No one much likes this sequel - indeed I'm struggling to recall moments for it. I did like the opening of Dundee fishing in New York, the murder of Linda Kozlowski's ex was done with reasonable suspense, the rescue sequence with people from parties was fun, as was the attempted suicide thing. The drug runner plot was stock but serviceable. The film felt as though it needed something else- another character or something. A love rival, say.
The direction is flat. Peter Faiman's work was clearly underestimated. So too was writer Ken Shadie (he was replaced here by Brett Hogan).
There's nice scenery, Hogan works well, John Meillion looks as though he's about to die (he soon did), Ernie Dingo is charismatic.
Tuesday, October 16, 2018
Movie review - "Flash Gordon" (1980) **** (re-viewing)
Saw it at the Egyptian with Sam Jones and Melody Anderson there. Both are nice. This is a fun movie, with that fantastic music and set design and tongue in cheek. Everyone is in good form - Jones, even though dubbed, is big and dope and likeable and well matchd by Anderson despite her 1980 travel agent outfit... they're two naive kids who find each other.
Topol is great fun, better than Warren Oates would've been - Max Von Sydow, Patrick Wyngarde, Brian Blessed, Tim Dalton, Ornella Muti... they're all fantastic. Some of the effects now creak but it has a magic about it. I liked the serious stuff too like Dalton going to Flash "where you lead I follow". Guy cry!
Topol is great fun, better than Warren Oates would've been - Max Von Sydow, Patrick Wyngarde, Brian Blessed, Tim Dalton, Ornella Muti... they're all fantastic. Some of the effects now creak but it has a magic about it. I liked the serious stuff too like Dalton going to Flash "where you lead I follow". Guy cry!
Script review - "Flash Gordon" by Lorenzo Semple First Draft (1979)
Much was changed in terms of dialogue and also tone - Flash and Dale are a bit more raunchy, whereas in the film they were more sweet. But the basic structure is the same - crashing the plane, meeting Zarkov, going up, meeting Ming, only surviving because Aura wants Flash, Flash vs Barin, Dale vs Ming, the hawkman helping at the end.
It's a fun read and there's some things I wish had been in the film like Amazon Warriors. Tiger Man has a big role as an ally of Flash but he doesn't do that much.
It's a fun read and there's some things I wish had been in the film like Amazon Warriors. Tiger Man has a big role as an ally of Flash but he doesn't do that much.
Saturday, October 13, 2018
Movie review - "WW and the Dixie Dancekings" (1975) **
Popular in its day but doesn't seem that well remembered - it was hard to find on video and wasn't often on TV, unlike other Burt Reynolds good ole boy car films.
Burt is at his most charismatic - confident, likeable, playing a robber and a con man who winds up managing a musical group. The film never seems to know what quite it is - there's a bit of comedy, bit of action, bit of romance (though Burt goes rape-y with the female lead), a bit of excitement. It's a real shaggy dog sort of tale that feels, well, lazy.
Apparently Reynolds wanted Dolly Parton to star, and that would've been fantastic - instead we've got someone called Conny Van Dyke who is okay. The support cast includes people you'll recognise like Ned Beatty, James Hampton and Art Carney. I like Reynolds but am not really into the south or country music -that may make a difference watching this. I was underwhelmed.
Burt is at his most charismatic - confident, likeable, playing a robber and a con man who winds up managing a musical group. The film never seems to know what quite it is - there's a bit of comedy, bit of action, bit of romance (though Burt goes rape-y with the female lead), a bit of excitement. It's a real shaggy dog sort of tale that feels, well, lazy.
Apparently Reynolds wanted Dolly Parton to star, and that would've been fantastic - instead we've got someone called Conny Van Dyke who is okay. The support cast includes people you'll recognise like Ned Beatty, James Hampton and Art Carney. I like Reynolds but am not really into the south or country music -that may make a difference watching this. I was underwhelmed.
Movie - "Murder in the Rue Morgue" (1971) *** (warning: spoilers)
The reputation of this picture isn't high - it was one of AIP's second Poe cycle, directed like many of them were by Gordon Hessler. I actually liked it more than I thought it would - it felt a little bit cut about but not tremendously and had some good things about it.
I didn't mind that much they disregarded Poe's book - rather this is a Phantom of the Opera knock off with Herbert Lom reprising that part (he played it in the 1962 Hammer film) as an actor getting revenge on the a theatre company. The company do Grand Guignol, including an adaptation of Murders in the Rue Morgue, which I liked. It's a decent story, well thought out, and impressive production values.
Two flaws for me. First Jason Robards in a role clearly meant for Vincent Price. AIP must have thought "oh Robards is a big theatre actor he'll be great" but he's not nearly big, flamboyant or fun enough - he's too raspy, realistic. I so wish Price was in this . (He was fighting with AIP over money at the time).
There's also Christina Kauffman's performance. Her character is key - Lom's love/obsession for her drives this - but she's a flat damp squib. I guess the character is meant to be passive but she's really dully depicted.
Still, like I said, I went in with low expectations and was pleasantly surprised.
I didn't mind that much they disregarded Poe's book - rather this is a Phantom of the Opera knock off with Herbert Lom reprising that part (he played it in the 1962 Hammer film) as an actor getting revenge on the a theatre company. The company do Grand Guignol, including an adaptation of Murders in the Rue Morgue, which I liked. It's a decent story, well thought out, and impressive production values.
Two flaws for me. First Jason Robards in a role clearly meant for Vincent Price. AIP must have thought "oh Robards is a big theatre actor he'll be great" but he's not nearly big, flamboyant or fun enough - he's too raspy, realistic. I so wish Price was in this . (He was fighting with AIP over money at the time).
There's also Christina Kauffman's performance. Her character is key - Lom's love/obsession for her drives this - but she's a flat damp squib. I guess the character is meant to be passive but she's really dully depicted.
Still, like I said, I went in with low expectations and was pleasantly surprised.
Wednesday, October 10, 2018
Movie review - "Tangier" (1946) **1/2
This was meant to be called Flame to Stamboul and was to be a Maria Montez-Jon Hall-Sabu Technicolor epic. It wound up in black and white - which actually doesn't bug me as much as I thought it would because it's set in a nightclub and has many scenes at night, so color would be wasted.
It's kind of a Casablanca-ish film with war correspondents, local police chiefs, nightclub singers, secret agents. There's a lot of plot and while Robert Paige was underwhelming in the lead, Montez was actually quite good - she seems energised by the change of pace. And there's novelty with Sabu as a waiter singing songs like "She'll Be Coming Round the Mountain".
But the film became worse as it went on - more confusing. I wasn't sure of the setting or who the baddies were - apparently this was a censor thing. It felt like it had been rewritten a lot - character motivations became confused.It also splits focus - Montez shares heroic duties with Louise Albritton and Paige with Kent Taylor.
It's a shame because this had a lot of potential.
Monday, October 01, 2018
Script review - "Frenzy" by Anthony Schaffer
Hitchcock's penultimate feature has it's admirers, of which I am not one. I will concede it has some effective moments, but the flaws are too big and weird.
It's an unpleasant film. Hitch had an unpleasant side, as is well known, which is particularly demonstrated here. The lead, Blaney, is a scowly unpleasant twat with a hot temper who is always snapping at the women who love him and clearly is a bit of an idiot. I get that for the first thirty minutes we're meant to think he's the killer but he's not entertaining company. He's super passive until the end. The fact that he was a former squadron leader cuts no ice because that wouldn't have been hard in what, the early 60s or late 50s. Where did he serve? Peacetime Europe? Cyprus? Michael Caine was interviewed for the part of Rusk - even he would've struggled to make Blaney likeable.
In contrast the two female leads, his ex wife and current girlfriend, are likable - smart, hard working,clearly more competent than Blaney. And they're both murdered. The ex we get to see killed in a long drawn out sequence - which is effective, mind, it should be said, it's just not fun.
There's some really awful on the nose dialogue. The way a lot of it is written, it's like a film from the 30s or 40s. There is so much dialogue. I didnt mind the exposition between the policeman and his wife who is an awful cook, that is funny, it just felt old fashioned. There's some swear words and more sex and violence but in these old fashioned trappings.
When the film is visual it's actually fine - the murder sequences are memorable, even if harrowing - the stuff where the real killer Rusk has to track down a pin on a corpse is very well done.
It's an unpleasant film. Hitch had an unpleasant side, as is well known, which is particularly demonstrated here. The lead, Blaney, is a scowly unpleasant twat with a hot temper who is always snapping at the women who love him and clearly is a bit of an idiot. I get that for the first thirty minutes we're meant to think he's the killer but he's not entertaining company. He's super passive until the end. The fact that he was a former squadron leader cuts no ice because that wouldn't have been hard in what, the early 60s or late 50s. Where did he serve? Peacetime Europe? Cyprus? Michael Caine was interviewed for the part of Rusk - even he would've struggled to make Blaney likeable.
In contrast the two female leads, his ex wife and current girlfriend, are likable - smart, hard working,clearly more competent than Blaney. And they're both murdered. The ex we get to see killed in a long drawn out sequence - which is effective, mind, it should be said, it's just not fun.
There's some really awful on the nose dialogue. The way a lot of it is written, it's like a film from the 30s or 40s. There is so much dialogue. I didnt mind the exposition between the policeman and his wife who is an awful cook, that is funny, it just felt old fashioned. There's some swear words and more sex and violence but in these old fashioned trappings.
When the film is visual it's actually fine - the murder sequences are memorable, even if harrowing - the stuff where the real killer Rusk has to track down a pin on a corpse is very well done.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)