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April 30, 2005

Savant's new reviews today are

The Trip to Bountiful  MGM
Hindle Wakes  Milestone/Image
The Quiet American (1958)  MGM and
Teacher's Pet  Paramount

A pleasant Saturday is upon us. I am reading about the death of Maria Schell, a favorite actress I have only seen in a few roles. Her role in The Hanging Tree is nothing short of wonderful, and there is a long list of promising European pictures she's in that I'd like to see some day.

I've been going back over previous reviews correcting errors, some pointed out by readers (like how to spell the word "lullaby") and others that I can't believe I've made. Extra words, missing words, all kinds of craziness that is just invisible when one is proofing in too big of a hurry. It used to be that putting anything into print was so costly that typos and errors were exceptions, but now we all have to be our own typesetters and publishers....

Thanks for all the notes. Back on Tuesday. Glenn Erickson



April 27, 2005

Savant's new reviews today are

Bad Education  Sony
Platillos Voladores  Venevision
F for Fake  Criterion and
Beach Red  MGM

Savant's a day late, but not only was it a rough work week but I was recovering from getting all those Doris Day movies out! Funny, I've just seen Teacher's Pet and am ready for more. Not much news, just a recommendation to check out an arcane Spanish film, a new DVD release called Platillos Voladores. It was the surprise of the week. Thanks, Glenn Erickson



April 22, 2005

Savant's new reviews today are

The Doris Day Collection
 Young Man with a Horn, Lullabye of Broadway, Calamity Jane, Love Me or Leave Me, The Pajama Game,
Please Don't Eat the Daisies, Billy Rose's Jumbo & The Glass Bottom Boat  Warners

Boccaccio '70  NoShame
and
My Name is Nobody  Image

Some nice mail this week. Several writers took the trouble to see Major Dundee on the screen, and none of them expressed disappointment. Another reader informed me that The Purple Plain was shot in Sri Lanka, then Ceylon, and that Gregory Peck may have gone overseas to make films to take advantage of a tax deal. Everyone seems to be thrilled by the Errol Flynn boxed set, and I've worked hard to prep tonight's review of the even bigger Doris Day box, for all of you fans of freckles and giant wholesome smiles.

NoShame also checks in with an impressive reconstruction of Boccaccio '70, and I finally got to see the "odd western out" Sergio Leone film My Name is Nobody which I think will please fans, especially Ennio Morricone fans. Back to editing work, see you next Tuesday! Glenn Erickson



April 19, 2005

Savant's new reviews today are

Errol Flynn: The Signature Collection
 Captain Blood, The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex, Dodge City, The Sea Hawk, and They Died with Their Boots On
Warners

The Purple Plain  MGM
and
Devils on the Doorstep  Home Vision

Savant's proud of himself; he not only made street date with the lavish Errol Flynn boxed set, but also was able to sneak in one of his favorites, the rare & beautiful picture The Purple Plain. As is typical with movie fans like Savant, an obscure title is all the more favored because to champion it seems like being in a select club of admirers ... film snobbery, I guess, but this title gets my highest recommendation.

Notes from my mail: I've been asked to be sure to say that the TCM version of Hawaii is uncut, unlike the new MGM DVD, and still the best way to see the film. On The Professionals, some viewers have found that their DVD copies have un-removable and unnecessary English subs for Spanish words like "Sí;" and some other writers have taken me to task for not mentioning Woody Strode's earlier roles including his starring performance in Sergeant Rutledge.

Thanks for reading! Glenn Erickson



April 16, 2005

Savant's new reviews today are

Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow  NoShame
Andrzej Wajda - Three War Films:
A Generation, Kanal & Ashes and Diamonds
 Criterion
Hawaii  MGM
and
Leaves from Satan's Book  Image/Blackhawk

A new DVD label called NoShame debuts this week. Besides today's look at Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow, I should have a review up very soon of their Boccaccio '70.

Savant attended the public 'opening night' of Major Dundee at the Nuart last evening ... it was well-received, and composer Christopher Caliendo's credit actually got applause. I met him briefly after the screening. I guess that covers the theatrical reissue of the film ... the only tiny criticism I'd have for the release is some of the publicity material that makes the claim that the picture is now only 5 minutes short of Peckinpah's rough cut. That of course is nonsense and it would be a shame to disappoint viewers who expected to see much more new material. Twelve minutes is substantial, but the legendary rough cut could still be anywhere from fifteen to 30 minutes longer. Now all Savant need do is wait for the DVD, which has apparently been moved back to late August.

I got the Image My Name is Nobody disc yesterday, and a quick look makes it seem like an excellent transfer, with clear sound - and it didn't immediately appear to be a sped-up PAL conversion, either. Should have the review on Tuesday. It turns out that a box of DVDTalk discs meant for Savant got re-routed to Texas (!) so they probably won't get here until next week sometime. The Errol Flynn and Doris Day movies weren't part of that batch, but being multi-disc sets, they'll take a while to properly review anyway.

Finally, George Reis over at DVD Drive in has started a petition to let Sony know that there's a strong desire for MGM's Midnite Movies line to be continued. That's an undeniable good idea. Here's a link to the petition to save the MGM library Midnite Movies. Thanks for reading! Glenn Erickson



April 13, 2005

Savant's new reviews today are

The Corporation  Zeitgeist
The Professionals (Special Edition)  Sony
More  Home Vision Entertainment and
Clonus (Parts, the Clonus Horror)  Mondo Macabro

Back again ... lots of letters about the availability-unavailability of the Panic in Year Zero! / The Last Man on Earth double bill from Canadian websites ... nobody's actually angry with Savant for reviewing a disc that may prove difficult to possess, but they aren't exactly smiling either.

The Doris Day and Errol Flynn boxed sets are on their way for review, along with a rarity Savant really loves, The Purple Plain. Thanks for reading! Glenn Erickson



April 09, 2005

Savant's new reviews today are

Li'l Abner  Paramount
Matango: Attack of the Mushroom People  Media Blasters
Panic in Year Zero! / The Last Man on Earth  MGM and
The Flower of My Secret  Sony Pictures

Fun reviews but not fun news; MGM ceases to be over this weekend. Savant has some associates who will be picked up by Sony and others who will not, and the surfeit of trained Hollywood staff looking for work will go up by a couple of thousand. Savant and Leo parted ways seven years ago, but there was no bitterness and I've kept up with many former friends with unsure futures. Advice to people coming to LA to get into the business: Check first to make sure you have a relative who's an influential industry name. The people who get the best jobs here are usually the ones who don't need to work in the first place.

MGM's unannounced release schedule may quickly evaporate - we have no idea if the MGM/UA/ORION library will be marketed in the same way. Savant even has some editorial work tied up in Special Editions that might be delayed or sidelined. But in Hollywood's way of doing things, the MGM lion will be coming back to the original MGM lot now owned by Sony, just as the old Warners titles once owned by Turner and tied up at MGM are now back at Warners. Confusing? I hope so, as I can't keep it straight half the time.

Just got in some hefty Criterion boxes that will be keeping Savant busy, including the Andrej Wajda war trilogy that I've never seen in good versions: A Generation, Kanal and Ashes and Diamonds.

I've actually been a bad boy with reviews this week by knowingly reviewing a double-feature disc that has been withdrawn and is presumably unavailable to most buyers ... but I couldn't help it, I liked the movies too much. Thanks for reading, Glenn Erickson



April 05, 2005

Savant's new reviews today are

Major Dundee: The Extended Version
(Theatrical Review) Sony Pictures
Laura Fox
and
The Four Feathers (1939) MGM

Hello again ... Savant reviews the theatrical presentation of Major Dundee today, and will be reviewing the DVD that's expected in a couple of months. Every film student finds they have a favorite feature that they 'adopt' as personal emblems, and Savant probably picked Dundee because I found so few people who knew anything about it. Hopefully this longer release will find some converts to what is not Sam Peckinpah's best film, but surely his most personal and ambitious project.

Thanks for reading, Glenn Erickson



April 01, 2005

Savant's new reviews today are

The Mysterians Media Blasters
Bringing Up Baby Warners
Arrowsmith MGM and
Stage Door Warners

Hello ... finally saw Major Dundee with its new music on a big screen last night, and will be reviewing it soon --- it was a very positive experience. One could feel the audience actually getting into the details of the story, instead of being benumbed by the bad choices in the old music track. I think this will be very good for Dundee and Peckinpah, as until now only the devout and determined have really gone to the effort of wading through the music track to get to the movie underneath. Now everyone can. Savant got to see some reviewer-writer friends as well (name-dropping time) ... Nathaniel Thompson, Alain Silver and Bill Warren. I've been corresponding with Warren for years but never met him in person.

It was fun writing about The Mysterians again after all this time and all the email discussions equally as nostalgic as I am for Toho's "red-blooded phantasmagoria" ...

People are scrambling to find leftover copies of MGM's recalled double bill of Panic in Year Zero / Last Man on Earth, which may soon be fetching astro-inimic, aztroh, apspa ... very high prices on Ebay. I think a friend will be getting a copy imminently, so I'll at least be able to see it!

And on the subject of the rumors of David Lynch getting involved with a long version of his 1984 movie Dune, I'm now hearing counter-rumors to the effect that he's not considering it at all. So depending on what one likes to believe, it's either going to be a terrific disc or the whole thing is a feather on the fickle breezes of DVD hot air.

I've read a message-board post about Danger: Diabolik in which a writer hoped that my 16mm track was used to get the correct original voices on the movie. I've since read that the restorers did indeed locate a good copy of that original track, but that some legal problems might prevent its use (not to mention the problem of what to do when the presumably complete European cut doesn't exactly match it). I'm sure they'll do their best. I did offer the print last summer, just so they could see how the music was originally mixed (earlier VHS and laser releases muted too much of it) but communication wasn't good so let the issue drop. As often turns out, the restorers (at Zoetrope, I believe) do seem to have been on the ball. They most likely were constrained from discussing the issues with outsiders. So I'm looking forward to the disc! Thanks for reading, Glenn Erickson.

Don't forget to write Savant at [email protected].

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