CULT FILM FREAK

Presented by James M. Tate / 9/26/2016 / No comments / clint eastwood , creature , fifties , hugh beaumont , jack arnold , john agar , science-fiction , william alland

ALLAND AND AGAR DOUBLE: TARANTULA & MOLE PEOPLE

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-R4XAXCJleyA/V-X22hRgMQI/AAAAAAAAucg/4WAMZsvHNS00GmgI8LE-4IcimviDaopJACLcB/s1600/222222.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="293" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-R4XAXCJleyA/V-X22hRgMQI/AAAAAAAAucg/4WAMZsvHNS00GmgI8LE-4IcimviDaopJACLcB/s400/222222.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>The man who shoots the TARANTULA is pictured below YEAR: 1955</u></td></tr>
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<u>TARANTULA</u>: The now obsolete special-effects method of superimposing insects or critters to make them seen giant, menacing and formidable only works since they're something we humans can easily otherwise hunt, shoot or step on – and now it's their turn to turn <i>us</i> into roadkill, or dinner...<br>
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But, using the enlarging-of-nature device for a contrived short-cut, producer William Alland's THE LAND UNKNOWN had footage of Gila Monsters to seem like dinosaurs, which didn't work since turning something naturally (relatively) small into what's supposed to be gigantic is just plain cheap – a possible one of several reasons his most capable and talented stock director, Jack Arnold, backed out of the project. But a year earlier, not only did Arnold direct TARANTULA, one of the best 1950's b-movie creature features, it's derived from a story he himself co-created.<br>

clint eastwood, creature, fifties, hugh beaumont, jack arnold, john agar, science-fiction, william alland

ALLAND AND AGAR DOUBLE: TARANTULA & MOLE PEOPLE

The man who shoots the TARANTULA is pictured below YEAR: 1955 TARANTULA : The now obsolete speci...

ARTHOUSE MELANCHOLY OF ANGELINA JOLIE'S BY THE SEA

2016, angelina jolie, brad pitt, neo noir, romance

ARTHOUSE MELANCHOLY OF ANGELINA JOLIE'S BY THE SEA

Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt in BY THE SEA Year: 2015 Those who haven't yet experienced BY T...

WAYNE CRAWFORD DOUBLE FEATURE: JAKE SPEED & WHITE GHOST

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VHetfCNw0Lk/V-IMyUWmtaI/AAAAAAAAuao/FUIkcIUJNEgifUnz_89yN9vA4lS-uJZXgCLcB/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="247" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VHetfCNw0Lk/V-IMyUWmtaI/AAAAAAAAuao/FUIkcIUJNEgifUnz_89yN9vA4lS-uJZXgCLcB/s400/1.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Wayne Crawford enters the scene of WHITE GHOST</u></td></tr>
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Writer, director, producer and actor Wayne Crawford is a household name... Granted, it was his own house, but hey, quips aside...<br>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KqgCxl-882Y/V-N4aAaVRRI/AAAAAAAAubg/rVj0bTdKNRMFfXnciAjjU65YuDOLcUMGQCLcB/s1600/14448994_192560831173101_1610183455226664620_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KqgCxl-882Y/V-N4aAaVRRI/AAAAAAAAubg/rVj0bTdKNRMFfXnciAjjU65YuDOLcUMGQCLcB/s320/14448994_192560831173101_1610183455226664620_n.jpg" width="146"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>With Lee Purcell</u></td></tr>
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The late, recently departed (in May of 2016 Crawford <i>did </i>co-write and produce a beloved and, at the time, highly successful movie where he's not so happily married to gorgeous Lee Purcell, keeping an eye on her at their house party where she has her eyes on a teenage boy – that motion picture being the 1980's cult staple, VALLEY GIRL...<br>
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And then he had a chance to dive into the spotlight as the title character in what seemed intended for an action/adventure franchise titled JAKE SPEED, co-starring Karen Kopins along with John Hurt and Dennis Christopher. Then, two years later, he talked real life friend William Katt into starring as his fellow soldier turned worst enemy in the Post-Vietnam action drama WHITE GHOST featuring Katt's <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2013/05/lee-purcell-big-wednesday.html">BIG WEDNESDAY</a> crony Reb Brown: So here is, drum roll please – a Wayne Crawford Double Feature, beginning at the top with...<br>

action, comedy, dennis christopher, eighties, karen kopins, war, wayne crawford

WAYNE CRAWFORD DOUBLE FEATURE: JAKE SPEED & WHITE GHOST

Wayne Crawford enters the scene of WHITE GHOST Writer, director, producer and actor Wayne Crawfo...

STEPHEN LANG DIRTIES-UP THE NEON-80'S IN BAND OF THE HAND

bob dylan, eighties, ensemble, gang, james remar, lauren holly, laurence fishburn, military, stephen lang, teen

STEPHEN LANG DIRTIES-UP THE NEON-80'S IN BAND OF THE HAND

Neat Opening Credit Title Card for BAND OF THE HAND Year: 1986 Stephen Lang, the nefarious milit...

Presented by James M. Tate / 9/17/2016 / No comments / dana andrews , sixties

DANA ANDREWS FROM 1965–1966: MAD SCIENTIST DOUBLE

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MwNG44jyUxA/V9zoUDLfL3I/AAAAAAAAuXY/4nKs4NMt0CUivYIUbri6U7rvEnvS1kpSgCLcB/s1600/14355518_189147751514409_3615478135850275011_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="275" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MwNG44jyUxA/V9zoUDLfL3I/AAAAAAAAuXY/4nKs4NMt0CUivYIUbri6U7rvEnvS1kpSgCLcB/s400/14355518_189147751514409_3615478135850275011_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Dana Andrews in THE FROZEN DEAD and CRACK IN THE WORLD</u></td></tr>
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As Cult Film Freak's patron saint, our ongoing retrospective continues with actor <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/search/label/dana%20andrews">Dana Andrews</a>, who was especially important during the 1940's – as a leading man he was one helluva character-actor, and, like many square-jawed, handsome "movie star" types, didn't have to try proving he could be versatile since his roles, beginning with <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2016/08/U-Been-Cottonmouth-Bit.html">SWAMP WATER</a>, were eclectic and part of an ensemble. During his peak in <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2016/05/BYOOurLIVES.html">THE BEST YEARS OF OUR LIVES</a> he was the person for the audience to genuinely relate with, and in Otto Preminger's DAISY KENYON he was a fairly decent guy for a cheating, otherwise one-dimensional louse: Then, in the the 1950's, it's said he basically blacklisted himself with alcohol. If you look at how his overall disposition changed from two Preminger Noirs – Dana's catapulting role in <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2016/05/Loir.html">LAURA</a> and only six years later, returning with ingenue Gene Tierney, who hadn't changed a bit, <i>he</i> looked over a decade older, world-weary and hardened, and that's not just for his part as a tough, abusive <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2016/05/WTSends.html">WHERE THE SIDEWALK ENDS</a> cop as opposed to LAURA's meticulous, smitten one. And like any former leading man, the inevitability of morphing from the first star to a fifth or sixth banana took place in the 1960's when he would serve in heaven, again under Preminger's wing in a small but important turn in the John Wayne war-picture, IN HARM'S WAY, and that colorful decade was also the hell in which to reign as the lead, once again, only in low-budget, campy programmers as villainous characters, and a few mad scientists – those include the ultra low-budget FROZEN DEAD and starting out with...<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3K0eE22UFs0/V9zJDDPyQvI/AAAAAAAAuWg/tN99wVM8cooGxhIJVi6p2wK_pdm1jAALwCLcB/s1600/14344167_189102161518968_5144142337117860853_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="306" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3K0eE22UFs0/V9zJDDPyQvI/AAAAAAAAuWg/tN99wVM8cooGxhIJVi6p2wK_pdm1jAALwCLcB/s320/14344167_189102161518968_5144142337117860853_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Dana Andrews in CRACK IN THE WORLD Year: 1965</u></td></tr>
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<u>CRACK IN THE WORLD</u>: Not really a Mad Scientist but more an impatient one, with a soft yet distinguished voice, he's surprisingly secure and relaxed – and perhaps that fits, since brilliant lunatics don't know they're going a little off-kilter, and his Dr. Stephen Sorenson is only driven by a lack of time: Dying of a blood disease, he wants to put his immense experiment beyond the testing stage, a great risk in the eyes of younger British scientist Kieron Moore as Dr. Ted Rampion, the older doc's antithesis who would actually make a better fit for a young trophy wife – another scientist, Maggie, played by gorgeous b-starlet Janette Scott: And as for the plot, the reasons are as good as is usually the case in what causes a Disaster Flick to ignite... Working in a large underground laboratory by way of a high-tech elevator (Dana's brother, Steve Forrest, would ride a similar one in SPIES LIKE US), there are some dated computers larger than filing cabinets figuring out clues while the group is very close to reaching their goal. And, so, liken to striking oil, the concept is easy enough: Once breaking through to the Earth's Core, they can use the molten contents to eventually light factories, entire cities, you name it – in other words, this groundbreaking experiment could possibly save the environment <i>and</i> the planet.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kj5otMjrFNs/V9zJRAngw-I/AAAAAAAAuWk/ih_MXGcTgwcln91NmcdLbLjMIY0KM05QwCLcB/s1600/Crack_In_The_World_1965_poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kj5otMjrFNs/V9zJRAngw-I/AAAAAAAAuWk/ih_MXGcTgwcln91NmcdLbLjMIY0KM05QwCLcB/s320/Crack_In_The_World_1965_poster.jpg" width="203" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>CRACK poster with Dana on left</u></td></tr>
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Only there's great risk involved and, without our younger, soon-to-be hero's theory – a bulwark in allowing his mentor to drop a nuclear warhead down a giant steel pipe into the crust where their machines can't penetrate – there'd be no suspense at all since he alone warns of the immense danger. In that, CRACK IN THE WORLD is another of many "Beware of Nukes" science-fiction programmers but with a creative twist, and an overall message – that nuclear weapons, even if they might actually do some good for once, are simply <i>good for nothing</i>.<br />
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The first half is intriguing – building-up to the underground explosion that will lead to a suspenseful ten minutes or so, even during a rather subdued celebration once the molten rises triumphantly to the surface: For soon enough, after herds of wild beasts are seen running for their lives with no one behind them, the film's title could very well become a reality...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Tfu3nLM6iX4/V9zJiBP6U8I/AAAAAAAAuWo/SLJQ0-HIGjUAAdWSL3YSRtdwykQde-7rwCLcB/s1600/14322231_189105228185328_7039582971505813497_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="292" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Tfu3nLM6iX4/V9zJiBP6U8I/AAAAAAAAuWo/SLJQ0-HIGjUAAdWSL3YSRtdwykQde-7rwCLcB/s320/14322231_189105228185328_7039582971505813497_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><u>CRACK IN THE WORLD Score: ***1/2</u></td></tr>
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As explained on the same chart (to the left) where Dana's older doc conducted his lecture for a group of visitors to green-light the project, his once reluctant protégé points out a sort of "current" running along the shelf of the Earth, causing giant quakes along particular tropical islands and atolls extended from the test's location as the Disaster-genre element becomes almost entirely hands-on – the more daring, physically-equipped workers climbing down giant holes from the exterior (liken to <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2014/09/b-movie-bagful.html">THEM</a>) as Dana remains indoors, dying and yet, while popping pain pills, he still attempts to outthink his own mistake...<br />
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In a few years, like <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2012/04/towering-inferno.html">THE TOWERING INFERNO</a> would have fireman Steve McQueen surpass Paul Newman's central character simply by doing his job, Kieron Moore progresses as the bonafide hero partaking in adventurous tasks to stop the catastrophe in its tracks. And as Dana's performance could have easily been played by any aged actor, his distinguished presence helps make this CRACK more than just Drive-In fodder – then again, so does the plot and overall execution.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>A Chilly Font for THE FROZEN DEAD Year: 1966</u></td></tr>
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<u>THE FROZEN DEAD:</u> In one film of the ongoing Dana Andrews retrospective that will never be covered, THE FORBIDDEN STREET, a late 1940's period piece co-starring Maureen O'Hara, has Dana playing a distinguished British patriarch, and in real life it's said he worked for months to nail an English accent, only to have, on the European theatrical release and most of the DVDs (including the one yours truly purchased and refuses to view past Dana's entrance), his voice dubbed-over by someone sounding like a classy David Niven type, which is pure blasphemy for fans of Dana Andrews, and is something understandable for any actor or actress who weathered such disappointment – like Andie McDowell's Jane in GREYSTOKE or like that poor forgotten fella from the early-1980's <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2013/07/lone-ranger-legend.html">LEGEND OF THE LONE RANGER</a> – after all, a voice is about 80% of the performance, or at least seems that way...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/--Mv4UqLyFV8/V9zWMnSEQDI/AAAAAAAAuXI/QIBdNw-rStUGuXOcC5sb5JUHM9dDihOaQCLcB/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-09-16%2Bat%2B10.34.25%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/--Mv4UqLyFV8/V9zWMnSEQDI/AAAAAAAAuXI/QIBdNw-rStUGuXOcC5sb5JUHM9dDihOaQCLcB/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-09-16%2Bat%2B10.34.25%2BPM.png" width="145" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>FROZEN hot Anna Palk</u></td></tr>
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And so, there's one good thing to say about THE FROZEN DEAD: at least Dana's German accent, which sounds pretty authentic, was left alone... And his gorgeous niece, played by Anna Palk, makes this almost worth the price of admission and the torture of sitting through... But Cult Movie fans can't weather just about anything... right?<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-J8zJnyRYxLM/V9zJ9kSTH_I/AAAAAAAAuW0/aw6cujFS0Ls2PG18FIt-nqLhKEucfgzSwCLcB/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="249" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-J8zJnyRYxLM/V9zJ9kSTH_I/AAAAAAAAuW0/aw6cujFS0Ls2PG18FIt-nqLhKEucfgzSwCLcB/s320/2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Dana Andrews headlines a stinker</u></td></tr>
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Well this time, as a German scientist, Dana's Dr. Norberg keeps his cool, acting gentlemanly to his niece like Joseph Cotten did with (Dana's BEST YEARS starlet) Teresa Wright in the first half of Alfred Hitchcock's personal favorite of his own resume, SHADOW OF A DOUBT...<br />
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But Palk's doubt has nothing to do with Uncle, who has clandestine meetings with strange men that she doesn't know are his fellow secret-Nazis, gathered within a brick-laden, underground parlor (not as deep as the last venture): more of a basement or cellar where body parts hang from a wooden wall connected to life-giving electrodes. A hilarious low-budget visual in itself, and even more b-movie-embarrassing than Roger Corman, who at least tries for authenticity, and usually succeeds...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KAtAhrGSNk0/V9zKJxlUCbI/AAAAAAAAuW4/AACmZ39wnVsGO7074ubUVvqHUmMb9g14ACLcB/s1600/5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KAtAhrGSNk0/V9zKJxlUCbI/AAAAAAAAuW4/AACmZ39wnVsGO7074ubUVvqHUmMb9g14ACLcB/s200/5.jpg" width="140" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>FROZEN Score: *</u></td></tr>
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Anna Palk's Jean, a lonely, lovely school girl, can't shake the feeling that her best friend wouldn't possibly just up and leave the house without a proper goodbye. So whatever tension or suspense that's supposed to pan out relies on a slow-moving, in-house "investigation" aided by the stock handsome hero from New Scotland Yard, who himself isn't so perfect.<br />
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The promising storyline of a scientist reanimating dead Nazis to make the Third Reich march forth once again – to take over the world the "right way" this time – has a lot of exploitation cinema potential. But any and all shock value is moved about limply with pallid direction, attempting to – following a ton of scientific gibberish – merge all the chills into one severed head that has only a few lame expressions, none of them scary, eerie or even funny to poke fun at: And so, here's the lessoned learned – on bad movie night, it's best to thaw out something else, or just watch CRACK IN THE WORLD for an genuinely worthwhile experience that's not just campy drivel.

dana andrews, sixties

DANA ANDREWS FROM 1965–1966: MAD SCIENTIST DOUBLE

Dana Andrews in THE FROZEN DEAD and CRACK IN THE WORLD As Cult Film Freak's patron saint, ou...

Presented by James M. Tate / 9/15/2016 / No comments / 2016 , exploitation , horror , jane levy , stephen lang , suspense

BELATED NEW HORROR FLICK REVIEW OF: DON'T BREATHE

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-oV-gWpytYfw/V9r8NBFTBcI/AAAAAAAAuVE/s2Cyk2FVQAUd6IWLMheY5O8TSdjl34H-gCLcB/s1600/dont-breathe-poster-banner.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="205" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-oV-gWpytYfw/V9r8NBFTBcI/AAAAAAAAuVE/s2Cyk2FVQAUd6IWLMheY5O8TSdjl34H-gCLcB/s400/dont-breathe-poster-banner.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Jane Levy on the DON'T BREATHE Poster YEAR: 2016</u></td></tr>
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"An impressive performance or achievement that has been accomplished or managed with great skill" is the definition of a term, <i>Tour de force</i>, that, albeit overused in Film Writing, when hybrid with a "special honor or respect shown publicly" i.e. <i>Homage</i>, the new horror flick DON'T BREATHE is a <i>Tour de Homage</i>, and then some...<br>
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Our first glance at the ruthless antagonist, a blind war veteran played by Stephen Lang (who represented all that Hollywood perceives as evil about the American Military in AVATAR), sitting upon his bed, reaching his muscular arms forward with what seems like frightened vulnerability of a child spooked from an imaginary closet monster – and the ride's about to begin...<br>

2016, exploitation, horror, jane levy, stephen lang, suspense

BELATED NEW HORROR FLICK REVIEW OF: DON'T BREATHE

Jane Levy on the DON'T BREATHE Poster YEAR: 2016 "An impressive performance or achievem...

MERRY ANDERS CINEMA: ESCAPE FROM SAN QUENTIN

fifties, film noir or melodrama, merry anders, richard devon

MERRY ANDERS CINEMA: ESCAPE FROM SAN QUENTIN

Baddie Richard Devon with good girl Merry Anders YEAR: 1957 Continuing an ongoing Cinema of Merr...

LATER LIZ CINEMA: THE ONLY GAME IN TOWN

elizabeth taylor, seventies, warren beatty

LATER LIZ CINEMA: THE ONLY GAME IN TOWN

Yet Another Morning in Las Vegas viewed by Liz Taylor YEAR: 1970 Director George Stevens was gre...

KEN NORTON BEATS 'MANDINGO' WITH HIS OWN 'DRUM'

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Z6VhOevKrU4/V9JIsXmc7DI/AAAAAAAAuSg/TBgL5o_TBw0g_zDSjWxrvUcxwbi2voO0QCEw/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="365" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Z6VhOevKrU4/V9JIsXmc7DI/AAAAAAAAuSg/TBgL5o_TBw0g_zDSjWxrvUcxwbi2voO0QCEw/s400/2.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Part of a nifty Asian poster for Steve Carver's DRUM Year: 1976</u></td></tr>
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It would take a miracle to erase the glorious cinematic exploitation of MANDINGO, wherein real life boxing champ Ken Norton plays a "Mandingo Fighting Slave" that his new master trains to death-wrestle other slaves, or perhaps just a more contained followup would do the trick...<br>
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Not a sequel but, directed by action-auteur Steve Carver, DRUM is an effectively lean, mean, sparse and vastly underrated vehicle that would have worked with or without making up for the catastrophic predecessor that <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2012/12/django-unchained.html">Quentin Tarantino</a> deemed "The SHOWGIRLS of the 1970's," which would make this exceptional entry, with Norton in the title role, a comeback... Although, being a boxer, where the retirement age is usually young and, after enough punches, brain damage can occur, even a bad movie is a good move, especially when surrounded by great actors such as Warren Oates and Isela Vega, together again two-years after Sam Peckinpah's BRING ME THE HEAD OF ALFREDO GARCIA, a bizarre labor-of-love almost as <i>Critically-Ashamed</i> as <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2012/09/mandingo.html">MANDINGO</a> (for completely different reasons), and unfairly so...<br>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Lal53hVTCNg/V9J5GnhGsaI/AAAAAAAAuS8/BnqlXKWYHfkRlqqbNmE44k0oPKmK3TSfACLcB/s1600/9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Lal53hVTCNg/V9J5GnhGsaI/AAAAAAAAuS8/BnqlXKWYHfkRlqqbNmE44k0oPKmK3TSfACLcB/s200/9.jpg" width="191"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Bring Me the Head of DRUM</u></td></tr>
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They're only in a few scenes together, primarily the setup taking place in her mansion (following a quick Cuban-set montage/backstory) where Oates – as a Slave Trading plantation owner – buys Drum to be a (half black) "Breeder" for what were also referred in MANDINGO as "Suckers" i.e. Babies, sold for a generous profit and wanting to give his immense yet unkempt manor more class, particularly when gold-digging Fiona Lewis moves in with an ulterior (marital) motive beyond spreading proper etiquette...<br>
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Meanwhile, stealing scenes with more open sexuality and sly manipulation, is the estate's promiscuous daughter... LASERBLAST blonde starlet Cheryl "Rainbeaux" Smith... who will do anything to grab hold of Drum's stick (sorry, just had to). After he rejects her numerous advances, she sets her determined, lusty sites on his best friend, Blaze, played by the black acting-ringer herein...<br>

blaxploitation, exploitation, ken norton, seventies, slave, warren oates, yaphet kotto

KEN NORTON BEATS 'MANDINGO' WITH HIS OWN 'DRUM'

Part of a nifty Asian poster for Steve Carver's DRUM Year: 1976 It would take a miracle to e...

BACK TO THE RADICAL EIGHTIES WITH STRANGER THINGS

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Yq5R7cm2bUw/V9HLOtwSPzI/AAAAAAAAuQo/swBq_5jxwpwreYkuGWm8OShQxUb7smEwQCLcB/s1600/stranger-things.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="221" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Yq5R7cm2bUw/V9HLOtwSPzI/AAAAAAAAuQo/swBq_5jxwpwreYkuGWm8OShQxUb7smEwQCLcB/s400/stranger-things.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>The Magical 80's Aura Owns STRANGER THINGS Year: 2016</u></td></tr>
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It's been since LOST that a show used a particularly jolting, ominous sound – like the wisp of a train roaring through a tunnel – each and every time yet another piece of an endless jigsaw puzzle are <i>suddenly</i> revealed...<br>
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Will be careful with this teaser/review since STRANGER THINGS (made by and shown on Netflix) is one of those shows where spoilers can occur even when hinting at the mere possibility of one: The time is the 1980's with a techno score reminiscent of Tangerine Dream's treatment for RISKY BUSINESS (mentioned in one scene not long before a theater marquee promotes Tom Cruise's followup vehicle ALL THE RIGHT MOVES) – plus there's an assortment of iconic songs, from Corey Hart to The Clash, providing captivating nostalgia to "The Regan Era," which is now what the 50's and 60's were back then: a platform for limitless adventure...<br>

2016, matthew modine, netflix, science-fiction, supernatural, thriller, winona ryder

BACK TO THE RADICAL EIGHTIES WITH STRANGER THINGS

The Magical 80's Aura Owns STRANGER THINGS Year: 2016 It's been since LOST that a show u...

HIRED DEVIL SHADE: FONDA OATES ECLECTIC 1970'S TRILOGY

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HWSWDtaJEQs/V86LPTvjkMI/AAAAAAAAuN4/KTpRG17sBjozyINRMSof-8QQOLr_RsaQACLcB/s1600/98.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HWSWDtaJEQs/V86LPTvjkMI/AAAAAAAAuN4/KTpRG17sBjozyINRMSof-8QQOLr_RsaQACLcB/s320/98.jpg" width="300"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Peter Fonda & Warren Oates Cinematic Trilogy</u></td></tr>
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On the heels of the EASY RIDER phenomenon, the times that were a'changing had changed, giving birth to the Renaissance Era of the late 1960's and throughout the 1970's, where directors had free reign and almost full control of ventures not completely intended for mass audience consumption...<br>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/--RNOG3VZDGc/V8-FLv592UI/AAAAAAAAuQY/f6D4qyoJFB0zGNfRdrWS2kP2uwrNYVlqQCLcB/s1600/14291621_181866582242526_8992349527681274645_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/--RNOG3VZDGc/V8-FLv592UI/AAAAAAAAuQY/f6D4qyoJFB0zGNfRdrWS2kP2uwrNYVlqQCLcB/s320/14291621_181866582242526_8992349527681274645_n.jpg" width="198"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">from THE HIRED HAND</td></tr>
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And that revolution's masthead, "Captain America" himself, Peter Fonda, instead of taking typical leading man roles, went obscure and eclectic as opposed to conventional or mainstream: His mangy sidekick in Dennis Hopper had altered into a three-film collaboration with a vitally energetic and often downright dangerous Warren Oates, and this is a trilogy beginning with their final collaboration and then counting down...<br>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-q5qbFnpVM5g/V88O37aaP9I/AAAAAAAAuPY/Kvwjav3S4RkKjVgGHds11Qi_gPNpYDsAACLcB/s1600/92a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-q5qbFnpVM5g/V88O37aaP9I/AAAAAAAAuPY/Kvwjav3S4RkKjVgGHds11Qi_gPNpYDsAACLcB/s1600/92a.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Warren watching Peter hopping ashore</u></td></tr>
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<u>92 IN THE SHADE</u>: The only of the three Peter Fonda/Warren Oates movies that has the duo pitted against each other. The title describes the atmosphere while Warren's dire expression embodies the overall mood, and the very often cinema-doomed Peter Fonda, willing to die on screen in a Messianic fashion, awaits his fishing charter-boat rival's threat to kill him, caused by a retaliation from Fonda, who brought an explosive to a proverbial knife fight, blowing up his competition's boat after a practical joke done on him: two old-timer clients were intentionally hijacked after Fonda waded through the reedy waters, following a stuck-line leading to a large, beautiful fish he sets free – this scene embodies the meticulous flow and precise direction of the film's writer, future RANCHO DELUXE and MISSOURI BREAKS scribe, Thomas McGuane...<br>

neo noir, peter fonda, seventies, warren oates, western

HIRED DEVIL SHADE: FONDA OATES ECLECTIC 1970'S TRILOGY

Peter Fonda & Warren Oates Cinematic Trilogy On the heels of the EASY RIDER phenomenon, the ...

JAMES STEWART ANTHONY MANN FROM LARAMIE

anthony mann, arthur kennedy, james stewart, western

JAMES STEWART ANTHONY MANN FROM LARAMIE

James Stewart takes aim at an underused Jack Elam YEAR: 1955 Going backwards in the next few mon...

GENE WILDER & RICHARD PRYOR BREAKOUT IN STIR CRAZY

comedy, eighties, gene wilder, prison, richard pryor, teamup

GENE WILDER & RICHARD PRYOR BREAKOUT IN STIR CRAZY

Richard Pryor & Gene Wilder in STIR CRAZYear: 1980 The Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor collabo...

UNKNOWN DEADLY: WILLIAM ALLAND ARCTIC DOUBLE CREATURE

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FXEcF8H3f_g/V8e8klM0WQI/AAAAAAAAuJQ/ZboUfKnSRmYzuaCmPIHaqDeavQFY2nJIgCLcB/s1600/999999.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="280" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FXEcF8H3f_g/V8e8klM0WQI/AAAAAAAAuJQ/ZboUfKnSRmYzuaCmPIHaqDeavQFY2nJIgCLcB/s400/999999.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>The Deadly Mantis & The Land Unknown both released in 1957</u></td></tr>
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Producer William Alland had an eclectic career: starting at the top, in what many experts consider the Best Film Ever Made, which was maligned and practically destroyed from the onset, to producing b-movies that, in the case of THE CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON, was enjoyed worldwide, without any fallout...<br>
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In CITIZEN KANE, Alland played, technically, the most important character – a reporter sent to find the meaning of the ultimate McGuffin, a whispered last word of a famous tycoon, "Rosebud". And by the time Alland's Mercury Theater boss, Orson Welles, became a reluctant independent filmmaker, struggling to fund surreal Film Noir projects or Noir-inspired Shakespearean tragedies (one shot on a cowboy picture set and the other taking four years to finish), Rosebud's seeker had gained some weight of his own, along with distinguishing facial hair (beating Welles in that aspect), cleaning up at the box office with popular b's including the entire CREATURE trilogy (reviewed here soon) and THE DEADLY MANTIS, which he wrote and produced, bearing a title that screams for a drive-in marquee, coincides with a sister product, THE LAND UNKNOWN, both taking place in the Arctic and released to theaters in 1957...<br>

creature, dinosaur, fifties, science-fiction, william alland, william reynolds

UNKNOWN DEADLY: WILLIAM ALLAND ARCTIC DOUBLE CREATURE

The Deadly Mantis & The Land Unknown both released in 1957 Producer William Alland had an ec...

GEORGE C. SCOTT & SEASON HUBLEY IN HARDCORE

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6CaXcg7j1WM/V8U5L2Aef0I/AAAAAAAAuGQ/byf3bFfQNtMtvhRy4KUQJl4pLYCsEVRqACLcB/s1600/33334.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="273" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6CaXcg7j1WM/V8U5L2Aef0I/AAAAAAAAuGQ/byf3bFfQNtMtvhRy4KUQJl4pLYCsEVRqACLcB/s400/33334.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Season Hubley's tee might as well say "bust me" in HARDCORE Year: 1979</u></td></tr>
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George C. Scott is a straight-laced, Midwestern business-owner with an innocent daughter who, on a church trip from hometown Grand Rapids, Michigan to Southern California, suddenly goes missing (O.C. residents might get a kick outta hearing a celebrated Oscar Winner literally refer to "Knotts Berry Farm")...<br>
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Desperate, and with only a mellow lecture from the police, he hires a street-smart, quirky L.A. Private Eye, Peter Boyle, who literally proves that his client's runaway daughter is a porn actress, resulting in an awkward (and at this point, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3npY7MTcl7E">YouTube-famous</a>) tantrum from Scott that few actors could get away with. But what's really intriguing, and even humorous without being distracting or contrived, is how Scott's Jake Van Dorn clashes with Boyle's gumshoe, symbolically named Andy Mast, their verbal dynamic exceeding intentional scene-stealer Leonard Gaines as a Los Angeles porn producer more talkative than "Easy Andy" from Schrader's original game-changing script of Martin Scorsese's masterpiece, <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2013/05/harry-northup-taxi-driver.html">TAXI DRIVER</a>...<br>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RKDCskHCkD0/V8VNUGLCDuI/AAAAAAAAuGo/97svWBqq0isQqQ3tMXrcNlZXLrdPXUppwCLcB/s1600/33.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="206" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RKDCskHCkD0/V8VNUGLCDuI/AAAAAAAAuGo/97svWBqq0isQqQ3tMXrcNlZXLrdPXUppwCLcB/s400/33.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Inside Scoop: George told Reb Brown to be rough... Reb fully complied!</u></td></tr>
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Back on track: After a few weeks, Jake returns to California and in doing so, wanders the streets, going from porn stores to massage-brothels backed by Jack Nitzsche's bluesy hard-rock score, practically bursting through the screen (eventually curbed by Neil Young's vulnerable acoustic 'Helpless' playing in a sex shop). The juxtaposition of the conservative loner lost in a modern Gomorrah is both mesmerizing and familiar ("Are YOU talkin' to me?!"). Eventually, the film loses some validity when our woebegone lead goes undercover as a would-be-producer, donning a bogus mustache and mirrored shades, weeding out young porn-actors in search of the <i>one guy</i> (Ryan O'Neal's failed getaway driver in <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2016/06/DRIVER.html">THE DRIVER</a>) in the only photo of his daughter, <i>at work</i>. Although this sequence is entertaining, providing a more conventional audience a break from the severe mainline, it somewhat trivializes the edgy and risque subject-at-hand, curtailing the essential danger of the quest, which had a sparse, unapologetic exploitation vibe beforehand.<br>

counter culture, drama, drug culture, george c. scott, leonard gaines, paul schrader, peter boyle, prostitute, reb brown, season hubley, seventies, star wars

GEORGE C. SCOTT & SEASON HUBLEY IN HARDCORE

Season Hubley's tee might as well say "bust me" in HARDCORE Year: 1979 George C. S...

GOODBYE WILDER GENE: A MEMORIAL FOR GENE WILDER

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Za83rUKYPq0/V8TMMxo4FBI/AAAAAAAAuFU/vpL2_URO1cwmEG49w7yQPtO61PuZPoKIQCLcB/s1600/gthmb-wonka-gene-wilder-jpg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Za83rUKYPq0/V8TMMxo4FBI/AAAAAAAAuFU/vpL2_URO1cwmEG49w7yQPtO61PuZPoKIQCLcB/s400/gthmb-wonka-gene-wilder-jpg.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>We Rushed this Rushed Tribute, so FORGIVE any Unedited Mistakes!</u></td></tr>
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What was it about Gene Wilder that worked? That really, really worked? To go back to WILLY WONKA AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY, the trickster who limped until suddenly being able to roll himself over, hop back up and shake hands, was all part of an unexplainable magic... outside the script and outside the box... that put everyone, young and old, in a spell – and for decades we were completely spellbound...<br>
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It's difficult to fathom that such a good thing couldn't last... longer than the long time it did. After a while, Wilder became like a magic trick everyone just kind of... stopped using. Of course, we all remember the Mel Brooks' double-genre parody of BLAZING SADDLES and YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN: in the first, his character's jail-cell introduction ended a string of laugh-a-minute introductory jokes and is where the story really began, and the latter, co-written by Wilder and Brooks, is his most famous venture. Most also recall STIR CRAZY, with Richard Pryor, where both had an equal share of screen-time following Gene's lead in SILVER STREAK, a train-set homage to Alfred Hitchcock that only sporadically featured the black comedian and both, as a team, collaborated on four films together...<br>
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gene wilder, memorial

GOODBYE WILDER GENE: A MEMORIAL FOR GENE WILDER

We Rushed this Rushed Tribute, so FORGIVE any Unedited Mistakes! What was it about Gene Wilder t...

DEFENDING THE NOIR-HORROR OF 'THE LEECH WOMAN'

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wh1ezCPNFAk/V8PSGI8z5EI/AAAAAAAAuEs/upUayrezIewkDb8mVvRDFopbwZwvrYKYACLcB/s1600/the-leech-woman-horror-film-1960-poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wh1ezCPNFAk/V8PSGI8z5EI/AAAAAAAAuEs/upUayrezIewkDb8mVvRDFopbwZwvrYKYACLcB/s400/the-leech-woman-horror-film-1960-poster.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Part of the Universal Science Fiction Collection YEAR: 1960</u></td></tr>
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While it's rare, Mystery Science Theater (or what they've become, Riff-Trax) can be a misleading device in which to discover or uncover vintage b-movies, and while the "b" technically stands for the production value, or lack of, and the lower spot given on the marquee, it usually refers to a movie being just plain "bad."<br>
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That's not always the case – THE LEECH WOMAN, one of many victims of the MSTK-3000 treatment, should also be called a C-movie, for Creative: What it lacks in budget, it makes up for in... other ways, like how the title character, an aged, formerly attractive wife of a doctor seeking an impossible cure for aging, winds up on a killing spree. The first act plays out economically inside two interior locations, the most important being the Doctor's Office where Coleen Gray's bitter June Talbot verbally tears into her husband, Dr. Paul Talbot, played by BORN TO KILL stiff-suit Philip Terry...<br>

coleen gray, film noir or melodrama, gloria talbott, horror, sixties

DEFENDING THE NOIR-HORROR OF 'THE LEECH WOMAN'

Part of the Universal Science Fiction Collection YEAR: 1960 While it's rare, Mystery Science...

FIFTIES & EIGHTIES: GLOSSING OVER TWO DECADES OF D.O.A.

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-undLh5Dj2Xs/V8E-vtMS5jI/AAAAAAAAuDE/RsYPkpNk5Sg8XtWFBgkFqMfSMc1Fktz9wCLcB/s1600/3333.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="304" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-undLh5Dj2Xs/V8E-vtMS5jI/AAAAAAAAuDE/RsYPkpNk5Sg8XtWFBgkFqMfSMc1Fktz9wCLcB/s320/3333.jpg" width="320"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>1950 D.O.A. starring Edmond O'Brien</u></td></tr>
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<u>D.O.A. 1950</u>: Before the ball really gets rolling, and things become serious for a small town businessman on vacation in San Francisco, an unbelievable sound occurs, more befitting a zany comedy caper, perhaps even a cartoon, than the sparsest, most serious of Film Noir vehicles...<br>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>The Eighties One</u></td></tr>
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Inside a lavish hotel, whenever an attractive "dish" passes our rural fish out of water, an intentionally corny and contrived wolf-whistle chimes... Not coming from any character in the movie but from the "author" intruded editing room: Like PULP FICTION's Uma Thurman drawing an animated box outside Jack Rabbit Slims, the viewer must simply go with it. So in this severe tale of a dying man frantically in search of who "killed him," perhaps that silly noise existed to separate the two halves – and that's the gist of this particular nightmarish odyssey. Loaded with whodunit potential since what's been done can't be set back, it's never a question since, with the exception of those convention partiers who left town before O'Brien wakes up with a lethal hangover, no one's really known to us or him other than a faithful secretary, back home, on the phone, talking to her frantic boss who, poisoned at a jazzy bar that the hotel party had moved to, he has only a few days to live, and has to find out who, and why?<br>

dennis quaid, edmond o'brien, eighties, fifties, film noir, neo noir, remake

FIFTIES & EIGHTIES: GLOSSING OVER TWO DECADES OF D.O.A.

1950 D.O.A. starring Edmond O'Brien D.O.A. 1950 : Before the ball really gets rolling, and t...

DANA ANDREWS SUSTAINS ZERO HOUR WITH THE CROWDED SKY

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4hFjAqsneto/V7_0pQXUpcI/AAAAAAAAuCc/_M6ZlHQh5PszTiPxRMBEICAXS54fPmZ_wCLcB/s1600/3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="330" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4hFjAqsneto/V7_0pQXUpcI/AAAAAAAAuCc/_M6ZlHQh5PszTiPxRMBEICAXS54fPmZ_wCLcB/s400/3.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Ouch! This image describes the film's title YEAR: 1960</u></td></tr>
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Now this... THIS is an "entirely different kind of flying, <i>altogether</i>..." A classic line, not only from the 1980 smash-comedy <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2015/09/LEE-BRYANT-airplane.html">AIRPLANE!</a> but its parent, the stern, low-budget, sky-high thriller <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2016/07/Dana-Does-Airplane.html">ZERO HOUR!</a> And you'd think Dana Andrews, the first to play reluctant passenger-turned-pilot Ted Stryker, had learned to stay clear of THE CROWDED SKY – but it's ingrained, going way back: In the World War II era A WING AND A PRAYER above an air craft carrier; an unlucky takeoff in MY FOOLISH HEART; and through expository repose in the Post-War drama <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2016/05/BYOOurLIVES.html">THE BEST YEARS OF OUR LIVES</a>, he had taken to the unfriendly skies: <i>Now</i> it's 1960 and he's a legit commercial jet pilot. Meanwhile, soaring in a jet fighter is Efrem Zimbalist Jr. and his young newbie wingman, Troy Donahue – soon both big and small plane will meet but this is different than most aerial disaster flicks – before the nail-biting finale, SKY plays out not only like an eight mile high soap opera, it spends 75% of its time in each of the character's narrating minds, reflecting upon their troubles, romances, troubled romances, and even a little happiness...<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Dana Andrews ready to fly THE CROWDED SKY</u></td></tr>
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Beginning with an awkward close-up on child starlet Karen Green as Efrem's daughter: she much prefers her tall military dad to a selfish, bitter mom. Other flashbacks include a "He Thinks, She Thinks" of our two young buried leads: grouchy "jerk boyfriend" co-pilot played by John Kerr and blond-haired, optimistic, "she deserves better" stewardess Anne Francis (her and Dana Andrews would return five years later in William Conrad's <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2016/08/citizen-cannon.html">BRAINSTORM!</a>, married unhappily)...<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YggblCkN52Q/V7_Ux2WouNI/AAAAAAAAuCM/lLCGXYO5OYg5FSakWOyP5-3YqqAaBX5ygCLcB/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-08-25%2Bat%2B10.33.40%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YggblCkN52Q/V7_Ux2WouNI/AAAAAAAAuCM/lLCGXYO5OYg5FSakWOyP5-3YqqAaBX5ygCLcB/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-08-25%2Bat%2B10.33.40%2BPM.png" width="209" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Goodbye... SCORE: ***1/2</u></td></tr>
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The most annoying, tacked-on stories don't include a visual aid, punctuating their overall insignificance – those being: a shunned, slightly-older gal seated beside a suave (not handsome) Hollywood player, letting him woo her and, as we <i>do</i> hear her thoughts, learning they once had a one night stand while he doesn't recognize her at all (THE TAO OF STEVE must have been influenced); a middle-aged, inexperienced businessman finding the guts to address a middle-aged gal; and a nervous method acting James Dean type (who actually resembles Troy Donahue) attempting to persuade a world-weary New York agent/yenta to represent him. "I can't feel fear... I've never been afraid in my life," he whines...<br />
<br />
A forced harbinger of what's to come, and Dana Andrews goes right back in ZERO HOUR dead-serious mode, holding the gears tight while sweating profusely and yet, keeping his edge this time around: At which point the near-catastrophe is a relaxing break following all those damn memories – some intriguing, others draining yet all an intricate piece of a bizarre cinematic puzzle that, despite the camp, is an original spin on the plane-in-peril canon.

anne francis, dana andrews, disaster, sixties, troy donahue

DANA ANDREWS SUSTAINS ZERO HOUR WITH THE CROWDED SKY

Ouch! This image describes the film's title YEAR: 1960 Now this... THIS is an "entirely...

Presented by James M. Tate / 8/24/2016 / No comments / adventure , dana andrews , david carradine , forties , jean renoir , moonshine , seventies , walter brennan , walter huston

MUDDY DOUBLE: SWAMP WATER AND THUNDER & LIGHTNING

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3Z7pJhD4uKg/V74KHHDspFI/AAAAAAAAuBs/XQ6PjVLzLbQv679k7AnlKOcLuroW6C5qgCLcB/s1600/MPW-39048.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="295" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3Z7pJhD4uKg/V74KHHDspFI/AAAAAAAAuBs/XQ6PjVLzLbQv679k7AnlKOcLuroW6C5qgCLcB/s400/MPW-39048.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Swamp Double-Feature 1940's & 1970's</u></td></tr>
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A gritty double feature, both set in the swamps, one concerning snakebites and a few shotguns, the other with loads of moonshine and one great fan-boat chase: the first has John Carradine as a side-character in the 1940's while the other headlines his son David in the 1970's – both sharing a rural locale and a father & son during each of their prime decades, beginning with...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jUedrF1RfAg/V71pbq46IgI/AAAAAAAAuAo/dufvqTp32mc42fg3w14H4DwecarTAqz5gCLcB/s1600/2299554e7f8c23e401733fd5d8836eb9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jUedrF1RfAg/V71pbq46IgI/AAAAAAAAuAo/dufvqTp32mc42fg3w14H4DwecarTAqz5gCLcB/s200/2299554e7f8c23e401733fd5d8836eb9.jpg" width="162" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><u>Year: 1941</u></td></tr>
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<u>SWAMP WATER</u>: Despite a (friendly, smiling and bearded) famous critic's opinion that Walter Brennan was outrageously miscast in Jean Renoir's SWAMP WATER, set in the mysterious Georgian Okefenokee with more of a rural John Ford style than Renoir's own "foreign film" masterpiece, GRAND ILLUSION, Brennan's actually quite effective as an escaped convict with a "Wrong Man" backstory; a bizarre mental ability to survive otherwise deadly Cottonmouth bites; and last but not least, a love for Dana Andrews's hunting dog that'd chased a doe past a spooky skull on a post in the river, a warning to never go beyond that point, just for the pooch – the best hunting dog around, Dana's Ben Ragan goes that extra dangerous mile.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4_KqVtOD_2E/V71pqg1COfI/AAAAAAAAuAs/RiLYZxbDSfgcMlPtiVwPc9z-nxVfiNLNQCLcB/s1600/14034991_170316320064219_2796178528011437697_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="350" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4_KqVtOD_2E/V71pqg1COfI/AAAAAAAAuAs/RiLYZxbDSfgcMlPtiVwPc9z-nxVfiNLNQCLcB/s400/14034991_170316320064219_2796178528011437697_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Dana Andrews crosses the line... all because a dog</u></td></tr>
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This ghostly, suspenseful, contained yet adventurous programmer is only hindered by a few side-characters (including the otherwise capable Ward Bond) who seem more befitting a dusty saloon, and, surprisingly enough, Western-genre staple Brennan – seeming as agile and dangerous as his threats spoken in that signature drawl – ins't a culprit of the Cowboy cliche...<br />
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Dana Andrews, early in his career before the starmaking turn in LAURA, is natural and effective – how surprising such a "Hollywood Handsome" leading man with a rich "city" voice could realistically portray a hillbilly who's never been outside the murky swamp-surrounded village – smaller than even one horse. Despite third-billing to the already-established Brennan and his stubborn father played by Walter Huston, Andrews is the buried lead throughout, and what he holds back from the gossiping village overrides the pretty local girl he plans to marry, or the fact he desperately yearns to move out of his daddy's tiny shack: that being, the secret of Brennan's Tom Keefer, a fugitive accused of murder, rumored to be long gone yet actually lurking very nearby: a living/breathing wraith beyond the spiked skull, always keeping a tight eye on gator hunters, including the men who sentenced him to hang – mostly, though, he's tortured about the daughter he left behind.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qg4z4VRoih0/V71zFPYEwRI/AAAAAAAAuBY/c-kENWPAnFgO8hPH6fbYnK1EF-KBf9cqwCLcB/s1600/14045997_171703623258822_2710872451234585166_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qg4z4VRoih0/V71zFPYEwRI/AAAAAAAAuBY/c-kENWPAnFgO8hPH6fbYnK1EF-KBf9cqwCLcB/s400/14045997_171703623258822_2710872451234585166_n.jpg" width="236" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>J. Carradine in Swamp Water SCORE: ****</u></td></tr>
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Fresh from his scene-stealing, sympathetic turn in THE GRAPES OF WRATH, John Carradine plays the most ambiguous and bizarre character, a skinny pole with a strapped-on guitar and a lusty penchant for Huston's young wife and, most importantly, he keeps a secret that Andrews has to figure out. The only real miscast is Anne Baxter's distractingly gorgeous, half-crazy "wild girl," Keefer's daughter, looking like a pinup bombshell at a Halloween party – of course she's attracted to our leading man, and vice versa. But Renoir doesn't veer down that many predictable avenues, at least not for very long. For his core fans, this is no art film while a conventional audience may yearn for more gunplay – but with just enough brawn and brains to go around, this dusty little gem shines for a steady, even-keeled 90-minutes. The director, recently exiled from German-occupied France, made his very own American popcorn flick with an underlying pulse and atmosphere of something more important.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Dx-3o_e8CSk/V71sSyu3lkI/AAAAAAAAuBE/0DAw4kXcdTwFAuZ_ZFxz7C90oNIhVBQWQCLcB/s1600/14089120_171687843260400_9129940848946316531_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Dx-3o_e8CSk/V71sSyu3lkI/AAAAAAAAuBE/0DAw4kXcdTwFAuZ_ZFxz7C90oNIhVBQWQCLcB/s320/14089120_171687843260400_9129940848946316531_n.jpg" width="244" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Alternate Title: Hog Heaven YEAR: 1977</u></td></tr>
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<u>TEXAS & LIGHTNING</u>: Around the same time as Ingmar Bergman's THE SERPENT'S EGG and Hal Ashby's BOUND FOR GLORY, David Carradine, free from his career-making stint on TV's KUNG FU, had some moonshine downtime in the everglades. Although only the opening twenty minutes takes place knee-deep in the muddy water during a local goon bully session, leading to a vengeful fan-boat chase (ala LIVE AND LET DIE), and while the film peaks early, there's still loads of adventure left during a prolonged car chase that takes up the entire second half, mirroring (not copying) that exact same year's "grungy maverick with a fancy dame in a fast car" road run in the wildly popular SMOKEY AND THE BANDIT. The characters that'd been... well... fleshed-out – enough for this kind of movie – are all but forgotten and/or completely insignificant when action trumps storyline... Hell, it doesn't even matter what names these people have after a while, or who's in the cast, although, THUNDER & LIGHTING is a nostalgic TV fanatic's dream as Carradine's near-past ("Knock off the Kung Fu shit!" Charles Napier growls during a fight), and Jackson's role on CHARLIE'S ANGELS following an eclectic small-screen career ranging from THE JIMMY STEWART SHOW sit-com to a Movie of the Week exploitively titled: SATAN'S SCHOOL FOR GIRLS.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dB2-4WCG2TI/V71r8dDkl9I/AAAAAAAAuBA/sbyVC5eGB_8XHmpP4bhkiOfCXrqqHAQRQCLcB/s1600/14040200_171687846593733_7187887356935017578_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="385" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dB2-4WCG2TI/V71r8dDkl9I/AAAAAAAAuBA/sbyVC5eGB_8XHmpP4bhkiOfCXrqqHAQRQCLcB/s400/14040200_171687846593733_7187887356935017578_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>50's Foreground with 70's Background T&L Score: ***1/2</u></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Fanning through the water or roaring over roadsides, pretty much anyone could have been driving the long stretch of highway where things wind up, just beyond the wet marshes that provided a misleading rudimentary impression on what the landscape would be, and it's a long, long road at that: Too bad because the plot's buildup is actually somewhat intriguing, putting a spin on the cliche moonshine motif: Kate Jackson's crooked father runs competing 'shine against her boyfriend Carradine's makeshift yet good quality swamp-still (run by underdog character-actor Sterling Holloway) while dad's soda company turns out crap including six gallons of toxic rotgut. But crime doesn't pay. While Carradine has good ol' boys, a beautiful girl and a vintage car on his side, the token heavy has thugs either breathing down his neck or out for his hyde: Soon enough, everyone's caught in the crossfire – Carradine breezing his way throughout like he did in some of his pictures (BOUND FOR GLORY, THE LONG RIDERS and KILL BILL are a few grand exceptions), yet he maintains an organic worldweary realism: when it matters most, he means what he says and, doing a lot of his own stunts, the hard work shows.

adventure, dana andrews, david carradine, forties, jean renoir, moonshine, seventies, walter brennan, walter huston

MUDDY DOUBLE: SWAMP WATER AND THUNDER & LIGHTNING

Swamp Double-Feature 1940's & 1970's A gritty double feature, both set in the swamps...

Presented by James M. Tate / 8/21/2016 / No comments / earl holliman , fifties , film noir or melodrama , heist , jack palance , lee marvin , perry lopez , remake , shelley winters

JACK PALANCE IN 'I DIED A THOUSAND TIMES'

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6xeQbkeXDOY/V7pCDGHw7kI/AAAAAAAAuAI/RJgMwmiegWg6CinFAXoTU3Qa32Ac-HilgCLcB/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="335" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6xeQbkeXDOY/V7pCDGHw7kI/AAAAAAAAuAI/RJgMwmiegWg6CinFAXoTU3Qa32Ac-HilgCLcB/s400/1.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Warner Archives DVD Cover YEAR OF FILM: 1955</u></td></tr>
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HIGH SIERRA is a great book that became an even greater film. With Raoul Walsh's tight direction from an adapted screenplay by Humphrey Bogart's (soon to be) most famous collaborator, John Huston, the iconic MALTESE FALCON, KEY LARGO and TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE star was finally, after playing villains in George Raft and James Cagney vehicles (Walsh directed ROARING TWENTIES), turned into a bonafide Hollywood A-lister – although, just like John Wayne in his career-catapult, STAGECOACH, Bogie takes second-billing to a dame in tough and determined Ida Lupido: Which doesn't occur in the 1955 remake as Shelley Winters is far more vulnerable and passive, and, while not as pretty, does fit the role – had some bombshell co-starred opposite Jack Palance as Roy Earle, he wouldn't be so initially dead-set on getting rid of her... That is, asking her to split from the woodsy fishing lake locale where four men, including Earle, are poised to rob safe-kept jewels in a luxurious hotel not far away.<br>

earl holliman, fifties, film noir or melodrama, heist, jack palance, lee marvin, perry lopez, remake, shelley winters

JACK PALANCE IN 'I DIED A THOUSAND TIMES'

Warner Archives DVD Cover YEAR OF FILM: 1955 HIGH SIERRA is a great book that became an even gre...

BERLIN & FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT: MARTIN KOSLECK DOUBLE

action, adventure, alfred hitchcock, dana andrews, forties, joel mccrea, martin kosleck, war, world war II

BERLIN & FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT: MARTIN KOSLECK DOUBLE

Martin Kosleck & Dana Andrews YEAR: 1942 BERLIN CORRESPONDENT : A spinoff from the ongoing D...

LIZ TAYLOR & DANA ANDREWS TAKE A 'GIANT' ELEPHANT WALK

dana andrews, disaster, drama, elizabeth taylor, fifties, peter finch, romance, suspense

LIZ TAYLOR & DANA ANDREWS TAKE A 'GIANT' ELEPHANT WALK

Elizabeth Taylor & Dana Andrews in ELEPHANT WALK Year: 1954 Elephants are beautiful, majesti...

DIRECTOR WILLIAM CONRAD PYSCHO-NOIR DRIVE-IN DOUBLE

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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0ihlKR1AIF8/V7GkAxvdM8I/AAAAAAAAt8Q/I_Yng_BdsKYr5G9eubEuJGxoHScL1SB_gCLcB/s1600/90000%2B%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="376" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0ihlKR1AIF8/V7GkAxvdM8I/AAAAAAAAt8Q/I_Yng_BdsKYr5G9eubEuJGxoHScL1SB_gCLcB/s400/90000%2B%25282%2529.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Joey Heatherton & Troy Donahue in MY BLOOD RUNS COLD</u></td></tr>
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From his sinister beginnings as one of the two title hitmen who cast an ominous shadow across a <i>one gas station </i>town's greasy spoon diner in THE KILLERS, taken from an Ernest Hemingway short story that only involves a single act of what became a three-act classic Film Noir...<br>
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While igniting the career of Burt Lancaster, character-actor William Conrad was recognized; a sort of b-side to Orson Welles, including the rich, deep voice, narrowed, penetrating eyes and – actually, Conrad led the way on being overweight... And was second-place to the KANE auteur on providing narration to movies, miniseries, documentaries, and cartoons (THE ROCKY & BULLWINKLE SHOW!)... And to make an already rambling prologue shorter, Conrad was mostly known as a tough old cop on TV's popular series, CANNON... So to get to the point already – like Welles, he too was a director, and while not one of the best of all time, the big man was pretty darn good, especially given the b-movie scripts for a pair of low-budget thrillers, both made in 1965, a very busy year...<br>

anne francis, dana andrews, drive-in, nicolas coster, richard kiel, sixties, strother martin, troy donahue, william conrad

DIRECTOR WILLIAM CONRAD PYSCHO-NOIR DRIVE-IN DOUBLE

Joey Heatherton & Troy Donahue in MY BLOOD RUNS COLD From his sinister beginnings as one of ...

ANATOMY OF A COURTROOM AGENDA: TWILIGHT OF HONOR

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eAZGwZev5_8/V7GRF3lkb5I/AAAAAAAAt7M/sPtnnD6WRNwxlGndEz4IN4e93cVuqnAngCLcB/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-08-15%2Bat%2B2.50.42%2BAM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="333" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eAZGwZev5_8/V7GRF3lkb5I/AAAAAAAAt7M/sPtnnD6WRNwxlGndEz4IN4e93cVuqnAngCLcB/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-08-15%2Bat%2B2.50.42%2BAM.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Richard Chamberlain faces Joey Heatherton YEAR: 1963</u></td></tr>
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Once again, Hollywood puts Capitol Punishment on trial along with another of their favorite targets, the Middle American small town – and in the case of TWILIGHT OF HONOR, it's a double whammy...<br>
<br>
Since the 1940's (Elia Kazan's <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2016/08/capital-noir-punishment.html">BOOMERANG!</a> was our last review) the Courtroom Drama has shared similar traits: an idealistic underdog Defense Attorney, who's an alone and easy target against a usually Fascist-like prosecutor in bed with everyone, including the judge and literally, in this case, even the jury: Although here, Richard Chamberlain's young, inexperienced David Mitchell isn't completely by himself with an old mentor in his corner – during this time, working alongside veteran actor Raymond Massey on TV's popular DR. KILDAIRE, Richard's scenes with Claude Rains as retired defense attorney Art Harper (an ancient, creaky-boned version of Orson Welles in COMPULSION, who was channelling Clarence Darrow) is a cakewalk, their scenes providing color-commentary following each day in court or leading to the next round...<br>

claude reins, courtroom drama, joey heatherton, nick adams, richard chamberlain, sixties

ANATOMY OF A COURTROOM AGENDA: TWILIGHT OF HONOR

Richard Chamberlain faces Joey Heatherton YEAR: 1963 Once again, Hollywood puts Capitol Punishme...

BOOMSHADOW: DANA ANDREWS COURTROOM NOIR DOUBLE

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q9qL0gXpM2U/V6_GoSun1nI/AAAAAAAAt6A/RxMYrbaCWoEGB0AOyoSqDOjwsCglJFazgCLcB/s1600/5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q9qL0gXpM2U/V6_GoSun1nI/AAAAAAAAt6A/RxMYrbaCWoEGB0AOyoSqDOjwsCglJFazgCLcB/s320/5.jpg" width="312" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Poster Art and DVD Cover YEAR: 1956</u></td></tr>
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CRIME AND PUNISHMENT, DANA ANDREWS & FILM NOIR: Following the career of Dana Andrews and dedicating two months spotlighting his eclectic career, the man's become a sort of "Six Degrees," connecting actors, actresses, directors and even similar themes within particular genres: this isn't only Dana's month, but director Otto Preminger's as well (while next month's centered on both James Stewart <i>and</i> director Anthony Mann, covering the films they did together and separately): For example, three Westerns (reviewed soon) that starred or co-starred Andrews, all center on or involve a lynch mob kangaroo court. His characters are either an opponent or possible-victim: And in two Noir ventures, the same theme plays out only in the "modern" post-war era, trading the hangman with the electric chair (or a more modern hangman); starting out with...<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>That-A-Way</u></td></tr>
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<b><u>BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT</u></b>, which, with the exception of a slight variation on a completely predictable twist i.e. a twist within a twist, is one of Dana Andrews weakest Film Noir outings, and it's a complete shock that that genre's top-shelf director, THE BIG HEAT auteur Fritz Lang, had anything to do with it. The pace is slow-moving and uncreative, resembling a drowsy television program as each scene has the actors standing, and talking. Talking, and standing. And during sporadic courtroom scenes, sitting, listening, and talking some more...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/--Ke9pvrEbis/V6_GyjdCGnI/AAAAAAAAt6E/QSGBy1tPdFsQe2cinvQZU7g_1RA9h28bgCLcB/s1600/4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/--Ke9pvrEbis/V6_GyjdCGnI/AAAAAAAAt6E/QSGBy1tPdFsQe2cinvQZU7g_1RA9h28bgCLcB/s320/4.jpg" width="282" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Beyond a Shadow of a Doubt SCORE: **</u></td></tr>
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Few sites call to attention any vehicle written by and starring 1970's improvisational comic actor Tim Conway while reviewing a political Film Noir, but it must be done: His surprisingly effective prison romp THEY WENT THAT-A-WAY & THAT-A-WAY centers on two inept highway patrolmen given an assignment by the Governor to go undercover as felons at an infamous chain-gang penitentiary to check the conditions inside...<br />
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This includes being tried and convicted of a crime, and <i>only</i> the Governor knows about it... Before their road adventure escape, the two goofs wind up serving a possible life-sentence with no evidence of their mission, and you can easily guess the reason why...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k8xFbNWh6ZA/V6_HMq3EmYI/AAAAAAAAt6I/ESOWLNlok9cKxt58uUvLPwuv40gWalAdwCLcB/s1600/3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k8xFbNWh6ZA/V6_HMq3EmYI/AAAAAAAAt6I/ESOWLNlok9cKxt58uUvLPwuv40gWalAdwCLcB/s400/3.jpg" width="191" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Year: 1947</u></td></tr>
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Future ROSEMARY'S BABY devil-agent Sidney Blackmer plays an ultra progressive-advocate against the death penalty. He abhors a political climbing lawyer having too much pleasure in sending men to the electric chair. A desperate idea arises: to find someone beyond-innocent for the recent death of an exotic dancer in order to be tried, convicted, and then, at the last minute, revealed as a shill to prove how, without a substantial witness or evidence, no one should sizzle in the hot-seat. The perfect candidate is his former star reporter, Andrews' Tom, working on a novel and engaged to his high society daughter. The most intriguing scenes show Andrews undercover, traipsing in and out of a strip-joint, trying to hook up with the dancer-friend of the slain victim. The strippers, despite yammering in a put-on "New Yawwk" accent, are the most real and grounded things get, despite sounding like an actor's workshop. While the idea, seeming creative in the 70's Tim Conway flick (the plot's been used other places as well, including the fairly recent Sly Stallone flick, <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2013/10/escape-plan.html">ESCAPE PLAN</a>), is intriguing, the extremely dull and lethargic manner of how it's pulled off, before and after the trial... even noted by suspicious ingenue Joan Fontaine... make this quickie programmer more a sleeping pill than an effective thriller. It's impossible to figure out who's more of an obvious cliche: the "Yay" man of Capital Punishment or the two "Nay" dolts going too far to prove a not-so-buried agenda with a predictable turnout, albeit curbed by that aforementioned 11th hour surprise wherein, luckily for fans of Dana Andrews, he wakes up enough to finally earning his paycheck.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>BOOMERANGE Score: **1/2</u></td></tr>
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And speaking of swift, uneven, questionable justice – a decade earlier, another courtroom melodrama Film Noir with soon-to-be groundbreaking A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE and ON THE WATERFRONT director Elia Kazan pushes that theme's envelope to the hilt, and beyond: Never has one man been so innocent as Arthur Kennedy's otherwise wayward drifting war hero. In fact, Andrews, as the initially headstrong prosecutor, changes sides after one conversation with the person The State is all-too determined to punish – since it had taken too long to find the killer, and goaded by the press (never blamed in old movies), the first worthy culprit becomes "the best" choice. And while the direction is passably taut and, along with Lee J. Cobb as a put-upon police chief and the often too-perfect idealist Sam Levene (who rarely plays a character that doesn't seem to know more than anyone) as a reporter, who, as the writer's mouthpiece, had his mind up made up even before the street-corner slaying of a beloved small town priest, BOOMERANG! is less of an ambiguous programmer and more an overtly obvious morality tale, and yet, this bleeding heart does have heart.

dana andrews, elia kazan, fifties, film noir or melodrama, forties, fritz lang, lee j. cobb

BOOMSHADOW: DANA ANDREWS COURTROOM NOIR DOUBLE

Poster Art and DVD Cover YEAR: 1956 CRIME AND PUNISHMENT, DANA ANDREWS & FILM NOIR: Followin...

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