By Lee Pfeiffer
Kino Lorber has released the 1964 comedy "The Brass Bottle" on Blu-ray. The film appears to have been the inspiration for the hit TV series "I Dream of Jeannie" which starred Barbara Eden as the sultry title character. Some cinephiles argue that the film and TV series have nothing to do with one another, but it seems to me that if you make a movie with Barbara Eden and a genie from a brass bottle, than it's more than a coincidence that a TV series starring Eden featuring a genie and a brass bottle soon appears. It is true that Eden does appear as the female lead in the feature film, but in a very down-to-earth role as Sylvia, the fiancee of aspiring-but-unsuccessful architect Harold Ventimore (Tony Randall). Sorry, guys, no navel-gazing to be had here.The premise of the plot is as old as the pyramids: Harold...
Kino Lorber has released the 1964 comedy "The Brass Bottle" on Blu-ray. The film appears to have been the inspiration for the hit TV series "I Dream of Jeannie" which starred Barbara Eden as the sultry title character. Some cinephiles argue that the film and TV series have nothing to do with one another, but it seems to me that if you make a movie with Barbara Eden and a genie from a brass bottle, than it's more than a coincidence that a TV series starring Eden featuring a genie and a brass bottle soon appears. It is true that Eden does appear as the female lead in the feature film, but in a very down-to-earth role as Sylvia, the fiancee of aspiring-but-unsuccessful architect Harold Ventimore (Tony Randall). Sorry, guys, no navel-gazing to be had here.The premise of the plot is as old as the pyramids: Harold...
- 5/8/2022
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
Showbiz dynamo Ann-Margret tries on ‘teenage hellion’ for size. She terrorizes the straight, impossibly patient John Forsythe, sending him on a weekend ordeal with razor-wielding hooligans. He can kiss both his marriage and his political ambitions goodbye: who will believe David when Jody claims he took advantage of her? Douglas Heyes’ sordid suspense thriller has a loser reputation but is big fun in the star-watching game: Ann-Margret has no choice but to go way over the top and chew scenery, and the direction doesn’t offer enough support. The technical remaster is excellent, and the disc extras generous.
Kitten with a Whip
Blu-ray
Viavision [Imprint]
1964 / B&w / 1:85 widescreen / 84 min. / Street Date December 29, 2022 / Available from [Imprint] / 34.95au
Starring: Ann-Margret, John Forsythe, Peter Brown, Richard Anderson, Skip Ward, Patricia Barry, Diane Sayer, Ann Doran, Patrick Whyte, Audrey Dalton, Leo Gordon, Patricia Tiara, Nora Marlowe, Frances Robinson, Maxine Stuart, Jerry Dunphy, Doodles Weaver.
Kitten with a Whip
Blu-ray
Viavision [Imprint]
1964 / B&w / 1:85 widescreen / 84 min. / Street Date December 29, 2022 / Available from [Imprint] / 34.95au
Starring: Ann-Margret, John Forsythe, Peter Brown, Richard Anderson, Skip Ward, Patricia Barry, Diane Sayer, Ann Doran, Patrick Whyte, Audrey Dalton, Leo Gordon, Patricia Tiara, Nora Marlowe, Frances Robinson, Maxine Stuart, Jerry Dunphy, Doodles Weaver.
- 2/12/2022
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
The Brass Bottle
Blu ray
Kino Lorber
1964/ Color / 1.85:1 / 89 Minutes
Starring Tony Randall, Burl Ives, Barbara Eden
Directed by Harry Keller
Possessed of a commanding baritone and an even more elegant delivery, Tony Randall was a natural for radio, cutting his teeth as program announcer for Wtag in Worcester before landing the role of a two-fisted detective in the early ’40s with I Love a Mystery. It was a voice—silky but full of import—ideal for Shakespeare in the Park yet the actor’s nervous-nelly demeanor would make him a standard bearer for light comedy. After flaunting his versatility in Broadway’s Inherit the Wind and television’s Mr. Peepers, Randall laid down an actor’s gauntlet with his gender-bending, shape-shifting turn as a mysterious carny barker in 7 Faces of Dr. Lao. Based on Charles G. Finney’s 1935 satire—a cynical diatribe transformed into a cozy fantasy by George...
Blu ray
Kino Lorber
1964/ Color / 1.85:1 / 89 Minutes
Starring Tony Randall, Burl Ives, Barbara Eden
Directed by Harry Keller
Possessed of a commanding baritone and an even more elegant delivery, Tony Randall was a natural for radio, cutting his teeth as program announcer for Wtag in Worcester before landing the role of a two-fisted detective in the early ’40s with I Love a Mystery. It was a voice—silky but full of import—ideal for Shakespeare in the Park yet the actor’s nervous-nelly demeanor would make him a standard bearer for light comedy. After flaunting his versatility in Broadway’s Inherit the Wind and television’s Mr. Peepers, Randall laid down an actor’s gauntlet with his gender-bending, shape-shifting turn as a mysterious carny barker in 7 Faces of Dr. Lao. Based on Charles G. Finney’s 1935 satire—a cynical diatribe transformed into a cozy fantasy by George...
- 1/8/2022
- by Charlie Largent
- Trailers from Hell
Although only one of these 1950s B&w thrillers falls within a mile of a hard definition of film noir, all give us glamorous actresses in interesting roles. Claudette Colbert takes her turn at playing a nun, Merle Oberon tries a femme fatale role on for size and Hedy Lamarr does very well for herself as a man-hungry movie star. Kino gives all three excellent transfers, and one comes with an appropriately gossipy audio commentary.
Film Noir the Dark Side of Cinema II
Thunder on the Hill, The Price of Fear, The Female Animal
Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1951-58 / B&w / 1:37 Academy, 1:85 widescreen / 84,79,82 min. / Street Date May 12, 2020 / available through Kino Lorber / 49.95
Starring: Claudette Colbert, Ann Blyth, Robert Douglas, Anne Crawford, Connie Gilchrist, Gladys Cooper, Michael Pate, Phillip Friend; Merle Oberon, Lex Barker, Charles Drake, Gia Scala, Warren Stevens, Phillip Pine, Konstantin Shayne, Stafford Repp; Hedy Lamarr, Jane Powell,...
Film Noir the Dark Side of Cinema II
Thunder on the Hill, The Price of Fear, The Female Animal
Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1951-58 / B&w / 1:37 Academy, 1:85 widescreen / 84,79,82 min. / Street Date May 12, 2020 / available through Kino Lorber / 49.95
Starring: Claudette Colbert, Ann Blyth, Robert Douglas, Anne Crawford, Connie Gilchrist, Gladys Cooper, Michael Pate, Phillip Friend; Merle Oberon, Lex Barker, Charles Drake, Gia Scala, Warren Stevens, Phillip Pine, Konstantin Shayne, Stafford Repp; Hedy Lamarr, Jane Powell,...
- 5/25/2020
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Guilt, gloom, weird nightmares of death and persecution — and romance? The wondrous Gail Russell brings a spark of life into Frank Borzage’s weird expressionist masterpiece produced at the seldom-artistic Republic Studio. The bitter, despairing Dane Clark has just committed what a jury will likely call first degree murder, but the night can offer atonement and forgiveness, if he’ll just listen to Russell’s good advice.
Moonrise
Blu-ray
The Criterion Collection 921
1948 / B&W / 1:37 Academy / 90 min. / available through The Criterion Collection / Street Date May 8, 2018 / 39.95
Starring: Dane Clark, Gail Russell, Ethel Barrymore, Allyn Joslyn, Rex Ingram, Henry Morgan, Lloyd Bridges, Selena Royle.
Cinematography: John L. Russell
Film Editor: Harry Keller
Original Music: William Lava
From the book by Theodore Strauss
Written and Produced by Charles Haas
Directed by Frank Borzage
Frank Borzage’s 1948 Moonrise is a critic’s delight, especially among aficionados that like to point out the artistic margins of traditional Hollywood filmmaking.
Moonrise
Blu-ray
The Criterion Collection 921
1948 / B&W / 1:37 Academy / 90 min. / available through The Criterion Collection / Street Date May 8, 2018 / 39.95
Starring: Dane Clark, Gail Russell, Ethel Barrymore, Allyn Joslyn, Rex Ingram, Henry Morgan, Lloyd Bridges, Selena Royle.
Cinematography: John L. Russell
Film Editor: Harry Keller
Original Music: William Lava
From the book by Theodore Strauss
Written and Produced by Charles Haas
Directed by Frank Borzage
Frank Borzage’s 1948 Moonrise is a critic’s delight, especially among aficionados that like to point out the artistic margins of traditional Hollywood filmmaking.
- 5/5/2018
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Noir if I can help it! Sultry Lizabeth Scott out-'fatals' every femme we know in this wickedly ruthless tale of unadulterated female venality. Rough creep Dan Duryea meets his match, as do other unfortunate males that get between Liz and a plump bag of blackmail loot. The Film Noir Foundation's restoration is a valiant rescue job, for a worthy 'annihilating melodrama.' Too Late for Tears Blu-ray + DVD Flicker Alley / FIlm Noir Foundation 1949 / B&W / 1:37 Academy / 102 min. / Street Date May 17, 2016 / 39.95 Starring Lizabeth Scott, Don DeFore, Dan Duryea, Arthur Kennedy, Kristine Miller, Barry Kelley Cinematography William Mellor Art Direction James Sullivan Film Editor Harry Keller Original Music Dale Butts Written by Roy Huggins from his story Produced by Hunt Stromberg Directed by Byron Haskin
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
Who's doing good work for film preservation? The Film Noir Foundation has racked up some impressive rescues and restorations in the last fifteen years or so,...
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
Who's doing good work for film preservation? The Film Noir Foundation has racked up some impressive rescues and restorations in the last fifteen years or so,...
- 5/21/2016
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Child actor Dickie Moore: 'Our Gang' member. Former child actor Dickie Moore dead at 89: Film career ranged from 'Our Gang' shorts to features opposite Marlene Dietrich and Gary Cooper 1930s child actor Dickie Moore, whose 100+ movie career ranged from Our Gang shorts to playing opposite the likes of Marlene Dietrich, Barbara Stanwyck, and Gary Cooper, died in Connecticut on Sept. 7, '15 – five days before his 90th birthday. So far, news reports haven't specified the cause of death. According to a 2013 Boston Phoenix article about Moore's wife, MGM musical star Jane Powell, he had been “suffering from arthritis and bouts of dementia.” Dickie Moore movies At the behest of a persistent family friend, combined with the fact that his father was out of a job, Dickie Moore (born on Sept. 12, 1925, in Los Angeles) made his film debut as an infant in Alan Crosland's 1927 costume drama The Beloved Rogue,...
- 9/11/2015
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
While the narrative these days around Orson Welles tends to focus on his unfinished films or the wacky work he did in the latter stages of his career, like editing pornos, it can't be overstated that he was an absolutely brilliant filmmaker. Of course, there's "Citizen Kane," but even the studio-mangled "The Magnificent Ambersons" shines in its truncated form, "The Stranger" is an underrrated gem, and then there's "Touch Of Evil." It's a flat out noir masterpiece and audiences in the U.K. are going to get to see it on the big screen once again this summer. Read More: Retrospective: The Directorial Films Of Orson Welles As with many of his films, Welles saw his original vision for "Touch Of Evil" manhandled by the studio. After submitting his rough cut to Universal, the studio hired Harry Keller to shoot additional material. After Welles saw this new cut, he issued...
- 6/12/2015
- by Kevin Jagernauth
- The Playlist
Teresa Wright and Matt Damon in 'The Rainmaker' Teresa Wright: From Marlon Brando to Matt Damon (See preceding post: "Teresa Wright vs. Samuel Goldwyn: Nasty Falling Out.") "I'd rather have luck than brains!" Teresa Wright was quoted as saying in the early 1950s. That's understandable, considering her post-Samuel Goldwyn choice of movie roles, some of which may have seemed promising on paper.[1] Wright was Marlon Brando's first Hollywood leading lady, but that didn't help her to bounce back following the very public spat with her former boss. After all, The Men was released before Elia Kazan's film version of A Streetcar Named Desire turned Brando into a major international star. Chances are that good film offers were scarce. After Wright's brief 1950 comeback, for the third time in less than a decade she would be gone from the big screen for more than a year.
- 3/11/2015
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Teresa Wright in 'Shadow of a Doubt': Alfred Hitchcock heroine (image: Joseph Cotten about to strangle Teresa Wright in 'Shadow of a Doubt') (See preceding article: "Teresa Wright Movies: Actress Made Oscar History.") After scoring with The Little Foxes, Mrs. Miniver, and The Pride of the Yankees, Teresa Wright was loaned to Universal – once initial choices Joan Fontaine and Olivia de Havilland became unavailable – to play the small-town heroine in Alfred Hitchcock's Shadow of a Doubt. (Check out video below: Teresa Wright reminiscing about the making of Shadow of a Doubt.) Co-written by Thornton Wilder, whose Our Town had provided Wright with her first chance on Broadway and who had suggested her to Hitchcock; Meet Me in St. Louis and Junior Miss author Sally Benson; and Hitchcock's wife, Alma Reville, Shadow of a Doubt was based on "Uncle Charlie," a story outline by Gordon McDonell – itself based on actual events.
- 3/7/2015
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Esther Williams: ‘Pools and Smiles’ formula grows stale [See previous post: "Esther Williams: Swimwear MGM Musical Star Dies."] By the early ’50s, Louis B. Mayer had been ousted from the studio he had helped to found, having been replaced by Dore Schary. Whether or not a coincidence, with the exception of Million Dollar Mermaid, the Esther Williams movies of the ’50s — e.g., The Duchess of Idaho, Skirts Ahoy! (stolen by Vivian Blaine in a supporting role), Dangerous When Wet, Easy to Love — lacked the luster of those released in the previous decade, despite more prestigious directors (George Sidney, Charles Walters, Robert Z. Leonard) and the usual co-stars (Van Johnson, Red Skelton, Howard Keel). (Photo: Esther Williams in Million Dollar Mermaid.) Not surprisingly, although MGM’s color musicals would remain in vogue a few more years, Esther Williams and the studio parted ways following George Sidney’s tired-looking Jupiter’s Darling (1956), with Williams and Howard Keel (as Hannibal) fooling around in ancient times.
- 6/6/2013
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Professor Crazy’s Case Log: I’m going to be interviewing the famous and highly gifted author Stefan Petrucha today. He has a column here now, and he is the author of the best-selling X-Files comic book series and has written eighteen novels, including Timetripper, The Rule of Won, a book he coauthored with Ryan Buell (the host of A&E’s Paranormal State) called Paranormal State: My Journey Into the Unknown, and his most recent novel, which I reviewed here, the paranormal historical vampire novel Blood Prophecy. He has also appeared in three episodes of Paranormal State. Will I also have paranormal experiences during this interview? Who knows…read on to find out!
Professor Crazy: You prefer to be called Stefan or Steve? What is your favorite color, and what is your quest? You could answer those, but I have some very sensible, non-crazy questions for you, as well.
Professor Crazy: You prefer to be called Stefan or Steve? What is your favorite color, and what is your quest? You could answer those, but I have some very sensible, non-crazy questions for you, as well.
- 6/7/2011
- by Professor Crazy
- Boomtron
Spoiler Alert – I’m going to spoil everything.
After a season that groped for, neared, but never quite reached last year’s stunning “Peter” ep, Fringe, my favorite bastard child of The X-Files, let loose with a tight, dramatic high point — “The Day We Died” – which sends poor Peter into the future.
Time travel stories are rife with pitfalls. Logistically silly, they’re nearly impossible to maneuver with grace. Fringe‘s challenge was more so. After all, Peter Bishop’s temporal two-step doubles-down on the dual universe played with from the beginning, giving us (count ‘em!) four versions of each character (i.e., Walter, Walternate, alternate future Walter, alternate future Walternate, ad absurdum.)
Even so, I was hooked. The pacing was electric, the variations fun, the acting, in spots, terrific. It reminded me why I watch the darn show, especially after Anna Torv’s painful vocal impersonation of Leonard Nimoy earlier this year.
After a season that groped for, neared, but never quite reached last year’s stunning “Peter” ep, Fringe, my favorite bastard child of The X-Files, let loose with a tight, dramatic high point — “The Day We Died” – which sends poor Peter into the future.
Time travel stories are rife with pitfalls. Logistically silly, they’re nearly impossible to maneuver with grace. Fringe‘s challenge was more so. After all, Peter Bishop’s temporal two-step doubles-down on the dual universe played with from the beginning, giving us (count ‘em!) four versions of each character (i.e., Walter, Walternate, alternate future Walter, alternate future Walternate, ad absurdum.)
Even so, I was hooked. The pacing was electric, the variations fun, the acting, in spots, terrific. It reminded me why I watch the darn show, especially after Anna Torv’s painful vocal impersonation of Leonard Nimoy earlier this year.
- 5/12/2011
- by Stefan Petrucha
- Boomtron
The IMDb250. A list of the top 250 films as ranked by the users of the biggest Internet movie site on the web. It is based upon the ratings provided by the users of the Internet Movie Database, which number into the millions. As such, it’s a perfect representation of the opinions of the movie masses, and arguably the most comprehensive ranking system on the Internet.
It’s because of this that we at HeyUGuys (and in this case we is myself and Gary) have decided to set ourselves a project. To watch and review all 250 movies on the list. We’ve frozen the list as of January 1st of this year. It’s not as simple as it sounds, we are watching them all in one year, 125 each.
This is our 24th update, my next five films watched for the project. You can find all our previous week’s updates here.
It’s because of this that we at HeyUGuys (and in this case we is myself and Gary) have decided to set ourselves a project. To watch and review all 250 movies on the list. We’ve frozen the list as of January 1st of this year. It’s not as simple as it sounds, we are watching them all in one year, 125 each.
This is our 24th update, my next five films watched for the project. You can find all our previous week’s updates here.
- 7/5/2010
- by Gary Phillips
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
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