KRISTY SWASON IN WES CRAVEN'S SCIENCE-HORROR 'DEADLY FRIEND'

<p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiL6G30ZJe-ECjJJ4NiWl6H9KJ1BdX2UtegPlPM7eVGDZz1_sAlVaHewgj4wXSAQGvVqvnu32eJwEdyOnZGtxxIAey_9sOP1To_AYDuYyIgmL-tgsV_iuS5hZyKL8eGzphI2bdO0etLeM4Mnx8XDwYmi0IGN1jbiiXghyHRQCUqQgqfy6vrsKUCOvTe2A=s2048" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1041" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiL6G30ZJe-ECjJJ4NiWl6H9KJ1BdX2UtegPlPM7eVGDZz1_sAlVaHewgj4wXSAQGvVqvnu32eJwEdyOnZGtxxIAey_9sOP1To_AYDuYyIgmL-tgsV_iuS5hZyKL8eGzphI2bdO0etLeM4Mnx8XDwYmi0IGN1jbiiXghyHRQCUqQgqfy6vrsKUCOvTe2A=s16000"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Blu Ray Cover Artwork for DEADLY FRIEND Year Released: 1986 Rating: ****</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>A year before giving her class the lowdown about FERRIS BEULLER'S DAY OFF and around five years until losing her adorable baby fat for the deliberately camp-filled BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER, Kristy Swanson starred in another Classic Monster-inspired b-movie directed by Wes Craven, a horror-genre director having so much silly fun here it seems he hadn't yet realized A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET had blown up on video...<br></p><p></p><p></p><p>Thank God because DEADLY FRIEND, a modern take on the FRANKENSTEIN tale, packs one helluva wallop, particularly a basketball beheading so pivotal and scene-stealing it should be backed by celebratory fireworks... </p><p><span></span></p>

anne ramsey, body count, cult, eighties, horror, kristy swanson, matthew labyorteaux, robot, science-fiction, wes craven

KRISTY SWASON IN WES CRAVEN'S SCIENCE-HORROR 'DEADLY FRIEND'

Blu Ray Cover Artwork for DEADLY FRIEND Year Released: 1986 Rating: **** A year before giving her class the lowdown about FERRIS BEULLER'...

KEN HUTCHISON PLAYS THE ULTIMATE HEAVY FOR 'SWEENEY 2'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj2mg_hv-lclYCLhAd8xtuzZ3Omb8INBjDK52dv7CP4Eii0X_L_4fbNKQV41pizJ_jFHZ6463reiwOnYJ47Yx1CGDyNRb0SGhgrrniun-2wUOLdpbcqzqpme9TsV7frGRJEGfF_Cc7L49-vAZI9DMDIg_jOKeqXLaocz6_6e6Rl_ZGpmuGZX4_4BWUx0Q=s1579" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="868" data-original-width="1579" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj2mg_hv-lclYCLhAd8xtuzZ3Omb8INBjDK52dv7CP4Eii0X_L_4fbNKQV41pizJ_jFHZ6463reiwOnYJ47Yx1CGDyNRb0SGhgrrniun-2wUOLdpbcqzqpme9TsV7frGRJEGfF_Cc7L49-vAZI9DMDIg_jOKeqXLaocz6_6e6Rl_ZGpmuGZX4_4BWUx0Q=s16000"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>SWEENEY 2 featuring John Thaw & Ken Hutchison Year: 1978 Rates: ****1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Before the fourth and final season of the popular British crime television series <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2021/06/sweeney-sustained.html">THE SWEENEY</a>, there were two theatrical films that hit the big screens in succession from 1977 to 1978...<br></p><p></p><p></p><p>The first called <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2021/06/sweeney-one.html">SWEENEY!</a> centered more on John Thaw's Chief Inspector Regan in a kind of NORTH BY NORTHWEST where his young protege Sergeant Carter, played by Dennis Waterman, had such little screen-time at one point he chooses not to be seen with Regan's "wrong man" at all...</p><p><span></span></p>

british neo noir, buddy, cop, crime, dennis waterman, john thaw, ken hutchison, seventies, sweeney

KEN HUTCHISON PLAYS THE ULTIMATE HEAVY FOR 'SWEENEY 2'

SWEENEY 2 featuring John Thaw & Ken Hutchison Year: 1978 Rates: ****1/2 Before the fourth and final season of the popular British crime ...

REST IN PEACE TO SCOTTISH TOUGH GUY ACTOR KEN HUTCHISON

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhIunBsTgPsg14fk6xWTJBOExTKioE3YZ8agk4YaCVtnydQKCdZHHWZ12FhZUdi5jtetIqSPevTPCkw5M7rjxTVa_Sd9qLkJT84THzEbkfUvBiAW4F3JpI5BShMfRyq9g0ShwRZijBD-cP1z-awstQfWmRrPHFuYxYdZGS6JU-VkvlGkzUMmPXNV2HApQ=s1870" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="994" data-original-width="1870" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhIunBsTgPsg14fk6xWTJBOExTKioE3YZ8agk4YaCVtnydQKCdZHHWZ12FhZUdi5jtetIqSPevTPCkw5M7rjxTVa_Sd9qLkJT84THzEbkfUvBiAW4F3JpI5BShMfRyq9g0ShwRZijBD-cP1z-awstQfWmRrPHFuYxYdZGS6JU-VkvlGkzUMmPXNV2HApQ=s16000"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>The late Ken Hutchison warms up for another blag in SWEENEY 2 circa 1978</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Before delving into the career of Scottish tough guy actor Ken Hutchison with an anticipated review of STRAW DOGS, here's an RIP to one of the truly great character-actors... </p><p></p><p>In the Sam Peckinpah cult classic he plays the meanest of a group of local rural Brits vs Dustin Hoffman: The fierce-looking Hutchison's a character-actor whose characters share the same deadly glare, particularly SWEENEY 2 as a Malta-dwelling British bank robber who returns to England to rob banks with just-enough cash to bring back home... </p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgZLc5tBwf47XUyOFOtjWBTz7M0X2aoKvA62E6hAmg5t0oDf_3s5dkchmrxahVaQa2dVE6j-6uvgYpEPvIuqNGiWDlEctaj3rzP2OVNRmzrlYrcBt6ymt-85hWa2i8iAKc-K3kxf7ekjTHNIH5PI_XQS8luOdxIBi4s93epv_DD0sx8Pj5OqeF7lX7_rw=s1448" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="636" data-original-width="1448" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgZLc5tBwf47XUyOFOtjWBTz7M0X2aoKvA62E6hAmg5t0oDf_3s5dkchmrxahVaQa2dVE6j-6uvgYpEPvIuqNGiWDlEctaj3rzP2OVNRmzrlYrcBt6ymt-85hWa2i8iAKc-K3kxf7ekjTHNIH5PI_XQS8luOdxIBi4s93epv_DD0sx8Pj5OqeF7lX7_rw=s16000"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Was so typecast he was even hired to beat up GANDHI of all people (Ben Kinglsey)</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>And he would attempt mainstream as a good guy scoundrel in THE WRATH OF GOD opposite Robert Mitchum and later beat up GANDHI and try killing Matthew Broderick in LADYHAWKE before vanishing altogether..</p><p></p><p>So... either way... here's to Mr. Hutchison. Described by STRAW DOGS ingenue Sally Thomsett as a "Fun-loving rogue" in a Cult Film Freak interview, he was something else, entirely.  <br></p><span></span>

british, cult, eighties, ken hutchison, memorial, robert mitchum, seventies

REST IN PEACE TO SCOTTISH TOUGH GUY ACTOR KEN HUTCHISON

The late Ken Hutchison warms up for another blag in SWEENEY 2 circa 1978 Before delving into the career of Scottish tough guy actor Ken Hutc...

KEN HUTCHISON STEALS 'THE SWEENEY' STAY LUCKY EH EPISODE

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><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://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgdV7B4PRQZB7HKCJ0Npd3NwSUyTwP0B6-9cbWjGc9airDqjQyfwcJAksEZKsAtmBH_9pJaNrE6wwGO9q_613yh9Vq6Lj4eKMXSOc4JGRaah0F4JVoyrTqWvPPvMgxqAUqKAIUXg0uOc_gWVkRW1vWl_6d9zXAD_63HMEPvysgwX16JlMhwmZ-aKU3Dgw=s1406" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1052" data-original-width="1406" height="299" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgdV7B4PRQZB7HKCJ0Npd3NwSUyTwP0B6-9cbWjGc9airDqjQyfwcJAksEZKsAtmBH_9pJaNrE6wwGO9q_613yh9Vq6Lj4eKMXSOc4JGRaah0F4JVoyrTqWvPPvMgxqAUqKAIUXg0uOc_gWVkRW1vWl_6d9zXAD_63HMEPvysgwX16JlMhwmZ-aKU3Dgw=w400-h299" width="400"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Ken Hutchison on The Sweeney Year: 1975 Rates: ****</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Before playing Mr. Hill in SWEENEY 2, the late STRAW DOGS baddie Ken Hutchison dons a fake blonde wig and mustache, intentionally homage to Robert Shaw from FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE on the SWEENEY episode STAY LUCKY EH, and his character Vincent Vaughan steals money before being delivered to mob boss and Ken's STRAW DOGS leader Peter Vaughan while thwarting patsies Alun Armstrong to Michael Ripper...<br></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>One of the few episodes where the heavies get more screen time than John Thaw's Regan and his younger partner Dennis Waterman as Carter... </p><p>An edge tale of backstabbing from the paramount 2nd season, here stolen by Hutchison's villain's villain while another STRAW DOGS antagonist Donald Webster has a scene with Waterman, adding to the number of actors from the Sam Peckinpah cult classic including, in former episodes, T.P. McKenna, Jim Norton and Del Henney. And this particular tale winds up in a fist-fight turned shootout (on a theater stage) where our titular cops simply watch things pan out, like they'd done all along but now up close, and literally.  <br></p><p><span></span></p>

alun armstrong, british neo noir, crime, dennis waterman, donald webster, john thaw, ken hutchison, michael ripper, peter vaughan, seventies, sweeney, TV

KEN HUTCHISON STEALS 'THE SWEENEY' STAY LUCKY EH EPISODE

Ken Hutchison on The Sweeney Year: 1975 Rates: **** Before playing Mr. Hill in SWEENEY 2, the late STRAW DOGS baddie Ken Hutchison dons a fa...

SYDNEY CHAPLIN STARS IN THE BRITISH FILM NOIR' CONFESSION'

<p></p><p></p><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://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjrR43MNPBWOqIdLxoKhuuBcjc7IERwevZjlQErwIDr_wbAl8-vX11HGm2dOda_E5TOhNeC31jOdVasvuuxYAbYi_4vXCiEEd09eucn8KbDDYXIdLHtZALp44qKptPKd1sIpWJ4JJl0q1AxueMtdJpOOMmKGF5UjPgiQvene-WN5_YoqZXEl9TVtaMK-g=s818" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="633" data-original-width="818" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjrR43MNPBWOqIdLxoKhuuBcjc7IERwevZjlQErwIDr_wbAl8-vX11HGm2dOda_E5TOhNeC31jOdVasvuuxYAbYi_4vXCiEEd09eucn8KbDDYXIdLHtZALp44qKptPKd1sIpWJ4JJl0q1AxueMtdJpOOMmKGF5UjPgiQvene-WN5_YoqZXEl9TVtaMK-g=w400-h310" width="400"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Poster for THE CONFESSION Year: 1955 Rating: **1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Charlie Chaplin's son Sydney Chaplin gets first-billing in a British Film Noir titled CONFESSION aka THE DEADLIEST SIN; the melodramatic alternate references a priest hearing the confession of a killer admitting what he's done, sort of, before he himself is killed right there and then...<br></p><p>And it's all the fault of Chaplin as prodigal son Mike Nelson, returned home from America (having no British accent left), again living with his crippled father and gorgeous sister Audrey Dalton...</p><p></p><p></p><p>She thinks big brother's as clean as the driven snow, providing what others have noticed is similar to Alfred Hitchcock's "cute niece loves her charming yet secretly vicious uncle" SHADOW OF A DOUBT as well as I CONFESS with a targeted priest, leaving Chaplin little to do but look ominous and secretive, especially after sister loses trust since her boyfriend (and both their childhood friend) is the one killed after committing a defensive murder of square-jawed Patrick Allen, who was blackmailing the suitcase-full-of-cash Chaplin in a thriller where the important side-roles die off too quick to matter, and, sadly, what began as a chance for Sydney Chaplin to shine darkly (looking more like he'd be Victor Mature's brother than Charlie Chaplin's son), the picture winds up in the hands of cop John Bentley, who... as the tail wags the dog... would have been better left on the sidelines.  </p><p><span></span></p>

audrey dalton, british film noir, fifties, john bentley, patrick allen, sydney chaplin, thriller

SYDNEY CHAPLIN STARS IN THE BRITISH FILM NOIR' CONFESSION'

Poster for THE CONFESSION Year: 1955 Rating: **1/2 Charlie Chaplin's son Sydney Chaplin gets first-billing in a British Film Noir titled...

JACK NICHOLSON & OTIS YOUNG TAKING ON 'THE LAST DETAIL'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhy2Tt9EucAJmYFRl2te7I29yZ1P3NLkGem2lkKEvUqfQgL7v6tBnvxJtXj5Q_vHV3_-MBt_KiSG6QUSGbO2viduLZBe2ouybwAehmFpAOrk4bXPY9Rs4M8MfrLHKxpXoo0pRtEkzTOItRCwjlPq3OUu6SEmkxwXtiA5j6D0B1yKI0mc36-sSyE_xxWhg=s2048" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1160" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhy2Tt9EucAJmYFRl2te7I29yZ1P3NLkGem2lkKEvUqfQgL7v6tBnvxJtXj5Q_vHV3_-MBt_KiSG6QUSGbO2viduLZBe2ouybwAehmFpAOrk4bXPY9Rs4M8MfrLHKxpXoo0pRtEkzTOItRCwjlPq3OUu6SEmkxwXtiA5j6D0B1yKI0mc36-sSyE_xxWhg=s16000"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Jack Nicholson and Otis Young in THE LAST DETAIL Year: 1973 Rating: *****</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>What makes THE LAST DETAIL as much comedy as drama is the brilliant use of quick editing, like whenever Navy lifer Jack Nicholson gets too drunk and boisterous, turning a would-be fight into just another time-filling tantrum... </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Cutting to the next scene before what seems important rolls into the overall road trip journey from New York to Boston on buses and trains, throughout in the snowy East Coast in what's Jack Nicholson's greatest performance...</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgjkfKmd_kmwxbH8s9aMgOPCsYtTzSGmsa7HTXzRRXrqSASS6ro7VF04yeSUtoawfVFTCdV8w1wipboNGgqlZOAE0tvvn6FihkZ_S5iRewOr_oZyy8pDfliJXgCNf1sSuvtb4jEsKEw5Kps8bYqfZObMaGREZRMgiPhUEocRmghf5Qab4uBr4X6Jw8gcg=s1622" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="806" data-original-width="1622" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgjkfKmd_kmwxbH8s9aMgOPCsYtTzSGmsa7HTXzRRXrqSASS6ro7VF04yeSUtoawfVFTCdV8w1wipboNGgqlZOAE0tvvn6FihkZ_S5iRewOr_oZyy8pDfliJXgCNf1sSuvtb4jEsKEw5Kps8bYqfZObMaGREZRMgiPhUEocRmghf5Qab4uBr4X6Jw8gcg=s16000"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Jack Nicholson's Bad Ass starting a fight in THE LAST DETAIL</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>And it was before he had very much to compare it with, following EASY RIDER and FIVE EASY PIECES, energetically combining wily charm and combative mood-swings... </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>This guy's been everywhere and seen everything, curbed perfectly by handsome black actor Otis Young as Mullhall nicknamed Mule, the mellow, dependable wing man to Jack's self-described <i>Bad Ass</i> Budduski... <br></p><p><span></span></p>

comedy, counter culture, cult, drama, hal ashby, indie, jack nicholson, military, nancy allen, otis young, randy quaid, road movie, seventies

JACK NICHOLSON & OTIS YOUNG TAKING ON 'THE LAST DETAIL'

Jack Nicholson and Otis Young in THE LAST DETAIL Year: 1973 Rating: ***** What makes THE LAST DETAIL as much comedy as drama is the brillian...

JACK NICHOLSON NOIR FOR 'THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE'

<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GN36gTj-nL0/YVL5V3Il3aI/AAAAAAABm5c/ud06ubAoTwUH-jnGzaq61qzLDDrHL7aHwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1517/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-09-28%2Bat%2B3.46.03%2BAM.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="702" data-original-width="1517" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GN36gTj-nL0/YVL5V3Il3aI/AAAAAAABm5c/ud06ubAoTwUH-jnGzaq61qzLDDrHL7aHwCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-09-28%2Bat%2B3.46.03%2BAM.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Title: THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE Year: 1981 Rating: ***1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Passion is better left implied, and the original POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE is far more sensuous, especially as Bob Rafelson's unapologetically R-Rated remake keeps little hidden with Jack Nicholson's otherwise useless drifter <i>making</i> Jessica Lange right there in the steamy kitchen of a diner he winds up employed...<br></p><p>And while Nicholson "is no John Garfield," the Noir-friendly CHINATOWN actor doesn't need to be. Paired with tough and tender Jessica Lange, she's not voluptuous like Lana Turner yet is equally beautiful and more realistically earthy/natural given the rural locale — desperately <i>living</i> the part instead of dramatically playing it...<br></p><span></span>

bob rafelson, christopher lloyd, eighties, jack nicholson, jessica lange, john colicos, melodrama, michael lerner, neo noir, remake, romance, thriller

JACK NICHOLSON NOIR FOR 'THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE'

Title: THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE Year: 1981 Rating: ***1/2 Passion is better left implied, and the original POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE...

JACK NICHOLSON IN THE FORGOTTEN NEO NOIR 'BLOOD AND WINE'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgf9s8nO_JB-JbH6E9leH4bqvDUYNIuN6Si3eIZIS4j19Czt4_hLyLqqh-iHBpldPSzQGyaZSuretgztgN5sUgvTler1f1dN3tcFU--Xvt4GyboGE4DUVI1CYZNtdz5O3E3eH7vTbGBEyxyn5gwFwGNrFGM7_XCD9gK_Kp-NT67Ip4z17ItAipZj08ISg=s1499" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="407" data-original-width="1499" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgf9s8nO_JB-JbH6E9leH4bqvDUYNIuN6Si3eIZIS4j19Czt4_hLyLqqh-iHBpldPSzQGyaZSuretgztgN5sUgvTler1f1dN3tcFU--Xvt4GyboGE4DUVI1CYZNtdz5O3E3eH7vTbGBEyxyn5gwFwGNrFGM7_XCD9gK_Kp-NT67Ip4z17ItAipZj08ISg=s16000"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Jack Nicholson stars in Bob Rafelson's BLOOD AND WINE Year: 1996 Rating: ***1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Some truly inspired casting of two sly human bobcats, one young in this agile twenties and muscular from shark-hunting but what a letdown that doppelgangers Jack Nicholson and Stephen Dorf... the latter the first's step-son... don't play actual blood relatives in Bob Rafelson's forgotten neo noir BLOOD AND WINE set in a humid locale suited for the pulpy, visual page-turning "Cerebral Crime" genre, better known as a Thriller...</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Fitfully set in sweat-soaked Florida, on and off the sea although Dorff's Jason isn't the type to get himself that <i>deep</i> into something he's not in complete control of, like a hooked shark, conveniently using a lure attached to a pickup truck, so he's used to opening the usual Noir McGuffin Pandora's Box or some kind of shortcut, always fueled by curiosity...</p><span></span>

bob rafelson, heist, jack nicholson, jennifer lopez, judy davis, michael caine, neo noir, nineties, stephen dorff, thriller

JACK NICHOLSON IN THE FORGOTTEN NEO NOIR 'BLOOD AND WINE'

Jack Nicholson stars in Bob Rafelson's BLOOD AND WINE Year: 1996 Rating: ***1/2 Some truly inspired casting of two sly human bobcats, on...

JACK NICHOLSON 'THE KING OF MARVIN GARDENS' BRUCE DERN

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-w52_gtDKduo/YVEmJqWv3rI/AAAAAAABm1g/eD9P5lQ7kd8uM68SoFgwHNnHwHs5NB1BgCLcBGAsYHQ/s919/TheKingOfMarvinGardens-final-emailable.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="458" data-original-width="919" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-w52_gtDKduo/YVEmJqWv3rI/AAAAAAABm1g/eD9P5lQ7kd8uM68SoFgwHNnHwHs5NB1BgCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/TheKingOfMarvinGardens-final-emailable.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Title: THE KING OF MARVIN GARDENS Year: 1972 Rating: ***</u><br></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Maybe directors never really outgrow their film school mindset: And in that, following what would forever remain their collaborative pinnacle, FIVE EASY PIECES director Bob Rafelson gave his close friend Jack Nicholson a break from the stereotype of being the feisty rebel type, here a meek Philly-dwelling radio host of melancholy monologues...<br></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Then again maybe he should have played Bruce Dern's conniving con-man older brother Jason Staebler, on the stumbling verge of an Atlantic City land deal with a few obstacles including a potentially dangerous kingpin (Nicholson's three picture co-star, Scatman Crothers) and especially his women...<br></p><span></span>

bob rafelson, bruce dern, crime, cult, ellen burstyn, gambling, indie, jack nicholson, julia anne robinson, neo noir, scatman crothers, seventies, thriller

JACK NICHOLSON 'THE KING OF MARVIN GARDENS' BRUCE DERN

Title: THE KING OF MARVIN GARDENS Year: 1972 Rating: *** Maybe directors never really outgrow their film school mindset: And in that, follo...

JACK NICHOLSON & ART GARFUNKEL IN 'CARNAL KNOWLEDGE'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEipCNp8uKQBT5E4zOqdgwcu6SKGxvXiINPi0giE-VIymbzqO5Vt5O1_uUuI1AIYOqvx8iNlaeC5I1J5jGY9sdAJl7sEtgiYZk4f8pT5SeSyBnoel3X6OmO8_Z9oSFxFVbSpWovl9rT2z2VVG-GJbXhqvg-s55VBIULnXnccXtsVpCWUePyLa2hgxVsMug=s2244" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="976" data-original-width="2244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEipCNp8uKQBT5E4zOqdgwcu6SKGxvXiINPi0giE-VIymbzqO5Vt5O1_uUuI1AIYOqvx8iNlaeC5I1J5jGY9sdAJl7sEtgiYZk4f8pT5SeSyBnoel3X6OmO8_Z9oSFxFVbSpWovl9rT2z2VVG-GJbXhqvg-s55VBIULnXnccXtsVpCWUePyLa2hgxVsMug=s16000"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Jack Nicholson raging through CARNAL KNOWLEDGE Year: 1971 Rating: ***1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>If you can get past a then thirty-four year old Jack Nicholson as a virginal college freshman after having asserted himself a man of the world in previous films, you’ll do alright... </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>CARNAL KNOWLEDGE sets itself up as a nostalgic just-came-of-age tale but quickly changes decades and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">storylines</span> later, and, most important, sexual relationships, beginning with University boys Jack and his best friend Sandy — played with a natural screen presence by Art Garfunkel— both dating the same prized Ivy League girl, Candace Bergen… Jack having moved in c<i>arnally </i>without Art's <i>knowledge</i>… </p><p><span></span></p>

ann-margret, art garfunkel, buddy, carol kane, cult, cynthia o'neal, jack nicholson, mike nichols, romance, seventies

JACK NICHOLSON & ART GARFUNKEL IN 'CARNAL KNOWLEDGE'

Jack Nicholson raging through CARNAL KNOWLEDGE Year: 1971 Rating: ***1/2 If you can get past a then thirty-four year old Jack Nicholson as a...

CHARLES BRONSON IN TERENCE YOUNG'S 'THE VALACHI PAPERS'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><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/-ZslzU91a_ps/YUuroGjBCjI/AAAAAAABmvk/fN3zGYuQT8sWSXlNJXxBIoDqxaRvaCB6QCLcBGAsYHQ/s1137/s-l1600.jpeg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1137" data-original-width="1104" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZslzU91a_ps/YUuroGjBCjI/AAAAAAABmvk/fN3zGYuQT8sWSXlNJXxBIoDqxaRvaCB6QCLcBGAsYHQ/w389-h400/s-l1600.jpeg" width="389"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>The Valachi Papers Year: 1972 Rating: **1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>One of the last Charles Bronson roles as a moody and irritable, tempermental <i>characte</i>r, soon mellowing int strong-silent types after DEATH WISH while director Terence Fisher follows along the exploitation crime template of their European venture <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2019/12/bronson70.html">COLD SWEAT</a> (before RED SUN); yet THE VALACHI PAPERS is an American-backed feature that <i>had to be</i> shot in Italy, thus resembling Bronson's European phase and, like THE GODFATHER the same year, two main time periods are used: back when gangster's reigned and later as they're being gathered up and thrown away... </p><p></p><p></p><p>Beginning with Bronson's gray-haired Valachi in prison, surviving various shiv-driven attempts and ending up seated in a tape-recorded backroom telling cop's cop IN COLD BLOOD actor Gerald S. O'Loughlin his story as a mob driver seen in flashbacks while randomly (and intrusively) heard narrating throughout the action... </p><p>A sparse, violent tale with Classic Gangster Cinema cliches from loaded cement dumped in the ocean to Tommy Guns blasting, there's enough antique visual style even during overlong detours and a convoluted plot involving Valachi forced to end the career of mob boss Lino Ventura. But the Italian veteran actor's underused, not as important as need be given the primary task; Valachi's initial boss Joseph Wiseman is far more interesting as overall PAPERS has an unfocused story eventually marred by forced ingenue Jill Ireland in another dull performance, which isn't entirely her fault since this particular tough guy flick needn't an ingenue at all. </p><p><span></span></p>

action, charles bronson, depression-era, gerald s. o'loughlin, italian, jill ireland, joseph wiseman, lino ventura, mobster, seventies, terence young

CHARLES BRONSON IN TERENCE YOUNG'S 'THE VALACHI PAPERS'

The Valachi Papers Year: 1972 Rating: **1/2 One of the last Charles Bronson roles as a moody and irritable, tempermental characte r, soon me...

CHARLES BRONSON FIGHTS THROUGH WALTER HILL'S 'HARD TIMES'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EtUtakadoYg/YUgc8JAHokI/AAAAAAABms8/plb6RUkLvcE7n1s4cYUXEzb1HbsdO63bwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1329/Screen%252BShot%252B2021-09-19%252Bat%252B9.47.21%252BPM.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="603" data-original-width="1329" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EtUtakadoYg/YUgc8JAHokI/AAAAAAABms8/plb6RUkLvcE7n1s4cYUXEzb1HbsdO63bwCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Screen%252BShot%252B2021-09-19%252Bat%252B9.47.21%252BPM.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Charles Bronson fights Bob Tessier in Walter Hill's HARD TIMES Year: 1975 Rating: ***1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>For a director whose style would be eternally linked to the Action genre, Walter Hill's first feature HARD TIMES relies more on location, dialog, ambiance, and even the title leans on the REASON for sporadic cash-handed street fights than the inner-ingredients OF them...<br></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Yet there are some terrific bare-knuckled boxing with a tremendously built Bronson looking thirty-five at the age of fifty-two, one year after hitting A-list big with DEATH WISH and if, say, a Michael Winner or J. Lee Thompson had directed, the brawls might've flowed looser alongside the character motivations to mean more than peripheral glimpses into why our central hero really doesn't say very much...</p><p><span></span></p>

bob tessier, boxing, charles bronson, depression-era, drama, james coburn, jill ireland, margaret blye, mc gainey, michael mcguire, seventies, strother martin, walter hill

CHARLES BRONSON FIGHTS THROUGH WALTER HILL'S 'HARD TIMES'

Charles Bronson fights Bob Tessier in Walter Hill's HARD TIMES Year: 1975 Rating: ***1/2 For a director whose style would be eternally l...

SEAN CONNERY & YVONNE ROMAIN IN 'THE FRIGHTENED CITY'

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vJ_b94NLDus/YTyoJl_FpuI/AAAAAAABmXc/g9D7av9OEyk1Kdg190N1ZhN59k0szT_qACLcBGAsYHQ/s1786/z0.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="882" data-original-width="1786" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vJ_b94NLDus/YTyoJl_FpuI/AAAAAAABmXc/g9D7av9OEyk1Kdg190N1ZhN59k0szT_qACLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/z0.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Poster image of Yvonne Romain for THE FRIGHTENED CITY Year: 1961 Rating: **</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>With a terrific title like THE FRIGHTENED CITY, a British Neo Noir that actually goes the 1930's-style Classic Gangstr route, you'd think characters would be more... well... frightened... but random bursts of mobsters messing up nightclubs that don't pay for extortion happens so fast there's nothing to really fear but broken glass....</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>The plot is simple and straight from the Al Capone playbook of a CITY being divided by gangsters/businessman; that's the idea given by first-billed Herbert Lom as a shady accountant, usually a side-role in these kind of action/dramas, but he was more famous than fellow HELL DRIVERS veteran Sean Connery in the muscular role... </p><p><span></span></p>

alfred marks, british neo noir, crime, gangster, herbert lom, julie shearing, melodrama, sixties

SEAN CONNERY & YVONNE ROMAIN IN 'THE FRIGHTENED CITY'

Poster image of Yvonne Romain for THE FRIGHTENED CITY Year: 1961 Rating: ** With a terrific title like THE FRIGHTENED CITY, a British Neo No...

IAN HENDRY & JUNE RITCHIE FLING THROUGH 'THIS IS MY STREET'

<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RWkX47I6MEM/YTuS2UdGUnI/AAAAAAABmTY/KpO2wiX9hAU3C2atTphp-eCeOr9hiIH4gCLcBGAsYHQ/s2018/0.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1362" data-original-width="2018" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RWkX47I6MEM/YTuS2UdGUnI/AAAAAAABmTY/KpO2wiX9hAU3C2atTphp-eCeOr9hiIH4gCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/0.png"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>June Ritchie and Ian Hendry in THIS IS MY STREET Year: 1961 Rating: ***<br></u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Ian Hendry in a role that would have better fit a more downright handsome Laurence Harvey, but he's got the right amount of scoundrel charm that's initially fully-loaded towards pretty married June Ritchie, who <i>definitely</i> has a daughter... In fact she and her mom's loose lodger Hendry consummate after both take bonding time to find the kid...<br></p><p>But while there are a fair number of scenes with June's bored, jobless husband (Mike Pratt), they really don't seem all that married... and either way there's zero chemistry between the actors...<br></p><span></span>

annette andre, british new wave, john hurt, june ritchie, melodrama, philippa gail, romance, sixties

IAN HENDRY & JUNE RITCHIE FLING THROUGH 'THIS IS MY STREET'

June Ritchie and Ian Hendry in THIS IS MY STREET Year: 1961 Rating: *** Ian Hendry in a role that would have better fit a more downright han...

WARREN OATES WAITING OUT LEE VAN CLEEF FOR 'BARQUERO'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-agswBk8Zm9s/YUhF3qs57PI/AAAAAAABmtE/Cxgvxv9gPvE7Kpuzn6BrYU_kiO-1yH8TQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2377/Screen%252BShot%252B2021-09-19%252Bat%252B11.52.55%252BAM.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1074" data-original-width="2377" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-agswBk8Zm9s/YUhF3qs57PI/AAAAAAABmtE/Cxgvxv9gPvE7Kpuzn6BrYU_kiO-1yH8TQCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Screen%252BShot%252B2021-09-19%252Bat%252B11.52.55%252BAM.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Warren Beatty plays bad to the bone for BARQUERO Year: 1970 Rating: **1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Of course you've heard of a Mexican Standoff, but BARQURO takes that concept of two sides waiting in deadly/suspenseful anticipation of who'll strike next to the next level, owning more than half of what begins an ultra-violent town-takeover-Western the likes of Sam Peckinpah's famous open from THE WILD BUNCH, and one of that bunch is down-and-dirty villain Warren Oates as Remy... </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Like many American-made Westerns from the 1970's... albeit this one heavily borrowing music, main star and style from the Italian Spaghetti format... the bad guys are more like gritty, disgusting, marauding bikers from the previous decade's exploitation drive-in flicks... </p><p><span></span></p>

action, exploitation, forrest tucker, gordon douglas, john davis chandler, kerwin matthews, lee van cleef, warren oates, western

WARREN OATES WAITING OUT LEE VAN CLEEF FOR 'BARQUERO'

Warren Beatty plays bad to the bone for BARQUERO Year: 1970 Rating: **1/2 Of course you've heard of a Mexican Standoff, but BARQURO take...

PETER SELLERS GETS COMPLETELY VICIOUS FOR 'NEVER LET GO'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4qJ0y02oZgA/YTn2OXB_BCI/AAAAAAABmPw/rGVNkcFx1dYxHKAHg26kx2Z_NIDeEDRAQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1927/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-09-09%2Bat%2B2.00.41%2BAM.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1119" data-original-width="1927" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4qJ0y02oZgA/YTn2OXB_BCI/AAAAAAABmPw/rGVNkcFx1dYxHKAHg26kx2Z_NIDeEDRAQCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-09-09%2Bat%2B2.00.41%2BAM.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Title: NEVER LET GO Year: 1960 Rating: ****</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>A British Neo Noir cross between DEATH OF A SALESMAN before and DEATH WISH after, John Guillerman made NEVER LET GO the same year as THE DAY THEY ROBBED THE BANK OF ENGLAND, only a car's worth much less than an entire country's bullion vault... </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>But don't tell that to desperate cosmetics salesman Richard Todd, whose old fashioned, pseudo-charming client-pressuring style goes against the company's new-fangled <i>scientific methods</i>... </p><p><span></span></p>

adam faith, british neo noir, british new wave, carol white, crime, cult, david gregory, david lodge, elizabeth sellars, john guillermin, peter sellers, revenge, richard todd, thriller

PETER SELLERS GETS COMPLETELY VICIOUS FOR 'NEVER LET GO'

Title: NEVER LET GO Year: 1960 Rating: **** A British Neo Noir cross between DEATH OF A SALESMAN before and DEATH WISH after, John Guillerma...

DAVID NIVEN & PETER SELLERS ARE BOTH BOND IN 'CASINO ROYALE'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uadWqu43WCw/YTl2RCEX09I/AAAAAAABmKw/Nm_0BLXtw5seyqRshDRG5cnDW5d53-0FgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1736/Screen%25252BShot%25252B2021-09-08%25252Bat%25252B8.25.48%25252BAM.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="863" data-original-width="1736" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uadWqu43WCw/YTl2RCEX09I/AAAAAAABmKw/Nm_0BLXtw5seyqRshDRG5cnDW5d53-0FgCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Screen%25252BShot%25252B2021-09-08%25252Bat%25252B8.25.48%25252BAM.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>David Niven and Barbara Bouchet in CASINO ROYALE Year: 1967 Rating: *1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>The infamous James Bond Spy Spoof CASINO ROYALE from the much-too-colorful 1960's could be deemed unbelievably awful but with a collection of writers and directors (including <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/search/label/val%20guest">Val Guest</a> and John Huston) desperately herding their all-star cast into what wound up resembling a high-priced TV variety show, it IS believable to have turned out so... well... unbelievably awful...</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Chopped into vignettes, by far the most awkward has David Niven's retired/reserved James Bond in Scotland (some kind of homage to Sean Connery) being tempted by a castle of gorgeous "daughters" of John Huston's newly-killed M...</p><p><span></span></p>

angela scoular, barbara bouchet, british, comedy, david niven, deborah kerr, ensemble, james bond, joanna pettet, john huston, orson welles, peter sellers, spoof, spy, ursula andress, val guest, woody allen

DAVID NIVEN & PETER SELLERS ARE BOTH BOND IN 'CASINO ROYALE'

David Niven and Barbara Bouchet in CASINO ROYALE Year: 1967 Rating: *1/2 The infamous James Bond Spy Spoof CASINO ROYALE from the much-too-c...

ROGER MOORE IN THE SPACE-CRAZE ERA BOND 'MOONRAKER'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lsbf5FaNGYE/YTmpTvvDy3I/AAAAAAABmL0/iCX9hj95lIkZQEbgAVxlFB-yU3e67rHEQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2321/25.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="975" data-original-width="2321" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lsbf5FaNGYE/YTmpTvvDy3I/AAAAAAABmL0/iCX9hj95lIkZQEbgAVxlFB-yU3e67rHEQCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/25.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Roger Moore in MOONRAKER with Lois Chiles Year 1979 Rating ****</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>What's more ironic than the science-fiction James Bond MOONRAKER spending 90-minutes, the length of an average motion picture, on land... from England to California to Italy to Rio... before living up to its galactic promise, is that Lois Chiles' progressive ingenue demands respect for being a doctor... and her name is <i>Goodhead</i>, working for one of the more <i>non-charming from the get-go</i> heavies, Hugo Drax, played by French stage actor Michael Lonsdale... </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>And when we're eventually thrust into space, the movie hits a bland, awkward wall... Not that the build-up lacks inside lunar gags: the audio code to enter a laboratory is from CLOSE ENCOUNTERS and the 2001 theme also turns up...<br></p><p><span></span></p>

anne lonnberg, béatrice libert, bernard lee, corinne cléry, franchise, irka bochenko, james bond, lewis gilbert, lois chiles, michael lonsdale, richard kiel, roger moore, seventies, spy

ROGER MOORE IN THE SPACE-CRAZE ERA BOND 'MOONRAKER'

Roger Moore in MOONRAKER with Lois Chiles Year 1979 Rating **** What's more ironic than the science-fiction James Bond MOONRAKER spendi...

CANNON BLASTS LUCINDA DICKEY IN 'NINJA III: THE DOMINATION'

<p></p><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/-eSHBIjTeGFE/YTVfuHIoapI/AAAAAAABl9Y/okH-oA0sy0warpN1rcdSwKuGSLpzln1WACLcBGAsYHQ/s1245/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-09-05%2Bat%2B3.51.14%2BPM.jpeg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1245" data-original-width="1124" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eSHBIjTeGFE/YTVfuHIoapI/AAAAAAABl9Y/okH-oA0sy0warpN1rcdSwKuGSLpzln1WACLcBGAsYHQ/w361-h400/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-09-05%2Bat%2B3.51.14%2BPM.jpeg" width="361"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Blu Ray of Ninja III Year: 1984 Rating: ***1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>NINJA III: THE DOMINATION, despite being number three after The Cannon Group's previous NINJA flicks — that needn't watching to jump on board here — stands, flips, jumps, tumbles and kicks on its very own merit... </p><p>With buried lead and legit karate expert Shô Kosugi, whose eye-patched Yomada eventually travels to America to avenge the past (unseen) death of his father by the notorious Black Ninja who, after killing a golf-course playing scientist, his wife, several bodyguards and more cops than RAMBO in a bombastic/awesome land fight turned car chase introduction, telephone pole-climbing government worker Lucinda Dickey as Christie, an aerobics instructor on the side who listens to gloriously dated synth music ala Linda Hamilton in TERMINATOR, gets taken-over or <i>dominated</i> but particularly <i>possessed</i> given one scene that rips off THE EXORCIST full throttle... </p><p>Having taken the bullet-splattered dead Ninja's soul, receiving his powerful sword along with vengeful memories, Lucinda's Christie is surprisingly subdued during blackouts as she becomes a sneaky Ninja assassin targeting obnoxious cops while having an affair with a friendly helpful one: Leading to something sinister and mysterious combining the horror genre with karate with the help of Yomada, always there on the sidelines during fight scenes involving Dickey's masked Ninja: like all the complicated numbers in Cannon's BREAKIN' the same year wherein SHE ALSO headlined despite not being a titular professional, she's also noticeably stunt-doubled and yet, even despite a sporadically robotic delivery, her 1980's dream girl hotness a and physical prowess helps carry this truly entertaining, action-packed wallop that deserves more genuine cult over maligned camp status.</p><p></p><p><span></span></p>

action, cannon, cult, david chung, eighties, horror, karate, lucinda dickey, shô kosugi

CANNON BLASTS LUCINDA DICKEY IN 'NINJA III: THE DOMINATION'

Blu Ray of Ninja III Year: 1984 Rating: ***1/2 NINJA III: THE DOMINATION, despite being number three after The Cannon Group's previous N...

DARREN MCGAVIN COPS OUT 'THE CASE AGAINST BROOKLYN'

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NNUBWNDk0_U/YTU3Ofla2uI/AAAAAAABl7Y/lMbY3qYEO08DIVls0yavTnaud41Vgq3kACLcBGAsYHQ/s1794/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-09-05%2Bat%2B2.00.37%2BPM.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1278" data-original-width="1794" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NNUBWNDk0_U/YTU3Ofla2uI/AAAAAAABl7Y/lMbY3qYEO08DIVls0yavTnaud41Vgq3kACLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-09-05%2Bat%2B2.00.37%2BPM.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Margaret Hayes & Darren McGavin THE CASE AGAINST BROOKLYN Year: 1958 Rates: ***1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>"Maybe he's queer for widows who run garages" says a drunk and jilted Margaret Hayes to square-jawed (surreptitious to her) villain Warren Stevens, and she's talking about an undercover cop she'd uncovered in married Darren McGavin, having feigned a bachelor salesman type and whose best scenes are what led to up the poor dame being so ticked-off...<br></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>And she has other problems, much deeper... Her husband, owing a bundle to bookies in which Stevens was the thuggiest, fatally crashed his truck, purposefully looking like a Double Indemnity accident and leaving her to "run" the garage near a tavern where she's a wishbone between both good and bad guy... albeit both are manipulating liars... <br></p><p><span></span></p>

action, brian g. hutton, cop, darren mcgavin, film noir or melodrama, margaret hayes, peggy mccay, robert osterloh, warren stevens

DARREN MCGAVIN COPS OUT 'THE CASE AGAINST BROOKLYN'

Margaret Hayes & Darren McGavin THE CASE AGAINST BROOKLYN Year: 1958 Rates: ***1/2 "Maybe he's queer for widows who run garages...

ENGLISH STARLET JOY WEBSTER CHANNELS 'STORMY CROSSING'

<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9-LPR0ksyBU/YTN9VWGY2SI/AAAAAAABl2w/ovKw_vvugkkVy1pzp-AZhsLxVzc-7EwiACLcBGAsYHQ/s1339/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-09-04%2Bat%2B5.14.23%2BAM.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="696" data-original-width="1339" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9-LPR0ksyBU/YTN9VWGY2SI/AAAAAAABl2w/ovKw_vvugkkVy1pzp-AZhsLxVzc-7EwiACLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-09-04%2Bat%2B5.14.23%2BAM.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Joy Webster and John Ireland in BLACK TIDE/STORMY CROSSING 1958 Rates: ***</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>It's been a joy discovering British starlet <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/search/label/joy%20webster">Joy Webster</a> who, throughout the <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/search/label/british%20new%20wave">British New Wave</a>, specialized in flirtatiously rejected skanks: twice in Hammer Films... <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2021/07/2F.html">THE TWO FACES OF DR. JEKYLL</a> as pimpish Oliver Reed's shunned nightclub girl while she's not even good enough for him in a <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2020/03/reedwolf.html">CURSE OF THE WEREWOLF</a> brothel. And in-between she's shunned in a strip joint by both Brian Weske and David McCallum in <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2020/09/jungle.html">JUNGLE STREET</a>...</p><p></p><p></p><p>But before all that she was taken seriously, and admired... for a little while... as a fashion model turned amateur swimmer set to cross the English Channel with an American jock whose brother, played by American Import <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2021/03/only-the.html">John Ireland</a>... who sporadically stares onto the gorgeous Channel stock footage... has second thoughts about the entire idea...<br></p><span></span>

british film noir, fifties, john ireland, joy webster, leslie dwyer, maureen connell, perfect murder, sport, thriller

ENGLISH STARLET JOY WEBSTER CHANNELS 'STORMY CROSSING'

Joy Webster and John Ireland in BLACK TIDE/STORMY CROSSING 1958 Rates: *** It's been a joy discovering British starlet Joy Webster who,...

MATT DILLON SHOOTS CRAP IN 'THE BIG TOWN' WITH DIANE LANE

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7gO5XhxQogg/YUKd1iqgFoI/AAAAAAABmdM/YYn8G1Ek0wYv6Ie5vxlK-i7W3iUPZ7WgACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Screen%25252BShot%25252B2021-09-15%25252Bat%25252B2.38.20%25252BPM.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1085" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7gO5XhxQogg/YUKd1iqgFoI/AAAAAAABmdM/YYn8G1Ek0wYv6Ie5vxlK-i7W3iUPZ7WgACLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Screen%25252BShot%25252B2021-09-15%25252Bat%25252B2.38.20%25252BPM.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Matt Dillon in THE BIG TOWN with Del Close and Don Park Year: 1987 Rating: ***1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>With a deliberately sparse-pulpy title, THE BIG TOWN is set during the 1950's... 1957 to be exact... and Dillon really looks the part, a kind of throwback B&W-suited actor even in this neo noir's neon green and pink tinged color scheme, playing a young lucky dice player who miraculously hits the right numbers each and every time, giving the movie a sort of unintentional TWILIGHT ZONE science-fiction vibe, or something delving into fantasy... </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>And for a vehicle so otherwise grounded and somewhat cliche, predictable and even mainstream, that's alright since Matt's urgency (and the film's suspense) doesn't rely on winning but surviving the pool of gambling hoodlum sharks who, from Tommy Lee Jones as an underground backroom dealer to a mysterious backstory Tom Skerritt, are out to (or seem out to) stop the endless and bizarre winning streak...</p><span></span>

ben bolt, bruce dern, diane lane, drama, eighties, fifties-era, gambling, lee grant, matt dillon, neo noir, thriller, tommy lee jones

MATT DILLON SHOOTS CRAP IN 'THE BIG TOWN' WITH DIANE LANE

Matt Dillon in THE BIG TOWN with Del Close and Don Park Year: 1987 Rating: ***1/2 With a deliberately sparse-pulpy title, THE BIG TOWN is se...

JOHN DEREK PIMPING BRITISH FILM NOIR 'THE FLESH IS WEAK'

<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6sLrbVnpK3c/YTOKowOC1qI/AAAAAAABl5E/FI6vGh_oovgKHvfZ7rhPz9YUSfWW5ugPACLcBGAsYHQ/s1101/MV5BMjQ3MWQ2NWItYzI4ZS00OGU2LTk1NzctOWQxNjEyMGQ5Njc1XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNTA2NDc4OA%25252540%25252540._V1_.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="664" data-original-width="1101" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6sLrbVnpK3c/YTOKowOC1qI/AAAAAAABl5E/FI6vGh_oovgKHvfZ7rhPz9YUSfWW5ugPACLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/MV5BMjQ3MWQ2NWItYzI4ZS00OGU2LTk1NzctOWQxNjEyMGQ5Njc1XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNTA2NDc4OA%25252540%25252540._V1_.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Title: THE FLESH IS WEAK Year: 1957 Rating: **1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Before he became a horrible director with gorgeous blonde wives, John Derek made for a fairly passable actor, and it's unfortunate that this late British Noir didn't stick with the country of origin for a shadier lead since there were plenty of great performers who wouldn't seem like they're performing like Derek often does here...</p><p></p><p></p><p>And this American plays a part Italian hood named Tony Giani, taking a heartlessly professional interest in an extremely vulnerable and victimized Milly Vitale despite initially and misleadingly treating her like a prom date dream-girl... <br></p><p><span></span></p>

british film noir, crime, exploitation, fifties, john derek, milly vitale, shirley ann field, vera day

JOHN DEREK PIMPING BRITISH FILM NOIR 'THE FLESH IS WEAK'

Title: THE FLESH IS WEAK Year: 1957 Rating: **1/2 Before he became a horrible director with gorgeous blonde wives, John Derek made for a fai...

SUSAN CABOT HAS STING IN ROGER CORMAN'S 'THE WASP WOMAN'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UJKV26u8Ons/YUOGC4TlYEI/AAAAAAABmiQ/vOym7C_58TQDfmL8TYGa4bsuFGh6AXqTACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/lf.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1230" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UJKV26u8Ons/YUOGC4TlYEI/AAAAAAABmiQ/vOym7C_58TQDfmL8TYGa4bsuFGh6AXqTACLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/lf.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Misleading poster image for THE WASP WOMAN Year: 1959 Rating: ***1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Michael Marks's beekeeper or actually wasp-keeper character Eric Winthrop has all the makings of a mad scientist, or perhaps a kind of "drone" seeking revenge against his bully bosses... </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>If it weren't for the utter impatience of Susan Cabot's title character, wanting so badly to be young for her youth cream cosmetics company to keep making sense like before... when she was a true beauty... Winthrop might just have been that kind of murdering antagonist the likes of Dick Miller in another above-average Roger Corman flick that he actually directed before eventually retiring into producer, which he was much better at...<br></p><p><span></span></p>

barboura morris, cult, fifties, horror, roger corman, susan cabot, suspense, thriller

SUSAN CABOT HAS STING IN ROGER CORMAN'S 'THE WASP WOMAN'

Misleading poster image for THE WASP WOMAN Year: 1959 Rating: ***1/2 Michael Marks's beekeeper or actually wasp-keeper character Eric Wi...

ROBERT RYAN 'CITY BENEATH THE SEA' WITH ANTHONY QUINN

<p></p><p></p><p></p><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/-JMTU9fHKtKI/YS2pUlC-oSI/AAAAAAABluw/UEHugI7ILCsdw-xWJAUuoA7Nt85ERaz9gCLcBGAsYHQ/s400/lf.jpeg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="313" data-original-width="400" height="313" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JMTU9fHKtKI/YS2pUlC-oSI/AAAAAAABluw/UEHugI7ILCsdw-xWJAUuoA7Nt85ERaz9gCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h313/lf.jpeg" width="400"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Year: 1953 Rating: **</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>A letdown for those who love movies about treasure hunters. Unfortunately, the main character, played by a stiff Robert Ryan, is so uptight, not only does he NOT go along with more energetic and assertive partner Anthony Quinn, to find gold on a sunken ship in a literal CITY BENEATH THE SEA from a volcano explosion hundreds of years ago...<br> </p><p></p><p></p><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/-MoQVnTWb1BQ/YSzGb9jZs-I/AAAAAAABlsQ/loSo7cMT3g0IjnYeNh2GkD8nYW0D1ZTVwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1100/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-08-30%2Bat%2B4.47.33%2BAM.jpeg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1100" data-original-width="490" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MoQVnTWb1BQ/YSzGb9jZs-I/AAAAAAABlsQ/loSo7cMT3g0IjnYeNh2GkD8nYW0D1ZTVwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-08-30%2Bat%2B4.47.33%2BAM.jpeg" width="143"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Suzan Ball</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>But he moves in to snake the booty first, just to teach his partner a lesson: A lesson is also taught to the audience, who must weather this bland fine-feathered friend who's also an extremely weak central hero, keeping this movie from being edgy, or entertaining... And the two lovely ingenues are both gorgeous, and initially tough, independent and assertive, making their characters mean more than just looks and providing a built-in feeling of suspense within the anticipated romance...</p><p>One is the captain of a small boat (Mala Powers) and the other a calypso singer (Suzan Ball, Lucy O'Ball's cousin, who would of cancer die soon after)...</p><p>But without Ryan or Quinn having to do much at all, both ladies melt to their touch in such a pathetic way. The singer actually asks Quinn, "What are you thinking?" after they'd known each other ten minutes. Meanwhile, as a b-movie, the low budget is deliberate, and mostly works... including scenes of the boys trudging in heavy "Diver Dan" style underwater gear with matte painted backgrounds. The technicolor is great looking, and otherwise these are capable actors and actresses. But this oceanic thriller is devoid of thrills, and pretty much... sinks upon impact. </p><span></span>

action, adventure, anthony quinn, fifties, pulp, robert ryan, suzan ball, treasure

ROBERT RYAN 'CITY BENEATH THE SEA' WITH ANTHONY QUINN

Year: 1953 Rating: ** A letdown for those who love movies about treasure hunters. Unfortunately, the main character, played by a stiff Robe...

OTTO PREMINGER'S COUNTER-CULTURE DISASTER OF 'SKIDOO'

<div style="text-align: right;"> </div> <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/-Nb2BP8SVUH4/YSxg2l__psI/AAAAAAABloc/xPmlWBvll8IXMh727Sy5p89LTN1zzNKnwCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/aaaa.jpeg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="461" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Nb2BP8SVUH4/YSxg2l__psI/AAAAAAABloc/xPmlWBvll8IXMh727Sy5p89LTN1zzNKnwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/aaaa.jpeg" width="295"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Year: 1968 Rating: *</u><br></td></tr></tbody></table><p>For their time and in a matter of aesthetics, Otto Preminger's Film Noirs LAURA and FALLEN ANGEL (both with Dana Andrews) were "psychedelic" for their time, with a camera-gliding flow; yet there's NO flow here in the 1960's when flowing supposedly meant everything... In fact the camera's mostly stagnant, glued upon the now infamous idiocy as if SKIDOO were a two-hour Laugh-In skit...<br> <br> </p><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/-ZjbTBaNBCbM/XAnkfVZHYPI/AAAAAAAA854/1s38olaOm6Q7B3okCzbiPFfUSmrBPOoDQCLcBGAs/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2018-12-06%2Bat%2B7.07.06%2BPM.jpeg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="534" data-original-width="472" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZjbTBaNBCbM/XAnkfVZHYPI/AAAAAAAA854/1s38olaOm6Q7B3okCzbiPFfUSmrBPOoDQCLcBGAs/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2018-12-06%2Bat%2B7.07.06%2BPM.jpeg" width="280"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Alexandra Hay painted in Skidoo</u></td></tr> </tbody></table><p>There's a certain style of movie or show needed for LSD viewing; take it from yours truly, a former 1980's teenage acid head who dropped two tabs of white blotter to experience the VHS tapes of PINK FLOYD LIVE IN POMPEII (not the awful director's cut) and then, after two more hits, another collage-style experience, Bob Dylan DON'T LOOK BACK...</p><p>Dylan who Preminger, experimenting with LSD at the time, requested to score this mess about Jackie Gleason as a mafia hit-man married to an intentionally annoying Carol Channing... He's sentenced to a futuristic-looking Alcatraz who decides NOT to kill a friend/convict ratting on the chief mobster because... well... all that doesn't matter but at the same time, the plot's always being pushed at the audience, which is what NOT to do when trying to make something relevant to, or entertaining for, cinema-going Acid-Heads: But no matter the target audience, SKIDOO is just plain bad, and even worse than that, boring. <br> </p><span></span>

alexandra hay, comedy, counter-culture, groucho marx, jackie gleason, otto preminger, prison, sixties

OTTO PREMINGER'S COUNTER-CULTURE DISASTER OF 'SKIDOO'

Year: 1968 Rating: * For their time and in a matter of aesthetics, Otto Preminger's Film Noirs LAURA and FALLEN ANGEL (both with Dan...

SUSANNAH YORK IN 'THE KILLING OF SISTER GEORGE' W/ BERYL REID

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-e0dnV8FeTzs/YStV3CyqzbI/AAAAAAABllI/r4Lt43MiED0HyN3I-124-G8NM4wkK2TyACLcBGAsYHQ/s1442/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-08-29%2Bat%2B2.34.56%2BAM%2B2.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="579" data-original-width="1442" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-e0dnV8FeTzs/YStV3CyqzbI/AAAAAAABllI/r4Lt43MiED0HyN3I-124-G8NM4wkK2TyACLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-08-29%2Bat%2B2.34.56%2BAM%2B2.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Title: THE KILLING OF SISTER GEORGE Year: 1968 Rating: ***</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>After director Robert Aldrich exploded with THE DIRTY DOZEN he returned to an independent style melodrama in the fashion of WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE although THE KILLING OF SISTER GEORGE is really a hybrid of STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE and DEATH OF A SALESMAN but in this case the saleswoman's an actress fearing the possible death of her fictional character from a long-running British soap, and it all sounds like Aldrich's BIG KNIFE style parody of insider's show business... </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Yet most of SISTER GEORGE centers on a gorgeous blonde childlike, doll-collecting Susannah York, the titular starlet's lover, and their bickering, apartment-dwelling scenes, ranging from the middle-aged has-been played by middle-aged firebrand Beryl Reid, wielding mind games, making her lover literally eat cigar tips or threatening to behead one of her beloved antique dolls... </p><p><span></span></p>

beryl reid, british, coral browne, homosexual, melodrama, robert aldrich, sixties, susannah york

SUSANNAH YORK IN 'THE KILLING OF SISTER GEORGE' W/ BERYL REID

Title: THE KILLING OF SISTER GEORGE Year: 1968 Rating: *** After director Robert Aldrich exploded with THE DIRTY DOZEN he returned to an ind...

JEAN GABIN IN 'MOONTIDE' WITH THOMAS MITCHELL & IDA LUPINO

<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/-PA0nEKor0jw/YStyRqiGR5I/AAAAAAABlmk/vI_RKEh1YeEChlDBapaORTerzMfDMrRsACLcBGAsYHQ/s1288/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-08-29%2Bat%2B4.16.38%2BAM.jpeg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="857" data-original-width="1288" height="266" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PA0nEKor0jw/YStyRqiGR5I/AAAAAAABlmk/vI_RKEh1YeEChlDBapaORTerzMfDMrRsACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h266/Screen%2BShot%2B2021-08-29%2Bat%2B4.16.38%2BAM.jpeg" width="400"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Jean Gabin in MOONTIDE Year: 1942 Rating: ***1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Begins with an intentionally surreal barroom scene with the headless body of pouting-lipped barfly Penny Raymond with her head speaking a few feet away as our hero Jean Gabin reaches for a beer, trying to communicate with the torso... </p><p>This during a night of blackout drinking; after which he feels falsely responsible for a murder heard about the next day, and there's a twist...<br> <br> Thomas Mitchell is Gabin's partner, keeping him on a blackmail tightrope because of a likewise strangling murder that happened years earlier... Which only randomly gets in the way of perhaps the breeziest romance in Noirish Melodrama history. After rescuing Ida Lupino from drowning, Gabin's Bo Bo takes her to the live-bait waterfront shack (a wonderfully subtle set) where he'd started work counting fish. A hollow yet optimistic existence with only a dog by side, and, throw in a bizarre, philosophizing and existential sidekick in Claude Rains, not much really happens but it's nice seeing Gabin doing just that. </p><p></p><p><span></span></p>

claude rains, film noir or melodrama, forties, helene reynolds, jean gabin, jerome cowan, robin raymond, romance, thomas mitchell

JEAN GABIN IN 'MOONTIDE' WITH THOMAS MITCHELL & IDA LUPINO

Jean Gabin in MOONTIDE Year: 1942 Rating: ***1/2 Begins with an intentionally surreal barroom scene with the headless body of pouting-lippe...