Antonio Gaudi

Gaudi and Takemitsu: perfect combo
This is a great tour through the works of the brilliant, one-of-a-kind architect Antonio Gaudi. Find some pictures of his work on the net, and, if you're impressed, you'll like this movie. The cinematography is perfect, tracking and panning slowly over his work, so you can take it in. As if Gaudi's work wasn't enough, it also features music by the great Toru Takemitsu, who is the ultimate tour guide, much better than the narrator a lesser documentary on Gaudi might have provided. Instead of rattling off information, Takemitsu offers mood and atmosphere to compliment Gaudi's visuals perfectly. Together they offer a haunting, hallucinatory experience.

Beautifully captured images of Gaudi's work.
When I first saw this film, I did not know what to expect. One thing is there is no dialogue, just footage of the glorious city of Barcelona and the effect Gaudi's work had on the place. It's beautiful, surreal and an extremely awe inspiring experience to view it all on film. There is a depth to this film which words cannot convey, only seeing this film can one appreciate Gaudi and the city of Barcelona. A city imbued with enormous beauty and creative genius. One can feel great pride for the Catalan people by just his (Gaudi's) example alone. Well worth your time to see!

Fantasy As Reality: A Small Feast of Antonio Gaudi
A well-crafted film that provides a tantalizing glimpse of some of Gaudi's most famous work. With the exception of a brief interview with one of Gaudi's contemporaries, there is no narrative or dialogue. Rather, the film is a riveting visual feast; excellent cinematography with a unique musical score that complements the architecture shown. Occasional English sub-titles identify buildings, locations and dates of construction. The film opens with a brief look at the culture of Spain in the medieval period through its art and architecture, establishing a background against which to juxtapose Gaudi's radical departure from the historical past. Little is told of Gaudi's life; instead this film concentrates on some of his more notable work and does so brilliantly. It leaves one wanting more...much more! Who was this man? How did he do it? What else did he design? This feast for the eyes and ears can be understood easily by non-English speakers. Highly recommended!

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The Horse's Mouth

How To Out Bluff A Film Buff
If a film buff askes you to name a classic film you realy like you can do no worse than to answer "The Horse's Mouth". Try to suppress a smile as the buff looks at first puzzled and then cautiously admits that they have never heard of let alone seen that movie so can it be that good?

Well actually yes it is explain to them then casually mention that it is the only film that Alec Guinness ever wrote a screenplay for and that he gained an Academy Award nomination for his trouble and that in his "Parkinson" interview in 1977 he almost (but not quite) admitted that it was his favourite film in his long career.

Then you can go on to tell that it is one of the few films from the 1950's that shows London in colour and the music adapted from Sergei Prokofieff's "Lieutenant Kije" gives the film a touch of class and a unique sense of style not to be found in other films of the period.

You may then mention that the acting is superb; as well as Guinness' faultless study of an obsessive and...

"Burning bright" indeed
I recently purchased this film from Amazon as well as "The Alec Guinness Collection" which includes Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949) plus four others: The Man in the White Suit (1951), The Lavender Hill Mob (1951), The Captain's Paradise (1953), and The Ladykillers (1955). Frankly, I was amazed how well each of the six films has held up since I first saw it.

This film is based on a novel by Joyce Cary, The Horse's Mouth. Guinness wrote the screenplay which was nominated for an Academy Award. The director was Ronald Neame who also produced it. Special credit should also be given to the cinematographer, Arthur Ibbetson, who brilliantly captures the beauty of London while sustaining the viewer's focus on both the splendor and squalor of Gulley Jimson's passions. For me, Guinness' portrayal of that aging and impoverished but obsessed painter gives a whole new meaning to the word "eccentric." As in the novel, the spirit of William Blake is very evident. Art is Jimson's religion...

Hilarious and poignant Guinness
First off, this isn't a review--it's a reminiscence. I saw this film in the '60s in Berkeley, and I loved it then partly because it spoke to me of what I believed were the issues of the day--freedom (artistic and otherwise) and the power of the individual. I am now buying the video so that I can at long last have a joyous reunion with the unforgettable characters--the artist's dishevelled, indignant and loyal girlfriend; his equally dishevelled, adoring and unquestioning young admirer, and the artist himself, the outrageous Gully Jimson (Guinness). I still see his raffish little boat on the Thames, chugging along to the regal strains of Prokofiev, just as the often obnoxious and stubborn Jimson is dignified by the strength of his commitment to art and self. (This film was based on the novel by Joyce Cary)

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Fiend without a Face

Only Criterion does them THIS well
Is there ANY fan of science fiction or horror movies who grew up in the 60's and *doesn't* remember this midnight snack? The odd thing to me is that someone at Criterion seems to have the same taste in odd genre movies from the 50's as I do - and anyone ensuring that movies like this, and even more especially "Carnival of Souls", deserves a round of applause. (Let's face it, this movie used to be found in the "Drive In Flicks" section of the rental places if they even HAD it.)

The video quality is as good as we can expect. It is certainly sharper and brighter than other recent presentations of the film, but unfortunately, there ARE sequences where the scratches and wear obviously could not be spirited away digitally. I sincerely doubt that any fan of the movie will mind; this isn't Bergman or Fellini we're talking about! (In the opening scene, an Air Force office is suggesting to his fellow officer that perhaps "sleep would be better than all the benzedrine...

"Colonel, I've lived in these backwoods all my life, and I can assure you there's no animal in these parts that could do that."
I gotta figure doing PR for the gooberment's atomic energy program in the 1950s must have been one hell of an uphill battle as it seemed every other horror or science fiction thriller released in the day involved something either getting embiggened, shrunken, or just plain mutated and messed up in general, as depicted in this classic British made feature Fiend without a Face (1958), due to radiation derived from our relatively new found ability to smash them atoms. Directed by Arthur Crabtree (Horrors of the Black Museum), the film stars Marshall Thompson (It! The Terror from Beyond Space, First Man Into Space, "Daktari"), Kynaston Reeves (RX for Murder), and Kim Parker (Fire Maidens from Outer Space). Also appearing is Terry Kilburn (Swiss Family Robinson), Peter Madden (Dr. Terror's House of Horrors), and Stanley Maxted (Strange Awakening).

As the film begins we're at a U.S. Air Force base in Canada and we see a lone guard at night on the perimeter. After hearing some...

A mutant brain eating monster brain mondo cliche movie
Forget the title, "Fiend Without a Face" is the one with the brain monsters. That is all you have to tell people for them to go, "Oh, yes! That movie! I remember that movie!" This 1958 British horror film might not be beloved, but is certainly memorable because of the stop-motion animation that is used to have the monster, which look like big brains with horns and a spinal chord tail that they use to move around and strangle their victims (these must have been partially responsible for inspiring the face-huggers from the "Alien" series). This is also one of the goriest films of that decade, which was probably a way of covering up for the fact that you had actors screaming and writhing in pain with a big fake brain monster taped to their heads sucking out their brains.

Our tale is set at an American military base in Canada (interesting to see a British film play about American-Canadian tensions like this). The locals start dropping dead, screaming in horror, and the thinking is...

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The Honeymoon Killers

"DEAR MARTHA"...
The true story of Raymond Fernandez and Martha Beck is sad and depressing. Their arrests, trial and subsequent executions are vividly described through actual newspaper clips and photos in one of the extras on this remarkable DVD. The film itself is a striking b&w drama detailing their exploits as the "Lonely Hearts" killers. They met through a "friendship" club advertised in a sleazy tabloid and embarked on their grisly journey through several states using the same club as their stalking point. Fernandez, a Latin lover type gigolo/con-man, had originally planned to fleece Martha but decided her career as a registered nurse wouldn't yield much profit. Yet Martha went after him instead. She was single, overweight, depressed and felt she had nothing to lose. Plus she was smitten with him. At first, she just got in Fernandez's way. But she soon proved a valuable asset and they became a team posing as brother and sister as they stalked and fleeced needy single women while Fernandez worked...

STOP READING AND BUY THIS NOW!!!
This is turning into one of my favorite movies ever. It is so rich, dark and complex, genuinely shocking and disturbing, well written, well photographed, well acted... I just can't say enough good things about it.

This is also one of those movies that I think it is better to know as little as possible about before seeing it, so if I were you, I would turn the Internet off and go buy it right now. But since I know that if you don't know anything about it, you have no reason to buy it, I will tell you that it is a true crime drama that concerns a very perverse relationship, the bilking of innocents, and elements of very black humor. Okay, stop reading now and go buy it. I'm really serious, you NEED to see this.

SPOILERS FROM HERE ON OUT >>>>>
I have watched this movie four times now, and it just keeps getting richer each time. Though it may not always seem like it, every single element is in place and the script and direction are as tight as they can possibly...

Manipulative affection in drama-documentary...
Honeymoon killers is based on the true events that took place during the late 40s when a heavy nurse, Martha Beck begins to exchange letters with the sly and manipulative Raymond Fernandez who she met through an add in a Lonely Hearts club. Raymond uses the club to con lonely women, but it turns out that Raymond and Martha have something in common. Together the two begin to pick victims and steal women's savings, which eventually leads to murder. Honeymoon Killers is a monstrous story that reveals the dark nature of Martha's passion for Raymond as they tour east USA leaving a trail of corpses. Yet, it is a sad story as Martha is incapable of recognizing their failing love as she desires the need to feel loved by Raymond. Honeymoon Killers is a black and white drama-documentary that leaves the audience with a good, yet mind numbing cinematic experience.

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Samurai Trilogy Part 1: Musashi Miyamoto

Excellent viewing.
I enjoy Japanese films, and Toshiro Mifune is one of my favorite actors. Samurai I Musashi Miyamoto, the first of a trilogy by Inagaki, is an excellent example of the genre, justly winning an Academy Award for best foreign film in 1955. In color, which many of the other Japanese films in my collection are not, the cinematography is lovely. Although lacking some of the artistic panache of Kurosawa's or Kobayashi's work, Inogaki's film is not the less visually satisfying for it. Whereas both Kurosawa and Kobayashi's films seem at times too constrained with respect to set, color and special effects which at times distracts from the main theme of their story, Inagaki's Samurai I relies on the natural charms of the Japanese countryside and its national architectural style. Some of the settings are exquisite, and the buildings have an almost Frank Lloyd Wright fitness, complimenting their environment without being intrusive.

The story has a dramatist's sense of character development...

CRAZY HORSE
The first part of director Hiroshi Inagaki's Samurai trilogy, that is SAMURAI I : MIYAMOTO MUSASHI, won in 1954 the academy award for best foreign movie released in the U.S.. It's a movie filmed in glorious Eastmancolor and shot, for the most part of it, in the japanese landscapes. Set in 1600 A.D., in a civil war period, SAMURAI I relates the first years of samurai apprenticeship of Takezo who, with his friend, Matahachi, decides to go to war in order to obtain fame.

Wild, without attach, Takezo will soon turn into a ronin, a samurai without a Master nor a philosophical goal. He becomes an animal and is finally caught by his fellowmen. Saved by a buddhist monk, he will learn Wisdom by reading books.

You will find in SAMURAI I several characters and situations one will encounter in numerous other japanese or even american movies. For instance, the Mother and her Daughter, alone in their lost wooden house, who will become extremely dangerous after a few weeks can be...

Great Action But Something More, Too
This trilogy is the story of a lone, masterless samurai (ronin) on a burning quest to perfect his craft. Although full of action, the real story is Musashi's maturation not just as a martial artist, but as a human being. Some scenes are nearly spiritual.

The direction and acting are excellent. Mifune is the perfect choice to portray Musashi - he is a fine actor and carries off the fight scenes quite adroitly.

The screenplay is based on Eiji Yoshikawa's novel about Musashi. If you haven't already read the book then I encourage you to do so. It's been called the "Gone With the Wind" of Japan and has sold something like 100 million copies. And deservedly so, it is a very good book.

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Corridors of Blood

An Eclectic Collection of Horror and Sci-Fi
This is an excellent collection of four films, once late night staples, which have fallen into obscurity in recent times. There are two excellent sci-fi flicks and two wonderful Karloff films. As with most Criterion releases, a bit pricey, but collectors and fans alike will find the collection worth while.

ATOMIC SUBMARINE (1959) - Arthur Franz, Dick Foran, Tim Conway and Joi Lansing are a part of a crew of an atomic submarine that is tracking an underwater UFO, which is responsible for the sinking of several ships. They track the saucer to the North Pole, where it is using the magnetic field to replenish itself. They board the saucer and meet its occupant, a hairy octopus-like creature with one huge eye.

CORRIDORS OF BLOOD (1958) - Karloff is in fine form as Dr. Bolton, a physician experimenting with anesthesia in the 1840s. Basing his mixture on opium, he becomes addicted in the process, which leads to his dismissal from the hospital. Needing money to purchase...

man, tough crowd
wow, people are not giving this set enough credit. These films, while not the best Karloff films, or the best examples of the genere, are all entertaining. The karloff films are much better than people are making them out to be. the atomic submarine and first man into space are also very fun films. all of the films look great.

But, the extras, including commentaries ON ALL FOUR FILMS is what makes this set. The commentaries are nformative, interesting, a great listen.

if you like classic horror/sci-fi and enjoy good commentary tracks, buy this set.

The criterion edition of fiend w/o a face is also highly reccomended.

Best of the later Karloff's.
This is an old favorite of mine; it also happens to be one of Karloff's best later performances. He's perfect as the kind elderly doctor who gets involved with the wrong people, one of them being Christopher Lee as grave-robber Resurrection Joe (!). And the always good Francis Matthews is, well, good as always. (The film is actually close in tone to "The Body Snatcher", but Karloff's part here is a quite different one.) You really feel deeply for the poor doc, thanks to the great Boris. The b/w movie may look like a Hammer film, but I wouldn't call it a Horror movie. -Sure, it's got some "horrific" scenes, but overall it looks more like a nice period drama stuck with a misleading title. (-If they had to give it such an awful title; something like "Corridors Of Pain" might have been a better choice, considering there are more screams heard than blood seen.) It's not only the best of his last films, but among the very best of his massive and...

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Silent Rage [HD]

ultimate killing machine vs the ultimate fighting machine
a must for all chuck fans ,indestructable madman (brian libby) goes on the rampage after being injected with a super healing serum ,needless to say chuck comes to the rescue not only [whooping him],he even has time to take on a gang of bikers in what is a classic bar room brawl,in which chuck shows why he was six time karate champ.this film should be taken for what it is sheer enjoyment!sit back and watch chuck at his [brawling] best,the baddies are excellent too,watch and judge for yourself.

A Wild Movie!
Chuch Norris as I have never seen him. As the Sheriff of a small town he does battle with an indestructible man. This man started the movie as a mental patient who commits murder at an apartment complex. Theman is gunned down by the police. At the hospital he is made indestructible by doctors(mad scientists).He then proceeds to kill everyone who poses a threat to him. Before he and Chuck meet up Chuck whips a motorcycle gang. At the end of the movie he and Sheriff Chuck wage war all over the countryside. Nothing Chuck does to him will kill him. Sheriff Chuck finally throws him in a well. It ends with the mad killer springing out of the water. My only dissapointment was that there wasn't a sequel. A very exciting movie. A bit different for Chuck Norris though.

Science created him, but can Chuck stop him?
Chuck does horror in the 1982 classic "Silent Rage" in which Chuck Norris, as Sheriff Dan Stevens, takes on a superhuman biological project gone bad in John Kirby. John Kirby was already dangerously disturbed before he was killed, but after he is brought back to life by a mad scientist, this guy is unstoppable!! I mean I am talking Michael Myers style!! John Kirby is evil, dangerous and deadly as he kills a bunch of people on his way to a match with Sheriff Dan Stevens and his karate kicks. Will Chuck be a match for John Kirby? On paper, the answer is no, but with Chuck's karate kicks and chops having more power than shotgun blasts, one would have to give the edge to Chuck Norris in this matchup.

Notwithstanding Chuck Norris' notorious karate scene when he beats the butts of an entire biker gang in a bar all by himself, this movie does have some horror merit to it, although not much. First, you gotta love the music in this flick, especially John Kirby's theme or death...

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