View Full Version : Now Screening - What Are You Watching Right Now?
walpurgis
22-05-2021, 13:08
Absolutely.
99.9% would never notice anyway, but I would. :)
The Battle of the River Plate, 1956. Directed by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. Stars John Gregson, Anthony Quayle, Bernard Lee, Christopher Lee and Peter Finch.
https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRLsgdQtTo6ZygjddS1id_RiSvym2BKY 0Un4X6-N-aouf894BTM
When The Battle of the River Plate was completed and screened for executives at the Rank Organisation, it was received so well that it was decided to hold the release of the film for a year, so that it could be chosen as part of the next year's Royal Film Performance (in 1956), since 1955's film had already been selected. The royal premiere was held at the Odeon Leicester Square on 29 October 1956 in the presence of Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Margaret.
Nicely made film this and although not absolutely accurate its not too far from truth.
edit.. also it was interesting that th thought of "goof" of German seamen wearing non German helmets, wasnt a goof but forced on the makers. As the Graf Spee was actually the USS Salem, the Americans wouldnt allow a Nazi flag to be hoist on their ship, so that part was done on a British ship.. The British wouldnt let the men on their ship wear German helmets hence the British ones.. Of course this wan only 10 yrs after war too so some attitutes were raw.
Not sure if they would be any different now, although we dont really have any suitable ships now
Lawrence001
22-05-2021, 17:29
I was obsessed with war films when I was young but I had this one down as rather boring. Sink the Bismarck and the Cruel Sea were much better roughly contemporary WWII naval war films.
It was on a similar level to Battle of the Bulge, equally not that good when compared to say Dunkirk or Ice Cold in Alex.
'Battle Of The River Plate' was one of my father's favourite films for reasons I never got to the bottom of.
He had to watch it anytime it was on which was quite a lot in the 1970s, usually on Sunday afternoon. I'd probably seen it three times by the time I was 6.
The Graf Spee in the film just looks way too much like the Yank ship that plays it, you'd think they would have made more of an effort but reading what Grant said maybe they just couldn't.
Otherwise top film and I always watch it when I see it's on.
Dad's Army, 2016. the much maligned remake... Personally i think its terrific.. stars the likes of Bill Nighy, Toby Jones, Catherine Zeta Jones, Tom Courtenay, Michael Gambon and Bill Patterson.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/8/82/Dads_army_poster.jpg
The Secret Life Of Walter Mitty (2013)
https://i.ibb.co/Bg7pbxN/The-Secret-Life-of-Walter-Mitty-poster.jpg (https://imgbb.com/)
Ben Stiller stars and directs. Not a bad little film, worth a watch.
The Secret Life Of Walter Mitty (2013)
https://i.ibb.co/Bg7pbxN/The-Secret-Life-of-Walter-Mitty-poster.jpg (https://imgbb.com/)
Ben Stiller stars and directs. Not a bad little film, worth a watch.
kristen wiig was in that.. i like her
The Secret Life Of Walter Mitty (2013)
https://i.ibb.co/Bg7pbxN/The-Secret-Life-of-Walter-Mitty-poster.jpg (https://imgbb.com/)
Ben Stiller stars and directs. Not a bad little film, worth a watch.
Yes, not a bad little film. :)
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51199428719_6bb8bd9474_o.jpg
On Talking Pics now
The 'alter egos' car - this did 0-60 in 5.9 seconds in 1969
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51198689181_e4fba42184_o.png
Glengarry Glen Ross, 1992. directed by James Foley and stars Jack Lemmon, Al Pacino, Alec Baldwin etc...
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/65/Glengarrymovie.jpg
Although it made a loss, it is still well regarded and somewhat of a cult classic. Jack Lemmon was voted Best Actor by the National Board of Review.
Rooster Cogburn, 1975... John Wayne and Catherine Hepburn star.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/0f/Rooster_cogburn.jpg
Curse Of The Black Pearl, 2003...
https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRKTcTqELNNPpy-c6orc876-Yxo-_QKENBdIufLEZNlSjHQBj_i
Stagecoach, 1939.
On you tubehttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20210525/1d0de589c95058db591452ffb337ada0.jpg
although not the criterion version unfortunately...
Dunkirk, 1958. directed by Leslie Norman and starring John Mills, Richard Attenborough, and Bernard Lee.
https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcREgq17rlvyXSY6qzzaZnJvGcEk0ZM2h oyFlz817lQaSiX7l2D-
considering getting the USA region A Criterion version of Stagecoach. I think my Oppo can play them...
A bit of daft fun from the Carry-On gang in 1971.. Carry On at Your Convenience.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/a9/CarryOnatyourConvenience.poster.jpg
the first box office failure of the series. This failure has been attributed to the film's attempt at exploring the political themes of the trade union movement, crucially portraying the union activists as idle, pedantic buffoons which, apparently, alienated the traditional working-class audience of the series.
good film that is, 'Dunkirk.' Loads going on in it but it's never overplayed. Modern films could learn a lot from it. Not all the superhero crap though as that's a lost cause from the start.
We could do with driving that back into the sea lol.
good film that is, 'Dunkirk.' Loads going on in it but it's never overplayed. Modern films could learn a lot from it. Not all the superhero crap though as that's a lost cause from the start.
We could do with driving that back into the sea lol.
indeed, it leaves the remake for dead. something about acting and directing as opposed to just getting some pc guy to fill in all the blanks;)
Only Angels Have Wings, 1939. directed by Howard Hawks, and starring Cary Grant and Jean Arthur, and Rita Hayworth before she became really famous. Silent movies actor, Richard Barthelmess got a starring role too, much to everyone's surprise.
All the planes used were authentic for the time.(typical Hawks)
https://www.filmsite.org/posters/onlyangelshavewings2.jpg
A Town Like Alice, 1956. directed by Jack Lee and starring Virginia McKenna and Peter Finch that is based on the 1950 novel by Nevil Shute.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/e/e7/A_Town_Like_Alice_%281956_film%29.jpg
This is the 2017 bluray remaster and vey nice it is..
Pale Rider, 1985... Produced and directed by, and starring Clint Eastwood.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/42/Pale_Rider.jpg
In an audio interview, Clint Eastwood said that his character Preacher "is an out-and-out ghost." However, whereas Eastwood's 1973 western, High Plains Drifter, resolves its storyline by means of a series of unfolding flashback narratives (although ambiguity still remains), Pale Rider does not include any such obvious clues to the nature and past of the Preacher other than six bullet wound scars on his back and his relationship with Stockburn, who claims he once knew a man like the Preacher. Viewers are left to draw their own conclusions regarding the overall story line and its meaning.
The movie's title is taken from the Book of Revelation, chapter 6, verse 8: "And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him." The reading of the biblical passage describing this character is neatly choreographed to correspond with the sudden appearance of the Preacher, who arrived as a result of a prayer from Megan, in which she quoted Psalm 23. Preacher's comment after beating one of the villains is, "Well, the Lord certainly does work in mysterious ways." After Coy offers to let him establish a lucrative ministry in his town, the Preacher replies, "You can't serve God and Mammon, Mammon being money."According to Robert Jewett, the film's dialogue parallels Paul the Apostle's teaching on divine retribution (Romans 12:19–21).
Rio Lobo, 1970. directed by Howard Hawks and stars John Wayne.. This was the third in the trilogy.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/d9/Rio_Lobo_1970.jpg
The Smallest Show on Earth, 1957. directed by Basil Dearden, and starring Bill Travers, Virginia McKenna, Peter Sellers, Bernard Miles and Margaret Rutherford.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/81Ow5dv82qL._RI_.jpg
The Bijou Kinema was not a real building; both the exterior and interior were sets. The exterior facade was constructed between two railway bridges in Christchurch Avenue, London NW6, next to Kilburn tube station. A replica at Shepperton Studios was used for close-up shots and interior scenes.
The Gaumont Palace, Hammersmith in London (subsequently called the Hammersmith Odeon, and now the Hammersmith Apollo) was used for the exterior shots of the rival Grand Cinema with interiors at the Odeon in Richmond.
Back projection shots of Longton, Stoke-on-Trent, in Staffordshire were used for the final scenes in the railway carriage.
The silent film shown in the film is Comin' Thro the Rye (1923) starring Alma Taylor. Taylor is among the uncredited viewers in the audience.
This is the latest Network restored bluray version... Superb copy and a superb film..what a cast too for a smallish film with the likes of Francis De Wolff, Leslie Phillips, Stringer Davis and Sid James also further down the list.
a modern review in the Radio Times wrote, "In praise of fleapits everywhere, this charming comedy will bring back happy memories for anyone who pines for the days when going to the pictures meant something more than being conveyor-belted in and out of a soulless multiplex...The cast alone makes the movie a must-see, and the sequence in which projectionist Peter Sellers, pianist Margaret Rutherford and doorman Bernard Miles relive the glories of the silent era is adorable."
The Day the Earth Stood Still, 1951. Classic SciFi this with Michael Rennie and Patricia Neal starring. Directed by Robert Wise.
This is the newish 4k version.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/63/The_Day_the_Earth_Stood_Still_%281951_poster%29.jp eg/800px-The_Day_the_Earth_Stood_Still_%281951_poster%29.jp eg
In a 1995 interview, producer Julian Blaustein explained that Joseph Breen, the film censor installed by the Motion Picture Association of America at the Twentieth Century Fox studios, balked at the portrayal of Klaatu's resurrection and limitless power. At the behest of the MPAA, a line was written into the script; when Helen asks Klaatu whether Gort has unlimited power over life and death, Klaatu explains that Gort has only revived him temporarily: "that power is reserved to the Almighty Spirit".Of the elements that he added to Klaatu's character, screenwriter Edmund North said, "It was my private little joke. I never discussed this angle with Blaustein or Wise because I didn't want it expressed. I had originally hoped that the Christ comparison would be subliminal".
That the question even came up in an interview is proof enough that such comparisons did not remain subliminal, but they are subtle enough so that it is not immediately obvious to all viewers that those elements were intended to compare Klaatu to Jesus Christ. When Klaatu escapes from the hospital, he steals the clothing of a Maj. Carpenter, carpentry being the profession the Bible says Jesus learned from Joseph, his father. He presents himself as John Carpenter, the same initials as Jesus Christ (and borrowing a given name from one of his disciples, John). His previous actions are misunderstood, and he eventually is killed by military authority. At the end of the film, Klaatu, having risen from the dead, ascends into the (night) sky. Other parallels include: his coming to Earth with a message for all mankind; his befriending of a child; possessing wisdom and specialized scientific knowledge beyond any human being; and people being given a sign of his power. At the very start of the film, one of the British radar technicians, upon observing the speed of Klaatu's spaceship, is heard to exclaim, "Holy Christmas"!
Apropos 'The Smallest Show on Earth', and the location of the exterior set: Christchurch Avenue, London NW6, I know where that is:
https://www.google.com/maps/place/Christchurch+Ave,+London/@51.5466527,-0.2043626,86m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x48761069b059bd9d:0x5e83c 8e09c666c9e!8m2!3d51.5434471!4d-0.2104257
Couldn't do it today - there's too much traffic, even on a Sunday. :doh:
The Day the Earth Stood Still, 1951. Classic SciFi this with Michael Rennie and Patricia Neal starring. Directed by Robert Wise.
This is the newish 4k version.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/63/The_Day_the_Earth_Stood_Still_%281951_poster%29.jp eg/800px-The_Day_the_Earth_Stood_Still_%281951_poster%29.jp eg
In a 1995 interview, producer Julian Blaustein explained that Joseph Breen, the film censor installed by the Motion Picture Association of America at the Twentieth Century Fox studios, balked at the portrayal of Klaatu's resurrection and limitless power. At the behest of the MPAA, a line was written into the script; when Helen asks Klaatu whether Gort has unlimited power over life and death, Klaatu explains that Gort has only revived him temporarily: "that power is reserved to the Almighty Spirit".Of the elements that he added to Klaatu's character, screenwriter Edmund North said, "It was my private little joke. I never discussed this angle with Blaustein or Wise because I didn't want it expressed. I had originally hoped that the Christ comparison would be subliminal".
That the question even came up in an interview is proof enough that such comparisons did not remain subliminal, but they are subtle enough so that it is not immediately obvious to all viewers that those elements were intended to compare Klaatu to Jesus Christ. When Klaatu escapes from the hospital, he steals the clothing of a Maj. Carpenter, carpentry being the profession the Bible says Jesus learned from Joseph, his father. He presents himself as John Carpenter, the same initials as Jesus Christ (and borrowing a given name from one of his disciples, John). His previous actions are misunderstood, and he eventually is killed by military authority. At the end of the film, Klaatu, having risen from the dead, ascends into the (night) sky. Other parallels include: his coming to Earth with a message for all mankind; his befriending of a child; possessing wisdom and specialized scientific knowledge beyond any human being; and people being given a sign of his power. At the very start of the film, one of the British radar technicians, upon observing the speed of Klaatu's spaceship, is heard to exclaim, "Holy Christmas"!
One of my favourite films - although today the intended allegory might appear to be quaintly naïve.
walpurgis
28-05-2021, 13:31
Apropos 'The Smallest Show on Earth', and the location of the exterior set: Christchurch Avenue, London NW6, I know where that is
Just down the road from the Welsh Harp reservoir. I know the area.
Big Jake, 1971.. John Wayne stars...
https://flxt.tmsimg.com/assets/p806_p_v13_ad.jpg
The 1936 Oscar-nominated comedy classic My Man Godfrey makes its long-awaited debut on Blu-ray via The Criterion Collection... Starring William Powell, Carole Lombard, Eugene Pallette, and directed by Gregory La Cava.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/7171NWLYg2L._AC_SL1500_.jpg
The 4k transfer is excellent, considering this dates to before ww2.
The Apartment, 1960. Directed by Billy Wilder and stars Jack Lemmon, Shirley MacLaine and Fred MacMurray.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/91MbFPv3w1L._AC_SL1500_.jpg
4K restoration by Arrow Academy. The film won 5 Academy Awards and was a box office hit, although some critics and members of the public still living in the older days' style of morality(ie everything behind closed dorrs) thought it a "dirty, filthy movie" alas... Nowadays that does somewhat make one wonder how they explained 2 world wars or the indian massacres;)
The Big Short (2015)
https://i.ibb.co/bFSt7P2/220px-The-Big-Short-2015-film-poster.png (https://imgbb.com/)
lorna doone setting crossword (https://the-crosswordsolver.com/setting-of-blackmores-lorna-doone-6-letters)
Based on the true story of various people who predicted the sub-prime crash of 2008 and made a few bob out of it. Interesting and entertaining, good performances, well worth a watch.
Terminator Genisys, 2015. directed by Alan Taylor.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/bc/Terminator_Genisys.JPG
Walkabout, 1971. Directed by Nicolas Roeg. Brand new 4k scan of this film. Jenny Agutter stars.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/81Jskow43DL._AC_SL1500_.jpg
BluRay comes with 3 books in this ltd ed set. the original book, the first script and some essays and photos.
Walkabout, 1971. Directed by Nicolas Roeg. Brand new 4k scan of this film. Jenny Agutter stars.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/81Jskow43DL._AC_SL1500_.jpg
BluRay comes with 3 books in this ltd ed set. the original book, the first script and some essays and photos.Excellent and almost surreal film. Not seen it for a long time but it was better than I remembered.
Red, 2010.. Bruce Willis, Morgan Freeman, John Malkovich, Helen Mirren and Mary Louis Parker
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/zMPtH00B2YA/movieposter_en.jpg
Off to war on the high seas now with Charles Frend's 1953 classic, The Cruel Sea. Stars Jack Hawkins, Donald Sinden, Denholm Elliott, Stanley Baker and Virginia McKenna..
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTsV7_4GWYy6lFlJULKKHE1kQb_4H9ei UVM64xUNevlQdNCthPT
Lawrence001
02-06-2021, 00:20
I see Stanley Baker was a wavy navy officer (reserves). I always wondered if they were all already volunteer reserves at the start of the war, like the Auxiliary air force, or if all volunteers were recruited as reserves all the way through the war, to distinguish themselves from the pre war career professionals. Does anyone know?
The rnvr was how new officers got into the navy. There was, before war out broke the rnvsr(supplementary) which was a sort of crash course for yaghtsmen etc. They all wore same uniform.. Ordinary seamen went straight to the rn
Lawrence001
02-06-2021, 08:40
The rnvr was how new officers got into the navy. There was, before war out broke the rnvsr(supplementary) which was a sort of crash course for yaghtsmen etc. They all wore same uniform.. Ordinary seamen went straight to the rnMakes sense, I'm guessing the professional officers would have tended to still man the capital ships in the fleet and the RNVR used more in the new smaller ships built like the Compass Rose in the film.
Makes sense, I'm guessing the professional officers would have tended to still man the capital ships in the fleet and the RNVR used more in the new smaller ships built like the Compass Rose in the film.
yeah, the fleet was for regulars.. rnvr guys usually did the n atlanic runs... i guess frigates/ destroyers at a push would be their top level, but most would be in bath tubs and corvettes.. downright dangerous work they did, and did it very well. very much underrated
The Fisher King, 1991. Directed by Terry Gilliam and stars Robin Williams and Jeff Bridges, with Mercedes Ruehl, Amanda Plummer, and Michael Jeter in supporting roles.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/7/76/The_Fisher_King_Poster.jpg
An odd film with fabulous scenes and sounds; script is occasionally terrible and often just strange.. A film you'll love or hate i guess.
This is the Criterion BluRay release, which is a 2k scan. sound is 24 bit and its an excellent soundtrack.
walpurgis
02-06-2021, 10:57
The Fisher King, 1991. Directed by Terry Gilliam and stars Robin Williams and Jeff Bridges, with Mercedes Ruehl, Amanda Plummer, and Michael Jeter in supporting roles.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/7/76/The_Fisher_King_Poster.jpg
An odd film with fabulous scenes and sounds; script is occasionally terrible and often just strange.. A film you'll love or hate i guess.
Weird, but wonderful in some ways.
The Hateful Eight, 2015. Written and directed by Quentin Tarantino, and stars Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Walton Goggins, Demián Bichir, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, and Bruce Dern ...
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/91AUVRotMqL._AC_SL1500_.jpg
The guitar destroyed by Russell's character was not a prop but an antique 1870s Martin guitar lent by the Martin Guitar Museum. According to sound producer Mark Ulano, the guitar was supposed to have been switched with a copy to be destroyed, but this was not communicated to Russell; everyone on the set was "pretty freaked out" at the guitar's destruction, and Leigh's reaction was genuine, though "Tarantino was in a corner of the room with a funny curl on his lips, because he got something out of it with the performance." Museum director Dick Boak said that the museum was not told that the script included a scene that called for a guitar being smashed, and determined that it was irreparable. The insurance remunerated the purchase value of the guitar. As a result of the incident, the museum no longer lends props to film productions.
Cant help but think Tarantino may have did it on purpose;)
walpurgis
02-06-2021, 13:57
The Hateful Eight, 2015
Heard of it, but know nothing about it. Amazing cast though.
Heard of it, but know nothing about it. Amazing cast though.
its typical tarantino i guess. violent. bad language, lots of blood at times etc. a twist or 2 etc ..good film
That's the only one of his I've not seen, I really should get it.
That's the only one of his I've not seen, I really should get it.
its one of his best.. its probably behind pulp fiction tho.
Salazar's Revenge...POTC.. 2017.
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRXhEeDOpouHNg3A75Ngkgl-pQdWrr8ErxSuYCbb8-Tn7KcuD79
Javier Bardem, Brenton Thwaites and the lovely Kaya Scodelario join the cast.
Blazing Saddles, 1974. Mel Brooks directs...Starring Cleavon Little and Gene Wilder. Also cast are Slim Pickens, Dom DeLuise, Madeline Kahn, and Harvey Korman. Bandleader Count Basie has a cameo as himself, appearing with his orchestra.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/7/7b/Blazing_saddles_movie_poster.jpg
Catch 22, 1970. All star cast includes Alan Arkin, Bob Balaban, Martin Balsam, Richard Benjamin, Italian actress Olimpia Carlisi, French comedian Marcel Dalio, Art Garfunkel (his acting debut), Jack Gilford, Charles Grodin, Bob Newhart, Anthony Perkins, Austin Pendleton, Paula Prentiss, Martin Sheen, Jon Voight, and Orson Welles.
Directed by Mike Nichols.
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/a0/1f/6b/a01f6bb74b7372c1088ef89ace2e0d83.jpg
The film made a small profit and was critic-ed pretty evenly pro and anti. For the 10 minutes of flying in film it took 1500 flying hrs to capture.
Will stay with 1970 and war films, and rewatch one of my favs.. M*A*S*H...ANOTHER STRONG CAST . Donald Sutherland, Tom Skerritt, and Elliott Gould, with Sally Kellerman, Robert Duvall, René Auberjonois, Gary Burghoff, Roger Bowen, Michael Murphy, and in his film debut, professional football player Fred Williamson.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/61/M%2AA%2AS%2AH_%281970_film_poster%29.jpg/800px-M%2AA%2AS%2AH_%281970_film_poster%29.jpg
Did much better at the B O, making 81m$ from under 4m$ investment
Dark Passage, 1947. Bogart and Bacall star in this film directed by Delmer Daves.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/b2/Dark_Passage_%28film%29_poster.jpg
Vincent Parry (Humphrey Bogart), convicted of killing his wife, escapes from San Quentin Prison and evades police by hitching a ride with a motorist named Baker (Clifton Young). A radio news report about an escaped convict and Parry's odd clothes make Baker suspicious, so when questioned, Parry beats him unconscious. Irene Jansen (Lauren Bacall) picks him up and smuggles him past a police roadblock into San Francisco, offering him shelter in her apartment.
The film was quite well liked and fairly successful
Catch 22, 1970. All star cast includes Alan Arkin, Bob Balaban, Martin Balsam, Richard Benjamin, Italian actress Olimpia Carlisi, French comedian Marcel Dalio, Art Garfunkel (his acting debut), Jack Gilford, Charles Grodin, Bob Newhart, Anthony Perkins, Austin Pendleton, Paula Prentiss, Martin Sheen, Jon Voight, and Orson Welles.
Directed by Mike Nichols.
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/a0/1f/6b/a01f6bb74b7372c1088ef89ace2e0d83.jpg
The film made a small profit and was critic-ed pretty evenly pro and anti. For the 10 minutes of flying in film it took 1500 flying hrs to capture.
If you have read Heller's book - you will appreciate that it is a novel that is almost impossible to do justice on film. However that said, they made a pretty good stab at it. :)
Tokyo Joe, 1949. Bogey again...
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/51/Tokyo_Joe_-_1949_-_poster.png
Will stay with 1970 and war films, and rewatch one of my favs.. M*A*S*H...ANOTHER STRONG CAST . Donald Sutherland, Tom Skerritt, and Elliott Gould, with Sally Kellerman, Robert Duvall, René Auberjonois, Gary Burghoff, Roger Bowen, Michael Murphy, and in his film debut, professional football player Fred Williamson.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/61/M%2AA%2AS%2AH_%281970_film_poster%29.jpg/800px-M%2AA%2AS%2AH_%281970_film_poster%29.jpg
Did much better at the B O, making 81m$ from under 4m$ investment
One of my favourites as well. :)
If you have read Heller's book - you will appreciate that it is a novel that is almost impossible to do justice on film. However that said, they made a pretty good stab at it. :)
yeah i read the book a few times.. its better than the film but the film is, as you say not a bad stab. ive read a few heller books.. good as gold was a favorite, as was god knows
The Fisher King, 1991. Directed by Terry Gilliam and stars Robin Williams and Jeff Bridges, with Mercedes Ruehl, Amanda Plummer, and Michael Jeter in supporting roles.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/7/76/The_Fisher_King_Poster.jpg
An odd film with fabulous scenes and sounds; script is occasionally terrible and often just strange.. A film you'll love or hate i guess.
This is the Criterion BluRay release, which is a 2k scan. sound is 24 bit and its an excellent soundtrack.
Not seen this, but the description appeals to me, so will check it out... Much better than your usual 'crusty golden-oldies'!:ner:
Try and recommend more of this kind of 'leftfield' off-the-wall stuff in future:cool:
Marco.
Alexander Mackendrick's directorial debut with the 1949 adeptation of Compton Mackenzie's novel (who also did screenplay), Whisky Galore. Starring Basil Radford, Bruce Seton, Joan Greenwood and Gordon Jackson.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/67/Whisky_Galore_film_poster.jpg
Was filmed on Barra and was a box office success, and was first Ealing film to do well in the USA, under the name of 'Tight Little Island'
Not seen this, but the description appeals to me, so will check it out... Much better than your usual 'crusty golden-oldies'!:ner:
Try and recommend more of this kind of 'leftfield' off-the-wall stuff in future:cool:
Marco.
yes i think you might like it marco... its a good pic considering and sound is good
Another oddity here.. Jim Jarmusch's Mystery Train,1989. Stars Youki Kudoh, Masatoshi Nagase, Screamin' Jay Hawkins, Cinqué Lee, Nicoletta Braschi , Elizabeth Bracco, Rick Aviles, Joe Strummer and Steve Buscemi.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/b8/Mystery_Train.jpg
Super soundtrack too on this.. Odd but great fun overall..
plot..
The film consists of three stories that take place on the same night in downtown Memphis. The three stories are linked together by the Arcade Hotel, a run-down flophouse presided over by a night clerk and a bellboy, where the principal characters in each story spend a part of the night. Every room in the hotel lacks a television (as is noted in each story) but is adorned with a portrait of Elvis Presley.
The first story, "Far from Yokohama", features Mitsuko and Jun, a teenage couple from Yokohama making a pilgrimage to Memphis during a trip across America. Mitsuko is obsessed with Elvis, and has put together a scrapbook detailing her belief that the singer has a mystical connection to other cultural figures ranging from Madonna to the Buddha to the Statue of Liberty. The story follows the couple as they travel from the train station, through downtown Memphis and a tour of Sun Records, to the Arcade hotel, before they eventually depart to board the train again.
The second story, "A Ghost", is about an Italian widow, Luisa, who is stranded in Memphis while escorting her husband's coffin back to Italy. Luisa shares a room at the hotel with Dee Dee, a young woman who has just left her British boyfriend (Johnny from the final story) and plans to leave the city in the morning. Luisa is kept awake by Dee Dee's constant talking. After Dee Dee finally goes to sleep, Luisa is visited by an apparition of Elvis Presley.
The final story, "Lost in Space", introduces Johnny. Upset after losing his job and his girlfriend, Johnny – called Elvis, much to his chagrin – drunkenly brandishes a gun in a bar before leaving with his friend Will Robinson and his ex-girlfriend's brother, Charlie, who believes Johnny to be his brother-in-law. They stop at a liquor store, which Johnny robs, shooting its clerk in the process. Fearing the consequences, Johnny, Will and Charlie retire to the hotel to hide out for the night; there, they all become increasingly intoxicated. Charlie realizes that Will shares the same name as the character Will Robinson from the television show Lost in Space, which Johnny has never heard of. Charlie and Johnny proceed to tell him about the show, and Will comments that the title describes how he feels then with Charlie and Johnny: lost in space. The next morning, Charlie discovers that Johnny isn't really his brother-in-law, which angers him because of what they've been through. Johnny attempts to shoot himself, and while struggling to prevent him, Charlie is accidentally shot in the leg. Leaving the hotel, the three rush to escape a police car that isn't even looking for them. The closing credits show the train, the airport and final views of the characters from the first two stories.
Harlem Nights, 1989. Produced, directed by, and starring Eddie Murphy. Co stars Richard Pryor, Michael Lerner, Jasmine Guy, Danny Aiello, Redd Foxx (in his last film before his death in 1991) and Della Reese.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/b5/Harlem-nights-poster-1.jpg
The film did quite well at the box office but strangely is rated very lowly. I quite like it ; its not The Godfather, but its entertaining.
Another oddity here.. Jim Jarmusch's Mystery Train,1989. Stars Youki Kudoh, Masatoshi Nagase, Screamin' Jay Hawkins, Cinqué Lee, Nicoletta Braschi , Elizabeth Bracco, Rick Aviles, Joe Strummer and Steve Buscemi.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/b8/Mystery_Train.jpg
Super soundtrack too on this.. Odd but great fun overall..
plot..
The film consists of three stories that take place on the same night in downtown Memphis. The three stories are linked together by the Arcade Hotel, a run-down flophouse presided over by a night clerk and a bellboy, where the principal characters in each story spend a part of the night. Every room in the hotel lacks a television (as is noted in each story) but is adorned with a portrait of Elvis Presley.
The first story, "Far from Yokohama", features Mitsuko and Jun, a teenage couple from Yokohama making a pilgrimage to Memphis during a trip across America. Mitsuko is obsessed with Elvis, and has put together a scrapbook detailing her belief that the singer has a mystical connection to other cultural figures ranging from Madonna to the Buddha to the Statue of Liberty. The story follows the couple as they travel from the train station, through downtown Memphis and a tour of Sun Records, to the Arcade hotel, before they eventually depart to board the train again.
The second story, "A Ghost", is about an Italian widow, Luisa, who is stranded in Memphis while escorting her husband's coffin back to Italy. Luisa shares a room at the hotel with Dee Dee, a young woman who has just left her British boyfriend (Johnny from the final story) and plans to leave the city in the morning. Luisa is kept awake by Dee Dee's constant talking. After Dee Dee finally goes to sleep, Luisa is visited by an apparition of Elvis Presley.
The final story, "Lost in Space", introduces Johnny. Upset after losing his job and his girlfriend, Johnny – called Elvis, much to his chagrin – drunkenly brandishes a gun in a bar before leaving with his friend Will Robinson and his ex-girlfriend's brother, Charlie, who believes Johnny to be his brother-in-law. They stop at a liquor store, which Johnny robs, shooting its clerk in the process. Fearing the consequences, Johnny, Will and Charlie retire to the hotel to hide out for the night; there, they all become increasingly intoxicated. Charlie realizes that Will shares the same name as the character Will Robinson from the television show Lost in Space, which Johnny has never heard of. Charlie and Johnny proceed to tell him about the show, and Will comments that the title describes how he feels then with Charlie and Johnny: lost in space. The next morning, Charlie discovers that Johnny isn't really his brother-in-law, which angers him because of what they've been through. Johnny attempts to shoot himself, and while struggling to prevent him, Charlie is accidentally shot in the leg. Leaving the hotel, the three rush to escape a police car that isn't even looking for them. The closing credits show the train, the airport and final views of the characters from the first two stories.
It's a good film in an "art-house" sort of way. :)
Redd Foxx
God rest his smutty soul.
God rest his smutty soul.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/QkdirL0YxHE/maxresdefault.jpg
:D
I wondered if you'd get that one, shouldn't have doubted you lol.
The Terminator, 1984. Directed by James Cameron and stars Arnold Schwarzenegger and Linda Hamilton.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/7/70/Terminator1984movieposter.jpg
Defying low pre-release expectations, The Terminator topped the United States box office for two weeks, eventually grossing $78.3 million against a modest $6.4 million budget. It is credited with launching Cameron's film career and solidifying Schwarzenegger's status as a leading man. The film's success led to a franchise consisting of several sequels, a television series, comic books, novels and video games. In 2008, The Terminator was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Film Registry as "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".
Terminator 2: Judgement Day. Directed again by James Cameron and again stars Arnold Schwarzenegger and Linda Hamilton, with Robert Patrick.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/8/85/Terminator2poster.jpg
Hugely successful film grossing well over $500m, and was critically acclaimed by most..
Convoy, 1978. Directed by Sam Peckinpah and starring Kris Kristofferson, Ali MacGraw, Ernest Borgnine, Burt Young, Madge Sinclair and Franklyn Ajaye.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/05/Convoy_film_poster.jpg
Film did well at the box office but was panned by critics, and by Peckinpah, as it was cut to shreds.. this is the uncut version.
The Ballad of Cable Hogue, 1970.. directed by Sam Peckinpah and starring Jason Robards, Stella Stevens and David Warner.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/55/Ballad_of_cable_hogue.jpg
The Ballad of Cable Hogue, 1970.. directed by Sam Peckinpah and starring Jason Robards, Stella Stevens and David Warner.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/55/Ballad_of_cable_hogue.jpg
One of my favourites - enjoy!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
One of my favourites - enjoy!
Sent from my iPhone using TapatalkYeah one of my favs too. Just quality
Yes, it's a good film. :)
3 Godfathers, 1948. Directed by John Ford and stars John Wayne, Harry Carey Jr, Pedro Armendáriz and Ward Bond.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/5a/3_Godfathers_1948_poster.jpg
This film was shot in Death Valley, and was dedicated to John Ford's friend and early star, Harry Carey, who died in 1947. At the beginning, stuntman Cliff Lyons is shown silhouetted against a sunset, riding Carey's favorite horse, Sonny, over the words: "To the Memory of Harry Carey, bright star of the Western sky..."
Film made a profit and is well regarded.
'Picnic At Hanging Rock' (1975)
Third time I've seen this, still don't know what to make of it. Gives the impression that it is based on a true story, but it isn't. The authoress of the book wrote it after being inspired by a vivid dream. Could have been rubbish but Peter Weir directs and he is always good and adds an extra dimension to it.
You might like it or you might think you've wasted 2 hours of your life. Hard to say. 'Mrs Mangle' off of 'Neighbours' is in it.
walpurgis
06-06-2021, 08:59
'Picnic At Hanging Rock' (1975)
Third time I've seen this, still don't know what to make of it. Gives the impression that it is based on a true story, but it isn't. The authoress of the book wrote it after being inspired by a vivid dream. Could have been rubbish but Peter Weir directs and he is always good and adds an extra dimension to it.
You might like it or you might think you've wasted 2 hours of your life. Hard to say. 'Mrs Mangle' off of 'Neighbours' is in it.
I seem to remember that I'd not want to watch it again, it didn't leave a memorable impression.
'Picnic At Hanging Rock' (1975)
Third time I've seen this, still don't know what to make of it. Gives the impression that it is based on a true story, but it isn't. The authoress of the book wrote it after being inspired by a vivid dream. Could have been rubbish but Peter Weir directs and he is always good and adds an extra dimension to it.
You might like it or you might think you've wasted 2 hours of your life. Hard to say. 'Mrs Mangle' off of 'Neighbours' is in it.
a good film... but strangely unsatisfying; maybe as the mystery stays a mystery
'Midnight Run' (1987)
Not seen this before, don't know why. Bob De Niro is a bounty hunter who has to take a prisoner (Charles Grodin) from New York to LA with the feds, the mafia and another bounty hunter all chasing after him.
Entertaining but one of those films where you wish it had been done a bit better. The tone is uneven, at times it is like something Tarentino would do, with good characters and snappy dialogue, but occasionally the humour gets broad which waters it all down too much.
Also the directing lacks any style, it's strictly 'by the numbers' although the photography and choice of locations is occasionally excellent.
Joe Pantoliani (later to be Ralph Sipheretto in the 'Sopranos') is good as the bail bondsman, which helps a little. Worth a watch but it's not the sum of its parts.
'Midnight Run' (1987)
Not seen this before, don't know why. Bob De Niro is a bounty hunter who has to take a prisoner (Charles Grodin) from New York to LA with the feds, the mafia and another bounty hunter all chasing after him.
Entertaining but one of those films where you wish it had been done a bit better. The tone is uneven, at times it is like something Tarentino would do, with good characters and snappy dialogue, but occasionally the humour gets broad which waters it all down too much.
Also the directing lacks any style, it's strictly 'by the numbers' although the photography and choice of locations is occasionally excellent.
Joe Pantoliani (later to be Ralph Sipheretto in the 'Sopranos') is good as the bail bondsman, which helps a little. Worth a watch but it's not the sum of its parts.
was a decent film i think, but a bit light and patchy at times.. ive not seen it for years tho so my memory may be playing tricks.
was a decent film i think, but a bit light and patchy at times...
That's pretty much it.
walpurgis
06-06-2021, 09:31
'Midnight Run' (1987)
Just bought the DVD. Don't think I've seen it before.
Callan, 1974. Directed by Don Sharp and starring Edward Woodward, Eric Porter, Peter Egan and Carl Möhner.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMjkxOTIzNzAyM15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNjAyNTYxMQ@@._ V1_.jpg
This was based on the original TV pilot "A Magnum for Schneider"
Red 2, 2013. Directed by Dean Parisot and stars Bruce Willis, John Malkovich, Mary-Louise Parker, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Lee Byung-hun, Anthony Hopkins, and Helen Mirren.
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQzhSq_3ptN13lnxHPeHje-0rY9S_mJrDFelw_W4VNMTTpDifpc
High Plains Drifter, 1973. Clint Eastwood stars and directs..
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/e/e2/High_Plains_Drifter_poster.jpg
Universal wanted Eastwood to shoot the feature on its back lot, but Eastwood opted instead to film on location. After scouting locations alone in a pickup truck in Oregon, Nevada and California, he settled on the "highly photogenic" Mono Lake area. Over 50 technicians and construction workers built an entire town—14 houses, a church, and a two-story hotel—in 18 days, using 150,000 feet of timber. Complete buildings, rather than facades, were built, so that Eastwood could shoot interior scenes on the site. Additional scenes were filmed at Reno, Nevada's Winnemucca Lake and California's Inyo National Forest. The film was completed in six weeks, two days ahead of schedule, and under budget.
The character of Marshal Duncan was played by Buddy Van Horn, Eastwood's long-time stunt double, to suggest that he and the Stranger could be the same person. In an interview, Eastwood said that earlier versions of the script made the Stranger the dead marshal's brother. He favored a less explicit and more supernatural interpretation, and excised the reference. The Italian, Spanish, French and German dubbings restored it. "It's just an allegory," he said, "a speculation on what happens when they go ahead and kill the sheriff, and somebody comes back and calls the town's conscience to bear. There's always retribution for your deeds." The graveyard set featured in the film's final scene included tombstones inscribed "Sergio Leone" and "Don Siegel" as a humorous tribute to the two influential directors.
'Picnic At Hanging Rock' (1975)
Third time I've seen this, still don't know what to make of it. Gives the impression that it is based on a true story, but it isn't. The authoress of the book wrote it after being inspired by a vivid dream. Could have been rubbish but Peter Weir directs and he is always good and adds an extra dimension to it.
You might like it or you might think you've wasted 2 hours of your life. Hard to say. 'Mrs Mangle' off of 'Neighbours' is in it.
I've seen it a couple of times, and would watch it again. A beautifully shot and enigmatic film - I ought to add it to my collection.
Callan, 1974. Directed by Don Sharp and starring Edward Woodward, Eric Porter, Peter Egan and Carl Möhner.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMjkxOTIzNzAyM15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNjAyNTYxMQ@@._ V1_.jpg
This was based on the original TV pilot "A Magnum for Schneider"
It's a good film and have it on DVD. Must get around to getting the spin-off series made for TV.
Key Largo, 1948. Directed by John Huston and starring Humphrey Bogart, Edward G. Robinson and Lauren Bacall.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/57/Key_largo432.jpg
A high point of the film comes when Robinson's alcoholic former moll Gaye Dawn (Claire Trevor) is forced to sing a song a cappella before he will allow her to have a drink. Trevor was nervous about the scene and assumed that she would be lip-syncing to someone else's voice. She kept after director Huston to rehearse the song, but he put her off and said "there's plenty of time". One afternoon, he told her that they would shoot the scene right then, without any rehearsal. She was given her starting note from a piano, and then sang in front of the rest of the cast and the crew. It was this raw take that was used in the film. The song was "Moanin' Low", composed by Ralph Rainger with lyrics by Howard Dietz, introduced on Broadway in the 1929 revue The Little Show by Libby Holman. It became a hit and was Holman's signature song.
Author Philip Furia, whose books focus on the lyricists of the Tin Pan Alley era, writes that the song is about a woman who is trapped in a relationship with a cruel man, and Gaye slowly realizes as she is singing that she is in that very situation herself. He suggests that Trevor's performance in the role slowly breaks down during the song; "her voice falters and she sings off key." After the song, Bogart pours her a drink, saying "you deserve this". "It's a wonderful use of a song in a non-musical picture," according to Furia. He also suggests that Trevor won the Academy Award "based purely, I think, on that performance."
Another of Bogey's best, and the 5th of 5 collaboratons with Edward G Robinson and the only one where he was billed first(mostly)
walpurgis
07-06-2021, 09:33
Key Largo, 1948. Directed by John Huston and starring Humphrey Bogart, Edward G. Robinson and Lauren Bacall
A proper classic that one!
Went The Day Well, 1942. Adapted from a story by Graham Greene and directed by Alberto Cavalcanti. It was produced by Michael Balcon of Ealing Studios and served as unofficial propaganda for the war effort. It tells of how an English village is taken over by German paratroopers. It reflects the greatest potential nightmare of many Britons of the time, although the threat of German invasion had largely receded by that point.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/60/Went_the_Day_Well_Poster.jpg
Starring Leslie Banks, Mervyn Johns(who also narrates), Basil Sydney, C.V. France, Valerie Taylor, Thora Hird, Patricia Hayes and David Farrar.
The film reinforced the message that civilians should be vigilant against fifth columnists and that "careless talk costs lives". It was based on a short story by the author Graham Greene entitled "The Lieutenant Died Last". By the time the film was released the threat of invasion had subsided somewhat, but it was still seen as an effective piece of propaganda, and its reputation has grown over the years. It has been noted that by opening and closing in a predicted future where not only had the war been won but a (fictitious) full-scale German invasion of Britain defeated, and by presenting a scenario where all echelons of British society unite for the common good (the lady of the manor sacrifices herself without hesitation, for example), the film's message was morale-boosting and positive rather than scaremongering. Anthony Quinn, a film critic for The Independent on Sunday, commented in 2010: "It subtly captures an immemorial quality of English rural life—the church, the local gossip, the sense of community—and that streak of native 'pluck' that people believed would see off Hitler".
Cop Land, 1997. Written and directed by James Mangold, and starring Sylvester Stallone, Harvey Keitel, Ray Liotta, and Robert De Niro.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/5c/Cop_land_movie_poster.jpg
Had mixed reviews but was popular in the Box Office... Good film.
Yes, an excellent film, it's under-rated.
walpurgis
07-06-2021, 12:26
Cop Land, 1997. Written and directed by James Mangold, and starring Sylvester Stallone, Harvey Keitel, Ray Liotta, and Robert De Niro.
One of my favourites.
Memoirs of an Invisible Man, 1992. Chevy Chase and Daryl Hannah star. Directed by John Carpenter.
https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQcjSZFTvfIRrgMrxNsMw3vLmvHCrP8U xQNFZ9Eu5Baj-qfSQ43
Failed at the Box Office and was a critical failure t'boot.... I like it, probably as its well enough done and of course Daryl:eyebrows:
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, 2003. directed by Gore Verbinski.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/8/89/Pirates_of_the_Caribbean_-_The_Curse_of_the_Black_Pearl.png
Went The Day Well, 1942. Adapted from a story by Graham Greene and directed by Alberto Cavalcanti. It was produced by Michael Balcon of Ealing Studios and served as unofficial propaganda for the war effort. It tells of how an English village is taken over by German paratroopers. It reflects the greatest potential nightmare of many Britons of the time, although the threat of German invasion had largely receded by that point.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/60/Went_the_Day_Well_Poster.jpg
Starring Leslie Banks, Mervyn Johns(who also narrates), Basil Sydney, C.V. France, Valerie Taylor, Thora Hird, Patricia Hayes and David Farrar.
The film reinforced the message that civilians should be vigilant against fifth columnists and that "careless talk costs lives". It was based on a short story by the author Graham Greene entitled "The Lieutenant Died Last". By the time the film was released the threat of invasion had subsided somewhat, but it was still seen as an effective piece of propaganda, and its reputation has grown over the years. It has been noted that by opening and closing in a predicted future where not only had the war been won but a (fictitious) full-scale German invasion of Britain defeated, and by presenting a scenario where all echelons of British society unite for the common good (the lady of the manor sacrifices herself without hesitation, for example), the film's message was morale-boosting and positive rather than scaremongering. Anthony Quinn, a film critic for The Independent on Sunday, commented in 2010: "It subtly captures an immemorial quality of English rural life—the church, the local gossip, the sense of community—and that streak of native 'pluck' that people believed would see off Hitler".
Propaganda or otherwise, it's a good film. It's been shown on TV a few times of late.
The Captain's Paradise, 1953.. Directed by Anthony Kimmins and stars Alec Guinness, Yvonne De Carlo and Celia Johnson.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/b0/The_Captain%27s_Paradise_FilmPoster.jpeg
The film was a UK hit, and after a few changes to get it past the US censors(him being a bigamist for one), it out did all other Guinness films making over $1m in USA alone.
The Secret Of My Success, 1987. directed by Herbert Ross and starring Michael J. Fox and Helen Slater. Fred Gwynne(Herman Munster) has a nice part too.
https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTbUPnYAMoHa_n-lvR1JfymBc5EBDftvV4dhQKkzcKMbUxMdckS
This was a big Box office hit
The House on 92nd Street, 1945. Directed by Henry Hathaway and stars William Eythe and Lloyd Nolan.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/91cV75BMOeL._RI_.jpg
The movie, shot mostly in New York City, was released shortly after the end of World War II. The House on 92nd Street was made with the full cooperation of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), whose director, J. Edgar Hoover, appears during the introductory montage. Also, the FBI agents shown in Washington, D.C. were played by actual agents. The film's semidocumentary style inspired other films, including The Naked City and Boomerang.
Its obviously a bit of a love-in for the fbi and govt of the day, and showing their work against the Germans' 5th column, but in its day was well recieved and its an interesting film.
walpurgis
08-06-2021, 15:20
Just ordered 'Primal Fear' 1996 on DVD. With Richard Gere, Edward Norton and Laura Linney, tremendous courtroom thriller, with a chilling turn by Norton..
I've been wanting to see this again for a long time. (I read the William Deihl book too, that was also great)
https://i.ibb.co/nb7Bnpv/Screen-Shot-06-08-21-at-04-12-PM.png (https://ibb.co/37pvMKq)
d12 roll (https://freeonlinedice.com/)
Never seen that will have to look out for it. I like a good courtroom drama. Probably due to watching 'Crown Court' when I was off school sick.
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, 2006. Directed by Gore Verbinski.
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTKp5KKVpoYkHVFoFCD0xC-FWBN1ZA2TTe20MNswXlzJ8I06QCM
Just ordered 'Primal Fear' 1996 on DVD. With Richard Gere, Edward Norton and Laura Linney, tremendous courtroom thriller, with a chilling turn by Norton..
I've been wanting to see this again for a long time. (I read the William Deihl book too, that was also great)
https://i.ibb.co/nb7Bnpv/Screen-Shot-06-08-21-at-04-12-PM.png (https://ibb.co/37pvMKq)
d12 roll (https://freeonlinedice.com/)
its a decent drama, but not my cuppa tbh. wasnt brilliantly filmed either. but it has suspense
walpurgis
08-06-2021, 15:50
Never seen that will have to look out for it. I like a good courtroom drama. Probably due to watching 'Crown Court' when I was off school sick.
You will never forget Edward Norton's performance.
Robbery Under Arms, 1957. Directed by Jack Lee and starring Peter Finch, David McCallum, Maureen Swanson, Ronald Lewis, Laurence Naismith and Jill Ireland.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYjA0OWI0MDktNzBjZS00MWFiLThjZmUtNjZmYjE5NTRmNG NlXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTY1MTcxMzc@._V1_.jpg
Film did well in Australia but suffered poor reviews. Script isnt the best tbh but its an interesting film.
Frenzy, 1972.. Directed by the great Alfred Hitchcock and has a great cast. Jon Finch, Alec McCowen, and Barry Foster and features Billie Whitelaw, Anna Massey, Barbara Leigh-Hunt, Bernard Cribbins and Vivien Merchant.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/e/eb/Frenzy_movieposter.jpg
Hitch back to his best here, and shot in London(mostly Covent Garden).
walpurgis
10-06-2021, 12:54
Frenzy, 1972.
"lovely, lovely, lovely" Barry Foster was a proper nut! Top movie.
Another Hitchcock now...Dial M For Murder, 1954. starring Ray Milland, Grace Kelly, Robert Cummings, Anthony Dawson, and John Williams.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/48/Dial_M_For_Murder.jpg/800px-Dial_M_For_Murder.jpg
The film was filmed in 3d although it crashed in that format and was hastily changed to the 2d version where it did well. John Williams as the inspector stole the film.
Blithe Spirit, 1945. Directed by David Lean. The screenplay by Lean, cinematographer Ronald Neame and associate producer Anthony Havelock-Allan is based on producer Noël Coward's 1941 play of the same name, the title of which is derived from the line "Hail to thee, blithe Spirit! Bird thou never wert" in the poem "To a Skylark" by Percy Bysshe Shelley.
Stars Kay Hammond, Rex Harrison, Constance Cummings and Margaret Rutherford.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/ba/Blithe_Spirit_-_UK_film_poster.jpg
Coward had turned down offers from Hollywood to sell the film rights, stating that previous American versions of his plays had been "vulgarized, distorted and ruined". The rights were instead sold to Cineguild, one of the independent companies supported by the Rank Organization. The film was shot in Technicolor and marked Lean's first attempt at directing comedy after working on two straight films In Which We Serve and This Happy Breed, both also written by Noël Coward. The film was shot at Denham Studios in May 1944.
Nearby houses were used for exteriors: Denham Mount (Charles' and Ruth's home) and Fairway in Cheapside (Madame Arcati's house); some filming was also done at Blacksmith's Lane. One source mentions a third location: "Condomine House, exteriors".
The play had been a major success, and Coward advised Lean not to jeopardise this with the adaptation, telling him "Just photograph it, dear boy". In spite of this, Lean made a number of changes such as adding exterior scenes, whereas the play had been set entirely in a single room, showing scenes like the car journey to Folkestone which had only been referred to in the play. Perhaps most importantly, the final scene, in which Charles dies and joins his two wives as a spirit, does not occur in the play, which ends with his leaving his house after taunting his former wives, of whom he is now free. Coward objected strenuously to this change, charging Cineguild with having ruined the best play he ever wrote.
As with most of Coward's work, Blithe Spirit is renowned for its sophisticated dialogue. During an argument with Ruth, Charles declares, "If you're trying to compile an inventory of my sex life, I feel it only fair to warn you that you've omitted several episodes. I shall consult my diary and give you a complete list after lunch." The line, considered extremely risqué by censors, was deleted from the US release
Turning to a more grim subject now with the Classic British crime drama directed by Richard Fleischer, 10 Rillington Place. Stars Richard Attenborough, Judy Geeson, John Hurt and Pat Heywood.
https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcStAlpJuBJfrjjQHUng8YTKZHcdRepAL hkceZkLYL961JTHr0Yf
The film dramatises the case of British serial killer John Christie, who committed many of his crimes in the titular London terraced house, and the miscarriage of justice involving his neighbour Timothy Evans. Hurt received a BAFTA Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Evans.
Attenborough really got into the mind of Christie and was most convincing. Horrific yet compelling.
Turning to a more grim subject now with the Classic British crime drama directed by Richard Fleischer, 10 Rillington Place. Stars Richard Attenborough, Judy Geeson, John Hurt and Pat Heywood.
https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcStAlpJuBJfrjjQHUng8YTKZHcdRepAL hkceZkLYL961JTHr0Yf
The film dramatises the case of British serial killer John Christie, who committed many of his crimes in the titular London terraced house, and the miscarriage of justice involving his neighbour Timothy Evans. Hurt received a BAFTA Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Evans.
Attenborough really got into the mind of Christie and was most convincing. Horrific yet compelling.
10 Rillington Place is now a memorial garden and the street rebuilt afaik.
Now, The Naked City, 1948. American film noir directed by Jules Dassin. Stars Barry Fitzgerald,Howard Duff, Dorothy Hart and Don Taylor.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/69/Naked_City_%281947_poster%29.jpg/800px-Naked_City_%281947_poster%29.jpg
Filmed on location on streets of New York in a semi documentary style. It collected 2 Academy Awards and was a big hit.
See No Evil, Hear No Evil, 1989. Directed by Arthur Hiller, and stars Richard Pryor and Gene Wilder as the blind guy and the deaf guy.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/6e/See_no_evil_hear_no_evil_%28pryor%2C_wilder%29.jpg
The Film didnt do well with the critics but made a decent profit.
Joan Severance is the sexy gal in the red dress..
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Vertigo (1958)
https://i.ibb.co/HncmmQR/220px-Vertigomovie-restoration.jpg (https://imgbb.com/)
Finally got round to watching this, it's rated as a classic.
James Stewart is an ex cop forced into retirement by his fear of heights. An old friend contacts him and asks him to keep an eye on his wife due to concerns about her mental health.
Great-looking film, you could make a still of pretty much any of the scenes into a painting. Hitchcock might have been an odd bloke but he knew his trade.
Like a lot of films from the 1950s the pacing is a bit slow but I did make it through to the end. One big problem is that Stewart was fifty years old at the time of filming, and looks it, and Kim Novak only 25. This makes it a bit hard to believe in their passionate romance on which the plot depends.
Lots of twists and turns, you never really know where it's going to go, which kept me watching despite the slow bits.
Are You Being Served (1977)
https://i.ibb.co/5xrrDfT/Are-you-being-served-320x240.jpg (https://imgbb.com/)
Film version of the 1970s sitcom. As is traditional with any 1970s British sit-com movie spin off, it follows the characters as they go on a foreign holiday (to the Costa Plonka).
Never bodes well when the titles for the big screen version look cheaper than the titles for the TV show. And it gets worse from there. The players are good, they're all veteran comedy actors, but they've got nothing to work with here. The humour is along the same lines as the 'Carry On' films but makes them look like comic genius by comparison.
Totally lame, I couldn't even make it all the way through.
I wouldn't have started! Martin you must have too much time on your hands. :lol:
I wouldn't have even started to watch that film; especially after have watched the classic 'Vertigo'! Martin you must have too much time on your hands. :lol:
Billy Wilder's Five Graves To Cairo, 1943. Starring Franchot Tone, Erich von Stroheim and Anne Baxter.
https://static.thcdn.com/images/large/webp//productimg/1600/1600/12596374-8474833414990264.jpg
Eureka's newest remastered 4k transfer bluray.
Sourced from a brand new 4K master, newer even then the one used for Eureka’s recent release, Kino’s transfer is simply stunning, with a consistently sharp, richly detailed image that’s free of all signs of debris. Ample and evenly distributed grain helps preserve the original film-like texture of the 35mm print, while the high contrast ratio produces inky blacks and an impressive range of grays, which go a long way to highlighting John F. Seitz’s moody cinematography. The DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack is well balanced, capturing the full depth of Miklós Rózsa’s rousing score and sporting perfectly clean dialogue.
walpurgis
12-06-2021, 14:18
Are You Being Served (1977)
I wouldn't even admit to watching that (even though I have :lol:).
I wouldn't have even started to watch that film; especially after have watched the classic 'Vertigo'! Martin you must have too much time on your hands. :lol:
I watched (actually a better word is 'attempted') 'Are You Being Served' first then, went on to 'Vertigo.'
It's true that if I am not working my time is completely free, on the other hand after staring at spread sheets all day I'm not good for much of anything other than watching low-brow seventies sit coms and similar tat. Even listening to music seems to require too much mental energy.
Another Hitchcock classic. Lifeboat, 1944, from a story by John Steinbeck. It stars Tallulah Bankhead and William Bendix, alongside Walter Slezak, Mary Anderson, John Hodiak, Henry Hull, Heather Angel, Hume Cronyn and Canada Lee. The film is set entirely on a lifeboat launched from a passenger vessel torpedoed and sunk by a Nazi U-boat.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/a4/Lifeboat1.jpg
One of Hitch's oddest and most controversial films.. also one of his best imo.
John Steinbeck wrote the screenplay but wasnt happy about its treatment and wanted his name removed....He was unsuccessful.
walpurgis
12-06-2021, 16:34
Another Hitchcock classic. Lifeboat, 1944
Don't know it, but William Bendix was one of my favourite actors and Steinbeck was a great writer.
Don't know it, but William Bendix was one of my favourite actors and Steinbeck was a great writer.
It was a bit of an unknown cast at time but they mostly all went on to good careers. Fabulous film imo.. very much worth watching
Billy Wilder's Five Graves To Cairo, 1943. Starring Franchot Tone, Erich von Stroheim and Anne Baxter.
https://static.thcdn.com/images/large/webp//productimg/1600/1600/12596374-8474833414990264.jpg
Eureka's newest remastered 4k transfer bluray.
Sourced from a brand new 4K master, newer even then the one used for Eureka’s recent release, Kino’s transfer is simply stunning, with a consistently sharp, richly detailed image that’s free of all signs of debris. Ample and evenly distributed grain helps preserve the original film-like texture of the 35mm print, while the high contrast ratio produces inky blacks and an impressive range of grays, which go a long way to highlighting John F. Seitz’s moody cinematography. The DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack is well balanced, capturing the full depth of Miklós Rózsa’s rousing score and sporting perfectly clean dialogue.
I remember enjoying that film when it was shown on TV many years ago.
Contact, 1997. Directed by Robert Zemeckis and stars Jody Foster, Matthew McConaughey, James Woods, Tom Skerritt, William Fichtner, John Hurt, Angela Bassett, Rob Lowe, Jake Busey and David Morse.
https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTJ1VA8UySYJdwKfB0F91lMeGRPIOWma 0LTDLATgSeUmefFd5gi
Carl Sagan conceived the idea for Contact in 1979. The same year, Lynda Obst, one of Sagan's closest friends, was hired by film producer Peter Guber to be a studio executive for his production company, Casablanca FilmWorks. She pitched Guber the idea for Contact, who commissioned a development deal.[2] Sagan and Ann Druyan (who were later married) wrote a more than 100 page film treatment, finishing in November 1980.[5][6] Druyan explained:
Carl's and my dream was to write something that would be a fictional representation of what contact would actually be like, that would convey something of the true grandeur of the universe.
walpurgis
13-06-2021, 09:59
Contact, 1997
I liked that film. Not sure why really, 'cos it's a bit anticlimactic and the story does not make much sense. Carl Sagan was a great guy though.
The longest shaggy-dog story ever.
I saw the film when it came out, but wasn't impressed at the time. As you say the anti-climax is a big let down.
I quite like it.. Its a story that cannot have an end, only a beginning i guess.. The known universe is huge.. but how big is it outwith the knownn, and what is it?
The 39 Steps, 1935. Robert Donat stars with Madeleine Carroll. Hitch directs.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/9/95/The_39_Steps_1935_British_poster.jpg
Alas not the criterion reworked blueray but an sd file from Amazon prime
Forbidden Planet, 1956. directed by Fred M. Wilcox, that stars Walter Pidgeon, Anne Francis, and Leslie Nielsen.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/50/Forbiddenplanetposter.jpg/800px-Forbiddenplanetposter.jpg
In times long past, this planet was the home of a mighty, noble race of beings who called themselves the Krell. Ethically and technologically they were a million years ahead of humankind, for in unlocking the mysteries of nature they had conquered even their baser selves, and when in the course of eons they had abolished sickness and insanity, crime and all injustice, they turned, still in high benevolence, upwards towards space. Then, having reached the heights, this all-but-divine race perished in a single night, and nothing was preserved above ground.
'We're all part monsters in our subconscious, so we have laws and religion!'
'The beast. The mindless primitive! Even the Krell must have evolved from that beginning.'
walpurgis
13-06-2021, 15:14
Forbidden Planet, 1956
Great movie, an absolute classic of its time!
Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid, 1973. directed by Sam Peckinpah and stars James Coburn, Kris Kristofferson, Richard Jaeckel, Katy Jurado, Chill Wills, Barry Sullivan, Jason Robards and Bob Dylan(who also did the score).
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/dd/Pat_Garrett_and_Billy_the_Kid_film_poster.jpg
John Wick. 2015. A vigilante action-thriller film directed by Chad Stahelski, in his directorial debut, and written by Derek Kolstad. It stars Keanu Reeves.
https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcS0l5fuKfa2dQBtNqViR1Haj9JpYl4xR taMasZyv1fLodr9WHsa
I liked this first film. I wasnt keen on second and have not seen any more.
The Man Who Never Was, 1956. A 2k bluray version from 2012 in original AS of2:55:1(cinemascope).. It was directed by Ronald Neame and stars Clifton Webb and Gloria Grahame and features Robert Flemyng, Josephine Griffin and Stephen Boyd.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/81M%2BLgC5ijL._AC_SL1500_.jpg
Take your pick...
Operation Mincemeat involved the acquisition and dressing up of a human cadaver as a "Major William Martin, R.M." and putting it into the sea near Huelva, Spain. Attached to the dead body was a briefcase containing fake letters falsely stating that the Allied attack would be against Sardinia and Greece rather than Sicily, the actual point of invasion. When the body was found, the Spanish Intelligence Service passed copies of the papers to the German Intelligence Service which passed them on to their High Command. The ruse was so successful that the Germans still believed that Sardinia and Greece were the intended objectives weeks after the landings in Sicily had begun.
The exact identity of the "man who never was" has been the centre of controversy since the end of the war. On the one hand, certain accounts claim the true identity of "Major William Martin" was a homeless, alcoholic rat-catcher from Aberbargoed, Wales, Glyndwr Michael, who had died by self-administering a small dose of rat poison. However, in 2002, authors John and Noreen Steele published the non-fictional account of The Secrets of HMS Dasher, about an ill-fated escort carrier that exploded and sank in the Firth of Clyde around the time Operation Mincemeat had commenced. The Steeles argued that "Major Martin's" body was actually that of seaman John Melville, one of the Dasher's casualties. Further, it has been reported that the accuracy of this claim was verified by the Royal Navy in late October 2004, and a memorial service was held for Melville, in which he was celebrated as one whose "memory lives on in the film The Man Who Never Was...we are gathered here today to remember John Melville as a man who most certainly was." But in fact, Professor Denis Smyth, a researcher at the University of Toronto, has counter-argued that Glyndwr Michael was indeed the real "Major Martin." To support his claims, Smyth published the contents of a secret memo and an official report, both authored by Ewen Montagu himself, confirming the Glyndwr Michael story.
The Day Of The Jackal, 1973. Stars Edward Fox, Terence Alexander and Tony Britton.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/615MEu3hVGL._AC_.jpg
An Arrow(2018) 2k scan on BluRay of the classic Fredrick Forsyth novel directed by Fred Zinnemann.
The film did well at the box office and was well liked.. Among those who praised the film was Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times, who gave it his highest rating of four stars, writing:
I wasn't prepared for how good it really is: it's not just a suspense classic, but a beautifully executed example of filmmaking. It's put together like a fine watch. The screenplay meticulously assembles an incredible array of material, and then Zinnemann choreographs it so that the story — complicated as it is — unfolds in almost documentary starkness.
walpurgis
14-06-2021, 13:06
The Day Of The Jackal, 1973. Stars Edward Fox, Terence Alexander and Tony Britton.
Proper movie that. Even if Tony Britton's brummie accent is a bit over-egged at times.
Pulp Fiction, 1994. directed by Quentin Tarantino, and stars John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson, Bruce Willis, Tim Roth, Ving Rhames, and Uma Thurman.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/3/3b/Pulp_Fiction_%281994%29_poster.jpg
Pulp Fiction premiered in May 1994 at the Cannes Film Festival. The film was unveiled at a midnight hour screening and caused a sensation. It won the Palme d'Or, the festival's top prize, generating a further wave of publicity. It was nominated for seven awards at the 67th Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and won Best Original Screenplay;
walpurgis
14-06-2021, 16:27
Pulp Fiction, 1994. directed by Quentin Tarantino, and stars John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson, Bruce Willis, Tim Roth, Ving Rhames, and Uma Thurman.
One of the most amazing films ever. First time I saw it, I just thought WOW!
Wonder if Marco's seen it? Just his sort of thing I'd think.
One of the most amazing films ever. First time I saw it, I just thought WOW!
Wonder if Marco's seen it? Just his sort of thing I'd think.
willis going through better weapons reminds me of you:D
marco is Marsellus:eyebrows:
walpurgis
14-06-2021, 16:54
willis going through better weapons reminds me of you:D
Cant imagine why. :lol:
The Day Of The Jackal, 1973.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/615MEu3hVGL._AC_.jpg
One of my favourite films. Can't say I noticed Tony Britton's accent.
I always wonder if Calthrop kills the gunsmith (Cyril Cusack) to cover his tracks; as Calthrop says it will be his last contract killing. The film is ambiguous on this, and I haven't read the book to find out.
One of my favourite films. Can't say I noticed Tony Britton's accent.
I always wonder if Calthrop kills the gunsmith (Cyril Cusack) to cover his tracks; as Calthrop says it will be his last contract killing. The film is ambiguous on this, and I haven't read the book to find out.
in the book he doesnt.. he respected the man and had no reason to.
Some comfort films starting with Buccaneers...
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl , 2003. Capain Jack and his naval buckaroos..
https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRKTcTqELNNPpy-c6orc876-Yxo-_QKENBdIufLEZNlSjHQBj_i
The Big Combo, 1955. directed by Joseph H. Lewis and stars Cornel Wilde, Richard Conte and Brian Donlevy.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bc/The_Big_Combo_poster.jpg/800px-The_Big_Combo_poster.jpg
Better regarded today than at time...
The Comancheros, 1961. Directed by Michael Curtiz, although Wayne supposedly had a hand in it too. Stars John Wayne, Lee Marvin, Stuart Whitman and Ina Balin.
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/f6/d8/0b/f6d80ba17eba7d4ecbb475453e7180cf.jpg
A bit of 'comic book' style to this, but it is fun. Despite being set in Texas in 1843, all the characters use Winchester lever-action rifles and Colt Peacemaker pistols which were not in production until almost three decade later.
The Comancheros, 1961. Directed by Michael Curtiz, although Wayne supposedly had a hand in it too. Stars John Wayne, Lee Marvin, Stuart Whitman and Ina Balin.
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/f6/d8/0b/f6d80ba17eba7d4ecbb475453e7180cf.jpg
A bit of 'comic book' style to this, but it is fun. Despite being set in Texas in 1843, all the characters use Winchester lever-action rifles and Colt Peacemaker pistols which were not in production until almost three decade later.
They pulled a similar fiddle in 'Zulu', no surprise that we won. Of course in the prequel 'Zulu Dawn' we get stuck with the historically correct weapons. Result - the Brits get massacred.
They pulled a similar fiddle in 'Zulu', no surprise that we won. Of course in the prequel 'Zulu Dawn' we get stuck with the historically correct weapons. Result - the Brits get massacred.
yes, the were short of Martini Henry rifles so used others that were disguised and shot from different angles .. Apparently there were 20k bullets fired by the garrison and they killed 400... They also killed most of the wounded apparently after the battle.
But it was in most part, fairly honest. The character of Henry Hook was a liberty apparently.
walpurgis
15-06-2021, 14:20
Martini Henry rifles
Always wanted to try one of those. Used Martini action guns, but not the Henry.
Silver Streak, 1976. directed by Arthur Hiller and stars Gene Wilder, Jill Clayburgh, and Richard Pryor, with Patrick McGoohan and Ned Beatty in support.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/8/84/Silver-Streak-Poster.jpg
The film grossed over $51 million at the box office and was praised by critics.
The Godfather Pt 2, 1974. directed by Francis Ford Coppola.
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Initial critical reception of The Godfather Part II was divided, with some dismissing the work and others declaring it superior to the first film. While its cinematography and acting were immediately acclaimed, many criticized it as overly slow-paced and convoluted. Vincent Canby viewed the film as "stitched together from leftover parts. It talks. It moves in fits and starts but it has no mind of its own. The plot defies any rational synopsis."
Destry Rides Again, 1939. directed by George Marshall and starring Marlene Dietrich and James Stewart.
https://cdn2.highdefdigest.com/media/2020/01/17/660/destry-rides-again.jpg
Criterion honors this captivating classic with a brand-new 4K restoration, superior lossless audio, and a handful of high-quality supplements. Destry Rides Again stands as one of the all-time greats, and this top-notch Blu-ray release presents it in the finest possible light.
A masterpiece.
One of my all-time favs now(and yet again) Little Big Man, 1970. Directed by Arthur Penn and stars Dustin Hoffman, the lovely Faye Dunaway, Martin Balsam, Cheif Dan George(who was nominated for an Oscar), Jeff Corey as Hickok and Richard Mulligan as Custer....
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Anatomy of a Murder, 1959. directed by Otto Preminger and stars James Stewart, Lee Remick, Ben Gazzara, Eve Arden, George C. Scott, Arthur O'Connell, Kathryn Grant, Brooks West, Orson Bean, and Murray Hamilton.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2f/AnatomyMurder2.jpg/800px-AnatomyMurder2.jpg
A virtuoso James Stewart plays a small-town Michigan lawyer who takes on a difficult case: that of a young Army lieutenant (Ben Gazzara) accused of murdering the local tavern owner who he believes raped his wife (Lee Remick). This gripping, envelope-pushing courtroom potboiler, the most popular film from Hollywood provocateur Otto Preminger, was groundbreaking for the frankness of its discussion of sex—more than anything else, it is a striking depiction of the power of words. With its outstanding supporting cast—including a young George C. Scott as a fiery prosecuting attorney and legendary real-life attorney Joseph N. Welch as the judge—and influential jazz score by Duke Ellington, Anatomy of a Murder is a Hollywood landmark; it was nominated for seven Oscars, including best picture.
This is the Criterion Bluray from i think 2012.
walpurgis
17-06-2021, 12:50
Anatomy of a Murder, 1959. directed by Otto Preminger and stars James Stewart, Lee Remick, Ben Gazzara, Eve Arden, George C. Scott, Arthur O'Connell, Kathryn Grant, Brooks West, Orson Bean, and Murray Hamilton.
Good cast. Don't remember the film though. Gazzara was an underrated actor.
Good cast. Don't remember the film though. Gazzara was an underrated actor.
its a great film geoff.. worth finding.
now, Passage to Marseille, 1944. Michael Curtiz directs Humphrey Bogart, Michele Morgan and Claude Rains.
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Passage to Marseille reunited much of the cast of Casablanca (1942), also directed by Curtiz, including Humphrey Bogart, Claude Rains, Sydney Greenstreet, Peter Lorre and Helmut Dantine. Other actors connected to both productions included Michèle Morgan, who had been the original choice for the female lead for Casablanca; Victor Francen, Philip Dorn, Corinna Mura, and George Tobias.
Although exotic locales were called for, principal photography by cinematographer James Wong Howe actually took place at the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden in Arcadia, California, with additional location shooting in Victorville, California.
Before Bogart began work on the film, pre-production had been underway for six months, but as a result of resisting Jack Warner's decision to cast him in Conflict (released 1945, but shot in 1943), his starring role as Matrac was in jeopardy, with Jean Gabin being touted as a replacement. Even when the issue was decided, Bogart's portrayal was hampered by marital difficulties and a lack of commitment to the project.
The flying sequences show the Free French Air Force (French: Forces Aériennes Françaises Libres, FAFL) using Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress bombers. The production took liberties with the actual bombing campaigns carried out by the Free French units, that primarily employed medium bombers such as the Martin B-26 Marauder. The use of the ubiquitous B-17 was due to its being recognizable to American audiences.
A scene showing Bogart's character machine gunning the defenseless aircrew of the downed German bomber was cut by censors in foreign releases of the film.
The African Queen, 1951. Bogey again with Katharine Hepburn. CLASSIC STUFF directed by John Huston.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/81/The_African_Queen_%281952_US_poster%29.jpg
The Magic Box, 1951. Directed by John Boulting. Stars Robert Donat, Peter Ustinov and Laurence Olivier. Had a very good cast and a vast ammount of cameos(both listed below)
This biographical drama gives an account of the life of William Friese-Greene, who first designed and patented one of the earliest working cinematic cameras. Told in flashback, the film follows Friese-Greene's obsessional pursuit of recording the "moving image", to the neglect of his financial situation, and the problems this causes in his two marriages.
The film was a commericial failure, but Donat, who didnt make a huge amount of films is excellent.
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Cast
Robert Donat as William Friese-Greene
Margaret Johnston as Edith Harrison
Maria Schell as Helena Friese-Greene
David Oake as Claude Friese-Greene
Janette Scott as Ethel Friese-Greene
John Howard Davies as Maurice Friese-Greene
Robert Beatty as Lord Beaverbrook
Richard Attenborough as Jack Carter
Basil Sydney as William Fox Talbot
Bernard Miles as Cousin Alfred
Eric Portman as Arthur Collings
Mary Ellis as Mrs Collings
Muir Mathieson as Sir Arthur Sullivan
Joyce Grenfell as Mrs Claire
Dennis Price as Harold, the man who gathers Willie's possessions
Margaret Rutherford as Lady Pond
Mervyn Johns as Goitz
Glynis Johns as May Jones
Frederick Valk as Maurice Guttenberg
Ronald Shiner as the Fairground Barker
Peter Reynolds as Bridegroom
Cameos
Barry Jones as a doctor
Bessie Love as wedding group member
Cecil Parker at the Connaught Rooms
Cecil Trouncer as John Rudge
David Tomlinson as a Willie's lab assistant
Emlyn Williams as a Bank Manager
Ernest Thesiger as "man"
Kay Walsh as a receptionist
Laurence Olivier and Jack Hulbert as police officers
Leo Genn as a doctor
Marius Goring as an estate agent
Michael Denison as a reporter
Michael Hordern as the Official Receiver
Miles Malleson as an orchestra conductor
Peter Ustinov as an "industry man" in audience
Sheila Sim as a nursemaid
Sid James as an army sergeant in payroom
Stanley Holloway as a broker's man come to collect goods in lieu of rent
Thora Hird as a housekeeper
William Hartnell as a Recruiting sergeant
Googie Withers, A. E. Matthews, John McCallum, Patrick Holt, Robertson Hare, Richard Murdoch and Sybil Thorndike as sitters
Henry Edwards as the Butler at Fox Talbot's
Renee Asherson as Miss Tagg
Martin Boddey as Sitter in Bath Studio
Edward Chapman as Father in family group
Maurice Colbourne as Bride's father in wedding group
Roland Culver as 1st Company promoter
Joan Dowling as Maggie
Marjorie Fielding as Elderly Viscountess
Robert Flemyng as Doctor in surgery
Everley Gregg as Bridegroom's mother in wedding group
Kathleen Harrison as Mother in family group
Joan Hickson as Mrs Stukely
Jack Hulbert as 1st Holborn Policeman
Peter Jones as Industry Man who picks up Willie when he falls
Ann Lancaster as Bridesmaid in Wedding Group
Herbert Lomas as Warehouse manager
John Longden as Speaker in Connaught rooms
Garry Marsh as Second company promoter
Michael Trubshawe as Sitter in Bath studio
Amy Veness as Grandmother in wedding group
Charles Victor as Industry man
Harcourt Williams as Tom
Frank Pettingell as Bridegroom's father in Wedding Group
Norman Pierce as Speaker in Connaught rooms
Michael Redgrave as Mr. Lege the instrument maker who creates the movie camera
Oda Slobodskaya as Soloist at Bath concert
John Stuart as 2nd Platform man at Connaught
Sally Smith as Little girl
Marianne Stone as Bride in wedding group
Brief Encounter, 1946... BluRay(2009) 2k scan. Directed by David Lean and Stars Trevor Howard and Celia Johnson. Written by Noel Coward.
https://a.ltrbxd.com/resized/film-poster/5/1/3/0/1/51301-brief-encounter-0-230-0-345-crop.jpg?k=13bb69b65d
BFI (British Film Institute) and ITV-Granada's joint efforts to bring a deserving, fully-restored, print of David Lean's classic have resulted in a release that looks substantially stronger than what Criterion and Studio Canal offered us in the past. The 1080p transfer is notably smoother, lacking practically all of the specks and dots from previous DVD releases, and with a visibly stronger color-scheme (there are plenty of scenes where the blacks are richer and better saturated). Contrast is also more convincing on ITV's disc, though it seems to be quite inconsistent as well. Finally, the Blu-ray disc also eliminates almost completely the serious edge-enhancement issues that plagued the Criterion disc.
This ideed is the ITV Studios.BFI version.
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, 2007.
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Blackadder 2.. 1986... Rowan Atkinson etc...
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/05/Blackadder_II.jpg
Thief, 1981.(Arrow BluRay) 4k scan. Stars James Caan, Tuesday Weld and Willie Nelson. Directed by Michael Mann...
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This new HD master was provided by The Criterion Collection and delivered by MGM via Hollywood Classics. The transfer was created in 4K resolution on a Northlight film scanner from the 35mm original camera negative. Director Michael Mann's original 35mm answer print was used as a color reference, and Mann supervised and approved the entire transfer. The added Willie Dixon fisherman scene was sourced from a 35mm interpositive made from a print. All picture restoration work was completed by The Criterion Collection.
The original stereo soundtrack was remastered to 5.1 surround at 24-bit from 35mm 4-track magnetic audio stems, and approved by Mann.
Super film Thief.. it also paved way for many other similar films.
Now a western.. James Stewart(AGAIN) in Winchester 73, 1950. Directed by Anthony Mann.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/be/Winchester_73_%281950_film_poster%29.jpg/800px-Winchester_73_%281950_film_poster%29.jpg
The film has gained a reputation as a classic of the Western genre, and helped to redefine the public perception of James Stewart. Writing for the Telegraph, Martin Chilton gave the movie 5 stars and described the film as "the first in a series of Western masterpieces". In Empire, William Thomas calls the film "the marvellously-scripted story of a man and a gun". He also awarded 5 stars. The film holds a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 26 reviews, with an average of 8.57/10.
This is the BluRay presentation.
Back to 1954 for this dark tale... An Inspector Calls; It stars Alistair Sim and Brian Forbes. directed by Guy Hamilton.
https://images.static-bluray.com/products/20/17681_3_large.jpg
Set in 1912, a dinner party held by the upper class Birling family is interrupted by a man calling himself Inspector Poole, investigating the suicide of a working class girl Eva Smith whose death is linked to each family member.
The Enforcer (aka Murder, Inc.)1951.. co-directed by Bretaigne Windust and an uncredited Raoul Walsh. It stars Humphrey Bogart, Zero Mostel and Ted De Corsia.
https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTW25LOg2BF_BCATq_0ymopefoRPyOjm Iiy_-kxhrP6iFU9Y3BQ
Although largely fictional, the film is based on the real-life investigation into a group of hired killers dubbed by the press as "Murder, Inc." (the film was released under that title in the United Kingdom). It was during this investigation, and the Kefauver hearings, that terms like "contract" (a deal to commit a murder) and "hit" (the actual killing itself) first came into the public knowledge. The gangsters used such codes in case of eavesdroppers or phone tappings by the police.
Bogart's ADA Martin Ferguson is based on Burton Turkus, who led the prosecutions of several members of the Murder, Inc. gang. His book on the case was published at about the same time the film was released.
Ted de Corsia's Joe Rico was probably inspired by Abe Reles. Like Rico, Reles was about to testify against a major crime lord but, although under heavy police guard, was found dead after falling out of the Half Moon Hotel in Coney Island on November 12, 1941. It has never been established for sure if Reles' death was murder, accident or suicide.
walpurgis
19-06-2021, 14:15
Thief, 1981.(Arrow BluRay) 4k scan. Stars James Caan, Tuesday Weld and Willie Nelson. Directed by Michael Mann.
Excellent film. Always makes me think of 'The Driver' 1978 with Ryan O'Neil another cracking movie of similar ilk.
Excellent film. Always makes me think of 'The Driver' 1978 with Ryan O'Neil another cracking movie of similar ilk.
Yeah thats a good one too. walter hill film.... another similar one was Heat.
walpurgis
19-06-2021, 14:24
another similar one was Heat.
I know, but couldn't remember the film, even though I know I've seen it. I got a DVD of it recently which I have still to play.
Back to 1954 for this dark tale... An Inspector Calls; It stars Alistair Sim and Brian Forbes. directed by Guy Hamilton.
https://images.static-bluray.com/products/20/17681_3_large.jpg
Set in 1912, a dinner party held by the upper class Birling family is interrupted by a man calling himself Inspector Poole, investigating the suicide of a working class girl Eva Smith whose death is linked to each family member.
J. B. Priestley's play is IMO a work of genius. Is the 'inspector' a ghost, an avenging angel, or some sort of collective conscious-pricking entity? The play has been the subject of numerous analyses - without coming to a definitive answer.
It was recently shown on TV with the great David Thewlis as the 'inspector'. :)
J. B. Priestley's play is IMO a work of genius. Is the 'inspector' a ghost, an avenging angel, or some sort of collective conscious-pricking entity? The play has been the subject of numerous analyses - without coming to a definitive answer.
It was recently shown on TV with the great David Thewlis as the 'inspector'. :)
yeah its one of my favs.. as you say, who the inspector was is very much open to interpretation.. An avenging angel, giving them all a chance to redeem themselves.. only 2 people pass the test....or do they?
Ruthless People, 1986. starring Danny DeVito, Bette Midler, Judge Reinhold, Anita Morris, Bill Pullman and Helen Slater.
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one of my very fav nonsense films....pure class.
Collateral, 2004. Directed by Michael Mann and stars Tom Cruise and Jamie Foxx.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/45/Collateral_%28Movie%29.jpg
The film was well reviewed and did very well at the box office.(as most Cruise films do)
Heat, 1995.. Michael mann again.. De Nero and Pacino star.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/6c/Heatposter.jpg
The Card, 1952. directed by Ronald Neame.(Released as The Promoter in USA) It stars Alec Guinness, Glynis Johns, Valerie Hobson, and Petula Clark.
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It was largely filmed in Burslem in Stoke-on-Trent, the basis for the fictional location of Bursley, and in Llandudno, North Wales. It had mixed reviews but was quite faithful to original novel by Arnold Bennett from way back in 1911.
Entrapment, 1999. directed by Jon Amiel and stars Sean Connery and Catherine Zeta-Jones.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/8/89/Entrapment_film.jpg
Not one of mine, this is an Amazon Prime offering. Sure ive seen it a long time ago.
Entrapment, 1999. directed by Jon Amiel and stars Sean Connery and Catherine Zeta-Jones.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/8/89/Entrapment_film.jpg
Not one of mine, this is an Amazon Prime offering. Sure ive seen it a long time ago.
actually was decent, if far fetched.... now some blackadder
Entrapment, 1999. directed by Jon Amiel and stars Sean Connery and Catherine Zeta-Jones.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/8/89/Entrapment_film.jpg
Not one of mine, this is an Amazon Prime offering. Sure ive seen it a long time ago.
I have it - it's not a bad film, worth watching for Catherine Zeta Jones, but as you say "far fetched"!
Kelly's Heoes, 1970, directed by Brian G. Hutton. stars Clint Eastwood, Telly Savalas, Don Rickles, Carroll O'Connor, and Donald Sutherland.
https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSCwN6Umikpc30JrWF5updkpKP-flbOmUh2WQqiRxeEhfzwjUMF
What can one say.. Magic film.
The Fugitive, 1947. Directed by John Ford and stars Henry Fonda, Ward Bond and Dolores Del Rio.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/11/The_Fugitive_FilmPoster.jpeg
The Fugitive is perhaps Ford's last great 'art film', a high-minded show of faith, a lovingly crafted paean to his own Catholicism.
It did badly at box office and wasnt liked by critics for most part.
Jason Bourne, 2016, directed by Paul Greengrass and stars Matt Damon, Tommy Lee Jones and Alicia Vikander.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/b2/Jason_Bourne_%28film%29.jpg
Flm was a box office hit making over $400m
The Major and the Minor, 1942(so getting on for 80 years young) starring Ginger Rogers and Ray Milland and directed by Billy Wilder(his first in USA I think).
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The film did well and was well thought of. Quality lasts and this one has, in this new bluray production.
Latest bluray 2k version of Tremors, 1990, and released here in dec 2020 in ltd edition form.
It stars good ol' boys Kevin Bacon and Fred Ward with Finn Carter, Michael Gross, and Reba McEntire.
Although it made a modest profit, it didnt do as well as hoped, and that may be due to the very poor marketing. It is now a major cult hit. A classic.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/f/f1/Tremors_official_theatrical_poster.jpg
Alfred Hitchcock's North By Northwest, 1959. starring Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint, and James Mason.
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North by Northwest currently holds a "Certified Fresh" 97% rating on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, based on 109 reviews, with an average rating of 9.3/10. The site states the critical consensus as, "Gripping, suspenseful and visually iconic, this late-period Hitchcock classic laid the groundwork for countless action thrillers to follow."On Metacritic it has a score of 98 out of 100, based on reviews from 16 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". The film ranks at number 98 in Empire magazine's list of the 500 Greatest Films of All Time. The Writers Guild of America ranked the screenplay No. 21 on its list of 101 Greatest Screenplays ever written. It is ranked the 40th-greatest American film by the American Film Institute. North by Northwest was ranked 13th in BBC's 2015 list of the 100 greatest American films.
Time magazine called the film "smoothly troweled and thoroughly entertaining." A. H. Weiler of The New York Times made it a "Critic's Pick" and said it was the "year's most scenic, intriguing and merriest chase";
Interesting film that, nothing like as good as it's made out to be, and Cary Grant seems like he's just taking the piss in some scenes. Or was that what people liked about him? It's a bit before my time.
It's worth a watch though like most Hitchcock.
Interesting film that, nothing like as good as it's made out to be, and Cary Grant seems like he's just taking the piss in some scenes. Or was that what people liked about him? It's a bit before my time.
It's worth a watch though like most Hitchcock.
Yes, it was his charm. his easy way; light hearted with the occasional bit of seriousness. he was the star who had the rare ability to turn a mediocre picture into a good one. He treated his leading ladies as people, not sex objects. He was also bi sexual and lived with Randolph Scott for many years.. A comic genius and a great all round actor.. was rated one of top 5 ever
Yes, it was his charm. his easy way; light hearted with the occasional bit of seriousness. he was the star who had the rare ability to turn a mediocre picture into a good one. He treated his leading ladies as people, not sex objects. He was also bi sexual and lived with Randolph Scott for many years.. A comic genius and a great all round actor.. was rated one of top 5 ever
I just had a look through his films and North By Northwest is actually the only one of his I've ever seen. And I only saw that for the first time a few months back.
I just had a look through his films and North By Northwest is actually the only one of his I've ever seen. And I only saw that for the first time a few months back.
he has quite a few top films to his name, but obviously they are perhaps older than you would wish to watch.
One of his best now. The Criterion bluray of Notorious, 1946 starring Cary Grant, Ingrid Bergman, and Claude Rains. Hitch again directs.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/61tr7oTRQAL._AC_SL1500_.jpg
This is the Criterion BluRay and alas is only available in region A. Fortunately my Oppo will play them so I imported it from the states.
This new digital restoration was undertaken by The Walt Disney Company and the Criterion Collection. A new digital transfer was created in 4K resolution on a Lasergraphics Director film scanner at Warner Bros. Motion Picture Imaging in Burbank, California, from three elements: the 35mm original camera negative and a 35mm nitrate fine-grain, both held by the Museum of Modern Art, and a 35mm safety fine-grain held by the British Film Institute. Several sections of the original camera negative, the primary source for this restoration, have sustained damage over the years and been replaced by duplicate negatives; for some of these portions, the fine-grains were used. Thousands of instances of dirt, debris, scratches, splices, and warps were manually removed using MTI Film's DRS, while Digital Vision's Phoenix was used for jitter, flicker, small dirt, grain, and noise management. The original monaural soundtrack was first restored in 2001 from a 1954 35mm acetate release print and a 35mm nitrate fine-grain master. Additional restoration work was performed by the Criterion Collection for this release, using Pro Tools HD and iZotope RX.
Scanning supervision: Theo Gluck/The Walt Disney Company, Burbank, CA.
Colorist: Lee Kline/Criterion Post, New York.
Digital scan assembly: Cara Shatzman/Criterion Post."
Superb
he has quite a few top films to his name, but obviously they are perhaps older than you would wish to watch.
I don't know about that, I've seen 'Intolerance' and that's so old it doesn't even have sound!
I don't know about that, I've seen 'Intolerance' and that's so old it doesn't even have sound!
Yeah i didnt mean you dont watch older films, just that a lot of folk dont find them as relevent these days.
Now a less old film, and one few will like i guess... Tom Hanks, Daryl Hannah, John Candy, and Eugene Levy star in Ron Howard's 1984 aquatic oddity, Splash.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/a3/Splash_ver2.jpg
The film is notable for being the first film released by Touchstone Pictures, a film label created by Walt Disney Studios that same year in an effort to release films targeted at adult audiences, with mature content not appropriate for the studio's flagship Walt Disney Pictures banner. Splash had received a PG-rating for some profanity and brief nudity.
It won one Academy Award(Screenplay).
I agree with Roger Ebert that a switch of roles for Candy and Hanks would have worked better.
The Green Man, 1956. Its based on the play 'Meet a Body' by Frank Launder and Sidney Gilliat, who produced and adapted the big-screen version, which is directed by Robert Day and stars Alastair Sim, George Cole, Terry-Thomas and Jill Adams.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/ca/The_greenman_movieposter.jpg
A quality film and superb performance from Sim.
walpurgis
24-06-2021, 11:48
The Green Man.
Decent old comedy thriller.
The real (mytholigical) Green Man is interesting.
Decent old comedy thriller.
The real (mytholigical) Green Man is interesting.
He's all over the place round here.
Decent old comedy thriller.
The real (mytholigical) Green Man is interesting.
osiris?
http://www.justsaygnome.net/mysteries-of-the-greenman.html
Dial M For Murder, 1954.. gonna watch this again.. Its an interesting film...
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Why anyone whould want to bump off Grace, ive no idea, especially if your a washed up Ray Milland type;)
I always wanted to see the version with Troy McClure, 'Dial M For Murdurousness.'
I always wanted to see the version with Troy McClure, 'Dial M For Murdurousness.'
and The Erotic Adventures of Hercules:eyebrows:
Young Winston, 1972. Directed by Richard Attenborough and stars Simon Ward, Robert Shaw, Anne Bancroft, Anthony Hopkins and John Mills.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/71lMli64Y0L._AC_SL1300_.jpg
This is the Ltd Edition Bluray from Powerhouse Films. Its a 2k remastered version and comes with the Limited edition exclusive 36-page booklet with a new essay by Sergio Angelini, the cast and crew on the making of Young Winston, an extract from Winston Churchill’s A Roving Commission: My Early Life, an overview of contemporary critical responses, and film credits
World premiere on Blu-ray
Limited edition of 3,000 copies.
Overall its quite a nice clean up. Audio is still only in mono.
1991 Xmas special of Only Fools and Horses...Miami Twice...
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Danger Within, 1959, based upon the 1952 novel Death in Captivity by Michael Gilbert. Directed by Don Chaffey and stars Richard Todd, Bernard Lee, Michael Wilding and Richard Attenborough.
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POW escape yarn with a who dunnit. Set in Italy in 1943. This is the bluray version.
His Girl Friday, 1940. starring Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell and featuring Ralph Bellamy .... Howard Hawks directs.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/21/His_Girl_Friday_%281940_poster%29_crop.jpg/800px-His_Girl_Friday_%281940_poster%29_crop.jpg
Alas not the Criterion bluray so pic quality is poor.
The four feathers 1939, directed by*Zoltan Korda, starring*John Clements,*Ralph Richardson,*June Duprez, and*C. Aubrey Smith
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Lawrence001
25-06-2021, 21:42
Yes, it was his charm. his easy way; light hearted with the occasional bit of seriousness. he was the star who had the rare ability to turn a mediocre picture into a good one. He treated his leading ladies as people, not sex objects. He was also bi sexual and lived with Randolph Scott for many years.. A comic genius and a great all round actor.. was rated one of top 5 everThat makes him sound rather like an American John Le Mesurier (excepting the sexuality point), although the latter rarely played the leading part unlike Cary Grant.
Lawrence001
25-06-2021, 21:44
The four feathers 1939, directed by*Zoltan Korda, starring*John Clements,*Ralph Richardson,*June Duprez, and*C. Aubrey Smith
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20210625/a3c068d9678b1ae0f5bf57b010973cae.jpgOne of the old films that used to inspire me in my youth, along with Ivanhoe and a few more I'm sure.
The Private Life Of Sherlock Holmes, 1970. Directed by Billy Wilder and stars Robert Stephens, Geneviève Page, Colin Blakely and Christopher Lee..
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Elaborate sets were built on the backlot at Pinewood Studios, including 150 yards of the Baker Street set, at a cost of £80,000. The reproduction of the Diogenes Club stood until 1973 having been used in other films such as Hands of the Ripper and Carry On at Your Convenience. The sets were designed by art director Alexandre Trauner.
The scenes set in Scotland were filmed on location at Urquhart Castle on the banks of Loch Ness; Kilmartin Hall on Loch Meiklie; Nairn railway station. The cemetery scene with Stanley Holloway was filmed at the Church of St Mary, Winkfield in Berkshire. Somerset House in London and the London Coliseum were also used as locations. Castle Stuart and Eilean Donan Castle in Scotland and Broadway Tower in Worcestershire made fleeting appearances.
A 30 ft (9m) model of the Loch Ness Monster was built for the film in 1969. The model included a neck and two humps and was taken alongside a pier for filming of portions of the film. Billy Wilder did not want the humps and asked that they be removed, despite warnings that it would affect its buoyancy. As a result, the model sank. The model was rediscovered in April 2016 during a Scottish expedition to find the Loch Ness Monster.
Battle of Britain, 1969. All star cast for Guy Hamilton's classic and fairly accurate depiction of a crucial time in this countries survival.
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The film generally wasn't well recieved then and probably isnt now but i like it. Its everything we perhaps should have been but maybe werent quite. Still my dad was in the RAF in ww2 and a close family member flew and survived the BoB, as a sergeant pilot in a Hurricane i believe, although he flew Spits too..
The Cat And The Canary, 1939. directed by Elliott Nugent starring Bob Hope and Paulette Goddard.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/5f/Catcanaryposter.jpg
The New York Times wrote that Elliott Nugent "has directed it smartly, taking full advantage of the standard chiller devices for frightening the susceptible of his audience but never losing sight of his main objective—comedy...the objective is carried briskly and to our complete satisfaction. Good show"
The Great St Trinian's Train Robbery, 1966. directed by Frank Launder and Sidney Gilliat, and stars George Cole, Richard Wattis, Eric Barker, Michael Ripper, and Raymond Huntley, alongside Frankie Howerd, Reg Varney, Dora Bryan, and the voice of Stratford Johns.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/08/%22The_Great_St_Trinian%27s_Train_Robbery%22_%2819 66%29.jpeg
The story itself is based on the actual Great Train Robbery that took place in 1963, and includes numerous parodies of the technocratic ideas of the Harold Wilson government and its support of the comprehensive school system, and spoof elements based upon those from the James Bond spy films of the Sixties.
It was I think the only one filmed in colour.
A Matter of Life and Death, 1946..ITV Studios bluray. This is ITV's new 4k source from 2018, the same as Criterions' but itv have overall rights hence Criterion are not allowed to bring it out on Region B.
directed by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, the film stars David Niven, Roger Livesey, Raymond Massey, Kim Hunter and Marius Goring.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/817m0Nph4vL._AC_SL1500_.jpg
The decision to film the scenes of the Other World in black and white added to the complications. They were filmed in Three-strip Technicolor, but colour was not added during printing, giving a pearly hue to the black-and-white shots, a process cited in the screen credits as "Colour and Dye-Monochrome Processed in Technicolor". This reversed the effect in The Wizard of Oz.[nb 1] Photographic dissolves between "Technicolor Dye-Monochrome" (the Other World) and Three-Strip Technicolor (Earth) are used several times during the film.
One of the great British films this along with Col Blimp etc.
This is from my Bluray collection. Picture and sound is pristine
excellent film and super quality for 75 yrs old. amazing what they can do now with negs...
now a bit of pirates to chill with. these are just great fun. probably the best series of films made
https://i.ibb.co/bNXfHN4/220px-Million-Pound-Note.jpg (https://imgbb.com/)
'The Million Pound Note' (1954)
Gregory Peck is in Victorian London on the bones of his arse when two brothers - as a bet between them - give him a million pound note, the condition being he has to survive for a month without cashing it. If he succeeds they will give him a job in their firm.
From a short story by Mark Twain which was also the basis for 'Trading Places'.
This film is nothing like as good as 'Trading Places', but it's watchable enough, helped along by the presence of Jane Griffiths at the height of her powers.
Ship Of Fools, 1965. Directed by Stanley Kramer and stars Vivian Leigh, Jose Ferrer, George Segal, Simone Signoret, Elizabeth Ashely and Lee Marvin.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/71qhJ4ldYRL._AC_SX342_.jpg
Well enough recieved and won a couple of Oscars t'boot, ship of fools is an interesting film with a great ensemble cast.
this is the bluray ltd edition
Red River, 1948. Directed by Howard Hawks and stars John Wayne and Montgomery Clift. Supporting cast features Walter Brennan, Joanne Dru, Coleen Gray, Harry Carey, John Ireland, Hank Worden, Noah Beery Jr., Harry Carey Jr. and Paul Fix.
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To commemorate their work on the film, director Howard Hawks had special Western belt buckles made up for certain members of the cast and crew of Red River. The solid silver belt buckles had a twisted silver wire rope edge, the Dunson brand in gold in the center, the words “Red River” in gold wire in the upper left and lower right corners, the initials of the recipients in the lower left corner, and the date "1946" in cut gold numerals in the upper right corner. Hawks gave full-sized (men's) buckles to John Wayne, his son David Hawks, Montgomery Clift, Walter Brennan, assistant director Arthur Rosson, cinematographer Russell Harlan, and John Ireland. Joanna Dru and Hawks' daughter Barbara were given smaller (ladies') versions of the buckle. According to David Hawks, other men's and women's buckles were distributed, but he can only confirm the family members and members of the cast and production team listed above received Red River D buckles.
Wayne and Hawks exchanged buckles as a token of their mutual respect. Wayne wore the Red River D belt buckle with the initials "HWH" in nine other movies including North To Alaska, Circus World, Hatari! Rio Bravo, El Dorado, McLintock!, and Rio Lobo.
In 1981, John Wayne's son Michael sent the buckle to a silversmith in order to have duplicates made for all of Wayne's children. While in the silversmith's care, it was stolen and has not been seen since. Red River D buckles, made by a number of sources, are among the most popular and sought after icons of John Wayne fans.
Vertigo, 1958. Hitchcock directs James Stewart and Kim Novak in this superb film noir psychological thriller.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/81oU52vZQUL._AC_SL1500_.jpg
This is the 2013 bluray release, and not the latest 4k release alas but still very decent.
His Girl Friday, 1940. starring Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell and featuring Ralph Bellamy .... Howard Hawks directs.
https://s3.amazonaws.com/criterion-production/films/436bb25710581da2127e35495df4f1ae/6kPDwi2IgqGHdX39YWNsucgacCRMw9_large.jpg
This time it is the Criterion version. It contains a new high-definition digital restoration of His Girl Friday, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray.
Another disc with a new 4K digital restoration of original 1931 version of The Front Page, made from a recently discovered print of director Lewis Milestone’s preferred version, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack. This was a pre-Code comedy-drama film directed by Lewis Milestone and starring Adolphe Menjou and Pat O'Brien. Based on a 1928 Broadway play of the same name by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur, the film was produced by Howard Hughes, written by Bartlett Cormack and Charles Lederer, and distributed by United Artists.
Last night - An Inspector Calls shown on the Drama channel.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/5/5a/An_Inspector_Calls_%282015_TV_film%29.jpg/250px-An_Inspector_Calls_%282015_TV_film%29.jpg
David Thewlis plays the "Inspector", with Ken Stott and Miranda Richardson playing Mr and Mrs Birling.
Every time I watch J. B. Priestley's enigmatic play, I get no further in knowing exactly who the "inspector" is. No doubt the mystery is intentional.
Dead Men Tell No Tales, 2017, directed by Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg. Johnny Depp, Javier Bardem, Geoffrey Rush, Brenton Thwaites, Kaya Scodelario, and Kevin McNally star...
https://i2.wp.com/moneysavingparent.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Pirates_Of_The_Caribbean-_Dead_Men_Tell_No_TalesPrintBeauty_Shots4K_UHD_E-CommerceWorldwidev2RAP1.jpg?fit=1633%2C2058&ssl=1
Film turned a near total of $800m from a filming budget of about $250m.. a licence to print money. This is the 5th and currently likely to be the final installment. It is also known as Salazar's Revenge.
This is a 4k digital file from my amazon film collection.
Last night - An Inspector Calls shown on the Drama channel.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/5/5a/An_Inspector_Calls_%282015_TV_film%29.jpg/250px-An_Inspector_Calls_%282015_TV_film%29.jpg
David Thewlis plays the "Inspector", with Ken Stott and Miranda Richardson playing Mr and Mrs Birling.
Every time I watch J. B. Priestley's enigmatic play, I get no further in knowing exactly who the "inspector" is. No doubt the mystery is intentional.
not seen this version. The Sim one is so good i always watch it
I haven't seen the Alisdair Sim version, so I can't make any comparison. But I will say Thewlis's timing is impeccable, and the scenes at the end heavily suggest that the "Inspector" is a supernatural being: a harbinger of the forthcoming WW1, or of the fall of the Birling family fortunes?
I haven't seen the Alisdair Sim version, so I can't make any comparison. But I will say Thewlis's timing is impeccable, and the scenes at the end heavily suggest that the "Inspector" is a supernatural being: a harbinger of the forthcoming WW1, or of the fall of the Birling family fortunes?
highly reccommend it barry. think you will like it
Once Upon a Time in the West, 1968.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/91MAp1Bhq5L._AC_SL1500_.jpg
Although it wasnt particularly liked by critics at the time it went on to be rated one of the best ever films(which i would concur) it was released in a Paris cinema and ran for 2 years consecutively, almost driving the projectionist mad.
Great film, best film any of those four were in. Although '12 Angry Men' is great too.
Great film, best film any of those four were in. Although '12 Angry Men' is great too.
Fonda was in a few goodies tbf. grapes of wrath, mr roberts, the wrong man, darling clementine etc.
bronson has a couple as does robards.
I like 'Mr Majestic' with Bronson but he did make a lot of tat with Michael Winner.
He did Chato's Land which i liked. Typical Winner violence but it was a decent attempt at revisionism
Yeah that's watchable for a Winner film.
The Front Page is a 1931 American pre-Code comedy-drama film directed by Lewis Milestone and starring Adolphe Menjou and Pat O'Brien. Based on a 1928 Broadway play of the same name by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur, the film was produced by Howard Hughes, written by Bartlett Cormack and Charles Lederer, and distributed by United Artists. The supporting cast includes Mary Brian, George E. Stone, Matt Moore, Edward Everett Horton and Walter Catlett. At the 4th Academy Awards, the film was nominated for Best Picture, Milestone for Best Director, and Menjou for Best Actor.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2c/The_Front_Page_%281931_film%29_poster.jpg/330px-The_Front_Page_%281931_film%29_poster.jpg
The recent Criterion release which was restored by the Lucas foundation.
I Start Counting, 1970. Directed by David Greene and starring Jenny Agutter and Bryan Marshall. This is the BFI version of the film on Bluray disc. Its a better picture and has a good 1 channel monoural audio track. Colour has had a slight shift too which helps.
Fabulous film.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/91-MwO9o0aL._AC_SL1500_.jpg
Some heavy duty stiff upperlipidness now in the Coldiz Story from 1955... 2nd world war pow escape film, and mostly true as well.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/8/80/The_Colditz_Story_movie_poster.jpg
Starring John Mills, Lionel Jeffries and Eric Portman and directed by Guy Hamilton.
The film did well here in UK and was 4th best visited in the year, but like most British films of this type, flopped in the USA.
from my plex library.
First Blood, 1982. Stars Sylvester Stallone and Brian Dennehy.
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQaLTg23KU687F0lhsFwVwyA4mpb4KKI JQMOOhbqInsRETWYB5E
First and best of the bunch. From My Plex Library again.
walpurgis
01-07-2021, 16:00
First Blood, 1982. Stars Sylvester Stallone and Brian Dennehy.
I was thinking about that movie just now, it's not bad.
I was thinking about that movie just now, it's not bad.
yeah, its the best one by far imo.
The Blue Dahlia, 1946. directed by George Marshall and starring Alan Ladd, Veronica Lake and William Bendix.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/6b/Bluedahlia.jpg
This was Raymond Chandler's first original screenplay, and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay.
Chandler had difficulties finishing it and had to go on the booze badly at risk of his life to get there.
This is the bluray version. excellent film
Last night on BBC4 - Casablanca
https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRlIHtgWeQQsiZaY5iw_A5FTDeKr7bNF Wo1W_zObm0h_ti2Yk0V
This must have been a restored version, because the blacks and whites are just beautiful and sharp. I love this film, despite it's subdued propaganda.
http://www.mtv.com/news/2764130/whats-the-big-deal-casablanca-1942/
Me too. The only problem I have with it is the Bergman character. Aside from being pretty I never understand why a bloke like Rick would be so crazy about her, and the Paris flashback where that should be explained is the only lame scene in the film.
Alternative ending:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2o8FLdIIVeg
It's also where one of the many continuity errors in the film occur - when Rick is waiting for Ilsa at the train station it is pouring with rain, Sam turns up with the letter and the two of them are soaking wet, yet the next shot is of them boarding the train and miraculously their clothes are dry.
Unusally the film is shot in the exact sequence order of the script; because the script was being written as the film was being made.
A somewhat self indugent analysis of why Casablanca is such a well-loved film. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sC_kfwa5-kg
Me too. The only problem I have with it is the Bergman character. Aside from being pretty I never understand why a bloke like Rick would be so crazy about her, and the Paris flashback where that should be explained is the only lame scene in the film.
there is no accounting for love. and i'd say she was a bit better than pretty:eyebrows: agree tho, probably not rick's type
Just arrived from the States in region A guise; The Criterion remastered bluray of Alfred Hitchcock's The 39 Staps, 1935 starring Robert Donat.
Its still not a stunning picture but much improved all same. it is 86 years young after all.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/71WDbFxquBL._AC_SL1500_.jpg
https://i.ibb.co/605Cy7P/215px-Moon-2008-film-poster.jpg (https://imgbb.com/)
Moon (2009)
Was going to give this a pass until I noticed that it starred Sam Rockwell so thought I'd give it a chance despite modern sci-fi being pretty universally dismal.
Rockwell is the sole inhabitant of a mining base on the far side of the moon, nearing the end of a 3 year tour. When weird stuff starts to happen you wonder if he is cracking up or if it is real.
Not bad at all, keeps you guessing as to what's going on almost to the end. High production values and Rockwell is very good as always. Worth a watch.
https://i.ibb.co/605Cy7P/215px-Moon-2008-film-poster.jpg (https://imgbb.com/)
Moon (2009)
Was going to give this a pass until I noticed that it starred Sam Rockwell so thought I'd give it a chance despite modern sci-fi being pretty universally dismal.
Rockwell is the sole inhabitant of a mining base on the far side of the moon, nearing the end of a 3 year tour. When weird stuff starts to happen you wonder if he is cracking up or if it is real.
Not bad at all, keeps you guessing as to what's going on almost to the end. High production values and Rockwell is very good as always. Worth a watch.
got that in my free prime list to watch..
Here Comes Mr. Jordan, 1941. This is the Criterionremastered to 2k version bluray., which is mostly terrific so far. Stars Robert Montgomery, Claude Rains and Evelyn Keyes, and directed by Alexander Hall.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/81L9zd7N94L._AC_SL1500_.jpg
Harry Segall won the Academy Award for Best Story, while Sidney Buchman and Seton I. Miller won for Best Screenplay. Nominations included: Best Picture, Montgomery for Best Actor in a Leading Role, Hall for Best Director, Gleason for Best Actor in a Supporting Role and Joseph Walker for Best Cinematography, Black-and-White.
One of the greats this for me.
Carry on Cleo, 1964. Amanda Barry as Cleo, and very pretty she was.
Many of the main costumes came from the Burton/Taylor Cleopatra filmhttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20210703/c29c43f0193f90627985f369bb3d9d91.jpg
https://i.ibb.co/605Cy7P/215px-Moon-2008-film-poster.jpg (https://imgbb.com/)
Moon (2009)
Was going to give this a pass until I noticed that it starred Sam Rockwell so thought I'd give it a chance despite modern sci-fi being pretty universally dismal.
Rockwell is the sole inhabitant of a mining base on the far side of the moon, nearing the end of a 3 year tour. When weird stuff starts to happen you wonder if he is cracking up or if it is real.
Not bad at all, keeps you guessing as to what's going on almost to the end. High production values and Rockwell is very good as always. Worth a watch.
Yes - it's a good film. Seen it a few times.
Barry Lyndon, 1975, dircted by Stanley Kubrick and stars Ryan O'Neil, Marisa Berenson, Patrick Magee, Leonard Rossiter, and Hardy Krüger.
This is the Criterion Region A bluray 2 disc set.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/e/ee/Barry_Lyndon_A.jpg
"Barry Lyndon is presented in the film's photographed aspect ratio of 1.66:1, as specified in a December 8, 1975, letter from director Stanley Kubrick to projectionists. This new digital transfer was created in 16-bit 4K resolution on a Lasergraphics Director film scanner from the 35mm original camera negative. The high-definition transfer created in 2000 and supervised by Leon Vitali, Kubrick's personal assistant, served as a color reference for this new master. Thousands of instances of dirt, debris, scratches, splices, and warps were manually removed using MTI Film's DRS, while Digital Vision's Phoenix was used for jitter, flicker, small dirt, grain, and noise management. The original monaural soundtrack was remastered from the 35mm magnetic DME (dialogue, music, and effects) track. Clicks, thumps, hiss, hum, and crackle were manually removed using Pro Tools HD and iZotope RX. The alternate 5.1 surround soundtrack was created in 2000 from original soundtrack stems by Vitali and audio engineer Chris Jenkins.
Transfer supervisor: Lee Kline.
Colorist: Janet Wilson/Warner Bros. Motion Picture Imaging, Burbank, CA."
walpurgis
04-07-2021, 09:19
Barry Lyndon, 1975, dircted by Stanley Kubrick and stars Ryan O'Neil, Marisa Berenson, Patrick Magee, Leonard Rossiter, and Hardy Krüger."
I remember seeing that when it was released. I enjoyed it.
One of my favourites that. A perfect film, a superb work of art.
One of my favourites that. A perfect film, a superb work of art.
yeah a great film... another now coming up
The Day The Earth Caught Fire, 1961, directed by Val Guest and stars Edward Judd, Leo McKern and Janet Munro. Also features Arthur Christiansen as the Express editor, a job he had held in real life.
This is the BFI 4K remastered version on 2K bluray.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/71vhGRmWGkL._AC_SL1500_.jpg
In his commentary track, director Val Guest stated that the sound of church bells heard at the very end of the American version had been added by distributor Universal, in order to suggest that the emergency detonation had succeeded and that the Earth had been saved. Guest speculated that the bells motif had been inspired by the film The War of the Worlds (1953), which ends with the joyous ringing of church bells after the emergency (and a nuclear explosion). But Guest maintained that his intention was to always have an ambiguous ending.
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