HarryLong

Well, there's a coupla gory ones there, depending one one's definition... (Mine would be RE-ANIMATOR, but some might find BRIDES OF DRACULA gory.)

*Even Helen Broderick is preferable.* Clore, you have no idea how close I came to adding those very words to my initial post. I have no particular dislike of Pitts. I appreciate her work in a nymber of films. But she is a disaster as Hildegarde Withers. It's no wonder the series ended after her turn.

Better stick with anything pre-1970... maybe even pre-1960. Hammer, beginning with CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN in 1957 started the trend of bloodier horror films (though mostly today the blood in their earliest films look like red makeup dribbled about - not terribly realistic) and things escalated from there.

It is available: http://www.amazon.com/Jekyll-Sister-Hyde-Ralph-Bates/dp/B00005OSJV/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1286477037&sr=1-1

Yer nuts!

*What makes a great romantic movie?* It's usually vital that one of the charcters die at the end: ROMEO & JULIET, CAMILLE, WATERLOO BRIDGE, LOVE STORY, KING KONG... AT the very least the lovers are unable to be together: NOW VOYAGER, CASABLANCA... Things like NINOTCHKA is a romantic comedy & IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT is a screwball comedy... very different animals.

Or did you discover that this isn't really a Vivien Leigh thread?

*The problem is finding translations for the films and most of them aren't released. I imagine TCM can only show those issued by Kino.* TCM has also shown non-US films released by Janus/Criterion, films fantoma and Flicker Alley among other companies. But you are correct in stating that access to subbed or dubbed versions is crucial. If the films mentioned in the OP are not available as such, then TCM won't be showing them. I could just imagine the hue & cry if these film were simply screened in their original German language... And this is a bit of a pity. For those of us in the US, the German cinema from the end of the war to, approximately 1960 is a black hole. And I, for one, would find it intriguing to see what the country's filmmakers turned out during that period. Only in the last few years have we started to have the opportunity to see some of the films made during the war (TITANIC and MUNCHAUSEN, for instance). I hope it won't be too long till we get to see some post-war titles.

*I've gotten more into Shelley's autobio. She claims to have had affairs, or at least one-night stands, with a long list of luminaries.* A friend who read it before I did described the book as "And then I f****d..."

There are some things I like better in the Vivien Leigh version than the Garbo version. The score is gorgeous, for one thing. Ralph Richardson makes the husband just slightly morte sympathetic than Basil Rathbone - he lets us see the hurt seeping through a bit. And unlike the MGM version - where the Karenins seemed to have taken up residence in the Winter Palace - the house here is grand but not unbelievably so. Kieron Moore is a bit stiff, but a lot better looking than Frederick March - you can understand why Anna would fall for him. I do think Greta Garbo might have a slightb edge over Leigh, though, in her portrayal of Anna. The film doesn't quite come together as a film, though, the way the Garbo version does & I've never quite figured out just why. It is, however, a lot better than its reputation has it.

*They weren't the only ones. Why was Iron Butterfly called "Iron Butterfly?" Because their allegiance lay behind the Iron Curtain!* You mean they weren't a Jeanette MacDonald tribute band???? I have been seriously led astray...

It was released on VHS, and some pricey copies are on Amazon & E-Bay Hmmm... as I've burned my copy to DVD, perhaps I should look into selling it...

Not lost ... sold. MCA/Universal now owns most all pre-1949 Paramount titles.

*in the poster Blanche does look like a lady and a fairly healthy and good looking one* But with ET's neck...

All this defense of J. Carroll Naish... I've obviously uncovered a nest of anarchists.

That means it's your turn to be "it." Count to a hundred while we all go hide. Edited by: HarryLong on Sep 17, 2010 3:02 PM

As well they might.

AMC, rather late in their pre-commercial break peiod would show newer films full-frame in prime-time & repeat them in widescreen after midnight. I recall them showing RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK this way. There were others, but I'm just not recalling the titles right now. And they also showed several other Hammer films (in addition to what was listed above) in their widescreen versions... CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN I definitely recall being shown that way. Speaking of that last title, it should be noted that not all WS were filmed with any kind of anamorphic process. Some were filmed Academy Ratio with the intention of being projected with the top and bottom of the image being masked off. If you see a full-screen version of most Hammer films, for instance, you're not seeing less info on thge sides than intended, you're seeing more info on the top and bottom.

*Is this the newly restored version?* It was the last time they showed it, about a month or so ago. And there must be more footage in the restored version because it ran longer than the timing given in the online program guide. This time I'll put the DVDR on 2.5 hour mode... EDIT: I see this time they're giving the running time as 135 minutes. Edited by: HarryLong on Sep 17, 2010 1:24 PM

I think this one is still MIA on DVD...

*whose best effort as a director was "House of Wax"* Which isn't saying very much, is it?

You could also check out some budget bins at the likes of Walmart or Big Lots. The DVD has gone OOP (probably because it is scheculed for a BkuRay release). I found a copy at Big Lots for $3.

*Not to sound snarky, but how much would most people be willing to pay for Marsha Hunt's autograph?* At these conventions finding anyone to give oput a free autograph is just abouy unheard of any more. And that would include people you might only know as the "third blonde on the left" In THE VIKING WOMEN... While she never quite achieved star status, she had a substantial film career until she was smeared by the McCarthy witch-hunts.

Just made a random selection, which happened to be THE SPIRITUALIST - wanted to check if indeed this was the film aslo known as THE AMAZING MR. X (it is). The aspect ratio is listed as 1.85. For a film made in 1948????

I've known about it for years but I've never seen it or known it to be shown on TV. Anyone have any idea why Paramount has it hidden away. They can't have lost the rights because the later Redford/Farrow version is also a Paramount production.