JOY HOUSE

Fonda and Delon share a moment in Joy House

JOY HOUSE (aka Les felins/1964). Director: Rene Clement.

Marc (Alain Delon) is a handsome gigolo who is on the run from hit men hired by the husband of his latest conquest. On the riviera he winds up becoming chauffeur for a strange household consisting of a wealthy widow, Barbara (Lola Albright), and her cousin, Melinda (Jane Fonda). In the meantime, a strange figure is watching the goings-on from hidden rooms behind the walls. This may sound intriguing, but frankly with that premise and this cast Joy House should have been a lot sexier and much more entertaining. This was taken from a Charles Williams novel or screenplay which was probably more on the mark. Delon plays his part in just the right note; the women are good but less effective. The movie is at times more confusing and irritating than genuinely suspenseful.

Verdict: A bit dull despite everything. **.

PATHETIC CHRISTINA CRAWFORD NEVER GIVES UP

Christina and Joan Crawford

CHRISTINA CRAWFORD'S LATEST DESPERATE ATTEMPT TO BECOME MORE FAMOUS THAN HER MOTHER

Poor Christina Crawford never gives up. Although most sensible people -- including two of her siblings -- have dismissed Mommie Dearest as (as her sister put it) "fake and fictional," she still keeps trying to trade off the book's success -- and the fact that famous movie star Joan Crawford was her adoptive mother.

First Christina tried intimating that Joan murdered her fourth husband Alfred Steele, a fact-less, fruitless ploy that didn't work. Now she claims to have suddenly discovered her mother's blue movies and "naked home videos" in which she allegedly is having sex with a man. Even if it's true, who cares? Joan certainly had a right to an active sex life and if she wanted to photograph it that's her business.

So now Christina is readying a stage show -- starring herself -- called "Surviving Mommie Dearest" in which, presumably, these videos will play a part.

Christina is beating a dead horse.

One can't help but think of what Myrna Loy wrote in her autobiography [written with the help of James Kotsilibas-Davis]: "[Christina] wanted to be Joan Crawford. I think that's the basis of the book she wrote afterward, and everything else. I saw what her mind created, the fantasy world she lived in ... She envied her mother, grew to hate her, and wanted to destroy her."

Apparently the publication of Mommie Dearest brought no closure to Christina Crawford. Or at least not enough lasting fame or money to suit her.

Because here she is again, still battening off her mother, and still beating her up far worse than she contends her mother ever beat her.

Pathetic, really.

This is a lady who needs to get a life.

MERCI POUR LE CHOCOLAT

MERCI POUR LE CHOCOLAT (2000). Director: Claude Chabrol.

If you were the passenger in a car, and the driver, looking sick, said "I'm beginning to feel numb all over," wouldn't you tell them to pull over to the side of the road? Well, this passenger doesn't in one of the dumb, illogical moments in this film made by French filmmaker Chabrol from an old Charlotte Armstrong mystery novel. The plot has to do with "Mika" Muller (Isabelle Huppert), heir to a Swiss chocolate concern, who is fond of serving her own special hot chocolate to her husband, concert pianist Andre Polonski (Jacques Dutronc), and her stepson Gillaume (Rodolphe Pauly), as well as any guests she may have. Into this little household comes aspiring musician Jeanne Pollet (Anna Mouglalis), who thinks that Andre might possibly be her biological father. She also suspects one of the members of the household of being a poisoner. Merci Pour le Chocolat is absorbing and suspenseful for much of its length, but ultimately it heads in a predictable direction and has absolutely no surprises. Worse, Chabrol completely fails to bring out the dramatic potentialities of the storyline and character inter-relationships. The film is so low-key that its characters act like zombies when they should be more than a little upset. This isn't subtlety -- this is just mediocre filmmaking. Those who wrongly compare Chabrol with Hitchcock won't want to use this movie as a case in point. Hitch would never make the fatal mistake of leaving the audience without a punch line and way too many unanswered questions to boot. Chabrol and Huppert also teamed for the slightly better Story of Women in 1988.

Verdict: Have mercy and don't make criminally disappointing movies like this. **.

GLENN FORD: A LIFE

GLENN FORD: A LIFE. Peter Ford. University of Wisconsin Press; 2011.

This is an excellent bio of the late actor written by his son, who had a problematic relationship with his father, eventually deciding to think of himself  primarily as a "fan." The book provides a detailed look at Ford's life and work, with recollections from friends and other performers who worked with him. Peter Ford doesn't sugarcoat his father but neither does he excoriate him, so while we don't know Glenn's side in their conflicts the book still comes off as fair and balanced. Peter looks bluntly at Glenn's marriage to his first wife, Peter's mother, singer-dancer Eleanor Powell, and also examines from a personal perspective the other marriages that didn't last nearly as long. The book is not just a catalog of Glenn's infidelities but a solid look at his film performances and acting style. Although Peter writes about his own life and achievements -- declaring at one point that he's a "red-blooded heterosexual" [a dated expression if ever there were one] -- he never forgets whom this bio is really about. Like the best biographies of movie stars, Glenn Ford: A Life makes you want to revisit many of the actor's famous and not-so-famous movies. Like other tomes penned by famous people's offspring, this book makes it clear that it isn't easy being the child of a celebrity, but it nonetheless does bring its perks. There are some unintentionally eyebrow-raising passages in the book, such as when Peter lists guests at his father's artistic soirees and all of them are well-known gay men, making it seem as if Glenn hosted all gay-parties [until some women are mentioned in subsequent paragraphs]. Glenn Ford is another case of a presumably straight actor benefiting greatly from the early career ministrations of a devoted gay man. [Also recommended: Gary Crosby's book about his father, Going My Own Way.]

Verdict: A substantial, very entertaining, and long-overdue major bio of an important star. ***1/2.

PERRY MASON SEASON 6

Raymond Burr and Barbara Hale

PERRY MASON SEASON 6.

The main change to this venerable series in its sixth season was the addition of actor Wesley Lau to the supporting cast. Lau played Lt. Andy Anderson, an assistant to Lt. Tragg (Ray Collins), who was still on the show but whose appearances became sporadic. Most of this seasons episodes were at least "B+" and quite a few were solid "A's."

For instance: An embezzler and his wife are caught up in surprising developments in "Double-Entry Mind" with Virginia Christine and an outstanding performance from Stuart Erwin. Lt. Anderson's cop cousin is implicated in a crime in "Hateful Hero," which features a superb turn by Jeannette Nolan. Liam Sullivan scores in "Inappropriate Uncle," in which a broke, irresponsible man inexplicably makes out a will but turns out to be wealthy after all. "The Stand-in Sister" is an excellent story of gangsters and switched babies with lots of good twists. In the excellent and unusual "Lurid Letter" -- there is no actual defendant in this episode, as such -- a school teacher is accused of making passes at her male students in an unsigned letter. "The Polka Dot Pony" answers the question of which girl is a woman's long-lost grand-daughter. Perry takes on the scandal sheet Spicy Bits as well as a lying client in "Velvet Claws" with Patricia Barry and Virginia Gregg. An excellent Robert Middleton plays an esteemed judge accused of murder in "Witless Witness."

Perhaps the single best episode of the season -- and one of the best in the entire series -- is "Weary Watchdog," in which John Dall plays a blackmailing art dealer. Perry reveals the killer -- which comes as an utter surprise -- in another courtroom  even as the jury in his own trial is still deliberating. This audacious episode may not stand up to close scrutiny but it certainly is a corker!

Raymond Burr became ill during the sixth season and in several episodes he was replaced by other stars playing defense lawyers of his acquaintance. These included Bette Davis ["Constant Doyle"], who faces Hamilton Burger in court and whose expression as she reveals the guilty party is priceless [she says to a hospitalized Perry on the phone: "I'll make a deal with you -- if you don't give me legal advice I won't take your temperature"]; Michael Rennie ["Libelous Locket"], a law professor who defends a woman accused of killing her blackmailer; and Walter Pidgeon ["Surplus Suitor"], who defends a woman with two beaus who is accused of murder. However, the best of these "substitute" episodes was "The Two-Faced Turn-A-Bout," in which Hugh O'Brian, a colleague of Perry's, not only has to defend a murder suspect but deal with the machinations of his own double.

Verdict: Perry's still going strong! ***1/2.

THE BRAIN FROM PLANET AROUS

THE BRAIN FROM PLANET AROUS (1957). Director: Nathan Juran [as Nathan Hertz].

"A very exciting female -- she appeals to me."

Scientist Steve March (John Agar) goes with associate Dan Murphy (Robert Fuller) to Mystery Mountain for some experiments and discovers a hitherto unknown tunnel -- and exploring it encounters the evil Gor from planet Arous. Gor is an intergalactic criminal as well as a ghostly disembodied brain of substantial size who takes over March's mind and then tries to take over the world. Although Gor terrorizes the military and several representatives of world governments by frying enemies and bringing down airliners, there are some compensations: March's girlfriend, Sally (Joyce Meadows), notices that Steve has become a much more passionate kisser. The Brain from Planet Arous is like a fifties horror/sci fi comic book story and just as silly. But it's also extremely entertaining and features a whopping good lead performance from John Agar, who really seems to be having a ball threatening everyone with his evil eye beams. There are also solid performances from the supporting cast, including Meadows and Fuller, as well as old stand-bys Thomas Browne Henry and Ken Terrell. Meadows was primarily a television actor, as was Fuller, although he also appeared in What Ever Happened to Aunt Alice? with Geraldine Page and Ruth Gordon in 1969. 

Verdict: As evil brain movies go, this one is a winner. ***.

THE SPIRIT [telefilm]

Nana Visitor and Sam J. Jones

THE SPIRIT (1987 telefilm). Director: Michael Shultz.

"I think she's got the hots for you -- too bad you're dead."

Years before the terrible theatrical film, also called The Spirit, made in 2008, Will Eisner's comic book/newspaper hero Denny Colt was featured in this made-for-TV movie. After his good friend, a writer who was investigating some kind of art crime, is murdered, Officer Colt comes to LA [or a representation thereof] seeking his killer. Instead he winds up being shot and left for dead. Colt decides to let his enemies think he's deceased, and operating from an HQ in Wildwood cemetery, goes out to fight crime as the masked Spirit. Sam J. Jones is not bad at all as Colt/Spirit, and Nana Visitor is zesty as Ellen Dolan, the police commissioner's (Garry Walberg) daughter. Laura Robinson is acceptable as P'Gell Roxton, the bad girl of the piece, although perhaps not the best casting choice. The stereotypical black character of Ebony, the Spirit's pal and assistant, has been updated to a "streetwise" youth named Eubie (Bumper Robinson) -- another stereotype? The Spirit is amiable enough, but one can see why it never became a series.

Verdict: Okay time waster but little else. **1/2.

A SUMMER STORY

A SUMMER STORY (1988). Director: Piers Haggard.

Just before the war two young men are hiking in the area of Devon and Somerset (where A Summer Story was filmed), when the nicer of the two, Frank Ashton (James Wilby), badly sprains his ankle. The two men find a farm that lets rooms, but when his friend gets bored and leaves, Frank stays on and on and on all summer -- drifting into an intense love affair with orphaned Megan (Imogene Stubbs) and promising her his undying devotion and indeed the world. Unfortunately, things don't quite work out that way in this deeply affecting, beautifully done picture that delineates the tragic aspects of romance. A Summer Story also shows in unflinching terms that even supposedly "nice" people can be unspeakably weak and cruel. This is based on the story "The Apple Tree" by John Galsworthy and has been very well dramatized by Penelope Mortimer. Georges Delerue has crafted a memorable score and the countryside is expertly photographed by Kenneth McMillan. Wilby, Stubbs, Jerome Flynn as Joe (who also loves Megan), Susannah York, and the rest of the cast are excellent. Director Haggard, who has done mostly television work, also directed the wretched Blood on Satan's Claw, but is clearly much more inspired by the material this time around. A Summer Story is a decided tearjerker but by no means is it a soap opera. Beautifully done on all levels.

Verdict: This has been known to make grown men blubber. ****.

THE GAZEBO

THE GAZEBO (1959). Director: George Marshall.

"Can't you call Hitchcock again?"

"The guest room? You know how long it's been since I cleaned in there!" -- the heroine, upon learning a corpse is to be placed in a guest room.

TV writer Elliot Nash (Glenn Ford) decides to take the law into his own hands and take care of a blackmailer who threatens to send sexy old photos of his wife, Nell (Debbie Reynolds) -- just starting an important Broadway career -- to the scandal sheets. A new gazebo that the wife has just bought might come in handy as the blackmailer's resting place. Unfortunately, things don't go exactly as Elliot plans. [At one point he asks an unseen Alfred Hitchcock, for whom he's working on a script, for help! If only ..! ] Actually. this is a pleasant and reasonably entertaining black comedy with a few minor twists that only goes awry and becomes a bit labored in the final quarter. Ford is fine; Reynolds is perky and competent; Carl Reiner is okay as their friend, Harlow -- but Reiner's on-screen personality in his younger days was never exactly likable. Doro Merande is hilarious as the maid Matilda, who shouts at everyone. Martin Landau shows up late in the game as a hood. Ford and Reynolds appeared together the same year in the pretty awful It Started with a Kiss.

Verdict: Undeniably amusing but somehow unsatisfying. **1/2.

CITIZEN KANE BLU-RAY 2011 ULTIMATE COLLECTOR'S EDITION

CITIZEN KANE BLU-RAY 2011 ULTIMATE COLLECTOR'S EDITION. 

Here it is! Beautifully restored and remastered in a special edition 70th anniversary blu-ray collection.

"Citizen Kane, Orson Welles’ tour de force which the American Film Institute (AFI) chose as the #1 film of all time[i], celebrates its 70th Anniversary with an all new 1080p hi-definition restoration from original nitrate elements in stunning 4K resolution and revitalized digital audio. Warner Home Video will bring the iconic masterwork to a new generation with their new Blu-ray™ 70th Anniversary Ultimate Collector’s Edition, complete with more than three hours of bonus content and an array of rare and collectible premiums including a 48-page collector’s book filled with photos and behind-the-scene details, 20-page reproduction of the original 1941 souvenir program, lobby cards, and reproductions of rare production memos." 

 In this collector's edition you get:

"Disc 1

·         Commentary by Peter Bogdanovich

·         Commentary by Roger Ebert

• Opening: World Premier of Citizen Kane Vintage Featurettes
• Interview with Ruth Warrick
• Interview with Robert Wise
• Storyboards
• Call Sheets
• Still Photography with Commentary by Roger Ebert
• Deleted Scenes
• Ad Campaign
• Press Book
• Opening Night
• Theatrical Trailer

Disc 2

·         The Battle over Citizen Kane Documentary

Disc 3

·         RKO 281 (HBO Feature)"

"Here are links to the Official Facebook page as well as trailers and clips:

         Official Facebook:

o    www.facebook.com/CitizenKaneMovie

·         Trailer:

o    http://youtu.be/GwN9Vwr-jRw

·         Film Clip:

o    http://youtu.be/Rrj9-MfXJys

o    http://youtu.be/fgd1ZgGalA4

o    http://youtu.be/qf0zghq-WoM

·         Images:

o    http://warnervideo.com/art"

 Click here to read my review of the masterpiece Citizen Kane. 

Verdict: This is one collector's edition to own. ****. 

HENRY ALDRICH, BOY SCOUT

HENRY ALDRICH, BOY SCOUT (1944). Director: Hugh Bennett.

Henry Aldrich (Jimmy Lydon) has become a troop leader in the boy scouts and is hoping to get a promotion by leading his team to victory in some games. Endangering this scheme is young Peter Kent (Darryl Hickman), the obnoxious son of an old classmate (Minor Watson) of Henry's father, Sam (John Litel) -- Henry has been put in charge of the boy. Meanwhile Henry is also hoping to impress his girl, Elise (Joan Mortimer), who is playing hard to get. This is an okay enough entry in the long-running movie series, although the sentimental aspects do become a bit cloying at times. Peter only gets in line after he gets beaten up, a suspect development to be sure. However, the cast --- including Charles Smith as Dizzy and Olive Blakeney as Mrs. Aldrich --  are as proficient as ever, the picture is often amusing, and there's a suspenseful and funny bit when Henry and Peter are caught on a crumbling cliff as Dizzy tries to haul them up on a shredding rope. Yikes! Darryl Hickman's brother Dwayne played Dobie Gillis on TV.

Verdict: Another pleasant saga in the life of the irrepressible Henry Aldrich. **1/2.

THE FIGHTING DEVIL DOGS

THE FIGHTING DEVIL DOGS 12 chapter Republic serial/1938. Directed by John English and William Witney.

When virtually all the men under his command are killed in a bizarre electronic assault, Lt. Tom Grayson (Lee Powell) becomes subject of a hearing. But it isn't long before he, his buddy Lt. Corby (Herman Brix/Bruce Bennett), and the entire United States Marine Corps learn that the true culprit is a masked fiend who calls himself the Lightning. He uses an "electrical Thunderbolt" to wipe out hundreds on ships so he can loot them, and carries a portable version of the device to obliterate his personal enemies. The cliffhangers in this otherwise exciting serial are fairly routine -- cars over cliffs, conflagrations, falling beams and even sharks -- and one or two are borrowed from earlier serials. There's a minimum of suspense over the true identity of the Lightning, which comes as somewhat of a surprise. Lee Powell did mostly westerns and died only six years after this serial was released at age thirty-six. He had an appealing sensitivity, although he could do the action stuff with reasonable aplomb as well. 

Verdict: Entertaining if unspectacular cliffhanger. **1/2.

A WOMAN'S FACE

 

A WOMAN'S FACE (1941). Director: George Cukor.


"What the well-dressed gargoyle will wear."

Anna Holm (Joan Crawford) is a bitter, disfigured woman who heads a gang of petty criminals and blackmailers. But in her future are fateful encounters with an oily sociopath, Torsten Barring (Conrad Veidt), whom she loves, and a blackmailing victim's husband, Gustav (Melvyn Douglas)  -- who just happens to be a plastic surgeon. Will Anna find love, happiness, and a pretty face -- or will she become inveigled in Barring's plot to kill off his lovable nephew, Lars, for dollars? The plot may sound pretty silly but A Woman's Face is a winner all the way, with a strong performance from Crawford [who, ironically, looks strikingly beautiful in some shots], and a superb supporting cast, including Douglas and Veidt, as well as Connie Gilchrist and Donald Meek as members of Anna's gang; Marjorie Main as a feisty housekeeper; Henry Daniell and George Zucco as officers of the court; and little Richard Nichols as the little boy, Lars. And we mustn't forget Osa Massen as Gustav's wife, who was given the most memorable role of her career in this picture. Dickering with Anna over the price of some indiscreet love letters, she makes the mistake of exposing the latter's scars and insecurity and gets slapped around for her trouble in the picture's liveliest scene [see video]. However, there are other highlights, such as a suspenseful sequence in a cable car and the sleigh ride climax. While Cukor may never have been a Hitchcock, he handles these sequences quite well. Despite the grimness of the subject matter, Donald Ogden Stewart's screenplay doesn't eschew humor any more than it does pathos.

Verdict: Absorbing and first-class all the way. ***1/2.

THE SLEEPING TIGER

Dirk Bogarde and Alexis Smith

THE SLEEPING TIGER (1954) Producer/Director: Victor Hanbury [Joseph Losey].

"A cheap hoodlum -- flipping me away like a cigarette!"

Dr. Clive Esmond (Alexander Knox) is held up at gunpoint by a thug, Frank (Dirk Bogarde), whom he later invites into his home for treatment instead of sending to jail. Knox is an incredible bleeding heart -- he blames all of Bogarde's actions [which might seem tame by today's standards] on his childhood, and can't see what's happening under his nose: an attraction between Frank and Esmond's beautiful wife, Glenda (Alexis Smith), which eventually blossoms into an affair -- and leads to a lot of melodramatic complications. Bogarde is, as usual, quite good, but he seems a little too old and intelligent to be this dysfunctional youth, although if he had played it like a complete lowlife it would have been hard to see Glenda as having romantic feelings for him as well as sexual ones. Knox is fine as the clueless cold fish who can't see this sexy younger guy as a threat to his marriage [there doesn't seem to be any real indication that he himself is attracted to Frank -- aside from his covering up and excusing his criminal actions -- although a modern-day remake might explore this a bit more]. Smith is sexy and not bad as Glenda, although she isn't quite up to the demands of the more challenging sections of the script, although one could argue that this film is not exactly a serious drama and melodramatic emoting was the order of the day. Whatever its flaws -- including an especially pretentious ending and dubious character reversals --  The Sleeping Tiger holds the attention and is entertaining.

Verdict: A good picture that could have been a great one. ***.

FEDERAL AGENTS VS UNDERWORLD INC.

FEDERAL AGENTS VS UNDERWORLD INC. (12 chapter Republic serial/1949). Director: Fred C. Brannon.

Professor Clayton (James Craven) is kidnapped because he has knowledge of something called the Golden Hand of Abisthan treasure, which is coveted by a villainess named Nila (Carol Forman). Nila wants to organize the entire underworld of the country into a massive group like the F.B.I [not nearly enough is done with this great idea]. Out to stop her nefarious plans and find the professor are Inspector David Worth (Kirk Alyn of Superman fame) and Laura Keith (Rosemary La Planche from Strangler of the Swamp). While there are a couple of borrowed cliffhangers in this serial, it also boasts a suspenseful bit involving a box with a bomb in it in chapter 5; Dave nearly running Laura over with his car in chapter 8; a stone-hearted Nila shooting David in 9; a collision between planes in mid-air in 10; and a collapsing bridge in 11. Roy Barcroft, Tristram Coffin and Tom Steele are also in the cast.

Verdict: Fast-paced and generally lively. ***

ROCKY JONES SPACE RANGER

Richard Crane

ROCKY JONES SPACE RANGER 1954. Director: Hollingsworth Morse.

This half hour science fiction show lasted for 39 episodes in 1954. Richard Crane [The Alligator People] starred as Rocky, with Sally Mansfield as Vena Ray, Scotty Beckett as Winky, and Robert Lyden as ten-year-old Bobby. Some of the stories were divided into two or three episodes, and two of these arcs have been collected on DVD. "Crash of the Moons" has Jones and company trying to stop a collision between two planetary bodies and having his efforts thwarted by the suspicions of alien races. In "Menace from Outer Space," Rocky flies to Fornax to investigate after a weapon from that world hits the earth. With his tight pants and sensual lower lip Crane makes an attractive enough hero, and the other cast members are game. The series is charmingly low-tech to say the least.

Verdict: Earnestly dull but not really awful. **.

CHARLIE CHAN'S SECRET

CHARLIE CHAN'S SECRET (1936). Director: Gordon Wiles.

"Chinese people interested in all things psychic."

A very wealthy man who has been presumed dead suddenly turns up alive -- and is promptly murdered. And there are several people who would benefit from his demise. Charlie Chan (Warner Oland) investigates and encounters elderly Mrs. Lowell (Rosina Lawrence) and her family, all of whom are suspects. Inside the Lowell mansion Chan looks for the killer amidst seances, corpses that turn up and vanish, and similar tricks played by both him and the killer. None of the Chan sons appear in this picture -- which alone makes it unusual -- but the comic foil is Baxter the butler played by Herbert Mundin.

Verdict: A very satisfying Charlie Chan mystery. ***.

BEASTS AND BEHEMOTHS PREHISTORIC CREATURES IN THE MOVIES

The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms goes on the rampage!

BEASTS AND BEHEMOTHS: Prehistoric Creatures in the Movies. Roy Kinnard. Scarecrow Press; 1988.

This is one of the earlier books that looked at movies featuring dinosaurs and other prehistoric creatures. Kinnard shows knowledge of and enthusiasm for his subject. If there's any problem with the book is that it was written before or just at the start of the VCR era, and you get the impression on occasion that Kinnard is writing from memory instead of a fresh perspective. Each film gets a chapter but some of the chapters are only a couple of paragraphs long. Still, the book does have some longer, entertaining and informative essays, and boasts some behind-the-scenes interviews as well as many black and white photographs. All in all, it's a fun book for the devotee. Films covered include The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms and The Giant Behemoth, of course. NOTE: For a more recent book on monster movies of this type and others see Creature Features: Nature Turned Nasty in the Movies. 

Verdict: Love those behemoths! ***. 

LEGION

LEGION (2009). Director: Scott Charles Stewart.

When an old lady named Gladys (Jeanette Miller) goes nutso in the isolated Paradise Falls diner, it signals the beginning of a battle between mankind and angels, supposedly sent by an angry God to wipe out humanity. Okay -- at least the Devil didn't do it. The archangel Michael (Paul Bettany) tries to help humankind as a furious battle with demonic/angelic creatures ensues. Despite all the alleged horror trappings, this is really just a mediocre action flick with decent special effects, fine photography, and good acting from a cast, including Dennis Quaid and Charles Dutton, that deserves a much better script. Laughably bad for most of its length, the film plays like a burlesque and is simply too stupid to be enjoyable.

Verdict: Watch out for movies with characters named "Jeep." *.

BLONDE ICE

BLONDE ICE (1948). Director: Jack Bernhard.

Claire (Leslie Brooks) is a hard-boiled dame who has many men in love with her and uses all of them right and left to get the life she thinks she deserves. The men include Stanley (Michael Whalen) a probate lawyer; Les (Robert Paige); Blackie (Russ Vincent) a pilot and blackmailer; Al (James Griffith); newspaper reporter Hack Doyle (Walter Sande); and let's not forget her unfortunate husband, Carl (John Holland). While there's some fun in watching Claire try to commit mayhem and outwit the police and pursuers, the fact is that the picture really suffers because lead actress Brooks simply isn't up to the demands of the script. Blonde Ice needs a Stanwyck or Davis -- or at least someone a little zestier and more talented -- to make it riveting. Brooks, who passed away just last month at 88 years of age, made a few film appearances before Blonde Ice, made one other film the same year, and then didn't return to films until 1971.

Verdict: Bad girls should be more fascinating than this. **.

THE KING'S SPEECH

THE KING'S SPEECH (2010). Director: Tom Hooper.

"Bertie," the Duke of York (Colin Firth), who eventually becomes King George the 6th of England, has a stammering problem that is especially noticeable whenever the poor man has to give a speech. In desperation his wife (Helena Bonham Carter) takes him to an Australian speech therapist named Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush), who has unusual methods of dealing with the problem. As strong-willed in his own way as the King, he and Bertie seem to become both friends and adversaries as the years progress. This is a superb film, completely absorbing from start to finish, that gives us an insider's view into a neglected aspect of history and does so brilliantly. Firth and Rush are magnificent, and there are also notable performances from Bonham Carter, Guy Pearce as Bertie's brother, Edward, who abdicates, Claire Bloom as Queen Mary, Derek Jacobi as the Archbishop, and others. In addition to the great acting, the film's direction, photography and editing are also all first-class. Deservedly won Best Movie Oscar for 2010.

Verdict: Yes, they can still make great movies. ****.

ALFRED HITCHCOCK PRESENTS SEASON 7

ALFRED HITCHCOCK PRESENTS SEASON 7.

This was the final season of the half hour Hitchcock program; the following year it became The Alfred Hitchcock Hour. Although AHP remained an entertaining series, and there were quite a few B+ episodes, it might have had the least "A" episodes of any season. These extra-good episodes include: the classic and suspenseful "Bang, You're Dead!" where little Billy Mumy walks off with a loaded gun; the taut "Profit Sharing," in which retiring Henry Jones steals money from his company and tries to run off to Havana with a blonde; the very interesting "Kerry Blue," directed by Paul Henreid, in which a man (Gene Evans) blames his wife (Carmen Mathews) for the death of his beloved dog [both Evans  and Mathews are excellent]; and "Sorcerer's Apprentice," in which a carnival tramp (Diana Dors) takes advantage of a simple-minded runaway (Brandon De Wilde) -- Robert Bloch's story is predictably gruesome but fun.Guest-stars for this season included Robert Redford, Hugh Marlowe, Barbara Steele, and many others.

Verdict: Not the best season but hardly boring. ***.

THE MYSTERY SQUADRON

THE MYSTERY SQUADRON (12 chapter Mascot serial/1933). Directors: Colbert Clark and David Howard.

Down in San Juan, New Mexico, a "mystery squadron" led by an unknown villain called the Black Ace flies over an area where a dam is being constructed and performs acts of sabotage. Fred Cromwell (Bob Steele) and his buddy "Jellybean" (Guinn "Big Boy" Williams) try to get to the bottom of this mystery and uncover the identity of the Black Ace, although both of them are accused of being the culprit at one point. Other suspects include Superintendent Collins (J. Carrol Naish) and Doc Flint (Robert Fraser), both of whom offer the most notable performances in the serial [although Jack Mulhall is also good]. There is a lot of urgent exclaiming by the cast members throughout the movie, and more running around than you've ever seen, but the cliffhangers at the end of each chapter aren't very memorable. Nonetheless, the serial is entertaining and does manage to work up some suspense over the identity of ... the Black Ace!

Verdict: Not one of the best but still fun. ***.

TERROR IN THE HAUNTED HOUSE

TERROR IN THE HAUNTED HOUSE (aka My World Dies Screaming/1958). Director: Harold Daniels.

Philip Tierney (Gerald Mohr) has just married a woman he met in Switzerland named Sheila (Cathy O'Donnell). She is plagued with nightmares about a strange haunted house but hopes to leave all that behind her when she and new hubby leave for America. Unfortunately, the house Philip takes her to is the exact same house that she's been dreaming about! William Ching plays a cousin who seems to know more then he's telling. Among several problems with this movie is that Sheila is such a wimpy heroine, literally screaming at every noise and shadow -- although O'Donnell is a very good actress. This is a rare starring role for Mohr of Angry Red Planet. Ching mostly did television work but he was also in Buck Privates Come Home, Wistful Widow of Wagon Gap and The Mysterious Mr. M. This is actually a Gothic romance masquerading as a horror film. O'Donnell, who sometimes spelled her first name with a "K," also appeared in The Miniver Story, Amazing Mr. X and Ben-Hur. Sensitively scored by Darrell Calker.

Verdict: In spite of everything it holds the attention. **1/2. 

LETTER FROM AN UNKINOWN WOMAN (2004/CHINESE)

LETTER FROM AN UNKNOWN WOMAN aka
Yi ge mo sheng nu ren de lai xin (original title) (2004/Chinese). Director: Jinglei Xu.

"If you were to call me, even if I were in my tomb, I would gather my strength, get up, and go to you."

"There is nothing more terrible than to be alone with people all around."

In this adaptation of Austrian writer Stefan Zweig's story "Letter from an Unknown Woman" -- already filmed under that title by Hollywood in the 40's -- a young woman named Jiang (played by the director Jinglei Xu) develops an intense, life-long romantic obsession with a writer who lived near her when she was a girl. Although the story has moved from Austria to China and has been updated to a pre and post-WW2 period, this version is somewhat more faithful to the print source than the Hollywood version. The settings are colorful, and the production is well-served by handsome photography and a lovely musical score -- not to mention wonderful acting from the director-star and others in the cast. One problem with the movie is that, even given cultural differences, it is hard to believe that the object of the woman's obsessions, as portrayed by Wen Jiang, would inspire fantasies in pretty young girls. Jiang is not unattractive, but he's not exactly Louis Jourdan, either. Officer Huang [Haung Jiao], who romances the woman, is a bit more on the mark. [Admittedly romantic obsession often has little to do with looks.] Whatever its imperfections, this deliberately-paced movie is moving and altogether admirable. Some may even prefer it to the Hollywood version.

Verdict: A little gem from China. ***.

PLACE OF EXECUTION

Greg Wise and Juliet Stevenson

PLACE OF EXECUTION PBS Masterpiece Contemporary/2008. Director: Daniel Percival.

This was shown in three parts in the U.K. and in two parts here in the U.S. Based on a novel by  Val McDermid, this concerns a journalist, Catherine Heathcote (Juliet Stevenson), who is putting together a television documentary about the disappearance of a 13-year-old girl forty or so years earlier in the isolated town of Scardale. Her chief witness to these events is the former Detective Inspector George Bennett, who is played by Lee Ingleby in the frequent flashback sequences and by Philip Jackson as his older self [both are excellent, and indeed the acting in the mini-series in general is very good]. The chief suspect back in the day was the girl's stepfather, the snide Philip Hawkin (Greg Wise), but there were others as well. But now the formerly cooperative Bennett suddenly wants to pull out of the film, and Catherine doesn't know why, only that the townspeople seem to know more than they're telling. This is an absorbing, well-made telefilm for the most part, but it sort of falls apart with an ending that stretches credulity. Fans of the novel who were surprised by the final twist SPOILER ALERT have probably never seen Laura. Instead of being a real clever surprise that makes sense, the ending is merely contrived.

Verdict: Not bad, but was the novel [or this film] really a masterpiece? ***.

LETTER FROM AN UNKNOWN WOMAN (1948)

LETTER FROM AN UNKNOWN WOMAN (1948). Director: Max Ophuls.

"I came to offer you my whole life -- but you didn't even remember me."

Letter from an Unknown Woman is a movie that it seems you either love passionately or feel complete dispassion for, although on previous viewings I've always held the middle ground. I've finally begun to see this as a very good picture, but it has to be taken with a grain of salt. To those people who feel that there's no such thing as a one-man woman (or vice versa) -- or that such women are mentally diseased [and they may be right] -- Letter from an Unknown Woman  may seem more of a pathological study that a moving romantic movie.

The film is based on a story of the same name by Austrian writer Stefan Zweig, which is one of the most powerful and moving studies of unrequited love and romantic obsession ever written. [It is highly recommended for any lover of the short story/novella. It also explains a lot of Lisa's decisions that have appalled the film's detractors.] This Hollywood film version changes the object of desire from a writer to a composer and makes some other changes as well -- Lisa never gets married to anyone in the story --  although the basic substance remains the same. Lisa Berndle (Joan Fontaine) has loved a neighbor Stefan Brand (Louis Jourdan) since childhood. At first she worshiped from afar, but when she becomes an adult she has an affair with Brand, and even gives birth to his son (unknown to him). Unfortunately, Brand goes away for "two weeks" and she never sees him again ... until years later. The title refers to a letter Lisa sends Brand which forms the story of the movie, told in flashback.

Jourdan is excellent as the not evil but simply unknowing Brand. Fontaine is also excellent, although she's perhaps too sophisticated in the second half of the movie to make us believe she would fall for the same old lines from Brand [once bitten, twice shy, and all that].

Letter from an Unknown Woman was remade twice, first for French television in 2001 as Lettre d'une inconnue and then in 2004 in China. I will post about these in the near future, but for now I'll say that the Chinese version, despite changes in setting and era, is a actually more faithful to Zweig's story. 

Verdict: Memorable and moving. ***1/2.

THE WAR OF THE WORLDS (2005)

THE WAR OF THE WORLDS (2005). Director: Steven Spielberg.

I've never been overly impressed by most of Spielberg's films, but I have to admit he knocked one out of the ball park with this impressive adaptation of H. G. Well's wonderful novel. This compares favorably to George Pal's 1953 version. Updated to modern times, this details what happens when meteors fall all over the Earth and unleash tripods [with martians inside] that destroy or capture human beings. Ray Ferrier (Tom Cruise) does his best to protect his daughter, Rachel (Dakota Fanning) as some truly horrifying events, including an attack on a boat full of people, happen all around them. There are excellent special effects and also some pretty creepy and scary aliens on view. Well-acted [by Cruise, Tim Robbins in a supporting part, and others] and very well-directed by Spielberg. My only quibble is that some may feel that two hours of a little girl being terrorized doesn't add up to entertainment, but Spielberg always feels compelled to put children in danger in his movies.

Verdict: Eye-popping, thoroughly absorbing, and highly intense.***1/2.