To answer these trivia questions, please email me at scinema@earthlink.net.
Brain Teasers:
What Mexican actor went from playing a fictional Mexican revolutionary general in an Italian film to portraying Emiliano Zapata's brother in a Mexican film?
Jaime Fernandez.
Which Italian actor, who never made an Italian Western, appeared in a Mexican film about the Revolution?
No one has answered this question yet.
Which French actor who appeared in Italian Westerns has a small role in the first feature film directed by a former writer for Cahiers du Cinema?
Bertrand Van Wonterghem knew that it was Jean Martin.
Which French actress who appeared in an Italian Western also appeared in a film directed by Vittorio De Sica based on a play by Jean-Paul Sartre?
Kurt Von Holfmanstein and Bertrand Van Wonterghem knew that it was Françoise Prévost
Which American body builder used to be a room mate to Steve Reeves before either of them started making movies in Italy?
No one has answered this question yet.
Which American body builder used to live with Gordon Mitchell when he first arrived in Rome?
Tom Betts and Bertrand Van Wonterghem knew that it is Dan Vadis.
By what name is Isabel Apolonia Garcia Hernandez better known?
Tom Betts and Bertrand Van Wonterghem knew that it is Chelo Alonso.
And now for some new brain teasers:
On what film was director Vittorio Cottafavi reportedly replaced by Carlo Ludovico Bragaglia?
On what film did director Sergio Corbucci say that he started production before being replaced by Antonio Margheriti?
On what film directed by Sergio Leone did Antonio Margheriti work?
Name the movies from which these images came.
Bertrand Van Wonterghem and Rick Garibaldi identified last week's frame grab of Frank Brana, ?, Craig Hill, Jose Manuel Martin and George Martin in 15 FORCHE PER UN ASSASSINO, aka 15 SCAFFOLDS FOR A KILLER, aka THE DIRTY FIFTEEN.
Above is a new photo.
Can you name from what movie it came?
Bertrand Van Wonterghem identified last week's photo of Ettore Manni, Rafael Luis Calvo and ? in LA RIVOLTA DEI GLADIATORI, aka THE WARRIOR AND THE SLAVE GIRL.
Above is a new photo.
Can you name from what movie it came?
Bertrand Van Wonterghem identified last week's photo of Gian Maria Volonte in BANDITI A MILANO, aka THE VIOLENT FOUR.
Above is a new photo.
Can you name from what movie it came?
No one identified that above photo yet.
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:
Highly enjoyed:
ANNIE HALL (1977) - Woody Allen had been quoted as saying that he preferred LOVE AND DEATH over ANNIE HALL, but that may have been because LOVE AND DEATH, in its final form, was close to what he envisioned from the beginning. ANNIE HALL started out as a stream-of-consciousness film to be called ANHEDONIA, about a man unable to experience pleasure. It wasn't until Ralph Rosenblum joined writers Allen and Marshall Brickman in reworking the material that this realistic comedy became a bittersweet romantic film. "The movie opened and soon became everyone's favorite. People were in love with it. This instantly made an old cynic like me suspect of its quality." Part of this film's appeal was that it was a moving experience. Part of the problem which resulted from this film's popularity was that audience read it as autobiographical. Allen filled so much of the film with elements similar to his life, that people thought it was his life and every time he tried to dissuade viewers from believing the illusion, it caused public confusion. It didn't help that he used an old clip of Dick Cavett interviewing Woody Allen. Now, this film can be enjoyed just for a game of "spot the stars. In addition to lead roles filled by Allen, Diane Keaton and Tony Roberts, there are supporting roles by Carol Kane, Paul Simon, Janet Margolin (from TAKE THE MONEY AND RUN), Shelley Duvall, Christopher Walken, Lauri Bird and Colleen Dewhurst, with "walk-ons" by Truman Capote, Beverly D'Angelo, Jeff Goldblum, Marshall McLuhan, John Glover, Shelley Hack, Sigourney Weaver (who is too far away from the camera to be recognizable), Walter Bernstein (from THE FRONT) and Gary Muledeer (whom I had recently seen live as part of the The Muledeer & Moondog Show). Gordon Willis had become one of my favorite cinematographers because of his work on LITTLE MURDERS and KLUTE. I was thrilled when he became Big Stuff on movies like THE GODFATHER, THE PARALLAX VIEW and ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN. I was even more thrilled when he teamed with Allen for eight movies.
Enjoyed:
MANHATTAN (1979) - While making INTERIORS, Allen told D.P. Gordon Willis that he wanted to make a black & white widescreen movie in which New York City became a character like in the movies with which he grew up. And he wanted the music of George Gershwin to heighten the beauty of the city. Well, he pulled that off, and back with Marshall Brickman as a writing collaborator, he came up with a rather conventional "serious comedy", minus the fragmented style that made ANNIE HALL so exceptional. MANHATTAN was the first Allen film I didn't see in a theater. Having felt burned by INTERIORS, I didn't feel the need to see Allen's new film, but finally caught it on Pay-TV. Instead of seeming inspired by Ingmar Bergman, MANHATTAN reminds one of Jean-Luc Godard with couples continuing to talk to each other while walking off-camera in long takes. As usual, many felt that Allen's movie was autobiographical, even though he plays a father whose wife left him for another woman and wrote a book about their divorce. As Ralph Rosenblum had retired as a film editor, his former assistant Susan E. Morse stepped in to become another long time Allen collaborator. Michael Murphy (from THE FRONT), Diane Keaton, Meryl Streep, Michael O'Donoghue (from Saturday Night Live), Wallace Shawn (in his film debut), Tisa Farrow, Bella Abzug and Anne Byrne were among the on-screen collaborators. Karen Allen and Frances Conroy also appear, but not so that you could recognize them.
STARDUST MEMORIES (1980) - Having regained an audience with MANHATTAN, Woody Allen seemed to want to return to the idea of ANHEDONIA and once again attempt a stream-of-consciousness film. This time the film is in black and white and more closely modeled on director Federico Fellini's 8 1/2. When this first opened, many critics felt that the film was a slap in the face to Allen's fans and they were offended. Again many felt that the film was autobiographical. The bad reviews kept me from seeing it theatrically, but when I did see it I was completely captivated by the unnerving scenes with Charlotte Rampling. This was effective drama and, unlike INTERIORS, Allen wasn't adverse to spiking the drama with some humor. The apartment's blown up wallpaper of horrific news events again brought to mind Jean-Luc Godard as well as the extended closeups of Rampling, Marie-Christine Barrault and Jessica Harper, who returned from LOVE AND DEATH. Tony Roberts appears to be playing the same character he had in ANNIE HALL, though this time he's with Playboy Playmate Candy Loving. Joan Neuman, who played Allen's mother in ANNIE HALL, returns as pretty much the same character here. Sharon Stone made her film debut here, while Christina Engelhardt - who recently announced she had written a memoir about the affair she was having with Allen at this time - was an extra. Louise Lasser appeared without credit as Allen's secretary, while Laraine Newman also appeared without credit. John Doumanian, who was an agent for Allen's jazz band and had bits in ANNIE HALL and MANHATTAN, put in an appearance. While there was no mistaking Daniel Stern in his role, Cindy Gibb was credited as Young Girl Fan, but you can't make her out. Nor can you identify Brent Spiner, but film critic Judith Crist even had lines.
A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S SEX COMEDY (1982) - During the long preproduction process to make ZELIG, Woody Allen wrote what at one point was intended to be a serious drama, in the style of Anton Chekhov, about a man haunted by a missed romantic opportunity . As he was writing, Allen saw that the material would work better as a comedy and he became convinced that he could make both films at the same time. Obviously inspired, in part, by William Shakespeare with talk of spirits in the forest and romantic confusion, Allen ended up with something more like Ingmar Bergman's SMILES OF A SUMMER NIGHT. Oddly, though, Bergman's film was more humorous. "A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S SEX COMEDY did turn out very beautiful and magical, and nobody liked it or came to see it," wrote Allen in his autobiography. Having my interest in Allen's work revived by seeing MANHATTAN on Pay-TV, I went to see MIDSUMMER in the newly opened theaters at the Beverly Center. After so many films in which Allen reiterated his dislike of being in the country, his making a movie about the how magical the country was seemed unnatural, and the introduction of a supernatural element was irritating. I was never enchanted by Mia Farrow, which made director Jack Clayton's THE GREAT GATSBY uninvolving, so having her being the object of every man's desire in this film didn't work for me either. Plus, so much of her dialogue sounded like it should be coming out of Diane Keaton's mouth, which was also true of Mary Steenburgen's character. Tony Roberts seemed to be playing the same character from ANNIE HALL again. Only José Ferrer and Julie Hagerty brought in fresh performances. Rewatching the film now, the past disappointments didn't seem so bad, and Gordon Willis delivered beautiful pictures. Having used Sergei Prokofiev for LOVE AND DEATH and George Gershwin for MANHATTAN, it seemed obvious that Allen would use Felix Mendelssohn' A Midsummer Night's Dream for this film. In 1978, the corporate owners of United Artists, Transamerica, decided to shake up the studio, so UA studio heads, Arthur B. Krim, Eric Pleskow and Robert S. Benjamin quit. With assistance from Warner Bros., the former UA executives set up Orion Pictures. Loyal to the UA executives who had given him creative control over his career, Allen followed them to Orion. In 1982, Orion severed their connection to Warner Bros. and purchased Filmways, a company that had once been American International Pictures. Allen continued to work for Orion until 1997 when the company was sold to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, who had acquired United Artists in 1980. So, when DVD became an home entertainment standard, MGM/UA now owned all of the Woody Allen films made for Orion and United Artists.
ZELIG (1983) - Woody Allen didn't mention much about ZELIG in his autobiography, because once the subject of Mia Farrow occurred, their personal life overpowered observations about his movie career. Returning to his idea about a faux documentary like TAKE THE MONEY AND RUN, Allen consulted with many technicians on how to do an authentic looking faux documentary including 1920s America as well as 1930s Germany. Mia Farrow was perfect as the younger version of the character she shared with Ellen Garrison, while her sister Stephanie Farrow played the younger version of the character she shared with Elizabeth Rothschild. The impressive technical achievement of integrating Woody Allen into vintage newsreels and recreations lost some of its novelty about halfway through the film, but then plot developments reinvigorated the film and brought it to a satisfying conclusion. After MIDSUMMER marked the first Woody Allen film to not mention masturbation, the subject was brought up again here, in one of the few scenes during which we actually hear Allen's voice. Flavoring the faux documentary were more contemporary comments by Susan Sontag, Irving Howe, Saul Bellow, Bricktop, Dr. Bruno Bettelheim and Professor John Morton Blum. Aside from Farrow, the only cast member who appeared in a previous Allen film was John Doumanian.
BROADWAY DANNY ROSE (1984) - Charles H. Joffe and Jack Rollins were Woody Allen's personal managers since 1957, so I'm certain this loving tribute to personal managers was partly inspired by them. But Joffe and Rollins were big time managers. BROADWAY DANNY ROSE was about a small time manager, and his story was told by a group of comics having lunch at the Carnegie Deli - Sandy Baron, Corbett Monica, Jackie Gayle, Morty Gunty, Will Jordan, Jack Rollins and Howard Storm. When singer Nick Apollo Forte got the opportunity to perform infront of Milton Berle and possibly get on a TV special, Allen was assigned to get Forte's girlfriend, Mia Farrow, to the show. Unfortunately, mobster Edwin Bordo thinks that Allen was Farrow's new boyfriend and brothers Paul Greco (of THE WARRIORS) and Frank Renzulli set out to kill him. Mia Farrow gave a tremendous performance, unlike anything she previously had done. While few of the performers who previously worked with Allen were in this film, many real showbiz types popped up playing themselves, including Joe Franklin, Howard Cosell (from BANANAS), John Doumanian (from ANNIE HALL) as well as Sammy Davis Jr. and Ricky Schroder captured on a float in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade. Danny Aiello (from THE FRONT) made an appearance. Again with photography by Gordon Willis, BROADWAY DANNY ROSE included a replay of Allen running on a New York City sidewalk to a much different result from MANHATTAN. though to a similar emotional effect. While not a faux documentary like ZELIG, DANNY ROSE was another Allen film featuring narrated storytelling. Production designer Mel Bourne began working with Allen on INTERIORS in 1978. DANNY ROSE was their last collaboration.
THE PURPLE ROSE OF CAIRO (1985) - Buster Keaton's 1924 film SHERLOCK JR. used the idea of people jumping into movies on the screen for a series of visual gags. Woody Allen used the idea of a character leaving a movie on the screen to experience life in reality as a meditation on a viewers escaping reality by watching movies. Allen had shown a predilection for bittersweet endings in his previous movies. Here he goes for a heartbreakingly sad ending without any suggestion of hope for his main character.This was Jeff Daniels first starring role (after replacing Michael Keaton who had shot for 10 days) and he was wonderful in it, as was Mia Farrow, giving a completely different performance from what she delivered in the previous two Allen films. Danny Ailello got a large role and was effectively hateful. Irving Metzman from STARDUST MEMORIES returns, as did Stephanie Farrow from ZELIG - in her last screen appearance. Other returnees included: from BROADWAY DANNY ROSE David Kieserman, Peter Castellotti, Camille Saviola and Edwin Bordo; from STARDUST MEMORIES Victoria Zussin, Wade Barnes, Helen Hanft, Ken Chapin, Benjamin Rayson, Martha Sherrill; from ANNIE HALL Rick Petrucelli and Loretta Tupper; from ZELIG Deborah Rush, Peter McRobbie, George Hamlin and John Rothman and from MANHATTAN Raymond Serra. This was Dianne Wiest's first film for Woody Allen, but not her last. Among the cast for whom this was their only appearance in an Allen film were Edward Hermann and Glenne Headly. Reportedly Viggo Mortensen had a small role in this film that ended up not being use. Howcome there was a special thank you to Fred Astaire, probably for permission to use the clip from TOP HAT, but not to Ginger Rogers?
HANNAH AND HER SISTERS (1986) - Even though Woody Allen had shown an interest in the dynamics of the relationships between sisters in INTERIORS, it is hard not to see the influence of Mia Farrow on HANNAH AND HER SISTERS. Never before has Allen portrayed the dynamics of an extended family and the emotional effects of having children. Four of her children appear in this film, Soon-Yi Previn, Fletcher Previn, Daisy Previn and Moses Farrow. Allen would later adopt Moses and another child Dylan in 1991 - after Mia gave birth to Satchel, aka Ronan, in 1987 - and in 2014 Moses would defend Allen against charges made by Mia of Allen molesting Dylan. There are two shocking elements in HANNAH - one is that Hannah has a black maid (the only black character in the film) and hearing Michael Caine sounding like Woody Allen during his voice over at the beginning of the film. Reportedly Allen wanted Jack Nicholson for the role, but when PRIZZI'S HONOR got the go-ahead, he lost Nicholson to Nicholson's girlfriend's father. In his autobiography, Allen notes that Nicholson got the Best Actor Oscar for PRIZZI, while Caine got the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for HANNAH. And Dianne Wiest got the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her second appearance in a Woody Allen film. With this film, Allen is back in MANHATTAN territory, though this time in color with cameraman Carlo Di Palma, who was best known for his work with director Michelangelo Antonioni. Why Allen and Gordon Willis ended their collaboration is unknown. Allen differentiates HANNAH from his other films by tossing in chapter titles, and by having different characters do voice overs at the beginnings of the chapters. Sometimes, we hear their thoughts in voice overs as well. Some say that A MIDSUMMER SEX COMEDY was Allen's first ensemble film, and HANNAH is definitely an ensemble piece giving importance to alot of different characters. Influence has been noted to Ingmar Bergman's FANNY AND ALEXANDER, Luchino Visconti's ROCCO AND HIS BROTHERS, Anton Chekhov's THREE SISTERS and Leo Tolstoy's ANNA KARENINA. Again Juliet Taylor assembles a remarkable cast, including many repeaters like Tony Roberts, Daniel Stern, John Doumanian and Sam Waterston. Among the notable newcomers are the band The 39 Steps (we also see a theater marquee for Hitchcock's THE SECRET AGENT and SABOTAGE), Bobby Short, Richard Jenkins, John Turturro, J.T. Walsh, Julie Kavner, Julie Louis-Dreyfus, Lewis Black, Max von Sydow, Lloyd Nolan (in his last film role), Mia's mother Maureen O'Sullivan, Carrie Fisher and Barbara Hershey (who had turned down a role in ANNIE HALL).
RADIO DAYS (1987) - Woody Allen could not get away with saying this film wasn't autobiographical, since he narrates it as himself, though his young surrogate played by Seth Green is called Joe and doesn't wear glasses. Perhaps inspired by director Federico Fellini's AMARCORD, Allen's film features an exaggerated version of his childhood, while Julie Kavner and Michael Tucker present the most sympathetic version of his parents so far delivered. Frequently hilarious, it is not surprising that it is also warm as it is a nostalgic look at the 1940s. These ensemble casts feature alot of recognizable faces. Some are repeaters like Paul Herman (whose face you don't see), Martin Rosenblatt, Helen Miller, Wallace Shawn, Renee Lippin, Hy Anzell, Dianne Wiest, Mia Farrow, Dimitri Vassilopoulos, Belle Berger, Crystal Field, Maurice Shrog, Danny Aiello, Peter Castellotti, Gina DeAngeles, radio announcer Dwight Weist, Jeff Daniels, Kuno Sponholz, Sydney Blake, Kitty Carlisle Hart, Ira Wheeler, Edward S. Kotkin, Jaqui Safra (who would go on to become a producer for Woody Allen), Tony Roberts, Ivan Kronenfeld, Artie Butler, Jackson Beck, Wendell Craig, Norman Rose, Ruth Rugoff, Fred Melamed and George Maniere. Among the new faces are William H. Macy, Mercedes Ruehl, Robert Joy, Larry David, Todd Field, Tito Puente, Kenneth Mars, Rebecca Schaeffer and Josh Mostel. Fletcher Farrow Previn is the only child of Mia Farrow to appear in this film. Diane Keaton makes a suprise appearance as a singer celebrating New Years which echos her song in ANNIE HALL.
SEPTEMBER (1987) - To a degree, this movie feels like Woody Allen taking another pass at making INTERIORS, but without the cliche of the woman in red breathing new life into a young woman who is dead inside. It also looks like he was influenced by Ingmar Bergman's AUTUMN SONATA with its story of a daughter finally revealling a secret to her estranged mother. Probably inspired by the Cheryl Crane/Lana Turner/Johnny Stompanato story, Allen endorses the idea that the mother actually killed the gangster with the daughter taking the blame on the lawyer's advice. Bringing back Sam Waterston reinforces the connection to INTERIORS. Set entirely inside an house in Vermont, SEPTEMBER unspools like a play on film, with some feeling that it is modeled on UNCLE VANYA by Anton Chekhov with everyone talking about going to New York City instead of Moscow. Denholm Elliot is in love with Mia Farrow, who is recovering in the country from a suicide attempt. Farrow is in love with her tenant Waterston, but Waterston is in love with Farrow's married best friend Dianne Wiest. Farrow's mother, Elaine Stritch, and her new husband, Jack Warden are visiting and may disrupt Farrow's plans to sell the house and her hopes to move to New York City with Waterston. As a physicist, Warden gets a new version of Allen's speech in ANNIE HALL about nothing means nothing because at some point even the Universe won't exist anymore. At least, there is no mention of masturbation. Allen handles the material sensitively and doesn't let it fall into melodrama, which Bergman's film did. While some may feel the movie fails to build to a cathartic climax, the cast is excellent in playing the small moments. Reportedly, this movie started production with Christopher Walken in Waterston's role, but he was replaced by Sam Shepard. Also in that version Farrow's real mother Maureen O'Sullivan played the mother and Charles Durning played the older man in love with Farrow. In a way, the film plays like a commercial for an Art Tatum and Ben Webster LP.
ANOTHER WOMAN (1988) - Philosophy professor Gene Rowlands sublets an apartment inorder to have a quiet place to write her new book. It turns out that she is able to hear therapy sessions in the next apartment through the ventilation system. She covers up the vent with pillows, but later a pillow falls down and she overhears Mia Farrow talking about how unhappy she is. What she overhears triggers a series of flashbacks and eventually a dream sequence which helps her to realize that she is unhappy and needs to change her life. None of this is particularly exciting, and it certainly isn't funny, but the cast assembled to play this drama makes the material work. Reportedly Farrow was to play the lead role, but she became pregnant with Allen's child (unless you believe her comment that it was Frank Sinatra's), so Rowlands was brought aboard and I can't imagine this movie being nearly as interesting with anyone else. Few in the cast are repeaters, which helps to account for this not seeming like a Woody Allen film - aside from comments about masturbation and the meaninglessness of existence. The concept of David Ogden Stiers playing the younger version of John Houseman is fun, as is the idea that Martha Plimpton is Betty Buckley's daughter with Ian Holm. You've got Gene Hackman as a man hopelessly in love with Rowlands, Sandy Dennis as an old friend who thinks that Rowlands is a caculating bitch and Harris Yulin as Rowland's estranged brother who plans to divorce Frances Conroy. We have to mention Blythe Danner as the woman with whom Rowlands' husband is cheating. Another narrated film, ANOTHER WOMAN seems to owe alot to the films of Ingmar Bergman, and getting Sven Nykvist as the director of photography seems to be evidence it is so. Like AUTUMN SONATA, our heroine regrets having had an abortion, but at least no therapist peals a patient's face off as in FACE TO FACE. Why Allen stopped working with cinematographer Carlo DePalma, is an unanswered question as is why he stopped working with Gordon Willis. Just as Allen skillfully used the music of Prokofiev in LOVE AND DEATH, here he makes good use of Gymnopédies by Erik Satie. Some see another Allen portrait of a troubled woman as reflecting his then relationship with Mia Farrow.
Churchill and the Movie Mogul (2019) - A documentary on the relationship between film producer Alexander Korda and prime minister Winston Churchill, this film reminds us of what an asshole Charles Lindberg was.
Mildly enjoyed:
INTERIORS (1978) - After ANNIE HALL became such a popular success, but was not the film that Woody Allen wanted it to be, Allen seemed adamant to make a film that would be the kind of movie that he would respect. So, against the advice of his closest collaborators, but with the okay of his backers who felt he deserved to do what he wanted, Allen made this non-comedy. As a big admirer of Tennesse Williams, Anton Chekhov and Ingmar Bergman, Allen brought together elements of what he most loved in their work, not realizing that what he pulled together was a catalog of their worst bits. When this film first came out, I sat in a theater totally miserable from the pallid color experience. Then when Maureen Stapleton came in as a force of life wearing red, I started laughing. How could Allen not recognize this as such a blatant cliche. As the cast for this film was listed alphabetically, Kristin Griffith got first billing, which was ironic because her role was so thinly written and got the shortest screen time. INTERIORS was a movie about eight people we didn't care about, with the kind of neuroses Allen used for comic effect in his earlier movies. How were we supposed to care about Mary Beth Hurt feeling that she was failing to live the creative life that everyone expected of her? How were we supposed to care that Richard Jordan didn't feel that his novels were as good as wife Diane Keaton said they were? Geraldine Page was so miserable throughout the movie, why should we be sad that she finally succeeded in killing herself on the morning after ex-husband E.G. Marshall remarried? Rewatching this did allow the viewer the pleasure of Gordon Willis' photography including some gorgeous close ups of Mary Beth Hurt. One just wished that they were in the service of a project that wasn't so shallowly taking itself so seriously. It was odd that this people think of this film as a big commercial and critical flop. It got comes great reviews and a number of Oscar nominations. "In an essay, film critic Richard Schickel once suggested the popular audience left Allen, but the director disagreed. 'I left my audience is really what happened, they didn't leave me.'" This was the final Allen film edited by Ralph Rosenblum.
The Flight Attendant (2020) - Kaley Cuoco gets to do some big acting in this 8 episode mini-series for HBO Max. Zosia Mamet and Rosie Perez give good support.
Did not enjoy:
THE HAUNTING OF HELENA, aka FAIRY TALE (2012) - Were you aware that there is an Italian film company called "One More Pictures"? They seem to have made a number of Horror films in English and if any of the others are as irritating as this one, I hope to never see them. The real interest I have in this film is whether the Sofia Coppola who is listed in the very long "thank you" section is the daughter of Francis, and if yes then what is her relationship to Lucrezia Coppola, also in the "thank you" section. Also, why did respected director Giuliano Montaldo agree to play a small role as a doctor in this? Did he owe directors Christian Bisceglia and Ascanio Malgarini a favor? Leaving her husband Jarreth J. Merz, Harriet MacMasters-Green moves into an apartment with daughter Sabrina Jolie Perez who is concerned that she is losing a baby tooth. Green tells her about putting the tooth under her pillow so that the tooth fairy will exchange it for money. Soon Perez is buying teeth from other kids at school, and Green discovers that her apartment was where a man pulled out all of his wife's teeth and locked her in a closet to die. Figuring that the dead woman is haunting them because she needs her teeth back, Green finds them and throws them in the closet. Then she finds out that the man pulled out his wife's teeth because she was an ogre who was eating children. The movie ends with Green in a catatonic state having seen her daughter all chewed up. This is one of those movies where the filmmakers depend on the music, by Michele Josia, to try and make everything scary.
HONEYMOON HOTEL (1964) - I remember seeing this in a theater when it first came out. Well, I remember the title but nothing about the movie, so when it came on TCM I thought I'd give it a look see. Yeech. Take three stars from Broadway musicals - Robert Goulet, Nancy Kwan and Robert Morse - and stick them in a corny sex farce and add Jill St. John for spice. At least Kwan got to do a sexy sort-of ballet. Anne Helm, Elsa Lanchester and Keenan Wynn are wasted in this Pando S. Berman non-musical directed by Henry Levin. Some find it interesting that the film features an interracial romance, but such an idea would have never occurred to me. Nancy Kwan was above racial issues, until she started doing those TV commercials for Pearl Cream.
Resistance (2014) - This six part TV mini-series from France which is airing on some PBS stations, is well produced and features worth-while subject matter, but it didn't inspire me to watch it from moment to moment. When I hit the fast-forward button, the show falls into the "did not enjoy" category. Based on real stories from the French resistance to Nazi occupation, the main perspective is of the young students who risked and/or lost their lives. Pauline Burlet holds your attention and I look forward to seeing her in other productions.
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Charles Gilbert watched:
CASINO ROYALE (1967) Cropped, inverted, and Polish voice over, I watched just to see the Frankenstein monster, which can be seen briefly at 1:40:00. I agree the makeup is a tribute to Universal rather than Hammer. Reminds me of the farcical HELLZAPOPPIN (1941) cameo with Dale Van Sickel as the monster.
Climax! CASINO ROYALE (1954) B&W. Television presentation with an American James Bond referred to frequently as 'Jimmy'. Barry Nelson as Bond spends most of the time gambling with Le Chiffre (Peter Lorre) who loses and then attempts to regain the money by torturing Bond and Vanessa (Linda Christian). Michael Pate steals the scenes as Clarence Leiter Bond's ally.
'Edge of Reality' video clip adapted from LIVE A LITTLE, LOVE A LITTLE as a proposed Bond movie opening sequence. My favorite Elvis song. YouTube SUNtoRCA.
BATTLE BENEATH THE EARTH (1967) Chinese extremists (played by Caucasians in oriental makeup) are tunneling close to the western U. S. coast and planting nuclear bombs. Army commander Kerwin Mathews leads the resistance underground. Cast includes Al Mulock.
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David Deal enjoyed:
THE KILLER LIKES CANDY (68) - See The Eurospy Guide book for a complete review of this fun entry with Kerwin Mathews.
NEFERTITI, QUEEN OF THE NILE (64)
8 1/2 (63)
BLOOD ON THE MOON (48)
THE FALCON STRIKES BACK (43)
KISS OF THE VAMPIRE (62)
Mildly enjoyed:
THE CURSE OF THE AZTEC MUMMY (57) - A mad scientist wants some ancient Aztec relics that a reanimated mummy would prefer to keep. Second of the Aztec mummy trio of films acquired by K. Gordon Murray for distribution in the US. This has some fun elements but they are not handled particularly well.
THE ROBOT VS. THE AZTEC MUMMY A mad scientist still wants some ancient Aztec relics that a reanimated mummy would prefer to keep, so he builds a "human robot" to help him. Last of the Aztec mummy trio of films. The first half of this hour-long entry is a rehash of the previous films. All in all, more entertaining than its predecessor.
ALTERNATIVE 3 (77) - Hour long British hoax TV documentary about brain drain, Russians, and aliens bothered some folks upon its original air date. Amusing time capsule.
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Bertrand Van Wonterghem Highly enjoyed:
Sad Hill unearthed (doc) (2017 , Guillermo de Oliveira)
Enjoyed:
Wind river (2016, Taylor Sheridan)
Sonate à Bruxelles (short) (1955 or 1959 ??, Emile Degelin)
Porco rosso (1992, Hayao Miyazaki)
L’arciere di fuoco (1971, Giorgio Ferroni)
Kuroshitsuji / Black butler (anime) – season 1 (2008) – episodes 1 to 3
Ultraman (anime) - season 1 (2018) - episodes 4 & 5
Uchu kara no messeji: Ginga taisen / San Ku Kaï (1979) – season 1 – episodes 10 & 11
Taeksi woonjunsa / A taxi driver (2017, Hun Jang)
Ultraman (anime, 2019) episodes 6 to 13
Sweedish dicks – season episodes 1 to 3
Psychokinesis (2018, Yeon Sang-ho)
Mildly enjoyed:
Sergio Leone, une Amérique de légende (doc) (2018, Jean-François Gauthier)
La prima notte di quiete (1972, Valerio Zurlini)
Ildan Ddeugeobge Chungsohara / Clean with passion for now – season 1 – episodes 9 & 10
Paranoid (2016, Mark Tonderai, Kenneth Gleenan & John Duthie) episodes 1 to 8
Tarzan’s hidden jungle (1955, Harold D. Schuster)
Dirk Gently – season 1 – episode 1
le secret (1974, Robert Enrico)
Did not enjoy:
The adventurers (2017, Stephen Fung)
La confrérie des larmes (2013, Jean-Baptiste Andrea)
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