May 28 - June 4, 2021

 

To answer these trivia questions, please email me at scinema@earthlink.net.

Brain Teasers:

Which Italian Western is virtually a remake of JOKO INVOCA DIO... E MUORI?

It is LA LUNGA CAVALCATA DELLA VENDETTA.

Which movie starring Richard Harrison is virtually a remake of BAD DAY AT BLACK ROCK?

No one has answered this question yet.

Which Italian director went from making his second Western to making a dramatic film featuring Richard Harrison?

No one has answered this question yet.

Which Italian actor went from being a stunt man on Italian Westerns to being the star of a film directed by Vittorio De Sica?

Bertrand Van Wonterghem knew that it was Fabio Testi.

Which Italian star of Westerns was romantically linked to Ursula Andress for four years?

George Grimes and Bertrand Van Wonterghem knew that it was Fabio Testi.

In which Italian Western is our hero known for his skill with an axe?

George Grimes and Bertrand Van Wonterghem knew that it was MANNAJA, aka A MAN CALLED BLADE.

And now for some new brain teasers:

What artifact gives away that Lee Van Cleef was at the massacre of John Philip Law's family in DA UOMO A UOMO?

What artifact links Lee Van Cleef to the murder of Rosemary Dexter in PER QUALCHE DOLLARO IN PIU?

What is the hero's name in POCHI DOLLARI PER DJANGO?

Name the movies from which these images came.

Bertrand Van Wonterghem and George Grimes and  identified last week's photo of Lo Lieh, Patty Shepard and Lee Van Cleef from EL KARATE EL COLT Y EL IMPOSTER, aka THE STRANGER AND THE GUNFIGHTER, aka BLOOD MONEY.

Above is a new photo.

Can you name from what movie it came?

George Grimes and Angel Rivera identified last week's frame grab of Ornella Vanoni in ROMOLO E REMO, aka DUEL OF THE TITANS.

Above is a new photo.

Can you name from what movie it came?

George Grimes, Angel Rivera and Bertrand Van Wonterghem identified last week's frame grab of Stefania Sandrelli and Dustin Hoffman in ALFREDO, ALFREDO.

Above is a new photo.

Can you name from what movie it came?

George Grimes identified last week's photo of Meng Lo from CHINATOWN KID.

Above is a new photo.

Can you name from what movie it came?

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I am interested in knowing what movies you have watched and what you enjoyed or not. So please send me an email at scinema@earthlink.net if you'd like to share. Here's what I watched last week:

Enjoyed:

THE TIMES OF HARVEY MILK (1984)

Mildly enjoyed:

THE GREAT NORTHFIELD MINNESOTA RAID (1972) - Casting a balding Robert Duvall as Jesse James makes this the most unique movie about that famous outlaw, but writer/director Philip Kaufman sets out to make Cole Younger, played by Cliff Robertson, the real leader of the gang. Also unique is the staging of the robbery during a rain storm, with only one of the Youngers, Bob played by Matt Clark, wounded during the escape (which seems to historically accurate). Also unique is the idea that Cole Younger wore a leather bullet proof vest. In this film, Cole conceives the Northfield raid, but dismisses it when it seems that the gang will get amnesty. After Cole is wounded in an ambush by Pinkerton detectives (which seems to be historically false), Jesse goes into evangelical mode proclaiming that he's had a vision to rob the bank in Northfield, Minnesota. When he recovers, Cole wants to stop Jesse from ruining the chance for amnesty with the Northfield job, so he and some others race to stop Jesse. On the way, Cole hears that the railroad people bribed politicians to stop the amnesty, so he decides to join the robbery. Arriving in Northfield first, Cole discovers that the bank has no money in it because of the financial crisis of 1873. Cole convinces bank owner Dana Elcar to con the locals into thinking that a gold shipment has been delivered to the bank - with the help of Elisha Cook Jr. - inorder for them to fill the vault with deposits that the outlaws could steal tomorrow. Joined by Jesse and his guys, that gang hits the bank during a rain storm. The robbery goes awry when the local crazy guy, played by Royal Dano, is murdered on top of a steam powered calliope. Rather than portray Jim Younger having part of his jaw shot off during the Northfield raid, Kaufman has Luke Askew play the role mute after an earlier wound that shot off his upper lip. THE GREAT NORTHFIELD MINNESOTA RAID looks to be a movie that was heavily reworked in the editing room - with a lot of ADR dialogue and jump cuts, but perhaps Kaufman was just trying to be fashionable. Many reviews at the time accused the film of trying to be like M*A*S*H with the comedic baseball game. In any case, for what reason did he decide to make a movie about an historic event and ignore the facts? And howcome while Allan Pinkerton is portrayed in the movie, does his character not get listed in Wikipedia or the IMDb? There is a recurring joke about Pinkerton on board a train filled with his agents failing to get the Younger-James gang. Perhaps this bit was inspired by the portrayal of Joe Lefors in BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID.

IT'S COMPLICATED (2009) - I'm not much of a fan of films by Nancy Meyers, but for the first one hour and thirty minutes this was my favorite of her movies. Then it became rather predictably more complicated. Meryl Streep was luminous as a divorced woman facing the "empty nest" syndrome after her youngest child moves out to go to college. Alec Baldwin was fun as the ex-husband who suddenly found his ex-wife desirable after his newer younger wife became more demanding. Steve Martin was remarkably subdued as the potential new man in Streep's life. The lovely Hunter Parrish, Zoe Kazan and Caitlin FitzGerald played the Streep/Baldwin children, with Kazan and FitzGerald being particularly charming. John Krasinski made FitzGerald's fiance memorable with amazing reaction shots. One can fault the filmmaker for not bringing back Streep's girlfriends - Mary Kay Place, Rita Wilson and Alexandra Wentworth - and Baldwin's wife, Lake Bell, in the end to see their reactions to where the story ended. The film got points for using a clip from THE GRADUATE and a bit from David Bowie's "Rebel, Rebel".

Midsomer Murders (2017) "Crime and Punishment"

SAVE YOURSELF! (2020) - "The year humankind lost planet Earth." Yuppie (or Millennial) couple Sunita Mani and John Paul Reynolds decide to spend a week disconnected from electronic world at a friend's cabin in the woods. So, it takes a few days before they realize that the Earth has been invaded by "Puff Balls" (aka pouffes - kind of like Tribbles) from outer space. Mani and Reynolds are quite charming, but the couple comedy gets a bit draggy. The danger isn't really introduced until about halfway through the movie, but it is rather effective, though neither character acts in a way that I would have. Writer/directors Alex Huston Fischer and Eleanor Wilson decide to have an unresolved ending, which is frustrating. If this was a film designed for a mainstream audience, one might accuse them of trying to bait a desire for a sequel.

Uncensored Special: DMX The Icon (2021)

Unsung "The Jones Girls" (2021)

Did not enjoy:

ALIAS JESSE JAMES (1959) - Woody Allen often said that in his early films he was just trying to be Bob Hope. It is pretty obvious while watching this movie - you can see that what Bob Hope was doing was pretty similar to what Allen would do. So why was Allen funny and Hope not? I credit Allen's writing, which he said was inspired by trying to impress college educated girls that he was better educated than he was. Norman Z. McLeod directed this silly tale which was dedicated to the door-to-door insurance salesmen who made America great. First we have to accept that at one point Jesse James, played by Wendell Corey, traveled to New York City, and even though he was recognized and became front page news, was not bothered by local authorities. He met incompetent insurance salesman Bob Hope in a bar where he exchanged a bag full of cash for an $100,000 insurance policy to be paid out to future wife Rhonda Fleming. Hope's boss saw this policy as potentially destroying the company, so Hope was ordered to go out and make certain that Corey didn't die. In Missouri, Corey hatched a plot to disguise Hope as Jesse James, murder him and then collect the insurance policy. Naturally, all of Corey's attempts failed, and Fleming fell in love with Hope. Hope foiled Corey's attempt to marry Fleming by spiking the punch with "magic mushrooms", but finally the big showdown happened back in town. Being unable to pull a Winchester from the rifle rack in the sheriff's office, Hope drags the whole rack out into the street and succeeds in firing all of the rifles at once - which is a trick similar to what the Scotish family does in defending the farm in SETTE PISTOLE PER I MACGREGOR seven years later. Earlier, Hope pulled a trick which was echoed in PER UN PUGNO DI DOLLARI - he wore an armor breast plate under his shirt before a gunfight. As the James gang attacked, Hope fought back - not knowing that a host of Western guest stars showed up to help him - Hugh O'Brian from Wyatt Earp, Ward Bond from Wagon Train, James Arness from Gunsmoke, Roy Rogers (who seemed to have killed a man, which he never did on his TV show), Fess Parker from Davy Crockett, Gail Davis from Annie Oakley, Gary Cooper, Jay Silverheels from The Lone Ranger and non Western star but frequent Hope sidekick Bing Crosby. Finally, Corey and brother Frank, played by Jim Davis, were arrested and Hope made president of the insurance company. The film ended with Fleming visiting Hope in his office after he told a client that he had insurance for everything. After we see that they now have six children with another on the way, Hope commented that you can't get insurance against everything. Also in the cast were Mike Mazurki, Gloria Talbot as an Indian princess who never got a reward for saving Hope, and Glenn Strange as a member of the James gang. This was a production of Hope Enterprises that was able to reuse some footage from the 1939 JESSE JAMES just as THE TRUE STORY OF JESSE JAMES had done.

AMERICAN OUTLAWS (2001) - THE TRUE STORY OF JESSE JAMES keeps looking better and better. Who in 2000 thought it was the right time for another bullshit movie about Jesse James - and one which has an happy ending? It is appropriate that the legal disclaimer reports that this is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons living or dead is coincidental. Unlike the 1939 JESSE JAMES movie, this one mentions the James brothers as members of Quantrill's Raiders, but pretends that they laid down their weapons when they heard that the war was over. With action scenes seemingly inspired by John Woo movies, Colin Farrell makes Jesse into a old time Batman. Just as in the 1939 flick, Jesse becomes an outlaw because of the deeds of the evil railroad men. This time the villains are personified as Terry O'Quinn and his boss Harris Yulin. Tossing away the bullshit about "Remington" agents, Timothy Dalton plays Allan Pinkerton himself, taking on the James case personally. Most of the film is taken up with comedic banter featuring one-upsmanship between the James and the Younger brothers. Ali Larter appears as Zee, who won't marry Jesse until he gives up the outlaw life - but then fires a cannon to stop a train carrying her husband to trial in Washington D.C. Some critics thought this was an attempt to follow the success of YOUNG GUNS, but that film paid some attention to history.

THE DARK (2005) - It is nice to see Sean Bean play a nice guy in this. On the other hand, why would anyone want to make a movie in which for most of its running time Maria Bello is in torment, and then end it with a bummer. Thankfully, director John Fawcett would redeem himself later by co-creating the Orphan Black TV series. For a bit, this looked like it would be  a remake of POLTERGEIST with a mother going into the beyond to rescue her daughter. But it isn't.

DARK TIDE (2012) - This film seems more interested in being a tourist advertisement for nature reserves in South Africa than in being a thriller. There are gorgeous shots of huge seal populations and cautionary messages about swimming with the sharks. But, being a shark movie, people get killed. Alot of the action takes place at night and in attempting to get realistic lighting, the filmmakers fail to make the attacks visable. Who the hell were the military like scuba divers that suddenly show up in the middle of the movie inorder to be killed while searching at night for something? If they were connected to the stupid rich guy who dragged the reluctant shark expert Halle Berry out to "Shark Alley" I missed the information. Former actor John Stockwell showed a lot of promise at the beginning of his directing career with CRAZY/BEAUTIFUL and BLUE CRUSH. Hopefully this and SEAL TEAM 6: THE RAID ON OSAMA BIN LADEN aren't where his career is heading.

INVASION U.S.A. (1985) - Sure it is stupid. But is it fun? No, just irritating. The special effects and stunt guys get a real workout on this movie, which has a lot of explosions, but director Joseph Zito fails to create any decent action sequences. The screenwriters lose points for creating an annoying female journalist character, played by Melissa Prophet, but gain back some points by not having her become a romantic interest. Was Tom Savini brought in to do Special Effects Makeup on the woman getting a straw slammed up her nose?

IT'S KIND OF A FUNNY STORY (2010) - In 2004 author Ned Vizzini checked himself into a psychiatric hospital having had suicidal thoughts. In 2006, he turned that experience into a Young Adult novel, which was made into a movie by writer/directors Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck. Three years later Vizzini gave up his battle and killed himself at the age of 32. But that's not the material for the movie. In the movie, 16 year old Keir Gilchrist feels the weight of the world and so he seeks help at an hospital. They sign him up for a five day observation stay, but as the juvenile wing is undergoing renovation, he is put into the adult ward. Viola Davis is the doctor who helps him to realize that he must resist pressure to be something he doesn't want to be and to figure out what he wants to do. Viewers can pretty much figure out the message of the movie from the very beginning, but the storytellers try to maintain interest with all of the characters in the ward. Zach Galifianakis gets the most screen time, but Gilchrist also gets a romance with Emma Roberts. It's nice to see Jeremy Davies play a good guy, and our hero's parents are played by Lauren Graham and Jim Gaffigan. Author Ned Vizzini appears as the ward's music therapist who leads everyone in a fantasy performance of "Under Pressure" by David Bowie and Queen. Zoë Kravitz appears as the girl in school about whom Gilchrist obsesses and the viewer can certainly understand why. A few years later, Boden and Fleck directed CAPTAIN MARVEL for the MCU.

ROADHOUSE 66 (1984) - Driving along Route 66 to California, Judge Reinhold ignores hitchhiker Willem Dafoe until local thugs from Kingman, Arizona shoot a hole in his radiator. Dafoe offers to help Reinhold in exchange for a lift, but then they both find themselves stuck in Kingman. On the plus side, both find ladies to love - Kaaren Lee and Kate Vernon. On the negative side, the local thugs cause even more trouble. It all comes to a climax with a classic car race, in which the main villain, Alan Autry, sabotages Reinhold's drive by dropping scorpions onto his seat. Luckily, Dafoe is also in the race. After picking up Reinhold on the road, Dafoe looks to be winning when Autry pulls a pistol. Reinhold causes Dafoe to swerve, which sends Autry crashing into desert rocks. We don't get an update on Autry's condition before our heroes drive out of town in new cars with their ladies. A big plus is that Nelson Riddle's "Theme from Route 66" plays over the end credits. If you've been wanting to see Willem Dafoe sing "Marie Marie", this is the movie for you. John Mark Robinson gave up being an actor to direct this movie. 

THE SLUMBER PARTY MASSACRE (1982) - Reportedly Rita Mae Brown wrote this movie as a parody, but producer/director Amy Holden Jones shot it straight. Films become cult movies because some people find them worthy when most people don't. 

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David Deal enjoyed:

THE IRON GIANT (99)

CREEPSHOW (82)

THE NICKEL RIDE (75)

POINT BLANK (67)

THE MAD EXECUTIONERS (63)

THE VENGEANCE OF LADY MORGAN (65)

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Bertrand Van Wonterghem highly enjoyed:

Walliams and friends – season 1 – episode 5

Diablero – season 1 (2018) – episode 1

Enjoyed:

Sijipeuseu: The Myth  / Sisyphus the myth – season 1 – episodes  14 to 16

My mother the car (1965) episodes 1 to 2

Jukji anneun Ingan-deul-e bam / Night of the undead (2020, Jeong-won Shin)

Riaru – kanzen naru shucho ryu no hi / Real (2013, Kiyoshi Kurosawa)

The hunter (2011, Daniel Nettheim)

Mildly enjoyed:

The twonky (1953, Arch Oboler)

Giovanni dalle bande nere (1956, Sergio Grieco)

Did not enjoy:

Jupiter’s legacy – season 1 – episodes 4 & 5

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Charles Gilbert watched:

PRIVATE HELL 36 (1954) B&W. Ida Lupino wrote and stars with husband Howard Duff but the two pair off with Steve Cochran and Dorothy Malone. Avaricious LA detective Cal Bruno (Cochran) pockets the loot from a case and cuts in his reluctant partner Jack Farnum (Duff). Captain Michaels (Dean Jagger) devises a sting to trap the cop gone bad. Directed by Don Seigel.

THE LONE GUN (1954) Former sheriff Cruze (George Montgomery) in a new town impresses Mayor Booth (Faye Roope) when he challenges the ornery Moran brothers (Neville Brand, Robert J. Wilke, and Douglas Kennedy) who have been stealthily rustling cattle. Charlotte Downing (Dorothy Malone) and kid brother (Skip Homier) have been unwitting accomplises on their ranch. In his job in the new venue the marshal has a partner in 'tinhorn' Fairweather (Frank Faylen) ever with the wisecracks.

BLOOD AT SUNDOWN aka WHY GO ON KILLING? (1965) Anthony Steffen and Evelyn Stuart.are Stephen and Judy McDougall, siblings in the old west whose father was executed by land rival Lopez (Jose Calvo). Daughter Pilar Lopez (Gemma Cuervo) sympathizes with the McDougalls.

1000 DOLLARS ON THE BLACK aka BLOOD AT SUNDOWN (1966) Johnny Liston (Anthony Steffen) returns from prison to avenge himself of a trumped-up conviction to find his brother Sartana (John Garko), with mother's (Carla Calo) blessing. terrorising the town with a lilly-livered sheriff (Franco Fantasia) who won't stand up to his gang. Erika Blanc is Josita Rogers whom they manipulate. Garko's Sartana heavily resembles the Burt Lancaster character Joe Erin from VERA CRUZ.

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Angel Rivera wrote: 

'I happened to catch a movie titled, "The House of Exorcism". This is s repackaging of the film I saw last week titled, "Lisa and the Devil". Apparently the producer could not get a deal to distribute "Lisa and the Devil", so he had some footage added to make the movie appear as an "Exorcist" clone to cash in on the success of that film. Elke Sommer does her best in the new footage to appear "possessed", but some of the "cuss words" being dubbed and coming out of her mouth are just laughable. There are some nudity from the leading ladies (Elke Sommer and Sylva Koscina) that had they left in the original release might have been exploitable enough that the film may have found a US distributor.

Robert Alda (Alan's father is in the new footage as a priest ready to battle with the devil. So what was an atmospheric film was turned into a schlock film.'

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May 22 - 28, 2021

 

To answer these trivia questions, please email me at scinema@earthlink.net.

Brain Teasers:

Which Italian Western is virtually a remake of BLINDMAN?

COMIN' AT YA! aside from the hero having sight and his bride being among the stolen women.

Which Italian Western is virtually a remake of JOKO INVOCA DIO... E MUORI?

No one has answered this question yet.

Which movie starring Richard Harrison is virtually a remake of BAD DAY AT BLACK ROCK?

No one has answered this question yet.

Which Italian director went from making his second Western to making a dramatic film featuring Richard Harrison?

No one has answered this question yet.

By what name is Cole Kitosch better known?

George Grimes, Rick Garibaldi, Charles Gilbert and Bertrand Van Wonterghem knew that it was Alberto Dell' Acqua.

Which Spanish actress, born in 1934, appeared in Italian Sword & Sandal and then Westerns?

George Grimes and Bertrand Van Wonterghem  knew that it was Elisa Montes.

Which Italian Western features our hero having to face his grown-up kidnapped son in a climactic shootout?

Rick Garibaldi knew that it was SETTE DOLLARI SUL ROSSO, aka SEVEN DOLLARS ON THE RED, aka SEVEN DOLLARS TO KILL.

And now for some new brain teasers:

Which Italian actor went from being a stunt man on Italian Westerns to being the star of a film directed by Vittorio De Sica?

Which Italian star of Westerns was romantically linked to Ursula Andress for four years?

In which Italian Western is our hero known for his skill with an axe?

Name the movies from which these images came.

Bertrand Van Wonterghem, George Grimes and Rick Garibaldi identified last week's frame grab of Fabio Testi in CHINA 9, LIBERTY 37, aka AMORE, PIOMBO E FURORE.

Above is a new photo.

Can you name from what movie it came?

George Grimes, Charles Gilbert and Bertrand Van Wonterghem identified last week's frame grab of Yann Larvor in ERCOLE, SANSONE, MACISTE E URSUS GLI INVINCIBILI, aka SAMSON AND THE MIGHTY CHALLENGE.

Above is a new photo.

Can you name from what movie it came?

George Grimes and Bertrand Van Wonterghem identified last week's frame grab of Michèle Mercier in LE PRIGIONERE DELL'ISOLA DEL DIAVOLO, aka WOMEN OF DEVIL'S ISLAND.

Above is a new photo.

Can you name from what movie it came?

George Grimes and Angel Rivera identified last week's frame grab of Gordon Liu in THE 36TH CHAMBER OF SHAOLIN, aka MASTER KILLER.

Above is a new photo.

Can you name from what movie it came?

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I am interested in knowing what movies you have watched and what you enjoyed or not. So please send me an email at scinema@earthlink.net if you'd like to share. Here's what I watched last week:

Enjoyed:

DEADWOOD The Movie (2019) - Less a continuation of the too soon cancelled HBO series, this TV movie is more of a corrective to where the series ended. Possibly stung by how upset viewers were by an ending in which evil won completely, writer/creator David Milch brings back most of his surviving cast to provide a more positive ending - even though it is historically invalid. 

SUPPORTING CHARACTERS (2012) - Director Daniel Schechter co-wrote this charming little film with co-star Tarik Lowe and then hit the jackpot by getting Alex Karpovsky to appear as Lowe's buddy. Having the two guys working as film editors adds a level of interest for film buffs. but the movie is ultimately a bittersweet romance. Getting Sophia Takal to play Karpovsky's fiance is another coup, which makes her decision to give up acting for directing in 2016 all the more regretable. Those who know Karpovsky from HBO's Girls will get a kick out of finding Lena Dunham in a minor role. Melonie Diaz plays Lowe's love interest and with Arielle Kebbel and Kevin Corrigan adds to the film's texture.

Mildly enjoyed:

DEVIL DOLL (1964) - For years I thought this was another insane ventriloquist movie like the Michael Redgrave story in DEAD OF NIGHT or William Goldman's MAGIC. But this was directed by Lindsay Shonteff, who made one of my favorite movies in 1965 - LICENSED TO KILL, aka THE 2nd BEST SECRET AGENT IN THE WHOLE WIDE WORLD. Giving it a look-see, I was very pleased to find that it wasn't what I thought it was; it was the story of a ventriloquist who figured out how to imprison a person's life force inside a ventriloquist dummy. Once again, this feat was credited to studying the mystic arts in Tibet. At times the film seemed more interested in the erotic rather than the horrific, but that was not a terrible thing when Yvonne Romain and Sandra Dorne were present. 2001 A SPACE ODYSSEY's William Sylvester played the heroic newspaper man hired to do a puff piece on ventriloquist Bryant Haliday. It was a plus that the filmmakers acknowledged that Haliday was wearing a fake beard since it was very apparent on first sight. Reportedly fellow Canadian film director Sidney J. Furie was initially hired to direct this film, but handed it off to Shonteff when Furie got an offer to make THE LEATHER BOYS. 

Midsomer Murders "The Village That Rose From the Dead" (2016)

LA TIGRE DEI SETTE MARI, aka TIGER OF THE SEVEN SEAS (1962) - In 1960, Gianna Maria Canale became LA VENERE DEI PIRATI. Two years later, she's in a similar role as the daughter of Carlo Ninchi. The captaincy of Ninchi's pirate ship, the Santa Maria, traditionally goes to his son, but he's only got a daughter. Anthony Steel is in love with Canale, so, naturally when the new captain is to be determined by a duel, it is Steel vs. Canale. Canale wins and spares Steel's life much to his humiliation. When Ninchi is murdered with Steel's knife, everyone assumes that our hero is guilty and sentences him to be hanged. Thankfully, the Spanish soldiers launch a surprise attack allowing Steel to escape. He escapes with the Santa Maria, which Canale assumes proves his guilt. (?) Meanwhile, captured pirate Andrea Aureli complains to the Spanish governor's wife, Maria Grazia Spina, that the surprise attack foiled his plan to get his hands on the whereabouts of Ninchi's buried treasure. Rallying her band of escaped pirates, Canale seizes a Spanish ship and embarks on a new reign of piracy, hoping to find Steel and get back her father's ship. Eventually, Steel and Canale find each other, and he surrenders before she can attack him. He knows that the real murderer of Ninchi is in the governor's fort, and he tells of his plan to capture him. Of course, Steel ends up captured, and gets tortured by Aureli, hoping to find the whereabouts of Ninchi's treasure. Hearing that Steel is a prisoner, Canale plans to rescue him during the governor's masked ball. A battle ensues, augmented by footage from other Italian pirate movies, but complicated by Steel giving Aureli false directions to the treasure. Governor Ernesto Calindri is captured by the pirates, but Steel and Canale are captured by the governor's wife. She agrees to let our heroes go free in exchange for Ninchi's treasure. The film then drops all pretense to seriousness as Spina consoles Calindri that while he doesn't have any pirates to hang, they do have a fabulous treasure. Meanwhile, Steel and Canale sail away bickering about who wears the pants in the family. Luigi Capuano shoots most of the film in long shots with only a few close ups, which results in little visual excitement. Bruno Arie is credited as the Fencing Master and he relies heavily on Nazzareno Zamperla as Steel's best friend to deliver the best of the sword fighting bits. Canale displays her usual energy in the fight scenes and her usual attractiveness in the romantic bits. Steel seems to be considered a marquee name for the production, but he doesn't look well and makes for a poor figure of heroism. John Kitzmiller gets a good amount of screen time as Canale's faithful servant, who doesn't have any lines because his tongue had been ripped out. He does get to die with his head on Canale's left breast, which I would think is a plus. Carlo Rustichelli is credited with the uninspiring music score.

THE TRUE STORY OF JESSE JAMES (1957) - If Tyrone Power and Henry Fonda weren't pretty enough as the James brothers, how about Robert Wagner and Jeffrey Hunter? This maybe considered a remake of the 1939 JESSE JAMES directed by King Vidor, but it is a complete reworking of the material. The film starts with the ill-fated Northfield Minnesota bank robbery that proved to be the end of the James Gang and spends a good amount of time on the posse's efforts to capture Frank and Jesse. As the news spreads about what happened, various associates of the brothers have extended flashbacks about the events leading up to the current troubles. The conflicts between neighbors during the Civil War are blamed for Jesse becoming an outlaw, and then director Nicholas Ray portrays Wagner becoming twisted by fame. While much of this is told in a corny way, the story is surprisingly unsentimental - though, or course, Wagner renounces his evil ways before being shot in the back. Why the filmmakers decided to hide the Pinkerton Detective Agency behind the name Remington is something to ponder. Not surprisingly the film lies about the James family owning slaves.  Footage from the 1939 was formatted for Cinemascope inorder to not having to duplicate a couple of dangerous stunts.

THE ASSASSINATION OF JESSE JAMES BY THE COWARD ROBERT FORD (2007) - Every other movie about Jesse James has him retiring from the outlaw life after the debacle in Northfield, Minnesota. This is the first I've seen that mentions the Blue Cut, Missouri train robbery. Perhaps that was partly what inspired Ron Hansen to write the novel, which was published in 1983. As with alot of new versions of famous killings, this movie suggests that James wanted Robert Ford to kill him. It also suggests that James had been systematically murdering everyone who helped in in the Blue Cut train robbery, so the Ford brothers feared for their lives. Reportedly, writer/director Andrew Dominik wanted the movie to be over four hours long, but the studio insisted it be shortened to two hours and forty minutes. Considering all of the marvelous actors who show up for only a short time, it is easy to believe that they were originally hired to do more than what we see in the final film. Brad Pitt, Casey Affleck and Sam Rockwell get most of the screen time. Mary-Louise Parker, Sarah Lind, Alison Elliot and Zoey Deschanel are criminally under used. It is not a surprise to find that one of Domnik's favorite films is BARRY LYNDON, because even at the shorter length, the film is in no hurry to tell its story. Other actors of note in the film are Jeremy Renner, Garrett Dillahunt, Sam Shepard, Michael Parks, James Carville and Nick Cave. 

Uncnsrd "DMX" (2021)

Did not enjoy:

ASYLUM (2008) - Remember back in 1972 when there was only one movie called ASYLUM? Now we've got one in 2005, 2008, 2014 and a TV series in 2015. Former pro surfer and stuntman David R. Ellis is the director of the 2008 release; his followup to 2006's SNAKES ON A PLANE. Sarah Roemer is among a group of new students to Richard Miller University. who arrives early for orientation. Soon they discover that their dorm was built on the ruins of Burke Asylum, where a mad doctor tortured his patients in an effort to "cure" them. The mad doctor was killed during a patient riot, but he absorbed the souls of his victims and so returns to kill off the new students. Roemer and her boyfriend survive the night and then dispatch the evil spirit in the morning. Writer Ethan Lawrence provides Ellis with plenty of opportunities to feature victims screaming while blood gushes. Unfortunately, neither comes up with anything interesting.

JESSE JAMES (1939) - Tyrone Power plays the title role as a peaceful farm boy who becomes an outlaw when the evil agent of the St. Louis Midland Railroad, Brian Donlevy kills his ma while trying to steal their land. There's no mention of James riding with Quantrills' Raiders or the family being slave owners or even the Civil War. He's only out for revenge on the railroad. He's even got a faithful black servant named Pinky. This movie, with a script credited to Associate Producer Nunnally Johnson, is complete bullshit. The James Gang started out robbing banks. Robbing trains came later. And the populace of Northfield, Minnesota was not tipped off about the arrival of the James Gang; they just responded quickly. Lon Chaney Jr. is supposed to have been one of the James Gang, but I didn't see him. Whose idea was it to have a love triangle between Jesse, his wife Zee - played by Nancy Kelly - and Marshal Will Wright - played by Randolph Scott. Who came up with the bullshit about Jesse turning himself in to face a light sentence and then having the railroad president - played by Donald Meek - trying to get him hung? And then there's the running gag with newspaper editor Henry Hull proposing editorials against whomever is currently annoying him always ending with take them out and shoot them like a dog.

SANSONE E IL TESORO DEGLI INCAS, aka LOST TREASURE OF THE AZTECS, aka SAMSON AND THE LOST TREASURE OF THE INCAS (1964) - While it's kind of fun seeing veterans of mythological films in Western garb, there's no getting around that this movie is bad. Director Piero Pierotti seems to want it both ways, with Alan Steel nicknamed "Arizona" in the English version and "Samson" in the Italian. One might think of him as Maciste, except that he wears pants. For the most part, Steel uses his fists, but he's not adverse to pulling a pistol, too. The screenwriters throw a lot of story elements into the mix, but probably should have considered dropping some rather than leaving so many plots unresolved. Initially, the bad guy, Mario Petri, had Carlo Tamberlani, murdered in a plot to steal his land. As part of the plot, Toni Sailer is framed for the murder. Best friend Alan Steel prevents the mob from hanging Sailer and arranges for Sailer to be taken to the jail in Silver City. Petri sends his men to kill Sailer in transit. On the road, Sailer meets Anna Maria Polani, but can't tell that she's a woman. Petri's men attack, but Sailer and Polani ride off to get help. Steel finds Sailer and Polani and tells them to hide in the desert. Coincidentally, that desert is where the Lost City of the Aztecs, or Incas, is. Polani is to be the "Bride of the Sun God" and had been sent from down Mexico way to prevent the Lost City from being destroyed by the Fire God. Wolfgang Lukschy convinces Petri to go the desert in search of the Lost City and it's fabled treasure, dropping whatever plot he was hatching for Tamberlani's land. The head priest of the Lost City decides to lure both the good guys and the bad guys through the golden gates into what they call a city but hardly seems to be a pueblo. The idea is that the good guys and the bad guys will fight, and who ever survives will be the sacrifice to the Fire God. Naturally, the good guys prevail, but then so does Petri, who seems to have gone mad. When the priest discovers that Polani has fallen in love with Sailer, she too is to be part of the sacrifice. In the end, Steel suddenly goes all strongman and rips off his chains. At the same time, the underground volcano called the Fire God erupts allowing the good guys, with Petri, to escape. For this synopsis, I've left out the story elements involving Pierre Cressoy, who gets to play a good guy, Brigitte Heiberg and Dada Gallotti. A.F. Lavagnino provides an toe-tapping music score that often times seems at odds with the high body count. Was this movie inspired by 1954's SECRET OF THE INCAS or by the popularity of the German produced movies based on the books by Karl May? Or was it The Phantom Empire serial starring Gene Autry?

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Charles Gilbert watched:

FRANKENSTEIN '80 (1972) Gordon Mitchell in a kitschy role as Dr. Otto Frankenstein who whips up a bald headed monster in his modern home hidden lab. The monster's proclivities lean towards bawdy females.

The Man From Blackhawk S01E06 'Station Six'. Colorized 1959 tv western starring Robert Rockwell as insurance agent Sam Logan investigating a widow whose indemnity claim is suspect. Her two consecutive husbands died in fires.

Shannon tv show 1961 B&W. S01E02  'The Embezzler's Daughter'.  George Nader is Joe Shannon who is working for an insurance company, tracking down an ex-charactor actor widower absconding with a bag of loot. Joe picks up his teen daughter (Candy Moore) who plans to rendesvous with dad whose partners want in on the action. Unaware of this until now.

THE SIGN OF ROME (1959) Anita Eckberg plays Palmirian Queen Zenobia xenophobic of hegemonic Romans. She enlists aid from banished consul Marcus Valerius (Georges Marchal). Meanwhile the Persians have abducted ceremonial vestal virgin Batsheba (Lorella de Luca) and mean to sacrifice her until centurion Julianus (Jacques Sernas) interrupts with a well placed arrow in the back of high priest Paul Mueller (with shaven pate). Mimmo Palmera in a sympathetic role. Exquisite print from Film & Clips.

SCALPS (1987) Grim tale of abuse by a Confederate colonel (Alberto Farnese) who refuses to acknowledge defeat at the hands of the Union army, and begins marauding a local indian tribe with designs on a young maiden (Mapi Galan). She escapes capture after a massacre, and takes up with rancher Matt Brown (Vassili Karis);  and conducts 'Rambo' attacks on the southern regiment. Director is Bruno Mattei. Richard Harrison is credited with the story  but does not appear. Also courtesy of Film & Clips

SINBAD AND THE CALIPH OF BAGHDAD (1973) Obscure actor Robert Malcolm plays both as twins mutually unaware until the throne of Persia is at stake. Even less renown is Sonia Wilson as the princess they both covet. The film is played like a Toto romp. Peplum troopers Arturo Dominici and Franco Fantasia appear. Pietro Francisci directs.

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David Deal enjoyed:

THE EVIL DEAD (82)

SANTO IN THE TREASURE OF DRACULA (68)

SATAN'S BLOOD (77)

IT MIGHT GET LOUD (09)

Mildly enjoyed:

THE FILE OF THE GOLDEN GOOSE (69) - Irritable Secret Service agent Yul Brynner and Brit partner Edward Woodward go undercover to bust a counterfeiting ring.  Only occasionally compelling, this crime drama slips by without leaving much of an impression.

DOOMED TO DIE (40) - Another tepid Mr. Wong mystery with Boris Karloff features Marjorie Reynolds and Grant Withers is the inevitable cop.

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Bertrand Van Wonterghem highly enjoyed:

Walliams and friends – season 1 – episodes 3 & 4

Enjoyed:

Sijipeuseu: The Myth  / Sisyphus the myth – season 1 – episode  13

Agente segreto 777 : operazione mistero (1965, Enrico Bomba)

Mildly enjoyed:

Mortal kombat (2020, Simon McQuaid)

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Angel Rivera wrote: 

"After watching DUEL OF THE TITANS, I decided to have a Steve Reeves and Gordon Scott marathon. First I watched THE AVENGER aka THE LEGEND OF AENEAS! I had never seen it before and was mildly amused. The real surprise was THE GIANT OF MARATHON! Not only did it have two very beautiful women (Mylène Demongeot and Daniela Rocca) but also an awesome villain in the form of Sergio Fantoni. The plot though familiar was still entertaining and well performed by the cast.

"Next I watched the two eurospy films Gordon Scott did, DANGER! DEATH RAY and TOP SECRET! Scott looked cool wearing fashionable sixties clothing and the films while campy were still enjoyable for what they were.

"I also watched two interesting horror films. First, THE CURSE OF THE CRIMSON ALTAR featuring Christopher Lee and the great Boris Karloff , in  an interesting tale of witchcraft and then Elke Sommer, Sylva Koscina, Alida Valli and Telly Savalas. in LISA AND THE DEVIL. This film was directed by the legendary Mario Bava and while it was more style than substance and made in 1972, it still had three of the most beautiful international female stars who were still remarkable  to watch. It was also interesting to see Elke and Sylva together again as they were two of the deadliest assassins ever to grace the screen in DEADLIER THAN THE MALE."

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