film lover 293

Crinoline and Romance (1923)?

A few I'm looking forward to: March 8th--"Doctor Faustus" (1967)--I know this got horrific reviews when released, but I've always wanted to see it--never ran across it. March 9th--"The Sandpiper" (1965)--For those who remember "Le Scandale", this film is a series of howlers. March 12th--"Carmen Jones" (1954) and "The Bride's Play" (1921)--a Marion Davies film I'm looking forward to. March 21st--"Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" (1982)--The Broadway musical with Angela Lansbury and George Hearn--For those who haven't seen it, Essential viewing for fans of the musical--this is Way Better than Tim Burton's 2007 film. Wonderful score--and it's showing at 11:00 a.m. this time, not 4:30 a.m. March 29th--"Mademoiselle Fifi" (1944)--One of the few Val Lewton films I've missed. Edited for correction.

"The Swimmer" (1968)--Starring Burt Lancaster, Marge Champion, and Janice Rule. Allegorical film based on the John Cheever short story has Ned Merrill (Lancaster) swimming his way home through a series of neighbors pools in suburban Connecticut. At each pool, the viewer learns something bad or good about Merrill and his past, and what brought him to his current state. Cinematographer David Quaid (he also shot 1968's "Pretty Poison") sets the mood of the film. At the beginning, all is sunny and the pool is bright and clear. As the viewer learns about Merrills' past, the photography grows darker and darker. There are two shots that are almost exactly the same; the one near the films beginning makes Lancaster look about twenty; the one toward the end of the film makes him look about seventy. Lancaster acts without seeming to act, if that makes sense. He is very good. Janice Rule, as a past mistress of his, is excellent. Marvin Hamlisch contributes an emotional, lush score for one of his first credits. Look for Joan Rivers and Kim Hunter. Unusual film is very much worth a watch. 3/4. Source--archive.org. Search "ThSwmr1968".

"Conquest of Space" (1955)--Produced by George Pal, directed by Byron Haskin. Took me four tries to make it through this muddled space opera. Nice special effects by Pal, and a good musical score by Van Cleave don't save this mess of a movie. Films' script insists it's mans' duty to explore space, then turns on a dime and says it's a sacrilege to explore space. The clip that's from "Bring On the Girls" (1953) just made me wish I had watched a different film. Movie is just about a massive collective case of cabin fever and who will crack up first. When you've seen everything else Pal produced, check this out. 2.3/4

Greer Garson, Richard Ney, "Mrs. Miniver (1942)?

Peter O'Toole

The Battleship Potemkin (1925) Next--Kansas

Hint--silent film.

"It Came From Outer Space" (1953)--Starring Richard Carlson and Barbara Rush. Directed by Jack Arnold. Film is based on a Ray Bradbury story, touched up by screenwriter Harry Essex. The plot: Something from space crashes near Sandrock, Arizona. At first John (Carlson) and Ellen (Rush) think it's a meteor. John goes down into the crater where it landed and insists that it's a ship of some sort. Nobody believes him, and he is regarded as strange--until people start disappearing. Film's eerie mood is helped enormously by its' lonely desert setting, an excellent script by Bradbury and Essex, Joseph Gershenson's creepy music score, the stark photography of Joseph Stine, and the Point of view shots from the monster's perspective. Carlson is convincingly obsessed with being right. Rush is uncommonly sensible for a heroine in this genre. The movie actually tells the townspeople to "keep watch" that the space people " will return at another time. Watch for Russell Johnson, the Professor on "Gilligan's Island. The movie was one of Universal's entries in the 3-D craze of the early 1950's. Film is a minor classic of Cold War paranoia. 3.2/4. Source--archive.org. Search "ItCmfrmOtrSp1953".

SHOW PEOPLE (1928)

LiamCasey??

Tuesday, Dec.13th--All times E.S.T.: 9:30 a.m. "Possessed" (1947)--Joan Crawford goes crazy: Heflin is excellent in support. 1:15 p.m. "Act of Violence" (1948)--Fine noir from MGM.

Princess--1932's "The Devil and the Deep" is the movie I was thinking of. Tallulah Bankhead had three shots at film stardom--One in the late 1910's, again in the early 30's, and finally after her starring role in Hitchcock's "Lifeboat" (1944). Her two costars were poised to become stars/bigger stars; Laughton with his role in "The Private Life of Henry VIII" (1933), and Cooper was well on his way to stardom. Your thread, Princess.

"Robinson Crusoe On Mars" (1964)--Starring Paul Mantee, Vic Lundin, and Adam West, directed by Byron Haskin. Good sci-fi film from Haskin, who directed "The War of the Worlds" (1953), "The Naked Jungle" (1954) and "Conquest of Space" (1955), among other special effects laden movies. The plot: a spaceship doing a visual survey of Mars crashes. One pilot and a pet monkey survive. They must learn to adapt to their strange surroundings to survive if they wish to be rescued. The actors do well enough, although the monkey steals her scenes. The effective photography is by Winton Hoch (1960's "The Lost World" and 1961's "Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea"). Some shots are obviously on a soundstage. The musical score is by Nathan Van Cleave. The Special Visual effects are by Lawrence Butler, who did the Oscar winning special effects for "Marooned" (1969). According to the credits, some of the scenes on Mars were filmed in Death Valley National Park. Film starts out slow, but improves as it goes along. 2.9/4. Source--archive.org. Search "RobCrMs1964".

Ok. Director was Alfred Hitchcock. First film was "The Pleasure Garden" (1925) with Virginia Valli and Carmelita Geraghty. Film featured a ghostly visitation OR a episode of Delirium Tremens--Hitchcock left it up to viewers to decide which it was. Second film was "Family Plot" (1976) with Bruce Dern and Karen Black. This film left the final question of whether Barbara Harris's character had a touch of psychic ability up to the viewer to decide. Plot elements of Family Plot involve seances and chandeliers. The Pleasure Garden's plot involved chorus girls, the tropics, and a cad. Hitchcock sometimes had his leading ladies dye their hair blonde (Anne Baxter in "I Confess" (1953) is one example). Family Plot will air Jan. 1st, 2017. Open thread.

Hint--Film is from the sound era.

"It Came From Beneath The Sea" (1955)--Starring Faith Domergue and Ray Harryhausen's monster. A nuclear sub is taking its' shakedown cruise when the Captain puts on Swing music on the stereo. The monster disapproves of his music choice and pins down the sub. The sub eventually gets free, but there is unidentifiable matter stuck to it. Eventually scientist Domergue figures out it belongs to a giant octopus. Film goes from there. Director Robert Gordon does a good job of not letting the film get bogged down in talk. Domergue and the Navy argue about whether sea monsters actually exist. The film is worth watching for the stop-motion animation Harryhausen did on a limited budget. The monster is marvelously realistic looking as it wreaks havoc upon the countryside. Columbia B movie is lifted out of the mediocre by great special effects. 3/4. Source--archive.org. Search "ItCFrBTheS1955".

"Mysterious Island" (1961)--Starring Michael Craig, Joan Greenwood, Gary Merrill, and Ray Harryhausen's Special Effects. Film is based on the 1874 Jules Verne novel. The plot: film starts in a Confederate prison camp in 1865 Richmond. Four Union prisoners manage to escape via a Confederate weather balloon. They crash several days later on a seemingly deserted island--and discover they have company. Film goes from there. The acting isn't the main attraction, and the cast knows it. The script gives them stereotypes to play, and they don't overcome the script. Greenwood and Merrill are the two who fare best, Greenwood by satirizing her role as a Bored English lady, Merrill by getting laughs out of old jokes. Harryhausen's special effects were the main box-office draw, and he comes through pretty well. The visuals vary from OK to spectacularly effective. The set painted backdrops are terribly obvious, especially when the island is first sighted. Wilkie Cooper did the mostly effective photography. There is an excellent score by Bernard Herrmann. Film is an enjoyable watch; not the best of Harryhausen, but far from his worst. 3/4. Source--archive.org. Search "MystrIsd1961".

I saw seven films for the first time last week. "A Study in Terror" (1965)--This British film pits John Neville's Sherlock Holmes against Jack the Ripper. Donald Houston's Dr. Watson is just a fool, but Robert Morley's Mycroft Holmes is a delight, whether he's arguing with brother Sherlock, smarting off to a police Inspector, or just blundering into a room. The women are most decorative, and Desmond Dickinson's cinematography captures Victorian London. Recommended. "The Corpse Vanishes" (1942)--Monogram cheapie has Bela Lugosi and wife Elizabeth Russell in a scheme to keep her forever immortal. Lugosi chews the scenery most entertainingly, Russell irritatingly. Luana Walters screams (six times) and faints (five times) on cue. Photographer Art Reed manages some interesting effects (car headlights that resemble eyes, etc). "The Mummy" (1959)--Plush Hammer retelling of the 1932 classic. Christopher Lee does well as Kharis/The Mummy, giving the monster human qualities. Peter Cushing is good as one of the archaeologists who opens Princess Ananka's tomb. Film takes its' time going through the plots' paces, then a lengthy flashback takes up the middle of the film, then film hurries to reach conclusion. An enjoyable watch. "The Night Caller" (1965)--British zero-budget sci-fi film starts badly, then recovers. Don't let Bad love theme that begins film scare you off. Film's beginning is overly talky, but once the remains of a space meteorite are stored in the army base, events start to happen and film becomes interesting. "Earth vs. the Flying Saucers" (1956)--Ray Harryhausen's special effects are the star of the film; they are more lifelike than human stars Hugh Marlowe (the military husband and scientist) and Joan Taylor (the Perfect Wife; all hell can be breaking loose around her, but her outfits are never wrinkled, they always match, and not a hair is ever out of place. And the script praises her secretarial skills at least four times). A fun watch. "Message From Space" (1978)--Japanese ripoff of "Star Wars" (1977), "Battlestar Galactica" (1978), and a host of other movies tries to copy everything in Star Wars, down to James Earl Jones' voice (copy is a terrible flop). Film's special effects vary from inept to interesting to impressive. Script copies elements from everywhere. Two lines. "I'll get you, my pretty!" "Let's have a chicken run!" MFS is mostly terrible, but never boring. "King Kong vs. Godzilla" (1962)--Godzilla is awakened from the iceberg he's been asleep in. King Kong is brought to Tokyo by a ratings mad television executive. Before their final battle that includes their version of the Jitterbug, they stomp, terrorize, and destroy toy army bases, nuclear submarines, cities. This Kong climbs one of Tokyo's tallest buildings while bellowing at a Japanese maiden who attempts to join Fay Wray as one of the immortal scream queens of the screen. Film is fun, interrupted for irritating newscasts that debate if Godzilla is a dinosaur. Most Favorite--"A Study in Terror" (1965). Least Favorite--"The Night Caller" (1965),

Last hint--Sound film is to air early next month. Lawrence--I should have stated his Last film only involved chandeliers and seances. My apologies for any confusion.

Director sometimes had the leading ladies dye their hair a certain shade.

This actress never really became a film star, although she had three tries at Hollywood, one during the silent era, two during the sound era. She made this interesting military melodrama with two costars who were about to become big stars. Please name the actress, film, and her two costars.

"King Kong vs Godzilla" (1962)--Starring the title two. This one starts off with a quotation from Shakespeare. The film gets the action started quickly after that dose of culture. A nuclear submarine in the Arctic Ocean somehow awakens Godzilla, who has been slumbering in the middle of an iceberg. He breaks his way out, starting a seaquake which takes care of the submarine and crew, then Godzilla heads for Tokyo, stomping toy villages and airbases in his way. Meanwhile, King Kong has been located on a faraway island. A ratings mad television executive decides to bring Kong to Japan. Film goes from there. The film's special effects vary from dreadful to somewhat scary (film has one successful monster--it's neither of the title ones). CalTex Oil (I think they are now part of Chevron) got a big boost, as their name is prominently displayed on a toy train that derails. Sharp eyed viewers can see the edge of a bathtub in two nautical scenes. Kong appears to have a case of the mange. Films' score is ripped off from "The Creature From The Black Lagoon", and classical music. A newscaster remarks that Godzilla is moving "in a northwesterly direction"--one of the prerelease names for "North By Northwest" (1959). On a So Bad It's Good scale, film rates 3.3/4.

LiamCasey--You're correct. The Beast With Five Fingers was nearly ruined by an epilogue Warner Bros. had Florey shoot, explaining the obvious for the clueless. But Peter Lorre's performance, and camerawork that resembles The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari carries the film and makes it worth the watch. If you haven't seen it, Florey's The Face Behind The Mask (1941) is a good little movie, also with Peter Lorre. It's on YT. Your thread, LiamCasey.

Swithin--Your guesses are a few decades too late. Think of a director who worked in the early to mid sound era.