May 18 - 24, 2024

 

 

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

Brain Teasers:

Which Italian cinematographer who became a director died at the age of 59 in 1976?

Tom Betts, Bertrand van Wonterghem, Angel Rivera and George Grimes knew that it was Massimo Dallamano.

Which Italian actor was born in 1938, made four Westerns, and died at the age of 64 in 2003?

Tom Betts, Bertrand van Wonterghem and George Grimes knew that it was Ivan Rassimov, aka Sean Todd.

Which American actor, born in 1947, began his film career in Italy in 1969, made three Italian Westerns and is still alive?

Tom Betts, Bertrand van Wonterghem and George Grimes knew that it was Leonard Mann.

And now for some new brain teasers:

On the May 16th, 2024 episode of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, David Letterman proclaimed what was his "favorite action film"?

Which Italian stuntman, actor and action director was born in Treviso April 25, 1937 and died on March 19, 2020?

By what name is Nick Anderson better known?

Name the movies from which these images came.

Above is a new photo.

Can you name from what movie it came?

 

Angel Rivera and Charles Gilbert identified last week's frame grab of Marilu Tolo and Mark Forest in MACISTE, GLADIATORE DI SPARTA, aka THE TERROR OF ROME AGAINST THE SON OF HERCULES.

Above is a new photo.

Can you name from what movie it came?

No one has identified the above picture yet.

Can you name from what movie it came?

No one identified the  above photo.

Can you name from what movie it came?

**********************************************************************

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:

Highly enjoyed:

Young Sheldon season seven (2024) - I've consistently enjoyed this CBS series, but the two episode series finale was an absolute delight.

Television Event (2020) - American-Australian director Jeff Daniels put together this excellent documentary about the making of, and the reaction to, the 1983 ABC-TV movie The Day After. The film follows ABC executive Brandon Stoddard's desire to make a TV movie about the effects of a Nuclear War, finding Edward Hume to write it and Nicolas Meyer to direct it. How the idea of the movie came to concern the Ronald Reagan administration, that was pushing to increase the U.S. nuclear arsenal because of a perception that the Soviet Union had a bigger one. And how the movie may have convinced Reagan to meet with Soviet General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev to discuss a reduction in nuclear weapons.

Enjoyed:

The Center Seat: 55 Years of Star Trek (2021) - 11 hour long episodes on the history of the Star Trek franchise until the cancellation of Enterprise, this series is a fun filled exploration filled with behind the scenes information frequently answering quesitons fans have always wanted answered.

Sex Before the Internet "Ron Jeremy" (2024) - No mention of ORGAZMO, though.

Susan Smith: Sex Behind Bars (2021) 

Mildly enjoyed:

THE INVISIBLE WOMAN (2013) - Felicity Jones is heart-breakingly lovely in this film version of Clair Tomalin's book about the thirteen year secret love between Nelly Ternan and Charles Dickens. The film is told in flashbacks 13 years after Dickens' death, when Nelly is married to George Wharton Robinson, played by Tom Burke, and they have a son. Her husband likes to brag about how his wife knew Dickens in her youth, which she tries to minimize. Reverend Benham, played by John Kavanagh, visits and is a fellow fan of Dickens. He sees that Nelly has a secret which troubles her. Eventually, in flashback, we see how Nelly met Dickens, played by Ralph Fiennes, as well as his good friend Wilkie Collins, played by Tom Hollander. As the director of the film, Fiennes sets a deliberate pace to the storytelling, and emphasizes the polite control everyone has over their emotions. So, the film is half done before Nelly and Dickens finally come together. Eventually, the memories drive Nelly to speak to the kind Reverend, and he reveals that he knows of her past with Dickens, of which her husband doesn't know. The film ends with Nelly resolving to leave the past behind and to dedicate herself to her husband and son. There is much to enjoy in this film, if you have patience because Fiennes keeps the drama low key. Not surprising, he gets solid performances from a cast including Kristin Scott Thomas, Joanna Scanlan of the 1997 version of Jane Eyre, Michelle Fairley of Game of Thrones, Perdita Weeks of the new version of Magnum P.I. and Amanda Hale of A Discovery of Witches. The script is by Abi Morgan who also wrote the movie THE IRON LADY. Reportedly there is no definitive evidence that Nelly and Dickens were lovers, and some assert that she was actually his illegitimate daughter, but that's not the perspective of this movie.

Did not enjoy:

KINTA 1881, aka FOUR DRAGONS (2007) - Touted as Malaysia's first martial arts action film, KINTA 1881 featured some very fancy camerawork from Jacky Tang under the direction of CL Hor. Even with a complicated flashback structure, this story was a throwback to the old Taiwanese kung fu flicks with poor Chinese laborours being abused by the bosses. However, now the setting was the Tin Mines of 1881 Malaysia and the heroic Chinese didn't kill the bosses in the end. I've only seen the English dubbed U.S. release of this movie. Did the original version feature that annoying "You gotta fight" song? Did the original version also feature all of that C.G.I. blood spurts, or was that added to the U.S. version? In the credits for this film, each of the main actors were listed with their competition titles. No such notation was made for the filmmakers.

PORTNOY'S COMPLAINT (1972) - The genesis of Philip Roth's novel was a satirical monologue he was writing in 1967 to accompany a slide show for inclusion in the avant-garde, risque theatrical revue OH! CALCUTTA!. The monologue never made it into the show, but it became a chapter sold to Partisan Review as "Whacking Off". Reportedly, Roth had writer's block on the novel because his 1963 divorce entitled his ex-wife to half of the royalties. In a 1968 car accident, the ex-wife died and Roth finished the novel. Defined as "Portnoy's Complaint: A disorder in which strongly felt ethical and altruistic impulses perpetually are warring with extreme sexual longings, often of a perverse nature...", Roth's book took the form of a "lust-ridden, mother-addicted young Jewish bachelor"'s session with his psychoanalyst in "intimate, shameful detail, and coarse, abusive language." So, dispite being banned in a variety of countries, PORTNOY'S COMPLAINT was a best seller, even more than Roth's earlier collection GOODBYE, COLUMBUS. For me, confusion occurred because the movie version of GOODBYE, COLUMBUS was the feature film debut of television actor Richard Benjamin. I didn't see it until later, but I did see THE MARRIAGE OF A YOUNG STOCKBROKER with Benjamin, which again dealt with a young man's sexual dissatisfaction. When Benjamin starred in the movie version of PORTNOY'S COMPLAINT, I began to think it was the same movie as GOODBYE, COLUMBUS. I'm not a fan of GOODBYE, COLUMBUS - which made a star of Ali MacGraw, but it is not nearly as irritating as the movie version of PORTNOY. Screenwriter Ernest Lehman was celebrated for NORTH BY NORTHWEST, WEST SIDE STORY, THE SOUND OF MUSIC and HELLO, DOLLY! before he decided to try his hand at directing a movie version of Roth's novel. Did he really think his adaptation was funny? Reportedly the book was, but here a talented cast - including Karen Black, Lee Grant, Jeannie Berlin, Jill Clayburgh and Kevin Conway - are encouraged to be unsympathetically coarse. Few films about always being horny have been so unsexy. Many of the story elements in this project were done better the year before in CARNAL KNOWLEDGE, minus the Jewish mother and background. That Roth intended to have a slide show skit in OH! CALCUTTA! was interesting because CARNAL writer Jules Feiffer also worked on that theatrical production and he included a slide show about a character's sexual history in his movie. However, it was fun to hear John Carradine speak as the eternal judge that sentenced Benjamin to impotence for his mis-deeds - which also echoed the ending to CARNAL KNOWLEDGE.

 

****************************************************************

David Deal Enjoyed:

RING AROUND THE WORLD (66) - See The Eurospy Guide for s complete review of this Richard Harrison entry.

CHARLIE CHAN AT THE OPERA (36)

THE MURDERS CLUB OF BROOKLYN (66) - See the above guide for this Jerry Cotton entry.

NIGHT CREATURES (62)

OLD SHATTERHAND (64)

THE DIRTY GAME (65) - Again with the spies in the above book.

BLAZING MAGNUM (76)

AS IF IT WERE RAINING (63)

KNIGHTS OF THE ROUND TABLE (53)

TALL MAN RIDING (55)

THE FACE OF FU MANCHU (65)

WILD, WILD PLANET (65)

HERCULES VS THE MOLOCH (63)

THE QUILLER MEMORANDUM (66) - Ok, by now you know what book to refer to for this movie.

Mildly Enjoyed

BUT YOU WERE DEAD (66) - When his parents are killed in a car crash, a young man follows his mother's last wish and visits a local old count who has some history with the man's family. While there, he meets Veronique and falls in love. What he doesn't realize is the past is catching up to him in the form of this lovely ghost. An Italian modern Gothic with a confusing story, no star power and a leisurely pace. On the plus side, it has an ethereal quality to it and an interesting modern soundscape while, at odds with the goings on, is a curious element. For those who haven't seen every other Gothic available yet.

****************************************************************

Angel Rivera  Mildly enjoyed:

"YELLOWFACE:ASIAN WHITEWASHING AND RACISM IN HOLLYWOOD!" (2019)
A history of Asian stereotypes in Hollywood films, especially after Pearl Harbor with a number of Caucasian actors wearing makeup to let themselves look more "Asian"; instead of hiring Asian actors to play Asians. The documentary was made by two French female documentarians.

Did not enjoy:

"KINGDOM OF THE PLANET OF THE APES" (2024)
The latest sequel to the rebooted "Planet of the Apes" franchise I found boring. I am a fan of the original "Planet of the Apes" (1968) and never really cared for any of the sequels with the exception of "Escape From the Planet of the Apes" (1971). Of the new series, the remake starring Mark Wahlberg was unnecessary. As John Huston said, "You only remake bad movies!"
"Rise of the Planet of the Apes" (2011) was interesting. Unfortunately the new sequel put me to sleep. With all the makeup effects seen throughout the film, it felt like a National Geographic special.

*****************************************************************

Bertrand van Wonterghem Enjoyed:

Doeorak / Door lock (2018, Kwon Lee)

Geolkapseu / Miss and Mrs cops (2019, Jung Da-won)

Bimireun Eopseo / Frankly speaking – season 1 (2023) – episodes 2 to 4

Obituary – season 1 (2023 / 6 epis)

Gyeongchalsueop / Police university – season 1 (2021) episodes 1 & 2

Mildly enjoyed:

Sirènes (2023, Adeline Picault)

Argylle (2023, Matthew Vaughn)

Apache junction (2021, Justin Lee)

The brothers Sun – season 1 – episode 1

Did not enjoy:

Fung yu seung lau sing / The killer meteors (1976, Lo Wei)

Doctor Who epis “space babies” (2023, Julie Anne Robinson) & “the devil's chord” (2023, Ben Chessell)

Huo xing ren / Mars men (1976, Hung-min Chen)

 *****************************************************************

Charles Gilbert watched:

THE KING'S PIRATE (1967) Doug McClure and Jill  the presence of Torin Thatcher. With Miss America Mary Ann Mobley and Guy Stockwell.

THE MOB (1951) B&W. Upon botching an arrest of a crime lord, L.A. Policeman (Broderick Crawford) publicly and officially is terminated,  but actually gets an undercover assignment in New Orleans. Posing as a dock worker he makes acquaintance with Richard Kiley, who, he learns later is a special federal agent with similar assignment. They trade quips and bullets with underworld figures like Ernest Borgnine and Neville Brand.

TEXAS, ADIOS (1966) Franco Nero plays Texas sheriff Burt Sullivan whose younger brother Alberto del Aqua accompanies him to Mexico in search of their father's murderer. That happened when they were lads (flashback). Turns out the killer is the younger boy's father, the infamous Cisco Delgado (Jose Suarez), an unscrupulous but prominent landowner. He's also made enemies with local revolutionaries lead by Luigi Pistilli with Livio Lorenzon.

Hawaiian Eye  1963 television "Two Too Many"  S4E16. B&W. William Leslie guest stars as a building developer being framed for marital infidelity. Surprising how many scenes include Robert Conrad lighting up a cigarette.

****************************************************************