RAW WIND IN EDEN

RAW WIND IN EDEN (1958). Director: Richard Wilson.

"This is just a question -- not the bell for the next round." -- Laura

"What are you doing here? You belong on an island with nobody on it." -- ditto

Laura with no last name, the oldest fashion model in the world (Esther Williams was nearing forty when she made this film) is in Rome when she gets a visit from her married lover's lawyer, Wally Drucker (Carlos Thompson). She decides to return home with him in his plane, but they make a crash landing on a small island located near Sardinia. The only inhabitants of the island are Urbano (Eduardo De Filippo) and his daughter, Costanza (Rossana Podesta), who is betrothed to a strange man named Moore (Jeff Chandler), who came to the island seeking peace and isolation and never left. As Laura and Wally try to fix up a yacht to take them off the island, Laura and Moore find themselves attracted, even as strange acts of sabotage occur on the boat, and Costanza's handsome ex-lover, Gavino (Rik Battaglia), shows up now and then in his rowboat gunning for Moore. Laura makes up her mind to find out exactly who "Moore" is and where he comes from. 

Carlos Thompson and Esther Williams

If you think this movie might be interesting, be forewarned that it's not a fraction as entertaining as it sounds. There's a lot of empty posturing with no substance underneath, hollow, under-written characters, and lead actors who are competent but completely miscast. While there's what passes for smoldering passion between Laura and Moore, and Wally seems hot for everyone, the movie has an erotic charge that registers zero. With more than one climax, it seems to take forever to finally end. Thompson seems to have been dubbed by Paul Frees, and the pseudo-romantic music, some of which is nice, is by Hans Salter. Wilson also directed The Big Boodle with Errol Flynn.

Verdict: The only memorable thing about this tedious mess is the title. *1/2.

WALL OF NOISE

Ty Hardin and Suzanne Pleshette

WALL OF NOISE (1963). Director: Richard Wilson.

Horse trainer Joel Tarrant (Ty Hardin) goes to work for Matt Rubio (Ralph Meeker) who wants to get involved in racing. Angered when Joel's girlfriend, Ann (Dorothy Provine), whom he treated like crap, goes off with his friend and jockey, Bud (Jimmy Murphy), Joel takes up with Rubio's sophisticated and neglected wife, Laura (Suzanne Pleshette). Will their horse win the big race? Will Joel wind up with Ann or Laura? Is there any way that anyone could possibly care? Wall of Noise is an incredibly dull picture that is bolstered strictly by the talents of its supporting case, especially Meeker [Jeopardy], Murphy, Simon Oakland, Murray Matheson, and George Petrie. Hardin [Berserk] is only adequate, one of these lesser-talented hunks who plays everything in a key of anger because it's easier to do than real emoting -- he is always grimacing as if he's smelling something bad -- and Pleshette offers one of her rare lousy performances. The dialogue is often cliched and terrible, but it isn't helped by its delivery: Hardin and Pleshette [A Rage to Live] set off  as much passionate sparks as a wet firecracker. Even the racing scenes are dull, and after awhile you're just impatiently waiting until this bomb is over. Richard Wilson also directed the equally awful Raw Wind in Eden, which at least had a better title.

Verdict: Not enough noise to drown out this stinker, but the horses are nice. *1/2.

THE BIG BOODLE

THE BIG BOODLE (1957). Director: Richard Wilson.

In this hard-boiled story set and filmed in Havana, casino croupier Ned Sherwood (Errol Flynn) discovers a young lady, Fina (Rosanna Rory), who's carrying a bundle of counterfeit cash. Before long he's up to his neck in threatening police officers, surly hoods, gang leaders who employ torture, a search for counterfeit plates, and a couple of dangerous females. Not as much fun as it sounds, The Big Boodle is a pretty standard but somewhat absorbing crime thriller with very few surprises in it. There are good locations, an okay climactic fight, and it's always fun to see the villain fall into the middle of some hungry sharks. Gia Scala plays Anita, one of the gals, and Carlos Rivas of The Beast of Hollow Mountain is a sinister playboy. Flynn, in one of his last roles, gives an acceptable performance but he looks pretty battered. Rory also had a small role in L'eclisse.

Verdict: Not worth missing The Beverly Hillbillies for. **.