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(More customer reviews)Jean Paul-Belmondo stars as an incompetant stuntman who's madly in love with his stuntlady co-worker(Raquel Welch).It's a nice slapstick comedy!!
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Showing posts with label 1960s. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 1960s. Show all posts
Stuntwoman Review
Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)Jean Paul-Belmondo stars as an incompetant stuntman who's madly in love with his stuntlady co-worker(Raquel Welch).It's a nice slapstick comedy!!
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Adam at 6 a.m. (1970) Review
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(More customer reviews)Although I can answer the question of what movie they watched at the drive-in ("The Reivers"-1969), there is no obvious explanation for the "Adam at 6A.M" title. Adam (played by Michael Douglas) does not do anything special at 6AM- maybe the title just symbolizes his impulsiveness, since 6AM could be considered the waking hour of each new day. Anyway, Adam is a newly minted linguistics professor at a California college. He comes from a wealthy California family (his father is a relatively famous musician turned house builder) with roots in small-town western Missouri. Adam has just received his PhD and an appointment as an assistant professor. Summer break has begun and it gives him an opportunity at age 30 to stand back and take a look at where he is and where he is going. He doesn't particularly like what he sees and upon learning of a distant aunt's death in Missouri he impulsively drives there for her funeral, in his Porsche 911 (if it was a Porsche 6AM it would at least explain the title).
Given its 1970 release, this film unsuccessully attempted to cash in on the box-office success of The Graduate and Easy Rider. While there are related themes it is considerably less imaginative and much more conventional in tone and production technique.
As the vaguely disgusted Adam drives east into the unknown his energy level increases with his forward motion. The awkward and uncomfortable moments at the funeral and the reception are the most authentic scenes in the film. A highlight is a discussion of the movie "Blow-up" with a disgusted relative who went to the film thinking from its title that it was a war picture.
Adam is about to move on when he is introduced to Jerri Jo (Lee Purcell). They go to a drive-in movie (see The Reivers comment above) and soon fall in love. Unfortunately the Douglas/Purcell romantic scenes are weak and only the hormonal aspect of their relationship is believable. Douglas decides to spend the summer in Missouri and gets a job clearing brush for the local power company. The work crew certainly looks authentic; since they only have a couple lines of dialogue they may have actually been some local hicks.
He thrives in his new job and sincerely enjoys the change of pace and the lack of complications. He becomes friends with Joe Don Baker (apparently the only other professional actor on the crew) and sees how his marriage and kids keep him trapped in a going nowhere life. For some reason this depressing situation inspires him to propose to Jerri Jo, who has a very different idea of what their marriage will be like. There was a little foreshadowing about this back when Adam was explaining his academic specialty (semantics) to one of his relatives; he cited the communication problems that occur between two people when they have different meanings for the same word. Adam's idea of marriage is traveling around together having adventures. Jerri Jo's idea of marriage is setting up house in her hometown with her husband teaching semantics at the local college.
It slowly dawns on Adam that he and his prospective bride do not share the same vision of marriage. This is done through a wonderful semi-montage sequence of engagement party decorations, father-in-law dressed in an apron, hair curlers, laughing relative, domestic discussions with Jerri Jo's girlfriends, and the ice cream fetching errand. Adam leaves the party and drives to the A&P for ice cream. You suspect that he is going to bail out on the whole Missouri thing so having him actually buy the ice cream was a stroke of genius. He could have just left town immediately but this builds suspense, puts a more positive slant on his decision to leave (i.e. it is not just an impulsive irresponsible act-he gives it careful consideration), and it provides a prop for a great final image.
What Adam is saying is that he does not want to be like most people, he does not want to construct a small world for himself where he can keep everything orderly. He does not know exactly what he wants but he does know for certain that he does not want the average. Although this is a low budget production with some major flaws, it is a very solid effort. The theme is compelling, the score communicates as much as the dialogue, Douglas and Baker do a good job, and Purcell is very pretty.
Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.
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The Liberace Show (2004) Review
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(More customer reviews)"The Liberace Show" features about 15 selections from the early Liberace TV shows of the 50s. It's a somewhat different collection in that the majority are vocals, which Liberace phased out in his later performances. They are vintage Liberace, though--full of his special brand of corn mixed with music. There's also his guest appearance on the Jack Benny (TV)Show, where they perform together. Although he's in black & white, with only two rings, this is a worthy addition to any collection. Hopefully, it might inspire Warner Bros. to release "Sincerely Yours" on DVD, and also his "Live" appearance with the London Philharmonic & TV specials which are available on VHS (3 tape set).
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Stub: The Best Cowdog in the West Review
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(More customer reviews)This was a sweet old early TV show--and funny in parts because of the endearing Slim Pickens. I loved seeing these early Australian Shepherds. Two of my Aussies go back to Sisler's Shorty, who appears in the film. Aussie lovers everywhere need a copy of this to appreciate where the breed came from and how they do the job they were bred for.
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Wild in the Streets/Gas-s-s-s (1968) Review
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(More customer reviews)Ever conscious of cashing in on whatever trend might have been fashionable at the time, American International Pictures (AIP) focused their sights on the ever-growing youth movement of the mid to late 60s with this frightening (if you were over 60) tale of youthful revolution in Wild in the Streets (1968). Directed by Barry Shear, whose primary credits include TV shows like "The Man from U.N.C.L.E.", "Ironside", and "Hawaii Five-O", to name a few, the film stars Christopher Jones (The Looking Glass War), an actor once thought by many to be perhaps the next James Dean or Marlon Brando, but whose fortunes and star potential faded due to, what some speculate, the strain of having to live up to the expectations beyond his grasp...oh yeah, that and the all the drugs, as highlighted in `Christopher Jones: The E! True Hollywood Story'...also appearing is Oscar winner Shelley Winters (The Diary of Anne Frank, The Night of the Hunter, Lolita), Diane Varsi (I Never Promised You a Rose Garden), Hal Holbrook (Creepshow), Millie Perkins (The Diary of Anne Frank), Ed Begley (12 Angry Men), Bert Freed (Nevada Smith), and Richard Pryor (Silver Streak, Stir Crazy).
As the story begins, we witness an intelligent and precocious boy named Max Flatow (played by Barry Williams, better know as the character Greg Brady, from The Brady Bunch), Jr. grow into a disillusioned young adult who decides to leave home, severing his family ties, and make it own his own (given his mother, played by Winters, I didn't blame him). By the age of 22 we learn he's not only changed his name to Max Frost, but that he's also become a famous recording star, and with the help of his entourage (none over the age of 25), become the head of a multi-million dollar empire. Max is so popular he's courted by congressman Johnny Fergus (Halbrook) to assist him in his senatorial bid by playing at a rally and throwing a good word Fergus' way, hoping, I guess, to rock the vote, or some such thing...Max agrees, but the performance leads to pressure in the form of massive `sit ins' to force Fergus to introduce legislation that would lower the voting age to 15 (the `Establishment' balks but their power quickly fades). Fergus acquiesces (dreams of political power swirling in his mind), and the voting age lowered, and Fergus wins his senate seat, but he has unwittingly opened Pandora's box as soon the once disenfranchised youthful population, who can now vote, begin electing their own candidates (Max eventually takes the presidency) and pushing their own hedonistic agendas towards a groovy future where adults are forced to retire by 30 (hey, that doesn't sound so bad) and then shuffled off to `Mercy Camps' where they are plied with LSD treatments, or `therapy', to keep them on a permanent acid trip (okay, that doesn't sound too appealing). The revolution has begun...and the kids aren't all right...
I enjoyed this movie, although for the first 20 minutes or so I wasn't sure where it was going, but it seemed to find its footing and present an entertaining tale (unless you were among the older generation, to which this might have been a cautionary or every scary wake up call...yeah, right)...Christopher Jones seems to fit his role perfectly as the charismatic Max Frost, the millionaire rock star rallying the angry youth of America, and beginning a movement in California (figures) which ultimately spreads worldwide. Holbrook was also very good as the liberal politician thinking he could harness this untapped power towards advancing his career by schmoozing the youth, but quickly learning his folly once the beast was unleashed...and then there was the stodgy Ed Begley, playing the ultra conservative Senator Allbright..."Youth is not only wasted on the young, it's become a disease!"...'nuff said. I think my favorite sequences involved the scenes where Max and his cohorts, in an effort to get legislators to amend the constitution and lower the age requirements for holding political offices, spike Washington's water supply with acid...which resulted in all these politicians head tripping and unknowingly voting themselves out of existence (Ed Begley pretending to be on acid is quite the experience). This was actually a real-life fear at the time that prompted the mayor of Chicago at the time, Richard J. Daley, to call out some 5,000 national guardsmen to protect the cities water reservoirs, as the 1968 Democratic National Convention was taking place, and protesters were in abundance in the Windy City. There was a creepy, reverse Oedipal vibe coming off Shelley Winter's character towards her son, one that increased as Max's power grew...her desperate attempts to fit in with a generation she didn't belong, so in need their approval and attention, became very annoying, but viewers are rewarded as she couldn't escape her age or the animosity of youth. Ms. Winters is an accomplished and respected actress (I really liked her in Night of the Hunter), but most of the roles I've seen her in involved her playing often obnoxious, annoying, overbearing characters, and here is not different. There was a slightly dark, comic tone ever present throughout the story that later turns ominous as Max become president, using his administrative powers to effect some really radical changes (hey, if it means putting Shelley Winters behind bars, I'm all for it). There's some good music to be had here, if you dig on late 60s rock, with original music provided by Les Baxter and songs by legendary writer Barry Mann...check out Max Frost and the Troopers' performance of the song `The Shape of Things to Come', which would later covered by The Ramones. The ending, despite being completely predictable (and virtually telegraphed), still worked well.
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Seeing as how I was quite young at the time Gas-s-s-s (1971) aka Gas-s-s-s... or, It May Become Necessary to Destroy the World in Order to Save It came out (diapers, pacifiers, the whole bit), I'm curious to know if this whole `youth counterculture' film genre had just about run its course (run out of gas, you might say...oh man, I slay myself with my relevant comments)...and while watching the film, Roger Corman's last directorial effort for AIP, I'd say so...written by George Armitage, who would later direct Grosse Pointe Blank (1997), and directed by Roger Corman (The Masque of the Red Death, The Wild Angels), the film features a number of actors including Bob Corff, whom later found his calling as a voice teacher, known as `the authority on voice technique in Los Angeles', Elaine Giftos (The Student Nurses), Bud Cort (Harold and Maude), Talia Shire (The Godfather), along with Ben Vereen (All That Jazz) and Cindy Williams (American Graffiti) in their first, major on screen roles...oh yeah, watch for the writer himself, George Armitage, appearing as the character Billy the Kid...
As the movie begins, we learn the military/industrial complex has been brought down by its own hands due to the accidental release of a nerve gas that kills anyone over the age of 25...subsequently, the ne'er-do-wells have inherited the Earth through no effort on their part ...or so it would seem. The more things change, the more they stay the same as soon the conservative youth begins to rain on the free love parade trying to maintain the status quo, driving a couple to leave behind the bad scene that is Dallas in search of a hippy nirvana somewhere in the desert of New Mexico. Along the way they hook up some like-minded folk, and eventually get captured by a gang called the Warriors, a fascist group of dune buggy driving high school jocks (with their own marching band) who subsist by raiding nearby towns, looting and pillaging what they need. They manage to escape and keep on keeping on finding respite at a musical festival of sorts, the main performer being Country Joe and the Fish. Pressing forth they finally reach their destination in a New Mexican pueblo where everyone gets by doing their own thing, whatever that may be...until the Warriors show up...now comes the conundrum...how to resist the impending onslaught without resorting to violence? I'll tell you what, by this time I was looking forward to a little head bashing mayhem, but none was forthcoming...
Now the story I just described to you would probably fill up 30 minutes of celluloid, but know this film is about 79 minutes long...so what was used to pad out the rest of the running time? A whole lot of nonsense...seriously, this film is one big, long psuedo counterculture unpleasurable masturbatory flogging. There was some real potential, but it quickly devolved into an inconsistent exercise of unfettered, unstructured silliness taking potshots at the `evil' establishment via continually trying to illuminate the audience to the hypocrisies inherent within the system. The humor here is as about consistent with that of a bad Monkees episode, only there it was good natured ribbing of convention, while here it comes off as crude and sophomoric. I gotta tell you, this post adult world, even in a comical sense, sucks...here's a dose of the lame humor (vaudevillian, at best) I'm talking about...at the beginning of the film, we see the cops chasing a hippy, who eventually runs into a church, donning a priest outfit. A cop comes in, mistakes him for a man of the cloth, and ask if he's seen anyone run inside the church...the hippy/priest replies "Could you describe him my son?", "Long hair, weird clothes, looks like a real troublemaker to me.", to which the hippy/priest replies "No, there hasn't been anyone like that around the church in a long time." Which then the camera focuses on a statue of Jesus...get it? You see because Jesus had long hair and wore strange clothes...I guess...and I love how the film equates sports with fascism as we witness a group of high school...Read more›
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Dragnet 1968: Season Two (1970) Review
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(More customer reviews)OUT with Universal and IN with SHOUT! Factory.
Major kudos to Universal for allowing SHOUT! Factory to take over the Dragnet franchise! This is THE classic Dragnet that we grew to and know love with Jack Webb's Joe Friday teamed with Harry Morgan as Officer Bill Gannon. SHOUT! Factory has a superb track record with crisp video/audio season sets as with "Adam 12", S.2-5, and "Dragnet 1968" has followed suit. Among the 28 episodes of Season 2 are two of Dragnet's finest narratives; "The Shooting Board" & "The Big High".
And just check out the super bonus features for Dragnet 1968: Season Two--
*Dragnet 1966 Pilot Movie
*"Jack Webb: The Man Behind Badge 714" Featurette
*Original Dragnet Trailer
*Commemorative Booklet
Optimistically seasons 3 & 4 are on their way. This really makes up for the short comings of Season 1 from Universal!UPDATE: 07.14.10
As many reviewers have noted, SHOUT! Factory initially excised the 1st 2:15 minutes from the 1966 Pilot Movie. This footage, while fairly tame for today's dramas, is slightly disturbing but really should have been included. Now I'm hearing that a replacement disc will be offered with the 1966 Pilot Movie intact. Hearing this I promptly sent an email to SHOUT! Factory for a replacement disc on a Friday afternoon and there was my replacement disc #1 in the mailbox the following Monday. Talk about a DVD distributor taking prompt responsibility; Woo Hoo!!!!
UPDATE: 09.07.10
Super good news for Christmas 2010 - SHOUT! Factory will be releasing Dragnet 3rd Season - (Dragnet 1969), being released on December 7, 2010 and now the final season, Dragnet 1970: Season Four spring of 2011!
Much obliged SHOUT! Factory.....
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Batman - The Movie (1966) Review
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(More customer reviews)The key things to know about the DVD are:
1) The colors jump off the screen, it is a great transfer
2) The featurette with Adam West (Batman) and Burt Ward (Robin) is good, though they cover a lot of the same ground in the commentary
3) The Batmobile feature is very cool
4) The commentary is awesome. Adam and Burt have a great chemistry and really seem to love both the movie and the show. Their tongues are firmly in their cheeks druing the commentary (Adam West's views on Bruce Wayne alone are worth the price of admission), but you will learn about the production and such secrets as:
Why did ABC tear down the Batcave so quickly after cancellation?
What did Burt Ward really think about the BatCycle?
How and why did Lee Meriweather get to play Catwoman?
Why did Adam and Burt have to spend two hours each week getting oxygen at the Fox infirmary?
The team at Fox had a lot of love for this movie and it shows. Buy this DVD and get Fox to release some series episodes with Adam, Burt, Julie Newmar (Catwoman) and Frank Gorshin (Riddler)doing commentary!
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James Coburn: Film Collection Review
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(More customer reviews)Title is misleading. Trailers only. In short - a scam.
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