By Lee Pfeiffer

In 1971, a well-connected Dutch prostitute named Xavier Hollander published her memoirs under the title of "The Happy Hooker". The book became an international bestseller with its lighthearted recollections of her adventures in "the world's oldest profession". "The Happy Hooker" delighted readers who were relishing the new-found sexual freedoms that came about in the 1960s. Women, who would have been chastised for reading such a book ten years earlier, could openly read it on buses and in subway cars because everyone else was reading it. The content was erotic enough to be titillating but humorous enough to give it enough cachet to not be labeled pornographic. How much of it was true? Who knows. bestselling author Robin Moore ("The Green Berets", "The French Connection"), who actually took down Hollander's recorded comments on her life, came up with the title and the book was likely ghostwritten by Yvonne Dunleavy. With the success of the book, it was no surprise that a few years later Hollywood brought Hollander's exploits to the screen the film version of "The Happy Hooker". Released in 1975, it starred Lynn Redgrave in the title role. Not wanting to alienate mainstream audiences, the film was made as a saucy comedy. It was followed two years later by "The Happy Hooker Goes to Washington" with Joey Heatherton portraying Hollander. The third and final film in the official trilogy (we won't count an unauthorized hardcore production) was "The Happy Hooker Goes Hollywood", which was released in 1980 with Martine Beswick (billed here as "Beswicke") taking over the role.

"The Happy Hooker Goes Hollywood" follows the tradition of the previous two films in that it stresses zany comedy. However, there are some surprisingly steamy softcore sex scenes between some very recognizable actors that makes for a bizarre mixture of slapstick and eroticism. It also features an eclectic cast of first-rate second bananas who finally get some plum roles on the big screen, albeit in a Cannon Films production. Cannon, of course, was notorious for being a highly profitable "cheese factory", churning out many modestly-budgeted exploitation flicks for undiscriminating audiences. The film opens with a wheelchair-bound Phil Silvers (yes, that Phil Silvers!) as legendary studio mogul William Warkoff, an obnoxious one-time titan of the industry whose fortunes have been in decline. When he reads that Xavier Hollander intends to bring her bestselling book to the big screen, he dispatches his long-suffering right-hand men Joseph Rottman (Richard Deacon)and his son Robby (Chris Lemmon) as well as Lionel Lamely (Adam West), to secure the screen rights by whatever underhanded methods are necessary. Lionel arranges a meeting with Xavier, who is immediately attracted to him. (In fact, she finds most men irresistible and even seduces her chauffeur en route to the meeting.) Before long, Lionel and Xavier are engaging in steamy sex sessions. She falls for him and agrees to allow Warkoff Studios to produce her film- that is, until she learns that Lionel actually has a longtime girlfriend and has been misleading her. She then announces she will make the film herself and secure her own financing, which outrages Warkoff. In order to raise money, Xavier employs her ever-ready squad of equally happy hookers. She sets up an exotic bordello in which men can live out any fantasy, including having sex with a call girl dressed like Little Bo Peep. (Imagine "Westworld" for fetishists.) Warkoff strikes a more lucrative deal with Xavier but intends to deceive her and cheat her out of ownership rights to the film but she is savvy enough to turn the tables on him.

Directed by Alan Roberts, "Hollywood" has a goofy charm primarily because of the good-natured performances of the cast. It's nice to see Martine Beswick in a rare leading role and she plays the part with a deft combination of wicked wit and eroticism. (Beswick unabashedly appears topless numerous times in the course of the film). Adam West, who looks like he had barely aged a day since playing Batman two decades previously, also gets a chance to showcase his comedic abilities and admirable physique. The sex scene between Beswick and West's characters is a bit eye-opening because it's one of the few elements of the film that isn't played for laughs and there is some kind of pop culture appeal to watching the Uncaped Crusader getting it on with a two-time Bond girl. (Beswick would later recall that West felt very uncomfortable when he discovered how erotic the scene would be.)Phil Silvers overdoes the obnoxious aspect of his character but it's still enjoyable seeing him in a feature film this late in his career. Richard Deacon, who made a career of playing sycophantic "yes-men", is in top form and he and West share an amusing scene in which they are forced to dress in drag. Chris Lemmon is very appealing as a naive young man who gets caught up in Xavier's world with appreciable results. He exudes the same comic timing and mannerisms of his legendary father, Jack. One of the most unintentionally amusing aspects of the film is the virtual beatification of Xavier Hollander, whose approval of the movie must have been a prerequisite. In any event, she is referred to as a titan of business and a living legend, when, in fact, by 1980 her star had diminished appreciably. The whole plot climaxes (if you'll pardon the pun) at the "World Premiere" of the film...which is also unintentionally amusing because it is only a grand event by Cannon standards, though they did spring for getting a spotlight and a few dozen extras to act like a screaming mob as the stars arrive at a nondescript L.A. theater.

"The Happy Hooker Goes Hollywood" is symbolic of a long Hollywood tradition of glamorizing prostitution. Xavier and her stable of call girls are all seen as successful, independent businesswomen who have turned their love of sex into a profit-making operation. There's nary a hint that most women who practice the "profession" are actually forced to do so through human trafficking, exploitation, torture and threat of death. Instead, films like this prefer to concentrate on the relatively small percentage of women who do willingly and successfully work as prostitutes. In this respect, the movie has to be viewed as a product of the era in which it was made. Because of it's sheer unpretentious exploitation aspects, it can be enjoyed as a guilty pleasure.

The film is currently streaming on Amazon Prime.

By Hank Reineke

In early November of 1969 Box Office reported Robert M. Weitman, former first vice-president of studio productions for Columbia Pictures, was striking out on his own. In a sense, anyway. Weitman was to embark on his new career as “independent” producer, albeit one still tethered to Columbia, the company for which we worked for some four decades. For his first indie project, Weitman was interested in optioning novelist Lawrence Sanders’ crime-suspense thriller The Anderson Tapes.

Interestingly, Sanders’ The Anderson Tapes, though already hyped, was not yet formally published. Putnam & Sons of New York set publication for 27 February 1970. But with the forthcoming thriller already in industry preview, the all-important Book-of-the-Month-Club already selected Sander’s debut novel as an exciting, primary read. Dell Books too were excited over the book’s prospects, reportedly offering a figure of six-figures for paperback rights. On the film industry front, Box Office reported there had been “intensive bidding” for motion-picture rights to the novel, with Weitman’s offer managing to nudge out those of “several other major producers.”

It certainly didn’t hurt that best-selling author Mario Puzo, basking in the success of his mafia novel The Godfather, would bless Sanders’ novel with a generous plug. Puzo mused The Anderson Tapes was, “the best novel of its kind I’ve read since the early Graham Greene novels, a gripping story impossible to put down. The central character, Duke Anderson, is a classic character of tragic dimensions. Brilliant and unforgettable.” By April of 1970, the rave reviews of critics and literary peers would help push The Anderson Tapes to rest comfortably alongside The Godfather on Top Ten book lists for Fictional Works. The timing and stage was set for Weitman’s film version. The only question now was whom would be cast to effectively breathe life into the central character of Duke Anderson?

Following his completion of work on You Only Live Twice in 1967, Sean Connery – in his earnest (perhaps desperate) desire to break free of the typecast shackles of his James Bond image – chose to seek out a number of eccentric roles in modest continental productions. He was cast as a post-Civil War cavalry officer in the Edward Dmytryk’s western Shalako (1968), as a doomed Norwegian polar ice cap explorer (Mikhail Kalatozov’s The Red Tent, 1969) and as a radical coal miner in Martin Ritt’s The Molly Maguires (1970).

These were all very good films, without doubt. But none would affirm Connery’s status as a box-office magnet outside of his James Bond persona. Though he remained a celebrity of acclaim and international renown, Connery was acutely aware he needed a post-Bond movie to score big with the public-at-large. Much of his audience still mostly thought of him as the one-and-only James Bond. It was a time of transition. Connery was also in the midst of his transformation from actor to canny businessman. He was aware that to make any real money in the entertainment industry he needed to extend his business interests into producing and optioning rights to various creative properties.

With that intent in mind in the mid-summer of 1970 Connery and his publicist-management representative, Glenn Rose, announced the formation of Conn-Rose Productions. Their partnership was to shepherd and safeguard the business ends of such varied enterprises as feature film productions, television packages and theatrical events. The company had recently entered into the music business as well, choosing to publish several compositions by Richard Harris, Connery’s recent co-star of The Molly Maguires. Conn-Rose were also planning Harris to direct and assume the title role of Hamlet in a new staging of Shakespeare’s tragic play. Connery was hinting he might assume the role of Claudius, murderer of Hamlet’s father. But Connery’s revived interest in theatre was not confined to time-worn classics.

One of Conn-Rose’s first acquisitions was the stage production of Click by playwright Stan Hart. Hart’s one-act play was first staged in October 1968 at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles, one of several “experimental” theatre projects offered that autumn. Connery was intrigued by the original scenario and hoped to develop the property as a feature film. Connery explained his excitement to a correspondent of the San Francisco Examiner, “This story Click reads like it was written by Neil Simon and Edward Albee in collaboration.”

“It’s about a successful man so worried about his image he has even his friends ‘bugged’ and taped to find out what they really think of him,” Connery continued.. “He ruins his marriage, wrecks his world. This fellow is ridiculous and sad at the same time. I can hardly wait to get at him…” In September of 1970, Connery promised to another journalist that Click was next on his schedule. Click was to be filmed in New York City, he offered, cameras likely to roll on the picture in April of 1971. Sadly, that project would not be realized. The production of Click was derailed by a surprising and unexpected turn-of-events that would take place in March of 1971 – one in which we’ll get to in a moment. In the interim, there was another film project needing Connery’s attention.

In July of 1970 the trades were reporting that Connery had struck a deal with Columbia to appear as John “Duke” Anderson in The Anderson Tapes, Sidney Lumet already signed on to direct. Connery had worked with Lumet previously: he had appeared as a renegade British military officer in the 1965 prison drama The Hill. Connery regarded The Hill as the best motion-picture of his 1960s filmography and, as such, was happy to work with Lumet again. Shooting on The Anderson Tapes for Columbia was scheduled to commence on August 24, 1970, one day prior to Connery’s fortieth birthday, with production to wrap by October’s end.

That October, with The Anderson Tapes nearing completion, Connery’s enthusiasm for working in a theatrical setting seemed to have slackened a bit. The actor was cornered on set by journalist Bernard Drew. Drew asked of Connery’s ambition to re-engage in theater work. “You never like to close the door completely,” Connery answered non-committedly, “But I have no great desire, though I do like to direct in the theatre. What I really want is to direct a film, and I have a four-picture contract with Columbia. I’m going to direct one, produce one, and act in two, but nothing is set. These days, it’s awfully hard to set anything. There’s a crisis in films. All the companies are in trouble – except Columbia, but still…”

Only two of the prognostications Connery made to Drew that day would be realized, and even then only in part. If he had been extended a four-pic contract with Columbia, his second pic for the company, Robin and Marian, would not be released until 1976. Likewise, Connery would not get any chance to direct, but would serve as co-executive producer – and star - in still another Sidney Lumet helmed feature, The Offence (1973), which was released by United Artists. Regardless, The Anderson Tapes would serve as the undeniable kick-off to Connery’s second coming as a box-office figure of standing.

Screenwriter Frank R. Pierson (Cat Ballou, Cool Hand Luke) had been assigned to adapt and re-work Sanders’ eccentrically-composed novel as a motion picture. This would prove to be no easy task. Sanders’ novel was not written in a conventional narrative form: the book details the lineage of burglar Anderson’s prospective heist through a collection of police reports, court records, transcriptions and recordings made, illegally, through the use of governmental electronic surveillance methods: phone wire-taps, antennas, lip-reads, secreted 16mm film cartridge spools, reel-to-reel and video recordings. The reader is left, essentially, a voyeur, following the storyline through the reading of police procedurals and transcripts of wire-taps.

In crafting his screenplay, Pierson exchanges Sanders’ unorthodox and workmanlike gathering of documentary information for a more cinematic cops-vs-robbers scenario. His script also incorporates an uneasy measure of light-hearted humor among other scenario changes. One contemporary review acknowledged the resulting film offered “a dash of pretentious social significance” in its commentary. ‘Tis true both Sanders’ book and Lumet’s film somberly reflected a new encroaching era of real-life, secreted policing methods: FBI, Treasury Department, and police electronic surveillance techniques were now procedural – if technically illegal - norms.

The scenario of The Anderson Tapes - at its most basic: the safe-cracking burglar Duke Anderson is released from prison after serving a ten-year stretch. He’s hardly repentant and intends almost from his day-of-release to mastermind a grand burglary of a swanky East 91^st Street apartment house in Manhattan. What Anderson doesn’t understand is the world has changed during his decade of incarceration. There are now hidden cameras and recording devices monitoring his every move. Undeterred, he organizes a rag-tag team of ex-convicts, a mob boss who owes a favor, and various other ne’er-do-wells to assist in his grandiose scheme.

Among those co-conspirators is Martin Balsam who chews the scenery in an amusing, over-the-top performance as “Haskins,” a mincing, homosexual antiques dealer. (It’s a sort of pre-woke interpretation one would think twice about attempting today). The comedian/satirist Alan King appears in the role as “Pat Angelo,” the mobbed-up son of a syndicate figure whom owes Anderson a debt. King had recently appeared in another film of Lumet’s, the 1968 comedy Bye Bye Braverman and had previously co-starred with Connery in the pre-Bond British military comedy On the Fiddle (released in the U.S. during the Bond craze as Operation Snafu.). King is very good in these films, though he’d later jest he was offended by a good notice received from a critic for his “Pat Angelo” performance. The critic had mused King’s acting in The Anderson Tapes was “surprisingly good,” a comment the comedian couldn’t help but find at least partly insulting. “What’s surprising,” King asked, “about me being good?”

Sadly, Dylan Cannon, a good actress, isn’t really given much of a character role to play off as “Ingrid,” a sexy but extortion-prone kept mistress and an ex-paramour of Connery’s. The Anderson Tapes is also noteworthy as the first feature film of importance to introduce a tousled- haired twenty-seven year-old actor named Christopher Walken (“The Kid”) to the big screen. Walken isn’t given many lines of dialogue, but is quietly omnipresent throughout. (During the next fifteen-years, of course, Walken would not only win an Oscar as Best Supporting Actor for his role in The Deer Hunter, but also served as the last super-villain to be vanquished by Roger Moore’s James Bond in A View to a Kill (1985). One needn’t look too close to notice there are plenty of familiar faces mixed throughout the cast: Margaret Hamilton, pre-Saturday Night Live Garrett Morris, Conrad Bain and Ralph Meeker among them.

There’s little doubt that some of the surprisingly brisk, earliest box office earnings of The Anderson Tapes had been buoyed by the tsunami of press attention given to a tangential event. In early March 1971, it was announced that Connery, following a one film absence, agreed to return as James Bond in the seventh 007 thriller Diamonds are Forever. Shortly following the breaking of that big news, the gossips reported producer Weitman was soon to test-preview a rough cut of The Anderson Tapes at a cinema near Kings Point, not far from the Valley Stream, Long Island home of Alan King. King would later chuckle that Lumet took advantage of his kindness - and residential proximity to New York City. “They were so happy to have me in it,” he explained of his casting. “No wonder. I lent them my house, my car, my pool.”

Lumet, as was his style, took full advantage of the New York City locations, incorporating some twenty-three location shoots into his film. These would include the city’s Port Authority Bus Terminal, the prison on Riker’s Island, the Convent of the Sacred Heart on the Lower East Side, the 19^th Police Precinct Station House, Alan King’s home, the Supreme Macaroni Factory restaurant on Ninth Ave. and 38^th Street, at the Korvettes Department Store and even the steam room of Luxor Health Club on West 46th. In December of 1970, Weitman brought on Grammy-winning producer Quincy Jones to score the film. His soundtrack, which accentuates the film’s urban, hip-modern setting, features a lot of jazzy, electronic keyboard figures and twangy, stand-up bass slides.

The timing and success of The Anderson Tapes was fortuitous for Sean Connery. The general popcorn-chewing cinema audiences – to one degree or another – had largely ignored Connery’s three most recent film projects 1968-1970. It escaped no one’s notice that this odd trio of feature films were decidedly retro/historical in vision and scope: Shalako was set in the year 1880, The Red Tent in 1928 and The Molly Maguires in 1876. The Anderson Tapes, on the other hand, was a more accessible film for moviegoers to engage. The film was a very latter-day suspense-thriller, staged in modern times.

The result is that The Anderson Tapes, release in June of 1971, allowed fickle movie audiences the opportunity to preview what a circa 1971 Sean Connery James Bond might look like. The relationship between the actor and his audience was largely estranged following his four-year absence as Bond. To be sure, The Anderson Tapes made plain that Connery’s hair was thinner and graying. It was also obvious he was carrying a few more pounds on his frame. Regardless, most would agree Connery appears a bit more athletic and lean in The Anderson Tapes than he would even six-months later when Diamonds are Forever went into wide release.

For all of its intermittent charms, The Anderson Tapes is not director Lumet’s best film by any measure. The film is a slow burn and even the film’s climatic “action” scene offers little more than a weak pay-off in the waiting. On one hand Connery’s “Duke Anderson” captures the spirited zeitgeist of the early 1970s anti-hero. His racially intergraded criminal cabal of ex-convicts is a pre-Rainbow Coalition of sorts: an African-American driver who lives above a local Black Panther Party chapter (Dick Anthony), an elderly, institutionalized ex-con more-than-happy to return to prison (Stan Gottlieb), a young whipper-snapper (Walken), a psychotic mobster (Val Avery), and an alt-lifestyle burglar (Balsam): all working under the command of Connery who chatters throughout in an out-of-character Scots brogue.

To their credit, this unusual band of criminals collude to rip-off the jewelry, artwork treasures and pricey, swanky accoutrements of the snobbishly wealthy. Their victims would be the very folks that many resent: moneyed elites who inhabit the poshest apartment house on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. So while Connery’s endgame is hardly Robin Hood in design, you’re sort of rooting for this motley band of bad guys to get away with their crazy caper, no matter how impractical and far-fetched the plan seems.

On the other hand, this is a suspense film sans any real suspense. Just as the film, at long last, begins to build a modicum of tension as the burglars take command of the apartment house, Lumet seemingly disrupts any sense of rising suspense with intercuts of what Village Voice critic Andrew Sarris lamented as “pointless flashforwards.” Sarris has a point. Perhaps the intent of such scenes were Lumet’s homages to the jigsaw-like time-jump constructions of Sanders’ original novel: but as such these interjected moments – almost all played lightly - don’t work and only diminish any sense of suspenseful tension.

Though flawed, The Anderson Tapes actually did very well in early release, opening as a limited showcase in only two New York City cinemas. The initial rush of mostly favorable reviews and impressive box office receipts caused Columbia Pictures to take out a celebratory full-page advertisement in the trades. The ad crowed that Lumet’s film had already taken in some $87, 476, the “Biggest 4-Day Gross for 2-Theatre Opening in Columbia History!” The film would gradually soften and lose some of its initial box-office momentum, but would nonetheless generate a healthful $5,000,000 in rentals through the end of 1975. I personally own copies of The Anderson Tapes in three different home video formats, including the beautifully packaged Laserdisc version of 1996 (featuring a mind-boggling forty-one chapter stops!). So, yeah, I guess I’m a fan.

This Kino Lorber Studio Classics Blu-ray edition of The Anderson Tapes is presented in 1920 x 1080p, with a ratio of 1.85:1, dts sound and removable English sub-titles. Bonus features on the set include the film’s original theatrical trailer and a single TV spot. There are also an additional eight trailers offered in bonus, two of Connery’s (The Great Train Robbery and Cuba) along with six other crime-dramas offered by Kino.The Blu-ray comes with a slip case and the disc packaging has reversible sleeve artwork. There’s also an audio commentary courtesy of film critic and journalist Glenn Kenny. Kenny’s commentary is interesting and revealing in spots, often taking pains to explain the era of encroaching surveillance era in which the film is set. But I imagine Kenny is reading from notes rather than a proper script as his spoken-word commentary suffers a bit from an endless stream of inter-sentence pauses riddled with hesitant bridging “ums” and “ahs.” It gets to be a bit much at times, but Kenny’s commentary is still a worthwhile listen for those wishing to learn a bit about the film’s backstory.

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By Darren Allison

Cult director Bert I. Gordon was at the helm for this terrifying story of supernatural passion. Set on an island in a tight-knit community, Tom Stewart (Richard Carlson) is preparing to marry the woman he loves. All is well until Tom's old girlfriend, Vi (Juli Reding), confronts him at the top of the island's lighthouse, claiming he can only be hers! A freak accident throws the scorned woman to her death. At first relieved, Tom's tune changes when her vengeful spirit begins to follow him wherever he goes. He's soon tormented, body and soul, by an unforgiving she-ghost! What lengths will Tom go to in order to protect his secret? Will the vengeful Vi finally reveal herself to the others at hand?

And the scene is pretty much set for a quite wonderful slice of low- budgeted shenanigans. Bert I. Gordon was of course a master of his art in this particular genre of filmmaking. Starting off in advertising using his trusted 16mm camera, Gordon wasn’t one to sit back and wait for success, instead he chased his dream, and as a result accomplished a pretty good career in movies. He’s best known for writing and directing science fiction and horror B-movie classics such as King Dinosaur (1955), The Amazing Colossal Man (1957), Earth vs. the Spider (1958), Village of the Giants (1965), and later the Joan Collins fun fest Empire of the Ants (1977).

In the late 50’s, ghostly supernatural films were building in popularity, movies such as Roger Corman’s The Undead (1957), Edward L. Cahn’s Voodoo Women (1957) and William Castle’s House on Haunted Hill (1959) signified a change in trends. Gordon was always astute and possessed a good sense of understanding when it came to successful box office. And so, following the current trend, Gordon embarked upon his own ghost story in the form of Tormented (1960). Starring Richard Calson, the actor that had already established himself in genre classics such as The Maze (1953), It Came from Outer Space (1953) and Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954). Carlson engages in the fun like a seasoned pro. He’s supported by former child star, Lugene Sanders, the marvellously formed Juli Reding, child actress Susan Gordon (daughter of the director) and a young, hip Joe Turkel – who appeared in Stanley Kubrick's The Killing (1956), Paths of Glory (1957), and later in The Shining (1980). Aside from being hugely enjoyable throughout, this Film Masters 4K restoration looks absolutely perfect. Stark, sharp and beautiful on the eye, the amount of work afforded to this rather cheaply made movie really elevates it to a much higher level. Blacks are nice and deep, and the images contains just the right amount of grain without over-cooking it. There seems to be a couple of very minor jump cuts along the way – best rest assured, blink at the right time and they’re pretty much undetectable. The print shows no wear, scratches and virtually free of dust and dirt spots. The audio clarity is also clean and bright in both DTS and the Dolby digital track. It’s very obvious that the efforts in restoring this film have really paid off and the results are hard to fault.

But this Film Masters release offers so much more – you really have to praise the package as a whole, there’s really no skimping or cutting corners in terms of its content. Firstly, and as we have come to expect with the Film Masters releases, there’s an interesting and insightful commentary track by historian, writer and filmmaker Gary Rhodes along with contributions by Larry Blamire. The track is a detailed and informative education. There is an all too brief featurette, Bert I. Gordon: The Amazing Colossal Filmmaker – which features an archival interview with the charismatic director who provides us with a general overview of how he began in the business of movies. Then there is Bigger Than Life: Bert I. Gordon in the 1950’s and 1960’s, a Ballyhoo Motion Pictures documentary featuring film historian C. Courtney Joyner. This documentary provides a great insight into the director’s career, with plenty of clips, stories, trailers, poster art and rare photos illustrated throughout – a real joy. For the more serious scholars, there is an enjoyable visual essay by The Flying Maciste Brothers (Howard S. Berger and Kevin Marr). The Spirit is Willing: CineMagic and Social Discord in Bert I. Gordon’s Tormented, offers a much deeper analysis of the movie and its implications – which is fine should you want to delve into that particular territory. At the other end of the spectrum, Film Masters also offers the whole film again, this time in the form of the Mystery Science Theater 2000 version (1992). There’s no disputing the fact that these presentations are purely produced as a put down or a ‘roasting’ for light-hearted entertainment – which is fine if this is your thing. At least Film Masters has again had the foresight to cover all areas, and provide something for everyone – dependent upon your particular taste. One thing I did find particularly interesting during this version is that it contains the original opening Allied Artists title – something that was missing from the restored main feature version. There are two Tormented trailers included, an original ‘raw’35mm version and a 2024 re-cut version using restored element. Again, a nice way of satisfy all audiences with both the old and the new, and I’m fully behind that way of thinking. Also included on the disc is an ‘unreleased TV pilot’ of Famous Ghost Stories featuring Vincent Price. I was initially quite excited about viewing this, as it tied in nicely with Tormented because the episode again starred Richard Calson and Susan Gordon. So, I was a little disappointed to discover that this was not the full episode and instead was simply just the opening and closing intro and outro clips featuring Vincent Price. The entire show would hade been a real treat if included. But overall, this minor quibble takes nothing away from what is a very generous collection of extras.

On top of that, Film Masters have also included a nicely produced 22-page illustrated booklet with essays by respected film historian Tom Weaver and novelist/filmmaker John Wooley. The film sleeve and booklet cover make good use of the original film artwork.

Film Masters have produced an excellent package with their presentation of Tormented. The company seems to grow from strength to strength with each of their new releases. It’s a rare feeling to feel genuinely excited when considering what might be waiting around the next corner. I can only hope it’s more of the same.

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(Darren Allison is the Soundtracks Editor for Cinema Retro), 

(Barbara Rush with Robert Vaughn, Anthony Eisley and Paul Newman in "The Young Philadelphians". Photo: Cinema Retro Archive.)

By Lee Pfeiffer

Actress Barbara Rush has passed away at age 97. Rush had a long career in film, theater and television. She worked under contract in the 1950s for both Paramount and Universal. Her first prominent role was in the 3-D sci-fi cult classic "It Came from Outer Space". She also had a major role in director Martin Ritt's 1957 drama "No Down Payment", a riveting critique of hypocrisy in post-WWII suburban society. She co-starred with Paul Newman in the acclaimed 1959 drama "The Young Philadelphians" and would reunite with him, playing an unsympathetic role, in Martin Ritt's 1967 classic western "Hombre". She was the female lead in the 1958 WII drama "The Young Lions" starring Marlon Brando, Montgomery Clift and Dean Martin. She would also co-star with Frank Sinatra in the comedies "Come Blow Your Horn" and "Robin and the Seven Hoods". In later years, she found success on television in recurring roles in the prime time soap operas "Flamingo Road" and "7th Heaven". She also toured in the one-woman stage production of "A Woman of Independent Means", earning kudos from critics. She also gained pop culture status in the 1960s by playing the villainess Nora Clavicle in the "Batman" TV series.  Rush was married three times, including to actor Jeffrey Hunter. She is survived by her son and daughter. For more click here.

In the 1960s, musicians Ferrante & Teicher were the kings of cover versions of film score soundtracks. n record stores, racks were filled with their albums. In this June, 1964 segment from "The Ed Sullivan" show they perform Riz Ortolani's main theme from director Lewis Gilbert's Cold War political thriller "The 7th Dawn" which starred William Holden, Capucine and Tetsuro Tamba. 

By Ernie Magnotta

I’ve always loved action cinema. It’s one of my all-time favorite genres. When I was a teenager in the mid-1980s, I saw a VHS copy of the action film Bucktown and I’ve been a huge fan of its star, Fred “The Hammer” Williamson, ever since.

A former pro football defensive back for (amongst others) the Kansas City Chiefs (1965-1967), Williamson, who holds black belts in Taekwondo, Kenp? and Shotokan karate, later moved on to acting. Some of his first appearances was guest starring on TV shows such as Star Trek and Ironside. He quickly graduated to features, appearing in Robert Altman’s M*A*S*H and Otto Preminger’s Tell Me That You Love Me, Junie Moon.

In 1970, Williamson starred in the appropriately titled action movie Hammer (the nickname was given to him during his football days). The film was a success and it began his long and entertaining career as an action movie superstar. Standing at 6ft. 3 inches tall and rarely seen without a prop cigar in his hand, Williamson would go on to appear in a plethora of action classics (many of which were distributed by major Hollywood studios) such as Black Caesar, Take a Hard Ride, Black Eye, Three the Hard Way, Mean Johnny Barrows (which he also produced), and 1978’s Inglorious Bastards.

In 1976, the Hammer created his own company, Po’ Boy Productions, which would not only see him star in, but also direct, a ton of action films the likes of Death Journey, No Way Back, Mr. Mean, Foxtrap, and The Kill Reflex. Williamson is also a veteran of Italian exploitation cinema. He has appeared in the cult classics The New Barbarians, The New Gladiators, and Black Cobra 1-4. Just to name a few. In later years, he would act in films such as From Dusk till Dawn (for cinema titans Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino) and Original Gangstas (directed by the legendary Larry Cohen and co-produced by Williamson) and he shows no signs of slowing down.

Recently, the Hammer’s somewhat forgotten, 1973, action-packed, James Bond-like film That Man Bolt was released on Blu-ray.

Solidly directed by David Lowell Rich and Henry Levin from an entertaining screenplay by Ranald MacDougall and Charles Eric Johnson, That Man Bolt tells the tale of courier and martial arts expert Jefferson Bolt who is hired to transport a million dollars from Hong Kong to Mexico City. However, Bolt soon realizes that he’s been set up and now he’s dead set on paying back everyone who double-crossed him.

Produced by Universal Pictures and released in December of 1973, That Man Bolt, aka Operation Hong Kong, is an exciting adventure flick (sort of a 007/martial arts combo) which not only contains well-crafted action sequences, but also some memorable characters played wonderfully by its talented cast.

Leading the way, of course, is the always charismatic Fred Williamson who convincingly plays the intelligent and capable Jefferson Bolt. There are also appearances by familiar faces such as Byron Webster, Miko Mayama, Teresa Graves, John Orchard, Jack Ging and Paul Mantee; not to mention martial arts champions Mike Stone, Emil Farkas, David Chow and Kenji Kazama. Enter the Dragon fans will recognize Geoffrey Weeks who appears in a brief role, as well as the voice of the great Keye Luke (who not only dubbed Shih Kien in Enter, but also performs the same duty here).

The fun film which was shot in L.A., Las Vegas, Macau and Hong Kong, also features some terrific cinematography by Emmy Award winner Gerald Finnerman, and a cool, Lalo Schifrin/John Barry-like musical score by composer Charles Bernstein.

That Man Bolt has been released on Blu-ray by Kino Lorber. The region one disc presents the movie in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio. The 2K transfer looks gorgeous. The disc not only contains the original theatrical trailer, but also That Man Hammer, a short, but entertaining interview with Fred Williamson. Overall, this is a highly enjoyable, early 70s action-adventure that definitely deserves to be re-discovered. It’s also a very nice addition to your Fred Williamson collection. And if you’re just beginning to get into the Hammer’s filmography, That Man Bolt is a great place to start.

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“YOU AREN’T REALLY ANYBODY IN AMERICA IF YOU’RE NOT ON TV”

By Raymond Benson

While Nicole Kidman had been working in films since the late 1980s and starred in two big movies with future husband Tom Cruise in the early 1990s, for this reviewer it was 1995’s To Die For that proved to the world that Kidman could hold her own and carry a movie alone. Even with an impressive body of work that would continue to today, To Die For can easily be listed as one of the actor’s best works.

To Die For is based on a 1992 novel by Joyce Maynard, which, in turn, was a fictionalized improvisation on the true-crime murder-for-hire case of Pamela Smart. The murder of Smart’s husband by teenagers who were, as it turned out, hired by Smart herself, was sensational TV fodder in 1990-1991. The keywords of “sensational” and “TV” become the thematic concepts of Buck Henry’s adaptation of the novel that turns the tabloid tale into an acerbic dark comedy about the lust for fame and the means by which some people might employ to get it.

Gus Van Sant directs the film with a bravura collage of styles that molds the story into something of a mockumentary. Actors address the camera as if they are in a television reality program (something that was just beginning to take off in those years). Videotape footage mixes with film stock, emphasizing the fine line between Suzanne Stone’s reality and fantasy life on television.

Stone (Kidman) is a drop-dead gorgeous young woman with big ambitions. She wants fame and fortune by being a television personality, and once she sets out to accomplish that goal, her little hometown in New Hampshire will never be the same. First she seduces and marries Larry (Matt Dillon), the son of Italian parents who may or may not have connections to the mob. Larry is in a successful restaurant business, so he has enough money to keep Suzanne in style. Next, she finagles her way into the local cable TV news station, run by Ed (Wayne Knight). When she begins a personal video project at the local high school, she attracts the attention of three juvenile delinquents—Lydia (Alison Folland), who isn’t a bad person but is sadly trapped in a “white trash” world, Russell (a young Casey Affleck), the true bad-news of the trio, and Jimmy (a young Joaquin Phoenix), who is short on brains but long on libido. Suzanne, who feels resistance from Larry regarding her dreams to leave town and head to Los Angeles where she’s convinced she can make it big, decides to seduce poor Jimmy and get him and his friends to bump off Larry. To reveal more, which indeed differs from the true case of Pamela Smart, would spoil the “fun.”

Yes, “fun” it is. This is a comedy, folks. Sure, it’s a pretty dark one, but the team of Van Sant and Henry make sure that this sordid little fable is told with tongue-in-cheek. It’s also somewhat of a cautionary tale, warning us that what we see on television isn’t always the truth. Those beautiful people on the screen who anchor the news, interview celebrities, or present the weather are not gods and goddesses. It’s one thing to work toward a career in television with determination… it’s another thing altogether to think of that career as a Xanadu in which everyone is rich and famous.

Nicole Kidman is superb in To Die For. She’s funny, sexy, and at times very scary. Kidman plays this madwoman to the hilt and she’s the backbone of the movie. Apparently the role was first offered to Meg Ryan, who turned it down. Kidman, however, takes it and delivers an exhilarating star turn. Phoenix, in one of his early appearances, also makes an impression. At the time, who knew that he would one day be a multiple Oscar contender and ultimate winner? The same is true of Affleck. Other notable actors in the movie include Illeana Douglas as Larry’s sister, Dan Hedaya as Larry’s father, and Kurtwood Smith and Holland Taylor as Suzanne’s parents. The film also sports a few interesting cameos: Joyce Maynard, the novel’s author, appears as Suzanne’s lawyer; Buck Henry is a high school teacher; George Segal is a lecherous network executive; and David Cronenberg (!) is a hitman.

The Criterion Collection’s 2-disk package presents the film in a new 4K digital restoration, approved by Van Sant and director of photography Eric Alan Edwards. It comes with a 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack (and it makes Danny Elfman’s lively score sound really good!). The first disk is the picture in 4K UHD with Dolby Vision HDR. The second disk is a Blu-ray and the special features. Disappointingly, there isn’t much in the way of supplements. An audio commentary featuring Van Sant, Edwards, and editor Curtiss Clayton is good enough. The only other extras are some deleted scenes (some of which tantalizingly depict how the film might have had alternate endings) and the theatrical trailer. An essay by film critic Jessica Kiang accompanies the booklet.

To Die For is for fans of Nicole Kidman, Joachin Phoenix, and the caustic mind of Buck Henry.

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By Todd Garbarini

I have never understood religious cults, and I still don’t. How someone can permit themselves to be brainwashed into following a self-appointed “religious leader” and hang on their every word represents, to me, a soul searching for acceptance or love that they believe has been denied them. My initiation into the existence of cults was in the December 4, 1978 issues of both Time Magazine and Newsweek Magazine. Their reports about the Jonestown murders in Guyana, which completely shocked my sensibilities with images of dead adults and children lying face down in filth, were the stuff of nightmares. This horrific event has spawned books, documentaries, and jokes about “drinking the Kool Aid” when referencing one’s blind commitment to a ridiculous situation. An article two months later in my local newspaper about “witches,” pagan practices, bowls of blood and animal ribcages in the woods less than ten miles from where I lived did little to assuage my fears about them. David Koresh, the leader of the religious sect referred to as the Branch Davidians, led his followers into the Mount Carmel Center, a compound in Waco, Texas, which culminated in a standoff with law enforcement in April 1993 with most of them dying in a storm of bullets and fire. NXIVM, the organization founded by Keith Raniere five years later masquerading as a self-help and personal development program group, came under fire for being a cult following reports of sex trafficking of branded women.

Hollywood is no stranger to films about such subjects. Most of them are cut from the cloth of genre and horror films. Split Image (1982) is a bit of a different take on this terrifying subject as seen through the eyes of suburbanites and therefore is far more relatable. Directed by Ted Kotcheff between April and June in 1981 just before he unleashed John Rambo on the world with his phenomenal First Blood, also released in 1982. Split Image was originally reported on under the title of Captured when it was featured in the wonderful but short-lived bi-monthly movie magazine published in 1982 called “Coming Attractions.” I saw the film on CED Videodisc nearly 40 years ago and was amazed at how little I recalled of it.

Danny Stetson (Michael O’Keefe of Lewis John Carlino’s 1978 film The Great Santini) is a parallel bars athlete eyeing college. He lives with his parents Kevin and Diane (Brian Dennehy and Elisabeth Ashley) and younger brother Sean (Ronnie Scribner of Tobe Hooper’s 1979 TV-Movie Salem’s Lot) in a sprawling house like the killer’s in Dario Argento’s Tenebrae (1982), complete with large see-through windows and a built-in pool. By chance he meets a beautiful young woman named Rebecca (Karen Allen of Steven Spielberg’s Raiders of the Lost Ark in 1981) who engages in small talk about big subjects. Accompanying her to a weekend outing, he is introduced to scores of people at a retreat called Homeland who welcome him with open arms – literally – and who all chant and engage in reciting positive affirmations while discussing Jungian archetypes such as the duality of man. The happy and joyous atmosphere completely rubs him the wrong way when he meets the group’s leader, Neil Kirklander (played wonderfully by Peter Fonda), but he stays and sleeps on the premises and one night makes a break for freedom. Bill Conti’s score here is recognizable as the precursor to his wonderful score to Robert Mandell’s thriller F/X (1986). Confronted by Kirklander, he eventually falls under his spell and informs his mother that he will not be coming home. He undergoes a ritual whereby he renounces his identity as Danny and is reborn as “Joshua,” prompting a visit from his parents that results in a near donnybrook precipitated by his temperamental father.

Split Image, which opened in New York on Friday, November 5, 1982, does a decent job of exploring the practice of capturing and “deprogramming” an individual who has fallen under the spell of a cult and this is done by Charles Pratt (played by the incomparable James Woods) who, somehow, makes his living “deprogramming” people. After kidnapping “Joshua” with his parents’ permission, he forces him to undergo “treatment” to bring “Danny” back to life. Many of these scenes look as though they came out of a horror film, and it makes one wonder how much of this was imagined by the writers and how much is based on factual circumstances such as this. The film looks at the ethics of “interventions” and how it can alter a person’s free will and their ability to make their own choices. Like Irwin Winkler’s At First Sight (1992), it waivers between being compelling and occasionally feels a little “TV Movie of the Week”-ish by today’s standards.

The film is now available from Kino Lorber on standard Blu-ray. Some of the shots within the house appear to be a little darker than they should be, but it is probably just how the film was shot. Mr. Kotcheff does an expert job of framing the film for 2.35:1 anamorphic photography, which is a huge step up from the pan-and-scan transfer of the early 1980’s.

This is a sparse disc in the way of extras, however the major one is the feature length audio commentary by film historian and filmmaker Daniel Kremer who mentions his own movie, Raise Your Kids on Seltzer (2015), which is about retired “deprogrammers”. When I was in middle school, Ralph L. Thomas’s 1981 film Ticket to Heaven appeared in my Weekly Reader issue and I had a much different idea of what that film was about. It turns out that deprogramming is the theme, and Mr. Kremer also mentions Blinded by the Light, which was released in 1980, and starred both Kristy and Jimmy McNichol, directed by cinematographer John A. Alonzo. This is a very entertaining and informative commentary which also touches on Mr. Kotcheff’s other films and placing him into the auteur category.

The Blu-ray also comes with the following trailers: Split Image, Gorky Park, 52 Pick-Up, The Bedroom Window, The Wanderers, and The Hard Way. 

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

By the time Burt Reynolds finally starred in the 1972 classic "Deliverance", he had been paying his dues in Hollywood for many years with varying degrees of success on television. His feature films, however, were strictly "B" grade. Saul David, who produced a 1970 film starring Reynolds titled "Skullduggery", bemoaned at the time that he should have been a major movie star but bad luck seemed to always interfere. Reynolds wisely cultivated an image as a hip, towel-snapping wiseguy through appearing on seemingly every American game and chat show. His appearances on "The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson" merited "must-see TV" status. Ironically, "Deliverance" entirely abandoned this popular image of Reynolds and afforded him a dramatic role that he fulfilled with excellent results. But the success of the film made Reynolds anxious to prove he could sustain his boxoffice clout without the help of a strong co-star, in the case of of "Deliverance", Jon Voight. Reynolds chose wisely for his follow-up feature. "White Lightning" was developed under the working title "McClusky". The role of a hunky, charismatic southern good ol' boy fit Reynolds like a glove because it allowed him to incorporate his penchant for performing stunts with his flippant, wise-cracking TV persona.

Filmed in Arkansas, the movie finds Reynolds as "Gator" McClusky, a man doing prison time for running illegal moonshine. Gator still has another year to spend on the prison farm when he gets word that his younger brother has been murdered. (We see the scene play out over the opening credits in which two young men are brutally drowned in a swamp by the local sheriff, J.C. Connors (Ned Beatty) and his deputy.) Enraged and spoiling for revenge, Gator accepts a deal to work undercover for federal agents to expose Connors as the local Huey Long-type power broker in Bogan County. Indeed, the seemingly affable, understated Connors runs the entire county like a personal fiefdom, using extortion, shakedowns and outright murder to ensure his stature. He also gets a piece of the action from the very moonshiners he's supposed to prosecute. Gator feels uncomfortable working as a snitch but it's the only way to find out why his brother was killed and to bring Connors to justice. Using his considerable charm and his background as a guy from a small rural community, he finds himself quickly working for a moonshine ring headed by Big Bear (R.G. Armstrong), who is brutal in retribution against anyone who crosses him. Gator is assigned to deliver moonshine with a partner, Roy Boone (Bo Hopkins). They spend a lot of time together and become fast friends, even though Roy's hot-to-trot girlfriend Lou (Jennifer Billingsley) succeeds in seducing Gator, thus endangering his mission when Roy gets wind of the deception. When Gator learns the reason why his brother and his friend were murdered, he becomes even more vengeful, leading to a spectacular car chase involving Connors and his corrupt deputies. 

"White Lightning" was directed by Joseph Sargent, who was primarily known for his work in television. He fulfills the requirements of the film quite well, though the spectacular car chases and jaw-dropping action scenes were largely the work of legendary stutman/coordinator Hal Needham, who would go on to work on many films with Reynolds. The film is consistently lively but it also has moments of poignancy and drama. The supporting cast is terrific with Ned Beatty of "Deliverance" reuniting with Reynolds with good results. Beatty underplays the sense of menace attributable to his character. He also plays up his status as a pillar of the community, tossing off barbs about how hippies and big city liberals threaten "our values" and-worst of all- encourage "our coloreds to vote!". Meanwhile, he is heading up a vast criminal enterprise. Jennifer Billingsley is wonderful as the lovable air-headed seductress who will jump into bed with a man if there's a prospect of getting a new dress out of the bargain. There are also fine turns by Bo Hopkins, R.G. Armstrong and Diane Ladd (whose name in the opening and closing credits is misspelled as "Lad". Ouch!) The movie turned out to be a big hit for United Artists, aided in part by striking ad campaigns with the same weapon-as-phallic symbol design employed for Richard Roundtree's "Shaft's Big Score" the previous year coupled with another poster showing Reynolds behind the wheel of a speeding car. Sex and speed became hallmarks for promoting a Reynolds action movie.

Kino Lorber has reissued their 2019 Blu-ray edition, which is first-rate in all aspects, with a fine transfer and a 2014 interview with Burt Reynolds, who looks back fondly on the importance the movie had on proving he could be top-billed in a hit movie. The film initiated his association with rural-based comedies and action films and three years later, a successful sequel ("Gator") would be released. Reynolds also drops the interesting fact that this was to be Steven Spielberg's first feature film. However, Reynolds says the young TV director got cold feet about his ability to film on so many difficult locations, given that his background was largely working in studios. Reynolds praises his co-star Ned Beatty and reminds everyone that "White Lightning" was only his second film, having made his screen debut in "Deliverance".  He is also very complimentary towards Jennifer Billingsley and regrets that she never became a big star. Reynolds also discusses Hal Needham's zealousness for performing dangerous stunts and relates how one key scene in which a car shoots out over water to land on a moving barge almost went disastrously wrong. He says the film has a realistic atmosphere because of the screenplay by William W. Norton, who adapted many aspects of his own hard scrabble life. The only negative note Reynolds sounds is about Diane Ladd, who he cryptically says he did not like working with, although he doesn't go into detail as to why.The set includes a new feature not available on the previous Blu-ray release: a commentary track by film historian collaborators Steve Mitchell and Nathaniel Thompson. As far as commentary tracks are concerned, the duo are always terrific and this outing is no exception. Their easy-going, laid-back and humorous style is appropriate for the tone of the film. They go into great detail about aspects of the and cast. I hadn't realized until listening to the track how on-the-mark they are in assessing Ned Beatty as an actor whose physical appearance varied dramatically depending upon the type of story he was cast in. Indeed, they are correct. The evil good ol' boy corrupt sheriff of "White Lightning" is light years away from the fish-out-water rape victim of "Deliverance" or the demagogic TV executive of "Network". The track is good enough to merit upgrading to this version of the Blu-ray even if you have the previous release.

The Blu-ray also includes the original trailer, which was very effective in playing up Reynolds' emerging star power and reversible sleeve art showing an alternative ad campaign. Highly recommended.

By Lee Pfeiffer

No one has ever clamored for a remake of director Howard Hawks' "Red River". The 1948 film is routinely considered to be one of the great American westerns, although Hawks was never completely satisfied with the end result. Between changes he made to the film and some changes imposed by the studio, the result was that film scholars are still debating which version should be considered as the final cut.  However, the film's impact is indisputable. It afforded John Wayne the best role of his career up to that time and elevated up-and-coming Montgomery Clift to major stardom. I must admit that I was surprised to learn of a 1988 television remake of the film when I saw it is now streaming on ScreenPix, an optional subscription channel, which is available for a nominal monthly fee to Amazon Prime subscribers. It would take a big man to step into Duke Wayne's shoes but James Arness filled the bill. In fact, Wayne was a mentor to Arness and made several films with him before he convinced the young actor to accept CBS's offer to star as Marshall Matt Dillon in the TV series "Gunsmoke", an adaptation of the popular radio program. Arness plays Thomas Dunson, who was on a wagon train to Texas along his fiancee. Dunson and his sidekick Groot (Ray Walston in a role originally played by Walter Brennan), leave the wagon train to scout for appropriate land to settle on. While they are away, the wagon train is attacked by Indians. The begins with Dunson and Groot discovering that all of the pioneers have been killed except for a young boy, Matt Garth (Mickey Kuhn), who Dunson unofficially adopts as a son. The gesture proves to be mutually beneficial, as it helps both grief-stricken people cope with their losses. Ultimately, the headstrong Dunson finds the perfect land to claim for his own and it stretches as far as the eye can see. The film then jumps ahead a number of years. Dunson's spread, known as the Red River D, has been a major success and he is getting ready to move his enormous herd to Sedalia, Missouri to sell the steers for a considerable profit. He is heartened by the return of Matt (now played by Bruce Boxleitner), who has been away fighting with Southern forces in the Civil War. With Matt and Groot as his trusted right-hand men, Dunson assembles a major company of experienced drovers for the perilous journey that lies ahead. 

As with Hawks' version of "Red River", the TV production chronicles the increased hardships the cattlemen endure and the slow breakdown in morale as food supplies become skimpy and the dangers increase from inclement weather and the threat of hostile Indians. Dunson rules the company with an iron fist and tells the men that he is financially broke, as he's put all of his money into the cattle drive. He reminds them that the only way they will get paid is if they get the herd to Sedalia, where it can be sold. Some cowhands encounter the drovers and say there is a rumor that the rail line has now reach Abilene, Kansas. If true, it will make for a lucrative market to sell the cattle in order to feed the booming population. It's also a shorter and safer journey for the drovers to make. However, Dunson will have not risk changing direction on the basis of an unfounded rumor. Ultimately, some men choose to leave the drive. However, when a couple of drovers also steal some precious food before absconding, Dunson has them hunted down and captured. Enraged, he tells them he will lynch them. When Matt can't convince him that he is going to far, a major rift occurs and Matt informs Dunson that he is taking control of the herd and gambling on taking the cattle to Abilene. Dunson refuses to go along and promises to hunt Matt down and personally kill him, despite the fact that Matt intends to turn any proceeds over to his adoptive father. 

The story continues to follow events in the film, albeit in truncated fashion since the film runs 96 minutes compared to the 133 minutes of the original version. Matt and flashy gunslinger Cherry Valance (Gregory Harrison) encounter a wagon train besieged by Indians. They ultimately rescue the survivors which include Kate Millay (Laura Johnson), a Civil War widow with a young son. Both Matt and Cherry are smitten by her, which introduces an element of sexual tension as both men become antagonistic towards each other in increasingly dangerous ways. Ultimately, Matt gets the herd to Abilene and finds that the rumors were true. The town is booming and anxious to buy the herd for top dollar. Matt's joy is short-lived, however, as Dunson arrives with his personal posse of hired gunmen- and he's intent on keeping his vow to kill Matt.

There is nothing in the TV version of "Red River" that improves on Hawks's original in any meaningful way. However, it does offer some fine performances. It's interesting to see Arness, who gives a commanding performance, finally play a character whose judgment is flawed and whose actions border on the reckless. He has good chemistry with Bruce Boxleitner, possibly because the two were old friends who had co-starred in Arness's post-"Gunsmoke" TV series "How the West Was Won". Gregory Harrison has a meatier role as Cherry Valance than John Ireland did in the original version, possibly because Harrison was an executive producer on this production. He provides ample doses of both charm and reckless behavior. There are plenty of familiar Western stars who make brief appearances including Ty Hardin, Robert Horton, L.Q. Jones and Guy Madison, in his final screen appearance. The script has been updated with some new characters added, most notably Stan Shaw, very good as Jack Byrd, an ex-slave who must endure bigotry before winning the respect of the drovers with his skills. The film is crisply directed by Richard Michaels, who keeps the balance between action and personal dramas well-balanced.

I viewed the film with the expectation that it would be simply a pale imitation of the 1948 classic. However, while the original reigns supreme, I'm happy to say that if the TV version is viewed as a stand-alone production, it's actually surprisingly good.

I can find no record of this film having been released on home video aside from an early VHS version, so the Screenpix option is the best way to view it.

By Lee Pfeiffer

Ryan O'Neal, the star of "Love Story" and "Barry Lyndon", has died from unspecified causes at the age of 82. He had been experiencing health issues since being diagnosed with leukemia and prostate cancer over a decade ago. O'Neal learned the craft of acting on his own, never having taken a lesson. He entered the film industry as a teenager, performing stunts. In 1964 he received his first major role, starring in "Peyton Place", the successful TV series based on the hit feature film and its sequel. His career went into high gear when he was cast with another up-and-coming actor, Ali MacGraw, in the 1970 screen adaptation of Eric Segal's bestselling novel "Love Story". Segal had adapted his own screenplay to form the basis of the wafer-thin novel about a doomed romance between a young couple at Harvard University. The novel sold millions and paved the way for Paramount's big screen version, which was both a critical and financial success. O'Neal and MacGraw both earned Oscar nominations. O'Neal's post-Oscar career skyrocketed and he worked in with some of the industry's top directors including Richard Attenborough, Peter Bogdanovich and Stanley Kubrick, who raised eyebrows by casting the American actor in the leading role in his opulent 1975 epic "Barry Lyndon". The film won enormous acclaim but much of it didn't rub off on O'Neal, as some critics voiced the opinion that Kubrick, who was not known as an "actor's director" had cast him simply because he was a bland screen presence who wouldn't distract from the more spectacular aspects of the production. Nevertheless, O'Neal had been riding high with hits like "What's Up, Doc?", in which he co-starred with Barbra Streisand, "The Main Event"and "Paper Moon", in which he starred with his pre-teen daughter Tatum, who became the youngest actor to receive an Oscar. O'Neal also had a major role in Attenborough's 1977 WWII epic "A Bridge Too Far". His misfires included the starring role in an ill-fated 1978 big screen sequel to "Love Story" titled "Oliver's Story" which he personally denounced as "a complete-off" that he did for the money.One of his last major big screen hits was "The Main Event" in 1979, which teamed him again with Streisand.

By the 1980s, O'Neal's career was in a tailspin. He still found work but the better roles and films eluded him. Attempts to move into television did not have successful results. He also suffered an endless stream of sensational stories in the press about his personal behavior, most of it centered on his mercurial temper. He was once arrested for beating his son Griffin, though charges were eventually dropped and years later would be arrested on drug charges along with another son, Redmond. He had been married and divorced twice when he began a long relationship with actress Farrah Fawcett, who was married to actor Lee Majors at the time. The couple never married but Ms. Fawcett was mother to Redmond O'Neal. O'Neal and Fawcett split up but eventually reconciled and he saw her through her traumatic battle against terminal cancer.  He worked in television with little success before landing a recurring role on the popular series "Bones". The O'Neal family's personal problems had long been regular fodder for gossip columns. He was estranged from Tatum for most of her life and the two never fully reconciled, even though the two had co-starred on a reality show that portrayed their relationship favorably. Characteristically, O'Neal would later say that the show was sanitizing what was still a very volatile relationship. He proclaimed that one of his most satisfying late-in-life highlights was reuniting with Ali MacGraw to co-star in the moving stage play "Love Letters". 

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By Ernie Magnotta

The 1980s were chock full of amazing action franchises and action stars. The stars were legendary: Charles Bronson, Clint Eastwood, Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Chuck Norris, Mel Gibson, Danny Glover, etc. The franchises were just as legendary: Death Wish, Dirty Harry, Rambo, Terminator, Missing in Action, Lethal Weapon, etc. Not to mention the beloved James Bond series which produced five blockbuster movies throughout the 80s, three starring Roger Moore and two starring Timothy Dalton. Then, there were the great one-shot action films of which there are way too many to list here. Of course, martial arts/action; especially those featuring ninjas, were just as popular with cinemagoers. Yes, it was an exciting decade.

In 1985, Cannon Films, led by immortal producers Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus, decided to start a new action movie/martial arts franchise titled American Ninja. Cannon, who were responsible for the popular Missing in Action and Death Wish series of films as well as several well-loved ninja movies which starred the fantastic Sho Kosugi and partly started the ninja craze, wanted Chuck Norris to play the lead role of Private Joe Armstrong. However, Norris declined. Cannon then went on a worldwide search and, after auditioning over 400 candidates, they chose up and coming actor Michael Dudikoff. The well-made movie would go on to spawn four sequels, two of which (parts 2 and 4) would see Dudikoff return as the silent, but deadly Armstrong. Thanks to our friends at Kino Lorber, the original film has now been released on Blu-ray.

Written by Paul De Mielche (from a story by Gideon Amir and Avi Kleinberger) and directed by action veteran Sam Firstenberg, American Ninja tells the story of Joe Armstrong (Dudikoff), a US Army private who uses his Ninjitsu skills when a supply convoy is ambushed by rebels led by a Black Ninja Warrior (Tadashi Yamashita). Now marked for revenge by the Black Star Ninjas, Joe, with the help of his friend, Corporal Curtis Jackson (played by the late, great Steve James), must do everything in his power to rescue the kidnapped Patricia Hickock (Judie Aronson)—daughter of Joe’s commanding officer—and take down the Black Star Ninjas for good.

Made for one million dollars, American Ninja (aka American Warrior and American Fighter) is a solid and entertaining 80s action film with an engrossing enough story, a terrific cast, and exciting action sequences which are more than competently handled by director Firstenberg (who already had some Ninja experience directing the Sho Kosugi martial arts/action classics Return of the Ninja and Ninja III: The Domination for Cannon). The fun, 95-minute movie also features John Fujioka, Don Stewart and Richard Norton.

Trained by 10^th degree black belt and martial arts champion Mike Stone, American Ninja instantly made Michael Dudikoff an action movie star. Over the next two decades, Dudikoff would appear in a plethora of action films. He would also reunite with Steve James two more times in American Ninja 2: The Confrontation and Avenging Force; both directed by Firstenberg. James, who I believe would have become a major action star if not for his untimely death, went on to reprise his role as Curtis Jackson a third time in American Ninja 3: Blood Hunt.

American Ninja has been released on a region one Blu-ray. It is presented in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio and the film looks and sounds incredible. The special features include an informative audio commentary by director Sam Firstenberg (moderated by filmmaker/editor Elijah Drenner) as well as a second commentary with Firstenberg and Stunt Coordinator Steven Lambert. We are also treated to Rumble in the Jungle: The Making of American Ninja, the original theatrical trailer and TV spot, and a very cool-looking slipcover. This is pure 80s goodness. Don’t miss it.

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“THE BUSTER KEATON COLLECTION, VOLUME 5”

(Three Ages: 1923; Directed by Buster Keaton and Eddie Cline)

(Our Hospitality: 1923; Directed by Buster Keaton and John G. Blystone)

(Cohen Film Collection)

“KEATON CLASSICS DOUBLE FEATURE”

By Raymond Benson

The availability of Buster Keaton on Blu-ray can be a head-scratcher. Kino Lorber seems to have the monopoly on Keaton’s features and shorts, but the puzzlement comes with more than one release of certain titles in Kino’s catalog of disks for sale. Add to this befuddlement is the Cohen Media Group and their Cohen Film Collection’s ownership of Keaton’s library. Cohen has also released Keaton Blu-ray disks—and they’re distributed by Kino Lorber! (And still others are released by Eureka Entertainment, licensed by Cohen!) Which editions are we supposed to get?

A new Cohen Film Collection release, available from Kino Lorber, is The Buster Keaton Collection, Volume 5, which includes a double bill of the master filmmaker’s 1923 features—Three Ages and Our Hospitality. (Also available from Cohen Film Collection are Volumes 1 – 4, which likewise contain double bills of Keaton’s features from the 1920s.)

Here on the Cinema Retro site, I reviewed the Kino Lorber release of Our Hospitality in 2019. Apparently the Kino versions are different restorations from the Cohen’s restorations. The latter are performed by Cineteca di Bologna as part of Cohen’s “Keaton Project.” Long ago, Cohen Media Group acquired the rights from the Keaton estate, even though other companies have had access to them. I won’t even attempt to sort out the rights issues here. Just know that the Kino Our Hospitality disk had bonus features, whereas the Cohen Film Collection double bill discussed here does not contain any supplements aside from Cohen’s own trailer of Our Hospitality release and other Cohen releases.

That said, the Cohen restorations by the Keaton Project are likely the best to come about. They look marvelous. Bonus features? Who needs supplements when the feature films are the best quality available?

Three Ages was Buster Keaton’s first feature film (not counting The Saphead, 1920, in which he only starred). Co-directed with Eddie Cline, Keaton presents the “story of love,” i.e., courtship, in three different time periods—the stone age, the Roman age, and modern times (the 1920s, of course). The same cast portrays the same character types in each story, and the film narrative jumps back and forth between these time periods throughout the run of the picture. Keaton stars as the “lesser” man when compared to his more attractive, manly, and wealthier rival played by Wallace Beery. The woman who is the object of both men’s affection is played by Margaret Leahy (the actress made only one film, and this is it). Beery’s character is a bully, and Keaton must overcome the man’s physical strength and social standing with cunning and trickery. There is certainly amusement and clever bits here, but Three Ages could be called baby steps for Keaton as a feature filmmaker when compared to later works. Three Ages was perhaps the Keaton film most in need for preservation, as there are many instances—a few seconds here and there—in which visual elements are deteriorated. The restoration folks have done the best they could, and this is probably the finest you will ever see Three Ages. The lively score for this release is composed and conducted by Rodney Sauer.

Of more importance and interest is Our Hospitality, considered one of Keaton’s greatest works, and it was only his second feature (it is co-directed by John G. Blystone). The story takes place in the early 1800s and draws upon a rural family feud like the Hatfields and McCoys—in this case the McKays and Canfields. When patriarch John McKay is killed by James Canfield (and vice versa), Mrs. McKay flees with little baby Willie McKay (played by Buster’s real-life infant son, Buster Keaton Jr.). Twenty years later, Willie inherits the old family estate in the south and returns to claim it, only vaguely aware of the feud that has existed for decades. On the way he meets Virginia (played by Keaton’s wife at the time, Natalie Talmadge), who happens to be a Canfield. Upon arrival at home, Willie continues to court Virginia, but her brothers won’t have it. The rest of the picture is a cats-and-mouse game of Willie avoiding being killed and at the same time wooing the woman he wants to marry.

There are many striking aspects about the picture. Keaton’s paid great attention to detail in the design and location shooting. Apparently, he took great pains to create realistic locomotives and tracks that depicted early train development in America (although he played with time period accuracy for the sake of more interesting visuals). The final act contains some spectacular and hair-raising stunt work by the star, including an incident of falling into rapids and almost drowning on camera. Mostly, though, the story is well-constructed, the characters have more depth than in the other silent comedies of the day, and, in the end, Our Hospitality is one of Keaton’s most satisfying movies.

Interestingly, it’s the only Keaton film to feature three generations of Keatons—Buster himself, his previously-mentioned son, and his father, Joe Keaton, as a train engineer.

The Cohen presentation here is gorgeous and near perfect. Carl Davis supplied the wonderful musical score that accompanies it.

For Buster Keaton fans, you can’t go wrong with this double bill release (nor with the Cohen Film Collection’s other four volumes). Highly recommended.

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“A VISCERAL LIFE IN LITTLE ITALY”

By Raymond Benson

Although he had made two previous feature films and several shorts, it was Mean Streets that placed Martin Scorsese into the minds of discerning filmgoers. This low budget independent picture (released by Warner Brothers) proved, as filmmaker Richard Linklater states in a Directors Guild of America interview with Scorsese from 2011 (presented here as a supplement), that artists who wanted to make a movie could go out and find the means to put their vision on the screen without interference from studio brass. Indeed, that’s what Scorsese did.

At the time, Scorsese was trying to make it in Hollywood. It was John Cassavetes who had urged him to stop working for Roger Corman (for whom Scorsese had made 1972’s Boxcar Bertha) and “go back to his roots.” Well, Scorsese’s roots were in the Little Italy neighborhood of New York City. He had grown up there. He had friends there. He knew the life there, all the “goodfellas” and wannabe tough guys and low level (and some high level) gangsters. So the filmmaker crafted a screenplay with fellow NYU film school alumnus Mardik Martin, cast guys he knew such as Harvey Keitel in the lead (he had starred in Scorsese’s first feature, Who’s That Knocking at My Door from 1967, retooled and released in 1968 and again in 1969) and Robert De Niro (who had also grown up in the neighborhood and had known Scorsese when they were younger; this was Scorsese’s first collaboration with De Niro, then an actor who had done some Roger Corman films and was still attempting to up his game). Other familiar faces that have appeared in Scorsese’s oeuvre were also cast—Victor Argo, Harry Northup, David Carradine, and Murray Moston—but also other notable actors who have been in mob-related pictures such as David Proval, Richard Romanus, and Cesare Danova. Amy Robinson, who later became a producer (she co-produced Scorsese’s After Hours in 1985) was cast as the female lead.

Mean Streets features the hallmarks of what we would come to know to be in a “Martin Scorsese Film,” especially when he focuses on the underworld, a topic to which he has returned many times: brotherhood, loyalty, friendship, betrayal, guilt (lots of guilt), Catholicism, sex, drugs, rock and roll, crime, and violence. This life in Little Italy is edgy, gritty, dangerous, and quite self-contained. There isn’t a moment in which an audience might think—oh, this couldn’t happen… because Scorsese convinces you that it can and has.

Charlie (Keitel) is a small time hood in Little Italy. His uncle is Giovanni (Danova), a big time Mafioso. Charlie acts as a big brother figure to his friend, Johnny Boy (De Niro), who is reckless and not the brightest bulb in the socket, and who owes money to several gangsters, including Michael (Romanus). Charlie secretly dates Teresa (Robinson), who is Johnny Boy’s sister. She suffers from epilepsy and is an outsider to the closed-knit Italian culture of the neighborhood. Giovanni wants Charlie to get away from Johnny Boy, but Charlie can’t do it. Eventually the debtors come to get Johnny Boy to pay up, and Charlie must make decisions that will tear him apart. And that’s when the violence erupts.

What’s truly amazing about Mean Streets is that, according to cinematographer Kent Wakeford, only 6% of the film was actually shot in Little Italy (this reviewer believes it is slightly more, but certainly not as much as 10%). The rest was all shot in the Los Angeles area! Scorsese and his design team managed to find locations in California that somewhat resembled New York City, and nearly all of the interiors were shot in real spaces (existing bars, hotels, and apartments). No sound stages were used. For decades, critics and film historians have touted Mean Streets to be one of the “great New York films, shot on the streets” when, in fact, it wasn’t! That’s not to say that it’s not a great New York film, because it is.

Mean Streets is a rough and ready, visceral, fast moving, in your face crime picture with unsavory characters and a vibe that will make you nervous. You might ask, well, is it entertaining? You bet your life it is. But with these ne’er-do-wells, your life may not be worth much.

The Criterion Collection presents a new 4K digital restoration approved by Scorsese and frequent collaborator/editor Thelma Schoonmaker (who was not involved with the film), with an uncompressed monaural soundtrack. After several home video releases in the past on DVD and Blu-ray, this one is obviously tops.

Supplements include the excellent previously mentioned discussion about the film between Scorsese and Richard Linklater at the DGA; an audio commentary by Scorsese and Amy Robinson on specific scenes from the film; a new, observant video essay by Imogen Sara Smith about the picture; an interview with DP Wakefield; excerpts from a documentary about co-writer Mardik Martin; a vintage promo video from 1973 about the making of the film (the only supplement ported over from previous home video releases); and the theatrical trailer. The package booklet contains an essay by critic Lucy Sante.

Mean Streets is a must-have for fans of Martin Scorsese, Harvey Keitel, Robert De Niro, and New York City mob movies. Get it now… just remember to pay your debts!

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By Nicholas Anez

The incentive for this 4^th volume in my Celluloid Adventures series was a dismissive review in a reference book of the 1956 film version of George Orwell’s novel, 1984, calling it “a great disappointment and a lackluster adaptation of the briliant novel.” This derogatory opinion remains the general consensus among many critics. I disagree with this assessment, in part

because the movie remained in my memory long after I first saw it. Furthermore, I had read the novel so I knew that, though the adaptation was definitely a loose one, it was actually faithful to Orwell’s ideas. So I wanted to redress this negative opinion of the movie and proceeded to write about it. This led to my considering other movies in the science fiction and horror genres that, I believe, are also underrated. Thus was born the concept for Celluloid Adventures 4: Science Fiction Thrills….Horror Chills.

I should state at this point that I became a fan of science fiction and horror movies in my adolescence. I also loved Westerns (Shane is my all-time favorite movie) and it has always upset me when a good movie, particularly in my favorite genres, fails at the box-office. Thus, my objective in the first three volumes was to bring overdue attention to some of these movies. In these books, I discuss films within several genres while I devote individual chapters to science fiction and/or horror movies. For this fourth book, I decided to focus only on science fiction and horror because the ascendancy of these genres that began with Star Wars (1977) and The Exorcist (1973) relegated to relative obscurity many fine movies that preceded this dominance along with a few that followed. And it is some of these films that I wanted to retrieve from anonymity for this book. (Not coincidentally, my devotion to the genres more or less ended in the late 70s, coinciding with this ascendancy, but that’s another story.)

It was very rewarding for me to research the movies in Celluloid Adventures 4 because I discovered numerous interesting details about their development and production that I hope will make this book equally interesting. For instance, here are just a few of the many intriguing facts that I learned:

The director of one movie fired his own brother who had written the screenplay.

One movie is based upon a legend of the birth of a deformed monster.

One movie was made by a married couple that later engaged in an acrimonious divorce.

One movie failed upon its original release but played to enthusiastic audiences in New York

and Los Angeles 65 years later.

The screenplay for one movie is based upon actual inhumane experiments conducted in

prestigious universities.

The producer of one movie was forced to cast the actor who starred in it.

The director of one movie considers it among his worst.

One serious movie suffered because its studio promoted it as an exploitation movie.

The 14 movies that I highlight cover a period of three and one-half decades, from 1943 to 1978, and I would speculate that the average moviegoer today has not heard of most of them. With one exception, they were financial failures or disappointments, a fact that contributes to their obscurity. However, I believe that they still deserve the recognition and praise that they did not receive upon their original release. In my estimation, these are all excellent films but yet most of them did not attract wide audiences.

These movies include a wide variety of subjects. In Son of Dracula (1943), the main character is a woman who is not only eager to die but is also willing to kill the man that loves her. In Alias Nick Beal (1949), Lucifer is determined to condemn an innocent man him to eternal suffering. Both The Power (1968) and The Medusa Touch (1978) portray men with superior brains that have the capability to either save or destroy the entire world. One of them will choose destruction because he hates humanity with a passion.

Very few people have heard of the movie, Who? (1974), and those who have heard of it were probably confused by the title. And yet it is a poignant story of an altruistic man who is victimized by futuristic technology. The protagonist of The Groundstar Conspiracy (1972) also endures tremendous suffering from another type of futuristic technology. The future of the aforementioned 1984 (1956) is extremely frightening because it depicts a world in which a sweet-looking child will betray her own father to be tortured and perhaps killed.

I am hoping that this book will encourage people, including some of you who are reading this, to view these movies. They are all entertaining and, in some respects, provocative. For instance, after seeing The Maze (1953), you might actually sympathize with a monstrous amphibian. If you believe that a brain is lifeless once it is removed from its body, Donovan’s Brain (1953) may change your mind. You might also discover how fragile our brains are after viewing The Mind Benders (1963), a story about the cruelty of pitiless scientists. If you view Crack in the World (1965), you will witness how the earth is almost destroyed by a scientist with abundant hubris. Upon viewing Journey to the far Side of the Sun (1969), you will witness a benevolent scientist lose his sanity because of his extraordinary discovery.

There are moments of pure excitement and suspense as well as pure terror in these movies. Viewers of Capricorn One (1977) will inevitably break out in ecstatic applause at the sight of a rickety biplane suddenly appearing on an isolated desert road. This is the only movie among the 14 in this book that was a success – with the public if not the critics. In contrast, The Mummy’s Shroud (1967) played the bottom-of-the-bill of double features and was unnoticed upon its release. But I believe it deserves some kind of awareness.

So I hope that I have piqued your curiosity enough to encourage you to read about the making of these movies. But even if you choose not to buy the book, for your own safety, I implore you to please heed this warning: Beware the beat of the cloth-wrapped feet!

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By Fred Blosser

“The Hands of Orlac,” a 1960 U.K.-French co-production, was the third movie version of “Les Mains d’Orlac,” a sensational 1920 novel by French writer Maurice Renard. Like many of the other horror pictures released in 1960, it was filmed in black-and-white. The director, Edmond T. Gréville, was a veteran French-born filmmaker who had worked in both France and England. His previous picture, “Beat Girl” (1960), had featured Christopher Lee as a strip club impresario in an exploitative story about beatniks, aspiring rockers, and strippers. Lee and other British actors filled most of the major supporting roles in “The Hands of Orlac.” Exterior scenes were filmed on the French Riviera, interiors at Britain’s Shepperton Studios. An American actor, Mel Ferrer, was cast in the lead. Ferrer was a reliably familiar leading man for the all-important U.S. market. His name lent box-office appeal in those days when foreign movies were suspect in small-town America, as it did for another offbeat horror production in which he also starred that same year, Roger Vadim’s “Blood and Roses,” a French and Italian co-production. But U.S. distributors apparently saw no pressing need to slip Gréville’s film into American theaters, since it didn’t open here until 1964. By that time, a promotional still from the movie had appeared in the October 1963 issue of “Famous Monsters of Filmland” magazine, in a preview of upcoming horror and fantasy releases.

In the story, a celebrated concert pianist and composer, Stephen Orlac (Ferrer), flies from London to France to visit his fiancee, Louise (Lucile Saint Simon). His small plane wrecks in a fog, and Orlac’s hands are “burnt to the bone” in the crash. After his ambulance passes through a police checkpoint where a condemned murderer, Vasseur, is being transported to the guillotine, Louise prevails on a famous surgeon, Dr. Volchett (Donald Wolfit), to operate in an effort to save her lover’s badly injured hands. Coming out of the anaesthetic, Orlac finds his hands encased in huge, unsightly plaster casts. Worse, he sees the front page of a newspaper that juxtaposes a report about Vasseur’s execution with one about his own injuries. To his groggy eyes, the stories gradually merge into one under the headline, “Stephen Orlac Receives the Hands of Vasseur, the Murderer.” Lifting the grotesque casts, Orlac flies into hysterics. This was the publicity still that intrigued us young readers of “Famous Monsters” in 1963. It was also the centerpiece of the movie’s lobby-poster art.

Did the newspaper actually display the stories that Orlac read, more or less as he interpreted them? Was he hallucinating? Was there even a newspaper at all? No matter, the high-strung pianist becomes convinced that the surgeon found his hands irreparably damaged, amputated them, and replaced them with Vasseur’s, especially since, as he mourns, “They feel as if they no longer belong to me!” After the casts come off, he can’t get his fingers to strike the right notes on the keyboard.

The obsession grows stronger when Orlac and Louise make love. His fingers unconsciously tighten around her throat, and she begins to choke. That incident and others convince the pianist that Vasseur’s hands have a violent will of their own, and his fiancee’s life is in danger as long as they’re together. He checks into a sketchy Marseilles hotel under an assumed name, where he encounters a small-time stage magician named Nero (Christopher Lee, returning from “Beat Girl” as an even sleazier character). Nero senses an opportunity for blackmail; obviously, “Mr. Stephen” is a well-off guy who wouldn’t be holed up in a dump unless he had something to hide. Nero pimps out his pouty assistant and mistress, Li-Lang (Dany Carrel), to cozy up to Orlac and get him to talk.

Orlac’s self-imposed exile doesn’t last long. After Louise tracks him down, he decides to straighten up, return to England, marry Louise, and resume his career. But he continues to brood over his persuasion that his hands are no longer his own. Discovering “Mr. Stephen’s” true identity, Nero and Li-Lang follow. Nero sets about to feed Orlac’s paranoia, reasoning that the unhinged pianist will kill someone sooner or later, opening himself to big-time extortion.

To the extent that film enthusiasts take notice of “The Hands of Orlac” at all, they mostly judge it seriously inferior to the previous movie versions of Renard’s novel. Robert Wiene’s “Orlacs Hände” (1924), also called “The Hands of Orlac” in English-language prints, was a classic of German silent cinema, with Conrad Veidt as the title character amid feverish Expressionist sets. Following in 1935 from MGM, Karl Freund’s “Mad Love” with Colin Clive as Orlac draped the story in sadism and sexual perversion, to the extent Freund could do so under the vigilant eyes of the Hays Code censors.

Gréville’s remake dialed back on Wiene’s and Freund’s extravagance, accounting for some of its lacklustre press from critics who like to see the gothic thriller envelope pushed further than Gréville pushed it, at least in their opinion. It’s very much a product of 1960, emphasising the psychological aspect of Orlac’s dilemma and stepping into film noir territory once the intimidating Nero and Li-Lang enter the plot. It even evokes the emerging New Wave of French cinema with its documentarian exterior shots on the Riviera. Claude Bolling’s musical score includes light jazz for a scene in which Orlac tools around in a vintage sports car, and rinky-tink cabaret music for Li-Lang’s sultry song-and-slink routine following Nero’s magic act, juxtaposed with Beethoven and Liszt in the concert scenes that open and close the movie. Mel Ferrer lacks Conrad Veidt’s eye-popping hysteria and Colin Clive’s furrowed anxiety, his Orlac repurposed for 1960 as a sophisticate in shades, pullover sweater, and tailored slacks for casual wear, and an expensive suit for business occasions. If you’re a retro-fan of JFK-era men’s fashions, you probably won’t mind. You may even prefer Ferrer’s interpretation over his predecessors’. Like other British horror films of the time, such as “Jack the Ripper” (1959) and “The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll” (1960), “The Hands of Orlac” promises plenty of sex appeal courtesy of Lucile Saint Simon’s filmy negligees and Dany Carrel’s showgirl outfits. In truth, this stuff is pretty tame by 2023 standards, but it was a draw for male filmgoers at a time when even the centrefolds in “Playboy” were often modestly posed.

For most of the picture, we don’t know whether Orlac’s obsession has a basis in reality, since we don’t actually see the operation itself. Were the killer’s hands really grafted onto his wrists, or is the pianist suffering from a morbid neurosis? An explanation is made toward the end that for may find satisfying or frustrating, depending on your tastes. It doesn’t help that Orlac is surrounded by oddball characters who only compound his unease. Nero is the only one who is overtly menacing, but others are unsettling in their own ways. In his few minutes on screen, Donald Wolfit’s Dr. Volchett is brusque and possibly alcoholic; his decision to save (or replace) Stephen’s damaged hands seems more a whim than a humanitarian impulse. His unnamed assistant (Anita Sharp Bolster) is a starchy spinster who wears rimless glasses with impenetrably thick lenses, like Albert Dekker’s in 1940’s “Dr. Cyclops.” When Orlac tries to call Dr. Volchett to either confirm or relieve his suspicions, the assistant tells him the surgeon is on professional travel—to Moscow!—and unreachable in that era before cellphones and Zoom. She brightens up as she enjoys a chance to extol her boss, but her comments only deepen Orlac’s fears: “Dr. Volchett is a magician,” she declares. “Your case was his greatest triumph.” In a small but bravura appearance, Donald Pleasence plays Coates, a sculptor who wants to use Orlac’s hands as the model for those of Lazarus in a biblical tableau of Lazarus raised from the dead. “All we see of Lazarus is his hands—your hands, Orlac!”, he exclaims, seizing the pianist’s wrists. Given Stephen’s state of mind, the sculptor’s fervor is more invasive than flattering, like the irritating stranger who latches on to you at a party and won’t let go. As he makes his pitch with growing enthusiasm, Orlac stares at his hands (poised exactly as he had scrutinized his grotesque casts earlier in the story), and runs off in panic.

“The Hands of Orlac” isn’t the best horror thriller of 1960. That would be Alfred Hitchcock’s “Psycho,” with “Blood and Roses” and Georges Franju’s “Eyes Without a Face” as close seconds. But it’s better than its obscurity would imply. In the U.S., “Eyes Without a Face” was dumped onto double bills as “The Horror Chamber of Dr. Faustus” and generally ignored by critics, much as “The Hands of Orlac” was. Now, it’s widely regarded as a classic. It’s surprising that Gréville’s picture hasn’t received similar reappraisal, given the renewed interest in neglected horror films in the home video era, and the movie’s value as an early showcase for Christopher Lee and Donald Pleasence. The problem may lie with the fact that an official DVD or Blu-ray edition for fair evaluation doesn’t exist in the U.S., the U.K., or anywhere else as far as I can tell. DVD-R versions are sold on the collector’s market, with caveats about their visual quality.

We discovered this presentation of the film on YouTube, apparently sourced from tape, perhaps one of two competing VHS releases in the 1990s, or a videotape from a long-ago television broadcast. The image is better than you might expect, if inferior to the hi-def transfers we’ve come to expect nowadays. It’s also the easiest way to find the movie, at least until we can hope to see original elements unearthed, if they still exist, and a better print prepared for Blu-ray or one of the major streaming platforms.

(To watch in full screen format, click on "Watch on YouTube".)

Remember the gloriously cheesy 1967 James Bond spoof Operation Kid Brother? It starred Sean Connery's younger brother Neil in an attempt to capitalize on the 007 craze. The bizarre film did boast some first-rate talent including an assortment of alumni from the "real" Bond movies including Daniela Bianchi, Adolfo Celi, Anthony Dawson, Lois Maxwell and Bernard Lee (the latter two blatantly recreating their "M"/Monepenny relationship). The film is fun and represents a guilty pleasure. It also includes a catchy theme song by Ennio Morricone, yes, that Ennio Morricone! Making the situation even stranger is that Neil Connery (who is badly dubbed in the movie) is referred to as "Connery"! (For an 8-page report on the making of the film, including an interview with Neil Connery, see Cinema Retro issue #12). The trailer presented here is appropriately of grind house quality. The film was released in different countries under different titles including "O.K. Connery!", the name of the opening song. The film has never received a quality home video release, having been relegated to bargain basement labels. However, the good news is that it is streaming on Amazon Prime. The print used is probably the best presentation of the movie you will find.

By Fred Blosser

Released on June 29, 1966, “Nevada Smith” was well-received by audiences who still flocked to A-list Westerns in those days, earning $14 million in ticket sales—about $132 million in today’s value. Produced by Joseph E. Levine and directed by Henry Hathaway, it starred Steve McQueen in the title role, as a young half-Indian man, birth name Max Sand, who determines to track down the three outlaws who murdered his parents. The movie was a spinoff from a previous Levine release, “The Carpetbaggers,” a sensational hit in 1964 based on a Harold Robbins novel. There, in his final role, Alan Ladd played the older Nevada Smith, a reformed gunfighter turned B-movie cowboy actor in the 1930s. Thus the 1966 release was a prequel, as we’d now call it, based on a lengthy section from Robbins’ novel. The reviews for the 1966 production were mostly positive, except for two opinions that observers continue to raise in on-line and print discussions about the film. At 35, they argue, McQueen was too old and seasoned to play a kid supposedly in his late teens. And with blond hair and blue eyes, nobody would mistake him for anyone with Native American genetics. Does either point of view stand up to examination? We McQueen fans would say, not really. Movies are all about illusion anyway, in case anyone forgets all those John Hughes films of the ‘80s starring actors in their twenties as high school kids. At this late date with McQueen’s iconic status firmly established, it’s impossible to imagine anyone else playing the part. (Although someone else tried, not counting Alan Ladd as the older, more sedate Nevada in “The Carpetbaggers.” Cliff Potts essayed the role in a 1975 TV production also titled “Nevada Smith,” designed as a direct sequel to Hathaway’s picture. Filmed as a hopeful pilot for a TV series, it’s pretty much forgotten now. Cliff Potts was a good actor, usually cast as charming but devious characters, but he was no Steve McQueen.)

In Hathaway’s movie, three drifters, Fitch, Bowdre, and Coe, ride up to young Max Sand and claim to be friends of his father’s. The actors in the roles were Karl Malden, Arthur Kennedy, and Martin Landau. Try to find a trio of that caliber in any 2023 release. Helpfully, Max tells the strangers to find the homestead, immediately getting a bad feeling when they speed off, yelling and firing their pistols. The three drifters know the elder Sand all right, but they’ve really come to demand the gold they believe he’s found in a nearby mine. When he says the mine is worthless, and all it ever yielded was a $38 nugget, the intruders don’t believe him and work themselves into a rage. Coe draws a knife, cold-bloodedly cuts Sand’s Kiowa wife, and threatens to skin her alive if the miner doesn’t tell them where he’s supposedly hidden his riches. By the time Max reaches the cabin, he finds his parents’ mangled corpses, and the killers are long gone.

Max sets out to avenge the murders, but inexperienced and naive, he isn’t cut out for the job—at first. “If you want to find those men, you’ll have to look in every saloon, hog farm, and whorehouse you come to,” warns a chance acquaintance, Jonas Cord (Brian Keith), a friendly traveling gunsmith. “You’ll have to become what they are, and wallow in the same garbage they do.” Realizing he can’t persuade Max to call it quits, Jonas teaches him the essential skills he’ll need to survive: draw fast and shoot straight, learn to play poker, do everything you can not to give yourself away, and don’t trust anybody, “not even your friends.” Working his way up through Coe and Bowdre, he finally locates Fitch. Calling himself “Nevada Smith,” he joins the outlaw’s new gang in a plan to rob a gold shipment, bringing the story, neatly, full circle. Fitch knows Max Sand is after him, but he doesn’t remember what Max looks like; regardless, he grows suspicious and paranoid about Nevada Smith as the day of the robbery approaches.

Filmed at locations in California and Louisiana (where Max robs a bank to get himself sentenced to a prison farm, next to Bowdre), “Nevada Smith” impressed audiences in 1966 with McQueen’s athletic performance against scenic outdoor backdrops, beautifully composed by Hathaway and his cinematographer, Lucian Ballard. This may not seem to be a remarkable achievement until you revisit the old TV Westerns of the ‘60s, which still run every day on streaming platforms like GritTV and Cinevault Westerns, and remember their tired stock-in-trade of aging stars, repetitive storylines, meager action, and generic backlot sets standing in for Dodge City, the Ponderosa, and the Big Valley. A new Blu-ray edition of “Nevada Smith” from Kino Lorber, in a 4K scan of the original camera negative, reproduces the vistas in stunning detail and richness, a long overdue boost for viewers who may have seen the movie only in edited, pan-and-scan TV prints. C. Courtney Joyner, Mark Jordan Legan, and Henry Parke offer a fine ensemble audio commentary, pointing out—among other elements—the legion of fine character actors in the supporting cast. Normally, I pride myself on that sort of Hollywood trivia, but Joyner, Legan, and Parke put me in my place. They pointed out some faces I would have missed otherwise.

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(Fred Blosser is the author of "Sons of Ringo: The Great Spaghetti Western Heroes". Click here to order from Amazon)

BY LEE PFEIFFER

Don Knotts came to fame with his trademark comedy style of portraying a meek, excessively nervous character. He was Woody Allen before Woody Allen was Woody Allen. Knotts honed his skills on Steve Allen's show in the 1950s, with his "man on the street" Nervous Nellie routine sending audiences into fits of laughter. He co-starred with fellow up-and-comer Andy Griffith in the hit Broadway production of "No Time for Sergeants" and the subsequent film version. When Griffith landed his own TV series in 1960 in which he played the sheriff of fictional small town Mayberry, Knotts imposed upon him to write a small, occasional part he could play as Barney Fife, Griffith's inept but loyal sheriff. Griffith complied and the role made Knotts an icon of American comedy, allowing him to win an astonishing five Emmys for playing the same character. Five years into the series, Knotts was offered a multi-feature deal by Lew Wasserman, the reigning mogul of Universal Pictures. Knotts took the bait and enjoyed creative control over the films to a certain degree. He could pretty much do what he wanted as long has he played the same nervous schlep audiences wanted to see. The films had to be low-budget, shot quickly and enjoy modest profits from rural audiences where Knotts' popularity skewed the highest. His first feature film was The Ghost and Mr. Chicken, released in 1966 and written by the same writing team from the "The Andy Griffith Show". (Griffith actually co-wrote the script but declined taking a writing credit.) The film astonished the industry, rolling up big grosses in small markets where it proved to have remarkable staying power. Similarly, his next film, The Reluctant Astronaut also proved to be a big hit, as was his 1969 western spoof The Shakiest Gun in the West.  Within a few years, however, changing audience tastes had rendered Knotts' brand of innocent, gentle humor somewhat moot. By the late 1960s audiences were getting their laughs from the new film freedoms. It was hard to find the antics of a middle-aged virgin much fun when you could see Bob and Carol and Ted and Alice cavorting in the same bed. Still, Knotts soldiered on, providing fare for the drive-in markets that still wanted his films. In 1969 he made The Love God?, a very funny and underrated film that tried to be more contemporary by casting Knotts as an innocent ninny who is manipulated into fronting what he thinks is a magazine for bird watchers but, in reality, is a cover for a pornography empire. Knotts' traditional audience balked at the relatively tame sex jokes and for his final film for Universal, How to Frame a Figg, he reverted back to his old formula. 

Released in 1971, Figg casts Don Knotts as the titular character, Hollis Figg, a nondescript wimp who toils as an overlooked accountant in a basement of  city hall. The film is set in a Mayberry-like small town environment but any other similarity ends there. In Mayberry, only the visiting city slickers were ever corrupt. The citizenry may have been comprised of goofballs and eccentrics, but they were all scrupulously honest. In Figg's world, however, the top government officials are all con-men and crooks. They are ruled by the town's beloved paternal father figure, Old Charley Spaulding (Parker Fennelly), a decrepit character who hands out pennies to everyone he encounters, with the heart-warming greeting "A shiny penny for your future!" In fact, Old Charley  has plenty of those pennies stashed away. He and his hand-picked fellow crooks, including the mayor and police chief, have been systemically ripping off the state by grossly inflating the costs of local building projects and secretly pocketing the overages. Concerned that the accountants might get wind of their activities, they summarily fire them all except for Figg, who is deemed to be too naive to ever catch on. They justify the firings by saying it's fiscally prudent and replace the accountants with a gigantic computer that is supposed to be even more efficient. Through a quirk of fate, Figg and his equally naive friend, Prentiss (Frank Welker), the janitor for city hall, discover exactly what is going on. Figg dutifully reports his findings to the mayor (Edward Andrews), who convinces him to keep it secret while he launches his own investigation. Old Charley, the mayor and their cohorts decide to make Figg the fall guy for the corrupt practices. They give him a big promotion, a new red convertible and even hire a private secretary for him. She's Glorianna (Yvonne Craig), a leggy femme fatale who wears mini skirts and oozes sex. When her attempts to seduce Figg leave him paralyzed with fear because of his allegiance to his new girlfriend, the equally virginal waitress Ema Letha (Elaine Joyce), Glorianna gets Figg drunk, takes some embarrassing photos of him and then proceeds to have him sign a stream of incriminating documents that he has not bothered to read. Before long, Figg is blamed for all the missing funds and faces a jail sentence- unless he and the dim-witted Prentiss can figure out how to use the computer to thwart the real crooks. 

"BLAST FROM THE PAST: FROM THE CINEMA RETRO ARCHIVES"

By Lee Pfeiffer

"Saturday Night Live" spawned many a memorable comic character, some of whom were exploited in feature films. While "The Coneheads" proved to be  popular on the big screen, other TV-to-cinema transfers of iconic "SNL" pop culture figures proved to be duds. Al Franken's memorable incarnation of Stuart Smalley was the subject of "Stuart Saves His Family", a 1995 production directed by Harold Ramis that received some surprisingly favorable reviews but ended up with a North American boxoffice gross of less than $1 million. That ranks as a major success compared to "It's Pat: The Movie", released the prior year and starring Julia Sweeney as the androgynous character that proved to be a popular staple of "SNL" during this period. Pat was a visually unattractive figure with an obnoxious manner of speaking that repulsed his/her coworkers, who were constantly striving to discover whether Pat was a male or female. Inevitably, Pat would provide unintentionally ambiguous answers to leading questions that would only heighten the mystery and thwart those who were seeking to unveil Pat's genetic makeup. As the subject of five-minute comedy sketches the concept worked great and Sweeney's Pat became a popular staple of the show. Then Hollywood came knocking. Fox approached Sweeney to turn the concept into a feature film. Sweeney admitted she couldn't envision how Pat could remain interesting to viewers in any format other than TV skits. After putting some development money into the film, Fox agreed and backed off only to have Disney's Touchstone Pictures ride to the rescue and give the production the green light. The result was a disaster. The film was given some sporadic openings only to be pulled within a week due to complete rejection by audiences. The movie's boxoffice gross in North America stands at $61,000. Although modestly-budgeted, the movie still had cost more than $10 million to make. Time has not been kind to dear Pat, as it boasts a Rotten Tomatoes score of 0%. Now those brave souls at Kino Lorber have released a Blu-ray of "Pat: The Movie" and, consequently, it's time to revisit the film.

The plot (such as it is) opens with Pat alienating everyone in his/her orbit with obnoxious behavior. A local store owner gives Pat items for free just to expedite his/her departure. Pat tries various career moves but inevitably loses every job due to ineptness. Just when things seem hopeless, Pat finds love with Chris (Dave Foley in a role originated by Dana Carvey on "SNL"), another androgynous individual. The two set up house together and live as a normal couple, though both seem blissfully unaware that their sexuality is a mystery to those around them. Are they a straight couple? A gay couple? Two men? Two women? A subplot is introduced in which a hunky new neighbor, Kyle (Charles Rocket) and his wife Stacy (Julie Hayden) find their lives disrupted by Kyle's increasing obsession with Pat. He is sexually attracted to him/her, much to the alarm of Stacy, and that attraction turns into a psychological mania that finds Kyle dressing like Pat and even stroking a doll that resembles him/her. Meanwhile, the hapless Pat blunders into some successful career steps by making an appearance with a rock band that leads to him/ her becoming a media sensation. When he/she drops by a radio station to visit a friend, Kathy (Kathy Griffin), who hosts a popular romantic advice show, Pat unintentionally upstages her and gets the hosting gig. Pat's success has alienated Chris, who breaks up the relationship and decides to move abroad. The finale finds Pat coming to grips with his/her faults and making a mad dash to a cruise ship line to prevent Chris from leaving the country.

The animosity extended to "Pat: The Movie", which was directed by Adam Bernstein, is a bit difficult to understand. It isn't very good, to be sure, but it's amusing at times and never veers into the overtly offensive gross-out humor that characterizes many of today's comedies. One of the main problems with the film is that there are no sympathetic characters. I don't recall Pat being an overt narcissist on the "SNL" sketches but here the character is mean-spirited, self-centered and devoid of any likable behavior. Kyle is even more repulsive and barely looks up when his wife leaves him. Now this is an absurdist comedy, to be sure, but the best comedies allow the audience to relate to the protagonists on some level. Jerry Lewis and Jim Carrey played klutzes but they were klutzes you could cheer for. Not so with Sweeney's Pat. Additionally, Sweeney's fears that the one-note concept could not be sustained over the course of a feature film proved correct. Even with the running time of 77 minutes, the movie plods. Still, there are some genuine laughs, most of them centered on the traditional gag of those around Pat becoming increasingly frustrated by their failure to determine his/her sex. When Pat and Chris are presented with a gift of a sexy corset, they both smile wryly and say "We'll enjoy this!" There is also some genuine amusement in Pat's physical appearance, a kind of grotesque version of Jerry Lewis's Prof. Kelp from "The Nutty Professor". But the laughs are too few even for the abbreviated running time. There also some annoyances that are due to simple sloppiness: when Pat tries to escape a pursuer, she randomly enters a building only to find the place is a night club hosting a packed, on-going, ear-splitting rock concert taking place apparently in the middle of the afternoon. Such absurdities leave one to think that the film was slapped together quickly in order to make a fast buck.

Julia Sweeney tragically faced more challenges than the complete failure of "It's Pat" with critics and the public. Around the time of the film's release, her brother was diagnosed with a terminal illness. After caring for him, she was diagnosed with cancer. Sweeney beat the disease and made lemonade from the lemons life had handed her when she wrote and starred in her acclaimed one-woman play, "God Said Hah!" which chronicled her personal trials and tribulations through a comedic lens. (The play would later be the basis for a documentary.) Her co-star Charles Rocket fared worse, committing suicide in 2005. However, most of those associated with the debacle of "It's Pat" found their careers survived. Director Adam Bernstein went on to a highly successful career in television. Dave Foley continues to work steadily in TV and films and Kathy Griffin emerged as a popular standup comedienne and pundit on CNN until her increasingly foul-mouthed rants backfired, topped by sending around an image on social media depicting her holding the bloody, severed head of President Trump. That stunt achieved the distinction of being denounced by even the president's most ardent critics and Griffin lost her CNN gig.

"It's Pat" opened and closed before the age of E mail and social media had taken the world by storm. It's failure today would have been the stuff of snarky jokes and cynical criticisms of all those involved. However, because the film wasn't highly anticipated, it's failure occurred without much notice or damage to anyone's personal reputation. There's plenty of laughs left in dear Pat but they can mostly be found in the original "SNL" skits. Ironically, with transgender issues now the topic of current debates, the film might have found a more receptive audience today.

The Kino Lorber Blu-ray has an impressive transfer, a teaser trailer for the film and a gallery of other comedies available through the company.

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Here's a blast from the past: a spoof of "Becket" if it had starred Peter O'Toole, Richard Burton, Richard Harris and Katharine Hepburn, all courtesy of the Second City TV cast.

By Fred Blosser

From the vantage point of 2023, the domestic and professional situations depicted in Mervyn Le Roy’s “Moment to Moment,” a romantic melodrama released on January 27, 1966, might as well be a portrait of an alien society. Kay Stanton (Jean Seberg) lives in a charming rented villa in Cannes, France, thanks to her husband Neil’s sabbatical from his tenured position as an eminent professor of psychology at Columbia University. If you ask a professor nowadays if he or she ever expects to receive a year’s paid leave on the French Riviera complete with housing, the answer is likely to be, “Sure, in your dreams.” In today’s penny-pinching, increasingly conservative institutions of higher learning, most professors are lucky to get tenure.

Kay has no visible interests or pursuits outside of her role as a housewife, and even the chores of cooking, cleaning, and supervising the couple’s well-behaved ten-year-old son are fulfilled by paid help. Today’s overworked, stressed-out soccer moms would pant with envy, but Kay is lonely. Neil (an archetypal Arthur Hill role played here by . . . Arthur Hill!) is a loving husband, but he’s on the road most of the time, happily accepting offers to lecture in London and Edinburgh. In that pre-IT age, he and Kay don’t even have the luxury of seeing each other on FaceTime. The best Kay can expect is a hurried call on her landline as Neil rushes off to an appointment, and the most excitement she can muster are the afternoon cocktails with her impish, divorced neighbor Daphne (Honor Blackman). Daphne is as happily promiscuous as Kay is strait-laced, offering a perpetual open house to randy gangs of officers on leave from a nearby American Navy base. Despite her good-times facade, we eventually learn that Daphne’s objective is as middle-class as they come, hoping eventually to land Mr. Right in the form of a well-to-do, well-connected commander or admiral.

For Kay, temptation enters as she encounters Mark Dominic (Sean Garrison), a handsome Naval ensign with ambitions as an artist. They meet when her son Timmy notices Mark painting at an easel in town, and from there they drift into a relationship when she offers to drive him around to scout out potential backdrops at quaint village plazas and cafes. In the best Soap Opera tradition of smart people who do stupid things against their better judgment — not unlike real life, come to think of it — Kay goes to bed with Mark one night when her son is sleeping over at a friend’s house and the housekeeper is on vacation. Next morning, Kay suffers remorse and tells Mark it’s over. Mark reacts angrily, a gun is brandished and goes off, and he drops to the floor, apparently dead. Kay compounds one stupid act with another when she convinces Daphne to help her dispose of the body.

At that point, the movie finds its surest footing as a suspense thriller. Kay calls the police anonymously to tell them where to find Mark, and soon the shrewd Inspector DeFargo (Grégoire Aslan) is on the case. He suspects Kay of being the culprit, and begins to tighten the screws by asking Neil, newly arrived home not knowing about Kay’s infidelity, to help treat a young man with amnesia. The patient is Mark, alive but suffering a total loss of memory beginning with the morning he met Kay. In scenes of sadistic comedy that nearly rival Alfred Hitchcock’s best, DeFargo engineers a series of meetings with Neil, Kay, and Mark in which various visual and acoustic clues threaten to jog the young officer’s memory. Kay cringes, Neil is oblivious, and DeFargo watches like a spider contemplating a fly in its web. To say the least, it’s unorthodox police procedure. At least he doesn’t propose the old Hollywood remedy of smacking Mark on the head again to see if that does the trick. Maybe he found it more amusing to torment Kay.

“Moment to Moment” was the final film of Melvyn Le Roy’s long and versatile career, except for uncredited assistance on John Wayne’s “The Green Berets,” and it is largely forgotten today even as new generations of movie buffs rediscover “Little Caesar,” “Gold Diggers of 1933,” “The Bad Seed,” and “Gypsy.” In part, it was probably a matter of having a B+ cast instead of an A cast. Jean Seberg was a well-established actress, but not a proven box-office draw like Audrey Hepburn or a rising luminary like Faye Dunaway. Sean Garrison co-starred in a short-lived TV Western, “Dundee and the Culhane,” and then drifted into a busy but low-key career as a supporting actor. He had the misfortune of entering the business at the same time as dozens of other young, good-looking hopefuls, and unlike James Brolin, Chad Everett, Harrison Ford, Lee Majors, and Robert Redford, he never quite had the charisma or lucky break needed to surface above the pack.

But the main jinx for the movie was bad timing. Released the same year that “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” and “Blow-Up” began to shake Hollywood’s taboos against explicit language and nudity, “Moment to Moment” struck critics and probably most viewers as glossy, old-fashioned entertainment not much racier than the TV Soap Operas of the era. Today, that very quality is likely to work in its favor among viewers who weren’t even born in 1966. Who wouldn’t be curious about a world in which a thirty-something woman lounges around the house in Yves Saint Laurent dresses instead of yoga pants and a sweatshirt? The plot about marital infidelity and attempted murder is mirrored now by true-crime podcasts and “NBC Dateline Two-Hour Events,” although the culprits there are usually less attractive and a lot less classy than Kay Stanton, and the cops less idiosyncratic than Inspector DeFargo.

A new Blu-ray edition of “Moment to Moment” from Kino Lorber Studio Classics presents the movie in a sharp, 1.85:1 image much richer than the old prints that used to run on local TV stations in the 1980s, before “Dr. Phil” and “The View” claimed their time-slot. Special features include an amusing, informative audio commentary by Howard S. Berger and Nathaniel Thompson, and a short 1966 featurette, “Moment to Moment with Henry Mancini.” The featurette, actually a slightly extended trailer, intercuts shots of the composer conducting his lush score for the picture with quick scenes illustrating how the music underlines Le Roy’s moods of romance and suspense. Would that we had more composers now as talented as Henry Mancini, and more directors with Mervyn Le Roy’s versatility, sharp sense of composition, and confident pace.

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(Fred Blosser is the author of "Sons of Ringo: The Great Spaghetti Western Heroes". Click here to order from Amazon)

(Photo: Warner Bros.)

CNN is reporting that Paul Reubens, the comedy star who created the iconic Pee-Wee Herman character, has died from cancer at age 70. Reubens had been battling cancer for the last six years. He had pre-written a public statement to be read in anticipation of his death. In the statement, which was read on CNN, Reubens apologized to his fans for keeping his health crisis secret and encouraged the public to continue to fund cancer research. Reuben's show, "Pee-Wee's Playhouse" started off as a spoof of 1950s children's programs and had risque elements to it. However, when Reubens learned that children had gravitated to the show, he made the program more family-friendly. The character became so popular in the 1980s and 1990s that Reubens starred in big screen Pee-Wee Herman feature films. 

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Corman/ Poe: Interviews and Essays Exploring the Making of Roger Corman’s Edgar Allan Poe Films, 1960-1964

By Chris Alexander

Foreword by Roger Corman

Headpress paperback
Size: 235mm x 191mm
Pages: 150
105 colour and B&W stills images

ISBN: 978-1-915316-07-3

Retail Price: UK £22.99 / US $27.95

Review by Adrian Smith

The early 1960s was a boom time for gothic horror films. Spurred on by the Hammer Films one-two punch of Curse of Frankenstein (1957) and Dracula (1958), film companies around the world fell over themselves to produce films set in cobweb-strewn castles and mist-enshrouded graveyards. Directors such as Mario Bava and Antonio Margheriti made several Italian gothics, frequently starring Christopher Lee or Barbara Steele, but no one director had such a successful run as Roger Corman, who in the space of five years brought us an incredible series of eight films adapted from the disturbed writing of Edgar Allan Poe: The Fall of the House of Usher (1960), The Pit and the Pendulum (1961), Premature Burial, Tales of Terror, (both 1962), The Haunted Palace, The Raven (both 1963), Masque of the Red Death and The Tomb of Ligeia (both 1964). All but one starred Vincent Price, and they also featured the talents of Ray Milland, Boris Karloff, Peter Lorre, Basil Rathbone, Barbara Steele (again, proving she was a gothic icon on both sides of the Atlantic), Hazel Court, and even a young Jack Nicholson.

In this new book, the first dedicated solely to these films, Fangoria's Chris Alexander has interviewed Roger Corman (a mere 97 years old, with a pin-sharp memory) at length on each one of these low- budget gems, discussing the themes, the productions, his love-hate relationship with American International Pictures, the cast and crew, and much more. He reflects thoughtfully on his collaborative relationship with Vincent Price, who he rightly describes as a “brilliant actor,” and he is not too proud of his own achievements to acknowledge the important contribution of others, including writer Richard Matheson, who he says was, “One of the finest writers I’ve ever had the chance to work with,” crediting him “for much of the success of those early Poe pictures.” Also featured in the book is a critical appraisal for each film and a wealth of archival material, including a full-colour international poster gallery and censorship documents related to the most controversial of them all, Masque of the Red Death.

Roger Corman is one of the most prolific directors and producers we have ever had, and as such there is always more to be said about his work. Corman/ Poe is an essential addition to the growing Corman library.

For an exclusive hardback edition go to https://headpress.com/product/corman-poe/

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Birkin in the 1969 cult film "La Piscine". (Photo: Cinema Retro Archive.)

By Lee Pfeiffer

Actress and singer Jane Birkin has died at age 76. A cause of death did not accompany the announcement. Birkin was one of the "It Girls" of the mod period of the mid-to-late 1960s when censorship boundaries were removed and sexual behavior became celebrated rather than condemned. Because Birkin had been so closely associated with France, many people thought she was French by birth. Indeed, in commenting on her passing, President Macron referred to her as a "French icon". But Birkin was British by birth and came of age during an era of social rebellion that afforded her liberated attitudes to be celebrated in the arts. She first appeared in bit roles in "The Knack...and How to Use It", "The Idol",, "Kaleidoscope" and, more importantly, in a memorable nude scene in director Michelangelo Antonioni's bizarre but acclaimed 1966 "Blow-up". She also starred in the 1969 French film "La Piscine" with Alain Delon, which has become a popular cult film in recent years. She married British composer John Barry, whose own popularity was exploding due in no small part to his association with the James Bond films. The marriage didn't last and Birkin went to France to appear in a film. There she met and fell in love with songwriter and actor Serge Gainsbourg. Their relationship became the stuff of gossip columns after the couple recorded the smash hit, provocative record "Je t'aime...moi non plus". She and Gainsbourg stayed together for ten years. In addition to her concert appearances, Birkin was also known for inadvertently inspiring a top-end handbag design manufactured by Hermes, after an executive for the company overheard her complain that they needed to create a larger bag.

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By Adrian Smith

Richard Loncraine’s The Haunting of Julia (aka Full Circle, 1977) is a chilling, emotionally charged ghost story shot in London in 1976 with Canadian funding which fell into a legal limbo and was destined to remain largely forgotten until film historian and writer Simon Fitzjohn began researching the film for a magazine article in 2016. The rabbit hole grew deeper and he became a man on a mission to bring the film back to the public. The years of struggle paid off and the film has now been restored and released around the world on Blu-ray and UHD, so Cinema Retro sat down with him to find out how it all happened.

Cinema Retro – How does it feel to finally be at the end of this epic journey?

Simon Fitzjohn - We had a screening at the BFI in London recently which was a massive thrill. There was a good audience and we got quite a few of the crew along as well as Richard Loncraine, the director. It was a bit of a party, to be perfectly honest with you, a fantastic experience.

CR – So how did this all start?

SF - I read a BFI article at Halloween in 2016 called ‘Forgotten British Horror Films of the 1970s,’ and I thought, “Right, okay, I'm pretty sure I'm just going to tick everything off this list.” So I went through them all and it was Pete Walker's Frightmare, things like that. And then there was Full Circle, or The Haunting of Julia and this picture of Mia Farrow with her arms out. I thought “I don't think I've seen that one.” I took it as a bit of an affront really that I hadn't seen it. That was when I then found out that it wasn't available commercially at all, no DVD release, however, there was a version of it on YouTube as they'd shown it on the Sony Movie Channel in 2011. So I watched it and I was floored by it. You know, I remember when it ended and I just sat there in silence for about 15 minutes trying to sort of process it and thinking, ‘Oh, my God, this is just such a sad film. How has this film been allowed to disappear?” You know, why is this not heralded as an amazing British horror film?

CR – You would think it would be better known, particularly because it starred Mia Farrow.

SF - Originally my idea was just to write about it, so the first person I reached out to was Peter Fetterman, who was the producer on it, and he said, “Well, I'm still friends with Richard Loncraine, I'll give him your number.” So I had a call with Richard, who was quite bewildered, as he always is. When anybody says they love the film, he hates it! He seems flabbergasted, because he doesn't think it's a good film. I think a lot of that was down to all the pressures from the external people when they were making it, certainly the Canadian side of it, who wanted this Omen-style bloodbath, whereas Richard wanted this more ambiguous, psychological film. Then he put me in touch with Peter Hannon, who was the director of cinematography on it, and then we found out that Technicolor had found the negative, so Richard and I thought, “Right, here we go!” We needed to get that negative, get it restored and get it rereleased.

CR - Were there rights issues? Is that one of the reasons why it had fallen out of circulation?

SF - Yes. It wasn't that the negative was missing. The last known owner of it was a guy called Julian Mills who was the exec producer on the film. Technicolor had documents for Full Circle with Julian Melzack at Albian Films, and he obviously didn't care about the film because he never bothered to release it himself, and then he died in early 2016. So we had to somehow jump through all these hoops to prove that he hadn't passed the film on to anybody else before he passed away, so that we could prove an ownership chain. It was about six years of working with Technicolor, Companies House, solicitors, Julian Melzack's daughter, all these people going round and round trying to find paperwork. It was just exasperating, to be perfectly honest with you, and there were numerous times where we just thought it wasn’t going to happen because we would answer a question and then they would give us another obstacle and we would jump over that, and then they'd give us another obstacle. There were times when I flagged, but then I would get people messaging me on the Twitter account I had (@full_julia), saying, “Keep going, keep going!” Eventually we were able to do it.

CR – Who funded the restoration?

SF - It was Shout! Factory, but there were numerous people that worked together on this. Shout! Factory sorted the restoration, but the BFI now keep the negative, that was the deal. It was done at Silver Salt in London. Richard Loncraine was involved in that as well.

CR - You've also been heavily involved in the release, with a commentary track (with the director) and some of the extra features for the BFI release.

SF - It was great, because I'd always said right from the start that the key for me was that the film was going to be back out there. It deserves to be talked about, it deserves to be celebrated. But it was still really nice when the BFI came to me straight away and said we want you front and centre on this because Richard said, "Look, if you don't involve Simon, I'm not getting involved.” I was able to help as well because I was in touch with so many people, so Tom Conti was interviewed as was Samantha Gates, who plays Olivia in the film. I've been reading some very positive comments about it in reviews. It was fun, it was a great thrill.

CR – There are rumours that something is missing from the film, specifically a graphic tracheotomy scene, which of course is the tragic event at the beginning of the film [Julia’s daughter is choking to death, and in a last desperate attempt to save her she attempts a tracheotomy which fails and the daughter dies]. What do you know about this?

SF - There was this guy and he would constantly message me on Twitter to ask, “Have you found the tracheotomy scene?” And he was the one that apparently somehow added it to IMDb that this was missing, but nobody has it because it doesn't exist. Why would they randomly have had this blood- spurting tracheotomy? That was never the intention for the film. I've read the BBFC censors report when they classified the film, and they referenced the fact that there was no blood in it. They gave it an AA certificate because it was so tame. So there was never anything filmed, but when they were filming that scene Alfred Pariser, who was the Canadian producer on it, he wanted it to be bloody so he had a cup of stage blood. When Mia stabbed Sophie Ward with the knife, he threw the cup of blood over them. Mia Farrow just got up and ran out screaming because she thought she had cut Sophie Ward's throat! But they obviously didn't use that footage. They weren't interested in having anything like that.

CR – Fantastic. And your commentary track with Richard Loncraine is packed with stories like that. Congratulations on what must feel like such a tremendous achievement.

SF – Thank you. And I ended up somehow randomly getting a Rondo Award too!

The Haunting of Julia/ Full Circle is available on Blu-ray and UHD in the States from Shout! Factory, in Australia from Imprint, and on Blu-ray and UHD in the UK from the BFI. Each edition shares some bonus features whilst also having some which are unique. The Imprint release comes in a beautiful hardbox with a lenticular cover, a book discussing the adaptation from Peter Straub’s novel Julia, and best of all a CD with the full remastered Colin Towns soundtrack including some tracks which were never used or included on the original vinyl release.

Shout Factory: https://shoutfactory.com/products/the-haunting-of-julia-collector-s-edition

Imprint: https://viavision.com.au/shop/the-haunting-of-julia-1977-imprint-collection-218/

BFI: https://shop.bfi.org.uk/full-circle-the-haunting-of-julia-flipside-046-4k-ultra-hd-blu-ray.html

By Ernie Magnotta

Action film icon Charles Bronson did it all. He made westerns (The Magnificent Seven, Once Upon a Time in the West), war films (The Great Escape, The Dirty Dozen), lone cop movies (The Stone Killer, 10 to Midnight) and vigilante films (Death Wish series). Just to name a few. Between 1968 and 1972, after mostly being a supporting actor in Hollywood movies and before become a Hollywood leading man due to films like Mr. Majestyk and Death Wish (both 1974), Bronson did a lot of great work in Europe and starred in many different roles; cop (Rider on the Rain aka Le passager de la pluie), thief (Farewell Friend aka Adieu l'ami), gangster (The Valachi Papers), etc. In 1970, he played a hitman (two years before playing a similar role in Michael Winner’s fantastic The Mechanic) in the underrated Italian-French co-production Violent City.

While vacationing with his lover Vanessa (Jill Ireland, Love and Bullets), professional hitman Jeff Heston (Bronson) is shot and left for dead. Heston survives, however, and tracks the killer down. After murdering him, Jeff decides to retire and live happily with Vanessa. But before the couple can leave town, Heston is asked by crime boss, Al Weber (Telly Savalas), to come work for him. Heston refuses, but Weber produces evidence of Heston’s previous murder. Jeff must now figure out a way to obtain the evidence from the dangerous crime boss and escape unharmed with the lovely Vanessa. However, Jeff is unaware that there are much more sinister forces conspiring against him.

Very well-directed by Sergio Sollima (The Big Gundown aka La resa dei conti, Revolver) from a thoroughly enjoyable script co-written by Lina Wertmüller (Seven Beauties), Violent City (aka Città violenta), is a well-done, entertaining piece of action cinema as well as one of the first examples of the subgenre called Poliziotteschi (Italian crime and action films of the 1960s and 70s which featured car chases, corruption, graphic violence, etc. as well as lone heroes who stood up to the system). Sergio Sollima does a wonderful job directing intricate, entertaining action sequences; most notably a Bullitt-like car chase Sollima swears was ripped off from one of his previous films and not from the 1968 Peter Yates/Steve McQueen action classic.

The adrenaline-charged script not only gives us plenty of action, but also a number of unexpected twist and turns; especially the ending. The well-written characters are made convincing by the estimable talents of Bronson, Savalas and Ireland. Through another terrific, mostly low-key performance, steely-eyed Bronson shows us that not only can he take care of business, but that his character possesses a softer side when necessary. Telly Savalas infuses his vicious character with quite a bit of humor, and the beautiful Jill Ireland gives several dimensions to Vanessa.

Violent City features even more great acting talent such as Michael Constantin (Cold Sweat, 1978’s The Inglorious Bastards), Umberto Orsini (The Damned), and Telly’s brother, George Savalas (The Slender Thread, Kelly’s Heroes).

Last, but not least, the engaging film, which was shot in the United States and distributed (in Italy) by Universal Pictures, benefits from a great musical score by the immortal Ennio Morricone (The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, Once Upon a Time in America).

Although it’s not one of Bronson’s more well-known titles, that shouldn’t stop you. I enjoyed Violent City very much. It’s an entertaining action-thriller with a solid cast and an interesting story. I highly recommend checking it out.

Violent City has been released on a Region 1 Blu-ray from the always reliable folks at Kino Lorber. The wonderful-looking transfer is presented in the film’s original 2.35:1 aspect ratio and the disc also contains a highly informative audio commentary by Paul Talbot, author of the “Bronson’s Loose!” books; a terrific interview with director Sergio Sollima and the original theatrical trailer. We are also treated to a second disc which features Città violenta, the Italian print of the film as well as the 1973 U.S. cut known as The Family. Lastly, both discs feature exciting trailers to many different Bronson films.

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(Photo: Todd Garbarini Collection)

By Todd Garbarini

Film writer, producer and director Alessandro Michael de Gaetano, best known for the creepy 1977 horror film Haunted, passed away on Sunday evening, June 11, 2023, in Arizona at the age of 85 while surrounded by his family.

Bursting on to the scene with UFO Target Earth in 1974, with a style clearly inspired by Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), it’s a documentary format-film wherein interviewees discuss their “experiences” with UFO’s. An early entry in the history of computer-generated imagery (CGI) following Michael Crichton’s Westworld the year before, UFO Target Earth showcases the first time that CGI, albeit 8-bit, was used to create an alien for a motion picture, an accomplishment that Mr. de Gaetano was very proud of. The film also makes expert use of Krzysztof Penderecki’s “De Natura Sonoris No. 2” years before Stanley Kubrick employed it in The Shining (1980). UFO Target Earth is a nifty bit of Seventies nostalgia complete with rotary phones, telecommunications mechanical relay-switching equipment, AMPEX reel-to-reel recorders, and mainframe computers, all of which are arguably unidentifiable objects to members of Generation Z.

His second film was Haunted, which starred Virginia Mayo and Aldo Ray. It concerned the descendants of a woman’s accusers of her being a witch meeting a violent end after rumors abounded of her returning as an evil spirit. The comedy Scoring, featuring Laurene Landon about a female basketball team against a men’s team, was released in 1979. 1989’s Bloodbath in Psycho Town, 1995’s Project: Metalbeast, and 1996’s Butch Camp with Judy Tenuta followed.

At the time of his death, Mr. de Gaetano was developing a script for actress Vanessa Redgrave to star in called Red Gold.

CinemaRetro.com would like to extend to Mr. de Gaetano’s family our condolences upon his passing.

Actor Treat Williams, the ruggedly handsome star of feature films and television, has died from injuries incurred in an accident while he was riding a motorcycle. The incident, which is still under investigation, occurred in rural Vermont, where Williams had resided in recent years. An SUV had apparently crossed the road in front of Williams, who was unable to avoid a collision. Williams was 71 years-old. He had gained prominence in the film industry in the late 1970s by scoring the leading role in director Milos Forman's 1979 screen adaptation of the Broadway sensation "Hair". In 1981, he won praise for his starring role in Sidney Lumet's true-life crime film "Prince of the City". Other major films included "Deep Rising", "Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead" and "Hollywood Ending". He later starred in the hit TV series "Everwood". For more, click here.

By John M. Whalen

Burt Reynolds was a movie star who became a “Hollywood Legend” the hard way—he earned it. He started out in small roles on TV in the 50s and 60s, went to Europe and made some spaghetti westerns, just like his pal Clint Eastwood. He had his own TV series (“Hawk” and “Dan August”) and gained stardom on the big screen after playing Lewis, one of the four guys in “Deliverance,” who run into bad luck at the hands of some good ol’ boys in the Tennessee backwoods. He became a superstar with the release of “Smokey and the Bandit” (1977), which he starred in with Sally Field and Jackie Gleason. His career ended with “The Last Movie Star,” (2017), where he basically played himself, a faded legend, who still manages to hold onto his dignity. He was about to play a small role in Quentin Tarantino’s “Once Upon a Time . . . in Hollywood (2019)” but died in 2018 before filming began.

His career had a lot of peaks and valleys. “Heat” (1986), now available on Blu-Ray from Kino Lorber, while an entertaining movie with Reynolds at his charismatic best, was definitely not one of the peaks. Considering it was written by Oscar-winning writer William Goldman, (“All the President’s Men” and “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid,”) and directed by Dick Richards (“Farewell My Lovely”), it should have been a lot better than it is. Reynolds plays Nick Escalante (also known as “Mex”), a Las Vegas bodyguard who dreams of one day leaving the rat race in the States and going to Venice, Italy to enjoy La Dolce Vita. Hmmm. That sort of reminds me of another guy William Goldman wrote about once, only he wanted to go to Bolivia. Anyway as “Heat” begins, Mex takes on a couple of jobs that he probably should have known better than to accept. One has him protecting a nerdy dude by the name of Cyrus Kinnick (Peter McNichol), who thinks he needs a bodyguard in case he wins big at the casino. Mex doesn’t last long on the job when he discovers Kinnick’s idea of big winnings is $50, and he quits. The other is a call for help from Holly (Karen Young) a Vegas hooker, an old friend of his, who was beaten and raped in a casino hotel room by three guys. She asks him to help her get revenge.

Mex (you probably couldn’t use that nickname today) finds out the rapist is a punk Mafioso by the name of Danny DeMarco (Neill Barry), who has two musclebound bodyguards of his own. Mex never carries a gun, but he’s known for being an expert with anything that has a sharp cutting edge. He pays them a visit and takes all three of them down with nothing more than the sharp edge of two credit cards and a few flying kicks, a-la Bruce Lee. He calls Holly up from the lobby and she takes a pair of scissors out of her purse and leaves Danny with a little souvenir on his private parts. She finds $20,000 that Danny had flashed around to tease Mex with earlier and offers half to him. He turns it down and tells her to leave town. It turns out Danny is connected to a local Mafia boss by the name of “Baby.”

Holly leaves town but manages to get 10 grand to him, which becomes a plot device that reveals that Mex has a gambling addiction problem. He takes the money, turns it into $100,000 at the Blackjack table run by a dealer named Cassie (Diana Scarwid), and ends up losing it all. So now we know why Mex has trouble paying the airfare to Venice. Kinnick shows up again and asks if he can just hang out with him so he can learn how to be a cool tough guy like him. Sounds dumb, doesn’t it? It is. Somehow, even though there’s a meeting with “Baby,” and later an action setpiece with Danny and some new goons he’s hired, the story loses momentum.

Part of the problem is Goldman’s script, which is all over the place, with enough story elements for at least two different movies. Or maybe they planned to spin it off into a TV series. But the biggest problem with “Heat” is what was happening behind the scenes during production. “Heat” was originally to be helmed by Robert Altman. That deal fell through, so they brought in Dick Richards to direct and for some reason Richards and Reynolds didn’t get along. It got so bad that a fight erupted and Reynolds punched Richards in the face. Richards left the picture after directing only 13 percent of it and sued Reynolds. “That punch cost me half a million,” Reynolds said. Television director Jerry Jameson was brought in to finish the picture without receiving a credit.

It’s too bad in a way that Altman didn’t take the job after all. Goldman’s screenplay, with all the various story ideas bouncing around in it, would probably have been right up Altman’s alley. He might have come up with something on the order of his earlier hits “The Long Goodbye” (1973) or “California Split” (1974).

Kino Lorber presents “Heat” in its original 1.78:1 aspect ratio in a very clean 1920x1080p transfer. A rollicking audio commentary is provided by action film historians Brandon Bentley and Mike Leeder. The disc also contains previews of a number of Burt Reynolds films available from Kino Lorber. In case you’re wondering if Mex ever get to Venice… I’ll never tell. But, if he did, let’s hope he made out better than that other guy did in Bolivia. Recommended primarily for  Burt Reynolds fans.

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(John M. Whalen is the author of "This Ray Gun for Hire...and Other Tales".)

By Lee Pfeiffer

Actor George Maharis, who co-starred with Martin Milner in the classic 1960s TV series "Route 66", passed away last week. He was 94 years old. Maharis had a multifaceted career, starring on TV, stage and motion pictures. He also found some success as a singer in the 1960s. Maharis,a native of Queens, New York,  studied at the Actors Studio and became a popular presence on American television, guest starring on many hit shows. His popular role on "Route 66" ended before the third season had concluded. It was said that the producers of "Route 66" released him from the show because of suspected homosexuality in an era that was intolerant towards gays in the film industry, though other variations of his departure centered on his health and his desire to leave TV for motion pictures. He parlayed his popularity on TV into modest stardom on the big screen. Among his films: "Exodus", "Sylvia", "The Satan Bug" and "The Happening". Maharis was not without controversy. In 1967, he was arrested for engaging in "lewd conduct".  He appeared nude in "Playgirl" magazine in 1973.The following year, he was arrested on charges of soliciting sex. The case was widely reported in the media and arguably had a negative impact on Maharis's career. 

Maharis, who was of Greek heritage, boasted the kind of good looks that made him a heart throb at the height of his career. His last screen credit was the suspense thriller "Doppelganger" in 1993, after which he retired from show business. For more about his career, click here.

Enjoy this vintage documentary, "Steve McQueen: Man on the Edge", narrated by his friend James Coburn, with whom he starred in "The Magnificent Seven" and "The Great Escape". (To watch in full screen mode, click on "Watch on YouTube".)

By Lee Pfeiffer

The James Bond-inspired spy movie boom of the 1960s resulted in the films of this genre generally fitting into one of two distinct categories: tongue-in-cheek spoofs played largely for laughs (the Flint and Matt Helm series) and gritty, realistic depictions of espionage that stripped away any glamour from the spy trade ("The Spy Who Came in from the Cold", "The Deadly Affair", "The Venetian Affair", "The Ipcress File" and countless others.) Straddling the line between the two genres was writer/director Val Guest's 1966 film "Where the Spies Are" starring David Niven, who seemed impeccably suited to capitalize on the movie craze. The film was based on the novel "Passport to Oblivion" by James Leasor, a straight-up thriller set in Beirut, Lebanon when it was a thriving holiday destination for wealthy Europeans to the extent it was known as "The Paris of the Middle East". The movie opens with the abduction and murder of an MI6 agent, Rossiter (Cyril Cusack) in Beirut. He's been investigating a Soviet-inspired plot to murder the head of state and install a puppet government. The British are especially concerned because they depend upon the friendly government of Lebanon to provide Great Britain with substantial amounts of oil (some things never change.) When Rossiter goes silent, MI6 boss MacGillivray (John Le Mesurier) needs to send an agent to Beirut to investigate his disappearance. He decides he needs a non-professional who has no trace to the agency to act as an operative. He recalls using the services of Jason Love (David Niven) twenty years earlier in the war. It seems that Love proved to be reliable in successfully pulling off a dangerous mission. Love is now a well-off physician living a happy bachelor lifestyle with a posh house and a vintage, valuable roadster that he takes pleasure in driving through the country lanes. MacGillivray uses Love's sense of patriotism (and a bribe to buy him an even more valuable and rare roadster) as an incentive for him to agree to visit Lebanon, ostensibly to attend an international medical conference. It's supposed to be an easy job with Love simply nosing around and trying to find some clues as to Rossiter's fate, but you know how things usually turn out in missions of this type. 

When Love disembarks from his plane in Rome to await a connecting flight to Beirut, there is quite a stir in the terminal because world famous fashion model known simply as Vikki (Francoise Dorleac) is being photographed for a fashion spread in a major magazine. They meet cute and Love is understandably distracted by her beauty. After turning on the charm, she confides in Love that she is actually one of the MI6 contacts he will meet on his mission. Love is so shocked that he is too late to catch his flight- and lucky for him that he didn't because minutes after takeoff, the plane explodes, killing everyone on board. (Inexplicably, the incident directly over the airport doesn't seem to generate much reaction from the people at the airport.) Love attributes the disaster to a mechanical flaw and arrives at his hotel in Lebanon- the same one that Rossiter had a room at. He's pleased to find that Vikki is there, too, and is as enthused about getting under the covers as he is. Their romantic fling is later disturbed by an assassination attempt and Vikki informs Love that the destruction of the airplane might have been a plot to kill him. He soon meets Parkington (Nigel Davenport), another MI6 contact- a career agent who is depressed and cynical about intelligence work. He copes by hitting the bottle hard but he proves to be a valuable ally to Love in tracing Rossiter's fate. Ultimately, Love finds himself in further peril and having to resort to his own defense mechanisms (and a couple of spy gadgets, of course) in order to survive. The finale finds him trying to thwart the assassination as well as escape Soviet kidnappers who bundle him aboard a plane bound for Russia.

"Where the Spies Are" starts off with the implication that it will be a comedy in the Flint/Helm mode with Niven playing a comic fish-out-of-water character embroiled in a larger-than-life adventure. However, the laughs are few and far between once he sets off on his mission. The film still offers some witticisms and subdued laughs, but it turns primarily into a thriller including a larger-than-life action scene atop ancient ruins. The movie was directed and co-written by Val Guest, a reliable old hand at making highly enjoyable mid-range films that weren't designed to be blockbusters or win awards. He keeps the action moving at a brisk pace, accompanied by a lively score by Mario Nasciembene. Niven is perfectly cast and delivers his usual charismatic and charming performance. Dorleac is given some mod fashion wear to show off and makes for a suitable love interest. She was set to follow her sister Catherine Deneuve as the next "it girl" in films but tragically died in 1967 in a car crash shortly after completing her final film, the spy thriller "Billion Dollar Brain". The film benefits from some exotic on-location scenes in Lebanon, with interiors shot at the old MGM Studios at Boreham Wood, England. However, it suffers from some crude special effects and the all-too-obvious use of miniatures and rear screen projection. Similarly, Niven's stunt double doesn't pass muster, as he doesn't resemble the actor in the slightest even from afar.

The film features any number of people associated with James Bond films. Niven, of course, would go on to star as Sir James Bond in the 1967 spoof version of "Casino Royale" which was co-written and co-directed by Val Guest. Wolf Mankiewicz, who had been an uncredited contributor to the script of "Dr. No", co-wrote the screenplay for "Where the Spies Are" as well as "Casino Royale". The titles were designed by Robert Brownjohn who also created the classic titles for "Goldfinger" and "From Russia with Love". Among the actors who were associated with at least one Bond movie include Eric Pohlmann (who provided the voice of the unseen Blofeld in the early Bond movies), Paul Stassino "("Thunderball"), John Le Mesurier ("Casino Royale" as "M"'s chauffeur), George Pravda ("From Russia with Love"), Bill Nagy ("Goldfinger") and Geoffrey Bayldon ("Casino Royale"). Also, former Bond star George Lazenby starred as Jason Love in an audio book adaptation of "Passport to Oblivion" available on Amazon Kindle. "U.N.C.L.E."  fans will also enjoy seeing "Girl from U.N.C.L.E." star Noel Harrison as an MI6 agent and will get a laugh out of one of the passwords used in the film, "Love from Uncle", which could not have been a coincidence since it was an MGM production.

Val Guest had obtained the screen rights to "Passport to Oblivion" and several literary sequels in the hopes that a series of Jason Love films would go into production. However, the film didn't elicit much excitement from moviegoers or critics and, thus, a series never went into production. Not helping matters was MGM's decision to recut Guest's final version of the film without his permission, which supposedly infuriated him. Nevertheless, if you have a soft spot for spy movies of the 1960s, you'll probably find the film as enjoyable as I did. 

The region-free Warner Archive DVD proves that this title is in dire need of a Blu-ray upgrade. The color quality is all over the place, ranging from satisfactory to wild deviations to various garish tints, giving it a Frankenstein-like quality in that it seemed to have been cobbled together with bits from several prints. That probably wasn't the case, but it is nevertheless the effect. The Archive is doing some great work upgrading even "B" titles so let's hope "Where the Spies Are" is on their list for future Blu-ray release. The only bonus feature is the original trailer which is narrated for some reason by a guy who sounds like an extra from an old WB gangster movie.

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By Darren Allison, Cinema Retro Soundtracks Editor

It was back in 2005 that I last reviewed Guido and Maurizio De Angelis’s Piedone a Hong Kong (1975). A multi layered and hugely enjoyable score to the Bud Spencer poliziotteschi-comedy film directed by Stefano Vanzina (aka Steno). Piedone a Hong Kong was the second of four "Flatfoot" films, all of which featured Spencer as the Naples Police Inspector "Flatfoot" Rizzo. In 2005 it was the new Digitmovies CD, which in itself was a nicely produced album consisting of 70 minutes of music.

Some eighteen years on, Chris’ Soundtrack Corner decided to dig a little deeper and as a result, produced a super two-CD version of Piedone a Hong Kong (CSC 035), the label’s first two-disc release. Rizzo's signature theme composed for the first film embodied the De Angelis' penchant for flavourful, catchy melodies. The theme was carried over into all four movies and naturally became the primary motif heard in Piedone a Hong Kong. This time, it was aided by an exotic electric guitar that works well to identify the luxurious Hong Kong landscape as well as accommodating Rizzo's cheerful, uninhibited nature, just as it would later in the detective's adventures in Africa and Egypt. Reprising their infectious main theme from the first Piedone movie, brothers Guido & Maurizio De Angelis weave their way through Piedone a Hong Kong with a delightful array of tuneful themes etched with a degree of ethnic Asian music which energise Rizzo's journey, all of which treats the film's humour and dramatic action with an equal degree of light-hearted fun and exciting suspense music. It’s a blend that might seem a little awkward on paper, but it works tremendously well as a listening experience.

Chris' Soundtrack Corner’s new extended two-CD edition now consists of 101 minutes of music, incorporating the complete film score. Disc one (the score) includes a great deal of previously unreleased cues, while the second disc provides an impressive collection (19 tracks) of alternative versions, different mixes and the A and B sides of the original Italian 7” single release (CAM AMP 153) from 1975.

There has obviously been a great deal of thought behind this release, and Chris' Soundtrack Corner have made sure this is not just another standard re-issue. There’s an entirely new, fresh vibrancy about this edition, not only in its content and audio quality (excellently produced by Christian Riedrich and mastered by Manmade Mastering), but in its packaging too. A 16-page, full colour illustrated booklet designed by Tobias Kohlhaas accompanies the CD’s and features detailed, exclusive notes by Randall D. Larson, who explores the making of the film as well as the score in fine detail. A super release which deserved of much praise.

It's probably fair to say that Le ultime ore di una vergine (1972) (CSC 040) wasn’t widely seen outside of it’s native Italy. The film was also known by various other titles such as The last hours of a virgin, Un Doppio A Meta and Double by half for its limited American release. However, you’d still be excused had it passed you by. As so often is the case, it is the music to such obscure titles that often lives on beyond that of the film itself - and Daniele Patucchi's Le ultime ore di una vergine is no exception to that rule.

In the 1970s, the genre of Italian melodramas found fresh and innovative ways to discuss heavy topics against the backdrop of romantic stories. Until abortion was made legal in 1978, Italian filmmakers shot dramas cantering around the issue with varying degrees of good taste. Le ultime ore di una vergine is one of the more constructively made examples of these ‘abortion’ dramas. The film was co-written and directed by Gianfranco Piccioli and features a relatively small cast, including Massimo Farinelli (his last movie) as Enrico, a photographer. Laura, his pregnant girlfriend, is played by the American-born actress Sydne Rome, perhaps best known as the fetish-geared archaeologist hypnotised by Donald Pleasence in the rather dreadful The Pumaman (1980). Enrico's deceitful journalist friend Roberto is played by Don Backy. But through all of the unfolding drama of Le ultime ore di una vergine, there's only one winning aspect of the movie, and that's Daniele Patucchi’s score.

Whilst the Turin born composer has scored over 50 films, his work has never tended to fall into the realms of mainstream consciousness, which is a genuine pity as he really deserves much more attention. The score's central theme is introduced in "Titoli" and is written for the female character which curiously enough Patucchi titled "Sydne's Theme," basing it after the actress rather than her character's name. There are also brilliant recurring motives for other aspects of the story. "I mendicanti" collects several cues that use the same propulsive energy for a montage highlighting the various swindles all captured with a POV style of camera. The score also provides a few suspense cues. In what is arguably the film's strangest moments, Enrico attends a magic show prompting the composer to provide a seemingly self-contained cue for one of the story's visually most interesting sequences. There are also some wonderful, almost improvised, electronic forms of scat vocals peppered throughout the score where the singer improvises melodies and rhythms rather than words. Delicate, haunting whispers also fluctuate through certain cues - all of which work particularly well and really add to the score’s unique footprint.

This is a world premiere release of the film's soundtrack – although certain tracks have made their way on various library compilations of Daniele Patucchi's music in the past. As mentioned above, this has been fairly typical of Patucchi's recognition, and the full score as a complete package, is far more beneficial in respects of Patucchi’s talents as a composer. The CD has two bonus sections, opening with the record versions of certain cues, which includes the unused version of "Tema per Sydne," which was originally to appear on the soundtrack but was actually removed from the film. The second half of the bonus section includes all the source music heard in the movie including the vocal track "I Love You More Than Life" with lyrics by Norman Newell.

The audio, again produced by Christian Riedrich and mastered by Manmade Mastering, is clean and sharp throughout. The CD is accompanied by a 12-page illustrated booklet featuring detailed notes by Gergely Hubai. An excellent job for what could have easily become a forgotten score. Kudos to Chris' Soundtrack Corner for rescuing it from potential obscurity.

Piero Piccioni’s ...Dopo Di Che, Uccide Il Maschio E Lo Divora (1971) (CSC 041) has, in terms of its soundtrack history, had a somewhat varied life. As a composer, Piccioni’s work is still highly regarded. Despite that, ...Dopo Di Che, Uccide Il Maschio E Lo Divora remained a score that perhaps has not been fully recognised in the past – despite a couple of incarnations. The standard 11 tracks did make their way onto a 2001 Piccioni CD (Screentrax CDST 335) where it was paired up alongside music from Due Maschi Per Alexa (1971) and La Volpe Dalla Coda Di Velluto (1971). In later years, it appeared in 2019 under its American title Marta as a limited edition (300 copies) pressed on white vinyl and released by Quartet Records (QRLP10) of Spain. Yet, despite of all its bells and whistles, and in respects of its content, this only contained 12 tracks.

To set the scene, the film is a dramatic thriller about a wealthy landowner (Miguel) haunted by the spectre of his dead mother. When Miguel has an affair with a beautiful fugitive who bears a striking resemblance to his missing wife (who has possibly run away or may have been murdered) things turn decidedly awkward. Based on a play by Juan José Alonso Millán, who also co-wrote the screenplay, the film was directed by Spanish filmmaker José Antonio Nieves Conde. His influence for the story was not so much the Giallo atmosphere of Dario Argento, as perhaps some might suspect from its wordy Italian title, but more from the films of Alfred Hitchcock. Featuring a psychopath linked to a mother and whose hobby is collecting insects instead of taxidermy, plus a notorious weakness of spying on beautiful women from hidden holes in the walls, the influences were pretty hard to ignore. Miguel was played by Irish actor Stephen Boyd (Ben-Hur, Fantastic Voyage) with Austrian actress Marisa Mell playing both Marta and the missing wife, Pilar. Mell became very popular in Europe - especially in Italy, where she co-starred in Danger: Diabolik and many other genre movies. At the time of filming, Boyd was in a real relationship with Mell, so their charged, on-screen sexuality extended further beyond their mere dedication to the acting profession.

Piero Piccioni's score is an interesting and engaging mélange of original cues along with a large variety of library music or cues tracked in from other films. The repetition of motifs, textures, and full-on themes throughout the score assertively integrates the music with the drama playing out on screen. Even with a variety of individual tracks and musical sequences, Piccioni ties most of them together by recognisable instrumental patterns and designs that characterise the uncertain and potentially dangerous liaison between Marta, Pilar, and Miguel. Chris' Soundtrack Corner have certainly taken up the challenge of ...Dopo Di Che, Uccide Il Maschio E Lo Divora and its previous shortcomings. For their presentation, they have opened this expanded release with Piccioni's original 11 album tracks followed by a further 19 tracks featuring the film versions, 17 of which are previously unreleased. There is also another alternate version of the vocal track "Right or Wrong" sung by the golden voiced American songstress, Shawn Robinson. As a result, the soundtrack now has a more rounded feel to it and makes for a ‘fully grown’ listening experience and deserved of a ‘Mission Accomplished’ sticker.

As with their other releases, the score is beautifully produced by Christian Riedrich and mastered by Manmade Mastering. The CD is accompanied by a 12-page illustrated booklet featuring detailed notes by Randall D. Larson. Overall, an excellent trilogy of releases that continue to see the label grow in both style and stature.

To order: http://www.soundtrackcorner.de/index.htm

(Read Darren Allison's soundtrack column in every issue of Cinema Retro.)

By Lee Pfeiffer

"Good Day for a Hanging" is minor 1959 color Western elevated by an unusually intelligent script and an impressive cast of veteran actors and a couple of up-and-comers who would find stardom in the 1960s. Fred MacMurray plays former town marshal Ben Cutler, a widower who is living a serene small town life in the company of his fiancee Ruth (Maggie Hayes) and his teenage daughter Laurie (Joan Blackman). Their peaceful existence is shattered when Laurie's former beau Eddie Campbell (Robert Vaughn) arrives in town in the company of some shady bandits. While Laurie tries to reignite the romance with Eddie, his companions are pulling off a robbery of the bank which goes wrong very quickly when a shootout ensues. Eddie and his companions flea the scene with a posse in hot pursuit led by Marshal Cain (Emile Meyer). Another shootout follows with some of the gang killed and others escaping with half the loot from the bank. In the melee, Ben witnesses Eddie fatally shooting Marshal Cain before Eddie is wounded and captured. When he is brought back to town, Eddie is nursed back to health, in part by Laurie, and admits the obvious- he took part in the robbery. However, he insists that he did not shoot the marshal and that he must have been hit by gunfire from another gang member. Ben knows this is untrue and tells the townspeople as much. He also reluctantly agrees to temporarily resume serving as town marshal until a permanent replacement can be found. Eddie is put on trial and plays the victim, recounting a hardscrabble upbringing and turning on the charm. Nevertheless, he is convicted of murder and sentenced to hang. From his jail cell, he can see the gallows being built. However, he begins to convince the townspeople that he is not guilty of murder and his death sentence should be changed to serving time in jail. Soon, many of the town's most prominent citizens are buying his story and they force Ben to take a petition bearing many signatures to the governor asking him to grant Eddie's request. Laurie, blinded by her romantic interest in Eddie, is his chief defender- a fact that causes Ben great consternation. Because this is a Western, there are dramatic developments that result in an action-packed climax.

What sets "Good Day for a Hanging" apart from many other minor Westerns of the period is the fact that it has a compelling and interesting script that touches upon sociological factors such as the ability of one person to manipulate many others, often against common sense, by using charisma and a strong will. Eddie has both and you can't help but be reminded of how many contemporary people, often in public service, are excused for all sorts of behavior simply because people find them personally likable or intimidating. Doubtless, there have been times when all of us have seen such scenarios and wondered how intelligent people can ignore established facts in their defense of someone whose actions are indefensible. In this case, Ben Cutler is 100% right in his testimony against Eddie but before long he is the odd man out, criticized and resented by the very people who only recently begged him to serve as marshal. Fred MacMurray gives a strong performance as the protagonist- a man who has lost the respect of his own daughter in her misguided quest to benefit a killer. Robert Vaughn gives an excellent, understated performance that allows the viewer to understand why he is able to win over so many townspeople.

It's interesting to analyze the career trajectories of several actors who appear in the film. Fred MacMurray had been going through somewhat of a minor career slump at the time but it would be short-lived. Later in 1959, he starred in his first Walt Disney movie, "The Shaggy Dog", which was a major hit. He would star in many other Disney films over the next decade. Additionally, he would give an outstanding performance as a misogynistic heel in Billy Wilder's Oscar winner, "The Apartment". Capping off his career turnaround, he would also star in the long-running sitcom "My Three Sons". Robert Vaughn would rise to stardom with his performance later that year in "The Young Philadelphians", earning an Oscar nomination for his work. That, in turn, led him to be cast as one of "The Magnificent Seven" and he would reach the level of international teen idol in the mid-Sixties due to his starring role in "The Man from U.N.C.L.E". Some of the fine character actors who would appear in the film would also find major success over the next few years. Howard McNear, who plays one of the prominent townsmen, would create his iconic comedic role as the eccentric Floyd the barber the next year in "The Andy Griffith Show". Denver Pyle, who plays  deputy in the film, would also make periodic appearances in the show as the lovably loony hillbilly patriarch Briscoe Darling, as well as appear in two major John Wayne films, "The Horse Soldiers" and "The Alamo" before landing his most memorable role as Sheriff Frank Hammer in "Bonnie and Clyde". James Drury, who would go on to star in "The Virginian" TV series, also has a supporting role. Special mention should be made of Edmon Ryan, who is especially good, portraying Eddie's defense counsel. One more note of interest: the film was produced by Charles H. Schneer, a respected figure in the British film industry who was most often associated with the films of special effects master Ray Harryhausen.

The Sony DVD has a reasonably good transfer, if a bit soft. The only extras are original trailers for "Silverado" and "The Professionals", both on Sony Home Video. Strangely enough, the trailer for "Good Day for a Hanging" isn't included, but we found it on YouTube and are providing it here. 

I don't want to exaggerate the merits of "Good Day for a Hanging". It isn't a great movie by any means, just a good Western- but it's loaded with fine actors who were on the cusp of major career successes.

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By Lee Pfeiffer

Robert Blake, the mercurially-tempered Emmy-winning actor, has died at age 89 from heart-related issues. Blake's given name was Michael Gubitosi and he was born in Nutley, New Jersey, a short distance across the Hudson River from midtown Manhattan. Blake had one of the longest Hollywood careers imaginable, starting out as a child actor who appeared in the famed "Our Gang" comedies. This led to him having roles in feature films such as a recurring role in the low-budget Red Ryder Western series. He also had a small role in John Huston's 1948 classic "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre" opposite Humphrey Bogart. He was the product of a troubled household. He claimed his father, who committed suicide in 1955, physically beat him. Stardom would elude him until he was cast as one of the notorious murderers in director Richard Brooks' acclaimed 1967 screen adaptation of Truman Capote's bestseller "In Cold Blood". Blake and Scott Wilson played the infamous murderers of an innocent family whose house they broke into. The killings shocked the world, especially since the victims posed no threat to the duo. Blake and Wilson brought nuance to their roles and won critical praise. Blake specialized in playing moody men of action. To some he was the epitome of a Method Actor, while others saw him as a pretentious Marlon Brando wannabe.

Blake's star rose to new heights on television when he starred as the eccentric, streetwise detective in "Baretta" on ABC-TV. The show ran from 1975-1978 and earned Blake an Emmy award. Henceforth, he would fall victim to his personal demons. Blake could be jovial and witty when making frequent appearances as a guest on Johnny's Carson's "The Tonight Show", but he alternately had developed a reputation for being difficult and temperamental. His starring roles in feature films such as "Electra Glide in Blue", "Busting" and "Coast to Coast" were boxoffice disappointments. In 1986, he returned to series television in the series "Hell Town", playing a tough, streetwise priest. However, Blake's personal issues proved too much for him to overcome and he would later admit he was potentially suicidal. He pulled the plug on "Hell Town" after only a few episodes. In 1993, he had a comeback, starring in the TV movie "Judgment Day: The John List Story" in which he played the real life New Jersey murderer who, despite his nondescript nature, systematically murdered every member of his family who resided in the household. Blake received an Emmy nomination for his performance.

In 2001, Blake emerged in the news in an unfavorable manner when his wife, Bonny Lee Bakely was murdered in a bizarre incident that occurred when she and Blake were out to dinner. Bakely was known as a master manipulator who had been married nine times previously. During their dinner date, Bakely was killed by an assassin who shot her twice at close range as she sat in their car. During the sensational trial that followed, Blake said she was shot by a random murderer after he left their car to retrieve a pistol he had accidentally left in a restaurant. He was tried for murder and acquitted, though, as in the O.J. Simpson case, public sentiment didn't agree with the verdict. He would later lose a civil suit in the case that he said wiped out his personal fortune.

Blake had all but retired from acting by the late 1990s. His last screen credit was for director David Lynch's "Lost Highway" in 1997. 

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By Todd Gararini

We are all faced with challenging situations in our lives, but one would hope that we face nothing like the scenario that Thomas Babington “Babe” Levy (Dustin Hoffman) does in John Schlesinger’s Marathon Man, the film version of William Goldman’s novel of the same name and who was the film’s screenwriter. The movie opened in New York on Wednesday, October 6, 1976. Babe is a Ph.D. candidate selected to be in an exclusive class of five students at Columbia University taught by a professor (Fritz Weaver in a terrific cameo) who knows that Babe’s father committed suicide following his being investigated during the Joseph McCarthy-era witch hunts. He urges Babe not to turn his research into a personal crusade to clear his father’s name, something that Babe is wrestling with.

Babe is an avid runner and times himself daily while running through Central Park, presumably to compete in the New York City Marathon. He is verbally ribbed by the guys who live across the street from his apartment. His brother, Henry “Doc” Levy (the excellent Roy Scheider), passes himself off to Babe as an oil company executive, but in reality is a diamond courier for an infamous Nazi war criminal named Dr. Christian Szell (Laurence Olivier, who was nominated as Best Supporting Actor), who has been hiding in South America while living off of diamonds he stole from Jews during the Nazi occupation in Europe. Szell shares a safe deposit box with his brother who lives in New York, however the latter dies in an accident involving an oil truck. This complicates matters for Szell as he must come out of hiding to get his diamonds, running the risk of being recognized by Auschwitz survivors.

Babe meets and falls for a research student named Olga (Marthe Keller), who is fluent in German and French and they begin a romance which takes Babe deeper into the mystery of his brother’s affiliation with Szell. The overall film may not make one hundred percent sense, and there are plot holes large enough to drive an oil truck through, however it is terrifically entertaining and so far ahead of contemporary thrillers that I suggest one overlook these flaws. For a basis of comparison, its most obvious cinematic antecedent in terms of atmosphere is Alan J. Pakula’s The Parallax View (1974) with Warren Beatty. William Devane also is terrific as Janeway, Doc’s friend who comes to the rescue and needs to get pertinent information from Babe.

Marathon Man was the first Dustin Hoffman film that I saw when it aired on CBS in October 1980 and for a while Szell’s ominous inquiry to Babe when he is captured by Szell’s henchmen (Richard Bright and Marc Lawrence), the infamous “Is it safe?”, became part of the lexicon and a cultural reference that even appeared in Joe Dante’s Gremlins (1984) when one of the titular creatures jokingly brandishes a dental drill. The film requires active viewing for first-timers as there are double-crosses in abundance and if you blink you might miss them. Viewers may dig deeply with questions about the plot, but my only concern is where did Szell obtain that nifty killer wrist knife that he uses on Roy Scheider and Fred Stuthman (the survivor who recognizes him at the end of the film)? That is a nice device that can come in handy (sorry) during ponderous corporate meetings and heated disagreements with political adversaries.

Marathon Man has been released before on video cassette, laserdisc, CED (remember those?!), DVD, Blu-ray, and is now available in a two-disc set from Kino Lorber, which keeps releasing great movies in equally great special editions.

(Photo: Paramount)

Disc One contains the film in 4K UHD, scanned in 4K from the original 35mm camera negative. I personally cannot see a noticeable difference between this and the standard Blu-ray on my 4K television, though it might be on a much larger screen. There are no extras on this disc.

Disc Two is a standard Blu-ray derived from the same 4K scan and down-converted to standard HD, and the disc has extras ported over from the original DVD release, with some exclusive extras this time around to add additional value. For the first time in any format, there is an audio commentary by film historians Steve Mitchell and Nathaniel Thompson and it is feature-length. It is a joy to listen to and I am grateful that they took time to discuss the great contribution of composer Michael Small’s score for the film. A veteran of terrific film music for Klute (1971), The Parallax View (1974), Night Moves (1975), and an unused score to The China Syndrome (1979), his score for Marathon Man is characteristically icy, creepy and sinister. There is also a good deal of info regarding the cast and crew, particularly screenwriter Goldman and director Schlesinger. They also quite correctly point out that the original movie poster add campaign, which strangely consisted of simply the words, “A thriller,” would have benefitted greatly with “Is it safe?” instead.

The Magic of Hollywood…Is the Magic of People runs 21:14 and is a wonderful behind-the-scenes look at the making of the film while it was in production, ported over from the 2001 DVD. Much of the footage is of Robert Evans talking about catching lightning in a bottle and getting his first casting choices to come along for the ride. Input from Dustin Hoffman, Laurence Olivier, John Schlesinger and Marthe Keller bookend footage of the final confrontation between Babe and Szell on a Los Angeles backlot set!

Going the Distance: Remembering Marathon Man runs 29:07 and is a 2001 piece from the DVD of the time and contains interviews with the cast and crew.

Rehearsal Footage runs 21:06 and is my favorite extra which includes Dustin Hoffman’s, Roy Scheider’s, and Marte Keller’s explorations of their characters. This is very interesting as much of it was shot before and during the release of Steven Spielberg’s Jaws, the blockbuster that Mr. Scheider starred in, before principal photography commenced in October 1975 and finished around February 1976. Marathon Man also has the unique distinction of being the second motion picture to employ the use of the then-new Steadicam.

Rounding out the extras are the theatrical trailer, ten TV Spots and two radio spots.

By Lee Pfeiffer

Over the years, Cinema Retro magazine has covered the various WWII films released by Oakmont Productions, the British film company that produced mid-range budget action movies that were released by United Artists. The movies all had a couple of factors in common: aside from their somewhat modest production values, each starred an actor of sufficient popularity to add a bit of luster to the overall marketing campaign. Between 1968-1970, Oakmont produced six feature films. Some were released as the main feature on double bills and sometimes each movie served as the second feature. The Oakmont films and stars were:

• "Attack on the Iron Coast" (Lloyd Bridges)
• "The Thousand Plane Raid" (Christopher George)
• "Mosquito Squadron" (David McCallum)
• "Hell Boats" (James Franciscus)
• "The Last Escape" (Stuart Whitman)
• "Submarine X-1" (James Caan)
  

Cinema Retro has received the following press release relating to the UK release of "Frankenstein: The True Story":

Presented for the first time in high definition and featuring some incredible bonus material and stunning new artwork by Graham Humphreys, Frankenstein: The True Story is one of the most acclaimed versions of Mary Shelley's masterpiece.

The film features an all-star cast led by James Mason, Leonard Whiting, David McCallum, Jane Seymour, Michael Sarrazin, John Gielgud, Ralph Richardson and Tom Baker.

Frankenstein: The True Story (1973) inspired author Anne Rice to write Interview with the Vampire, the movie of which starred Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise.

Having finished The Godfather, Francis Ford Coppola and John Boorman, having wrapped up Deliverance were both keen to direct Frankenstein: The True Story as a theatrical release but it was decided to keep it as a made-for-television movie directed by Jack Smight.

Writers Christopher Isherwood (Forever and a Day, The Great Sinner, A Single Man, and author of Goodbye to Berlin, the novel on which the musical Cabaret was based) and Don Bachardy (Isherwood’s longtime lover and chief creative consultant) weren’t happy that Smight played down the homo-eroticism they’d written in to the screenplay and so published it separately.

Leonard Whiting, who stars as Victor Frankenstein, is currently in the process of suing Paramount Studios for ‘forcing them into a nude scene’ in Franco Zeffirelli’s 1968 adaptation of Romeo and Juliet. Zeffirelli chose Whiting for the part of Romeo because he had “a magnificent face, gentle melancholy, sweet, the kind of idealistic young man Romeo ought to be." The role of Frankenstein saw Whiting growing increasingly hideous as the film progresses. The make-up was by Hammer horror veteran artist Roy Ashton.

Synopsis: In 19th Century England, Dr Victor Frankenstein, bitter over his brother's death, voices his wish that men could have power over life and death. Following a chance encounter with Dr Henry Clerval, a surgeon experimenting in this very field, they begin to work together. Victor achieves the impossible, the creation of life, but with it comes unforeseen and unimaginable terror.

Cast: James Mason, Leonard Whiting, David McCallum, Jane Seymour, Michael Sarrazin, John Gielgud, Ralph Richardson, Tom Baker, Nicola Pagett, Michael Wilding, Clarissa Kaye, Agnes Moorhead and Margaret Leighton.

Extras: Film Introduction from James Mason; Off with Her Head - An Interview with Jane Seymour; Victor's Story- An Interview with Actor Leonard Whiting; Frankenstein's Diary- A Conversation with Writer Don Bachardy; A Double-Sided Fold Out Poster of the All New Graham Humphreys Artwork; Audio commentary with Filmmaker/Film Historian Sam Irvin.

(This Blu-ray is a Region-2 release.) 

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By  Lee Pfeiffer

"Alvarez Kelly" is a 1966 Civil War adventure that blends in considerable elements of the traditional Western, primarily its emphasis on a cattle drive. William Holden plays the title role of a Mexican national of Mexican-Irish heritage. He's also a hard-nosed businessman who has recently overseen the arduous move of a herd of 2500 cattle from Mexico to Virginia, where he fulfills a contract with Union forces to provide the herd as a source of food for General Grant's troops who have encircled the Confederate capital of Richmond. For his efforts, Kelly is paid the princely sum of $50,000 through his Army liaison, Major Albert Stedman  (Patrick O'Neal), who takes an instant dislike to Kelly. He accurately views him as a financial opportunist who is completely apolitical in terms of the issues associated with the war. Kelly tells Stedman that he would just as easily have sold the herd to the Confederates but their currency is declining in value along with their odds of winning the conflict. Stedman's men park the herd at the stately home of local belle Charity Warwick (Victoria Shaw), who is not happy about Union forces using her land. Still, she uses her good looks and flirtatious tactics to charm both Kelly and Stedman- though both men don't realize that she is feeding any relevant information she obtains to Col. Tom Rossiter (an eye-patching wearing Richard Widmark), a local officer in the Confederate army. Rossiter has been assigned a difficult mission: to help relieve the starving and blockaded citizens of Richmond by stealing the herd and finding a way to get it to the city, despite the overwhelming numbers of Union troops in the area.

Rossiter and a handful of men succeed in kidnapping Kelly and bringing him to the War Department in Richmond where he is asked to provide assistance in enacting the audacious plan to steal the herd. If he agrees to do so, he will get $100,000- though it will be paid in Confederate money, an offer that Kelly can refuse. Rossiter places him in jail and has to finally shoot off one of his fingers to elicit reluctant cooperation from Kelly, whose first job is to train Rossiter's cavalrymen to be effective trail drivers. Kelly finds a way to exact revenge on Rossiter by seducing his girlfriend, Liz Pickering (Janice Rule), a once-wealthy woman who has seen her fortunes and lifestyle diminish as Grant's forces tighten the noose on Richmond. In return for sleeping with Kelly, he pays a Scottish riverboat merchant to take her away from the city without Rossiter's knowledge. This plot point becomes pivotal toward the end of the movie. The film shifts into high gear with the realization of the cattle raid, which Kelly and Rossiter orchestrate successfully. The problem is getting the herd into Richmond, which will require a seemingly impossible cattle drive through a notoriously dangerous swamp and across a rickety bridge- all the while with Major Stedman and his men in hot pursuit.

I had originally seen the film as a kid when it was first released but had no lingering memories of it. Having discovered it on Screenpix, I thought I'd give it try. I almost gave up when I heard the title song, which is played over the opening credits. It's the very definition of "cornball" to the point of being almost laughable. Only my belief that any movie featuring William Holden is worth watching convinced me to hang in there. I'm glad I did because "Alvarez Kelly" is quite a good, off-beat film. The teaming of Holden and Widmark is very effective. Holden was once again playing the type of character that was becoming his trademark, namely, a likable rogue with great courage but seemingly no moral principals. Holden was 48 years-old at the time but looked older, probably due to his well-known penchant for heavy drinking. Thus, the concept of presenting him as a Civil War era Matt Helm or Derek Flint, with gorgeous and willing women being easily beguiled by him seemed a bit of a stretch at this point in his career. Still, he gives a marvelous performance, as does Widmark, who could be problematic and somewhat hammy if not under the proper direction. Fortunately, veteran director Edward Dmytryk is up to the task. The film gains momentum as it moves along and climaxes with a terrific, ambitious action scene that incorporates a major battle and a thrilling cattle stampede.

The production was a troubled one, however. The script by Franklin Coen was deemed to be unsatisfactory and uncredited rewrites were done by Elliott Arnold and Daniel Taradash. There were also delays in filming caused by weather and illness. When the film was released, it was met with mixed reviews, though Holden and Widmark received good notices.

I should point out what some film fans have observed: "Alvarez Kelly" has much in common with John Ford's 1959 production of "The Horse Soldiers" in which Holden co-starred with John Wayne. Namely:

• Both movies were inspired by daring raids conducted in the South during the Civil War. "Alvarez Kelly" is based on what is known as "The Beefsteak Raid" of 1864 in which Confederate raiders successfully stole about 2500 cattle from Union forces and provided them as food for starving Richmond.The raid was so daring that it won reluctant praise from its execution from none other than President Lincoln.
  
• Both movies feature a beautiful blonde southern belle whose property is utilized by Union officers, who she charms even as she spies for the South.
• Both movies were shot in Louisiana.
• Both movies feature a climactic battle at a bridge which has been mined to prevent pursuing forces from catching them.
  
• Both films feature William Holden in a tense relationship with an army officer who both come to respect each other at the film's conclusion.
  

"Alvarez Kelly" isn't a great film but it's a good one. It deserved a better fate in 1966 but, through streaming and home video, hopefully more people can appreciate its merits today.

The Sony DVD from many years ago is the only home video release to date in the U.S.A. The picture quality is good but the film really deserves an upgrade to Blu-ray. However, the only Blu-ray editions have been released outside of the U.S. The only bonus features are fact files about the stars and director and the original trailer along with bonus trailers for "The Bridge on the River Kwai" and "Silverado".

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RETRO-ACTIVE: FROM THE CINEMA RETRO ARCHIVES

BY LEE PFEIFFER

Tony Curtis, like most aspiring screen stars, slogged through bit parts in unmemorable films when he first broke into the industry in the late 1940s. By the mid-1950s, however, he was a major star, even if the films he top-lined were relatively undistinguished. With his boyish good looks and New York wise guy persona, Curtis excelled at playing charismatic rogues and, perhaps improbably for a guy born in the Bronx, cowboys, knights and other exotic men of action. But Curtis was more than just a pretty face and by the late 1950s he was getting challenging roles that allowed him to show off his dramatic acting skills. He was brilliant in "Sweet Smell of Success" and "The Defiant Ones" and gave one of the great comedic performances of all time in Billy Wilder's "Some Like It Hot". By the late 1960s, however, his star power was fading. He still had enough clout to get the male leads in lightweight comedies like "Sex and the Single Girl" and "Don't Make Waves", but the bloom was off the rose. Ironically, he won fine reviews for his convincing performance in the 1968 film "The Boston Strangler", but most of the good roles would continue to elude him. Like many fading American stars, he turned toward European productions, starring in "Those Daring Young Men in the Jaunty Jalopies" and "You Can't Win 'Em All", the latter with fellow U.S. import Charles Bronson who found major stardom in Europe long before he became a big name in America. One of the least prestigious films that Curtis appeared was titled "On the Way to the Crusades, I Met a Girl Who...", a 1967 sex comedy filmed in Italy and which would not be released in the USA until 1969, when it had limited distribution. Perhaps because theater owners in the UK and USA had pity on the poor souls who had to stand on ladders and put film titles on theater marquees letter-by-letter, the English language version of the film was shortened to the more provocative "The Chastity Belt". Curtis wasn't the only English-speaking actor in the otherwise all-Italian production, as Hugh Griffith and John Richardson were co-starred.

The film opens with Curtis playing against type as Guerrando de Montone, a sniveling, cowardly and bumbling opportunist who finally is granted his wish to be made a knight. As his reward, he is entitled to claim a vast tract of land as his own. Guerrando is quick to abuse his power over the peasants, especially when he discovers that the local game warden and his voluptuous daughter, Boccadoro (Monica Vitti) live on his land. Although Boccadoro is initially attracted to him, Guerrando's misogynistic ways quickly alienate her. Guerrando informs her that he is her lord and master and will use her for sexual pleasure whenever he pleases. Most of the fun in the script, which was co-written by the esteemed Larry Gelbart, centers on the buxom beauty's strategies to avoid going to bed with Guerrando, who becomes increasingly frustrated. To solve the problem, he forces her to marry him but she delays the consummation of the marriage by invoking a rare, ancient ritual that commits them both to spending three days in constant prayer. When that obstacle is removed, Guerrando is ready to make his move only to find that he has been summoned to join the Crusades and leave Italy for a period of years. To ensure that Boccadoro remains chaste, he has her fitted with a chastity belt which causes her to swear vengeance. The film meanders through the couple's misadventures with Boccadoro intent on finding her husband and murdering him. She poses as a knight in armor and infiltrates his camp but both are kidnapped by an evil, horny sultan (Hugh Griffith) who forces Guerrando to convert to Islam while he makes plans to open the chastity belt and have his way with Boccadoro.The whole thing ends in a madcap chase with heroes and villains chasing each other about a castle.

Italian cinema-goers were very enamored of sex farces during this period. "The Chasity Belt" is one of the tamest, as there is no nudity and the most provocative aspects are plentiful shots of Ms. Vitti's ample bosom bouncing around during the many chase scenes. Like most films of the genre, there are plenty of moments of slapstick and narrow escapes. What impresses most about this modest production is director Pasquale Festa Campanile's light touch and the ability to move the action at such a rapid pace that you don't ponder how predictable it all is. While it's still a bit of a shock to see someone of Curtis's stature in this "B" level comedy, he is in good form and provides plenty of laughs by not even attempting to disguise his New Yawk accent. He is matched by the very likable Vitti and Hugh Griffith, who recycles his lovable rascal shtick from "Ben-Hur". What is stands out most are the rather spectacular locations. Most of the action is shot outdoors in ancient ruins and castles that add a good deal of atmosphere to the goings on.

"The Chasity Belt" is the kind of film that Curtis probably did very reluctantly. He would later try his hand in television co-starring with Roger Moore in the sensational action series "The Persuaders", but it lasted only 24 episodes. A later series, "McCoy" lasted only a single season. Curtis would still turn up in a few major films like "The Mirror Crack'd" and "The Last Tycoon" but only in supporting roles. Nevertheless, he remained enjoyable to watch and always gave his best effort. Perhaps for that reason, "The Chastity Belt" is a lot more worthwhile than you might imagine.

The Warner Archive DVD is generally very good with a few blotches and grainy frames, but one suspects there aren't too many archival prints of this long-forgotten film floating around out there. There are no bonus extras.

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By Fred Blosser

Edgar Rice Burroughs’ Tarzan first appeared in the October 1912 issue of the pulp fiction magazine “All-Story.”  This inaugural novel, “Tarzan of the Apes,” introduced the character as a British peer, Lord Greystoke, who was reared by great apes in Africa as an orphaned infant, and then assimilated into European society in adulthood as a sophisticated adventurer and conservationist.  Burroughs was ingenious in working out the details of the premise (for example, how Tarzan taught himself to read and write), which bordered on science-fiction even by the standards of 1912.   

The story was immediately popular, and a hardcover edition followed in 1914.  It’s important to term the character “Edgar Rice Burroughs’ Tarzan,” as he was typically labelled in media credits, because the author shrewdly trademarked the name.  That way, he could control all uses of his creation, reap the profits, and legally stop any attempts by others to hijack it.  As Burroughs realized, the birth of the motion picture industry and the growth of newspaper syndication in the early 1900s offered access to unlimited audiences.  Many middle-class people in small towns might never buy a magazine or a book, but they were sure to be movie-goers and newspaper readers.  Securing Tarzan as his Intellectual Property allowed Burroughs to exploit those opportunities and ensure they didn’t fall into the hands of others.  He incorporated himself as Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc., and wrote twenty-two more Tarzan novels over the next thirty-five years, along with many other science-fiction and adventure series.  Burroughs—and then after his death in 1950, his heirs—licensed Tarzan to numerous other media platforms, including movies, radio, a newspaper comic strip, comic books, toys, and television.  If podcasts, Twitter, YouTube, virtual reality, video games, and streaming video had existed back then, we can be certain he would have utilised them too.  Today, when we think of creators who wisely kept a tight commercial grip on their creations, Walt Disney and George Lucas are likely to come to mind, but Burroughs led the way. 

Over the years, movies’ portrayals of Tarzan have varied from the wily, masculine, powerful, articulate, principled character of Burroughs’ original vision to a muscular but asexual simpleton with the verbal skills of a two-year-old.  The latter version was popularised for one generation by MGM’s Johnny Weissmuller movies in the 1940s, and reinforced for the next by years of reruns on television.  The Weissmuller films began promisingly with the violent, sexy “Tarzan the Ape Man” in 1932 and “Tarzan and His Mate” in 1934, but over time at MGM (and then at RKO, where the series moved in 1943), they became increasingly simplistic.  Under the fierce censorship of Hollywood’s Production Code, MGM tightened down on the semi-nudity and mayhem of the first two films, aiming instead for a juvenile demographic.  The studio reasoned that kids were an easier audience who would laugh at the antics of Tarzan’s chimpanzee and not wonder why Weissmuller’s Tarzan never had intimate relations with Jane.  

The last seven decades have seen a variety of Tarzans.  Some producers adhered to the Weissmuller model, beginning with five features from RKO starring Lex Barker, who inherited the role after Weissmuller retired his loincloth.  Others redesigned the concept to meet changing trends in society.  In the James Bond era of the 1960s, a character closer to the Burroughs prototype appeared in two features starring Jock Mahoney and three with Mike Henry.  This peer of the jungle realm was a suave, jet-setting trouble shooter.  The image of an articulate ape man carried over to a 1966-68 NBC-TV series with Ron Ely in the role.  Where Mahoney’s and Henry’s character travelled to India, Thailand, Mexico, and South America to solve jungle crises, Ely’s remained in Africa, in one episode coming to the aid of three nuns from America played by Diana Ross, Mary Wilson, and Cindy Birdsong, better known as the Supremes.  Even with those attempts to appeal to a more contemporary audience, popular interest waned.  In part, this was because the Weissmuller image was the one that stuck in the popular memory, lampooned by television comics.  What can you do with a hero once your audience laughs at him?  Even more to the point, enormous cultural changes around racial issues occurred with the advancements of the Civil Rights era.  Many critics now saw Tarzan as a worrisome symbol of white entitlement, despite the prominent casting of Black actors and a more nuanced portrayal of African tribal societies in the Ron Ely series. 

Nevertheless, with a brand name that older viewers still recognised at least, the character continued to appear sporadically.  If you gathered around the VCR with your family as a kid in the Reagan years, the Tarzan you may remember best was Christopher Lambert’s portrayal in 1984’s “Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes.”  “Greystoke” had the good fortune to appear as VCRs became standard fixtures in American television rooms; on home video, the movie enjoyed a long life as a VHS rental.  Adapted by Robert Towne from “Tarzan of the Apes” and directed by Hugh Hudson, the film was promoted as a return to Burroughs’ concept of a feral but innately intelligent man who attempts to blend back into polite society.  Some Burroughs fans, primed to embrace a virile Tarzan close to the commanding pulp-fiction character, were disappointed.  In trying to rectify the prevailing Weissmuller image from decades past, Towne and Hudson may have overbalanced in the opposite direction.  Burroughs’ Tarzan dominated whatever environment he chose to be in; Lambert’s was a sad figure, overwhelmed and lost,once he left the jungle.  Nevertheless, lavishly produced, the movie was popular with critics and general audiences.  There were Academy Award nominations for Towne’s screenplay and for Rick Baker’s costuming effects for Tarzan’s adopted ape family.  Another live action movie (“Tarzan and the Lost City,” 1998), two short-lived, syndicated TV series, and Disney’s animated “Tarzan” (1999) were released through the 1990s.  

The latest iteration as a live-action feature, “The Legend of Tarzan” (2016), drew tepid reviews and disappointing box-office.  Although the producers cast Samuel L. Jackson in a prominent role alongside Alexander Skarsgard’s Tarzan above the title, the strategy probably did little to attract younger, hipper, and more diverse ticket-buyers as it was intended to.  Jackson’s American envoy remained little more than a sidekick to Tarzan in an 1885 period setting.  If you hoped to see Jackson’s character shove Tarzan aside to get medieval on somebody’s ass, you were disappointed.  In contrast, Marvel Studios’ “Black Panther,” with a modern Black jungle hero, a largely Black supporting cast and production team, and James Bond-style action situations, emerged two years later with a whopping $1.3 billion in ticket sales and a place on many critics’ Top Ten lists.  The 2022 sequel, “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” performed nearly as well with an $838.1 million return. On a $50 million budget, another 2022 Hollywood production with a prestigious Black cast and exotic action in the Burroughs style, “The Woman King,” nearly doubled its investment with $94.3 million in revenue.

In late 2022, Sony Pictures acquired the latest screen rights to Tarzan and promised a “total reinvention” of the character. What the studio has in mind, and whether it will actually follow through, appears to be up in the air right now. Would anybody be surprised to see Tarzan “reinvented” as a role for a Black actor the next time out, if there is a next time?  Popular culture is already there. Vintage movies (“A League of Their Own”) and TV series (“SWAT”) once cast primarily with white actors are remade now, routinely, with Black stars or all-Black casts. On the hit Netflix series “Bridgerton,” actors of color portray British aristocrats in Jane Austen’s Regency-era England, in reality one of the whitest of white societies ever.   

As we wait to see what the next Tarzan, if any, will look like, The Film Detective has released “The Tarzan Vault Collection,” a three-disc Blu-ray set that includes the first Tarzan movie, “Tarzan of the Apes” (1918); “Adventures of Tarzan” (1921), a re-edited feature version of a 10-chapter serial; and “The New Adventures of Tarzan” (1935), a 12-chapter serial presented in its entirety.  The first two pictures starred Elmo Lincoln, a stocky actor who had appeared in several of D.W. Griffith’s milestone silent films, including the ambitious “Intolerance” (1916) as a Biblical strongman, “the Mighty Man of Valor.”  Although it’s said Burroughs wasn’t particularly fond of Lincoln’s casting after another actor was chosen but had to bow out, the films were relatively faithful to the source novels.   Outdoor filming locations in Louisiana for “Tarzan of the Apes” stand in acceptably for equatorial Africa, at least to the satisfaction of moviegoers in 1918 who had no idea what Africa really looked like, and certainly better than the studio backlots used in the Weissmuller films.  Actors in shaggy anthropoid costumes portrayed Tarzan’s ape friends.  Although primitive in comparison with the modern CGI in “The Legend of Tarzan,” the makeup effects aren’t bad for that early era of cinema. 

“Adventures of Tarzan,” based on Burroughs’ “The Return of Tarzan” (1913), finds Tarzan in pursuit of a villain named Rokoff, who has kidnapped Jane in a plot to find the treasure vaults of the lost city of Opar (an idea later reiterated in “The Legend of Tarzan”).  In “The Return of Tarzan” and subsequent novels, Tarzan blithely removes gold and jewels from Burroughs’ imaginary Opar to help support his African estate, reasoning that otherwise the treasure would just lie there.  In the books, the underground vaults are vast, cavernous, and sinister.  In the movie, where the 1921 budget was too low to keep up with Burroughs’ staggering imagination, they look more like somebody’s root cellar.  Good try anyway.  As an hour-long feature truncated from a much longer serial version, “Adventures of Tarzan” is a succession of chases, rescues, and fights from the final chapters of the serial.  A title card at the beginning brings the viewer up to speed on the action already in progress, much as the “Star Wars” movies do now.   

It may be confusing to watch an old serial after most of its continuity has been removed, but the third movie in the Film Detective set, “The New Adventures of Tarzan,” represents the other side of the coin as a serial presented in its original, multi-chapter format.  The serials were designed to be taken one chapter at a time each week.  That remains the best way to experience one.  Otherwise, watched in a binge, repetition becomes a problem.  It’s difficult to work up much concern when Tarzan falls into a crocodile-infested river in Chapter Seven, if, an hour earlier, he’d already escaped the same danger in Chapter Three.  Still, taken piecemeal or in one long sitting, fans will be happy for the chance to see this original version of “The New Adventures of Tarzan,” which is better known in its truncated feature version, “Tarzan and the Green Goddess,” a one-time television staple.  Co-produced by Burroughs, it introduced Herman Brix, a 1928 Olympics finalist, as the title hero.  Trimly muscular, Brix was offered as an alternative to Johnny Weissmuller’s monosyllabic Tarzan; his version, endorsed by Burroughs, spoke in whole, commanding sentences and looked equally comfortable in a loincloth or a dinner jacket.  The serial was set and filmed on location in Guatemala, where Tarzan and his friends race against the bad guys to find a Mayan statue with a valuable secret.  Fans often rank Brix with Jock Mahoney and Mike Henry as their favourite Tarzan.  He later changed his screen name to Bruce Bennett for a long career in Westerns and crime dramas.  Humphrey Bogart fans will remember him as Cody, the drifter who tries to steal Fred C. Dobbs’ gold mine claim in “The Treasure of Sierra Madre.”  

The back story of the serial is more intriguing than the plot about the Mayan statue.  Burroughs fell in love with the wife of his co-producer, Ashton Dearholt, eventually marrying her after she divorced Dearholt and Burroughs divorced his first wife.  In turn, Dearholt had carried on an extramarital affair with Ula Holt, the lead actress in the serial, and they married after Dearholt’s divorce.  It’s the kind of Hollywood story that TMZ.com would love today. 

Actress Cindy Williams, who co-starred with Penny Marshall in the classic TV sitcom "Laverne and Shirley", has passed away at age 75. Here is a tribute to her work on television and in feature films such as "American Graffiti" and "The Conversation".

Gina Lollobrigida, the reluctant Italian superstar, has died in Rome at age 94. Like her arch-rival Sophia Loren, Lollobrigida was born into humble circumstances in Italy and survived the carnage that was wreaked on the country by Mussolini's ill-fated alliance with Nazi German and Japan. She intended to follow a nondescript life but when she entered a beauty contest, her stunning looks and voluptuous figure attracted the attention of Hollywood. She was sent to Hollywood where none other than Howard Hughes signed her to a film contract. Lollobrigida's career took off like a rocket and she was soon steaming up theater screens opposite the top male boxoffice attractions including Burt Lancaster, Tony Curtis, Frank Sinatra and Sean Connery. Like Loren, she proved to more than a flash-in-the-pan bombshell because she was a fine actress. She was enamored of Rock Hudson, who she co-starred with in two comedies, but griped that she didn't like Sinatra because of his alleged habits of being late on the set. Ironically, Sean Connery complained that she exhibited diva-like behavior on the set of their film "Woman of Straw". She had a tumultuous love life and retired from feature films in the 1970s when the best roles were being offered to younger actresses. She concentrated on her interests in photography and politics. 

Click here for more details about her remarkable life and career.

In this blast from the past, The Supremes sing yet another Motown #1 hit, the theme song from the movie "The Happening", which starred Anthony Quinn and Faye Dunaway. The film was mediocre, but the Supremes and the song were terrific. The song was yet another hit written by the team of Eddie Holland, Brian Holland and Lamont Dozier, who somehow supplied a seemingly endless number of great, chart-topping Motown songs. 

By Lee Pfeiffer

Michael Winner emerged as a promising young director/screenwriter/film editor in the early 1960s and his career gained momentum when the mod movement of the mid-Sixties made London the go-to place for everything and everyone who was hip. Winner fit into that category very neatly. He was wealthy, charismatic, talented and very much a key member of the city's thriving social scene. He made offbeat comedies that appealed to young audiences such as "The Jokers" and "I'll Never Forget What'sis Name". Soon he was making big studio films and was accorded substantial budgets to do so. He was quite diverse in his subject matter. "Hannibal Brooks" was a WWII comedy, "The Games" a drama set at the Olympic, "The Nightcomers", an ambitious prequel to Henry James's classic ghost story "The Turn of the Screw". He made good Westerns such as "Lawman" and "Chato's Land" and his numerous collaborations with Charles Bronson were crucial in finally elevating Bronson to major star status after being regarded as a reliable character actor for many years. Winner's biggest hit starred Bronson: the 1974 urban  thriller "Death Wish" that perfectly reflected the real-life paranoia of America's soaring crime rate. The film was provocative and controversial, much to Winner's delight, and it made a ton of money. But soon after, Winner's fortunes in cinema began to decline. He seemed to have backward momentum and most of his films were poorly received by critics and audiences, even though occasionally a few proved to be underrated including his 1978 remake of "The Big Sleep" that was fittingly as confusing as the classic original.

One of Winner's least-remembered films from this era is "Firepower", released in 1979, which starred James Coburn and Sophia Loren. Like most of Winner's recent movies, it didn't light any fires at the boxoffice, but it has an impressive cast and production values that elevate the film above the embarrassing "Death Wish" sequels Winner would later preside over that gave him a resurgence of relevance. The film literally opens with a bang when a scientist opens a letter bomb and is blown to smithereens. He's the husband of Adele Tasca (Sophia Loren), who suspects the assassination was orchestrated by her husband's employer, the mysterious billionaire Karl Stegner, because he had discovered that Stegner was distributing a drug that could result in patients contracting cancer. Stegner is also wanted by the U.S. government for high-end criminal activities. There's one major problem: Stegner maintains a Howard Hughes-like lifestyle and no one even knows what he looks like. FBI agent Frank Mancuso (Vincent Gardenia) leans on crime figure Sal Hyman (Eli Wallach) to use his connections to locate Stegner in return for having pending criminal charges against him dropped. Hyman, in turn, reaches out to another man of mystery, Jerry Fannon (James Coburn), to get the job done in return for an eye-popping fee. Fannon is the ultimate Mr. Fix-It, having pulled off seemingly impossible tasks for other shady characters. Fannon enlists his trusted right-hand man, Catlett (O.J. Simpson) for the assignment and the two set off to the island of Curacao in the Caribbean, where he has learned Stegner is residing in a seaside mansion protected by an army of bodyguards who report to his top assistant, Leo Gelhorn (George Grizzard, successfully cast against type in an action role.)

Things get complicated when Adele arrives on the scene, ostensibly to find a way to expose and kill Stegner herself. But Fannon soon sees she might actually be in league with her husband's murderer. As with scenarios of this type, Fannon is welcomed into Stegner's hacienda by his prey. In this case, Stegner remains unseen but Fannon is afforded some courtesies by Gelhorn and Stegner's personal physician, Dr. Felix (Tony Franciosa). The Bond-like scenario finds heroes and villains exchanging witticisms and veiled threats very politely over drinks in a luxurious environment. Of course, the detente doesn't last long and the action becomes frequent and explosive. There's a goofy and thankfully brief subplot that finds Coburn face-to-face with his exact double, who he employs as part of his strategy but the screenplay by frequent Michael Winner collaborator Gerald Wilson affords some unexpected plot twists and genuine surprises and Winner handles the action scenes very well indeed, even if they not very original. For example, Coburn employs a bulldozer to demolish a house, which is fun to watch, but Robert Mitchum had already performed the same feat on screen a couple of years before in more spectacular fashion in "The Amsterdam Kill". The gorgeous Caribbean locations add a degree of luster to the production. The cast comes through, with Coburn especially fun to watch. Loren, who was paid $1 million to appear in the film, looks sensational but the role is somewhat underwritten and the inevitable romantic moments between Coburn and Loren's characters are rather dull and perfunctory. Eli Wallach and Vincent Gardenia are relegated to extended cameo roles and the film ends with a strange but welcome brief appearance by Victor Mature that is played for laughs.I should also mention the impressive stunt work performed by Terry Leonard and his crew.

(Warning: the video below contains spoilers!)

"Firepower" was produced by Sir Lew Grade, who originally had Charles Bronson agree to star in the film. At the last minute, Bronson pulled out and Grade considered canceling the production. However, he had already sunk a good deal of money into the project and signed James Coburn as the lead. Coburn would later recall,  "I did it for the money, the locations (the Caribbean islands) and to work with Sophia Loren. The director was Michael Winner. He’s probably one of the weirdest guys I’ve ever met. Yet, I thought he was a good guy when I first met him. But when he got on the set, he was almost like a total dictator. I found it hard to work for that way. The most fun I had was when I got to drive a bulldozer through a house in the islands." For all the effort, the film was greeted with negative reviews and a weak boxoffice take. The movie is available on Blu-ray as a collaboration between Kino Lorber and Scorpion Releasing. The transfer looks great and the disc includes the original trailer.

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By Lee Pfeiffer 

By 1963, Vincent Price was generally recognized as the heir apparent to Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi as the undisputed king of the horror film genre. Somewhat lost in discussion's of Price's work is the fact that, until he starred in "House of Wax" in the mid-1950s, he had a long career as a popular and respected supporting actor in mainstream Hollywood productions. If there is a sad aspect to his international success as a horror star, it's that his talents were rarely used henceforth in films of other genres. Nonetheless, Price knew a good thing when he saw it. His collaborations with producer Roger Corman on cinematic versions of classic Edgar Allan Poe stories had proven to be wildly successful. Price wasn't overly selective about working with other producers who sought to capitalize on those films by making blatant imitations of Corman's productions. One such title is "Diary of a Madman", released in 1963 and based on a story by French writer Guy de Maupassant.  In some ways, the film is a worthy rival to a Corman/Price collaboration in that it's intelligently scripted, well-cast and has a relatively creative production design that somewhat masks the movie's threadbare budget. As with the Corman flicks, Price is given a meaty role and he makes the most of it. He plays Simon Cordier, a respected French judge in the late 19th century. He has a reputation for fairness and an obsession with studying the criminal mind in the hope of understanding what motivates some men to commit horrendous crimes of violence. The film opens with Cordier receiving a request to meet with a prisoner who he has sentenced to die on the guillotine. The man is a serial killer and Cordier is interested in taking the opportunity to speak to the prisoner, whose behavior has left him baffled. The man was a pillar-of-the-community type with no criminal background a stable profession. Upon meeting the condemned prisoner in his cell, the doomed convict informs Cordier that he welcomes his imminent execution because he has been inexplicably possessed by an invisible being known as the Horla. He relates an incredible story about this creature periodically taking over control of his body and mind and forcing him to commit acts of murder. As the incredulous Cordier tries to absorb this fanciful tale, the man suddenly attacks him. In defending himself, Cordier hurls the prisoner against a wall, killing him instantly. 

Back in his chambers, Cordier is haunted by the experience but doesn't think much more of it- until some strange occurrences leave him disturbed. Seems that Cordier's irresponsible behavior had somehow been responsible for the accidental death of his wife and young son years before. Cordier has tried to block the bad memories from his mind by locking away all mementos relating to them, including a large framed photograph that had been stored in his attic. He is shocked to find it hanging prominently on the wall of his study. His loyal butler (Ian Wolfe) denies having placed it there. Other strange occurrences lead Cordier to question his mental stability. A psychiatrist assures him that he is suffering from fatigue and urges him to delve back into his passion for sculpting, which he has ignored for years. Cordier follows his advice and begins to feel more relaxed. Things only get better when he has a chance encounter with a vivacious and flirtatious young woman named Odette (Nancy Kovack), who agrees to be a paid model for him. She begins a campaign to seduce Cordier, never telling him that she is actually married to a financially-strapped artist, Paul (Chris Warfield). When Paul objects to the amount of time that Odette is spending in Cordier's studio, she assures him she is only trying to earn money that they desperately need. In reality, she is a heartless gold digger who is weighing the option of leaving Paul for the older man. Oblivious to all this, Cordier is happy to have found love once again. His mood, however, is rudely disrupted when he realizes the cause of the strange things that have been going on in his house: it seems that the Horla has chosen to possess him in retribution for killing the prisoner whose body it once inhabited. Although Cordier can not see the Horla, he discovers it is a physical presence who can not only speak to him, but can also utilize a number of cruel witticisms that he uses to mock and humiliate the esteemed  jurist.  From this point on, Cordier's life is a living hell. In rational moments, he tries frantically to figure out how to rid himself of this ghoulish presence, but the Horla retains control of his mind and body at will. This leads to Cordier carrying out a particularly gruesome murder, leaving him desperate to find a way out of his tortured existence. He devises a last-ditch effort to lure the Horla into his study where he hopes to kill him through use of his one vulnerability: fire. The resulting consequences are dramatic but have tragic results even for Cordier. 

"Diary of a Madman" is mid-range Price fare from this period. The entire enterprise rides on the actor shoulders, but they prove to be broad enough to carry it off. Price looks dashing and, as always, puts his best efforts into even a modest enterprise such as this. Nancy Kovack also gives a fine performance as a bad girl who, refreshingly, never learns to redeem herself as she cuckolds both of her lovers in turn. The film is not exceptional on any level, but it is consistently entertaining and reasonably engrossing.

"Diary of a Madman" is currently streaming on Amazon Prime. 

By Todd Garbarini

Bigfoot was all the rage in the 1970s and it seemed as though you could not look anywhere without hearing about it. Alternately known as “Sasquatch”, Bigfoot is the description given to a large, man-sized hirsute creature reputed to live in the woods in the Pacific Northwest section of the United States. There have been many “sightings” over the years of this creature, with many people claiming they have photographed and even encountered it. The Loch Ness Monster off the coast of Scotland was yet another subject of mystification and intrigue which rebounded in popularity during the 1970s.

As a youngster, I recall not fully giving credence to the notion that this “monster” really existed but also being unnerved by the myriad docudramas that attempted to explain or hint at some sense of veracity when it came to discussing the subject. My favorite show at the time, The Six Million Dollar Man, pitted the titular hero Steve Austin (Lee Majors) against Bigfoot (an unrecognizable André René Roussimoff, better known as André the Giant) in early 1976, with its less successfully sister show, The Bionic Woman, continuing the storyline later that year, with Ted Cassidy now all dolled up for a fight. Leonard Nimoy’s episode of In Search Of…, which aired in New York on Monday, January 31, 1977, explored the possibility of the creature’s existence. Three months later we were subjected to the TV-movie Snowbeast, a fun film about patrons at a ski resort being terrorized by a rampaging killer beast, essentially Jaws set in the snow. Bigfoot even became a humorous throwaway line by Roberts Blossom in Steven Spielberg’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind, also from 1977.

In addition to docudramas, there have also been a good number of films about Bigfoot coming into contact with humans, but the results are never pretty. Joy N. Houck Jr.’s Creature from Black Lake (1976) is one of those low-budget, independently lensed thrillers that made the rounds throughout the Midwest but never seemed to make it to larger markets such as Los Angeles, Chicago or New York. Filmed during September and October of 1975 and released regionally on Friday, March 12, 1976, Creature begins with an image that could have just as easily been pulled from the ending of John Hancock’s Let’s Scare Jessica to Death (1971) but gives way to two fishermen (one of whom is character actor Jack Elam) in a motorboat in the Louisiana swamps. The younger of the two gets pulled into the water by a creature that is mostly heard rather than actually seen. Meanwhile, two graduate students, Pahoo (Dennis Fimple) and Rives (John David Carson) head to Louisiana to look into the existence of this mysterious creature in the hopes of getting townspeople to talk. Joe Canton (Jack Elam, who I first saw in the ill-fated TV show Struck by Lightning, which co-starred Jeffrey Kramer, in September 1979) opens up about it in his own crazed way. However, Sheriff Billy Carter (Bill Thurman) not only refuses to speak about the subject but admonishes the students to leave.

Grandpa Bridges (lovable Dub Taylor) is another community member who is initially reticent about the creature since it terrified his wife. However, when money is waved in front of his face, he has a change of heart and permits the students to break bread with his family. All is well until Pahoo’s parapraxis sends Mrs. Bridges into a frenzy, incurring Grandpa’s wrath and sending them on their way to investigate on their own.

Dismissed by most critics at the time, Creature is an entertaining film that benefits immensely from stellar camerawork by future John Carpenter alumni Dean Cundey. The film has never been properly represented outside of a theater before having been shot anamorphically but cropped for its New York television premiere on CBS after midnight on Friday, November 30, 1979, while later finding its way into syndication on channel 9 in New York in the early 1980s. Unless you were one of the folks who caught up with the film under these circumstances or through one of its several DVD releases, the best way to see it now is on the excellent Blu-ray from Synapse Films which is mastered from a 4K scan of the original camera negative, a vast improvement over all previous airings and releases.

There is a feature-length audio commentary with writer Michael Gingold and film historian Chris Poggiali. They expound upon the film’s merits and detriments and speak enthusiastically about both the movie and the Bigfoot subgenre. Both men are erudite and articulate and it makes for an entertaining and informative listen.

There is also a 19-minute extra called Swamp Stories with Director of Photography Dean Cundey which is exactly what it says it is. If you are interested in Mr. Cundey’s background and a discussion of the technical aspects of the production, this piece is very interesting.

Lastly, we have the theatrical trailer and the radio spot!

Oh, how the radio spots for horror films freaked me out when I was a kid!

A very cool package indeed, topped off with reallynice cover art by the late great Star Wars alumni Ralph McQuarrie.

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The Three Stooges starred in their last feature film "The Outlaws is Coming" in 1965. This rare behind the scenes footage includes an original TV spot for the film. Also in the cast: future "Batman" star Adam West. The Stooges' original comedy shorts were shown on TV all over the USA in the 1960s, with the programs each having a different host for the individual market that was telecasting the shows. If you grew up in the New York City area, you'll recognize Joe Bolton in the cast. He hosted the TV show under the guise of a policeman named Officer Joe Bolton. Interestingly,  there trailer shows a glimpse of an armored stagecoach that resembles "The War Wagon" a couple of years before that movie was released.