I thought I saw some character development that resembled Valdez Is Coming, but didn't know why. Thanks to Wizard-8, I now realize that the same pen couldn't help but leave a few crow's feet in the characters. The youth in this one, and the fact that it was created by a director 30 years after the 1950s filmmakers, helps me to visualize the direction Westerns are taking nowadays. Thanx again, Wizard-8. I saw the story on the Encore Westerns Channel late on the Saturday of daylight savings, and got a kick out of the simplicity in which the 19th-Century protagonists lived. Directors now seem to play more with the personal side of each character, discarding the age-old idea that action and reaction are the main drives of an entertained audience. But... I guess the future is going to be even more loaded with feelings than with feelingless action. Hallmark Channel has a lot of these stories, and is happy to banner them for today's viewers. Oh, HBO's Deadwood has dealt another personal-side blow, too.
Reviews
18 Reviews
The Village
(2004)
Everyone pronounces it "SHAM-alan"
30 July 2004
Sorry this is so short, and I'll say a lot in a few words: sham is the order for the day. SIXTH SENSE and SIGNS had (1) Science Fiction (2) Paranormal (3) Psychic (4) Space Aliens or (5) The Dead after Death. This has none of the above, but there are shades of "Now that you're down here in South America with me - Kool-Aid anyone?" It also has shades of "Now that the planets have all aligned, anyone want to celebrate in San Diego, California?"
Accidental Stripper
(2003 Video)
An heir to The Cheyenne Social Club
3 June 2004
I give this film 3 stars for one reason, only. It is a good template for films of the second millennium. The James-Stewart/Henry-Fonda/Shirley-Jones movie, THE CHEYENNE SOCIAL CLUB, treated the same phenomenon: a person inherits a club of ill repute and is determined to work with it to make it a success. Because the Cheyenne Social Club was in the 19th Century, though, it dealt with a lot of negative "press" from the townspeople. Janey Hopkins' gentleman's club, DIAMONDS, has only the hurdle of a hyped crew of female dancers vying their professional talents against the boss who can't decide whether or not to keep it going.
Type O
(2000)
Beware Of Spoilers !!! Fairy Tale And Sci Fi
14 February 2004
Warning: Spoilers
This one is a cool experiment in filmmaking! The use of light, ambience and gender are out of this world. She's a (robotic) typist in a 1950s atmosphere of confined room looking outside on the world. As she types - wadding up her previous pages and tossing them into "File 13" - a sprite, a small ball of light, dances around the room. As it continues, she continues typing. Finally, in the end... Some younger, newer short-film creators could take a lesson from this experiment! The lesson: how to use a creative story to make common, everyday objects come to life in a surprising way. I give it *** of *****.
What Do You Think?: Tupapaoo
(1938)
Great Moroni Olsen Vehicle - Spoiler Warning!
5 November 2003
Warning: Spoilers
It was with great pride that I found the title through IMDb's Character search. Turner Classic Movies is running the MGM Parade series. In episode #20 an excerpt of this short is shown, without listing the name of the film. General plot: Olsen plays Kurt Larsen, a larcenous lecher who has bilked the islanders of the pearls they have harvested from the sea. He brings nearly worthless trinkets, supposedly attractive to the people, and lists their debts in a book. As they bring him the pearls that are of much greater value, he marks off their debts. One day a comet - they call a fire in the sky - passes by and the chief forewarns of a great storm. Unbelieving Kurt makes no preparations and suffers a loss of all the pearls, as his store is burnt to the ground in a fire caused by a suspiciously shifting wind. Poetic justice seems to be a critical part of island philosophy.
The Gorilla Man
(1943)
Early 36 HOURS (1965) plot twist.
29 October 2003
The general premise here is repeated in the James Garner movie, 36 HOURS (1965): a wounded American soldier is in a hospital involving Nazi agents. The key to each film plot, however, changes drastically. In this plot, the penchant for displaying the ferocious covert attack of the Germans against the Allies is followed, but for a different reason. You see, in 36 HOURS, the protagonist discovers... Ah! but you'll have to rent or buy that video to find out that one! If you're a classic spook or intrigue fan, I believe you, too, will give this one at least 6 stars of 10.
Ghost Treasure
(1941)
Spoiler Warning! Could Make You Want To See This Short!
5 October 2003
Warning: Spoilers
Glenn Ford had an integral part on the MGM Parade Show #19 as I watched it tonight on Turner Classic Movies. But his appearance in the contemporary (1956) movie RANSOM made me think more of GHOST TREASURE. Glenn had starred earlier in a story of Superstition Mountain gold in Arizona. That, too, had a Native American curse with it. But this short uses costumed re-enactment of scenes of Mexican Soldier Manuel Arguello first discovering that gold was to be found in Death Valley, California, in 1843. After his men die from a ghost-like adversary, the story skips to Pete Wilkins, a later prospector who died without telling where he found his gold ore in that area. GHOST TREASURE is one of the content shorts in the Parade Show #19 episode. I am a LUST FOR GOLD enthusiast, the movie in which Glenn Ford co-stars with Ida Lupino, ever since the first day I went to a neighborhood theater in East Los Angeles to see it. But The Park Service at Superstition Mountain Monument in Arizona discourages any serious gold hunters there.
Rainbow Island
(1944)
For a little kid, rilly exciting !!!
28 May 2003
I, too, first saw it in theaters as a kid. To a kid: the most exciting thing about a (duh!) musical is the action! In one scene, while the pilots are trying to get off the isolated island on which they crashed, one is nearly swallowed by a flesh-eating plant that looked more like a giant artichoke. Cool! Then their ingenuity (didn't know what the word meant when I was a kid) came up as they captured a Japanese plane that had landed there. To turn the "Zero" red ball of the Japanese flag into an Army Air Corps U.S. star, they used plant dies to paint it on the wings. Unfortunately, as they flew near a U.S. flattop, a sudden tropical rain came up and washed away the "star" pattern, leaving the original "Zero". The ship began to fire at them !!!
A Pregnant Moment
(2001)
A Beautiful Statement On Canine Birth.
6 March 2003
A man and woman supervise the pregnancy and whelping of their pet dog. Humanity is served well, as they care for the bitch during the period-in-waiting. Then they prepare for the vigil, the date of which a veterinarian gives them (on video). The due date arrives, and they watch all of the proceedings (not the actual ejection of the pups on video). During the days after whelping, they care for the pups, with the help of the bitch (most of these scenes are merely the feedings at the teats). Then comes the day most traumatic to the woman: They show their door closing (several times) on people who have come to claim the pup they have been promised. Just before the last pup is adopted, the woman is on the couch, traumatic and obviously not able to contain the "empty nest" feeling. This is a touching and vital teaching facility to me because, as a boy in Los Angeles, I went to a dairy farm and watched the breech-birth of a calf, not knowing I should have notified the owner. It was, of course, stillborn. I give it 5 of 5.
Repetition Compulsion
(1998)
Power on the charcoal easel
8 December 2002
This seven-minute short tells of the quest of a girl for self-security by seeking power over others. But she runs into problems as she finds herself up against things she has trouble controlling. I give it 8 of 10, specifically for the artwork in the charcoal-on-paper drawings in motion and the interesting base concept.
China's Little Devils
(1945)
Teens and pre-teens in WWII China Blow Up Japanese Ammo Dump.
1 November 2002
This story is better than the original Hollywood film "The Flying Tigers" in a couple of respects. It tells of the willingness of the Chinese people in those days to cooperate with America. The "Devils" were (as with the "Devil's Brigade" in Germany) named by the enemy they pestered. The second point is: it shows how youths in all societies, in all periods of time, and in all philosophies have been the powerful force in vanquishing an enemy of freedom. These boys, some as young as five years old, formed a very tightly bound band of saboteurs who plagued the Japanese invaders - not only by blowing up their resources. They also salvaged fuel - which was common to the war machines of both sides - and helped keep the Flying Tigers in the air in their "pursuit" against the aggressors. I enclose "pursuit" in quotes because that was the primary mission of the P-40 aircraft: The "P" stands for pursuit.
On a Perfect Day
(1998)
Ray Bradbury fans should be happy with this one.
15 July 2001
All fans of that genius scifi writer, whose suggested options of the future have come to fruition almost as much as those of Jules Verne, should be happy with this one. A taste for english subtitles should go along with them, though. As a graduate in french and spanish language, and an avid scifi fan, I thought this claustrophobic story of a man in a cubicle in the year 2056 is sharper than cheddar. He's also a spendthrift, and can't raise the money to allow the computer to open the door so he can out and have some time with his girlfriend, Susanna. It all takes off from there. One great Bradbury-like tale, geared to a Second Millennium audience!
When Strangers Marry
(1944)
A good launch film for Robert Mitchum
27 February 2001
This is a Hitchcockian film that reflects well the Film Noir period of Hollywood. Suspense is high, and the audience is kept guessing right to the end about who might be the killer of the drunk good-time Charlie, who innocently invited a stranger in a bar in New York to stay in his apartment for the evening. Don't be fooled by the original name, though.
It is being aired on the premium classics channels under the a.k.a. name "Betrayed".
It is being aired on the premium classics channels under the a.k.a. name "Betrayed".
Kongo
(1932)
I had to look at the schedule twice !!!
10 October 2000
The acting was so avant-garde for a 1932 version, I had to go back to the schedule twice to make sure it was filmed in the early days. I've seen Emmy-winning 1999 TV soaps that didn't have the shine the soapy scenes here have. Lupe Velez was, to me, a very untalented stock actress until I watched her in this tropical human-condition story. She almost outshines Walter in her portrayal of a love-starved wench stuck in an outland of men. But both women did better, in my opinion, than some of the Actors' Guild graduates today. Thanks.
A Tale of Two Kitties
(1942)
The First Time For "I Tawt I Taw A Puddie Tat"???
12 September 2000
As the two cats struggle to retrieve Tweety from the nest high in a tree, each ploy is designed by Babbit and carried out by his dupe, Catstello. At one point Tweety says his characteristic "I tawt I taw a puddie tat!" This is possibly the first time he used the legendary line. But in this episode it is not joined by the response, "I did! I taw a puddie tat!"
The Two Barks Brothers
(1931)
A more professional cinematography than "Lonesome Stranger"
5 September 2000
This is a story of multi-breed dogs, in which one brother, a politician, is bent upon leading the community, and the other is "bent". There is a lot about gin-drinking because the year filmed was a prohibition year. And efforts to keep his brother from winning the political office are paramount here. The filming is better than "Lonesome Stranger", filmed with various breeds of monkeys, because the lip movements and gestures are more realistic. They don't contain paint-in teeth and mouth movement. A good animated film for it's time. Nowadays, as in "Babe" the animals move their mouths minimally.
Charlie, the Lonesome Cougar
(1967)
One Good Disney True Life Adventure
20 May 2000
It isn't billed as one of his true-life series, but it could be. It ranks with Bear Country and Living Desert, two of his True Life Adventure episodes. Charlie is the name loggers of the Northwest give to a cougar who has the habit of visiting their camp at mealtime. Soon, he's as tame as Disney's imagination can make all wild animals. He does revert a couple of times to the wild instinct in him, but nothing too violent for children of all ages. It could be used in the schoolroom, if there weren't so many other good media choices already.
Surprised Parties
(1942)
Robert Blake is cute...but as funny this young
2 September 1999
Froggy gets to go with the others to a party but is depressed because he's a February 29th kid...and only gets a birthday party every four years. The others get together to give him the Alice In Wonderland "Unbirthday" party.
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