A ROYAL TRIBUTE TO STAR WARS PRINCESS CARRIE FISHER

<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/-0xb5Ta2StZQ/WGK5NCYxLqI/AAAAAAAAvkw/VII-eTQS9QcWBEGlrWiEXmGTWG5dqv6mgCLcB/s1600/c0efd7c97c26e7c9381aeaceabd05452f5a05dc745b070248b1f120b61c9a597.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0xb5Ta2StZQ/WGK5NCYxLqI/AAAAAAAAvkw/VII-eTQS9QcWBEGlrWiEXmGTWG5dqv6mgCLcB/s400/c0efd7c97c26e7c9381aeaceabd05452f5a05dc745b070248b1f120b61c9a597.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Yes we <i>did have to</i> show this picture of Carrie Fisher at Jabba's Place</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> What helped make STAR WARS: THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK so incredible was the back-to-basics pulp styling: morphing that "Used Future" from a noun to a verb...<br /> <br /> George Lucas hired one of his former USC directing instructors to take controls behind the camera, and Irvin Kershner had done a few crime melodramas and, originally, dime novel sci-fi author Leigh Brackett penned the first sequel's first draft, and Lawrence Kasdan took over after she passed away. Also on the nostalgic front, it was Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher who went from a GONE WITH THE WIND style Rhett and Scarlett bickering duo into an opposites-attract couple extremely deserving of a long anticipated kiss (interrupted by that perfectly annoying droid). And like Ford improved shooting the showboat swordsman with a lazy pistol a year later in Lucas and Steven Spielberg's pulp collaboration, RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK, neither Brackett or Kasdan came up with a response fitting the maverick, and it was Ford who, on the cuff, responded to Leia's admission of love with, "I know."<br /> <br /> <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/-MqZXA6-Jlig/WGK5YERcf_I/AAAAAAAAvk0/1c4NvkN9TOUqlKRmVsPWVgaV9INOe44CQCLcB/s1600/carrieshampoo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="257" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MqZXA6-Jlig/WGK5YERcf_I/AAAAAAAAvk0/1c4NvkN9TOUqlKRmVsPWVgaV9INOe44CQCLcB/s400/carrieshampoo.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Carrie Fisher looking right through her prey in SHAMPOO circa 1975</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> For an American kid who grew up not only <i>on</i> STAR WARS but <i>along with</i> STAR WARS, Carrie Fisher was then and remains still the only "royalty" we ever knew. The daughter of singer/actress Debbie Reynolds and comedian Eddie Fisher, she was a darker, more willowy and mysterious, subtle beauty than her mother's baby-faced, fireworks explosion of candy apple delight. Without trying too hard, or pushing that just-sealed envelope too far, Carrie played Princess Leia as strong as any man, and this was during the 1970's when assertive women had to stand out and, more often than naught, overdo to be noticed. Nothing doing with Fisher's take on the Rebellion's one and only Princess. What she had was very natural, even going back two years previously in SHAMPOO as the spoiled, melancholy daughter of a rich dame having an affair with hairdresser Warren Beatty: it's Fisher's character who really puts the breezy womanizer in his place...<br /> <br /> <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/-oQ7i7y0sET0/WGK5gjc5hzI/AAAAAAAAvk4/Kg-4p1u7kBcqOEBSpwzWu7QR2NIZ7KNWwCLcB/s1600/Hannah-and-Her-Sisters-April-10.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/-oQ7i7y0sET0/WGK5gjc5hzI/AAAAAAAAvk4/Kg-4p1u7kBcqOEBSpwzWu7QR2NIZ7KNWwCLcB/s320/Hannah-and-Her-Sisters-April-10.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>In Woody Allen's HANNAH AND HER SISTERS</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> And a few years after wearing her now famous Jabba's Palace bikini in the, at that point, final STAR WARS installment, RETURN OF THE JEDI, Carrie Fisher, no longer a Princess but a bonafide actress (and singer), provided what was to be her last standout role — in <i>this</i> galaxy...<br /> <br /> <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/-o4Gj2xe6hmA/WGLSPfmX04I/AAAAAAAAvlY/5K7PlmFj3gUjirkFzTEQ0eVLcCsTsHnZwCLcB/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-12-27%2Bat%2B12.39.01%2BPM.png" 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/-o4Gj2xe6hmA/WGLSPfmX04I/AAAAAAAAvlY/5K7PlmFj3gUjirkFzTEQ0eVLcCsTsHnZwCLcB/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-12-27%2Bat%2B12.39.01%2BPM.png" width="162" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>In THE BLUES BROTHERS</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> For without her important role of a stable, well-balanced, beautiful and downright lucky New York auditioning actress, the most grounded and sympathetic of Woody Allen's HANNAH AND HER SISTERS sister, Dianne Wiest, would mean nothing if not by comparison (a review of the cult misfire UNDER THE RAINBOW is under way): Then there's one of her most action packed roles, and she really just sits around, letting a flame thrower do all the work, trying to kill John Belushi's Jake Blues of THE BLUES BROTHERS and sending he and brother Elwood... Dan Aykroyd... rocketing towards the sky in an ignited telephone booth...<br /> <br /> And now we shall end this tribute for the late Carrie Fisher with this: While there have been several worthy ingenues to carry on the franchise lately, from Daisy THE FORCE AWAKENS Ridley to Felicity ROGUE ONE Jones, let's put a twist on Yoda's famous cliffhanger-quote, standing on his murky planet with a ghostly Obi Wan Kenobi: "There will NEVER be another..." quite like Carrie Fisher.<br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div>

carrie fisher, star wars, tribute

A ROYAL TRIBUTE TO STAR WARS PRINCESS CARRIE FISHER

Yes we did have to show this picture of Carrie Fisher at Jabba's Place What helped make STAR WARS: THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK so incre...

JACK NICHOLSON & MORGAN FREEMAN IN THE BUCKET LIST

<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/-Yg4aNw7qfeY/V_m8pDo0aCI/AAAAAAAAuvw/AH2I9Dwm-V0rV5SsIHYLio-z7R8Qusg5gCLcB/s1600/14600836_202722593490258_8481962365578924908_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="228" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Yg4aNw7qfeY/V_m8pDo0aCI/AAAAAAAAuvw/AH2I9Dwm-V0rV5SsIHYLio-z7R8Qusg5gCLcB/s400/14600836_202722593490258_8481962365578924908_n.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Jack and Morgan's perspective of an unreachable mountain YEAR: 2008</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> Having ventured back into the classic cinema of Jack Nicholson throughout the years, we'll now embark on a relatively modern journey when the man was reunited with the director of <i>the first</i> of his two middle-aged-era pinnacles, ending with AS GOOD AS IT GETS and starting with A FEW GOOD MEN... <br> Right from the start, in THE BUCKET LIST, the number of times a medical board member gives each other knowing, untrusting glances while Jack's character... a millionaire who owns privatized hospitals... stands, or rather, sits lazily on some kind of hearing against him, this is the sign of director Rob Reiner, begging the audience to agree that Jack is (at first) up to no damn good: What's important is that his Alpha Male tycoon is the polar opposite of the trivia whiz mechanic played by Morgan Freeman...<br>

comedy, drama, jack nicholson, morgan freeman, rob reiner, zeroes

JACK NICHOLSON & MORGAN FREEMAN IN THE BUCKET LIST

Jack and Morgan's perspective of an unreachable mountain YEAR: 2008 Having ventured back into the classic cinema of Jack Nicholson t...

SHORT & SWEET 'NIGHT OF THE COMET' MERRY CHRISTMAS

<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/-kUx9QhHsWBI/WGHs7AhtnRI/AAAAAAAAvkc/OGdQJFbCclMTi2iG5Ev1UT3SiDxDp93qACLcB/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-12-26%2Bat%2B8.21.52%2BPM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="262" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kUx9QhHsWBI/WGHs7AhtnRI/AAAAAAAAvkc/OGdQJFbCclMTi2iG5Ev1UT3SiDxDp93qACLcB/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-12-26%2Bat%2B8.21.52%2BPM.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>An EATING RAOUL Reunion in NIGHT OF THE COMET</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> It's that time again. You know because of the noise incessantly grinding inside coffee shops, restaurants and drugstores — music so bad it's only played once a year...<br> <br> And it's been quite a year for Cult Film Freak, having discovered one particular "old movie" actor, Dana Andrews, and with him, cinematic gold was stuck as a barrage of directors, actresses and fellow actors, including his own personal Alfred Hitchcock in Otto Preminger, leading ladies such as Jeanne Crain, Anne Francis and Gene Tierney and a tight troupe of actors including Lloyd Bridges, Harry Morgan, Farley Granger, Hoagey Carmichael and... the list goes on and on, connecting classic films, whether popular (for that time) or hilarious clunkers that became beloved cult flicks (and would now surpass that era's popular ones): Basically, Dana filled in a gap from the deletion of new releases that were covered around three per week. At one point, after having viewed yet another movie where, not a theme but an agenda was revealed at the ending, which had provided the structural foundation... that, as they say, was that: Imagining all the hard involved to make the picture, all so <i>one solitary point</i> could be raised  to "teach" viewers... It was all too much...<br>

catherine mary stewart, eighties, horror, kelli maroney, mary woronov, robert beltran, sharon farrell

SHORT & SWEET 'NIGHT OF THE COMET' MERRY CHRISTMAS

An EATING RAOUL Reunion in NIGHT OF THE COMET It's that time again. You know because of the noise incessantly grinding inside coffee...

DOUBLE FEATURE CIRCUS CINEMA: JUMBO & RING OF FEAR

<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/-0W5kPL2fGa4/WFHuw1wH8QI/AAAAAAAAvfI/-8QujnZAPSszht1q5WlXhlZGBSIvcYa5QCLcB/s1600/15442280_241200382975812_4520943453001535375_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0W5kPL2fGa4/WFHuw1wH8QI/AAAAAAAAvfI/-8QujnZAPSszht1q5WlXhlZGBSIvcYa5QCLcB/s400/15442280_241200382975812_4520943453001535375_n.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Mickey Spillaine with Sean McClory YEAR: 1954</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> There's THE GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH, considered by some the <i>greatest</i> Circus Movie — unless you count the more personal, character-driven melodrama, TRAPEZE...<br> <br> <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://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FsbJJp7AHI0/WFbLOIYP56I/AAAAAAAAvgQ/dfc1eHxY0EkU_6Jc-ZNSL7dvkIrBTk6QQCLcB/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-12-18%2Bat%2B9.43.10%2BAM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FsbJJp7AHI0/WFbLOIYP56I/AAAAAAAAvgQ/dfc1eHxY0EkU_6Jc-ZNSL7dvkIrBTk6QQCLcB/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-12-18%2Bat%2B9.43.10%2BAM.jpg"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Spillane paperback cover</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> While there are plenty of others, we're centering on JUMBO and what's our personal favorite circus flick: a John Wayne production (that he doesn't appear in) titled <u>RING OF FEAR,</u> wherein the first three credited stars — their names stacked  — include two that are exploited for their skills while being non-actors and playing themselves...<br> <br> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> <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://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Co8IScLk6Gk/WFb0CT16v_I/AAAAAAAAvhA/eMNKeSXvbVgUglkXG_d24ozb35zjodsCgCLcB/s1600/b0e23803d169c792bfd9525255af8c5b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Co8IScLk6Gk/WFb0CT16v_I/AAAAAAAAvhA/eMNKeSXvbVgUglkXG_d24ozb35zjodsCgCLcB/s200/b0e23803d169c792bfd9525255af8c5b.jpg" width="118"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Real Pulp Fiction</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> The second is real life pulp author Mickey Spillane, complimented by surrounding circus employees, all fans of his gritty and popular (and brilliant) gumshoe novels (one vendor <i>just happens</i> to be reading a book as Mickey stops for a hot dog — with a handful of other paperbacks at arm's length)... Apart from being human product placement, and acting far more natural as himself than his creation, Private Eye Mike Hammer in THE GIRL HUNTERS a decade later, Mickey hangs around with a relaxed undercover cop, both pondering a string of mysterious killings within the surrounding exterior, and it has to be one of the employees who's guilty...<br> <br> All this overseen by third star Pat O'Brien, who basically, and not surprisingly, walks around barking orders. And the number one spot goes to the person with the less overall screen-time, Clyde Beatty: This is his movie simply because it's his circus. An overlong scene where he tames lions before the crowd, wielding the usual chair and whip, isn't plot-important like the trapeze act wherein there's a palpable element of edgy suspense.<br>

fifties, film noir or melodrama, john bromfield, marian carr, mickey spillane, pat o'brien, sean mcclory

DOUBLE FEATURE CIRCUS CINEMA: JUMBO & RING OF FEAR

Mickey Spillaine with Sean McClory YEAR: 1954 There's THE GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH, considered by some the greatest Circus Movie — un...

THURSDAY REVIEW OF ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY

<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/-qnEEMamhXaI/WFOj--JkDxI/AAAAAAAAvf8/2EGXJZXCjVYLIG8LnyS899ZHduYmSxIWwCLcB/s1600/justin-lancaster-rogueoneposter-v2-smaller-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="243" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qnEEMamhXaI/WFOj--JkDxI/AAAAAAAAvf8/2EGXJZXCjVYLIG8LnyS899ZHduYmSxIWwCLcB/s400/justin-lancaster-rogueoneposter-v2-smaller-2.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Large Poster for ROGUE ONE: A Star Wars Story YEAR: 2016</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> There were those who, in agreement that the prequels were awful, only felt completely cheated by the first two and then got miraculously rejuvenated by REVENGE OF THE SITH, and how it "Tied everything together." Others felt the last was the worst, especially because Darth Vader became the galaxy's Adolf Hitler when his wife died in a dream... <i>Nooooooo!</i><br> <br> So then, ROGUE ONE is obviously intended as a genuine bridge... a prequel for the originals and a sequel for the prequels... and it does a pretty good job despite the first thirty minutes either expecting us to already know the characters we're supposed to root for, or giving us very little to be involved in and/or to cheer <i>about</i>... Plus the fact, there's a strange feeling that imposters have infiltrated our beloved landscape, including the meeting room and X-Wing hangar on the forest planet Yavin... And the very, very beginning... before the gigantic STAR WARS hits the screen (without a scroll-story this time)... is one of the dullest prologues ever, lacking kickstart action and utterly failing to serve the purpose of getting us revved for what's to come. But then, after a little while, something happens...<br>

prequel, science-fiction, star wars

THURSDAY REVIEW OF ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY

Large Poster for ROGUE ONE: A Star Wars Story YEAR: 2016 There were those who, in agreement that the prequels were awful, only felt comp...

SMITH MINUS DANNO: HAWAII FIVE-0 FINAL SEASON TRIPLE

<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/-Ao7NTxYFOa4/WEoYvTccaeI/AAAAAAAAvds/bRe9aspkX60OPhzBtpv_S2xQr7UFdQZJwCLcB/s1600/15380301_237656439996873_1770119420935719611_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ao7NTxYFOa4/WEoYvTccaeI/AAAAAAAAvds/bRe9aspkX60OPhzBtpv_S2xQr7UFdQZJwCLcB/s400/15380301_237656439996873_1770119420935719611_n.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Gary Lockwood stealthily breaks into work on Hawaii 5-0's final season</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> "Book 'em, Danno" is one of the most famous lines in not only cop-television but pop culture history, and that character, referenced by in-charge detective James McGarrett played by Jack Lord, was not originally uttered to James Mcarthur...<br> <br> If you've ever had the pleasure of experiencing Peter Bogdanovich's first real feature length film, TARGETS, another Irishman, Tim O'Kelly, was the bookie, or rather, booker named Danno, but just in the pilot episode... The rest of season one had Mcarthur and Lord perfectly suited together until, right before what turned out being the final season, the second banana peeled out, and was replaced by tough guy actor William Smith, usually prone to villainous thug roles (peaking with his Falconetti character in RICH MAN POOR MAN). Perhaps he was an odd decision as the new guy who'd be told, "Book 'em... Kimo," although he wound up fitting like a glove as opposed to Sharon Farrell, an otherwise good actress, as Detective Lori Wilson....<br>

alan fudge, cop, crime, darrell fetty, jack lord, sharon farrell, TV, william smith

SMITH MINUS DANNO: HAWAII FIVE-0 FINAL SEASON TRIPLE

Gary Lockwood stealthily breaks into work on Hawaii 5-0's final season "Book 'em, Danno" is one of the most famous lin...

MAURY DEXTER DIRECTS WILLARD PARKER IN WALK TALL

<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/-UAFKgz1tI3I/WEDPLkgIbOI/AAAAAAAAvYo/ME8crtOnTWsbG6n1PJoXWzfrkdAI-3hcgCLcB/s1600/15094931_226192527809931_7612991847908183822_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="260" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UAFKgz1tI3I/WEDPLkgIbOI/AAAAAAAAvYo/ME8crtOnTWsbG6n1PJoXWzfrkdAI-3hcgCLcB/s400/15094931_226192527809931_7612991847908183822_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Willard Parker stands firm and can really WALK TALL Year: 1960</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> In Maury Dexter's b-Western, WALK TALL (not to be mistaken with the WALKING TALL series), the second scene... following a massacre of an Indian tribe with only women and children present... is nifty herd of Infantry men riding horses across a creek where a bevy of tents are spread at the foot of a gorgeous mountain landscape...<br /> <br /> A minimalist version of a John Ford Western, not one directed by the man whose eclectic filmography includes bikini beach babes, marauding bikers and determined cops after sneaky robbers: And following the aforementioned exterior shot, the wonderful aesthetic does <i>not </i>sustain inside a tent where a one-color backdrop conveniently frames three men: The film's star, experienced Calvary veteran Willard Parker (who the Indians say "Walks Tall") flanked by Maury Dexter regular-everyman Russ Bender as Parker's affable superior, and, last but not least, a wise old Indian Chief dead set on finding the one man everyone knows killed the tribe that included an Indian warrior's young wife.<br /> <br /> <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/-ROfWFNt95J8/WEDNvBbjVCI/AAAAAAAAvYg/ePcswTuZdBA_Z1kGVku1l8jL6T_Hl229gCLcB/s1600/walk-tall-hs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="316" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ROfWFNt95J8/WEDNvBbjVCI/AAAAAAAAvYg/ePcswTuZdBA_Z1kGVku1l8jL6T_Hl229gCLcB/s400/walk-tall-hs.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Poster artwork for Maury Dexter's WALK TALL Movie Score: ****</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> The mellow, contented pace of the lone Parker setting out on his mission... which will keep the Indians from waging war if the guilty party is captured and punished on time... heightens during the bridge of the first and second act as his character, Captain Ed Trask, finds and captures Kent Taylor as Frank Carter...<br /> <br /> While the arrest was extremely simple — an oblivious Carter relaxing on the store steps of a ghost town where, once forced out of an idyllic malaise, he quickly hides the loot received for scalping the (what turns out being the wrong) Indians. From this point on, Trask's biggest obstacle is the most entertaining aspect of WALK TALL. Taylor is the main actor (like Hitchcock's James Stewart/Preminger's Dana Andrews/Wood's Bela Lugosi) in Maury Dexter's early-60's troupe and, with a pencil-thin mustache no matter what side of the law he resides, here he's got the charm of a resilient snake, cooly playing down the "Gentleman Heavy" with sly humor and meticulous goading that intensifies once Joyce Meadows as Sally, whose family was attacked and slain by Indians a stone's throw from the duo's morning campout, gets easily brainwashed by the proud Indian Killer: after what she's been through, all Indians are better off dead...<br /> <br /> <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/-xuvgG2wx34I/WEE7NdHc-jI/AAAAAAAAvY8/2jbvt53P1lYpLfa_whsbJaSeKWQ4xpFZQCLcB/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-12-02%2Bat%2B1.12.13%2BAM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="196" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xuvgG2wx34I/WEE7NdHc-jI/AAAAAAAAvY8/2jbvt53P1lYpLfa_whsbJaSeKWQ4xpFZQCLcB/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-12-02%2Bat%2B1.12.13%2BAM.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>A Review Coming soon... Of Another Dexter/Taylor Western</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> And while the big and steady, TALL and sturdy Willard Parker — older than most Western-Action heroes who weren't young and energetic superstars to begin with — has to keep weathering Taylor's perpetual mind-games, what really fleshes out the otherwise cliché character is how he never gives an inch and always, literally, sticks to his guns. In fact, both lead roles, the good and the bad, relies on pushing each other's buttons while the surrounding landscape makes you forget this is a vey low-budget venture with a good cast and a familiar "Cowboy Picture" script, rushing towards an inevitable and utterly predictable conclusion — ending way too soon since the trio's chemistry makes wordplay trump gunplay. When being reunited with his dimwitted three-man gang to collect the loot, Kent Taylor's  just another cerebral leader of vapid, one-dimensional brutes while our main man is back to the typical hero we started out with before the combined synergy provided more than we (or they) paid for. Thankfully, b-pictures usually have a short, to-the-point runtime, and for the sixty-one minutes, most of WALK TALL is a three-person show.<br /> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-UAA_rzCx15w/WjJrxpfex5I/AAAAAAAA0Ck/Nj5AgI5mlDEX8o17c3BivWs9BsDgW0YPQCLcBGAs/s1600/25188804_408096102952905_3867466809735098286_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="532" data-original-width="1156" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-UAA_rzCx15w/WjJrxpfex5I/AAAAAAAA0Ck/Nj5AgI5mlDEX8o17c3BivWs9BsDgW0YPQCLcBGAs/s1600/25188804_408096102952905_3867466809735098286_o.jpg" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Willard Parker punches Kent Taylor downhill in WALK TALL</u></td></tr> </tbody></table>

kent taylor, maury dexter, russ bender, sixties, western, willard parker

MAURY DEXTER DIRECTS WILLARD PARKER IN WALK TALL

Willard Parker stands firm and can really WALK TALL Year: 1960 In Maury Dexter's b-Western, WALK TALL (not to be mistaken with the W...

ANDREW SHUE GOT STEPHEN FANNING'S BILLY ON MELROSE PLACE

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-X_MWW4ZsuSo/WiT3Wif4zCI/AAAAAAAAz7s/t9F-Ir4TSiMxrZL1VriitIDzf63VoYPQQCLcBGAs/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2017-12-03%2Bat%2B11.17.32%2BPM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="848" data-original-width="1600" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-X_MWW4ZsuSo/WiT3Wif4zCI/AAAAAAAAz7s/t9F-Ir4TSiMxrZL1VriitIDzf63VoYPQQCLcBGAs/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2017-12-03%2Bat%2B11.17.32%2BPM.jpg" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Stephen Fanning on The Incredible Hulk, 1980, the originally-cast Billy Campbell and Andrew Shue</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> One of the worst actors in television history is, or, was... when MELROSE PLACE ruled the 1990's... Andrew Shue, the soccer playing brother of genuinely talented sister Elizabeth Shue, who threw her bro extra roles in films ranging including this one in <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2012/08/cocktail.html">COCKTAIL</a>... He didn't have to act in the early parts, just show up... Until scoring a lead on BEVERLY HILLS 90210 spinoff MELROSE PLACE as Billy Campbell...<br /> <br /> The actor who was actually/originally chosen was Stephen Fanning, who was so far into character he was included on early promo pictures with the other cast members: that no one seems to have online... When he returned from homeland Canada, he gained weight and, instead of hiring the talented Paul Rudd two days before filming, Shue was chosen: a dopey jock we're supposed to not only believe is a great writer, but lands every woman on earth while CQ model Grant Show as Jake strikes out... even with Sydney, a whore! So here's a rare photo of the two Billy Campbell characters...<br /> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7_nneelwPf8/WiUDyqqg8XI/AAAAAAAAz78/Ca62nlsG89YscMNoYTiriVGpzi-OkgARgCLcBGAs/s1600/p7lzXU2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="848" data-original-width="1600" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7_nneelwPf8/WiUDyqqg8XI/AAAAAAAAz78/Ca62nlsG89YscMNoYTiriVGpzi-OkgARgCLcBGAs/s1600/p7lzXU2.jpg" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Andrew Shue Stephen Fanning Billy Campbell Melrose Place Stephen Fanning Melrose Place</u></td></tr> </tbody></table>

1990's, andrew shue, stephen fanning, TV

ANDREW SHUE GOT STEPHEN FANNING'S BILLY ON MELROSE PLACE

Stephen Fanning on The Incredible Hulk, 1980, the originally-cast Billy Campbell and Andrew Shue One of the worst actors in television h...

MICHELE ABRAMS IN TROLL 2 & BEVERY HILLS 90210

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7FxMS5WdL6Q/WgkgMnYlPQI/AAAAAAAAzhs/rXIwZOLta9M6Sp6VdHLrWR5mwMw6lRVbwCLcBGAs/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2017-11-12%2Bat%2B8.23.44%2BPM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="327" data-original-width="1121" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7FxMS5WdL6Q/WgkgMnYlPQI/AAAAAAAAzhs/rXIwZOLta9M6Sp6VdHLrWR5mwMw6lRVbwCLcBGAs/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2017-11-12%2Bat%2B8.23.44%2BPM.jpg" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Michele Abrams Beverly Hills 90210 & the same Michele Abrams Troll 2 Wood Tales Girl</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> Michele Abrams was one of the popular bitch bullies in the... for some, classic cult flick HEATHERS... Michele Abrams then turned up on an episode of BEVERLY HILLS 90210 alongside her HEATHERS co-star, Shannen Doherty... But most important is Michele Abrams in the part of the Wood Tales Girl in TROLL 2, with fake freckles who leads poor Peter on a doomed woodsy death before the credits, and is a very important movie to Cult Film Freak and beyond... So here's a double shot photo of Michele Abrams that didn't seem to be, before this "buried post," online... One from the 90210 episode Slumber Party... It's from Season One, Episode 12, and Michele Abrams plays another bitchy broad, Amanda Pacer, hopped-up on aggravation and making the four main girls tell the truth about themselves...

michele abrams, nineties, photo, shannen doherty

MICHELE ABRAMS IN TROLL 2 & BEVERY HILLS 90210

Michele Abrams Beverly Hills 90210 & the same Michele Abrams Troll 2 Wood Tales Girl Michele Abrams was one of the popular bitch bul...

MARTIN QUATERMASS WRITES/DIRECTS PRINCE OF DARKNESS

<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/-_nEyXizi__M/WDQqc2GJKbI/AAAAAAAAvWM/UE2zcR4zUJMH6hBEC_yXvU_xtVaZT6-XwCLcB/s1600/15107278_229591994136651_3769791538102164874_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="251" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_nEyXizi__M/WDQqc2GJKbI/AAAAAAAAvWM/UE2zcR4zUJMH6hBEC_yXvU_xtVaZT6-XwCLcB/s400/15107278_229591994136651_3769791538102164874_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><u>Between BIG TROUBLE and THEY LIVE Year Released: 1987</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> While THE THING was arguably the greatest cinematic achievement of John Carpenter (here using the pulpy pseudonym Martin Quatermass), HALLOWEEN his most popular and groundbreaking, ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK the downright coolest, THE FOG his most sparse and convenient, CHRISTINE his slickest, STARMAN his most mainstream, BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA his loosest, and THEY LIVE wielding a barrage of timeless cult-flavored one-liners and neatly edited action/fight scenes, PRINCE OF DARKNESS, at the cusp of The Master of Horror's peak, that's his most personal, and is comparable to the gritty Martin Scorsese MEAN STREETS (that both wrote themselves without help) verses the RAGING BULL and GOODFELLAS: Yet this cult curio is scribed by Martin Quatermass who, known now but wasn't then, was the man himself and, while sharing elements of his past features including a HALLOWEEN body count and THE THING science-fiction terror involving something from beyond able to alter human beings, PRINCE OF DARKNESS is different for several reasons...<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: left;"> <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/--hScmCZ5-I0/WDba5b5N_GI/AAAAAAAAvWw/P5pREQAmX0cZs8Q9ZjBq04kwlwVh0ADtgCLcB/s1600/prince_of_darkness_main.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="192" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/--hScmCZ5-I0/WDba5b5N_GI/AAAAAAAAvWw/P5pREQAmX0cZs8Q9ZjBq04kwlwVh0ADtgCLcB/s320/prince_of_darkness_main.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Shout Factory Blu Ray new artwork</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> </div> The lack of a genuine leading man hero, which would seem like the preppy half of TV's popular SIMON AND SIMON, Parker Jameson, who, along with leading lady Lisa Blount — who's even more reluctant to believe the Biblical theories driving the unexplained force they're monitoring...<br /> <br /> Both without the energy of young leads, and wind up serving more as beacons to herd what feels like way too many characters, doing paranormal experiments for USC extra credit within a large, closed-down Catholic Church where zombie-like homeless people stand guard outside including heavy metal icon Alice Cooper: pop culture fanatics seem to love the fact that Cooper slays the geek from another television show — Thom Bray from RIPTIDE...<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> <div style="text-align: left;"> <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/-SbDidLXu_wk/WDQqD690RDI/AAAAAAAAvWE/Vg8_vyQWZzsJ5ax34vo629QHPO6vP0xEwCLcB/s1600/15203380_229587764137074_2116837575031304292_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: right;"><img border="0" height="248" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SbDidLXu_wk/WDQqD690RDI/AAAAAAAAvWE/Vg8_vyQWZzsJ5ax34vo629QHPO6vP0xEwCLcB/s320/15203380_229587764137074_2116837575031304292_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Anne Howard still very alive</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> </div> There are a good number of death scenes or near-deaths wherein the bodies come alive again to stalk the shadowy corridors and keep survivors at an even tighter restraint of space: And not the kind of screaming and suspenseful pandemonium that usually occurs when people die, one after the other, as the formidable antagonist, who in this case is The Devil...<br /> <br /> And He's trapped inside what looks like a lava lamp imitating a barber shop pole full of Gatorade (which could be CHRISTINE's anti freeze): spewing deathly liquid into the mouth of, first, one of four sexy ingenues, and our personal favorite lass, serving as the most palpable killer later on, and even outshining Cooper, who remains spooky and peripheral outside, mostly unseen past the first and second act.<br /> <br /> <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://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3aMVm3RiIRg/WDQpKJ4p9tI/AAAAAAAAvV4/ddtgZcBSnAAZBJJ6p4BLpk4BoVsWxkhAwCEw/s1600/15178083_229587760803741_9092071484374023371_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: right;"><img border="0" height="235" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3aMVm3RiIRg/WDQpKJ4p9tI/AAAAAAAAvV4/ddtgZcBSnAAZBJJ6p4BLpk4BoVsWxkhAwCEw/s400/15178083_229587760803741_9092071484374023371_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>More Ann Howard, this time dead and loving it</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> Anyone looking for a jolting horror experience, this might not work since the spookiest moments occur in a shared dream by anyone who falls into a nap. As for the antagonist... who's spoken of a lot and only viewed within the glimpse of each quick dream...<br /> <br /> Who knows, perhaps having Lucifer himself as a horror flick heavy is aiming too high for mainstream audiences, or fans of HALLOWEEN and its myriad of clones: Symbolically speaking, this particular DARKNESS is more like scanning the blueprints of a haunted house than being frightfully lost and vulnerable inside one. Alice Cooper and the homeless zombie troupe aside, the real human villain is a she, who, like Satan in many a book and film, has a human name few can remember. This is a reoccurring bit of subtle Carpenter humor: "Have you seen Susan?" "Who?" "Susan, the Radiologist, with the glasses."<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> <div style="text-align: right;"> <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/-giIrDNl3iO4/WDQqO7catgI/AAAAAAAAvWI/eZ_6kUAeLq8BLMFChoRc9OAsHq4dRlg-ACEw/s1600/15170876_229587767470407_4492697562759247812_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="235" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-giIrDNl3iO4/WDQqO7catgI/AAAAAAAAvWI/eZ_6kUAeLq8BLMFChoRc9OAsHq4dRlg-ACEw/s400/15170876_229587767470407_4492697562759247812_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>John Carpenter's cinematography never disappointed... till later</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> </div> Anne Howard is the girl next door type who <i>does</i> wear glasses but only at first, until taking them off or getting them taken off in a very green, wet manner...<br /> <br /> Then turning into a pale zombie that eventually snowballs a host of others to take care of the survivors, including an actor who was pretty much the main action-star of Carpenter's Kung Fu comedy BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA while Kurt Russell watched in amazement... But here, Dennis Dun is horribly miscast as the sarcastic and reluctant character i.e. our token comic relief... He seems to be reading lines, and his forced glib humor doesn't elevate the chaos or allow the audience to escape the bedlam, as intended. On the plus side: It seems that no matter how many deaths or gruesome bodily-takeovers occur, the movie remains as mellow and constant as the signature synthesizer music by the director himself, providing an even-keeled, foreboding pulse that rarely speeds up, making even the most gory deaths seem completely normal, and commonplace...<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> <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://4.bp.blogspot.com/-UBktIHDb4R0/WDQpjZ5MAaI/AAAAAAAAvV8/bephKXkTd1sHwi7hA_x4sH4UnyMk6VNJACEw/s1600/15135924_229587644137086_4596483351520650210_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="221" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-UBktIHDb4R0/WDQpjZ5MAaI/AAAAAAAAvV8/bephKXkTd1sHwi7hA_x4sH4UnyMk6VNJACEw/s400/15135924_229587644137086_4596483351520650210_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Victor Wong and Anne Howard study the devil's details</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> In this location, they are... For PRICE OF DARKNESS, according to Carpenter in a DVD/Blu Ray Commentary track with his stock actor/buddy Peter Jason...<br /> <br /> The latter who told us, personally, in a Cult Film Freak podcast, that his decision to become a crying zombie was an idea from his personal friend, actor extraordinaire David Warner (who loved Peter's interview but couldn't do one himself): Carpenter revealed this film was actually more like Howard Hawk's THE THING FROM ANOTHER WORLD than his own THE THING in that much of the story has a group of scientists roaming from one room into another...<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> <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/-l0J2REGa-zo/Wj9ciup1H9I/AAAAAAAA0Mc/RwfQ8_TGtscOM7LBPF9JeP5rGjKRNd45QCLcBGAs/s1600/25591941_412153305880518_2424714536141451863_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="355" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-l0J2REGa-zo/Wj9ciup1H9I/AAAAAAAA0Mc/RwfQ8_TGtscOM7LBPF9JeP5rGjKRNd45QCLcBGAs/s400/25591941_412153305880518_2424714536141451863_n.jpg" width="147" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>DarkScore: ***1/2</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> The differences between both THING flicks (of the 50's and 80's) are many, but there's one thing that makes DARKNESS superior to Hawks's science fiction chiller: the number of people dwindle as the film progresses, which means things actually occur in-between...<br /> <br /> <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://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yty2gyGm-KE/Wj9d9KZqqSI/AAAAAAAA0Mo/_Ov5Tsys5kgQ14KSnG9H7VB8w2ZiC7ikwCLcBGAs/s1600/25594028_412135992548916_956592917930198457_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="874" data-original-width="951" height="294" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yty2gyGm-KE/Wj9d9KZqqSI/AAAAAAAA0Mo/_Ov5Tsys5kgQ14KSnG9H7VB8w2ZiC7ikwCLcBGAs/s320/25594028_412135992548916_956592917930198457_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Where the Demons hang out near the water cooler</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> And while the killings aren't extremely scary, there's a palpable sense of dread from the very on-set...<br /> <br /> Cutting from a darkened corridor to the shiny exterior of U.S.C. where existential Philosophy professor Victor Wong teaches his class something about what's <i>actual</i> and what isn't... a theory he alters while aiding the Priest... And where cinematic Christianity and/or Catholicism usually has a temperamental knee-jerk reaction against scientific theories, because of the connection between our two polar opposite but equally wise old-timers, both religion and science is neatly hybrid, which makes Carpenter's script actually quite deep, thought-provoking, and refreshingly open-minded...<br /> <br /> <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/-5IhbME0xywY/WDQqovpsDHI/AAAAAAAAvWQ/DAugpX8uppg4mUPD7tMdZUOfoSWbY8khQCLcB/s1600/15179126_229587774137073_3572529587857466741_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="190" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5IhbME0xywY/WDQqovpsDHI/AAAAAAAAvWQ/DAugpX8uppg4mUPD7tMdZUOfoSWbY8khQCLcB/s400/15179126_229587774137073_3572529587857466741_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>A death scene, but not really... no one really dies that quick...</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> But for those who stray from movies that may as well be Christian or Faith-based since, after-all, if centering on the Devil there must be a hero in God and Jesus Christ, don't fret...<br /> <br /> According to a scroll discovered inside the church, Christ was more of a paranormal researcher than a messiah, and, with an extra terrestrial origin, he was sent to Earth to, along with his disciples, simply keep Old Scratch at bay... So that's the backstory, and what a controversial prequel JESUS CHRIST: GHOST HUNTER would have been. But in all seriousness, this lends a touch of science-fiction to the ancient-curse-horror element...<br /> <br /> <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://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iRYIK0NC8Oo/WDQq7mGe68I/AAAAAAAAvWU/PwqSp3v2Vcgai6iSKdz-6-SE3YKBJPhGgCLcB/s1600/15179000_229587647470419_5809887011989680745_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="101" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iRYIK0NC8Oo/WDQq7mGe68I/AAAAAAAAvWU/PwqSp3v2Vcgai6iSKdz-6-SE3YKBJPhGgCLcB/s400/15179000_229587647470419_5809887011989680745_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">That's John Carpenter, not wanting all to know it's all his own</td></tr> </tbody></table> Which fits Carpenter's wheelhouse, and this is definitely his labor of love that's fitfully murky, creepy and remains entertaining from beginning to end despite a few Second Act scenes that drag a bit: And towards the conclusion we go back to one of John's first movies — his own personal Modern-Urban-Western that he also wrote himself, titled ASSAULT ON PRECINCT 13 about a group of survivors trapped within a particular location and, because of nefarious elements outside (gang members trying to enter a closed-down but sparsely occupied police station), they can't get out: Herein, instead of gun-wielding hoods there's Satan controlling a different kind of zombie altogether, which leads to another realization: While maybe not that original a body count horror since it's fairly obvious, judging by the personalities, who will buy the farm — for a Zombie flick, PRINCE OF DARKNESS is a morbid, meticulous and contained one of a kind treat...

body count, dennis dunn, donald pleasence, eighties, horror, science-fiction, victor wong

MARTIN QUATERMASS WRITES/DIRECTS PRINCE OF DARKNESS

Between BIG TROUBLE and THEY LIVE Year Released: 1987 While THE THING was arguably the greatest cinematic achievement of John Carpenter ...

MAURY DEXTER DIRECTS THE DAY MARS INVADED EARTH

<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://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rY4fEYgOtSQ/WCrIDK5AHrI/AAAAAAAAvQc/oONXBj-EPDIAGrygfzNYkcB0aii2HPK4gCLcB/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-11-15%2Bat%2B12.30.36%2BAM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rY4fEYgOtSQ/WCrIDK5AHrI/AAAAAAAAvQc/oONXBj-EPDIAGrygfzNYkcB0aii2HPK4gCLcB/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-11-15%2Bat%2B12.30.36%2BAM.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Poster Art for the Maury Dexter soft invasion Martian flick YEAR: 1963</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> A location scout's job is to discover places to shoot that fits within a script's description  — what the movie needs, they'll find. But in particular super-low budget drive-in flicks like THE DAY MARS INVADED EARTH, as Maury Dexter took a break from jazzy crime and bikini flicks, it seems like the other way around...<br> <br> The Beverly Hills-shot mansion where Dr. David Fielding, played by Dexter's WALK TALL villain Kent Taylor, and his family are holed-up after he discovering a way to connect and/or receive messages with the planet Mars, is, to coin an often used phrase, like a character in itself  — and a starring role since much of Dexter's camera glides us through the endlessly elegant locale as if he'd found something amazing enough to write an entire motion picture around...<br>

betty beall, horror, jazz score, kent taylor, marie windsor, maury dexter, science-fiction, sixties

MAURY DEXTER DIRECTS THE DAY MARS INVADED EARTH

Poster Art for the Maury Dexter soft invasion Martian flick YEAR: 1963 A location scout's job is to discover places to shoot that ...

WHERE CREDIT'S DUE: LIST OF FIVE UNCREDITED ROLES

<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/-2CDrFqkH2nc/WC1Lsdg9_cI/AAAAAAAAvSE/8dxIT5ggWFcamzW149kNDhgOGA7bcLcaQCLcB/s1600/999.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="262" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2CDrFqkH2nc/WC1Lsdg9_cI/AAAAAAAAvSE/8dxIT5ggWFcamzW149kNDhgOGA7bcLcaQCLcB/s400/999.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Ron Leibman hides his real name yet he's still Sgt. Vaughn Liceman</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> Here you''ll discover five different types of Uncredited Roles that were caused either by an on-set rift, an intentional audience surprise, or a favor to the director — beginning with what was most likely due to the movie itself...<br> <br> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> <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/-NOAElSniKxo/WCz1H_VD6JI/AAAAAAAAvRc/rtXtt2umcXk6SFrt1wE89nGmY8QH4NiNgCLcB/s1600/88.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/-NOAElSniKxo/WCz1H_VD6JI/AAAAAAAAvRc/rtXtt2umcXk6SFrt1wE89nGmY8QH4NiNgCLcB/s320/88.jpg" width="122"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Say it Agaaaain!"</td></tr> </tbody></table> 1) <u>RON LEIBMAN IN UP THE ACADEMY</u>: A friend had never seen NORMA RAE but did watch, on a particular Bad Movie Night long ago, UP THE ACADEMY, the abyssal, awkward clunker of a military school comedy, surprisingly created by an otherwise, at that time, brilliant and popular, long-running and downright iconic magazine called MAD, who was jumping on the National Lampoon bandwagon following the blockbuster of ANIMAL HOUSE...<br> <br> One thing MAD didn't take into account was that a funny script was needed. Perhaps for a bunch of guys who bagged on other movies, it was harder than they realized to create something original (after all, Don Martin and Sergio Aragonés weren't the scriptwriters). Also needed was a director who knew about comedy timing. Along with the horror genre, comedies are the hardest to make since they demand a particular reaction from their audience — beyond simply being entertained. And back to that buddy who was shocked after seeing Ron Lieberman's brilliant turn as an intrepid "New York Jew" Union man down South, who charms Sally Field's flaky single mom/factory worker NORMA RAE into being a diehard spokeswoman for The Union...<br>

list

WHERE CREDIT'S DUE: LIST OF FIVE UNCREDITED ROLES

Ron Leibman hides his real name yet he's still Sgt. Vaughn Liceman Here you''ll discover five different types of Uncredited ...

MERRY ANDERS CINEMA: SPEED KILLS IN DEATH IN SMALL DOSES

<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/-pxc1ouMWeGQ/WBxq14jXEVI/AAAAAAAAvIQ/A9D20wNQOdsI8BOQaI4UguLzDyu-XXD9QCLcB/s1600/14956492_220301228399061_2121285590571646895_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="231" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pxc1ouMWeGQ/WBxq14jXEVI/AAAAAAAAvIQ/A9D20wNQOdsI8BOQaI4UguLzDyu-XXD9QCLcB/s400/14956492_220301228399061_2121285590571646895_n.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Animated Image of Little Orphan Anders all strung-out YEAR: 1957</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> We finally have what seems to be — or at least what's described on the DVD cover — as a bonafide Film Noir featuring Merry Anders, our starlet-spotlight who appeared in a string of crime thrillers and semi-horrors that share particular traits of the famous genre but were never quite 'all there'...<br> <br> Centering on truckers who strategically stay awake for long hauls by use of amphetamines, you could say this seems written by A.I. Benzedrine... as opposed to THEY DRIVE BY NIGHT and THIEVE'S HIGHWAY scribe A.I. Bezzerides: And if you have to explain or in this case, repeat a joke it isn't funny — but the speedy shoe fits as DEATH pushes the pedal to the metal like the author's idealistic truck driving Noir films during the rudimentary stages of the genre, only kicking it up a few notches, and is more of yet another late 50's anti-drug crime melodrama the likes of PICKUP ALLEY and STAKEOUT ON DOPE STREET, and stars a man who's ultra-serious tone would eventually be parodied, by himself: Peter Graves, who fits the undercover Noir template pretty good despite seeming too much like The Man in whatever clothes he has on: a sort of b-side Charles McGraw here...<br>

crime, drug culture, fifties, film noir or melodrama, jazz score, merry anders, peter graves

MERRY ANDERS CINEMA: SPEED KILLS IN DEATH IN SMALL DOSES

Animated Image of Little Orphan Anders all strung-out YEAR: 1957 We finally have what seems to be — or at least what's described on ...

FIRST OF TWO ROBERT VAUGHN TRIBUTES: THE LIEUTENANT

<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/-i0cZknB2X_A/WClR_Um9DXI/AAAAAAAAvPY/XXaanxYyK6suVepzb2rpGx4fdzYOekUsACEw/s1600/14980778_225104161252101_9133984254379745923_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="293" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-i0cZknB2X_A/WClR_Um9DXI/AAAAAAAAvPY/XXaanxYyK6suVepzb2rpGx4fdzYOekUsACEw/s400/14980778_225104161252101_9133984254379745923_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Robert Vaughn with Garry Lockwood on TV in 1963</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> The Original STAR TREK series, created, co-written and produced by Gene Roddenberry, took the crew of The Enterprise WHERE NO MAN HAS GONE BEFORE, not only part of William Shatner's pre-credit narration but the title of one of the first episodes, which guest stars Gary Lockwood, best known as astronaut Dr. Frank Poole in 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY, and before that he worked with Roddenberry when TREK was just blasting off...<br /> <br /> THE LIEUTENANT, a fulfilling, character-driven, one-season series, centered on our man either helping, loving or fighting man or womankind; although, taking place after Korea and in the phantom heels of Vietnam, it didn't involve actual war (save a few episodes, if memory serves) as Lockwood, playing the young and ambitious Lt. Bill Rice, works, lives and breaths not exactly blood but there's enough sweat and tears to go around at the Southern California Marine base, Camp Pendleton, which becomes a sort of character in itself. Although more time's spent at taverns, hotels, motels, and wherever else he's needed for the service of duty and friendship — the latter that the first episode, A MILLION MILES FROM CLARY, is all about...<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> <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/-HFUCzsxrzxQ/WClRxVWKDRI/AAAAAAAAvPU/s2W4hX1aE9QegN4daufB4CKsKyrnZc6XACEw/s1600/15032763_225104157918768_3447400526728361212_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="288" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HFUCzsxrzxQ/WClRxVWKDRI/AAAAAAAAvPU/s2W4hX1aE9QegN4daufB4CKsKyrnZc6XACEw/s400/15032763_225104157918768_3447400526728361212_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Gary Lockwood and Robert Vaughn on THE LT.</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> In films before and after, ranging from (our current favorite) CANYON PASSAGE to MEAN STREETS, the subject of two long-time friends, one responsible and the other incredibly flakey, has been a standard plot-line that keeps the viewer intrigued since it's no telling what kind of trouble the instigating wild card, in this case, Rice's buddy, Pvt. Stu Sallaway, played by Bill Bixby (who shared co-starring in Elvis Presley vehicles together), will get himself into — and guess who has to get him out? That's where some lightweight yet intriguing suspense occurs — Rice putting his reputation on the line in front of the men he <i>didn't </i>share a past kinship with. Bixby, as the kind of charming b.s. artist he'd portray on television years later in the miniseries RICH MAN, POOR MAN, wields the perfect combination of someone you want to party with, punch in the gut, or both. And it's an odd pilot episode, not exactly igniting the series with a bang, or providing any kind of expository introduction: A MILLION MILES FROM CLARY (their hometown in-common) feels more like part of a show that'd been on for a little while, and Lockwood's Bill Rice has very little backstory except what we learn in the process...<br /> <br /> <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://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DWlP7W1GoN4/WClSUFy3gJI/AAAAAAAAvPc/Hna0WDCnlVEowd7vmvhCmOzMQqQcYKYrwCLcB/s1600/15032214_225104154585435_2352467395245922554_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="238" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DWlP7W1GoN4/WClSUFy3gJI/AAAAAAAAvPc/Hna0WDCnlVEowd7vmvhCmOzMQqQcYKYrwCLcB/s320/15032214_225104154585435_2352467395245922554_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Bill Bixby, Robert Vaughn, Gary Lockwood GRADE: A</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> And now to unbury the lead: THE LIEUTENANT is eventually forced to bark orders at his friend — yet who's really in charge, and respectively feared by everyone, is an extremely mature young actor who, only a few years prior, starred in b-movies including and infamously bad caveman flick (riffed by Mystery Science Theater)...<br /> <br /> And another with our ongoing retrospective starlet, Merry Anders — as a twenty-something slacker in NO TIME TO BE YOUNG, covered here soon: Making this the first of two parenthetical tributes to an actor that could play either the hero, like his most famous role on TV's MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E., as well as gentleman heavies like the snooty politician in Steve McQueen's best film (and performance), BULLITT, reuniting two MAGNIFICENT SEVEN stars (who have now all passed away). Vaughn was even talented enough to "replace" Gene Hackman as the human antagonist in the SUPERMAN franchise — and helped make the flawed part 3 a worthwhile experience.<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div> <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://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bgX2aSYB6P0/WCfL-Hgbq2I/AAAAAAAAvOI/gAqUk1uwsYQFQ0GBA4V93ChmSjaHqWSgwCLcB/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-11-12%2Bat%2B6.11.30%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="115" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bgX2aSYB6P0/WCfL-Hgbq2I/AAAAAAAAvOI/gAqUk1uwsYQFQ0GBA4V93ChmSjaHqWSgwCLcB/s400/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-11-12%2Bat%2B6.11.30%2BPM.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>With MAGNIFICENT SEVEN co-star Steve McQueen in BULLITT</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> Far more than just a talented, capable actor, he legitimized every role he played, and the projects along with them...<br /> <br /> Like anyone who makes a lifelong career of Hollywood, as time passed, he didn't always chose (or get handed) the best roles, but he kept working... And back to the pilot of THE LIEUTENANT: his Captain Raymond Rambridge, a relatively young man with the countenance of a fifty-five year old war vet, was not a special guest star like Bixby, but a semi-regular who, by his mere presence, kept the title character standing firm while Lt. Rice kept his men on their toes. PS What led to this obscure show being the first tribute for Vaughn: The day after he died, there was a feeling to, out of nowhere, re-watch this particular episode, having forgotten anyone besides guest star Bill Bixby, and, within moments, there he was, in all his subtle, cleft-chinned, pelican-regal glory... A very serious man who, whether shining in the forefront or placed slightly in the background, always made a difference.

bill bixby, gary lockwood, gene roddenberry, military, one season, robert vaughn, series, sixties, war

FIRST OF TWO ROBERT VAUGHN TRIBUTES: THE LIEUTENANT

Robert Vaughn with Garry Lockwood on TV in 1963 The Original STAR TREK series, created, co-written and produced by Gene Roddenberry, too...

VICTOR MATURE & LIZABETH SCOTT HAVE O'BALL IN EASY LIVING

<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/-705CP4qi2W0/WBwN7Zc2LxI/AAAAAAAAvGQ/MY9uyj4j0Ko3FzFKq_UtHjpcCeF_vDuMQCLcB/s1600/14907595_220025281759989_5777344355648912002_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="250" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-705CP4qi2W0/WBwN7Zc2LxI/AAAAAAAAvGQ/MY9uyj4j0Ko3FzFKq_UtHjpcCeF_vDuMQCLcB/s320/14907595_220025281759989_5777344355648912002_n.jpg" width="320"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><u>Great director in a solid-good film YEAR: 1949</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> A kind of Sports Noir given that the three main stars <i>and</i> director were staples of that particular genre...<br> <br> <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/-_bNgrslU210/WRaVtTmuIWI/AAAAAAAAxxM/8mBwcRiBdKw63U6MLE-HxCg0Nl9Dp2tTACLcB/s1600/18342816_314445192317997_7055156372625329168_n.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/-_bNgrslU210/WRaVtTmuIWI/AAAAAAAAxxM/8mBwcRiBdKw63U6MLE-HxCg0Nl9Dp2tTACLcB/s200/18342816_314445192317997_7055156372625329168_n.jpg" width="198"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Lucy Loves Victor</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> And who knows, maybe, at that time, fans of director Jacques Tourneur, expecting another CAT PEOPLE, LEOPARD MAN, I WALKED WITH A ZOMBIE or OUT OF THE PAST, were letdown, surprised or both that their man, who usually thrived on dark subject matters or lavish, energetic Westerns, was behind a seemingly mundane picture about a quarterback for the Los Angeles Rams <i>almost </i>past his prime. But there's a lining in any and every cinematic rainbow <i>if </i>you admire a director enough to find their signature gold in an otherwise vacant mine — thanks especially to Tourneur, who helped a project that might've been a completely dull programmer instead of an entertaining, time-filling programmer that, though taking about fifteen minutes to take shape, flows together smoothly...<br>

drama, football, forties, jacques tourneur, lizbeth scott, lucille o'ball, sport, victor mature

VICTOR MATURE & LIZABETH SCOTT HAVE O'BALL IN EASY LIVING

Great director in a solid-good film YEAR: 1949 A kind of Sports Noir given that the three main stars and director were staples of that ...

RICHARD FLEISCHER DRIVES THE NOIR 'ARMORED CAR ROBBERY'

<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/-9vnrGtm82Gw/WB0ZgyQ-ZII/AAAAAAAAvIg/1zbnikKlxGMTkPK6sROS7Elqm983JPLSQCLcB/s1600/acr1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="296" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9vnrGtm82Gw/WB0ZgyQ-ZII/AAAAAAAAvIg/1zbnikKlxGMTkPK6sROS7Elqm983JPLSQCLcB/s400/acr1.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Always Ultra Serious Charles McGraw Blasting Away YEAR: 1950</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> The same year John Huston brought us one of the greatest Film Noir offerings, THE ASPHALT JUNGLE... centering on a pivotal heist following a meticulous setup that turns into an inevitably violent aftermath... a comparably unknown director, Richard Fleischer, had his own heist to reveal, and with a title like ARMORED CAR ROBBERY, you know exactly what you're in for... Somewhat...<br /> <br /> With a title describing the entire plot, there's plenty to go right and wrong in the process — depending what side you're on, and how and when the tables turn. Equally balancing the story between cops and robbers, the good guys are led by Charles McGraw, who would work under Fleischer in both of their most famous Noir vehicles, THE NARROW MARGIN... But the real star is an actor who, before losing every case to PERRY MASON on television, was just beginning a decade-long path into the, at that point, unnamed crime genre... the French translation for Dark Film. Also, Talman would steal, just a year after this ROBBERY, a picture from two giants, Robert Mitchum and Robert Ryan, in a Law Noir titled THE RACKET as a overly idealistic young cop who jumps the gun a bit too soon...<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> <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/-17cdbnB2ls8/WB0ZzMKilsI/AAAAAAAAvIk/e_v_vauDjtgLPYkz4hVZx63o7O3ps7iwACLcB/s1600/acr0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="296" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-17cdbnB2ls8/WB0ZzMKilsI/AAAAAAAAvIk/e_v_vauDjtgLPYkz4hVZx63o7O3ps7iwACLcB/s400/acr0.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>William Talman slips out of yet another bulwark</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> As heist leader Dave Purvis, Talman is more of the guy he'd bring to life in another future flick — that being Ida Lupino's THE HITCH-HIKER, where two men are held captive, under his menacing gun and venomous aura, for the entire picture...<br /> <br /> And for at least half of this one, the same thing occurs only in a more subtle fashion as Douglas Fowley, Steve Brodie (usually a villain and here a perfectly flakey low-rent convict) and one other fella are holed up under Talman's strict, narrowed eyes in a waterfront shack after — during the most suspenseful roadblock scenes following the ROBBERY — they elude the cops, and wind up killing Charles McGraw's beloved lifelong partner, played by former KING KONG and future IN COLD BLOOD veteran actor James Flavin....<br /> <br /> <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/-DQjgTx0qe6o/WB0Z-scYvWI/AAAAAAAAvIo/b-YmIE1bbg4-Nh7X3K7ON9V6l2XA_mlBwCLcB/s1600/22.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="345" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DQjgTx0qe6o/WB0Z-scYvWI/AAAAAAAAvIo/b-YmIE1bbg4-Nh7X3K7ON9V6l2XA_mlBwCLcB/s400/22.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Talman takes precautionary aim at McCraw behind his hideout</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> What's really important is the heist, which, unlike ASPHALT JUNGLE or Stanley Kubrick's pseudo-remake, THE KILLING, happens right off the bat...<br /> <br /> But that doesn't mean the most important, plot-igniting element is rushed: Taking place outside Wrigley Stadium, Los Angeles, where Talman's Purvis learns how quick the cops respond to a (his) false alarm, we hear the baseball game from a transistor radio — sort of:<br /> <br /> Actually, the sound of the crowd cheering to the game being described by a commentator takes the place of what's usually an edgy music score during this kind of high-octane suspense — almost as if the heist itself... involving the crooks dressed in workman's garb along with their vehicle, supposedly "broken down" and parked in front... is a game in itself. Meanwhile, during the moment of truth, the car ignites in a burst of smoke to blind a few curious cops and security guards... And although we knew something was about to happen, it's a thrilling moment and a fantastic visual...<br /> <br /> <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/-j6ycNO81IhU/WB0aJJSSCWI/AAAAAAAAvIs/LO0ym0QI3nkLRUfgIawjy8ygRLJvQdX1wCLcB/s1600/23.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="306" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-j6ycNO81IhU/WB0aJJSSCWI/AAAAAAAAvIs/LO0ym0QI3nkLRUfgIawjy8ygRLJvQdX1wCLcB/s400/23.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Charles McGraw and James Flavin are the cops</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> In a sense, the rudimentary casing and heist is liken to its very own short film wherein the crescendo is a cop being conked over the head with a gas can...<br /> <br /> Fleischer, from his sparse Noir beginnings to edgy 1970's Neo Noir flicks, including MR. MAJESTYK, SEE NO EVIL and THE DON IS DEAD, keeps the action flowing with the aid of meticulous editing. His films have always had a grainy look, and play out like crime-based jigsaw puzzles — each piece taking their time to fit, and then, like ARMORED CAR ROBBERY, the pace picks up as the characters are narrowed into a desperate race to survive. Meanwhile, Talman, unlike ASPHALT's hired muscle, Sterling Hayden (or Hayden in THE KILLING), is anything but an ambiguous Noir leading man/crook, stealing cash for "understandable" reasons or, as repeated too many times by Noir historians, because of the "demise of the American Dream"...<br /> <br /> <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://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kt8Q2LjBJiM/WB4wVYOudkI/AAAAAAAAvJg/yhr8PIst4t8BWOBsMZxjwsWjQ-KFkXx1gCLcB/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-11-05%2Bat%2B12.17.11%2BPM.png" 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/-kt8Q2LjBJiM/WB4wVYOudkI/AAAAAAAAvJg/yhr8PIst4t8BWOBsMZxjwsWjQ-KFkXx1gCLcB/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-11-05%2Bat%2B12.17.11%2BPM.png" width="238" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Score from the ROBBERY: ****</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> Although, as a determined killer and professional thinking-man's thief, there are particular moments where a glimpse of affinity shows within the square-jawed mug: Which means there's a sprinkling of soap operatic melodrama, like any a good Noir: The first guy he lets in on the score is a personal friend, married to our token ingenue/dame in Virginia Mayo-lookalike, Adele Jergens, playing a stripper with the heart of black ice. She loves her lover — that being Talman — and despises her husband, and if you compare the dame (a sultry Femme bordering on Fatale) with the coldblooded killer — watch closely and you may just find he has a slight edge on sympathy, or empathy, or something... humanlike... Not to forget our equally tough tough guy McCraw — as a cop he doesn't sit on the sidelines or mope in his car, waiting to strike...<br /> <br /> While the plot, as mentioned earlier, involves both straight and crooked characters in a perfect hybrid, the action keeps them equally busy, desperate, determined and, along with the director, it's a three-way match made in heaven, and more than just the average Noir programmer it's known (or mostly unknown) for being.<br /> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div>

adele jergens, charles mcgraw, fifties, film noir or melodrama, james flavin, richard fleischer, steve brodie, william talman

RICHARD FLEISCHER DRIVES THE NOIR 'ARMORED CAR ROBBERY'

Always Ultra Serious Charles McGraw Blasting Away YEAR: 1950 The same year John Huston brought us one of the greatest Film Noir offering...

MERRY ANDERS CINEMA: HOUSE OF THE DAMNED

<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/-RajVLWgS7xg/WBpoTlPVNFI/AAAAAAAAvEY/nOVHK04cjI4e3UnUnM-3Cm_9BX3QqTRmQCLcB/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="243" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RajVLWgS7xg/WBpoTlPVNFI/AAAAAAAAvEY/nOVHK04cjI4e3UnUnM-3Cm_9BX3QqTRmQCLcB/s400/1.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Merry Anders at work for Maury Dexter two of three times YEAR: 1963</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> Before becoming a second unit director on two famous television shows produced by Michael Landon in the seventies and eighties, Maury Dexter, during the wild and swinging sixties, was a b-movie filmmaker who tackled eclectic genres ranging from Crime to Western to Horror to Beach to Biker, and in HOUSE OF THE DAMNED he gets his genre wires crossed: For example, in one scene, the main couple are sleeping in two single guest room beds — an architect and his wife, played by Ron Foster and, wedged between two Dexter flicks, <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2016/08/AirPATROL.html">AIR PATROL</a> the year before and <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2016/07/merry-anders-cinema-raiders-from.html">RAIDERS FROM BENEATH THE SEA</a> after, the beautiful and underracted ingenue, Merry Anders, who wakes up right before seeing what the audience catches a few glimpses of: a bizarre, ghaustly silhouette of a legless man walking with his hands through the partial darkness of a Gothic mansion, which should be scary in its own right...<br>

horror, maury dexter, merry anders, sixties

MERRY ANDERS CINEMA: HOUSE OF THE DAMNED

Merry Anders at work for Maury Dexter two of three times YEAR: 1963 Before becoming a second unit director on two famous television show...

HALLOW'S ENTRY: IT! WITH RODDY MCDOWALL & JILL HAWORTH

<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/-qs3SK46PT8Q/WBOl4w7xFwI/AAAAAAAAu_E/sS0MVRKbQe84dtM9r89psI1ZJZ6DcVqBQCLcB/s1600/14591621_215758652186652_7224468298712264081_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="270" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qs3SK46PT8Q/WBOl4w7xFwI/AAAAAAAAu_E/sS0MVRKbQe84dtM9r89psI1ZJZ6DcVqBQCLcB/s400/14591621_215758652186652_7224468298712264081_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Not a Hammer Film but IT! sure flows like one YEAR: 1967</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> Since it came out twenty or so years before the much more famous Stephen King novel turned miniseries centering on a group of children fearing a clown in the sewer (who wouldn't?), the 1967 IT!, starring Roddy McDowell, is definitely original...<br /> <br /> That's until the main character — an awkward little weakling named Pimm, barely holding an assistant job at a British museum (it's an English film) — while in a lonely apartment, speaks to his mother, who's seated neatly in a corner chair with her back to the audience... It's obvious what will happen once she's turned around since, that is, she can't do it by herself — PSYCHO revisited! Well, not really; what Pimm does at home means very little. It's all work and no play that makes IT! a subtle body-count horror where the large, menacing statue of an ancient Golem didn't burn in an all-engrossing fire at another museum. And now it has a brand new home, and master.<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> <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/-MKht06r6CzU/WBOr6JDJOHI/AAAAAAAAu_k/kJK4YtW5OH4vSWEC_JKh_iBDQZjXCMZfACLcB/s1600/14563424_215758638853320_4101680133942886179_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MKht06r6CzU/WBOr6JDJOHI/AAAAAAAAu_k/kJK4YtW5OH4vSWEC_JKh_iBDQZjXCMZfACLcB/s400/14563424_215758638853320_4101680133942886179_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Roddy McDowall figuring IT! all out for good times to come</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> The best, most intriguing and suspenseful scenes concern our curious underdog progressively figuring out, through dialogue, historical investigation and hands-on application, how the big fella works — the story told with the same kind of meticulous, expository timing that makes up the first half of just about any TWILIGHT ZONE episode, including eerie music tempered sporadically by foreboding, haunting tribal drums... Without giving too much away, the creature is controlled to move about and maneuver the same way a hippie (of that same era) would "drop acid" — a tiny scroll replacing a paper square, and without being swallowed. Then, by use of verbal commands, soon enough (yet without seeming rushed) IT! does our ragged little man's evil bidding, which initially isn't all that terrible being that the victims... especially the museum's new curator/Pimm's nightmare boss... are pretty much asking for it...<br /> <br /> <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/-d7xVKOG-fhQ/WBOmrtzCFyI/AAAAAAAAu_M/rLeXz0xJLgIKbdF0w52PRTD5_iz1T_NjgCLcB/s1600/14642455_215758648853319_5945887090683404776_n.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/-d7xVKOG-fhQ/WBOmrtzCFyI/AAAAAAAAu_M/rLeXz0xJLgIKbdF0w52PRTD5_iz1T_NjgCLcB/s320/14642455_215758648853319_5945887090683404776_n.jpg" width="232" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>The fitfully vulnerable Jill Haworth</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> That's until the standard handsome Scotland Yard cop sticks his nose into the case and flirts with former EXODUS child starlet Jill Haworth as Ellen, who continuously dodges Pimm's clumsy advances. And she's the one person intended for the audience to invest in besides McDowall, who is, like Anthony Perkins' Norman Bates, a killer and anti-hero both...<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> <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/-b-86VFyq39w/WBOo60sYoVI/AAAAAAAAu_Y/YiJ-TqKU4hkAokXdpFbnObZESvO8c-ZqwCLcB/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-10-28%2Bat%2B12.36.46%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="152" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-b-86VFyq39w/WBOo60sYoVI/AAAAAAAAu_Y/YiJ-TqKU4hkAokXdpFbnObZESvO8c-ZqwCLcB/s200/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-10-28%2Bat%2B12.36.46%2BPM.png" width="200" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>IT!Score: ***1/2</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> Like any horror flick, without the antagonist figuring out ways to do bad things, there's simply no movie at all: And this movie doesn't quite know how or when to sum up. Between the second and third act, the pace drags a bit until the finale, concerning the use of what's usually the "last resort" to destroy an impenetrable menace: Thus, the finale is well deserved when it does finally happen since the young man and his ancient beast had played their cards long enough, and hell, it was fun while IT! lasted, especially during their sadistic Honeymoon Phase!

creature, horror, jill haworth, roddy mcdowall, sixties

HALLOW'S ENTRY: IT! WITH RODDY MCDOWALL & JILL HAWORTH

Not a Hammer Film but IT! sure flows like one YEAR: 1967 Since it came out twenty or so years before the much more famous Stephen King n...

ANDREWS & PREMINGER RIVER WESTERN DOUBLE FEATURE

<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/-EjaY4YTyZHs/WAxr15j7ivI/AAAAAAAAu5o/UmaZ4XyWE5U2c5AXvCWeNHTarrSkplWdQCLcB/s1600/14641938_211893535906497_1327791040453711210_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="217" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EjaY4YTyZHs/WAxr15j7ivI/AAAAAAAAu5o/UmaZ4XyWE5U2c5AXvCWeNHTarrSkplWdQCLcB/s400/14641938_211893535906497_1327791040453711210_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Dana Andrews scopes the canyon for vicious Indians in SMOKE SIGNAL</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> For the renown LAURA director Otto Preminger, RIVER OF NO RETURN, a Western involving white water rapids, dangerous Indians and starring Robert Mitchum and Marilyn Monroe, was a movie he was contractually forced into...<br /> <br /> And a year later, 1955, Preminger's three-time Film Noir leading man, Dana Andrews, wound up in another Western that mostly takes place within a rushing river, putting the character's lives in danger, also because of Indians — each film leaves the characters no other choice but to weather and battle the intense and lethal elements of nature... So for two years during the 1950's, a famous director and his former stock leading were <i>all wet</i>...<br /> <br /> <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/-xTx4dnGkvTY/WA1HaJ1At7I/AAAAAAAAu54/Gv-b9EEekvk36XDWdAlGM8D91Kc2hUkmwCLcB/s1600/river.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="197" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xTx4dnGkvTY/WA1HaJ1At7I/AAAAAAAAu54/Gv-b9EEekvk36XDWdAlGM8D91Kc2hUkmwCLcB/s400/river.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Mitch and Monroe take Preminger's RIVER OF NO RETURN Year: 1954</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> <u>RIVER OF NO RETURN</u>: Robert Mitchum is not a devilish rogue this time... In fact he silently agrees with a preacher who considers a particularly rowdy gold mining town both Sodom and Gomorrah, and his name's Mark because it follows Matthew, "in the Bible."<br /> <br /> Although he <i>is</i> alone, but not for long: After locating his 10-year-old son, left behind after a five-year prison sentence for shooting a man in the back — soon enough, father and son are working at a one house, one horse and single shotgun ranch that only the latter serves as protection for an impending Indian threat, poised within the nearby mountainside...<br /> <br /> <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/-hSLYKNXIk2M/WA1IWma4diI/AAAAAAAAu58/oE8wWOB8EBUx9OWrIEsMbmAhxZFRtPCxQCLcB/s1600/10900241406_c44ef023af_b.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/-hSLYKNXIk2M/WA1IWma4diI/AAAAAAAAu58/oE8wWOB8EBUx9OWrIEsMbmAhxZFRtPCxQCLcB/s400/10900241406_c44ef023af_b.jpg" width="261" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Poster for River of No Return</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> The kid's only acquaintance at the town winds up, along with her gambling lover, being saved by Mitchum — helplessly tangled in dangerous rapids right outside the small ranch-house. But Rory Calhoun, though initially affable and charming, winds up... during one of the most suspenseful scenes... taking or, "borrowing" Mitchum's gun, and then his horse: he's in a hurry to acquire gold from a deed he<i> supposedly</i> won legitimately in a card game...<br /> <br /> It's not very easy for Mitchum fans to see their hero losing a fight: and it happens right in front of his son — but this is why RIVER OF NO RETURN is a nice break for an actor who's usually impenetrable...<br /> <br /> <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/-RHRyQHr7L0g/WA1In-kL4NI/AAAAAAAAu6A/-9WPjGtxYXcEYw1gCbyIgG6Vj9pcmKaYwCLcB/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-10-23%2Bat%2B4.30.04%2BPM.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/-RHRyQHr7L0g/WA1In-kL4NI/AAAAAAAAu6A/-9WPjGtxYXcEYw1gCbyIgG6Vj9pcmKaYwCLcB/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-10-23%2Bat%2B4.30.04%2BPM.jpg" width="217" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Another River Poster</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> Meanwhile, the voluptuous blonde bombshell, Marilyn Monroe, singing enough guitar-slinging tunes (her character's a tent-how performer) to nearly make this a "Singing Cowgirl" picture, turns in one of her most nature performances under Preminger's extremely subtle, non-signature-style direction. He obviously did more for the actors since his usual creative camera maneuvers, that put him on equal ground with the likes of Alfred Hitchcock and Orson Welles, are used sparingly.<br /> <br /> <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/-UVVQApnFi6w/WA1KaW60ExI/AAAAAAAAu6I/tRRI6nwV-cU4wd7KssKtS9q8gOZcVO9NACLcB/s1600/river_of_no_return.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="244" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UVVQApnFi6w/WA1KaW60ExI/AAAAAAAAu6I/tRRI6nwV-cU4wd7KssKtS9q8gOZcVO9NACLcB/s320/river_of_no_return.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>River of No Return SCORE: ***1/2</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> As an Action-Western, RIVER is just okay since the adventurous scenes on the rapids (as the trio stand atop a Huck Finn style wooden raft) are superimposed to where there seems little to no danger as the actors are obviously safe inside a Hollywood studio: buckets of water being thrown on them, and the water's probably lukewarm. What works, however, is the bond between Mitchum and Monroe, taking longer than most films where two beautiful actors are destined for romance...<br /> <br /> What defines Monroe's character is a stubborn determination to defend the scoundrel she's in love with, and Mitchum, although seeming, at times, like he's collecting a paycheck, plays nicely off his co-starlet that, for the most part, NO RETURN works despite its own intentionally breezy self: which basically means, this proverbial airhead has a brain, or two...<br /> <br /> <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/-SN70wqqcvG4/WA1K1yMK_UI/AAAAAAAAu6M/_R3YKTjcmZogI-GMR_jX3siS6qFk6YuJgCLcB/s1600/14724633_611102285759586_6671845291481930131_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="255" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SN70wqqcvG4/WA1K1yMK_UI/AAAAAAAAu6M/_R3YKTjcmZogI-GMR_jX3siS6qFk6YuJgCLcB/s400/14724633_611102285759586_6671845291481930131_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Dana Andrews stands tall for the Indian cause, sort of YEAR: 1955</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> <u>SMOKE SIGNAL</u>: Speaking of a performance going through the paycheck-collecting motions: Dana Andrews is both right and wrong for SMOKE SIGNAL, another action-packed Western in which the good guys must survive against advancing and surrounding Indians while battling a formidable water-splashing menace called a Wild River...<br /> <br /> Originally, Charlton Heston was intended to play the part of Brett Halliday, a calvary deserter who'd previously sided with some good Indians, which these particular antagonists are not — actually, they're the same tribe, but their minds have been changed, and it's blood they're after in a group of Calvary men led by an extremely determined and stubborn William Talman, who does have some reason for bitterness and resentment: because of Halliday's help with the Redskins, his brother had been killed...<br /> <br /> <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/-7kOw6a8LcRQ/WA1LDIGoxwI/AAAAAAAAu6U/8wzK4hewn4kiRiO1suKC45rS7CKgsJDVACLcB/s1600/14650722_611102365759578_7973400382986785100_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="233" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7kOw6a8LcRQ/WA1LDIGoxwI/AAAAAAAAu6U/8wzK4hewn4kiRiO1suKC45rS7CKgsJDVACLcB/s400/14650722_611102365759578_7973400382986785100_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Dana Andrews and William Talman... SMOKEScore: ***</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> Visually, Andrews fits the part, standing firm and wearing the Indian garb with dingy class, but his character is simply too "right" and idealistic to be interesting...<br /> <br /> Heston would have obviously "chewed the scenery," and for this one-dimensional role, it needed some major chewing beyond Dana's subdued performance that isn't too shabby, but isn't very memorable either. Leaving all the work for Talman, who... just as he'd stolen a Film Noir titled THE RACKET from our last movie's leading man... is the true main character with his hands full: needing to survive Indians and the rapids while keeping an eye on Dana's Halliday for a trial at the end of the journey — if they survive...<br /> <br /> <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/-C9X-s1vQosw/WA1L6rxljPI/AAAAAAAAu6c/w5mph4L5KGE3uo6yn5nwSzMGd9UjwLaEwCLcB/s1600/14650673_611151742421307_7272336161328213790_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-C9X-s1vQosw/WA1L6rxljPI/AAAAAAAAu6c/w5mph4L5KGE3uo6yn5nwSzMGd9UjwLaEwCLcB/s400/14650673_611151742421307_7272336161328213790_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>"For drinking on set, like Piper Laurie claims, Marshall Dillon'll get ya!"</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> Piper Laurie plays the ingenue, warming up to Dana's handsome, misunderstood idealist like most cinematic ingenues melt for the goaded puppy — but there's a snag...<br /> <br /> Her initial love interest, played by a rather monotone and stilted Rex Reason (what a name!), winds up madder at Andrews than even Talman is — and while it doesn't make Dana more energetic or desperate in the role, as usual, the man who's been deemed "The Greatest Minimalist Actor" delivers sturdy dialogue with finesse, and does alright in the nail-biting river sequences occurring between pockets of downtime during "shoreline" overnights, wherein, at one point, the GUMSMOKE Doc himself (the same year the famous series began), Milburn Stone, eventually takes a bigger risk than anyone...<br /> <br /> <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/-6kbzaa1rLtM/WA1LihGY0xI/AAAAAAAAu6Y/60yFKXRKNqI6oJgI0fE8QPIF925VSHgCACEw/s1600/14573040_611102362426245_3390864259642350114_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="220" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6kbzaa1rLtM/WA1LihGY0xI/AAAAAAAAu6Y/60yFKXRKNqI6oJgI0fE8QPIF925VSHgCACEw/s400/14573040_611102362426245_3390864259642350114_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Rex Reason, Dana Andrews and William Talman</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> Which is one of the problems: the characters never seem in the amount of trouble that would push this vehicle into a bonafide Action Western instead of a Western with some action on the side...<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> <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/-EFxfybkx77U/WA3c3tI7GvI/AAAAAAAAu8Y/3btWsf9Ekg0sJTvpVGSSH3u_SZEI2WemwCLcB/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-10-24%2Bat%2B3.04.16%2BAM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EFxfybkx77U/WA3c3tI7GvI/AAAAAAAAu8Y/3btWsf9Ekg0sJTvpVGSSH3u_SZEI2WemwCLcB/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2016-10-24%2Bat%2B3.04.16%2BAM.png" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Douglas Spencer</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> Although, in that... and with just-enough thrills and a short runtime, which always make an adventure film tight and nifty... SMOKE SIGNAL certainly entertains like a time-filling programmer should. And while it's a stretch (a thing we do here regularly) connecting these films to Otto Preminger and Dana Andrews, one particular actor is the true axis since he appears in both... In fact, this could have been a Western River Rapids Double Feature for Character-actor Douglas Spencer, perhaps best known as spectacle-wearing reporter Ned Scott aka Scotty in Howard Hawks' THE THING FROM ANOTHER WORLD where he utters the final line, "Keep watching the skies," in this picture is a resourceful trapper, much like Andrews, right down to the worn-brown attire, only without being despised: And in RIVER he's the mellower of two mountain-men happening upon Mitchum and Monroe's camp: Spencer looks on passively as his ornery sidekick instigates a rouse with Mitchum — and guess who wins this time?

action, dana andrews, fifties, marilyn monroe, otto preminger, robert mitchum, western

ANDREWS & PREMINGER RIVER WESTERN DOUBLE FEATURE

Dana Andrews scopes the canyon for vicious Indians in SMOKE SIGNAL For the renown LAURA director Otto Preminger, RIVER OF NO RETURN, a W...