Articles by Charlie Largent

The Mystery of Picasso

The Mystery of Picasso Blu ray Milestone/Kino Lorber 1956/ B&W, Color / 1.33:1, 2.35:1/ 78 Minutes Starring Pablo Picasso Directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot Attending a performance in the artist’s studio is one thing—to be there at the precise moment that inspiration strikes is quite another. Peter Jackson gives us the next best thing in Get…

The Little Rascals Volume 3

The Little Rascals Volume 3 Blu ray – The ClassicFlix Restorations ClassicFlix 1932, ’33 / 1.37:1 / 210 Min. Starring George McFarland, Dorothy DeBorba, Dickie Moore Written by H.W. Walker Directed by Robert F. McGowan The third volume in ClassicFlix’s Little Rascals series introduces the show’s most celebrated performer, George McFarland, otherwise known as Spanky….

W.C. x Three

The Old Fashioned Way, It’s a Gift, The Bank Dick Blu ray Kino Lorber 1934, 1940 / 71, 68, 72 minutes / 1.33:1 Starring W.C. Fields, Judith Allen, Kathleen Howard, Franklin Pangborn Directed by William Beaudine, Norman McLeod, Edward Cline W.C. Fields divided the country into factions—con men and those who would be conned. Throughout…

Fritz the Cat – The Nine Lives of Fritz the Cat

Fritz the Cat – The Nine Lives of Fritz the Cat Blu ray Kino Lorber 1972, 74/ 1.85:1/ 80, 76 Minutes Starring Skip Hinnant Directed by Ralph Bakshi, Robert Taylor The typical toddler tends to relate more to the cuddly animals in a Disney cartoon than their own flesh and blood playmates. Robert Crumb and…

Children of the Damned

Children of the Damned Blu ray Warner Archive 1964/ 1.85:1/ 89 Minutes Starring Ian Hendry, Alan Badel Directed by Anton Leader Wolf Rilla’s Village of the Damned was an alien invasion thriller that was genuinely invasive—all around the world women of child-bearing age are suddenly and mysteriously pregnant. No matter the circumstances, whether a virgin…

Kolchak: The Night Stalker – The Complete Series

Kolchak: The Night Stalker – The Complete Series Blu ray Kino Lorber 1974/ 1.33:1/ 1,020 Minutes Starring Darren McGavin, Simon Oakland Directed by Gordon Hessler. Alexander Grasshoff “I saw what I saw when I saw it.” That was the mantra of Wilbur Grey, an anonymous shipping clerk who made a habit of bumping into some…

Onibaba

Onibaba Blu ray Criterion 1964/ 2.39:1/ 102 Minutes Starring Nobuko Otowa, Jitsuko Yoshimura Directed by Kaneto Shindô Kaneto Shindô’s Onibaba is a campfire tale not for the faint of heart. The director was just a child when he first heard the Buddhist fable about a bewitched matriarch, told to him by his own mother in…

Ad Nauseam

Ad Nauseam: Newsprint Nightmares from the ’70s and ’80s 1984 Publishing, October 5, 2021 Michael Gingold (Author), Joe Dante (Foreword) Ballyhoo, the art of selling the public something they don’t want, has never changed—but like the devil it has assumed many disguises. In the 19th century small towns were inundated with colorful broadsides, barn-sized murals promoting…

A Night at the Opera

A Night at the Opera Blu ray Warner Archive 1935/ 1.33:1 Starring The Marx Brothers, Allan Jones, Kitty Carlisle Directed by Sam Wood When the Marx Brothers bolted the scrappy but frugal Paramount for the gilded halls of Metro Goldwyn Mayer, fans of the comedians feared the worst—would the anarchic trio maintain their punk rock…