THE FINAL CONFLICT

Son of Satan: Sam Neill

THE FINAL CONFLICT aka Omen III: The Final Conflict/1981. Director: Graham Baker.

"Most people confuse 'evil' with their own trivial lusts and perversions." -- Damien Thorn

Damien Thorn (Sam Neill), the anti-Christ, is now grown and still causing bloody mischief after the events of The Omen and Damien: Omen 2. Thorn becomes the new ambassador to Britain, then discovers that the Christ child has been born in London. Even as Thorn has his minions murdering male infants in case one of them is his adversary, Father DeCarlo (Rossano Brazzi) and his monks attempt to kill Thorn with special daggers -- only the little devil outwits them every time. Thorn develops a relationship with reporter Kate Reynolds (Lisa Harrow), but seems more interested in indoctrinating her teenage son, Peter (Barnaby Holm), into the ways of evil and lord only knows what else. But Damian's plans may come to nothing despite his best efforts ... The Final Conflict is a highly-enjoyable, slick and well-made horror film if you don't take it seriously, which is impossible to do for all but the sub-literate. On that mindless level the film boasts an excellent performance from Neill [Daybreakers], and a very notable turn from Don Gordon, who is Damien's executive assistant, and unbeknownst to Thorn, the father of a boy born on the wrong day. Brazzi [Summertime] doesn't seem to take anything that seriously, and probably didn't; Harrow and Holm are fine. The set-pieces in the film -- an assassin gets caught in a fiery trap while trying to kill Damien in a TV studio; the assorted suspenseful murders of the infants -- are well-done although a scene with dogs allegedly tearing a monk apart doesn't quite work because the rather cute doggies don't actually seem to be doing anything. The film is tremendously bolstered by a near-operatic score by Jerry Goldsmith, who has delivered an epic and beautiful theme with demonic undertones, and embellishes every scene with a sweeping and majestic backdrop. When Kate is, to all intents and purposes, raped late in the movie, she has virtually no reaction! But then the filmmakers have no more compassion for the assorted victims than Damien does.

NOTE: This was followed by the TV movie Omen IV, and just this year A and E had a series entitled Damien detailing the further adventures of Damien Thorn; it lasted one season.

Verdict: Comparatively empty but engaging and rather clever horror flick. *** out of 4.

LIGHT IN THE PIAZZA (1962)

Olivia de Havilland and Rosanno Brazzi

LIGHT IN THE PIAZZA (1962). Director: Guy Green.

Meg Johnson (Olivia de Havilland) is in Italy with her daughter, Clara (Yvette Mimieux), when the latter meets and falls for a young Italian named Fabrizio (George Hamilton), who returns Clara's feelings. The problem is that not everyone is aware that the free-spirited, fun-loving Clara, who is in her mid-twenties, never advanced emotionally beyond ten or so years of age due to a childhood accident. Clara's father, Noel (Barry Sullivan) wants to put Clara in a home in an attempt to repair his marriage, while Meg thinks the real answer is for Clara to marry Fabrizio. But there may be other roadblocks to their nuptials. Light in the Piazza features some especially good performances from Mimieux [Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm] and Hamilton (in the days before he turned himself into a smarmy joke), but Sullivan [Forty Guns] mostly walks through his smaller part and de Havilland is terribly affected and a bit unreal. Rosanno Brazzi [Legend of the Lost] is better as Fabrizio's father. This is a movie that you want to like and be moved by, but there's just something off about it, especially a strange business involving a man killed by cannon fire during a sporting exhibition. Nice location footage of Florence. Many years later this was turned into a musical.

Verdict: Some good performances help ... **1/2.

ROME ADVENTURE

Suzanne Pleshette and Troy Donahue

ROME ADVENTURE (1962). Director: Delmer Daves.

"What if something happened to you?" -- Mrs. Bell

"Mother -- what if nothing did?" -- Prudence

Prudence Bell (Suzanne Pleshette of A Rage to Live) decides to resign from her position in a fashionable girls school because she gave a student a too lustily "romantic" novel to read and the old hen board disapprove. Looking for romance herself, she travels to Italy and gets a room in a pensione, where she meets Don (Troy Donahue), who's just been jilted by the wealthy Lyda Kent (Angie Dickinson). On the rebound, Don travels all over Italy with Prudence, as the two fall in love to the strains of Max Steiner's pretty score and all the attractive scenery. But then, who pops back up but Lyda ... Rome Adventure has a few good moments and performances but it's not a very good movie. Pleshette is a good actress, but there's something so unpleasantly aggressive, almost tough, about her that you can understand how she managed to get that tom cat Donahue to the alter (albeit it took two years and the marriage only lasted eight months); she hasn't a trace of vulnerability. As for Donahue, he's slightly better in this than, say, My Blood Runs Cold, perhaps because he was developing some romantic feelings for Pleshette, but anyway you look at it he's no actor. Rosanno Brazzi is the handsome older man whose kisses don't bring out bells in Prudence; Constance Ford -- in a typical Constance Ford movie role -- is the wise older woman who employs Prudence in a book shop; Hampton Fancher is the charmingly shy Albert, an American boy who has a big crush on Prudence; Pamela Austin is a young lady who has a brief flirtation with Albert; Gertrude Flynn is her chaperone; and even Al Hirt shows up playing himself at one point, only to have his haughty model-like date wind up making out with a sexy Italian stallion; all of them are fine. The two best scenes have Prudence and Lyda sparring with each other during dinner with Don and Albert; and a very nice scene between Albert and Prudence on a train. A singer who comes out with "Al di la" in a restaurant deserves his applause, but it's ridiculous when dozens of people start clapping after Don -- remember this is Troy Donahue -- finishes up a poorly delivered speech from Romeo and Juliet [admittedly, Don is no more an actor than Troy is]. As for Brazzi, he had more time to romance Katharine Hepburn (in Venice) in Summertime. Chad Everett is listed in the cast and in the opening credits, but his scenes must have been left on the cutting room floor.

Verdict: Pretty things to look at and listen to but don't expect more. **1/2.

SUMMERTIME

The beauty of Venice as photographed by Jack Hildyard

SUMMERTIME (1955). Director: David Lean.

Middle-aged secretary Jane Hudson (Katharine Hepburn) comes to Venice in the hopes of finding a "magical, mystical miracle," some adventure and romance, and meets a handsome shopkeeper named Renato (Rossano Brazzi), but the true star of this movie is the city of Venice where it was filmed in its entirety. Arthur Laurents' play "The Time of the Cuckoo" has been refashioned for Hepburn, with the result that much of the play has been thrown out and the other characters get little screen time -- it's all Hepburn and Venice, with a little Brazzi thrown in for good measure. The romance between Jane and Renato is completely unconvincing because the two actors have zero chemistry together; Hepburn seems less a repressed spinster than a self-hating lesbian trying to fool herself with a good-looking man! You might catch a glimpse of Darren McGavin [Kolchak, the Night Stalker and Mike Hammer] as one of the fellow guests in the pensione where Jane is staying, but his affair with the woman (Isa Miranda) who runs the place is so downplayed it hardly exists; Mari Aldon plays McGavin's wife. Gaetano Autiero is charming as the little boy, Mauro, who takes Jane sightseeing and is always trying to sell her things -- he seems to get more screen time than some of the adults. Some of the beautiful music is from La gazza ladra by Rossini; other music is by Alessando Cicognini. This was later turned into the Broadway musical Do I Hear a Waltz? with a book by Laurents, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and music by Richard Rodgers. By then the lead character's name was changed from Jane Hudson to Leona as we'd already had one [Baby] Jane Hudson in What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?

Verdict: Enjoyable for its stunning shots of Venice, but don't expect too much of a story. **1/2.

MITZI GAYNOR RAZZLE DAZZLE THE SPECIAL YEARS DVD

MITZI GAYNOR RAZZLE DAZZLE THE SPECIAL YEARS DVD.

This DVD devoted to the talents of singer/actress Mitzi Gaynor has been released in honor of the 4oth anniversary of her first televised special and the 50th anniversary of perhaps her most famous film, South Pacific, in which she co-starred with Rosanno Brazzi and John Kerr. Gaynor's annual specials were aired for ten years, and there are song and dance numbers from each of them on this disc. Special features include a look at her Bob Mackie fashions; new interviews with Gaynor, Carl Reiner, Bob Mackie and others; comedy skits from her specials; and other extras. I don't know if Rex Reed was correct when he claimed Gaynor was "one of the colossal talents of our age," but she certainly had looks and ability to spare, and she was quite charming in South Pacific. For more information or to order a copy go to Gaynor's web site or the web site of City Lights Media, which is releasing the DVD.

Verdict: Perfect for Gaynor enthusiasts. ***.