|
|
|
February 25, 2013
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Savant's new reviews today are: Don Giovanni Blu-ray 
The Opera faithful flocked to this expert film adaptation of the Mozart classic, produced on Italian locations and sung by some of the top stars of the late 70s -- including Ruggero Raimondi, John Macurdy, Edda Moser, Kiri Te Kanawa. Controversial for the addition of a new character and some interesting audio choices, but a highly polished, technically adept presentation in every way. A late-career almost-classic from Joseph Losey. In Blu-ray from Olive Films.
2/26/13
This second-tier WB production from the war years gives star billing and star-worthy roles to Sydney Greenstreet, Peter Lorre and Geraldine Fitzgerald, all of whom leap to the challenge. Lorre's character is actually heroic! Screenwriters John Huston and Howard Koch concoct a strange trio of interlocked destinies all related to a wish placed on a Chinese idol. Plenty of plot reversals and clever situations; good directing from first-time feature helmer Jean Negulesco. From The Warner Archive Collection.
2/26/13
and Blu-ray 
Irvin S. Yeaworth's inimitable glop of galloping ooze gets the HD treatment, in a fancy upgrade of the earlier DVD. Steve(en) McQueen is the most level-headed, long-in-the-tooth teenager in high school, and he's still a heck of a monster fighter. The film's sincerity makes it seem less disposable than many another monster romp, and its simple Sci-Fi premise is, in its own way, almost perfectly frightening. With that catchy title tune, of course! In Blu-ray from The Criterion Collection.
2/26/13
Hello! Hey, everybody's writing me about the Oscars, mostly complaining about the great stars that were left out of the 'In Memoriam' montage -- including Phyllis Diller, Andy Griffith, Larry Hagman, Phyllis Thaxter, Ann Rutherford. I think it's pointless to complain, as the Game Has Changed: the ceremony is now a completely commercial enterprise, as opposed to a worship service dedicated to celebrating the legacy of the movies. The Memoriam omissions were either because the names in question are "old folks' stars" , or simply because of time constraints. I mean, you have to cut back on movie actors if you jam in twenty executives, agents, digital technicians and the like. I imagine the pressure to get some of these people their 3.7 seconds of post-mortem fame is pretty strong, as they have friends and family with strong Academy connections. I'll bet that it works like high school politics: "It's only a show, and Actor Q is gone so he won't complain. But I promised my boss that casting agent X would get the nod. After all, last year Y did, and X is more important than Y ever was." 
The truth is that for the last several years the Oscars show has been pitched at the (relative) kids that worship the here and now, the demographic that thinks Family Guy is a timeless classic. The broadcast must compete with the Grammys, the Emmys, the Super Bowl. When they did shows with elaborate nostalgic movie montages and nods to retirement-age+ stars, the young crowd was bored. Unless you are a diehard movie buff, a sweetheart actress like Ann Rutherford hasn't been a household name since the 1950s. All I can say is that TCM does this about a million percent better than the Academy now. I listened to most of the show while working in the next room, and walked in only a couple of times. What do I think? The assembled talent is more beautiful and elegant than ever --- jeez do we have crop of gorgeous actresses these days! -- and the gowns and finery are truly magnificent. They don't short-change the glamour, that's for sure. Hey -- I'll be reviewing Cohen Media Group's The Thief of Bagdad next .... it looks magnificent! Thanks for reading, Glenn Erickson
February 23, 2013
Savant's new reviews today are: Blu-ray 
Franklin J. Schaffner's gigantic, literal-minded epic of the end of the Romanoffs and their fate at the hands of the Bolsheviks is given a sumptuous, somewhat dry treatment. The history is all good and the personal stories of the Tsar and Tsarina are excellent, as is the sub-plot about the mad monk Rasputin. With a long list of ace English actors, beautifully cast. An impeccable disc presentation in Blu-ray from Twilight Time.
2/23/13
20th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray +DVD 
Spielberg's big Oscar winner looks and plays even better than it did twenty years ago. Liam Neeson and Ralph Fiennes became stars in this entirely worthy depiction of the Holocaust in Poland. A war profiteer exploits slave Jewish labor but slowly undergoes a change of heart. The screenplay solves most of the problems of the Holocaust movie -- the show is unflinching in its horrors but watchable; the situation's complexity is probed without resorting to exploitation. In Blu-ray and DVD, plus Digital Download and Ultraviolet, from Universal Home Video.
2/23/13
and Blu-ray 
A breathtakingly cinematic Russian film about a young boy scouting for the Army during the counteroffensive versus the Germans. It's the first, acclaimed masterpiece by Andrei Tarkovsky, who begins his celebrated career with one self-assuredly brilliant scene after another. A terrific HD B&W transfer with a number of fascinating extras, including a new interview with actor Nicolai Burlayev, who plays "Ivan". In Blu-ray from The Criterion Collection.
2/23/13
Hello! The Oscars are upon us, and all the huzzarah over a healthy pack of good but un-magical movies is not having the desired effect on me. It's true that the Academy voting is better than it once was; lecturer Bob Epstein at UCLA claimed that his father, a publicity agent, used to be in on the deals in which Studios divided up the technical Oscars, or "influence" helped certain films win. How big of an exaggeration was that? Epstein reminded us that the Academy was once a small, personal ceremony for an elite membership, not a worldwide promotional extravaganza. The various guilds get more input now, so a 'special effect Oscar' film is nominated by special effects men, not Dino de Laurentiis' publicist. I've culled a great link that Joe Dante is circulating, a fun illustrated page from Cartoon Brew that gives 15 Reasons Why Frank Tashlin Was Awesome. It's not a joke, the writer-director is tops! And two of the sample films feature stop-motion animation by the legendary Gene Warren and Wah Chang. Bill Migicovsky forwards this entertaining Hollywood Reporter article about a notorious, embarrassing Oscar moment, I Was Rob Lowe's Snow White. Let's hope tomorrow's musical numbers fare little better than the one in the article. Criterion's Blu-rays of Fritz Lang's Ministry of Fear and The Blob came in, as has the Cohen Media Group's The Thief of Bagdad, the great silent fantasy. I'll be trying to get to some Olive releases first, but these new titles should appear quite quickly too. Thanks for reading! Glenn Erickson
February 18, 2013
Savant's new reviews today are: Blu-ray 
Lady-killing superspy Derek Flint is back, but minus the grandeur, the action, the excitement! This time the byword is broad, dated comedy, starting with the most awkwardly sexist main plot hook of the 1960s. James Coburn, Lee J. Cobb, Jean Hale and Anna Lee slug their way through, aided greatly by terrific music from Jerry Goldsmith, auditable on its own Isolated Score Track. Looks great in Blu-ray from Twilight Time.
2/19/13
and Blu-ray 
Fred Astaire and Judy Garland are the whole show in this traditional, easy-going musical from the height of MGM's command of the genre. Great songs ("A Couple of Swells", "Steppin' Out with My Baby") and some clever staging keep things lively, as does the tap dancing of Ann Miller ("Shakin' the Blues Away"). Plenty of extras and a fine new HD transfer, in Blu-ray from Warner Home Video.
2/19/13
Hello! Thanks for all the notes and corrections ... and responses to last Saturday's links. I just have some notes about upcoming reviews to pass on. The Blu-ray for Universal's Schindler's List ought to be here tomorrow, and it will be nice to write down my thoughts on that one. I've also seen a few minutes of Twilight Time's Nicholas and Alexandra Blu-ray, and it looks immaculate... far better than the old DVD. The review of Criterion's On the Waterfront is almost done and Ivan's Childhood will be up this Saturday. The new Criterion Blu of Chronicle of a Summer is here and looks very intriguing ... it's a title I've read about all my life but have never seen. The new distributor Cohen Media Group affirms that they are still sending me a copy of the silent The Thief of Bagdad Blu-ray; I hope it arrives this week. I also have a couple more Olive Films Blu-rays I want to get into, the difficult Innocent Bystanders and Joseph Losey's opera film, Don Giovanni. I'm getting help from a friend much more in touch with operas, to lower the review's embarrassment factor. Still not quite in the door are Olive's The Red Menace and She Devil, each of which is an entertaining, camp hoot. March is shaping up as the big month: with Zulu Dawn (Severin), Gorgo (VCI) and the British Dracula (Horror of Dracula) all coming out on Blu-ray. I'll try to have reviews up for those as soon as I can! Thanks for reading! Glenn Erickson
February 16, 2013
Savant's new reviews today are: Montgomery to Alabama 
Ely Landau's three-hour special shown once in 1970, is back & intact to provide the most comprehensive news film record ever assembled on Martin Luther King. Speeches, appearances, and activist actions from 1955's bus boycott to the events of 1968 are all covered, along with comprehensive news film of the marches and demonstrations, context intact. The best film yet I've seen on MLK, this is all key source material, in excellent quality. From Kino Classics.
2/16/13
and Blu-ray 
What may be Robert Altman's first 'personal' film examines a disturbed (at the very least) spinster who takes in a strange mute boy she spies stranded in the rain. A highly unusual and intriguing psychodrama follows, thanks to fine direction and good performances from star Sandy Dennis, Michael Burns, Susanne Benton, John Garfield Jr. and Luana Anders... with Altman regular Michael Murphy along for the ride. Finally available in a great looking Blu-ray, from Olive Films.
2/16/13
Hello! Technically, this post made it out Saturday so I'm keeping that as the official date! Some good links today. Gary Teetzel sends along a steer to Rich Johnson's Bleedingcool.com article, Dr Fredric Wertham Lied And Lied And Lied About Comics Dr. Wertham is the scholar and "expert" who wrote a popular exposé (Seduction of the Innocent) and brought down the repressive 1950s Comics Code, as reported in the documentary Comic Book Confidential. The trusted Classic Horror Film Board has screen grabs from the new UK region-only Hammer Horror of Dracula Blu-ray. Just scroll down. Savant won't be getting into the online catfight over the color values in Hammer's transfer, until the disc is actually in our hands. More online interest is surfacing for the upcoming Gorgo Blu-ray. Correspondent Edward Sullivan forwards this great Ireland-oriented article by Fústar about Gorgo, Cad a dhéanfaimid anois?: When Gorgo Destroyed Dalkey (kind of). I knew that the movie's sound editors simply repeated the same two or three Gaelic phrases over and over again ... now I can spell them! Thanks for reading! Glenn Erickson
February 10, 2013
Savant's new reviews today are: Blu-ray 
Wow! Michael Mann's reputation shot upward several notches with this exemplary dramatization of an almost-suppressed 60 Minutes story that finally nailed Big Tobacco's corporate conspiracy to turn cigarette smokers into nicotine addicts. Al Pacino and especially Russell Crowe are terrific as the news producer and the executive-biochemist whistle-blower that passed through an ordeal of legal obstruction, intimidating threats and resistance from CBS itself -- another corporation quite happy to bury an inconvenient truth. With an Al Pacino / Russell Crowe commentary, in Blu-ray from Touchstone Home Entertainment.
2/12/13
and Most Dangerous Man Alive 
Savant felt the need to write up what may be one of the weakest sci-fi thrillers of the classic period, a picture that nevertheless fascinates as a genre piece stripped down to almost nothing that qualifies as entertainment. Some testimonial, huh? Ron Randell is the gangster caught in a Cobalt Bomb blast (the worst kind!) and whose body is slowly turning to steel. He absorbs all metal, even bullets, has enhanced strength -- and uses them only to go on a cheap revenge spree. Cinema giant Allan Dwan's last movie is a pretty much a bust, yet it also serves as an exercise in unconscious minimalism -- and can boast the beautiful presence of both Debra Paget (swoon) and Elaine Stewart. This is supposedly shown in a good HD rendition on the Sony Music Channel, but to my knowledge it's Not Yet on Legit Video Disc.
2/12/13
A bigger than normal rush this weekend ... the Tuesday reviews are up earlier but almost without comment. I was tempted this weekend after finally seeing Most Dangerous Man Alive again... the movie is no gem, yet it's the exact kind of show I return to in hopes of analyzing what exactly goes so wrong about it. After re-reading Bill Warren's MDMA coverage, I tried to figure out if... A) the director had become senile, B) the budget was slashed so badly that shooting the film decently was impossible, or C) something else went wrong production-wise and nobody cared, and the director Alan Dwan just filmed it with his eyes closed. I was also intrigued that Wim Wenders saw Most Dangerous as an allegory for an independent film in Total Disaster Mode. I hope you get to see it in a quality (!) presentation like I did. Olive Films dropped off a stack of interesting titles, including a Joseph Losey film I haven't seen, so we'll be digging into those. I'm also told that the Fairbanks The Thief of Bagdad is still on its way. Thanks for reading and I'll try not to miss the big titles --- Glenn
February 08, 2013
Savant's new reviews today are: 
Robert Taylor is excellent as a decorated Civil War veteran whose land is stolen by encroaching whites, after the U.S. redifines Native Americans as non-citizens. An outraged, furious western from Anthony Mann, just before his socially conscious streak disappeared into conformist James Stewart movies. With Louis Calhern as one of the most killworthy villians ever, and sensational cinematography by the great John Alton. A genuine gem from The Warner Archive Collection.
2/08/13
and 
Emad Burnat is courageous as a West Bank Palestinian whose land is stolen by encroaching Israeli "settlers", with the sanction of the courts and the full force of the Israeli army. Using home video cameras -- broken one after another by soldiers anxious to quell bad publicity -- Emad puts together a chronicle of the struggle of his village and his neighbors, all seen from inside a real family living through the ordeal. Prime docu gold, presently nominated for an Oscar. From Kino Lorber.
2/08/13
Hello! This is just coincidence, but today Savant is fronting two reviews of movies with parallel themes -- one made in 1950, another a couple of years ago. I've even made the blurbs above read similarly. Politics and filmmaking seems dependent on which side makes the most appealing documentary case for its cause: there's always the risk that the most hatefull message will be the one that appeals, and attracts a mass following. Does my college background in docu studies make me any more discerning than the average viewer, or am I just fooling myself with my observances of political films, and am just as susceptible to a political sales job? All I can say is that I can usually tell the difference between sincere statements written or spoken, and aggressive propagandizing.... I hope. A cold day here in Los Angeles ... I've got a couple of cute links: 
Correspondent & pal Guido Bibra has steered me to Bradley W. Schenck's Thrilling Tales of the Downright Unusual, a beautifully designed retro Sci-Fi page with stories and other features. It reminds me of a graphic designer I met at a studio back in the '80s. Just to show off his skills & his ability to deliver a finished product, he personally published a glossy, full color illustrated flyer for "Zeppelin vacations". 
Also from Mr. Bibra is a link to Amy Shira Teitel's fascinating Vintage Space page, a great little news 'n' views destination for what she calls 'space nerd-dom'. You'll find plenty of fascinating NASA and space science-oriented tidbits illustrated with rare photos. 
And, to get back to obsessive topic #14, I've heard back from added-value editor-producer/filmmaker Daniel Griffith, who is quick to announce that he's turned in his cut for the making-of docu for the new VCI Blupray of Gorgo. About six months ago another Savant correspondent Lee Kaplan asked me to help him contact the VCI people. Among his possessions he found a private 8mm movie taken in a British film studio in 1959 that had a brief shot of the Gorgo monster suit either being sculpted or constructed. Now I've been told that Kaplan's film clip has made it into Griffith's docu, and we'll finally get to see it. I don't know of anyone ever publishing any preproduction or BTS photos of Gorgo beyond an article in an old American Cinematographer, which I researched while working on 1941. I've only heard rumors of what might have happened to the rubber Gorgo suit-a-saurus. I surely hope that VCI and Griffith have uncovered other revelatory materials for this key childhood attraction. I've been able to augment film goodies for disc extras a couple of times before, as when Savant contacts steered me to a collector with a vintage Betamax tape of the 'lost' ABC TV opening to Sergio Leone's Fistful of Dollars, the prologue directed by Monte Hellman. (I've since heard unconfirmed rumors that MGM may have located the original film elements). The easiest find was when Arizona film collector Mike Heenan told me he had a rare 35mm American trailer for the combo release The Horror Chamber of Dr. Faustus / The Manster. I hooked Mike up with Criterion's Marc Walkow and it got onto the disc for Eyes without a Face. So hey, not too many disc companies are still actively producing extras but I'm still in contact with most of them. Should you possess something cool that other fans might wanna see on a disc, let me know. I'll at least get a real answer for you. And hey, as long as you're not asking, the two existing Criterion discs I'd most like to see upgraded to Blu-ray are Franju's Eyes without a Face and Godard's Alphaville. Thanks for reading, but I've got to go -- there's a strange man with a gun at the front door. Cheers, Glenn Erickson
February 05, 2013
Savant's new reviews today are: 
Myrna Loy is the "half breed type" who works a murderous revenge on the sorority sisters that humiliated her in college and ruined her chances to break into 'decent' society. Irene Dunne leads the fight against the Asian serial killer, with Ricardo Cortez as the cop on the case. Quite simply astounding -- this one show singlehandedly proves every accusation of society's xenomorphic racism against foreigners. From The Warner Archive Collection.
2/05/13
Blu-ray + 3D 
Criterion's first 3D release captures the beauty and subject-dictates-filming-style grace of director Wim Wenders' ode to modern dance great Pina Bausch. Her troupe performs several major works amid many shorter delights, filmed on stage and out in various exterior environments. Quite an achievement for the 'dance movie', and the disc extras provide background and information that increase our interest. In Blu-ray + 3D from The Criterion Collection.
2/05/13
and 
Ava Gardner and Robert Mitchum's only co-starring feature is a sultry soap opera set in New Orleans in the old days. A young woman with a good name but a socially unacceptable background (Gardner) is manipulated by a tyrannical aunt and a venal cousin (Melvyn Douglas); she in turn plots to wreck a marriage to get back the love of her life. The web of intrigues leads to a killing that threatens to expose everyone. Good production values back up Mitchum as a different kind of hero, and Gardner as a woman seemingly possessed by a wicked ancestor. From The Warner Archive Collection.
2/05/13
Hello! Well, heck... I was counting on Severin's Blu-ray of Zulu Dawn to perk up things around Savant Central, and now the disc has been pushed back yet another month, to March 12. I will tell myself that the delay will only make the disc better. I waited twenty years to see the show in Panavision and decent color, so I guess 30 days won't kill me. 
The Savant review hopper is loaded with discs from Criterion, Kino and The Warner Archive Collection, with (hopefully) desired titles from Olive Films, CAV and VCI not far behind. The folks at Disney are promising The Insider. I hope their largesse will extend to March's release of Who Framed Roger Rabbit? as a review would be a good opportunity to express my admiration for co-writer/producer Bob Gale. Yes, I have a really good link today, circulated by Joe Dante: a Cartoon Snap reprint of a 1948 Real Fact comic book article, How Television Will CHANGE Your Future! Every panel in this comic contains a precisely accurate prediction... but that image of an orbiting eye that sees all is pretty intimidating ... Thanks for reading! --- Glenn Erickson
February 02, 2013
Savant's new reviews today are: 
This Allied Artists release is an exploitation effort that dramatizes the story of escaped war criminal Adolf Eichmann on a shoestring budget, not long after the international news of his capture by Israeli agents. Yet it was written by a convicted member of the Hollywood Ten and stars the respected Werner Klemperer, pre- Hogan's Heroes. The selling point is still morbid curiosity: what actually makes this thriller different from the prestigious Judgment at Nuremberg, which also showcases atrocity footage filmed by the U.S. Army? Co-starring Ruta Lee, John Banner (also of Hogan's), and Donald Buka. From The Warner Archive Collection.
2/02/13
and Blu-ray 
1932's Best Picture Oscar winner billboards a tall stack of MGM stars to give audiences the impression of a super-production. Dramatically, we get to witness legendary work from Greta Garbo and John Barrymore, with a fine performance by Joan Crawford. It comes in an impressive new restoration -- the movie is much improved over all older presentations, including the 2003 DVD. In Blu-ray from Warner Home Video.
2/02/13
Hello! Twilight Time announced their upcoming Blu-ray schedule yesterday, and here it is: March 12 brings Brian De Palma's The Fury and John Carpenter's Christine; March 26 is set aside for Henry King's The Song of Bernadette; April 9 sees the BD debut of Sam Peckinpah's Major Dundee and Peter Bogdanovich's At Long Last Love; May 14 slips in Jonathan Demme's Philadelphia and John Stahl's Leave Her To Heaven; and on June 11 will come Walter Hill's Hard Times and The Driver, and George Stevens' The Only Game in Town.. 
I've been fielding a lot of questions about Major Dundee, as you might imagine. I haven't been bugging Twilight Time but, as of several weeks ago, my understanding is that both the theatrical and exended versions will be included on separate discs, accompanied by some combination of Isolated Music Scores. I hope the extened version carries the original mix with the 1965 Danile Amfitheatrof score! Correspondent Dennis Fischer sends in a link to Disney's Oscar-nominated short subject Paperman. I think it's cute but thin; to me the female character looks a lot like art from 9 Chickweed Lane.
And correspondent Ian Whittle sends along, apropos of the Savant review of Rules For School Thanks for reading! -- Glenn Erickson
Review Staff
| About DVD Talk
| Newsletter Subscribe
| Join DVD Talk Forum
|
|
| |||||||||
