Turn of the century detectives typically dispatched the bad guys with handcuffs or handguns – commonplace but effective best practices. In 1938 the aptly named Action Comics flipped that script with a new kind of crime fighter. This depression era RoboCop didn’t just brush off bullets – he snatched up getaway cars with one arm while corralling…
Frankenstein 1970 Blu ray Warner Archive 1958 / 2:35:1 / 83 Min. / Street Date – April 9, 2019 Starring Boris Karloff, Don Barry, Jana Lund Written by Richard H. Landau Cinematography by Carl E. Guthrie Directed by Howard Koch Color TVs, swimming pools and cars (especially cars). American culture of the 50s was fueled…
The Whole Town’s Talking Blu ray Twilight Time 1935 / 1:33:1 / 92 Min. / Street Date – March 26, 2019 Starring Edward G. Robinson, Jean Arthur Written by Jo Swerling, Robert Riskin Cinematography by Joseph H. August Directed by John Ford Overworked, under-appreciated and ever optimistic, Arthur Jones’ humdrum existence takes a turn for…
The Road to Singapore, Zanzibar, Morocco and Utopia Blu ray Kino Lorber 1940, 41, 42, 43, 46 / 1:33:1 / 85, 91, 82, 90 Min. / Street Date – March 26, 2019 Starring Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Dorothy Lamour Written by Frank Butler, Don Hartman, Melvin Frank Cinematography by William C. Mellor, Ted Tetzlaff Directed…
Cleopatra Jones Blu ray Warner Archive 1973 / 2:35:1 / 89 Min. / Street Date – March 19, 2019 Starring Tamara Dobson, Bernie Casey Written by Max Julien, Sheldon Keller Cinematography by David M. Walsh Directed by Jack Starrett A good-natured if rickety assemblage of action movie cliches, Cleopatra Jones is dominated by two bigger…
Reynold Brown: A Life in Pictures by Daniel Zimmer and David J. Hornung 2009, The Illustrated Press, Hardcover, 224pp. ,$39.95 – 2017, Expanded version With the publication of an expanded edition of Reynold Brown: A Life in Pictures, it’s official… Brown was responsible for illustrating every movie poster ever made. Ok, not really but it…
Psyche 59 Blu ray – All Region Powerhouse 1964 / 1:85:1 / 94 Min. / Street Date – February 25, 2019 Starring Patricia Neal, Samantha Eggar, Curd Jürgens Cinematography by Walter Lassally Directed by Alexander Singer The story of a troubled marriage and a tenacious home wrecker, Psyche 59 is a Brigitte Bardot movie without…
The Admirable Crichton Blu ray Twilight Time 1957 / 1:85:1 / 94 Min. / Street Date – February 12, 2019 Starring Kenneth More, Sally Ann Howes Cinematography by Wilkie Cooper Directed by Lewis Gilbert True love and the British Empire collide in 1957’s The Admirable Crichton, the riches to rags story of one hard-to-get butler…
Audition Blu ray Arrow Video 1999 / 1:85:1 / 115 Min. / Street Date – February 12, 2019 Starring Ryo Ishibashi, Eihi Shiina Cinematography by Hideo Yamamoto Directed by Takashi Miike It could be described as lyrically sadistic but de Sade himself might flinch at Audition – like its fragile leading lady, Takashi Miike’s film…
Tarzan Goes to India/Tarzan’s Three Challenges Blu ray Warner Archives 1962, 1963 / 2:35:1 / 88 Min., 92 Min. / Street Date – January 29, 2019 Starring Jock Mahoney, Simi Garewal, Woody Strode Cinematography by Paul Beeson, Edward Scaife Directed by John Guillermin, Robert Day Jane Goodall fell for Tarzan at an early age –…
Jack the Ripper Blu ray Severin Films 1959 / 1.33:1 – 1:66:1 / 84 Min. / Street Date – January 29, 2019 Starring Lee Patterson, Eddie Byrne Cinematography by Robert Baker, Monty Berman Directed by Robert Baker, Monty Berman Jack the Ripper arrived in America with the kind of fanfare usually reserved for visiting royalty….
In the Heat of the Night Blu ray Criterion 1967 / 1.85:1 / 110 Min. / Street Date – January 29, 2019 Starring Sidney Poitier, Rod Steiger, Warren Oates Cinematography by Haskell Wexler Directed by Norman Jewison The racial animus that roiled recent elections in Mississippi was a reminder of segregation’s cockroach-like resiliency in that…
The Plague of the Zombies Blu ray Shout Factory 1966 / 1.66:1 / 91 Min. / Street Date – January 15, 2019 Starring André Morell, John Carson, Jacqueline Pearce Cinematography by Arthur Grant Directed by John Gilling Propping up one of Hammer Studios’ more visceral double-bills, John Gilling’s The Plague of the Zombies was released…
Popeye The Sailor: The 1940s Volume 1 Blu ray Warner Archive 1943 – 45 / 1.33:1 / Street Date – December 11, 2018 Starring Jack Mercer, Harry Foster Welch (Popeye), Margie Hines , Mae Questel (Olive Oyl), William Pennell, Jackson Beck (Bluto) Directed by Dan Gordon, I. Sparber, Seymour Kneitel The most animated of the great…
Though long embraced by parents as family-friendly safe zones, Disney’s live action films were just as often called out for their squeaky clean posturing and regressive world views. Fair enough – but as Noah Cross growled, “Politicians, ugly buildings and whores all get respectable if they last long enough” – and a good number of those mild-mannered…