|
Post by kijii on Sept 27, 2018 23:59:25 GMT
Underworld U.S.A. (1961) / Samuel Fuller Rented from Amazon Prime
This movie reminded me of Fuller's transparently exaggerated pulp dramas, such as The Naked Kiss (1964) and Shock Corridor (1963). Here, he puts Dolores Dorn is much the same role he put Constance Towers was in the two movies listed above. (Both Dolores Dorn and Constance Towers are still alive, by the way). The main women in these roles are exaggerated and the stories don't really give us any real insight into the problems that Fuller is purporting to explore. Rather than going for a more realistic story of pedophilia (TNK), mental institutions (SC), and organized crime syndicates (UU.S.A.), Fuller takes an over-broad approach, making the characters seem more like cartoons than real-life people.
I think he may have done better with his crime and war dramas than he did in this movie. Oscar-winning actor, Cliff Robertson was a better actor than the overblown and overly dramatic man who brings down an huge national crime almost single-handly simply out of revenge for his father's murder 20 years previously. The moving parts to to this puzzle just work too conveniently here, telescoping the movie's probable ending long before it actually comes to past.
Fuller uses many of his regular performers in this movie. However, one may recognize the Commissioner (Larry Gates) as the actor who slapped Sidney Poitier in In the Heat of the Night (1967).
TCM oveview with SPOILERS: At the age of 12, Tolly Devlin witnesses the brutal gangland murder of his father. As he matures Tolly becomes a petty criminal consumed by his vow to have revenge on the four murderers. He finds one of the four dying in a prison hospital ward and learns that the other three are now in the heirarchy of the local crime syndicate. Gradually Tolly insinuates himself into the underworld gang; at the same time he cooperates with a Federal crime commission. As he plots his revenge, he falls in love with an attractive young woman, Cuddles, whom he saves from being killed by a member of the syndicate. By playing both sides of the law, he eventually succeeds in bringing about the death of his archenemies. But he himself is mortally wounded when he kills the syndicate head rather than obey an order to kill Cuddles.
|
|
|
Post by teleadm on Sept 28, 2018 17:41:08 GMT
Beneath the Planet of the Apes 1970, directed by Ted Post, staring James Franciscus, Kim Hunter, Maurice Evans, Linda Harrison, Victor Buono, James Gregory, Jeff Corey, Natalie Trundy, Thomas Gomez and others and Charlton Heston. Science-Fiction that starts where the 1968 movie ended, Taylor (Heston) dissappears early on and instead we follow a sole survivor of an other spaceship that has crashlanded on the same planet who was part of an an interplanetary rescue mission in search of Taylor and his crew. He (Franciscus) discovers a planet ruled by apes and an underground city run by a telepathic humanlike tribe. I don't want to give away too much for those who eventually haven't seen it. I remember seeing this many years ago with high hopes, but back then thought it was a huge disappointment . Seeing it again now, I thought that it was not as bad as I remembered it and the storyline is actually good. Franciscus is actually very good as the new astonished astronaut, and Hunter and Evans returned in their roles to, Roddy McDowall (sorely missed) wasn't available and was replaced by a lesser actor. While Franklin J. Schaffner had a great visual eye and was a great stylist at the time of the 1968 movie, Ted Post was more of an assembly line director, and his direction is rather flat and unimaginative. The undergroud city sets are very impressive, but the tribe and their powers might have sounded good on paper, but comes of at times as ridiculous, especially a hymn-like praising song. If they wanted to create a series and not just live on the name, they become cheaper and cheaper, why didn't they learn from the James Bond movies, bigger budgets with every movie.
|
|
|
Post by kijii on Sept 28, 2018 17:50:38 GMT
Bride of the Monster 1955, directed by Edward D. Wood Jr, staring Bela Lugosi, Tor Johnson, Tony McCoy, Loretta King, Harvey B. Dunn, George Becwar and others. Horror Science-Fiction about a mad doctor (or missunderstood genius), Dr. Eric Vornoff, who is conducting experiments to turn people into super-beings through the use of atomic power. A female reporter decides to look into what is going there and its possible connection to men that have disappeared in the area. An octopus is also involved in the plot somehow. Knowing that it's far from a masterpiece, I wanted to see for myself how awful it actually is. It is without doubt an awfull movie, but I have seen more expensive blown-up pretentious movies that actually have been much worse to sit through. One just looks at this one with a certain amazement. The low budget shines through, with wobbling sets. Lugosi, who is the only real actor around, is at his hammiest. Worth seeing at least once. teleadm-- Great post! I think this is the first time I have ever seen anyone review an Ed Wood movie.
|
|
|
Post by teleadm on Sept 28, 2018 18:06:44 GMT
Bride of the Monster 1955, directed by Edward D. Wood Jr, staring Bela Lugosi, Tor Johnson, Tony McCoy, Loretta King, Harvey B. Dunn, George Becwar and others. Horror Science-Fiction about a mad doctor (or missunderstood genius), Dr. Eric Vornoff, who is conducting experiments to turn people into super-beings through the use of atomic power. A female reporter decides to look into what is going there and its possible connection to men that have disappeared in the area. An octopus is also involved in the plot somehow. Knowing that it's far from a masterpiece, I wanted to see for myself how awful it actually is. It is without doubt an awfull movie, but I have seen more expensive blown-up pretentious movies that actually have been much worse to sit through. One just looks at this one with a certain amazement. The low budget shines through, with wobbling sets. Lugosi, who is the only real actor around, is at his hammiest. Worth seeing at least once. teleadm-- Great post! I think this is the first time I have ever seen anyone review an Ed Wood movie. I mentioned once to my brother that Ed Wood 1994 was one of my favorite movies about movies, he asked me If I've seen a real Ed Wood movie, and I said no, he answere would you like to lend one of mine? and I answered "Why not!". It's one thing to read and have heard about a movie, It's another other to actually watch it and in this case trying to keep my usual straight face.
|
|
|
Post by ZolotoyRetriever on Sept 30, 2018 6:16:36 GMT
How to Save a Marriage and Ruin Your Life, (1968). Directed by Fielder Cook, with Dean Martin, Stella Stevens and husband and wife duo Eli Wallach and Anne Jackson. DVR'd from recent TCM telecast. First-time viewing.
Cleverly scripted "matrimonial misunderstanding" comedy that seemed more than a little similar to some of those early-60s comedies featuring Rock Hudson, Doris Day and Tony Randall. It would've been no stretch at all to have seen Hudson, Day and Randall quite easily slide into the roles which here were performed by Dean Martin, Stella Stevens and Eli Wallach. It's worth noting that writer Stanley Shapiro, who penned two of those aforementioned Hudson-Day-Randall films (Pillow Talk and Lover Come Back) also wrote this one. Also of note: Marilyn Monroe was originally slated to play the main female role (Carole), but the project was shelved due to her death; the part ultimately went to Stella Stevens.
All in all a fun 60s-era comedy: lots of witty dialogue, great supporting cast, beautiful wide-screen cinematography. Worth watching again.
|
|
|
Post by kijii on Sept 30, 2018 20:33:41 GMT
Verboten! (1959) / Samuel Fuller Rented from Amazon Prime
Continuing on with my Samuel Fuller viewing project, these are my latest entries---
With James Best and Susan Cummings as the leading performers of this movie, it is not hard to imagine that this is one of Fuller's B movies, and it is. Fuller uses quite a bit of archival footage from concentration camps and refugee marches from bombed out Europe as Hitler pushes his way through Europe throughout WW II. And although I can't find any filming locations on the IMDb for his Globe Enterprises production, I wouldn't be surprised if he used some of the bombed out cities from post-war Germany also. As a result, the viewer seems to be constantly going back and forth between actual archival footage and set shots made by the main actors throughout the movie. It also shows some real views of the Nuremberg trial (with the real defendants) before Stanley Kramer's movie, Stanley Kramer's Judgment at Nuremberg (1961). So, in that way, one may look at this movie as a B-movie introduction to, or supplement of, the later movie.
Although the production looks cheap, the story of an American soldier falling in love with a German girl gives us a feeling of what is happening on both sides. James Best's character does fall in love with the Peggy Cummings' character without realizing that she is using him to get food and supplies that other Germans can not get due to the post-war shortages.
Added to this is the view by the Nazi Youth, represented by Cumming's younger brother, that Germany is not defeated--only occupied by--the Allies after the war. And these left-over Nazi's are still attempting to overthrow their "occupiers" through the Werewolves, the Nazi guerrilla movement.
Full TCM synopsis with SPOILERS: During World War II, three American infantrymen are looking for snipers in the small German town of Rothbach, which has largely been destroyed, when they come under fire. Two of the men are killed, but the injured survivor, Sgt. David Brent, finds his way to a house, where Helga Schiller, a young German woman, dresses his wound. Helga speaks English and explains that she is anti-Nazi but has not left as she is looking after her sick mother. Helga's fifteen-year-old brother Franz is a member of the Hitler Youth and very bitter because an American bomb severed his left arm. The next day, when incoming German troops try to secure the town against advancing American forces, Helga hides David, as she feels that she has to prove to him that there is a difference between a Nazi and a German. The American troops eventually arrive and find David, but before leaving, he writes a letter to the American authorities on Helga's behalf stating that she and her family have helped him and that she is not a Nazi. Later, while he recovers in a military hospital, David decides that he wants to stay on in Germany and intends to marry Helga, although he is officially warned about predatory "fraüleins." The war ends and David returns to Rothbach, which is now under the jurisdiction of the American Military Government. Helga is astonished by his return and worried that he may get into trouble for fraternizing with a German. David explains that he has been discharged from the Army and is now a civilian and will be working for the government as a liaison between the town's mayor and the Army. As a civilian, David can marry Helga and she happily accepts his proposal. Later, Helga assists Bruno, a returning German soldier, and has to give him the news that his parents and sweetheart have been killed. When Bruno states that Germany has not been defeated, merely occupied, Helga realizes that he is still a Nazi. During a honeymoon on a boat on the Rhine, David and Helga hear a radio broadcast about the on-going "Werwolf" activities of the Hitler Youth. The military government, for which David is working, is involved in rounding up war criminals to be tried at Nuremberg and learns that Himmler had set up a secret army of delinquents, the Werwolf, to perpetuate the war after defeat. Franz has joined the local Werwolf, which is being run by Bruno, who indoctrinates all the young men as Hitler did. They plan to kill all the Americans and are becoming successful in ambushing U.S. patrols and hijacking food supplies. They organize a hunger protest in front of the government building, and although David tells the crowd that America is sending much aid to Germany, he is beaten up when the protest turns into a riot. Capt. Harvey, David's boss, then suspends him and ultimately lets all civilian staff go. Harvey offers to arrange for David to return to America, but David intends to stay with his now pregnant wife. Bruno tells David that he is stupid to give up his country for a woman like Helga, whom he claims, told him she would have lived with any American and has referred to David as her "American goldmine." When David returns home and tells Helga that he has lost his job, but will find another locally, she tells him that the Germans will not give him work and urges him to return to America, then send for her. After David asks Helga why she married him, she admits that it was for food and protection, but that she has grown to love him. David tells her that she is lower than a streetwalker, but will support her until their child is born, whereupon he will take the child to America. When Franz tells Helga that the Werwolf are selling stolen food and medicine on the black market and are helping war criminals to escape from Germany, she feels that she must tell him about all the crimes the Nazis committed. Helga takes Franz to the War Crimes Trial at the Nuremberg Palace of Justice, and they are present when a prosecutor presents film footage detailing the rise of the Nazis. Franz realizes that Bruno has become a new Hitler and watches with mounting horror as films of the atrocities committed at concentration camps are shown. Although Franz sobs and says he did not know about the camps, Helga insists that he watch. When they return to Rothbach, Franz tells David that Helga wants him to tell Harvey that Bruno is a Werwolf leader and reveal the location of their meeting place. After David arranges for a raid on the Werwolf headquarters, he gets his job back and returns to Helga and her mother. Meanwhile, Franz attempts to steal a list of Werwolf members from its hiding place in a railway boxcar, but is discovered by Bruno. After knocking him unconscious, Franz leaves Bruno to die in an accidental fire that consumes the boxcar.
House of Bamboo (1955) / Samuel Fuller Seen on DVD
Full TCM synopsis with SPOILERS: In 1954, a military train guarded by American soldiers and Japanese police is attacked as it travels between Kyoto and Tokyo. During the raid, which is carried out with great precision, an American sergeant is killed, and the train's cargo of guns and ammunition is stolen. The crime is investigated by Capt. Hanson, an American, and Japanese police inspector Kita, who, five weeks later, are concerned when a thief named Webber is shot with some of the stolen bullets. As Webber lies dying in a Tokyo hospital, he is questioned by Hanson and Kita, and although Webber was left for dead by his gang during a thwarted robbery, he refuses to implicate his cohorts, who presumably are responsible for the earlier crime. Webber, who is also an American, does reveal, however, that he is secretly married to a Japanese woman named Mariko. Among Webber's possessions is a letter from an American named Eddie Spanier, who wants to join Webber in Japan after his release from a U.S. prison. Three weeks later, Eddie arrives in Tokyo and finds Mariko, who is initially afraid that he is one of the men responsible for her husband's death. Eddie gains Mariko's trust with a photograph of himself and Webber, then warns her to keep quiet about her marriage so that she will not be in danger from Webber's killers. Later, Eddie goes to a pachinko parlor, in which patrons gamble on intricate machines similar to pinball machines. There, Eddie attempts to sell "protection" to the manager, but when he returns to discuss the matter again, he is beaten and warned to leave by racketeer Sandy Dawson and his henchmen, Griff, Charlie, Willy and Phil. Intrigued by Eddie's presence in Japan, Sandy arranges for him to be arrested, and Sandy's secret informer, who is connected to the police department, obtains Eddie's rap sheet. Convinced of Eddie's aptitude for crime, Sandy invites him to join his gang, which consists of former American servicmen who have been dishonorably discharged. After his acceptance into the gang, Eddie secretly meets with Kita and Hanson, for whom he is working undercover. Needing help from someone he can trust, Eddie asks Mariko to live with him as his "kimono girl," although he does not reveal his identity as a military police investigator. Hoping to discover who killed her husband, Mariko resides with Eddie despite being ostracized by her neighbors, who do not know that her relationship with the foreigner is platonic. As time passes, Sandy grows to trust Eddie, although Eddie is shocked during a robbery when a wounded gang member is killed by Griff to prevent him from talking. Eddie is also wounded, but Sandy makes an exception to his rule of killing fallen men and saves him. Eddie finally informs the worried Mariko that his real name is Sgt. Kenner, and that he is investigating Sandy. Meanwhile, Griff, Sandy's "ichiban" or "number one boy," becomes jealous of Sandy's reliance upon Eddie, and Sandy relieves the hot-headed Griff of his duties. The next day, Mariko, who has fallen in love with Eddie, notifies Kita and Hanson about a planned robbery, but Sandy's informant, reporter Ceram, warns him that the police are poised to capture him. After the robbery is aborted, Sandy kills Griff, whom he mistakenly assumes tipped off the police. Ceram informs Sandy of his mistake, and Sandy retaliates by setting Eddie up to be killed by the Japanese police during a robbery of a pearl broker. When the plan fails, Sandy is chased by the police up to a rooftop amusement park, but after an intense gunfight, Eddie succeeds in shooting and killing Sandy. Later, wearing his military uniform, Eddie walks with Mariko in a Tokyo park.
|
|
|
Post by OldAussie on Oct 1, 2018 23:44:35 GMT
30th or so viewing...but 1st time on the big screen.
|
|
|
Post by kijii on Oct 2, 2018 6:03:14 GMT
The Crimson Kimono (1959) / Samuel Fuller Rented from Amazon Prime
As I watched this movie today, I was prepared to see yet another Sam Fuller B movie without any well-known actors and having a somewhat contrived plot. But, boy was I wrong!! I liked it so much, I watched it again to re-check if it was as good as I had thought it was. It was even better the second time since I picked up so many more details in the story, the camera work, and the acting.
While it is true that there are no real well-known performers in it, I think it is something of an overlooked masterpiece in the crime movie genre. Added to the crime story is a love story, a love-triangle, a story about self-discovery, and an homage to the Japanese-America soldiers who had fought for the US in the Korean War.
The story is set in the Los Angles and involves two police detectives who share an apartment: one Caucasian and the other a Japanese-American. Their friendship goes back to their time as fellow soldiers who had fought together in Korea. The two men, now as police detectives, are working on a murder case of a stripper, Sugar Torch (Gloria Pall) who was planning an act about a crimson kimono. As they work on the case, they are led to a young woman who had painted a picture of "the crimson kimono" for Sugar Torch as part of the overall publicity for the act that she had hoped to eventually take to Las Vegas.
The movie takes on several different themes including: art, Japanese martial arts, and an annual Japanese celebration (Nisei Week) that incorporates several aspects of the Japanese culture (art, dancing, and martial arts). It is amazing how many things are included in this movie, yet the story holds together perfectly without preaching or overstating anything it presents. The movie, written, produced, and directed by Sam Fuller, showed me that some B movies can be great!
Harry Sukman's musical score also added a lot to this movie, just as it did in Sam Fuller's Forty Guns (1957), Underworld U.S.A. (1961), and Verboten! (1959).
Christine Downs (Victoria Shaw): Were you ever in love with a man from a different world? Mac (Anna Lee) : Ah, many, many times! Christine Downs : Well, was he, uh, someone of a different race? Mac : [pauses] There was a Hindu in Bombay... Christine Downs : Was he sensitive about the difference between you? Mac : [laughs] HE wasn't... but his father looked down his imperious nose at me.
TCM oveview with SPOILERS: One night, in the Los Angeles' Little Tokyo neighborhood, a stripper named Sugar Torch is shot and killed. While examining the Japanese art that adorns the dancer's dressing room, homicide detectives Charlie Bancroft and Joe Kojaku learn that she had been developing a new act. In the narrative paintings, Sugar is dressed as a geisha, and she and her Japanese lover are killed onstage by a jealous karate expert. Joe, who knows everyone in Little Tokyo, questions local kendo and karate practitioners about the identity of the male characters in the new act, while Charlie seeks out Christine Downes, the artist who painted the portrait of Sugar in her kimono. Back at the apartment they share, Joe confesses to Charlie that because his girl friend was reared in Japan and he in the United States, they argue about the "old country" constantly. Later Charlie questions Chris, an art student at the University of Southern California, about the man who commissioned Sugar's portrait, Mr. Hansel. As Chris sketches Hansel's portrait, Charlie flirts with her, and she smiles. Joe discovers from two nuns that a formidable Korean man named Shuto, who was to be the karate expert in the striptease act, knows his old friend, Mr. Yoshinaga. Joe finds the kindly Yoshinaga in the local Buddhist temple, where he has come to observe the anniversary of his son's death. After the private ceremony, he leads Joe through Little Tokyo to the Koga Rice Cake Co. Shuto, who works at the factory, panics when he sees the detective, and Joe loses sight of him during the ensuing chase. Charlie's friend Mac, an eccentric but endearing artist who lives on Skid Row, worries that because Chris's sketch of Hansel has now been broadcast on television, the criminal might try to kill her. As feared, someone takes a shot at Chris that night. For her protection, she moves in with Charlie and Joe, and when fear causes her to burst into tears, Charlie kisses her. Later, Charlie and Joe visit Roma, a wigmaker, who knows Hansel, but she provides little information. They then learn that Hansel has just left his position as an Asian specialist at the public library, where he was known by his real name, Paul Sand. That evening, Joe and Chris realize while talking together that they are deeply in love. Afraid of hurting Charlie, Joe resolves to hide his feelings from his friend, but becomes sullen and uncommunicative. Worried by Joe's moodiness, Charlie fears that Chris may have inadvertently expressed prejudice toward Joe, and this concern causes Chris to realize the depth of the men's friendship. Joe and Charlie face off in the Nisei Week kendo demonstration, and Joe surprises everyone by attacking his friend mercilessly. Later, Joe confesses his love for Chris. When Charlie looks up and gravely asks Joe if he intends to marry Chris, Joe assumes that his friend's anger is based on racism and is devasted. After expressing his confusion to Chris, Joe packs his bags, resigns from the force, and prepares to leave town. Chris and Charlie try to persuade him that neither of them feels anything but love for him, but Joe cannot believe this. As Chris is speaking, she suddenly sees Hansel. When Charlie and Joe corner him, Hansel claims that as an Asian specialist, he only meant to advise Sugar Torch on her act. When they ask Hansel why he shot the stripper, Roma appears and takes a shot at Charlie. Joe pursues her through the Nisei Week parade and is finally forced to shoot her. As they await the ambulance, the distressed woman admits it was she who killed Sugar. Having assumed that Hansel preferred the stripper to her, the wigmaker killed her rival, but later realized there was nothing between the two. Joe takes this in and immediately turns and apologizes to Charlie. As the friends reconcile, Chris runs into Joe's arms and they kiss.
|
|
|
Post by teleadm on Oct 2, 2018 17:10:42 GMT
Inspired by a thread here I re-watched Witness for the Prosecution 1957, It's one of those movie I like to re-visit from time to time.
|
|
|
Post by kijii on Oct 3, 2018 6:09:14 GMT
Fixed Bayonets! (1951) / Samuel FullerContinuing on with my Sam Fuller viewing project--- This movie and The Steel Helmet were both released the same year and have much the same feeling, with Gene Evans as the dominate character in both movies. However, this story was based a real events that had occurred in the Korean War just one year prior to the movie being completed. The movie is based on, or suggested by, a novel by John Brophy. This is no nonsense story and has even less sentimentality than The Steel Helmet, in which a group of men moves and grows as it progresses. On the other hand, Fixed Bayonets! has a smaller and more close-knit group of soldiers with an even more dangerous mission. A small platoon of only 43 soldiers is tasked to make the enemy believe that they are a larger group so that the Chinese would focus on them until the US forces could regroup (after heavy American loses) and re-attack the Chinese. This tactic is known as "rearguard action." Most of the story is set in a cave overlooking Chinese forces below. (It is important to realize that the Americans had set up a mine field between themselves and the Chinese forces. This mine field will later be important for several different plot points of the movie that follows.) As in other small ensemble works, we get to know the soldiers individually as they sit, wait, and attack when possible, and pretend to be larger than they really are. The individual decisions and evolution of each soldier is examined as the movie progresses. The indecisive Cpl. Denno (Richard Basehart) emerges as a leader after his sergeant, Sgt. Rock (Gene Evans), is killed by ricocheting bullet while he is in the cave; a failing medic, Medic John Wheeler (Richard Hylton) learns to become a real medic after his skill is truly needed, etc. There is some tension between the more battle-seasoned soldiers and the "90-day wonders." TCM oveview with SPOILERS: During the Korean War, a beleagured American Army division is forced to retreat, and the general in charge decides to station a 48-man platoon in a strategic mountain pass to prevent the enemy from learning about the move until after it is completed. The "rearguard action" is headed by Lt. Gibbs and sergeants Rock and Lonergan, who march their men toward the pass. During the march, Corp. Denno, a well-trained yet fearful soldier, is unable to kill a single enemy, despite past successes in shooting at a large number of oncoming men. Upon reaching the pass, the soldiers plan their fortifications, including laying a mine field on the pass ground and establishing lookout posts. The men bemoan the lack of dry socks and warm food, while Denno converses with Rock, who cautions him that despite his fear of leadership, there are only three men above him, and he will have to take command of the platoon if they are killed. The enemy attacks but the platoon responds quickly, and discovers a cave large enough for all the men to take cover in. Soon after, Gibbs is killed by a sniper, and Denno is haunted by the thought that now only two men stand between him and command. That night, Denno confesses to Rock that when he was in officers' training school, he twice gave unsafe orders that resulted in serious injuries to his men. Rock reassures Denno that he will be able to cope and advises him that the only thing he should rely on is his gun. In the morning, the men are awakened by the loud bugle calls of the enemy, and Whitey, a soldier christened "Mr. Belvedere" by his comrades because of his know-it-all attitude, explains that the Chinese are attempting to cause the Americans psychological distress. Rock sends Whitey and another soldier to steal one of the bugles, and although they succeed, Whitey's companion is injured. As the medic tends to the wounded man, Lonergan searches for soldier Bigmouth, who was not at his post. Lonergan soon finds Bigmouth, who has slipped into unconsciousness due to the cold, but as he is bringing him back, Lonergan is shot by a sniper. When the medic tries to cross the minefield to rescue Lonergan, he steps on a mine and is killed. Desperate to save Lonergan and avoid coming closer to command, Denno risks his life to traverse the minefield and retrieve the sergeant, but Lonergan is dead by the time Denno carries him back. The next day, the Chinese ambush one of the lookout posts and force the rest of the Americans into hiding in the cave. With only an hour to go before they can follow the main company and retreat, the men grow edgy and worry about ricochets within the cave. Their fear is realized when Rock is hit and killed by a sniper's ricocheting bullet, and Denno must face his worst fears and assume command of the platoon. Denno orders the men to wait until the appointed hour, but as they are about to decamp, they hear an approaching tank. Realizing that the enemy has figured out the rearguard strategy, Denno decides to blow up the tank in the pass so that the Chinese cannot follow the retreating troops. The men succeed in blowing up the tank with a bazooka, but are soon embroiled in a major battle with the enemy. Meanwhile, the main division succeeds in their retreat and blows up the bridge leading to their new position. As the soldiers set up camp, they see some men swimming across the river. Holding their fire, they recognize the battle-tested Denno and his remaining men, who have triumphed over their opponents. With his confidence restored, Denno remembers Rock telling him, "You ain't a corporal for nothing, corporal."
|
|
|
Post by teleadm on Oct 3, 2018 18:00:23 GMT
La fille de d'Artagnan aka Revenge of the Musketeers 1994, directed by Bertrand Tavernier, staring Sophie Marceau, Philippe Noiret (D'Artagnan), Claude Rich, Sami Frey (Aramis), Jean-Luc Bideau (Athos), Raoul Billerey (Porthos), Carlotte Kady, Nils Tavernier, Gigi Proietti, Jean-Paul Roussillon and others. French lighthearted swashbuckling adventure. France, 1654: D'Artagnan's girl grows up in a convent. When the mother superior is murdered, Eloïse suspects a plan to murder the king and hopes to prevent this and revenge the murder by finding her father and the 3 musketeers. I've seen many Musketeers over the years, but I think this was the first time I've heard them speak French. The Musketeers are a bit older, but still willing to defend the King "One for all, all for one"-style. Sophie Marceau is absolutly lovely as D'Artagnan's daughter, fiesty and never listens to her fathers warnings and advices. Lighthearted and sometimes very French in thet they speak a bit too much, especially as I've got to read the subtitles and tries to catch up with what's going on in the pictures. Still it is entertaining seeing the famous literary characters portrayed this way instead of the way they are portrayed in Hollywood versions, though Lester's version comes to mind as closer to this movie. Not perfect, but well worth a look. Warning: Containes a few scenes with female nudity.
|
|
|
Post by vegalyra on Oct 3, 2018 18:23:45 GMT
Fury (2014) Great film, very brutal. The tank on tank action seems to be very realistic for the most part from the research I did following the viewing. Great that a real Tiger was used and not an old Soviet or American post war tank like a lot of my favorite classic WW2 films used (Battle of the Bulge, etc.) in place of the real thing. Shia LaBeouf was excellent as "Bible," probably my favorite character in the film. I thought it was very touching how Pitt's "Wardaddy" quotes scripture with him at the end. The final stand of the Fury crew reminded me a lot of "Sahara" with Humphrey Bogart. All in all a good war movie and showed the camaraderie of the tank crew and the utter desperation of the last German resistance of the war.
|
|
|
Post by ZolotoyRetriever on Oct 4, 2018 3:06:48 GMT
Hollow Triumph (1948). Directed by Steve Sekely, with Paul Henreid, Joan Bennett, Eduard Franz, John Qualen. DVR'd from recent TCM telecast (Noir Alley presentation).
Interesting, but - to me, anyway - a bit disappointing film noir about a hoodlum who bears an uncanny resemblance to a prominent doctor (both roles played by Paul Henreid). The mob is after the hood, so what does he do? Why, he bumps off the prominent doctor and magically steps into his shoes and carries on a new life, thwarting the mob's effort to find him and kill him. Complications ensue, as does an ending with an intriguingly ironic twist.
This had all the best elements of a good classic noir, what with the dark tones, creeping dread and cold-blooded ruthlessness of various parties involved. Where it fell apart for me was the need for a huge suspension of disbelief for the viewer to accept that the hoodlum could so easily assume the role and lifestyle - both professional as well as personal - of the doctor with nary a soul raising an eyebrow (until later, but that would be giving away too much of the plot).
Well-acted, plus it features a few glimpses of what life was like in America 70 years ago: pay attention during a key gas-pumping scene, and note the price of gas was 25 cents a gallon. Also look for a young Jack Webb, future "Joe Friday" of Dragnet fame. Here he's on the other side of the law: he's one of the mob guys.
|
|
|
Post by teleadm on Oct 5, 2018 17:32:17 GMT
A game distracted me yesterday, so this comes a day later: Triple Cross 1966, directed by Terence Young, based on a book by Frank Owen about the real Eddie Chapman during WWII, staring Christopher Plummer, Yul Brynner, Romy Schneider, Trevor Howard, Gert Fröbe, Claudine Auger and others. British-French-West German espionage drama. During WW2, convicted bank robber Eddie Chapman (Plummer) who becomes a triple agent working for both the British and the Germans and himself. The trouble with this co-production is that it never finds it's style, it points in too many directions. In some old movie guides Plummer get's the blame for why this doesn't work, I think on the contrary, he works very hard to keep this production together, and on the right level, Plummer was offcourse hot property after The Sound of Music. Some horrible dubbing makes it feel like a cliché war movie. Brynner is Brynner (his career was slowly going downhill by now) and goes on routine, beautiful Schneider is wasted, Howard does his standard gruffy man. Director Terence Young is a very uneven director, and this is when he is uneven, some great scenes and too many standard scenes. Though all my complaints, it's still worth seeing at least once, if only for the stars. I loaned this DVD from a friend. On the cover it states that Alfred Hitchcock wanted to do this story, but Jacques-Paul Bertrand (producer of this movie) bought the rights first, any truth in that? I don't know. Original version is supposed to be 140 minutes, the one I watched was 120 minutes, but it might explain some jumps.
|
|
|
Post by vegalyra on Oct 5, 2018 17:52:42 GMT
Just finished the Defector (1966) Second time I've watched it in the past few years. I think it is actually a pretty engaging spy/action film for the era. It's interesting seeing a film that supposedly takes place behind the iron curtain. Montgomery Clift and Hardy Kruger are great as usual. Too bad Clift didn't live to make another movie. He's great here even though you can tell he's not feeling well at all.
|
|
|
Post by kijii on Oct 5, 2018 18:43:52 GMT
Run of the Arrow (1957) / Samuel Fuller Rented from Amazon Prime
Continuing on with my Sam Fuller viewing project, this are my latest entry--- While I am generally not a great fan of Western movies, I find something new and interesting here. To me, this movie is about a defeated Rebel from the American Civil war (an infantryman from Virginia) who was so demoralized by the South's loss to the Union that he wanted to escape the USA and go somewhere else and start over over rather than continuing to face life as a defeated soldier while being governed by those who had defeated him. But, there is a story purposely inserted into this movie that draws a somewhat parallel analogy to his problem. The inserted story was " The Man Without a Country" by Edward Everett Hale, first published in The Atlantic in December 1863. I remember first reading this story in my high school English class: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Man_Without_a_Country. Back to the movie--- An Confederate soldier of Irish decent, O'Meara (Rod Steiger) witnesses the defeat of Lee to Grant on Palm Sunday, April 9, 1865 at Appomatox, Virginia. After witnessing the surrender, he almost assassinates Grant, but is discouraged by bystander who tells him that if he assassinates Grant, he might as well assassinate Lee too. The shame to Lee would be more than he could tolerate. Not being able to tolerate defeat, O'Meara travels far to the West which is not yet part of the US. There, he meets and befriends a renegade Sioux Indian scout, Walking Coyote (Jay C. Flippen). Over some time, Walking Coyote teaches O'Meara the language and customs of the Sioux. When the two are captured together, by a local Sioux chief, Blue Buffalo (Charles Bronson). Walking Coyote saves their lives by proclaiming that they could win in the Run of the Arrow. They are challenged and O'Meara survives the challenge and is adopted by the tribe as a Sioux. O'Meara is then married to a Souix "squaw," Yellow Moccasin (Sara Montiel), and adopts a mute boy, Silent Tongue. However, his loyalty is challenged when he is chosen to lead American cavalryman to the site of a new American fort to be established outside of the Souix buffalo hunting grounds (the agreement for establishing such a fort was agreed to by the Souix and the American government)...... This is a winning story for me. My only complaint is that the Souix refer to the American cavalryman as "Americans" rather than "white men," which is what I think American Indians actually called them. Pvt. O'Meara, 6th Virginia Volunteers Sharpshooter (Rod Steiger) : [Sick with fever, approaches the tribe] I wish... I wish to speak to your chief Blue Buffalo... Blue Buffalo (Charles Bronson) : [Rising from the ground where he was squatting] I'm Blue Buffalo! Pvt. O'Meara, 6th Virginia Volunteers Sharpshooter : I've lived the Run of the Arrow! Blue Buffalo : [Blue buffalo has a warrior check O'Meara's feet and addresses Crazy Wolf] Is this the man that out ran you? Crazy Wolf (H.M. Wynant) : Yes. Blue Buffalo : [Addressing O'Meara] You are the first to outlive the Run. You will never die by the hand of a Sioux for this. Give him back his horse and everything else that belongs to him. I don't understand. you speak Sioux like Sioux not like a white man. Pvt. O'Meara, 6th Virginia Volunteers Sharpshooter : My teacher was Walking Coyote. Blue Buffalo : That poor renegade. [as Blue Buffalo says this ,O'Meara collapses and faints] Crazy Wolf : [Crazy Wolf checks on him] He's sick with the fever! Blue Buffalo : [Addressing the village] Our law prevents us from killing any man who lives the Run. But we have no law to help him live. The choice is yours. Who among you will help him thru the night? Yellow Moccasin (Sara Montiel): I will. I will help him thru the night.
Pictured above its the back of Rod Steiger as he is challenged by Ralph Meeker, the soldier Steiger had previously shot and missed at the end of the War Between the States and now faced as an opportunistic American cavalryman ----(Does anyone notice that Sam Fuller often has a character in his movie chomping on a cigar? It almost seems like a trademark of a Fuller movie.)
|
|
|
Post by louise on Oct 5, 2018 21:13:31 GMT
Bunch of Amateurs. Very amusing film with Burt Reynolds as a fading Hollywood star who isn't getting film.offers any more. He is invited to England to play King Lear at Stratford. Unfortunately, when he gets there, he discovers it isn't the Royal.Shakespeare Company at Stratford on Avon, but an amateur dramatics company in Stratford in Suffolk. His bewilderment when faced with a bunch of totally unknown people is very funny "Where's Judi Dench?" He asks plaintively. Derek Jacobi very funny as the former lead player of the amateurs, simmering with resentment at beig displaced by Reynolds.
|
|
|
Post by kijii on Oct 6, 2018 18:28:37 GMT
Merrill's Marauders (1962) / Samuel Fuller Rented from Amazon Prime
The story presented here is true, but it was extremely hard to watch as Brig. Gen. Frank D. Merrill (Jeff Chandler) pushed his men way beyond what was possible to recapture areas of Burma in 1944. This was thought necessary since Japan was capturing more and more territory to the west at the time. The fear was that Japan was getting close to India and a linkup with Germany was thought possible. Japan had already captured much of the South Pacific and Southeast Asia. The allies had to hold. But, as Merrill kept pushing his troops further and further, I felt it hard to slog my way through this movie.
If this link works, it will give you some history about the story presented in the movie: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merrill%27s_Marauders
Full TCM synopsis with SPOILERS: In 1944, Brig. Gen. Frank Merrill's 5307th Composite Unit, known as Merrill's Marauders, is deep behind Japanese lines in the dense Burma jungle. Even though the 3,000 men suffer from exhaustion, illness, and starvation, they are ordered to capture a gun emplacement, an enemy arsenal, and a railway yard. Merrill realizes that his men cannot be an effective fighting force without rest, but he also knows that they must make the 500-mile trek to Myitkyina to prevent Japanese and German armies from merging in India. Following an enemy raid, however, the Marauders are virtually walking dead men, physically and mentally incapable of launching a new attack, and Merrill himself collapses from a heart seizure. He arises from the stretcher, however, and urges the men to keep moving. They watch in silence as he staggers among them and falls unconscious, until Lieut. Lee Stockton, inspired by Merrill's indomitable spirit, rallies the men for one last campaign and drives them forward. When Merrill regains consciousness, fresh troops and supplies are landing on the Myitkyina airfield, which has been liberated by the Marauders.
|
|
|
Post by Primemovermithrax Pejorative on Oct 6, 2018 18:45:59 GMT
"The only good human, is a dead human!"
Beneath the Planet of the Apes was trying for a Roman epic feeling (the steam bath scene comes to mind). Yeah, Roddy McDowall's absence hurts though I assume if he had been in it, it would still have been written as it was. I think the Vietnam parallels was very heavy handed.
Finally watched THE MUMMY (1932) and CAT PEOPLE (1942). Both I had known of quite well since the mid 70s yet never saw in complete form. I am convinced Karl Freund should have directed Dracula.
|
|
|
Post by kijii on Oct 9, 2018 4:30:40 GMT
Blood on the Moon (1948) / Robert Wise
Rented from Amazon Prime
Cattlemen and homesteaders are in a fight. The homesteaders are hiring outside gunmen, led by Tate Riling (Robert Preston) to help in the fight to hold their land. But, when Rilings old friend, Jim Garry (Robert Mitchum), comes to work for him, he finds out that this fight is not what he thought it was. Rilings' objective was to make money off of the "range war" by buying cattle cheap and selling back at a profit. But, people are getting hurt in the process and Garry assess that.
Jim Garry (Robert Mitchum): Shotten, Reardon, and me. Hired gunmen. Tate Riling (Robert Preston) : Shotten and Reardon get paid in gold eagles. You get paid in thousands. Jim Garry : Yeah. Only difference between us is the price.
Jim Garry [ to Riling]: It starts with your double-cross of a bunch of jug-headed farmers and the hiring of gun hands. It goes on to your making love to a man's daughter to get her to turn against her own father, and your try for Lufton today. It's past that, to the death of Kris Barden's son, and it winds up right here, with Reardon waiting outside to see if I go with you, or if he shoots me in the back.
TCM oveview with SPOILERS: After he is nearly trampled by a herd of runaway steers while camping on Indian reservation range land, Jim Garry is questioned by the herd's owner, John Lufton. The wary Lufton reveals to Jim that, after years of supplying the local reservation with beef, he is being forced out by Jake Pindalest, the new Indian agent. Lufton is also fighting rancher Tate Riling, who has organized the area homesteaders to prevent him from moving his cattle back to the basin grazing land that was once his. Although suspicious that Jim may be one of Tate's hired guns, Lufton asks him to deliver a note to his family, who have a house in the basin. As Jim approaches the spread, he is shot at by a woman, who turns out to be Lufton's daughter Amy. After Jim hands the note to Lufton's eldest daughter Carol, he meets with Tate, an old friend who had summoned him in a letter. Tate reveals to Jim that his true plan is to force Lufton, who must soon vacate the reservation, to sell his cattle to him at a cutrate price and then sell the herd to Pindalest, with whom he is in league, at an inflated rate. Because he is broke, Jim agrees to become one of Tate's henchmen, but expresses no enthusiasm for the scheme. The next day, Carol and Amy ride to meet their father at the basin crossing point indicated in his note. When they arrive, however, they are greeted by Tate, Jim and the gang. Amy reveals that her father deliberately wrote the wrong location on the note and angrily accuses Jim of betraying its contents. Unknown to Amy, Carol, who is in love with Tate, relayed the information to him and later agrees to tell him where her father actually crossed. Soon after, as Amy informs Lufton about Jim, Tate and his men storm into their cattle camp and start a stampede. During the ensuing chaos, one of Lufton's cowboys is trampled to death and homesteader Fred Barden is shot. A saddened Jim informs Fred's father Kris, a former avid supporter of Tate's efforts, about his son's death and then rides into town. There Jim saves Lufton when he is almost gunned down in the street by Frank Reardan and Joe Shotten, Tate's other hired guns. After a grateful Amy apologizes to him, Jim leaves town. While stopped at a cantina, however, he is confronted by Tate, who now wants him to make the purchase offer to Lufton. Disgusted by his friend's greediness, Jim refuses to help, and the two men fight each other until Jim knocks Tate unconscious. The exhausted, wounded Jim is then saved by Kris, who shows up with a gun just as Reardan is about to shoot him. After Amy lovingly tends to his injuries, Jim suggests to Lufton that he can help delay Pindalest's deadline by a week, enough time for the rancher to round up his now-scattered cattle. Believing that Jim intends to kill the agent, Lufton refuses his offer, and Jim leaves the ranch in a huff. Amy, however, convinces Jim to execute his plan with Pindalest. To that end, Jim confers with the agent and, posing as Tate's go-between, tells him that Tate is demanding $3,000 more for Lufton's cattle. As hoped, Pindalest declares that he must go to town for the extra cash, and once he and Jim are in the open range, Jim reveals his intention to hold the agent captive until Lufton has rounded up his cattle. The next morning, however, as a snowstorm blows in, Jim is ambushed and knifed by an Indian who is in cahoots with Tate. Although Jim soon overwhelms the Indian, Pindalest escapes, and Jim flees to Kris's ranch. A concerned Amy soon arrives there and insists on fighting Tate, Reardan and Pindalest alongside Kris. As the gunfire starts, Amy and Jim declare their love for each other. Eventually, Jim regains enough strength to sneak out of the ranch house and surprise Reardan and Pindalest. Jim then outdraws Tate, who dies in his friend's arms. With Pindalest in custody, Jim and Amy announce their impending marriage to a delighted Lufton.
|
|