale, our hero does turn detective and learns that Sam had at least one co-conspirator, a local white supremacist (Raymond J. Barry) who was never on law enforcement's radar. Turns out he is actually Sam's brother and has been living under an assumed name. In a dramatic meeting, Sam's brother implores him not to spill the beans and to continue to cover for him until he is executed a few days later in the gas chamber. Sam responds with a verbal onslaught against his brother, screaming out that the plan was never to kill anyone. If that's the case, why is Sam willing to go to his death to continue to cover up for his slime bag brother? The question is left ambiguous. 

There's a lot of legal maneuvering as Adam exhausts the options available to save Sam, who he has met and formed a bond with. Behind Sam's exterior of hatred and racism we learn there is a deep-thinking, intelligent man who is more nuanced than one might think when it comes to race relations. This warm, fuzzy side of the character doesn't ring true and seems to be a plot contrivance to make the audience sympathize with his plight. Helping matters is the fine performance by Gene Hackman, which goes a long way to making Sam accessible from an emotional standpoint even if his conversion is unconvincing. (After all, he still had willingly carried out a terrorist action in the name of racism.) The supporting cast includes Faye Dunaway as Sam's estranged and long-suffering daughter who saw him murder a black man when she was a child. She's now living the life of a Southern belle and is not too happy with being outed as Sam's offspring. The script does allow for father and daughter to have a somber reunion in prison and it's one of the few scenes that works credibly in the film. (It's also enjoyable to see Hackman and Dunaway reunited for the first time since "Bonnie and Clyde" 29 years earlier.) Lela Rochon is tossed into the mix in an under-written role as a young African American attorney who is being manipulated by the Mississippi governor (David Marshall Grant, playing the role like Snidely Whiplash) to befriend Adam in order to find out what legal strategies he is employing. The implication is that the Governor and other top officials have a lot to fear if Sam is not executed on schedule, but these factors are left frustratingly murky.

BY TIM MCGLYNN

“Life’s a banquet, and most sons of bitches are starving to death!”

The Warner Archive has just released the Blu-ray version of Mame, 1974’s film version of the hit Broadway show. The musical itself was based on the play Auntie Mame starring Rosalind Russell, also a film and also available from the Warner Archive.

On paper, this movie had “hit” written all over it with Mame’s Broadway director Gene Saks on board along with Bea Arthur (Saks’ wife) and Jane Connell reprising their stage roles. The popular score by Jerry Herman was augmented with a new song, Loving You. Phillip H. Lathrop was the cinematographer, Onna White staged the production numbers and veteran composer/arranger Fred Werner supervised the music.

The casting of the title role created controversy at the time as the star of the Broadway version of Mame, Angela Lansbury, was overlooked in favor of television and film legend Lucille Ball. It was decided at the time that Ms. Ball would draw a larger audience as film musicals had been sputtering at the box office. Previous efforts such as Paint Your Wagon, Hello Dolly and Lost Horizon had been financial disasters, and the studio wanted to stack the deck in favor of Mame breaking this trend.

Lucille Ball had never been known as a singer and at age 63 she may have not been as nimble on her feet as she was in earlier musicals. One just has to remember her taming the cat dancers with a whip in MGM’s Ziegfield Follies in 1946. Ms. Ball’s performance as Mame Dennis is still enjoyable and, if anything, is somewhat restrained. Scenes involving a comic foxhunt with Mame riding sidesaddle and a disastrous stage debut could have turned into Lucy Ricardo style slapstick, but were wisely held in check by director Saks. Ms. Ball conveyed warmth, strength and gentle humor in her performance as the eccentric, but lovable aunt.

The story follows the young and recently orphaned Patrick Dennis being sent to New York to live with his only living relative: his father’s sister Mame, a free-spirited bachelorette socialite. Mame instantly takes a liking to her nephew and vows to show him all the culture and unconventional personalities of Manhattan during the late 1920s. Her friends include a stage actress of dubious talent, the headmaster of a Bohemian nudist school, a less- than- successful stockbroker and a loyal houseboy.

Mame’s escapades with Patrick are made aware to his guardian, a conservative bank president, who sends the child to boarding school. Despite this setback, Auntie Mame remains the main influence on her nephew’s upbringing, and the story tracks their relationship through Patrick reaching adulthood and his preparations to marry. Along the way Mame encounters the stock crash of 1929, employment in customer service, marriage to a Southern aristocrat and a sudden tragedy. Her one constant through everything is her loving relationship with young Patrick.

A fantastic supporting cast includes Bea Arthur as actress Vera Charles, Jane Connell as Patrick’s nanny Agnes Gooch, Robert Preston as Mame’s love interest Beauregard Jackson Pickett Burnside, George Chiang as the houseboy Ito, Joyce Van Patten as Southern belle Sally Cato, Bruce Davison as the adult Patrick and John McGiver as Mr. Babcock, Patrick’s guardian.

Musical highlights include the beautifully staged title number sung by Robert Preston, a touching duet, My Best Girl, between Mame and Patrick, the hilariously wicked Bosom Buddies, where Mame and Vera confirm their lifelong friendship and a genuine holiday moment with the charming We Need a Little Christmas.

The script by Paul Zindel does drag a bit in the second act as adult Patrick contemplates marriage. There is an awkward jump as one wedding is called off and another takes place. Zindel does include many of the one-liners that made the stage version so humorous. Chiang, the houseboy answers a call from Mame’s financial adviser asking “he wants to know what to do with your stocks before he jumps out the window.” Vera enters the room after an all-night binge and declares: “Somebody has been sleeping in my dress!”

Cinema Retro has received the following press release:

Kevin Costner stars in and directs the triumphant cinematic masterpiece Dances with Wolves, based on the novel by Michael Blake. Available November 13th, 2018 from Shout! Factory, this breathtaking three-disc Steelbook Collector’s Edition includes the original theatrical cut for the first time on Blu-ray, an extended cut of the film and an entire disc of bonus features. 

Winner of seven Academy Awards®, including Best Directing and Best Picture, this modern classic tells the story of Lt. Dunbar (Costner), a Civil War hero who befriends a tribe of Native Americans while stationed at a desolate outpost on the frontier. What follows is a series of unforgettable moments — from Dunbar’s tender scenes with Stands With A Fist (Mary McDonnell), to the thrilling, action-packed buffalo hunt. Experience the excitement, emotion and sweeping beauty of this cinematic treasure as never before on Blu-ray!

Dances with Wolves Bonus Features

Disc One: Theatrical Cut

Disc Two: Extended Cut

·        Audio Commentary with actor/producer/director Kevin Costner and producer Jim Wilson

·        Audio Commentary with director of photography Dean Semler and editor Neil Travis

Disc Three: Bonus Features

·        A Day in the Life on the Western Frontier

·        The Original Making of Dances with Wolves

·        The Creation of an Epic - A Retrospective Documentary

·        Music Video

·        Five Vignettes (Second Wind, Confederate March and Music, Getting the Point, Burying the Hatchet, Animatronic Buffalo)

·        TV Spots

·        Theatrical Trailer

·        Poster and Photo Galleries

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BY JOHN M. WHALEN 

How you’ll feel about MGM’s “The Last Hunt” (1956), a grim depiction of the decimation of the buffalo herds out west in the 1880s, depends on how you feel about actually seeing buffalo shot down before your eyes while the cameras rolled. Writer/director Richard Brooks wanted the film to be a searing indictment of the men who ravaged the western frontier, especially those who made their living hunting bison. For the sake of authenticity, he and producer Dore Schary went out on location to Custer National Park, South Dakota, where they still have a small herd of buffalo. They got some spectacular footage of the buffalo stampeding over the Black Hills and had government permission to film during the annual “thinning of the herd,” when sharpshooters are invited to kill a limited number of buffs to keep them from overpopulating. As a result. there are scenes in “The Last Hunt” in which we see buffalo hunters Charlie Gilson (Robert Taylor) and Sandy McKenzie (Stewart Granger) shooting down a dozen or more of the majestic beasts as they sit peacefully unaware by a watering hole. It is isn’t a reenactment. It’s real and it’s disturbing to watch.

But that was Brooks’ intent. He wanted to show how greed and hatred of the Indian brought the buffalo to near extinction. Buffalo hides not only brought the hunters a good price but in their minds a dead buffalo meant less meat for the Indians. Brooks personifies these attitudes most vividly in the psychopathic Charlie Gilson. He is a man who hates everything, especially buffalo and Indians. He gets a real kick out of killing, too. He says it makes him feel alive. Taylor is convincing as a truly bad man, although his performance is somewhat one-dimensional. In most of the scenes, he’s either drunk and surly or just plain mean and surly.

On the other hand, McKenzie is a gentler soul who only agrees to go on the hunt when his small herd of cattle is wiped out by a buffalo stampede. He has no animosity against Native Americans and keeps telling Charlie he needs to chill out. Granger gives a good performance as a nice guy, but he’s almost too nice to be believable. Also in the hunting party are Lloyd Nolan as Woodfoot, a skinner with a peg leg and Russ Tamblyn as Jimmy, a redheaded half-breed, whom Charlie can barely tolerate. Woodfoot could have been an Ahab-type character with a grudge against buffalo for losing his leg, but he’s more philosophical than that. He’s seen a lot. He explains Charlie’s hatred for Indians to Jimmy by showing how much alike they are. He says Charlie eats without a fork, just like an Indian, he’s free with his women just like an Indian, he even blows his nose in his fingers like an Indian. “But you see, Charlie don’t like himself very much,” Woodfoot says, “so it’s only natural he’d hate Indians.”

The four men manage an uneasy coexistence until their pack mules are stolen one night by a small band of roving Indians. Sandy and Woodfoot are willing to let it go, but Charlie rides off after them with blood in his eye. He tracks them down, kills them and wounds an Indian Girl (Debra Paget) traveling with a small boy. He brings the girl and boy back to camp and beds down with her, much to Sandy’s dislike. Charlie gets drunk and mistreats the girl, while Sandy seethes, but remains silent. Sandy and the Indian girl begin to get closer, however, when Charlie’s not around or just passed out and tension slowly builds.

Things come to a head when Sandy hesitates to shoot a white buffalo because he knows it has religious significance to the Indians. Charlie has no such qualms. He knows the hide will bring a price of $2,000. He kills it and now both the Indian girl and the white buffalo hide become the sources of conflict that eventually leads to a violent and chilling climax.

“The Last Hunt” is an interesting film made by an interesting director. Like some of Richard Brooks’ other films, such as “In Cold Blood” and “Bite the Bullet,” it’s hard-hitting, almost merciless, in its portrayal of the darkness that lies just below the thin veneer of civilization. It could have been a classic, but it has become a victim of the era in which it was made. It’s not likely that any major studio today would release a film showing the deliberate killing of live animals, no matter what the reason. For one thing PETA would make life miserable for the film makers, and today’s audiences would most likely condemn it as well. The casting of Debra Paget as the unnamed “Indian Girl” is another strike against it. The casting was not Richard Brooks’ fault. Movie studios in 1956 never cast Native Americans in major roles. Indian characters were usually played by Mexican actors like Delores Del Rio or Gilbert Roland. Paget does a great job, but it’s a false note in a film that tries so hard to be authentic.

But the biggest problems with “The Last Hunt” is its slow pace. The film focuses too much on the five main characters bogged down in their own personal conflicts. It takes forever for McKenzie to finally have his fill of Charlie’s constant bullying and mean-tempered treatment of the woman and the half-breed. He’s too mild-mannered and when the final showdown does happen it’s a long, drawn out affair that lacks suspense.

Cinema Retro has received the following press release:

Universal City, California, November 1, 2018 – Five of some of the most timeless holiday films come together on Blu-ray™ and DVD in The Original Christmas Specials Collection: Deluxe Edition available now from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment. Featuring all-new bonus features and unforgettable characters, experience these five classic holiday specials with your whole family.

‘Tis the season to enjoy the timeless holiday classics in The Original Christmas Specials Collection: Deluxe Edition featuring 5 unforgettable stories.  Produced by the legendary Rankin/Bass, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town and The Little Drummer Boy feature iconic Animagicâ„¢ stop-motion animation and Frosty the Snowman and Cricket on the Hearth are beautifully illustrated. Starring the voice talents of Fred Astaire, Jimmy Durante, Mickey Rooney, Danny Thomas, Burl Ives and many more, these favorites also feature some of the most beloved songs of the season and are sure to entertain audiences of all ages for generations to come!

The Original Christmas Specials Collection: Deluxe Edition includes Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964), Frosty the Snowman (1969), Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town (1970), The Little Drummer Boy (1968), Cricket on the Hearth (1967). Along with The Original Christmas Specials Collection: Deluxe Edition, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Frosty the Snowman and Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town are also available in individual new Deluxe Editions on Blu-RayTM and DVD.

BONUS FEATURES:

·        The Animagic World of Rankin/Bass: An all-new documentary celebrating the legacy of the holiday specials created by Arthur Rankin, Jr. and Jules Bass including interviews with filmmakers and historians.

·        Restoring the Puppets of Rudolph: Discover how the puppets from the beloved special were restored.

·        Reimagining Rudolph in 4D: A behind-the-scenes look at the making of the new Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer attraction film.

·        Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer Attraction Film: A short stop-motion film originally created for a Rudolph 4D experience.

·        T.E.A.M. Rudolph and the Reindeer Games: A video storybook including the untold story of the Reindeer Games

·        Frosty the Snowman Original Pencil Test

·        Commentaries on Frosty the Snowman and Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town

·        And much more!

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“YOUNG REBEL WITH A MOVIE CAMERA”

By Raymond Benson

Arrow has released an interesting time capsule of a boxed set that features early work by director Brian De Palma and starring a very young Robert De Niro before either of them were significant names in the motion picture industry. The films are The Wedding Party (made in 1963, released in 1969), Greetings (1968), and Hi, Mom! (1970).

De Palma had embarked on a film career in the very early 1960s when he was a student at various institutions. While at Sarah Lawrence College in New York, he collaborated with then-theatre-professor Wilford Leach (who went on to become a major stage director, designer, and writer) and Cynthia Munroe (who provided much of the script and funding) to make a feature entitled The Wedding Party. Most accounts (including IMDb) state that the movie was made in 1963; however, an essay by Brad Stevens in the accompanying Blu-ray booklet claims that the film was shot in 1964-65. It was eventually copyrighted in 1966, but wasn’t released until 1969, after the moderate success of De Palma’s first mainstream (of sorts) picture, Greetings (released a year earlier in ‘68).

The most interesting thing going for The Wedding Party is that it also sports the movie debut of De Niro, as well as Jill Clayburgh, William Finley, and Jennifer Salt (although De Niro’s name is misspelled in the credits as “Denero”—go figure). It’s one odd little movie, very low-budget, shot in black and white, and in a style reminiscent of early silent comedies (although it has sound). In a supplemental featurette, critic and filmmaker Howard S. Berger cites Richard Lester’s The Running, Jumping, and Standing Still Film (1959) as an influence, and one can see that. There is speeded-up footage in which characters run around, jump, fall, and drive cars in a comic, Keystone Cops fashion. There is also a French New Wave feel in that the picture is full of radical jump cuts. De Niro’s character, Cecil, is really a supporting role/groomsman to protagonist Charlie (Charles Pfluger), the groom of the titular event, and Josephine (Clayburgh), the bride. William Finley, who went on to star in other De Palma pictures, particularly Phantom of the Paradise, is another groomsman. The Wedding Party is a black comedy about the hypocritical rites of a wedding and the familial events leading up to it. There’s a laugh or two.

Greetings was another black comedy made in collaboration with co-writer/producer Charles Hirsch as the kind of pseudo-underground, low-budget, counterculture art film that budding filmmakers were creating to appeal to the college crowd in the late 60s (movies like Bob Rafelson’s Head or some of Roger Corman’s hippie-biker pictures come to mind). De Niro shares protagonist status with Gerrit Graham and Jonathan Warden as Jon, Lloyd, and Paul, respectively. Each young man is rebelling against society in some way. Paul wants to avoid the draft (so his pals help him be “gay”); Lloyd is obsessed with the Kennedy assassination and seeks to uncover its secrets; and Jon wants to be a pornographer. The picture is shot in a similar vein as was Wedding Party, albeit in color this time, with even more uncompromising editing. This time it’s got the whole late-60s pop thing going for it—shock-value subject matter, political commentary, drugs, violence, and sex. In fact, the latter component earned Greetings the distinction of being the first American mainstream movie to be officially given the “X” rating by the newly-established MPAA (it has since been re-rated “R”).

According to Hirsch, Greetings got mixed reviews but did good business, especially in New York, where it played well at art houses. It was decided that a sequel was in order, originally called Son of Greetings, but the title was eventually changed to Hi, Mom! Released in 1970, Mom almost received an “X” rating, but De Palma deleted part of a scene to get an “R.”

Hi, Mom! is yet another black comedy, and this one’s particularly subversive. It focuses solely on De Niro’s character, Jon, who has returned to New York after serving in Vietnam. Now he’s radicalized and wants to make a statement to the world. Hirsch calls the character “Taxi Driver Light,” and one can see a glimpse of Travis Bickle here in De Niro’s Jon. This time, Jon continues his venture into smut-making (with the help of pornographer Allen Garfield, continuing a role he started in Greetings) by filming across the street into people’s apartment windows, Rear Window-style. He falls for one of the victims of his voyeurism, Judy (Jennifer Salt). Most notable in the picture is a disturbing black and white sequence in which an off-off-Broadway troupe of black actors perform a show entitled “Baby, Be Black,” in which white audience members are forced to participate in the show, put on blackface, eat soul food, and then be terrorized by the actors (who are painted in whiteface). Not sure how this sequence would play for a modern audience! Look for early appearances by Charles Durning (credited as Charles Durnham) and Paul Bartel.

Arrow has done a top-notch job with these cinematic oddities. The High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentations with original English mono audio (uncompressed LPCM) look and sound surprisingly good. There are optional English subtitles. Supplements are plentiful. There’s a new audio commentary on Greetings by Glenn Kenny, author of Robert De Niro: Anatomy of an Actor; a new appreciation of De Palma’s and De Niro’s collaborations by critic and filmmaker Howard S. Berger; new interviews with Charles Hirsch; the pressbook for Greetings; the theatrical trailer for Hi, Mom!; reversible sleeves on the two jewel cases with commissioned artwork by Matthew Griffin; and booklets featuring pieces on the films by Brad Stevens, Chris Dumas, and Christina Newland, and an archival interview with De Palma and Hirsch.

All three films are curiosities, certainly fare for film historians and serious enthusiasts of De Palma and De Niro. For others, the trio will be considered very strange pieces of cinema that merely reflect the times in which they were made.

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“BEFORE #METOO THERE WAS…THE APARTMENT”

By Raymond Benson

One wonders if Billy Wilder’s magnificent comedy-drama, The Apartment, could be made today in the age of #MeToo. Probably not, despite its brilliant script, exceptional cast and performances, perfect direction, and its positive message against sexual harassment in the workplace.

Even so, in some circles The Apartment was considered controversial upon its release in 1960. Hollis Alpert in the Saturday Review called it a “dirty fairy tale.” Then again, The Apartment was coming off the heels of the hugely successful and popular Some Like it Hot, which the more-Puritan side of America may have called illicit and tawdry, too. Or perhaps co-writer and director Wilder was simply good at telling grown-up tales for adults within the context of a rapidly-maturing culture that was on the verge of a decade known for its freedom of expression. The 1960s was an explosion in breaking taboos—in all the arts, as well as in politics, civil rights, and sexual mores. It was the decade of revolution, protest, and the Pill.

Matthew Weiner was most assuredly influenced by The Apartment to create his groundbreaking television series, Mad Men, which also spotlighted sexual harassment in corporate America in the 1960s. The executives of Mad Men’s Manhattan advertising firm often behaved like their counterparts in the New York insurance company that is at the center of The Apartment. To think that Wilder did it first, and at the beginning of the actual decade in question, is a kind of eerie premonition.

In the film, written by Wilder and his relatively new (since 1957) scribe partner, I.A.L. Diamond, several executives at the firm take advantage of schlemiel C. C. “Bud” Baxter (a career-defining performance for Jack Lemmon) by borrowing the underling’s Upper West Side apartment for extramarital affairs, often with women from the office. Baxter hopes for a promotion out of the deal. One of the bosses, Jeff Sheldrake (Fred MacMurray, playing against type once again for Wilder) wants the apartment for a liaison with Fran Kubelik (Shirley MacLaine, in a career-making performance), who is a lowly elevator operator at the firm. The problem is that Bud is sweet on Fran himself.

It’s a screwball comedy, a love story, a treatise on gender politics, and a cynical take on American morality, all done with Billy Wilder’s singular flare for caustic wit and irony. Oscar voters thought it was special, too, for the picture walked away with the statues for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Original Screenplay, as well as Art/Set Direction (black and white) and Editing. Lemmon and MacLaine were nominated in the leading acting categories, as was Jack Kruschen (who plays an initially bewildered—and then helpful—neighbor) for Supporting Actor.

Arrow’s Blu-ray release is a marvel. The brand new 4K restoration looks astonishingly sharp and crystal clear, an absolute perfect representation of the film. It comes with an uncompressed PCM mono soundtrack, with an optional 5.1 remix in lossless DTS-HD Master Audio. There’s an audio commentary by film producer and historian Bruce Block.

Unlike previous home video releases, this Arrow release contains loads of supplements. The Key to the Apartment is a wonderful and concise introduction to the movie by film historian Philip Kemp, who also provides selected scene commentary throughout the picture. The Flawed Couple is a new video piece by filmmaker David Cairns on the unique collaboration between Wilder and Lemmon. Hope Holiday, who plays one of Bud’s bar pickups, is featured in a short interview with anecdotes about the making of the movie. Of interest to budding screenwriters is an archival interview with Wilder for the WGA Oral Histories program on how he writes a script. Also included are previously-released documentaries from 2007, Inside the Apartment, a making-of featurette, and Magic Time: The Art of Jack Lemmon—but now presented in high definition. A reverse sleeve on the jewel case presents the original artwork for the film poster and newly commissioned artwork by Ignatius Fitzpatrick.

Arrow Academy is rapidly becoming one of the great classic film restorers on Blu-ray. The Apartment is a testament to its quality-control. Billy Wilder’s masterpiece (one of several!) is also a work of genius that, considering today’s sexual politics, still stands the test of time.

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BY TIM MCGLYNN

The Warner Archive has just released the 1951 RKO science-fiction classic The Thing From Another World on Blu-ray and it is a definite improvement over the current DVD edition.

Howard Hawks produced this tight 87-minute thriller from a script by Charles Lederer and the original story Who Goes There? by John W. Campbell. Lederer removed the shape shifter aspects of the alien visitor and dialed back the paranoia that John Carpenter explored in his graphic 1982 remake. Here, the scientists who discovered the crashed remains of a flying saucer under the ice near the North Pole are shocked to find the remains of an extra-terrestrial. After returning to the base camp with their frozen visitor, an accident allows the creature to thaw and wreak havoc upon the researchers and the Air Force team sent to assist.

The creature, played by James Arness, needs blood to survive and reproduce, and two members of the crew are found hung upside down with their throats slit. Kenneth Tobey leads the team of soldiers and scientists, now isolated due to a storm, in a desperate battle to subdue the alien before they are all killed.

The strong supporting cast includes Robert Cornthwaite, Margaret Sheridan, Dewey Martin, Douglas Spencer and in a rare on-screen appearance, voiceover master Paul Frees. The pace is fast and furious with not a scene or line of dialogue wasted in this chilling story of do-or-die survival against a seemingly undefeatable foe. The monster, compared by the scientists to a form of plant-life, is unaffected by bullets and demonstrates it has the ability to reproduce itself after a sled dog attack severs its arm. A spectacular sequence features an attempt to incinerate the creature by dousing it with kerosene and setting it ablaze. What follows is a thrilling action set that critic Roger Ebert admitted scared him to death as a youth. Director James Cameron, in the sci-fi documentary Watch the Skies, noted it as the first full body burn in a Hollywood movie and marveled that “the entire scene was lit by the guy on fire.”

Controversy followed the completion of The Thing as to who actually helmed the film. Direction is credited to Christian Nyby, but many critics claim that the film is very close to producer Hawks in style and execution. Subsequent interviews with several cast members reveal that even the actors weren’t sure who was in charge.

Hawks and Nyby were clever in never showing an extended close up of Arness as the Thing, thus keeping him more mysterious and anonymous. Later interviews revealed that Hawks was never satisfied with the look of the creature and actor Arness was somewhat embarrassed by the costume and make-up effects. The story comes to an electrifying conclusion that asks the world, in the midst of numerous real-life UFO sightings across the country, to “watch the skies.”

The technicians at Warner Archive have done a masterful job at rescuing this favorite classic from the ravages of time. The new disc was created from a 1080p high-definition master in 1.37 preserving Russell Harlan’s claustrophobic framing and his beautiful black and white photography. All scratches, dirt, pops and instances of flicker have been removed. The contrast is sharp and the blacks are rich with fantastic detail now revealed in every scene. What might have been stock footage of the Air Force plane landing at the North Pole is crisp and appears to be second-unit work specifically for this film. Several sequences that were inserted back into the original print, such as the “close the door” scene with General Fogarty, are nearly as clear as the rest of the film. Watch for the scene where we first meet Dr. Carrington and notice that the elements on the periodic table above his head may be clearly read.

The mono sound is very crisp and makes it easier to follow the rapid-fire dialogue, which was a hallmark of Hawks’ productions. The humorous romantic exchanges between Tobey and Sheridan are especially helped by this sonic enhancement. The re-mastered soundtrack also allows us to fully appreciate the growling brass and eerie theremin tonalities from Dimitri Tiomkin’s score. The opening credits might remind you of Tiomkin’s themes during the graveyard scene in It’s a Wonderful Life, which was made at RKO six year prior to this film.

The Warner Archive Blu-ray release of The Thing from Another World is an occasion where it is definitely worth the cost of upgrading from the DVD, although the only bonus extras are a couple of trailers. This is a film that John Carpenter, Steven Spielberg, George Lucas and James Cameron all cite as a major inspiration for their own works. This new print shimmers and would make a worthy addition to your home library.

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BY TIM MCGLYNN

“You probably think I’m beautiful, but I’m not.”

Super model Tina Cassidy (Kathryn Witt) visits Hollywood plastic surgeon Larry Roberts with a specific list of tiny imperfections that need to be corrected at the request of Reston Industries, a producer of glossy television commercials. Dr. Roberts becomes curious when he realizes that several of his recent patients have had the same type of list.

What follows is a science fiction/police procedural that involves the murder of these same models. The police become suspicious when it is discovered that all the victims were patients of Dr. Roberts

Director/Writer Michael Crichton once again makes predictions based on emerging technologies. His first feature film, Westworld (1973), pioneered the use of digitized imagery to present the point of view of Yul Brynner’s android gunslinger.

In Looker, we have actors being converted to computerized images that may be manipulated through animation. These digital actors communicate subliminal messages that cue the audience to respond favorably to the product. Once these models are scanned by the L.O.O.K.E.R. (Light Ocular-Oriented Kinetic Emotive Responses) program, there’s no need for humans to create commercials. And if the process works so well at convincing television viewers to buy, why not use it to manipulate a national election and allow a corporate-friendly Senator to be elected President?

In one effective scene, Tina returns to her home to visit with her parents and finds that they can’t take their eyes away from a comedy show they are watching. Mom and Dad have been drawn in by L.O.O.K.E.R.

Reston Industries is also preparing the L.O.O.K.E.R. technology for military applications with a gun that renders an enemy immobile for several minutes leaving no memory of the event. A henchman hired to kill Dr. Roberts employs the weapon to almost humorous effect as he taunts his victim.

A good thriller requires a great cast and director Crichton chose wisely with Albert Finney as the mild mannered surgeon Dr. Roberts. One might wonder if this character was at all inspired by the Beatles’ song of the same name. Also on hand are James Coburn as sleazy corporate head John Reston, Susan Dey as model Cindy Fairmont, the always beautiful Leigh-Taylor Young as marketing director Jennifer Long and Dorian Heywood as Lieutenant Masters.

Most people may be aware of this film only from its claustrophobic pan and scan showings on pay cable during the 80s and 90s. The Warner Archive’s’widescreen Blu-ray provides a beautifully restored edition of Looker in all its Panavision glory. The stereo sound is properly re-mastered and showcases the music score by Barry De Vorzon, who created a terrific techno-thriller soundtrack that avoided the cheese factor and aged well. And then there’s that title song, performed by Sue Saad, that will definitely earworm its way into your head for days.

This new Blu-ray version of Looker will propel you back to the 80s in style and comfort.  Bonus features are the original trailer, an informative introduction by Michael Creighton and a deleted scene that was included in the TV broadcast of the film. Another great addition to the Warner Archive library.

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

It took Sean Connery years to successfully cast aside the shadow of James Bond and establish himself as a diverse actor. Connery had made some fine non-Bond films even during the peak of 007 mania - The Hill, Woman of Straw, A Fine Madness and Marnie. Each of these worthy efforts afforded Connery a role that was significantly different than that of Bond but, much to his frustration, all of them were box-office disappointments, although he did have the satisfaction of seeing The Hill win international acclaim. When Connery left the Bond series in 1968, he made some more fine films. The Western Shalako was an international box-office success, as was The Anderson Tapes, which cast him as a charismatic crook.  Yet, Martin Ritt's The Molly Maguires, an ambitious film about exploited coal miners, failed to click with audiences, as did The Red Tent, which afforded Connery top-billing even though he only had a supporting role. Connery returned to the Bond fold in 1971 for Diamonds Are Forever and then quit the part once again. He gave one of the finest performances of his career in Sidney Lumet's micro-budget drama The Offence, but it played in only a few art houses before slipping into oblivion. John Boorman's Zardoz, which has attracted a cult following today, was a critical and box-office flop at the time of its release, as was a minor Connery thriller The Terrorists (aka Ransom). But Connery was not about to be counted out. He scored with Murder on the Orient Express, The Wind and the Lion, Robin and Marian, The Great Train Robbery and, most significantly, The Man Who Would Be King. All were critical successes even if they were not blockbusters. Connery also played a key role in the WWII epic A Bridge Too Far, a fine and underrated film. Soon thereafter, however, his choice of film projects became erratic. Although the films Cuba, Wrong is Right and Outland all under-performed at the box-office, they at least afforded him the opportunity to work with acclaimed directors Richard Lester, Richard Brooks and Peter Hyams, respectively. But the cheesy disaster flick Meteor could only be attributed to the desire to make a fast buck. 

As Connery matured as a man and actor he still would take on films with limited commercial appeal if he felt the project was artistically rewarding. This was the case with the 1982 film Five Days One Summer which proved to be the final cinematic work of Oscar-winning director Fred Zinnemann, who had made such classics as High Noon and From Here to Eternity. Zinnemann had scored a late career triumph in 1977 with Julia but hadn't made a film since. The movie was an odd choice for both men since the story was small in scale and seemed to have no hope of attracting mainstream audiences. Five Days is very much an art house movie that was nevertheless given wide release based solely on Connery's presence as the leading man. Predictably, it had a quick playoff to largely empty theaters but perhaps more surprisingly, the critics who had lauded Zinnemann with praise for Julia now accused him of making a film that was too small in scope for a collaborative project with Sean Connery. Zinnemann was seventy-four years old when he made the movie and perhaps he felt he had paid his dues to the big studios over the decades. Now in the twilight of his years he might have simply wanted to make a very personal film that appealed to him, if not everyone else. The script is based on a 1929 short story, Maiden Maiden by Kay Boyle. The film was shot under this title before the decision was made to change it to the equally ambiguous Five Days One Summer. In fact, Maiden Maiden was a more intriguing title because it has a dual reference. The first is the the female protagonist of the story and the second is to The Maiden, an imposing mountain in the Swiss Alps where some dramatic events occur. The story concerns the taboo relationship between Kate (Betsy Brantley), an attractive young woman in her mid-twenties and her uncle Douglas (Sean Connery), a successful doctor in his fifties. Since she was a little girl Kate has had an uncontrollable crush on Douglas and as she grew older, came to resent his wife Sarah (Jennifer Hilary). Director Zinnemann zig-zags back and forth in time to show how a schoolgirl crush developed into a forbidden sexual relationship that finds Kate excluding any other potential lover in favor of Douglas. She alternates between joy and depression, the latter mood hitting her whenever she dwells on the fact that she can never be in anything but a secret relationship with the man she loves. Even if Douglas were to get a divorce, the incestuous love affair could never be made public.

The main part of the film concerns Douglas and Kate pulling off a risky holiday trip that will allow them to spend time together in a remote lodge in the Swiss Alps where they can indulge in their mutual passion for hiking and climbing. To avoid any suspicions, she poses as Douglas's wife in a May/December romance.  At first she is as giddy as a schoolgirl because she can finally share a bed with Douglas and they can openly express affection for each other. Things get complicated, however, when their hiking guide turns out to be Johann (Lambert Wilson), a handsome young man who is Kate's age. From minute one he awakens long suppressed sexual desires in her for someone other than Douglas, who immediately perceives the unspoken attraction between the two. The trio enjoy a cordial and professional relationship as the hike and take in the scenic wonders around them. However, Johann becomes more forthright when he learns that Kate isn't married to Douglas (though she does not confide he is her uncle). Johann is outraged and tries to convince her to leave him, telling her that she is in a dead-end love affair with a married man  that can't end well. Meanwhile, on a dangerous hike with Douglas, Johann also confronts him while they are atop the summit of the Maiden (not the most opportune place to have an argument with each other.) Douglas maintains that he is not using Kate and really loves her. Meanwhile, she has made up her mind to leave Douglas and marry Johann. Before she can give Douglas a "Dear John"  letter, word comes that there has been a disaster on the mountain and that one of the men in her life has been killed in an avalanche. In the final scene, she sees a distant figure emerging from the snowy mountain landscape, staggering towards her and a group of rescuers. Is it her lover or her would-be lover? Either way, the result will affect her life in a dramatic way forever. 

"Five Days One Summer" has been likened to the German "mountain romances" that were enormously popular in pre-WWII Germany. These films were known to have skimpy plots but magnificent scenery. If critics were kind to any aspect of the movie, it was Giussepe Rotunno's impressive cinematographer. Most reviewers wondered what it was about this modest story that appealed to Fred Zinnemann, who worked infrequently but generally made "important" movies. Despite the low-key nature of the scenario that unfolds on-screen, there is much to like about the film. The performances are first-rate with newcomers Brantley and Wilson making  both faring well in their first major roles in a feature film. (Ironically, Wilson screen-tested for the role of James Bond in "Octopussy" when it seemed doubtful that Roger Moore would return to the 007 franchise.)  Connery dominates the film, however, with an excellent performance playing a complex character who at times is sympathetic and at other times somewhat of a villain. He's all superficial charm but he cruelly risks destroying his niece's own life by using her as a bed mate. There's no doubt he loves her, but it's clear he isn't about to endanger his marriage to be closer to her. When she finally expresses her frustration and threatens to leave him for Johann, he reacts violently and slaps her. Equally complex is the character of Kate. We're left to speculate as to just why her obsession with Douglas has presumably led to the exclusion of any other men in her life. In this respect, the script is either lacking or intriguing, depending upon the views of individuals in the audience. The only easily definable character is that of Johann. He's a young man of simple means who has no interest in the world outside of the immediate domain in which he was raised. When he is smitten by Kate, his goal isn't to share her life experiences but rather, to incorporate her into his own world. In this respect, Kate's choices of lovers have one thing in common: they both want her to submit to their ideas about what is in her best interests. Douglas has clearly deluded himself into believing that his relationship with Kate is not harmful to her. Johann offers her a more independent, traditional life but still makes it clear that if she marries him, she would have to be content to live in a beautiful but remote mountain region. The end of the tale finds Kate finally exerting her own will and finding a determination to pursue her own destiny. 

"Five Days One Summer" is barely remembered, let alone discussed, in evaluations of Sean Connery and Fred Zinnemann's careers. However that shouldn't negate its many merits. I liked the film far more today than I did upon its initial release. The Warner Archive has released the film on DVD. The transfer is a bit problematic. Some of the sequences in the lush mountain areas do justice to the magnificent cinematography but certain other scenes have excessive grain. Additionally, interiors are over-saturated to the point that characters who are seen in dimly lit rooms are sometimes reduced to shadowy blobs. The film is a prime candidate for a Blu-ray, remastered edition. The only bonus extra is the original trailer. It is a region-free release. 

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

A controversy over the style of drapes for a mansion's library would not seem to be the fodder for a sizzling screen drama but it is the catalyst for the events that unwind in The Cobweb, a 1955 soap opera that involves the talents of some very impressive actors and filmmakers. The film was directed by Vincente Minnelli and produced by John Houseman, based on the bestselling novel by William Gibson. The cast features an impressive array of seasoned veterans as well as up-and-comers. Among them: Richard Widmark, Lauren, Bacall, Charles Boyer, Gloria Grahame, Lillian Gish, Oscar Levant, Susan Strasberg and John Kerr. The action all takes place in a psychiatric institute called "The Castle". It's actually a mansion house and the patients are seemingly there voluntarily. They are an assortment of eclectic types ranging from elderly eccentrics to young people with severe problems interacting with others. The nominal head of the institute is Dr. Devenal (Charles Boyer), an erudite, once-respected professional who long ago ceded actual power to his second-in-command, Dr. Stewart MacIver (Richard Widmark), who has implemented very progressive and controversial theories about patient treatment that involve giving those afflicted with psychiatric disorders a voice in the policies and events pertaining to the institute. He's routinely criticized for going too far in trying to build patient self-esteem but MacIver is convinced that such programs are the only way to ensure that those in his care can become self-sustaining members of society. The Castle is hardly the kind of loony bin depicted in most Hollywood films of the era. In fact, it looks more like an upscale bed and breakfast. Everyone is nattily dressed, exceedingly polite and indulges in social activities. MacIver is the one who seems closest to a complete breakdown. His marriage to his sultry young wife Karen (Gloria Grahame) is on the skids. She accuses him of being a workaholic who puts his career before the needs of his wife and young son (Tommy Rettig). On a more personal level, she makes it clear that she is sexually frustrated, as MacIver has moved into a separate bedroom, telling Karen that she is a self-obsessed party girl. There is truth in both accusations. The chain smoking MacIver does seem to be married to his job. Predictably, things get more complicated when MacIver has an affair with a co-worker at the institute (Lauren Bacall) and Karen's ill-conceived flirtations with the perpetually horny Dr. Devenal backfire and cause distress for both of them.  The fragile tranquility among the patients also becomes strained when a controversy erupts over MacIver's plan to allow them to design and create new draperies for the library. This inspires the most problematic inmate, a young man named Steve Holte (John Kerr) who is traditionally anti-social but who comes alive by using his creative talents for the project. However, the institute's busy-body secretary, Victoria Inch (Lillian Gish) has already ordered expensive draperies from a company and she objects to using the patients' creations. This sets in motion a series of dramatic circumstances that has major consequences for all the main characters.  

The premise of the screenplay reads like something out of a Monty Python sketch and critics at the time of the film's release pointed out the absurdity of having draperies serve as the catalyst for such dark goings-on. The film was considered a major disappointment and has largely been forgotten. However, looking at the movie today, one is impressed with the sheer amount of talent involved in the production. It should also be pointed out that saying the movie is about curtains is as inaccurate as saying The Titanic is a movie about icebergs. In fact, The Cobweb is a reasonably compelling drama that sustains interest despite an "everything but the kitchen" sink formula for introducing crisis after crisis for the main characters and a tacked on happy ending that deviated from the book. Widmark is a commanding screen presence and Gloria Grahame excels as his sex-starved wife. Grahame completely overshadows the presence of Lauren Bacall, who underplays to the point of invisibility. There is also a scene-stealing performance by Lillian Gish as an insecure administrator with no life outside of her office duties and who is immediately threatened by any incursion into her spheres of influence. Charles Boyer is an odd but inspired choice as the institute's director, a  man who has sold out in terms of his professional ethics simply to enjoy a cozy life and a fat pay check. John Kerr and Susan Strasberg also impress as anti-social young people who predictably become attracted to each other.

The Cobweb is a potboiler, pure and simple. While it's not a "lost classic" by any means, it seems the film does deserve to be re-evaluated for its many merits.

The movie is available on DVD through the Warner Archive and is region-free. The transfer is very good and includes the original theatrical trailer.  

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

"The Shakiest Gun in the West" was one of the feature film Don Knotts starred in for Universal after leaving his role as Deputy Barney Fife on "The Andy Griffith Show"- a role that saw him win multiple Emmy awards. Released in 1968, the comedy is as plain vanilla as all of Knotts's Universal flicks, as it's family friendly throughout. There is one unusual aspect to this production, however, in that it is a remake of the 1948 Bob Hope comedy hit "The Paleface". Directed by Alan Rafkin, who helmed Knotts's first film for Universal, "The Ghost and Mr. Chicken", "Shakiest" follows the formula that Knotts knew his fans wanted to see. He always played essentially the same character- a likable nerd with a lack of self-esteem who blunders into becoming a local hero only to be discredited and shamed. The conclusion of every Knotts film finds him performing some act of extraordinary courage that results in him becoming a legitimate hero and winning the girl, as well. Oh, yes, there's usually a scene in which Knotts's character ends up getting very drunk, thus allowing Knotts to slip and slobber, much to the delight of his audience. Although the original film was written for Bob Hope, a few tweaks by long-time "Andy Griffith Show" screenwriters Jim Fritzell and Everett Greenbaum easily convert the story into a suitable vehicle for Knott's signature nervous guy persona. Both Hope and Knotts excelled at playing cowards. Hope would respond to dangerous situations with a string of quips delivered with the rapidity of a machine gun. Knotts, however, would fall physically and mentally into a virtual nervous breakdown. The result was always amusing and Knotts lived by the adage "If it ain't broke, don't fix it". Audiences- especially in rural areas- made his modestly-budgeted feature films very profitable.

"Shakiest" opens in Philadelphia in 1870. Knotts plays Jesse Heywood, a dental student who must complete an examination on a patient in order to get his degree in dentistry. Unfortunately, the patient is a woman who refuses to open her mouth.  Jesse tries to cajole her with childlike sweet talk but when she still refuses, the situation turns into a physical battle royal with both of them engaging in a knock-down wrestling match that starts the film off on a very funny note. Jesse then decides to follow the advice of Horace Greeley and "Go West, young man." Presuming there is a dearth of available dentists in the newly-settled territories, the meek city slicker joins a wagon train (after being bilked by used-wagon salesman Carl Ballantine). A simultaneous plot line revolves around Penelope Cushings (Barbara Rhoades), a vivacious redhead who also happens to be a notorious bandit. When federal agents catch up to her, she is offered a deal: she can avoid a jail sentence if she acts as an undercover agent for the government and joins the wagon train to find out who among the passengers are intending to smuggle a cache of rifles to the Indians. At the last minute, the agent who was to pose as her husband is shot dead, leaving her with a dilemma: no single woman can be unaccompanied on the wagon train. Desperate, she uses Jesse as a pawn, fawning over the incredulous newly-minted dentist who can hardly believe his good fortune. Within hours they end up getting married but the minute the ink is dry on the license, Penelope gives a cold shoulder to her new husband. (The only sexually suggestive aspect to the film revolves around a running gag of Jesse being increasingly frustrated by his wife's stalling techniques when it comes to consummating their marriage.)

Once the wagon train is on the move, Penelope snoops around for the gun smugglers, who turn out to be a phony preacher (Donald Barry) and his partner (Jackie Coogan) who are secreting the weapons inside cases marked as containing bibles. Along the way, Jesse allows his wagon to fall behind the others and it is attacked by Indians. In mounting a seemingly futile defense, he is shocked to find that he has killed a dozen of his attackers, not realizing that the deadly shots were actually fired by Penelope. When word gets out of his achievement, Jesse is hailed and feted as a hero. The legend is reinforced when he is challenged by a notorious outlaw, Arnold the Kid (Robert Yuro), who is also slain in a gundown with Penelope secretly firing the fatal shot. (Shades of "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance"!) Ultimately, Jesse learns the truth and courageously admits to his fellow travelers that he really isn't a hero. He is rewarded for his honesty by being shunned and mocked. His misfortune continues with the admission by Penelope that she was only using him as part of her cover operation. The dejected Jesse is at a low point in his life when Penelope is kidnapped by the gun smugglers and brought to the Indian camp. Determined to save her, Jesse manages to locate the camp and infiltrate it while dressed as an Indian maiden(!). Needless to say, he finds his inner strength and in acts of courage saves the day and redeems his reputation.

BY JOHN M. WHALEN

Sam Peckinpah’s “The Ballad of Cable Hogue,” (1970) recently released on Blu-ray by the Warner Archive Collection, is a movie that doesn’t fit neatly into any specific category. Peckinpah, more notable for his violent action pictures about outlaws who’ve run out their string and go down in a blaze of glory, maintained that “Hogue” is a comedy. But co-star Stella Stevens, in an interview included on this Blu-Ray release, disagrees. She claims it’s a love story—a tragic love story. The answer, in my opinion, is that it probably falls somewhere in between. It’s both a comedy and a love story, and as such, is probably the most honest film about the human condition the hard-nosed Peckinpah ever made.

The story is a simple one. Jason Robards plays the titular character, a man left to die in the Arizona desert by two disreputable partners, Taggert (L. Q. Jones) and Bowen (Strother Martin). Hogue swears he’ll survive somehow and someday get vengeance on the double crossers. He wanders in the desert for 4 days without water, occasionally raising his eyes heavenward, to address the Almighty. “Ain’t had no water since yesterday, Lord,” he says at one point. “Gettin’ a little thirsty. Just thought I’d mention it. Amen” Just when he’s about finished he discovers a spring, the only water for 50 miles either way along a stagecoach road. He builds a house there and calls the place Cable Springs.

A wandering preacher by the name of the Rev. Joshua Duncan Sloan (David Warner) rides in. The Reverend claims to be the head of a church of his own revelation. As dubious as he appears he reminds Cable that he had better file a claim on the land he’s on if he wants to keep it. Cable takes the preacher’s horse and rides into the town of Dead Dog. One of the first things he catches sight of is Hildy (Stella Stevens), the town prostitute. After he files his claim and secures a loan from a bank, he pays a visit to Hildy, who lives in a room on the second floor of the town saloon. He’s immediately smitten with her but when he tries making love to her, the sound of a preacher holding a Bible meeting next door reminds him of Rev. Sloan, who at this very moment might be trying to jump his claim. He runs out on Hildy, promising he’ll be back soon as he can.

The rest of the film is about the Cable/Hildy relationship in which Peckinpah presents about as honest a portrayal of human beings and their struggle to survive and find comfort in one another in a brutal world as has ever been put on film. At one point Hildy asks Cable if her being a prostitute bothered him.

“Hell no, it never bothered me,” he answers. “I enjoyed it. Now what the hell are you? A human being? Trying the best you can. We all got our own ways of living.”

“And loving?” Hildy asks.

“Gets mighty lonesome without it.”

Despite the hard-boiled attitude both characters profess to adopt, after they’ve spent some time living together in his house, in one brief moment it all comes down like a house of cards. They’re having dinner with the Rev. Sloan and talk turns to Hogue’s penny pinching ways, charging everyone for water and food when they stop at the Springs. The reverend says he’s surprised Cable doesn’t charge Hildy for supper. “Why would I charge you?” Cable tells her. “You never charge me.” And, because of that one thoughtless sentence, suddenly you see a dream die on Hildy’s face. It’s the end of their relationship. The scene -for all its subtlety - has a devastating emotional impact.

There’s more to the story, including Hildy’s return after living in San Francisco, and the long- awaited showdown between Cable and his erstwhile partners, Taggert and Bowen. Strother Martin and L. Q. Jones, who were part of Peckinpah’s informal stock company, having appeared in several of his films, are perfect here. Nobody took a bullet and died on film better than L. Q. Nobody.

The ending is not comedic at all. It is filled with a sad irony that shows as simply and as understatedly as possible, what a puzzling thing life really is.

BY LEE PFEIFFER

As with any major film star who dies young, Jean Seberg has become a cult of personality to some film fans, partly due to the fact that she died in Paris from an overdose of barbiturates at age 40 in 1979.  Her death was ruled a suicide but conspiracy theories still abound because she was deemed a political radical by the FBI due to her association with far left wing causes and her support of the Black Panther party. On screen, however, Seberg's characters were generally  not radical, although her breakthrough film did find her as the female lead in Godard's classic 1960 crime flick Breathless. Still, there were some hints of Seberg's liberated woman persona in her early career. One such film was In the French Style, a largely forgotten 1963 production based on Irwin Shaw's novel. Shaw wrote the screenplay and the film was directed by Robert Parrish, a respected veteran of the movie industry who never enjoyed a career-defining major hit. (The closest he came was directing segments of the bloated 1967 spoof version of Casino Royale.) The movie opens in Paris with Seberg as Christina James, a 19 year old free spirited girl from Chicago who has come to the City of Light to hone her skills as a painter. In the process of trying to acclimate herself to the metropolitan lifestyle, she meets Guy ((Philippe Forquet), a headstrong, sometimes arrogant 21 year-old who is nonetheless charismatic and quite handsome. He woos Christina and before long, they are a couple swept up in a whirlwind romance. However, it isn't long before there are strains due in part to their impoverished lifestyle. Guy, being a typical guy, tries to get Christina into bed, but she says when it happens, it will be on her terms and conditions. When the big moment arises, Guy's romantic evening turns into a disaster because he only has enough money to rent a room at a flophouse hotel without heat. In the course of the strained evening,  Guy confesses to Christina that he cannot perform sexually because he is too nervous. He makes a shocking confession: he is actually a 16 year old high school boy and a virgin at that. While this does bring the story into a completely unexpected direction, it's the one element of the film that strains credibility largely due to the fact that Forquet was actually 23 years old at the time and looks it. Nevertheless, this plot device takes us away from what was shaping up as a conventional "boy meets girl" romance and plunges the viewer into unknown waters. 

The story then jumps ahead in time and we find Christina now in her early twenties and very much in step with the Parisian lifestyle. She is the toast of her neighborhood's social scene and the belle of the ball in terms of attracting male suitors. In a rather progressive depiction of a single woman for the year 1963, it is made abundantly clear that Christina has her pick of lovers and routinely engages in short-term sexual affairs. Every time she meets the "right man", it turns out that differences in their lifestyles prevent them from enjoying a traditional relationship. Her father (very well played by Addison Powell) visits her from Chicago and, again Shaw's script goes against the conventional depiction of father and daughter relationships generally seen in movies during this era. Instead of being a square old fuddy duddy, Dad is actually amused by his daughter's somewhat hedonistic lifestyle and he asks her how many lovers she has had. "A couple", she replies, but it becomes clear that both of them regard that as a drastic understatement. When her father asks to see the paintings she has been working on for years, he gently informs her that they are below the quality he had expected. He cautions her that her party-filled lifestyle may be compromising her potential. Christina objects and two part company under a strain, but it becomes clear that her father's words have resonated with her and that it might be time to develop plans for a more productive career path. 

All of that changes when she has a chance encounter with Walter Beddoes (Stanley Baker), a hard-drinking international newspaper journalist. They enjoy a torrid affair and fall in love but, alas, fate rears its ugly head once again when Walter's requirements to travel extensively takes him away from Christina for months at a time. He confesses to her that, while abroad "I don't live like a monk". Christina says she accepts that he will have other lovers but makes it clear that she will, too. Such behavior from a young couple was rarely depicted so honestly on screen in 1963, an era in which sexually assertive women were generally painted as floozies. By the time Walter returns from a three month stint in Africa, he finds Christina has a new boyfriend, an American doctor from San Francisco (James Leo Herlihy), who she says she intends to marry. She has a civilized lunch with both men, as Walter tries to persuade her to resume her affair with him. She confesses that she has seen her share of former lovers ultimately drop her to marry the girl of her dreams, a status she somehow never attains in their eyes.  This climactic sequence left me a bit disappointed because in the end, Christina- that most liberated of young women- decides to throw in the towel to become a doctor's wife and live in San Francisco. However, director Parrish does afford us the nagging possibility that she knows she is selling out by doing so. 

In the French Style is a very worthwhile experience. The Parisian locations add immeasurably to its pleasures and the crisp B&W cinematography Michel Kelber is impressive, as is the Joseph Kosma's atmospheric score. Not much happens dramatically in the film. You keep waiting for some earth-shaking development to emerge but it never does. However, that's part of the movie's charm. It recalls an era in which studios routinely backed small films with fine actors (they are all wonderful here) and gave them intelligent dialogue and direction.

Twilight Time has issued an impressive limited edition (3,000) Blu-ray edition that does justice to the fine B&W cinematography. The bonus extras include an isolated score track, informative commentary by film historians Lem Dobbs, Julie Kirgo and Nick Redman, a theatrical trailer and a collector's booklet with liner notes by Kirgo. 

CLICK HERE TO ORDER TWILIGHT TIME BLU-RAY SPECIAL EDITION

CLICK HERE TO ORDER SONY BASIC DVD EDITION FROM THE CINEMA RETRO MOVIE STORE

BY LEE PFEIFFER

Some of the best private eye thrillers tend to be complex and sometimes incomprehensible affairs. Howard Hawks' "The Big Sleep", for example, had a plot that could not be comprehended even by the people who made the film, but it ranks as one of the great movies in the crime genre. Similarly, director Arthur Penn's 1975 mystery "Night Moves" (the title is- appropriately enough- a metaphor) sat on a shelf for over a year before it went into general release, only to be greeted by an apathetic public. There were some prescient critics like Roger Ebert who foresaw the film's enduring qualities but, for the most part, "Night Moves" didn't get much attention in a year in which the likes of great films like "Jaws", "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest', "Dog Day Afternoon" and "Barry Lyndon" were in release. The movie began to gain steam over the decades with the critical establishment and is now considered to be a classic by many, thus its arrival on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive is much appreciated by retro movie lovers.

The film reunited Gene Hackman with Arthur Penn after their triumphant work on "Bonnie and Clyde" (1967). Hackman was a supporting character in that film but received an Oscar nomination. In "Night Moves" he is the front-and-center star, in almost every scene and he dominates the movie with a superb, laid-back performance that is so natural that it reminds us of how Hackman's genius was to make you think you are watching a real-life person. He plays Harry Moseby, an L.A. private eye who isn't down-and-out like most of his cinematic counterparts, but is not setting the world on fire, either. He's a complex man haunted by bad childhood memories and he's got some contemporary problems, as well. His wife Ellen (Susan Clark) is bored and frustrated that Harry is too remote and spends far too much of his time on low-paying cases. He catches her having an affair but it's clear her lover (Harris Yulin) is more of a distraction than a passion. While Harry is trying to reconcile with Ellen, he's hired by Arlene Iverson (Janet Ward), a one-time minor starlet with a knack for marrying rich men. She wants Harry to find her wayward, runaway 16 year-old daughter Delly (Melanie Griffith), with whom she has a terrible relationship. Seems Arlene is dependent upon the funds from a trust that her late husband set up for Delly. As long as Arlene lives with the girl, she can continue residing in a mansion and enjoy a lavish lifestyle. However, once Delly turns 25, the spigot is turned off and Delly gets control of her fortune. The case leads Harry to the Florida Keys where Delly's stepfather, Tom Iverson (John Crawford) (divorced from Arlene) runs a charting plane service. He's surrounded by plenty of unsavory types, some of whom are employed as stuntmen in the movie business. At least two of them- Marv Ellman (Anthony Costello) and Quentin (James Woods)- have had sexual flings with the free-spirited Delly. Harry discovers Delly living openly with Tom Iverson and she resents having to be brought back to L.A. by Harry. She tells him her mother only views her as a source of income. While at Tom's place, Harry also becomes involved with another female with a troubled past, Paula (Jennifer Warren), who had once been both a stripper and a hooker before latching onto Tom and helping him with the plane charter business.She speaks in riddles and her dialogue with Harry is marvelously coy. (When she asks him where he was when Kennedy was assassinated, he replies "Which Kennedy"?).

Alan Sharp's terrific screenplay is witty and complex and chances are that when some of the mysteries are resolved, you'll end up scratching your head wondering what it all meant. "Night Moves" is a film that requires a few viewings before it all makes sense but that's part of the delight in seeing it for the first time. The dialogue crackles with bon mots and there are numerous intriguing sub-plots that sometimes overshadow Harry's primary mission, which, it turns out is explained in part by a MacGuffin. Hackman is superb, as is Arthur Penn's direction. The film has a moody, menacing atmosphere throughout, aided considerably by Bruce Surtees' typically dark cinematography. The supporting cast is letter-perfect with Jennifer Warren outstanding in an early screen role (she should have become a much bigger star, though she has found success as a director.) Also seen in an early role, James Woods impresses substantially in his limited screen time. Susan Clark (long underrated as an actress) is very good indeed, as is veteran character actor Edward Binns and Janet Ward. Young Melanie Griffith also impresses, though, ironically she played essentially the same role in another gumshoe flick that same year, "The Drowning Pool".  I also admired the jazzy score by Michael Small. The finale of the film is most memorable. It's not only suspenseful and exciting but also intriguingly ambiguous with Harry on a boat literally spinning in circles, as the viewer may well be in terms of comprehending what has just occurred.

Because the original film elements of "Night Moves" were in decline, the Warner Archive spent a good time of time and money to restore the movie to its initial grandeur. The results paid off with an excellent transfer that does justice to Penn's artistic vision. Kudos to all involved. There are also some bonus extras: an original trailer and a vintage featurette, "The Day of the Director" that provides some very good behind-the-scenes footage of the movie in production.  However, the Blu-ray cries out for an audio commentary to allow analysis of the film's many complex aspects. Perhaps a future release will include one. For now, this is a "must-have" for your video library.

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

The film must have seemed to have the makings of a classic. Director Vincente Minnelli reuniting with Kirk Douglas for the first time since their triumphant The Bad and the Beautiful a decade earlier. Edward G. Robinson co-starring and a supporting cast that included Cyd Charrise, Claire Trevor, James Gregory, George MacReady, George Hamilton and lovely up-and-coming actresses Rosanna Schiaffino and Daliah Lavi. Add to this exotic Rome locations during the era when La Dolce Vita was all the rage plus a source novel by Irwin Shaw -- this had to be a project that couldn't miss. Alas, it did indeed go off-target, but the fact that the 1962 screen version of 2 Weeks in Another Town falls short of its potential doesn't mean it isn't a gloriously trashy spectacle to behold.

Douglas plays Jack Andrus, a washed up, one-time screen legend who is driven to the brink of insanity by the philandering nature of his Italian wife (Charisse), who ended up having an affair with Douglas' friend and collaborator, screen director Maurice Kruger (Robinson). Years later, Andrus is contacted by Kruger, whose career is also in decline, to reunite for a Rome-based major film that could revive their reputations and popularity. When Andrus gets to Italy, he discovers there is no part for him in the picture, but Kruger felt it would be therapeutic to have him assist in the dubbing of the film. Before long, the love/hate relationship between the two men sparks jealous and anger, with Kruger's Lady MacBeth-like wife (Trevor) constantly finding ways to cause friction. Adding to the soap opera aspects of the story is the presence of an Italian screen diva (Schiaffino), whose temper tantrums have everyone on edge. Andrus does find solace in the arms of a young lovely (Lavi) but before long is embroiled in enough personal intrigue and frustration to once again threaten his sanity.

The film is certainly not high art. Douglas dominates the landscape with the type of eye-popping antics that made him a favorite of impressionists during the era. Robinson is far more understated and it's great fun to watch the two conflicting acting styles in the same scenes. The film benefits from some good location scenery including rare glimpses of fabled Cinecitta Studios during its heyday, but Minnelli relies far too often on cheesy rear-screen projection shots that distract from the byplay among the actors. The story is often overly melodramatic and somewhat confusing, with the vast number of characters intertwined in each other's scandals. However, it never reaches the so-bad-it's-good status the similarly- themed The Oscar, which is somewhat of a mixed blessing.  With a few more "over-the-top" elements, Minnelli could have created a trash classic. As it stands, 2 Weeks in Another Town is too campy to be called a truly good film, and not campy enough to emerge as a cult movie. Still, with all the powerhouse talent involved, it never commits the cardinal sin of being dull.

The Warner Archive Blu-ray features a very good transfer and includes the original theatrical trailer.

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

I've long had admiration for the work of actor Robert Shaw ever since he impressed me at age 8 with his chilling interpretation of the SPECTRE psychotic killer Red Grant in "From Russia With Love". Shaw could always be counted on to deliver a fine performance even if the material he chose was sometimes underwhelming. Shaw was also a talented writer and playwright, having won acclaim for his play "The Man in the Glass Booth", which was inspired by the war criminal trial of Adolf Eichmann. Shaw, like many actors, participated in many questionable films in order to enable his real passion, which was to bring avante garde movie projects to fruition, even if they only appealed to the art cinema crowd. One of Shaw's most interesting vehicles is one of his least seen. "Figures in a Landscape" was his 1970 adaptation of an allegorical novel by Barry England that abounded with reference to the (then) on-going Vietnam war. Shaw dispensed with that aspect of the novel and instead played up its more opaque aspects, particularly those that concern the two protagonists in what is basically a two-character adventure. The film opens with Shaw and co-star Malcolm McDowell on the run in an unnamed country being pursued by unnamed forces (presumably the police and/or military) for unspecified crimes. One senses they are political prisoners in a totalitarian state but this is never addressed directly. Shaw is MacConnachie ("Mac"), a middle-aged man with a colorful past that often found him on the opposite side of the law. McDowell is Ansell, a twenty-something free spirited type from London whose social values are the polar opposite of Mac's old fashioned values. When we first see the men, they are running at a high rate of speed and have to contend with the major obstacle of having their hands bound behind their backs. We never learn how they effected their escape and from whom but these are just several key questions that Shaw's screenplay goes to lengths in terms of not filling in the audience on the details. The two men, bound by their mutual need for one another, bicker and bark at each other like  Tony Curtis and Sidney Poitier in "The Defiant Ones" with Mac channeling his future performance as Quint in "Jaws" by constantly attacking the younger man for being the product of a soft generation. As these types of films generally play out, Mac and Ansell are able to win some small victories through mutual efforts and begin to develop a grudging but sincere admiration for each other. (In one of the script's few instances of humor, we learn that Mac is somewhat of a prude by the way he chastises the younger generation for the sexual promiscuity afforded by "The Pill".) They finally figure out a way to free their bonds and obtain food, water and arms. However, they find themselves relentlessly pursued by a helicopter piloted by faceless, nameless men who coordinate a widespread army of pursuers on the ground The image of the helicopter haunts Mac and Ansell throughout their desperate race across a harsh landscape that contains both deserts and high, snow-covered mountains. Throughout their ordeal, the men come to know each other better though Shaw's screenplay, perhaps not coincidentally, gives his character far meatier material than McDowell gets to work with. Shaw is at his best in the quiet sequences, reminiscing about his beloved wife who waits for his return home.

The film falls short of its Kafkaesque pretensions but is never less than engaging, thanks in no small part to the skill of director Joseph Losey in keeping the bizarre aspects of the scripts from becoming too alienating for the audience. There is also superb cinematography that does justice to the magnificent, if sometimes foreboding, Spanish landscapes and a fine score by the estimable Richard Rodney Bennett. It's unclear what Shaw was trying to say in this sometimes puzzling film that at times evokes aspects of Patrick McGoohan's classic TV series "The Prisoner". This jumbled aspect of the story robs the film of some of its potential dramatic payoffs but there is real satisfaction in watching Shaw and McDowell in parts that are this meaty. We only learn enough about each character to tantalize us even further regarding how they ended up in this dilemma and it's probably best that Shaw never provides any easy answers. However, some of the men's actions and interactions cry out for a bit more clarification especially in the exciting climax when Mac is motivated to take on downing the hated helicopter even at an unnecessary risk to his own life.

"Figures in a Landscape" has been released by Kino Lorber on Blu-ray. As with most of the company's titles, this one boasts a superb transfer that does justice to the impressive filming locations. Unfortunately, no extras are included. A pity because this film cries out for a commentary track that could have covered not only the movie itself but also Shaw's remarkable career, one that never completely fulfilled its potential because of his own personal demons.

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Cinema Retro has received the following press release:

Get ready for a laugh in the cult-classic comedy that has captured everyone’s hearts when The Big Lebowski 20th Anniversary Limited Edition debuts for the first time ever on 4K Ultra Combo Pack that also includes Blu-rayâ„¢ and Digital via the digital movie app MOVIES ANYWHERE on October 16, 2018, from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment. Fans can relive the hilariously freewheeling plot of one of the most beloved films of all-time with the twisted crime-comedy starring Jeff Bridges (Crazy Heart, True Grit), John Goodman (10 Cloverfield Lane, Argo), Julianne Moore (The Hours, Still Alice), Steve Buscemi (Fargo, Ghost World), Philip Seymour Hoffman (The Master, Capote) and John Turturro (Barton Fink, Fading Gigolo). The Big Lebowski 20th Anniversary Limited Edition is the perfect gift for any fan and the exclusive set includes a collectible bag, bowling ball pencil holder, polishing cloth and sweater packaging offering an experience like no other to look back on the cultural phenomenon of The Dude in the “#1 cult film of all time” (The Boston Globe).  

With unforgettable scenes and outrageous humor, The Big Lebowski 20th Anniversary Edition showcases hours of bonus features including retrospective documentaries, an interactive map, an in-depth look at the phenomenon known as the Lebowski Fest taking audiences deeper than ever before into the upside down world of “The Dude.”

From the Academy Award®-winning Coen brothers, The Big Lebowski is a hilariously quirky comedy about bowling, a severed toe, White Russians and a guy named…The Dude. Jeff “The Dude” Lebowski doesn’t want any drama in his life…heck, he can’t even be bothered with a job. But, he must embark on a quest with his bowling buddies after his rug is destroyed in a twisted case of mistaken identity.

BONUS FEATURES:

·        The Dude’s Life: Jeff Bridges, John Goodman, Julianne Moore, Steve Buscemi and John Turturro take a look back at their performances and how their delivery of the Coen brothers’ dialog became classic movie lines.

·        The Dude Abides: The Big Lebowski Ten Years Later: A conversation with the cast about the film’s decade-long reign as a cult classic.

·        Making of The Big Lebowski

·        The Lebowski Fest: An Achiever’s Story: An in-depth look at the annual Lebowski Fest, a celebration of The Dude and his world, attended by thousands each year.

·        Flying Carpets and Bowling Pin Dreams: The Dream Sequences of The Dude: A look at some of the Dude’s trippiest fantasies so fans can learn for the first time how these innovative scenes were created.

·        Interactive Map: Take a tour of the locations of The Big Lebowski, then and now.

·        Jeff Bridges Photo Book: For more than 30 years, Jeff Bridges has been snapping pictures on movie sets. The accomplished photographer presents a portfolio of shots taken on the set of The Big Lebowski.

·        Photo Gallery

·        And Much More!

The Big Lebowski 20th Anniversary Edition will be available on 4K Ultra HD combo pack which includes Blu-rayTM and Digital, and Movies Anywhere.

4K Ultra HD is the ultimate movie watching experience. 4K Ultra HD features the combination of 4K resolution for four times sharper picture than HD, the color brilliance of High Dynamic Range (HDR) with immersive audio delivering a multidimensional sound experience.

Blu-rayTM unleashes the power of your HDTV and is the best way to watch movies at home, featuring 6X the picture resolution of DVD, exclusive extras and theater-quality surround sound.

Digital lets fans watch movies anywhere on their favorite devices. Users can instantly stream or download.

Movies Anywhere is the digital app that simplifies and enhances the digital movie collection and viewing experience by allowing consumers to access their favorite digital movies in one place when purchased or redeemed through participating digital retailers. Consumers can also redeem digital copy codes found in eligible Blu-rayTM and DVD disc packages from participating studios and stream or download them through Movies Anywhere. MOVIES ANYWHERE is only available in the United States. For more information, visit https://moviesanywhere.com.     

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 (Click here to order limited edition gift set)

FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER, TIME LIFE BRINGS TOGETHER

THE STOOGES BIGGEST NYUKS IN AN EXCLUSIVE SLAPSTICK COLLECTION WORTHY OF ONE OF THE ALL-TIME GREAT COMEDY TEAMS!

THE BEST OF THE THREE STOOGES

AVAILABLE NOW, EXCLUSIVELY AT THREESTOOGESDVDS.COM

DVD SRP: $99.95

Across 13 Hilarious Discs, Lovers of the Three Stooges Will Find Over

45 Incredible Hours of Content, Including All of the Columbia Pictures

Shorts (1934-1945), Four Feature Films, Vintage Animated Cartoons,

the 9-Part Documentary Series "Hey Moe! Hey Dad!," a Collectible,

Full-Color Memory Book and More!

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

"Nyuk Nyuk Nyuk...Why I Oughta..."

For over 50 years, The Three Stooges presented a brand of pie-throwing, eye-poking and head-bonking routines that cracked up multiple generations. They were the masters of mirth, merriment and mayhem, turning slapstick comedy into an art form. And, with a body of work including over 300 films, television, stage shows, cartoons and more - they're forever ingrained in popular culture. Now, one of the greatest comedy troupes of all time is here to poke, smack, slap and bonk their way onto your screens with THE BEST OF THE THREE STOOGES!

With this riotous DVD set, Time Life has brought together the Stooges greatest hits in one exclusive collection, priced at $99.95 and available only at ThreeStoogesDVDs.com. Across 13 uproarious discs, viewers will yuk it up with over 45 hours of knee-slapping content brought together for the very first time, including: 

• THE BEST OF THE THREE STOOGES: COLUMBIA PICTURES SHORTS 1934-1945 -- These two volumes feature 87 hilarious short films from 1934 to 1945. Witness the rise of these comedy icons in this high-spirited collection containing the first of the iconic Columbia Pictures Shorts. Watch as the Stooges hit their stride and began to settle into their definitive roles- Moe as boss, Larry the middleman, and Curly as their foil -- and experience what has become regarded as the high point in the Three Stooges career - the Golden Age! (8 Discs; 1496 mins)  

• THE BEST OF THE THREE STOOGES: SHORTS, CARTOONS, & FEATURE FILMS -- From feature-length films to rare cartoons and vintage shorts - this collection is sure to leave a smile on your face and a bump on the back of your noggin! It includes Shemp Howard Comedy Shorts (14 classics from the '30s & '40s); Joe Besser Comedy Shorts (10 side-splitters from the '40s & '50s), Joe DeRita Comedy Shorts (4 smackers from the '40s), Feature Films (The Three Stooges (2000, biopic); Have Rocket, Will Travel; The Outlaws Is Coming and Rockin' in the Rockies; The Three Stooges Cartoons, inludingBon Bon Parade (1935), Merry Mutineers (1936), A Hollywood Detour (1942), as well as the bonus 9-part documentary series "Hey Moe! Hey Dad!," which takes fans behind the scenes with the family of The Three Stooges as they share never-before-seen footage and photos. (5 discs; 1309 mins) 

About Time Life

Time Life is one of the world's pre-eminent creators and direct marketers of unique music and video/DVD products, specializing in distinctive multi-media collections that evoke memories of yesterday, capture the spirit of today, and can be enjoyed for a lifetime. TIME LIFE and the TIME LIFE logo are registered trademarks of Time Warner Inc. and affiliated companies used under license by Direct Holdings Americas Inc., which is not affiliated with Time Warner Inc. or Time Inc.

THE BEST OF THE THREE STOOGES

Type: DVD/13 Discs

Running Time: Approximately 2805 mins.

Genre: TV DVD

Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 & 1.78:1

Audio: Stereo & Dolby Digital 5.1

BY FRED BLOSSER

Two 1960s murder thrillers with Joan Crawford have been released by Mill Creek Entertainment on single-disc Blu-ray. The cover sleeve bills the package as a “Psycho Biddy Double Feature.” The films are “Strait-Jacket” (1964), the first of Crawford’s three pictures with producer-director William Castle, and “Berserk!” (1967), her first of two with producer Herman Cohen. In using the possibly ageist and definitely sexist phrase “Psycho Biddy,” Mill Creek’s marketing department clearly hopes that audiences will have fond memories of the frenzied, middle-aged Joan Crawford in 1981’s “Mommie Dearest,” shrieking “I told you! No . . . wire . . . hangers -- ever!” at her terrified adopted child, Christina. Never mind that the belittling term “biddy” is problematic in the case of Joan Crawford. There may be plenty of biddies in the world, but the imperious Joan was never one of them. Never mind either that it was Faye Dunaway impersonating Joan Crawford in “Mommie Dearest,” not Crawford herself. For most casual movie fans, the distinctions are not likely to matter.

In “Strait-Jacket,” scripted by Robert Bloch, prosperous farm owner Lucy Harbin (Crawford) returns unexpectedly from a trip to find her younger husband (Lee Majors -- his first film role) in bed with another woman. Enraged, Lucy seizes an ax and butchers the pair as her young daughter Carol watches. Released from a mental institution twenty years later, Lucy is welcomed home by her brother Bill and her sister-in-law Emily (Leif Erickson and Rochelle Hudson), who have reared Carol in the meantime. Carol (Diane Baker) encourages her mother to ease back into a normal routine by looking and dressing as she had, two decades before. The gray-haired Lucy dons a black, ‘40s-style wig and trades in her dowdy outfit for a tight dress. The tactic goes awry when Lucy, drinking too much out of nervousness and getting tipsy, puts a move on Carol’s uptight boyfriend Michael. More stresses mount. Lucy hears things, sees things, and dreads meeting Michael’s even stuffier parents, who are unaware of her history. As they skip rope outside a store where Lucy is shopping, two little girls appear to be chanting, “Lucy Harbin took an ax . . .” Bill’s creepy, disheveled hired hand, Leo (George Kennedy, almost unrecognizable at first glance), asks if she wants to use his ax to chop the head off a chicken. Lucy’s therapist drops in for a visit and observing how tense she is, gravely suggests that she’s at risk of a relapse. Then one murder occurs, followed by a second, and evidence points to Lucy.

After the headlong pace and gruesome CGI of modern slasher movies, even older viewers are likely to find “Strait-Jacket” quaint at best. A similar production today would probably wind up as a made-for-cable, “my mom is a murderer” melodrama on the Lifetime Movie Network. The film’s pacing is deliberate, and the carnage is low-tech and mostly implied, despite the old lobby poster’s promise in grand William Castle style that “Strait-Jacket vividly depicts ax murders!” Although the restrictions on movie violence had relaxed a little by 1964, and a melodrama filmed in black-and-white like “Strait-Jacket” might tease the MPAA standards on mayhem with slightly more success than one photographed in color, studios were still careful not to push their luck too far. Of the three ax attacks in the film, only one explicitly shows grievous bodily harm. Even so, with quick editing and minimal gore, the effect is more impressionistic than realistic. These days, grislier special effects routinely appear on prime-time TV crime shows.

Millcreek Entertainment is offering a wide selection of titles from their archives at a sale price for unlimited streaming. Click here to access the sale and view all titles.

BY FRED BLOSSER

As movie censorship relaxed in the early 1970s, Mel Welles’ horror film “Lady Frankenstein” added sex and nudity to the familiar Frankenstein formula of the single-minded and arguably demented scientist who creates a monster and lives to regret it. In the 1971 production, now available in a handsome, fully loaded Blu-ray edition from Nucleus Films encoded for Region B, Dr. Tanya Frankenstein (Rosalba Neri) returns home to the family estate after completing medical school. Having inherited the family obsession, she is determined to help her father (Joseph Cotten) realize his long-frustrated ambition of creating human life in his laboratory. When Baron Frankenstein and his associate Dr. Marshall (Paul Muller) balk at including the refined young woman in their gory experiments, she fiercely overrides their objections: “Stop treating me like a child! I’m a doctor and a surgeon.” Frankenstein and Marshall successfully reanimate a creature that they’ve stitched together from plundered cadavers, but events take a turn for the worse, and soon a suspicious police officer, Inspector Harris (Mickey Hargitay), begins nosing around the Frankenstein castle.

“Lady Frankenstein” was filmed in Italy and independently marketed in Europe, where Rosalba Neri, Mickey Hargitay, and Paul Muller were popular actors in genre movies. In the U.S., it was distributed by Roger Corman’s New World Pictures. Inexplicably, New World billed Rosalba Neri as “Sara Bay” in the American credits and promotional materials, and depicted the exotically beautiful brunette actress as a blonde in the poster art. Like many other exploitation films from the same period, notably New World’s own series of Women-in-Prison productions like “The Big Bird Cage,” it professes to have a feminist message while at the same time including a fair amount of female nudity to meet the expectations of the grindhouse audiences to which it was pitched, here and abroad.

The feminist aspect is clear when Tanya discusses the resistance she faced in the conservative halls of higher learning. “Was it difficult, very difficult, being my daughter?” her father asks sympathetically. “Sometimes,” Tanya responds, “but mainly because I was a woman. The professors still have a lot of old-fashioned ideas about a woman’s place.” In the wake of recent news events, many of us will sympathize with Tanya’s dilemma and reflect that things haven’t changed a lot in the male-dominated corridors of power, either in the two hundred years since the early-1800s setting of “Lady Frankenstein,” or indeed in the forty-seven years since the film was made.

However, as the story progresses and Tanya takes center stage, she begins to employ sex, seduction, and murder to achieve her ends. You may start to wonder: do her ruthless and increasingly cruel methods invalidate the movie’s claim to advance a feminist theme . . . or underscore it? When one character is murdered in cold blood at her suggestion while she has sex with him to distract his attention, does the film idealize -- or objectify -- Rosalba Neri’s bare breasts and ecstatic facial expressions? When the infatuated, middle-aged Marshall professes his love for her, does Tanya practice gender bias in reverse by suggesting that she respects his intellect, but she’d respect it more if Marshall were also young and handsome? The answers, I suppose, depend on your interpretation of female empowerment.