Movie review - "A Swingin' Summer" (1965) ** (re-watching)

 A "lake paty" movie - the beach party set at Lake Arrowhead, Surprisingly heavy and serious - lots of talk about needing money, pressure, and a big brawl that is very seriously done involving James Stacy. More fun is William Wellman being pursued by Raquel Welch, a nerd determined to have a boyfriend for the summer.

Jerry Lewis' son performs in this. Michael Blodgett dances. The lake is pretty. Quinn O'Hara has to be too serious.

Movie review - "The Carey Treatment" (1972) **

 Blake Edwards whined that MGM cut this movie around and I'm sure Jim Aubrey and co did even though it co stars Aubrey's daughter but it's still long even at 100 minutes taking all this time to get going.

The strength of the novel was its fast pace and technical detail, both which aren't conveyed. The faults of the novel - its tropes - do survive. Like the book there's not enough compulsion for James Coburn to investigate - I think they should've made Jennifer O'Neill (who's pretty but whose part is pointless) be the doctor who got arrested and Coburn investigates it to free her because he loves her.

There's some effective bits and it's not a bad story. Coburn is a swinger and groovy but though he spouts the dialogue isn't entirely convincing as a dogged pathologist. Actually O'Nell would've been better in his role because as a woman she might have a reason to defend an abortionist. You know, Raquel Welch would've suited this.

Thereis a scene where Michael Blodgett gives James Coburn a massage that is very homoerotic. Blodgett is an effective villain and there are neat turns from people like John Hillerman.

But it doesn't have Edwards' patented style and gloss. Variety was right it feels like a TV movie. I think the only point to making these sort of films by the 70s was if you made it glossy and had stars in them.

Top Ten Hammer Horror Leading Ladies

 1) Ingrid Pitt - fabulous star, can't believe she only did two for the company, should've done a heap more

2) The Collinson Twins - a gimmick yes, not sure there was a second film in these two, but a fabulous gimmick

3) Raquel Welch - suited the world of Hammer better than you'd think - her successors in cave outfits never had the same impact

4) Ursula Andress - wonderful in her film, again should've done more with the company

5) Valerie Leon - bewitching, captivating, helps make her mummy film a classic, deserved another movie

6) Barbara Shelley - perfected the sad eyes, secretly-wants-it look, finally got an actual lead in Blood Island 2 but wasn't done justice - still, probably the woman who did best out of Hammer

7) Martine Beswick - had probably the best role for a woman in Hammer as Sister Hyde and did very well

8) Susan Strasberg - she never became the great actress that she was predicted to become but she was very good and developed a neat line in "woman who is terrified" that was very well used in Taste of Fear 

9) Stephanie Beacham - a bright light from a dim period for Hammer

10) Natassa Kinski- her presence is clearly problematic but she has genuine charisma and is perfectly cast 

Book review - "Solid Ivory" by James Ivory

 Not a straight up memoir more a collection of pieces - essays on people Ivory has known (Lillian Ross, Raquel Welch, George Cukor plus of course Ruth and Ismail) and places (Venice, India), plus a long memoir section of growing up with a lot of gay content in it. Not a lot on the films though there are bits - a far wack on Shakespeare Wallah, getting Vanessa Redgrave on The Bostonians (it was almost Glenn Close), the development of Call Me By Your Name, working with Raquel Welch on The Wild Party. I would've liked more on the movies - the Weinstein dramas on The Golden Bowl, and the high points of Howards End and so on. The best bits are the chapters on Ruth and Ismail Merchant. I would've liked a different book, more film orientated, but this was interesting.

Movie review - "Fuzz" (1972) **

 One of the its-hard-to-run-a-police-station-in-the-grimy-inner-city sub genre, later familiar on TV shows like Hill Street Blues. It's an ensemble piece although it features three icons, Burt Reynolds, Yul Brynner (a small role) and Raquel Welch. There's a variety of subplots, various crooks, sleaze, and lots of politically incorrect humour like Tom Skerritt molesting Welch on stake out, Reynolds and Jack Weston dressed as nuns.

I didn't like it. The tone is bleak and smart arse. I know exactly the sort of people who would like this movie. I felt really sorry for Welch who was trying to do a good job.

Movie review - "The Four Musketeers" (1974) ***1/2 (warning: spoilers)

Part two has a sort of casual slapdash feel - one assumes due to it being turned into a stand alone movie- but it doesn't really matter since we know the story and it's full of stars.

D'Artagnan is a stud muffin in this one - he beds Faye Dunaway, and her maid, played by Nicole Calfan. This leads to revenge.

There's plenty of silliness - a submarine, more slapstick - but is has a darker spirit because Raquel Welch dies. The deaths of Welch, Dunaway and Simon Ward are handled very well, as is Dunaway converting her jailer into an assassin.

It felt a little ramshackle. I don't think  slicing the films into two entirely worked. This one doesn't have much camaraderie - the other musketeers disappear for too long. I was constantly having to jog my memory. The use of stars helped.

Oliver Reed is superb as the boozy, tormented Athos. Faye Dunaway and Charlton Heston are excellent, Michael York very good.

Movie review - "The Three Musketeers" (1973) ***1/2

Entertaining reboot of the famous tale which does feel a little thin focusing on the affair of the Queen's Diamond necklace. For me it lacked the sense of camaraderie you get in longer versions of this tale - the one involving Milady and Porthos.

But there's lots to admire. The cast is top notch. I'm not a massive Michael York fan but he's a perfect d'Artagnan, young, keen and a believable country boy - most versions of the story don't emphasise this but York really seems like a rube out of place. Joss Ackland pops up as his dad - I wish we'd seen him again.

Oliver Reed is superb as Porthos, ditto Richard Chamberlain as Aramis, Faye Dunaway as Milady, Charlton Heston as Richelieu. Spike Milligan and Roy Kinnear are fun though perhaps too broad - they pull the movie in a different direction. Raquel Welch is fun as Constance - to be honest, she's trying too hard, like the hot girl at a drama school determined to play comedy, but she's endearing in that way. And it's great Constance has a bit more dimension, being a clutz and married to Milligan.

It feels very authentic - the George MacDonald Fraser touch, no doubt - without losing the sense of adventure of fun. But it is 1973 - royalty are dumb, D'Artagnan has sex with Constance. Sword fights are done well - decent strokeplay but also rough house antics.

Book review - "A Case of Need" (1969) by Jeffrey Hudson (Michael Crichton)

An early medical thriller by Michael Crichton who at one stage intended to use the name "Jeffrey Hudson" to write a bunch of books in that genre, but ended up only doing the one (he would later direct Coma, and write Five Patients and the pilot for ER under his own name).

It's an excellent page turner which deals with a subject that is still raw - abortion. Brennan, a pathologist in Boston, has an abortionist friend who is accused of murder so Brennan tries to solve it. There are some interesting philosophical discussions and character descriptions - an entertaining collection of medical people.

You wish the hero had a stronger motivation than "he was my friend". It felt as though he should have been Asian too (like the accused doctor), or have some family/romantic link, or be a woman (this was turned into a film at MGM directed by Blake Edwards with James Coburn... I kept thinking it should have been a Raquel Welch vehicle say).

The female characters are weak - the slutty dead girl, the slutty step mother, the non descript wives.  But the research is wonderful as are the twists. 

It occasionally feels a bit 1969 - hero is constantly smoking and drinking alcohol (I think cigs killed Crichton) - but generally its aged well.

RIP Burt Reynolds

He hadn't been in good health for a long time but this is still sad. There was no bigger star in the period of 77-83... His work was always a lot more interesting than he got credit for (he'd done Broadway, hosted talk shows, turned director)... he'd often be a hilarious interview subject... no one was funnier or more self deprecating about himself... Then in 1983 he decided to do "Stroker Ace" instead of "Terms of Endearment" and it was like the movie gods cursed him... he had a run of bad luck like few other stars - "Man Who Loved Women", "City Heat", "Stick", "Cannonball Run 2", "Heat", "Malone", "Rent a Cop"... at least he came back for "Boogie Nights" and was never out of work... RIP Burt

A Top Ten

1) Boogie Nights (1997)

2) The Longest Yard (1974)

3) Hustle (1975)

4) Deliverance (1972)

5) Smokey and the Bandit (1977)

6) Hooper (1978)

7) The Cannonball Run (1981)

8 ) Striptease(1996)

9) Sam Whiskey (1968)

10) Sharky's Machine (1981)

The troublesome production top ten

1) City Heat (1984) - Eastwood fires director Blake Edwards

2) The Man who Loved Cat Dancing (1973) - Sarah Miles’ lover killed himself for a time Reynolds was suspected of murder

3) Heat (1986) - the 1986 William Goldman one not the Michael Mann - five directors one of whom Reynolds punched out

4) Stick (1985) - Reynolds directed and Universal made him refilm half

5) At Long Last Love (1975) - musical which got worst reviews of any Reynolds film til then (actually isn’t that bad)

6) Shark! (1968) - Sam Fuller took his name off as director

7) 100 Rifles (1969) - weird sexual tension and fighting on set between Jim Nrown and Raquel Welch

8 ) Boogie Nights (1997) - Reynolds fights with PT Anderson so badly he refuses to be in Magnolia

9) The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982) - Burt fights with Dolly and insists on singing

10) Switching Channels (1989) - should’ve been a comeback for Burt (we’d say this every few years in the 90s) - he fought badly with Kathleen Turner

Movie review - "Fantastic Voyage" (1966) ***

20th Century Fox were partial to big budget sci fi in the 1960s - Irwin Allen made a bunch of movies there, they did the Planet of the Apes series and threw a lot of money and one of their favourite directors (Richard Fleischer) at this effort.

It's got one of the best ever silly concepts - a crew of scientists is shrunk and inserted in the body of a defecting scientist to perform an important operation. It starts off very excitingly - Fleischer has done a very good job - with the scientist defecting, agent Stephen Boyd on the case, someone shooting the agent, and the operation having to be done.

The crew consists of Boyd (who really has no business being there, isn't he an agent?), pilot William Redfield (who has that craggy bland accountant look so familiar in 60s cinema eg Arthur Hill), scientists Donald Pleasance and Arthur Kennedy, and assistant Raquel Welch.

Welch doesn't have much of a role - he mostly stands around and listens, and says the odd line. Boyd molests her a little at the beginning but nothing much more happens between them. She goes out swimming with them a few times and once has to be rescued. She doesn't even take her clothes off, which I thought was going to happen. But it must be said, at least she gets to go along on the mission. (I was hoping she would turn out to be the traitor or at least have a romance with Boyd, but no).

There's some decent action on the voyage - a saboteur is on board. Boyd thinks it's Kennedy then stops suspecting him when Kennedy talks about God, because no Commie would believe in God, presumably. Really he should know it would be Donald Pleasance.

There's some decent imagination here - the crew are at risk of being attacked by anti bodies, the danger of going up into the ear drum (a loud noise outside threatens them), a ticking clock when the miniaturisation stops. I really like how the film commits to its central idea.

Some of it is dull - the special effects and sets probably cost a bomb so there's a lot of lingering over them. All the scuba diving stuff gets a little dull after a while (this is a common feature of many underwater movies). I felt also the plot could've done with another threat - an attack on the outside maybe?

But generally well done. Edmond O'Brien and Arthur O'Connell are sweaty military men.

TV review - "Raquel!" (1970) ***

There was a time when TV specials roamed the earth - stand alone episodes that focused on a particular entertainer. They'd normally do a bunch of songs have special guests. In many ways they were the fore-runner of video clips.

Nancy Sinatra did one, so did Herb Albert (Tom Mankiewicz wrote about working on them in his memoirs). This was Raquel Welch's one and it was popular enough to lead to a sequel, Really Raquel!

It's a bizarre thing, consisting of a series of video clips, really... Raquel doing covers of songs like "California Dreaming", "Good Morning Starshine". and "Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head".

There's appearances by John Wayne (plugging True Grit), Tom Jones (singing two songs including "I Who Have Nothing") and Bob Hope (whereupon a laugh track starts up, disconcertingly; they duet on "Rocky Racoon"). Raquel plays off all three well and I wish she'd made a movie with anyone of them - she worked best with strong co-stars, as with Frank Sinatra in Lady in Cement.

It's very campy - Raquel does a number dancing with spacemen, and imitates Mae West (ironic considering they would clash on Myra Breckenridge) - and very much a product of its era. Raquel can carry a song well enough, she can dance (it's a shame she didn't do more musicals), changes her outfits constantly, and is in a massive variety of locations.

My Raquel Welch Top Ten

1) One Million Years BC (1966) - more than just a poster, though the poster is pretty awesome
2) Kansas City Bomber (1972) - roller derby feminism Raquel Welch style - a surprise
3) The Three Musketeers (1973) - Richard Lester and George MacDonald Fraser do swashbuckling and Raquel adapts to comedy - she'd made a few more in that genre
4) The Wild Party (1975) - heavily flawed James Ivory directed piece set in late 20s Hollywood with Raquel in patchy form but it's consistently unusual and interesting
5) Bedazzled (1967) - Pete and Dud's most famous movie together, with Raquel in a short but effective part
6) 100 Rifles (1969) - Welch made a surprisingly number of Westerns, all a bit disappointing but all of interest - this perhaps the most interesting of all
7) The Last of Sheila (1973) - a fascinating puzzle movie
8) Myra Breckinridge (1970) - an utterly terrible movie but it's sheer awfulness demands some sort of respect
9) Fantastic Voyage (1966) - Raquel is very clothed in this film, but its imaginative and interesting
10) The Legend of Walks Far Woman (1979) - full disclosure: never actually seen this. But put it in because Welch so clearly wanted to ACT in it.

Movie review - "The Wild Party" (1975) **1/2

Every now and then Sam Arkoff at AIP, despite all his protestations about not wanting to make "arty farty" movies, made a stab at arty farty movies - it's the only explanation I can think of why he invested money in this, which was based on a narrative poem, has a narrator breaking the fourth wall to speak poetry, was directed by James Ivory, has characters break out into song and features nudity but relatively tame nudity.

Maybe the nudity's what sold it to Arkoff - that and Raquel Welch in the lead, and the potential to make a film with some respectability that still hit exploitation beats.

There are apparently a few versions of this movie floating around - Ivory did a version, AIP did their version. I think this is Ivory's one because it clocks in at 100 minutes. Also apparently the AIP cut tried to make James Coco's character more sympathetic, and used flashbacks and flashforwards - which aren't here.

This isn't a successful movie. As Ivory himself admitted, you don't really empathise with anyone - everyone is a bit of a dick. James Coco is an egomaniacal star, whose films (from the extracts we see) aren't particularly funny, who doesn't listen to advice. Raquel Welch stays with Coco for the money and reflective fame and cheats on him. David Dukes makes all these pompous judgements about people - and why is his film feedback so awesome?

On an exploitation level the film isn't that "wild". Some ingredients are there - drinking, drug taking, women making out with each other, an omnisexual orgy (for all his snobbish comments, Dukes' character still takes part in the orgy) - but it's all very politely shot. Ivory is not Jack Hill.

On a dramatic level it suffers from sketchy support characters - Perry King is just required to hang around and be beautiful, Dukes hangs around and makes comments. Coco and Welch are given lots of chances; Coco takes his, though it's hard to care too much about his character, and Welch takes some of hers.

However it is interesting. The art design is pretty, it's stylistically different, with it's poems and songs. The ending is suitably dramatic. It's very flawed but it tries to break the mould.

Movie review - "Lady in Cement" (1968) **1/2

An unexpected surprise - I wasn't thinking this Frank Sinatra PI movie would be much, but it was a tight, fast paced, entertaining flick. I'm not saying would've liked to have spent any money on it, and recognise it's flaws but it was fun - at least for the first half.

Frank is well cast as a tough weary private eye, Tony Rome - this was the second in a series. He's fast with a quip and seems to be having a good time has he investigates the death of a topless blonde he finds at the bottom of the ocean while scuba diving for treasure.

There's a subplot where Sinatra is hired by a big goon, Dan Blocker (very good) to look for a girl, which reminded me of Farewell My Lovely - indeed, the whole film feels as though it was made by people who watched a lot of Chandler and Hammett adaptations.

Raquel Welch has a supporting role, looking splendid in a bikini. She's still awkward but has some nice by-play with Sinatra. People like Richard Conte pop up in the support cast.

There's some unpleasant late 60s masculinity things - not one but two villainous gays, the hilarity of a cop going undercover in drag, lecherous scenes perving on not one not two but three bimbos (the topless dead blonde, Raquel, and another bimbo). The story becomes less interesting as it goes on - after a strong beginning I enjoyed it less.

Movie review - "Flareup" (1969) **

A not particularly well known movie despite having the sort of one line concept that you'd think people would go for: Raquel Welch is a dancer in Las Vegas who sets out to avenge the death of her friend, a fellow dancer.

We know who did it straight away - we see Luke Askew gun down the girl - when some mystery might have been more useful. The handling is very late 60s network TV, as is the plotting. To be fair, TV from this time was often stronger in its handling.

There are some breasts on display from some of the dancers but Raquel is surprisingly covered up. It's a good role for her - she's brave, spirited, a bit nihilistic in her life, is the focus of attention.. It's got to be said she's not very good - her awkwardness and inexperience clearly shows. I think she needed to be protected more. And wear better outfits - if she didn't want to show off skin she should at least have changed outfits every scene and danced more.

Her best moments come in the love scenes with James Stacy - a virile, confident actor who never became a big star but who is comfortable on screen (and later lost an arm and leg in an accident and was arrested for molesting young girls; he tried to kill himself by jumping off a cliff but caught a ledge on the way down and survived!). These two have good chemistry - not sure if the director spent more time on the scenes or Welch and he rehearsed or she just lifted around him.. but she's at her most natural and relaxed with him.

Luke Askew is a good psycho. The characters of the fellow dancers and investigating police officer feel stock - I kept wanting to know more, to have them flip the story on its head somehow. As it is, the film is very linear.

The movie was produced by a company financed by one of the Getty family. It was released through MGM.

Movie review - "Bedazzled" (1967) ***

Cult 60s favourite is probably the best known feature film from Dudley Moore and Peter Cook - Moore went on to have a lot more success on the big screen but Cook less so. It's episodic, and I found it dragged from time to time, but it is also clever, funny and has two excellently cast stars - Moore is a great schleb and Cook an even better devil. The relationship between the two is unexpectedly touching, especially at the end.

Eleanor Bron is amusing as the girl desired by Moore - it's a passive role but she does it well, and brings individuality to the part. There are cameos by people like Raquel Welch (as lust, looking splendid in underwear although the acting is iffy... am I imagining that her voice is dubbed) and Australia's own Barry Humphries.  I actually wish there had been more cast members doing these cameos.

Movie review - "The Biggest Bundle of Them All" (1968) **

Robert Wagner made a few wacky heist films in the 60s - Sail a Crooked Ship, The Pink Panther, this. It has the benefit of some pretty Italian location filming, a strong cast, Raquel Welch in a series of sexy outfits and bikinis, and an unoriginal plot.

Wagner isn't very well cast as a small time crook who kidnaps a former big time crook, Vittorio de Sica - only to find out that no one wants to ransom him. So de Sica offers to mastermind a $5 million heist for Wagner and his crew.

Raquel looks spectacular but it's a lousy role - she hangs around a lot at the side of scenes. Godfrey Cambridge is one of the men. Edward G Robinson steals the film as a mastermind and it's a shame his part isn't bigger. The main fault of this film is it isn't very funny, or clever or entertaining. Even the Italian locations aren't that pretty.

Movie review - "Kansas City Bomber" (1972) ***

A high water mark in the career of Raquel Welch: the film was written as a vehicle for her and she helped produce it, and gives one of her best performances: a single mum (Jodie Foster is one of the kids) who is determined to make it in the roller derby. Welch seems more natural than normal, chewing gum, slouching and skating her arse off. Still not brilliant or anything but beautiful

It's a gritty-ish early 70s piece - certainly no add for roller derby which is depicted as brutal, corrupt run by team owners such as Kevin McCarthy. The script depends too much on McCarthy doing Something Bad - whether encouraging Welch to brawl, trading her best friend, encouraging a rival with another skater, causing a male skater to be brutish. It's as if they couldn't bring themselves to criticise anyone else - and sometimes it's a bit silly.

But the milieu works - dingy bars and halls, cramped beds, crummy locker rooms. Its very feminist even if Raquel takes a shower or two and looks great in her costumes, with Raquel learning she can't rely on a man. (Though admittedly she's not the best mum in the world, dumping her two kids with her mum while she goes off skating.) The love scene between McCarthy and Welch is underwhelming but Helena Kallianiotes gives an interesting support performance.

The title is completely perfect even though most of the action takes place in Portland.

Movie review - "Fathom" (1967) **

Raquel Welch was one of the last film stars created by a studio - kind of. Under contract to 20th Century Fox, her PR pictures were getting a lot of attention so they were considering putting her in Our Man Flint as The Girl before deciding to cast her in a support role in Fantastic Voyage (as The Girl). She was borrowed by Hammer to appear in One Million Years BC where the famous still of her in a fur bikini made her a star, at least in PR terms. Enthused, Fox decided to give her her own vehicle, this spy spoof.

James Bond movies and their rip offs were hugely popular in the mid 60s - so much so that there was a sub genre of female spy movies: Modesty Blaise, Caprice, this. Welch is a sky diver who is hired by a mysterious agent (Ronald Fraser) and his offsider (Richard Briers) to find a maguffin, a nuclear triggering mechanism.

Some not particularly colourful or well budgeted adventures follow, with Welch coming up against a mysterious American (Tony Franciosa), comic Armenian (Clive Reville) and brooding Tom Adams (briefly the star of his own spy series). There's also a Chinese Secret Service agent, Greta Chi and Australia's own Reg Lye.

The film was written by Lorenzo Semple Jnr, whose work I often like, including the film of Batman; that was directed by Leslie Martinson, who also directed this. This has a similar campy tone with Revill's performance being particularly over the top. It could have done with more gags - or excitement. Or logic really.

The film is seems most inspired by is Charade with an adventurous heroine who is continually rescued by a handsome leading man who may be good or bad.

Welch isn't very good but she does look great - wearing a series of sky diving outfits, low cut outfits and bikinis, plus large hair. Annoying her character is saved a lot by Franciosa (in a bull ring, on a plane), who is a better actor but not as strong a personality - the role required someone more charming. And he calls her "poppet" too often, it gets on the nerves. I enjoyed Welch more than Franciosa and the two don't have much chemistry.

Fraser and Briers give the support cast some class.

Movie review - "The Oldest Profession" (1967) **

A 60s Europudding comic look at prostitution through the ages. It's the sort of movie that makes you apprehensive thinking about it then when you watch your heart sinks because you realise your worst fears are to be realised. But after a slow start this was okay.

The first two segments are weak. Part 1 is set in prehistoric times with Michele Mercier as a cave girl who discovers make up. Part 2 is in ancient Rome with Elsa Martinelli and a Roman Emperor visits a brothel. Lazy jokes, not particularly well done.

Part 3 gets better- its the French Revolution and a young man pretends to be wanting to watch his uncle executed so he can sleep with Jeanne Moreau. The fact Moreau is in it helps this a lot.

Part 4 is set in the 1890s and is lots of fun, with Raquel Welch in good form as a stripper who cons a man into marrying her. It's one of Welch's best performances - she's splendid looking as always in some lingerie but is genuinely high spirited as the clever girl.

Part 5 has plenty of energy from Nadia Gray and France Anglade as prostitutes who operate out of the car and wind up running an operation from an ambulance. The possibilities in this premise feel undercooked (it could hold a feature eg Night Shift) but the actresses really go for it.

Part 6 was done by none other than Jean Luc Godard and is set in the future. Anna Karina appears along with one time Mr Brigitte Bardot, Jacques Charrier. This is the best segment, imaginative and bold, a fascinating companion piece to Alphaville. Incidentally, it's the one segment with nudity.

So all in all this wasn't a bad movie, certainly not as much as I feared going in.