Columnists
Entries from October 2012
By Todd Garbarini
One
of the most iconic of all monster movie images is most certainly Universal
Pictures’ Creature from the Black Lagoon, as depicted by numerous actors in the
film of the same name. Although
Universal’s previous monsters – the Frankenstein monster, Dracula, The Wolf Man
and The Mummy – all had their genesis in the world of literature, the Gill Man,
as the Creature is alternatively known, is largely a cinematic concoction and his
story is no doubt patterned after the King himself, Kong. While the similarities between the largest
inhabitant of Skull Island and the Gill Man are undeniable, the method of
bringing these two nightmare-inducing monsters to the screen is not. While the former was a combination of
stop-motion animation and large-scale mechanics, the latter is the cinema’s
first depiction of a monster in a beautifully-designed, full-body suit
inhabited by an actor, most notably swimmer Ricou Browning in the underwater
scenes of not only the original film, but in two sequels.
In
1954, Dragon Books in the United Kingdom published the novelization, or movie
“tie-in,†of Creature from the Black
Lagoon (1954), written by John Russell Fearn under the pseudonym of Vargo
Statten. It featured colorful cover art
by artist John Richards and is very rare, commanding between $1K and $6K
dollars depending upon its condition. Now,
DreamHaven Books has reprinted this tie-in here in the United States with a
beautiful cover by Bob Eggleton. What
you will find in this beautifully designed new book, in addition to the
novelization, is an excellent introduction by David J. Schow, himself a Creature historian. He provides not only
a valuable look into the making of the film, but also the procedures that were
in place at Universal Pictures and the team of artists who were tasked with
designing, creating and building a suit that would look like a living,
breathing creature, under the supervision of make-up head Bud Westmore. The
more that I read about this, the more I wished that Creature had been filmed in color; unfortunately, Universal
wouldn’t spend the additional $100K required to do that. This is a shame as the Gill Man is a truly
beautiful creation.
Mr.
Schow also illustrates the finer points of writing a movie tie-in, and how
authors of such materials were generally hired on a contractual, per-project
basis, and were based upon drafts of the script that were often changed later
on thereby making the novelization radically different than its usually far
superior cinematic counterpart. Such
books were produced within a quick timeframe, and one can only imagine the possibilities
today of utilizing a dictation software package to bang out a few of these
books on a laptop in a matter of months, technology only dreamed of fifty years
ago.
The
novelization of Creature goes a few
steps further than the film by not only introducing further dialog into the mix
to pad out the story and flesh out the characters, but also brings the reader
inside the Gill Man’s head and gets inside his thoughts, especially in his
captivation of Kay Lawrence, portrayed in the film by Julie Adams, and his
desire to win her over. There are also
57 beautiful behind-the-scenes shots of the making of the film and, as a bonus
each, of the book’s nine chapters is prefaced with a publicity still.
The
book is rounded out with a terrific afterword about author Fearn, written by
Philip Harbottle, chronicling Mr. Fearn’s early life in the cotton business,
which he abandoned after two years to pursue writing. It also covers his stint
as a motion picture theatre projectionist.
This
is a must-have for Creature fans and
is highly recommended for horror fans who want to broaden their knowledge of
this fascinating progenitor of many subsequent man-in-the-suit horrors, Dan
O’Bannon’s titular Alien being the
most obvious and arguably the most frightening in the cinema.
Click
here to order.
By Todd Garbarini
Poor
Pretty Eddie is
a bizarre concoction, the sort of movie that they just don't make anymore, and
certainly not in the way in which this politically incorrect creation from 1974
was made. Released on DVD in 2006 with a fairly lousy and dark transfer, the
film has been issued in a Blu-ray and DVD combo pack by the fine folks at HD
Cinema Classics. Remastered in high definition by Film Chest, Inc. from a 35mm
theatrical print, Poor Pretty Eddie concerns
an African-American singer, Liz Weatherly (Leslie Uggams), who ends up stranded
in the woods after her car breaks down and encounters a bizarre group of
characters. Where is a cell phone when
you need one? Due to the presence of the
newly-built interstate (have you ever noticed how all of these characters’ ills
are attributed to government highways?), the remote southern town that she
stumbles across is on its last legs. It would be impossible to discuss this
film without making a mention of John Boorman’s Deliverance made two years prior to it, and all of the backwoods
redneck jokes that probably popped into the audiences’ minds while viewing the
film.
Weatherly takes a room at an inn that
is home to a group of show business wannabes, most notably Bertha (the always
reliable nutcase Shelley Winters, fresh from her turns as Mrs. Armstrong, Auntie
Roo and Helen Hill), Bertha’s lover Eddie (Michael Christian) who has patterned
himself after Elvis and sees Bertha as his ticket to fame, Keno (Ted Cassidy)
the handyman, and Sheriff Orville (Slim Pickens). Dub Taylor even shows up! The Charlie Williams Pinecrest Lodge in
Athens, GA doubles as the inn (it was closed in early 2004) where 90% of the
action was filmed. The film appears to
have a look and feel that seems to almost be drug-induced, with a strange array
of characters and big colors as part of the set design. It is an unpredictable hodgepodge of weirdness
and must be seen to be believed.
Cinematographer David Worth provides a
very interesting and entertaining commentary along with cult film historian Joe
Rubin. Mr. Worth’s loquacity is matched
only by his erudition of the film business, and for a film made nearly 40 years
ago he speaks with tremendous flair and great recollection, despite his claims
to the contrary. In the early 1970s,
aspiring editors and directors generally cut their teeth in what was then known
as the porn industry (now called the “adult film industry†– it has become more
respectable I suppose!). They rarely had
their names appear in the credits of such fair. Poor Pretty Eddie was no
stranger to controversy, as it contains a rape scene involving Eddie and Liz;
the scene juxtaposes images of dogs mating in slow motion. Make of that what you will!
The transfer is in high definition,
although the print is not completely free of lines and scratches, particularly just
after the head of the reel changes. This
is a minor complaint, however.
In addition to the feature audio
commentary, the package contains the following extras:
- - Theatrical
Trailer
- - Production
Stills
- - A
historical essay
- - A
neat postcard featuring the original poster art
- - A restoration
demonstration
I personally love HD Cinema
Classics. They package their films as a combo pak, which gives the viewer the opportunity to see that
Blu-ray is definitely the way to go.
CLICK HERE TO ORDER POOR PRETTY EDDIE FROM AMAZON.COM
By Todd Garbarini
One of the great joys of going to the
movies as a child was seeing Walt Disney films in a movie theater. I saw many of the live-action variety, but there
were instances of Disney's classic cartoons being reissued on double bills with
other Disney fare. One such film was
1950’s Cinderella, a movie that my
mother had seen when she was about ten. I
recall, even as a child, having a deep appreciation for the art of animation
and, in the early 1990s, a woman who attended one of my classes in college was
buying up the Disney films on VHS. I
remember thinking how much better the films fared on laserdisc, but I never
said anything for fear of sounding like a snob. All of those previous analog technologies, which were passable at the
time, pale in comparison to the new Blu-ray of Cinderella. Disney has been
doing an extraordinary job with their animated features in terms of high definition,
sparing no expense at bringing their classic library one film at a time to home
video. If you don’t see Cinderella on Blu-ray, I can honestly
say that you really haven’t seen it, nor is it possible to fully appreciate the
artistry that went into the making of this classic film. Nuances that were never before seen in analog
format (even the high-end laserdisc editions) are now breathtakingly clear,
colorful and robust. All of this has
been made possible thanks to the folks who have given Cinderella a much-needed digital facelift and overhaul.
By now, the story of Cinderella is so familiar that it would
be difficult indeed to find anyone unfamiliar with it. The story of a young girl forced to work as a
maid for her evil stepmother and two wicked stepsisters and her turn at the
ball have become so much a part of our lexicon and culture that even those who
have not read the story or seen the film knows exactly what one is talking
about merely through reference. If you’re
one of those who have not seen the film yet, there is no better way to get acquainted
with the story than with the new Blu-ray.
The extras include:
Tangled
Ever After animated short
which is a lead-in to the film (also on the DVD)
Never-Before-Seen Alternate Opening Sequence
in storybook form
Personalized Digital Storybook:
Bibbidi-Bobbidi-You – “Disney Second Screen†technology which permits viewers to experience
a virtual storybook addendum to the film on an electronic device such as a
computer, an iPod Touch, or an iPad.
Behind the Magic: A New Disney princess
Fantasyland (about 8 minutes and also on the DVD)
The Real Fairy Godmother – a 12-minute tribute
to Walt Disney’s wife
The film is available in several
different flavors:
a 2-disc set which is comprised of one
Blu-ray and one DVD
a 3-disc set which is comprised of one
Blu-ray and two DVDs
a 6-disc set which includes Cinderella (1950), and the
made-for-video productions Cinderella II:
Dreams Come True (2002) and Cinderella
III: Twist in Time (2007) on Blu-ray, DVD, and a Digital Copy of Cinderella. All six discs reside in a Cinderella Picture Storybook that sits inside a jewelry box.
The sound is also much improved and a
far cry from the low-fidelity, hiss-y sound that was so prevalent on the VHS
version of the film.
Cinderella has never looked like this
before. This Blu-ray is a must-own.
Click here to order from Amazon
By Todd Garbarini
The 1970s were an unorthodox time in
American cinema. It was an era in which an actress like Jodie Foster could play
a 12-year-old prostitute one year and appear in a family comedy about switching
bodies with her mother the following year. I can honestly say that's not something you
would ever see today.
In early 1978 my parents took me to see
Disney's Pete's
Dragon
(1977). Before the movie started, the
trailer for the R-rated Straight Time
starring Dustin Hoffman was shown. I
distinctly recall the scene of Hoffman doing an embarrassing number on M. Emmet
Walsh and stranding him on the highway. Crazy! The experience did not detract from the fact
that Pete’s Dragon, a live-action film
mixed with animation and the most expensive that Disney made up to that point
(roughly $8M, which is about $32M today), is a charming family film that
arrives on Blu-ray with a beautiful transfer. The story of a young orphan named Pete (Sean Marshal who has since left
acting for other pursuits) and his inarticulate, grunting sidekick Elliott (an animated
and sometimes invisible dragon) set in the 1920s features Shelley Winters as
Pete’s abusive adoptive mother trying to get him back; Mickey Rooney as Lampie,
a drunken lighthouse keeper who sees Elliott and tries to convince his doubters;
Helen Reddy as Nora (Lampie’s daughter) who thinks that Elliott is just an
imaginary friend; Jim Dale as Doc Terminus, a snake oil salesman and his
sidekick Hoagy (Red Buttons); and Jim Backus as the Mayor. The action is punctuated by a good number of
musical interludes, and the film was nominated for Best Original Song (“Candle on
the Waterâ€) and Best Original Score. It
won the Golden Globe for Best Original Score for Al Kasha and Joel Hirschhorn.
The mixture of animation and live
action cannot rival that of today’s computer technology, but it doesn’t detract
from the film, either. The performances
and the musical numbers are what really propel the story and make it a
fun-filled viewing until the end when it gets a tad elegiac as Elliott must
move on.
The set design is also fairly
spectacular, including a full-blown lighthouse that was built (and subsequently
torn down) for the film in San Luis Obispo, CA which doubles as the
tongue-twisting Passamaquoddy, Maine.
Disney is really getting it right by
releasing combo DVD and Blu-ray sets. I
wish that more studios would adopt a similar method of releasing films. Judging by the side-by-side comparison, it is
obvious that Blu-ray is the best method to watch the film. The clarity is far better than standard DVD,
and the sound is a lot richer than the previous VHS and DVD releases. I am hoping for a Blu-ray of One of Our Dinosaurs is Missing (1975),
which I saw at a drive-in when I was seven.
The Blu-ray features the following
extras:
Brazzle
Dazzle Effects: Behind Disney’s Movie Magic which illustrates the history of Disney’s mix of live-action
and animation. Narrated by Sean Marshall (Pete), the featurette runs just over
25 minutes and has a lot of nice behind-the-scenes footage during the film’s
production in 1976. It also compares the
technology of then to the computers of today.
Deleted Storyboard Sequence: “Terminus
& Hoagy Hunt Elliott†which presents a rare, demo dialogue track set to
visual storyboard sketches and runs two and-a-half minutes.
Original Song Concept: “Boo Bop Bopbop
Bop (I Love You, Too)†which is a first demo recording from 1976, with early
story sketches of Pete singing to Elliott and runs two and-a-half minutes (this
is included on the DVD).
Click here to order from Amazon
By Todd Garbarini
Bye
Bye Birdie (1963) is an
exuberant, squeaky clean musical comedy from Columbia Pictures that is based
upon the 1960 Broadway musical of the same name. It is also extremely dated by today’s standards
and flat-out corny at times. Overall,
however, it is a fun ride that sports a good number of memorable musical
interludes, the title song easily giving the viewer a severe case of
earworm. Director George Sidney was no
stranger to musicals as he was also responsible for Ziegfeld Follies (1945), The
Harvey Girls (1946), Holiday in
Mexico (1946), Annie Get Your Gun
(1950), Showboat (1951) and Scaramouche (1952). Here, he brings to the screen the story of
Kim MacAfee (twenty-two year-old Ann-Margret in her breakout performance) as a high school girl who becomes the envy of her peers when she is given the opportunity to kiss teen
rock idol Conrad Birdie on the Ed Sullivan Show in front of the whole nation-
a development that leads to a rift with her boyfriend Hugo ( real-life teen idol Bobby Rydell in a
passable performance). Inspired by the military
drafting of Elvis Presley in December 1957 (he went on to co-star opposite
Ann-Margret in 1964’s Viva Las Vegas,
also directed by George Sidney), Bye Bye
Birdie possesses an infectious energy with its smile-inducing attempts to
curtail the ever overflowing zeal of female fans who cannot get enough of the
titular singer (Jesse Pearson). That fervor for Elvis would soon be eclipsed by
something even more radical: Beatlemania. Why girls would be expected to swoon
over the less-than-stellar looks of Birdie is anyone’s guess but in this film
fantasy we are also expected to believe Paul Lynde could have fathered
Ann-Margret. Lynde is actually very funny
in his role (with his quirks and mannerisms that made him literally the center
of attention on Hollywood Squares), especially
in his rendition of “Kids,†a song about annoying offspring.
The film opens with a tantalizing
rendition of the title song by Ann-Margret set against a bright blue screen,
and this illustrates that this is primarily a star-making showcase for her. Although she appeared previously in smaller
roles in Pocketful of Miracles (1961) and State Fair (1962), the vivacious actress shines in this film. The aforementioned sequence is a powerful and
memorable enough showcase to have influenced an entire episode of AMC’s fine
series Mad Men and reportedly was
shot after filming wrapped specifically to promote her. Ann-Margret’s singing bookends the film as
Albert Peterson (Dick Van Dyke, as his usual and likeable self) tries to write
a song that Birdie will sing on the TV show. Albert’s girlfriend Rosie DeLeon (Janet Leigh, in a musical performance
I would never have expected from her) wants his domineering mother (Maureen
Stapleton) to butt out of his business and marry Albert. As a Hollywood musical, everything turns out
for the best in the end, but not before the lead characters belt out a few
songs of their own.
Bye
Bye Birdie was the first
movie that I ever rented from West Coast Video in the fall of 1987 on VHS. The Columbia
Home Video tape was even produced in the old oversized clamshell box and the
picture quality was absolutely horrendous. Twilight Time’s brand-new Blu-ray blows all previous home video
incarnations of this film out of the water. Retaining the film's original
anamorphic 2.35:1 Panavision aspect ratio, the image is head and shoulders
above the Pioneer special widescreen laserdisc edition from the 1990’s and the
DVD from 1999. The Blu-ray contains an
isolated music and sound effects track and has been pressed in a limited number
of 3,000 copies, so click here to pick one up from Screen Archives
Entertainment. They also offer the
infectious soundtrack album which can be purchased here.
By Todd Garbarini
Mad
Monster Party is
a relatively obscure stop-motion animated musical treat from 1967 that many
non-genre fans are unaware of. Aimed at
children, it is the creation of Rankin and Bass, the production team
responsible for so many holiday television specials including Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Santa Claus
is Comin’ to Town, The Little Drummer Boy, and The Year Without a Santa Claus. Unlike these specials, however, Mad
Monster Party made the rounds to movie theaters as a feature-length film
for Saturday and Sunday matinees. It’s the
obvious inspiration for Tim Burton's The
Nightmare Before Christmas (1993), boasting an infectious musical score that
sticks in your head long after the movie is over.
Baron Boris von Frankenstein, the lead
character who is voiced by Boris Karloff in one of his last roles, decides to
hang up his lab coat and hand his castle and duties over to his less-than-capable
nephew Felix Flankin (Allen Swift) who can’t seem to do anything right. He plans to make this announcement at a
gathering of monsters that includes a dim-witted monster of his own creation,
the monster's mate (voiced by Phyllis Diller), his lab assistant Francesca
(Gale Garnett), Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde, Dracula, the Werewolf, the Creature
from the Black Lagoon, The Invisible Man, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, the
Mummy, a King Kong-like ape, and a creepy-looking Peter Lorre look-alike. Naturally, Felix goofs up everything, which
causes the monsters to conspire to eliminate him and find out the secret that Baron
Frankenstein his unearthed.
Mad
Monster Party was
originally released on Embassy Home Entertainment in the mid-1980s and was
sourced from a dark 16mm print, much like its rare television airings. The opening credits referred to the
availability of a soundtrack album, however one was never released at the time.
It took nearly 20 years for a now-defunct
record company, Percepto Records, to finally issue the music on compact disc,
which is now long out of print but can be found if you look hard enough on eBay. Unfortunately, the film's original camera negative
was reportedly water-damaged many years ago, rendering it unusable. Whether or
not it still exists is anybody's guess, but fortunately a pristine 35mm print,
which possesses a minimal amount of dirt and scratches at the head and tail of
each reel, has survived and was used for the new Blu-ray/DVD combo release which
is now available from Lionsgate. The
Blu-ray is a revelation and the film has never looked this good before. It is framed in the 4 x 3 (1.33:1) ratio, but
on widescreen monitors and televisions the image can easily be expanded to 16 x
9 (1.78:1) without looking contorted.
Both the Blu-ray and the DVD have the
following extras that have been ported over from the Lionsgate DVD-only release
from 2009:
"Mad
Monster Party: Making of a Cult Classic" featurette (14:47)
"It's
Sheer Animagic! Secrets of Stop-Motion Animation" featurette with Mark
Caballero and Seamus Walsh (9:35)
"Groovy
Ghouls: The Music of Mad Monster Party" featurette with Maury Laws (3:45)
Two
bonus sing-along tracks for kids of all ages: "Our Time to Shine†and
"One Step Ahead"
Trailer
(1:29)
The new Blu-ray is a worthy step up
from the standard DVD and worth the purchase. This will make a great addition to one’s collection, especially for Halloween.
Click here to order from Amazon.com.
BY ADRIAN SMITH
Retro Screams: Terror in the New
Millennium by Christopher T. Koetting
(Hemlock
Books, Paperback, £18,95)
392
Pages, ISBN#978-0955777462
When Texas
Chainsaw 3D is released early next year it will simply be another film in a
long line of remakes, re-imaginings, sequels or prequels that Hollywood appears
to be churning out non-stop these days. For many this production line of
remakes represents a dearth of originality in the mainstream studios. Hollywood
has become a corporate entity afraid of anything but the safest possible bet,
turning in on itself and it's back-catalogue of recognisable titles which still
have some form of cultural recognition amongst potential audiences today.
In his new book
Christopher T. Koetting catalogues many of this recent spate of remakes,
comparing their origins and productions to those of the originals. It is
somewhat alarming to be be reminded in print form just how many remakes there
have been. Retro Screams covers eighteen different films in detail
dating back to 2003, when the first Texas Chainsaw Massacre was
released, which seemingly opened the remake floodgates. Since then we have had
classics like The Fog and Halloween (both 2005) revisited, along
with lesser-known slasher titles like Prom Night (2008) and Black
Christmas (2006).
Whole chapters
are dedicated to John Carpenter, Wes Craven and George A. Romero respectively,
whose works have been ruthlessly plundered with varying degrees of success.
Koetting documents how little or how much involvement these original directors
had this time around (Craven has acted as producer on The Hills Have Eyes (2006)
and The Last House on the Left (2009) for example). The author proposes
to demonstrate whether these new versions are justified by comparing plot
details and development information, along with extensive quotes from writers
and directors. Due to a lack of footnotes or references it is difficult to
ascertain how many of these were from interviews he conducted himself, or
whether they are simply cribbed from articles and press releases. This lack of
referencing is one of the book's most serious commissions, as it makes it
difficult to judge for oneself how seriously to take some of these quotations.
The book makes
interesting reading if you have seen either the originals or the remakes being
discussed. However, if you are a fan of these films the chances are that you
will already know most of the stories surrounding the productions, particularly
as Koetting appears to have mostly gathered this information from sources
already easily available. He also appears to sit on the fence regarding the
need for remakes, and this lack of a satisfying conclusion leaves the reader
wondering just exactly what the point of this book is.
Although the idea
of the horror film remake is not a recent phenomenon (let's not forget that the
best of the Hammer horrors were all remakes of Universal), Retro Screams
reminds us that for better or worse, Hollywood is going to keep plundering
titles with any sort of recognition, and it is a minor miracle when ideas with
any originality make it into production.
To buy this book CLICK HERE
By Todd Garbarini
E.T.
The Extra-Terrestrial
(1982) opened on Friday, June 11, 1982 and was considered to be a small and
personal film by director Steven Spielberg. It was also the first movie that I recall being released on multiple
screens at the same theater simultaneously and this widespread exhibition of
the film, in addition to word-of-mouth, was no doubt partially responsible for
making E.T. the top-grossing film of
the year.
Filmed under the original title of A Boy’s Life in late 1981, E.T. was written by screenwriter Melissa
Matheson of The Black Stallion (1979)
fame, and the fact that the title was changed illustrates the switching of
focus from Elliott (Henry Thomas) to the little alien creature whose plight
captured the world. A beautifully
crafted story about childhood,
loneliness and growing up was brought to life by perhaps the only filmmaker who
could have done it justice. Mr.
Spielberg had been fascinated by outer space since the night he and his father
looked up at the stars in his backyard. As a teenager, he made an ambitious, 140-minute film called Firelight (1964) about UFOs. Years later, his own Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) acted as a sort of
follow-up to it, and E.T. was
inspired by the idea of one of the aliens at the end of this film being left
behind. The product of divorced parents,
Mr. Spielberg has claimed that E.T.
is the only script he has read and wanted to make immediately without major
changes.
The performances by everyone involved
are wonderful. Mr. Spielberg always
manages to get authentic reactions from his child actors. Who can forget Barry Guiler’s (Cary Guffey) look
of wonder (accomplished by Mr. Spielberg dressing up as a rabbit off-screen) in
Close Encounters when aliens raid his
mom’s kitchen? Here, the director really shines, especially
with Elliott’s little sister Gertie, played by six year old Drew Barrymore.
E.T. has not lost any of its original charm
or wonder, nor does the film feel dated in any way. In 2002, the director made significant
changes to the original version by adding an additional scene with E.T. in the
bathtub by way of computer-generated imagery. He also removed the guns from the hands of the men seen near the film’s
end who take over Elliott's house. He replaced the guns with walkie-talkies,
thus outraging purists. Fortunately, the Blu-ray is the original 1982 version
without these changes.
The film would not have made the impact
that it had were it not for John Williams’ wonderful score. He has created a main theme for E.T. that simply makes the onscreen
action soar. The special effects team is
to be commended as well for their ability to take a rubber and mechanical
puppet and turn it into a living, breathing creature with emotions.
If
there is a drawback to the Blu-ray set, it is the exclusion of Harrison Ford's
role as Elliott's school principal. The
director had shot a scene where Elliott is sent to the principal’s office
following the frog dissection fiasco sequence, and Elliott’s principal (Ford) asks
him why he behaved the way he did. Since
E.T. is a film about children and how
they see the world, adults (with the exception of Dee Wallace as Elliott’s
mother) are seen in synecdoche, their faces obscured. The principal was filmed this way, but the
director cut the scene feeling it was extraneous. The only time this footage ever surfaced to
my knowledge was in the deluxe CAV laser disc edition that was produced in
limited quantities in 1996. As far as I
know, no VHS, DVD, or any other video format has ever offered up this footage,
but you can see a low resolution transfer of it here on Youtube.
The
Blu-ray comes with a standard DVD and a digital copy of the film in addition to
these extras:
Steven Spielberg & E.T. (HD, 13 minutes)
The E.T. Journals (HD, 54 minutes)
Deleted Scenes (HD, 4 minutes)
A Look Back (SD, 38 minutes)
The Evolution and Creation of E.T. (SD, 50 minutes)
The E.T. Reunion (SD, 18 minutes)
The 20th Anniversary Premiere (SD, 18
minutes)
The Music of E.T. (SD, 10 minutes)
Designs, Photographs and Marketing (SD,
45 minutes)
Special Olympics TV Spot (SD, 1 minute)
Theatrical Trailer (SD, 2 minutes)
This is clearly one of the best Blu-ray
releases this year, as the carefully orchestrated color palette of Allen
Daviau, the film’s Director of Photography, has never looked better on home
video.
Click here to order from Amazon.com.
By Todd Garbarini
As Rush is now on tour in support of their Clockwork Angels album, I thought it would be fitting to have another look at their latest DVD and Blu-ray concert release, Rush: Time Machine Tour 2011 – Live in Cleveland, in addition to some truly nifty releases of their back catalog.
Rush has always been a band that never took themselves seriously, despite what their most ardent detractors have vehemently suggested. In retrospect, I still cannot understand what the music critics have been griping about all these years when it comes to Rush’s unique sound, which itself has gone through so many changes from one album to the next. As far as playing live is concerned, Rush is truly mystifying to watch as I can never quite figure out how just three people are making this music which sounds so epic and grand in scope. Yes, they have an entire group of behind-the-scenes experts making sure that the show goes smoothly, but the band sounds as though there are six people playing instead of just three.
I recall seeing Rush’s first concert video released to the masses, Exit…Stage Left, on video in 1983 and being completely wowed by the boys. Subsequent concert videos followed, but they never included the full concerts that they showcased, which was always frustrating as the tracks I really wanted to hear were invariably dropped. Thankfully, that practice has gone by the wayside, and now Rush’s concert videos are always presented in their complete form (except for the initial release of R30, which was re-issued in toto on Blu-ray).
I always wanted Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, and Neil Peart, the triumvirate that comprises Rush, to come out on stage prior to a concert’s start and have them all go to the wrong instruments by “accident†and attempt to play them, only to correct themselves and start off in their respective positions. The closest that we have gotten to seeing this happen is in the videos that appear on their most recent tour in which they do just that. Whether you watch Rush’s Time Machine Tour 2011 – Live in Cleveland on DVD or Blu-ray, you can appreciate the hard work that goes into making a show. What is really nice about this release is that this is the first time that a concert video is featuring Rush playing on U.S. soil, and they chose Cleveland as this was the city that really put them on the map in terms of radio airplay thanks to then-disc jockey Donna Halper, author of 2001’s Invisible Stars: A Social History of Women in American Broadcasting.
Continue reading "BLU-RAY AND DVD REVIEW: "RUSH TIME MACHINE TOUR 2011 LIVE IN CLEVELAND""
By Adrian Smith
Although we mainly stick to the golden
age of movies here at Cinema Retro, occasionally a new movie does grab our
attention. This summer saw the release of
The Expendables 2, a creaking collection of aging action stars desperate to
get one last gasp out of a tired genre. It could have at least been a comedy,
about the relevance of the muscular Eighties hero in the 21st century, but
sadly it failed on all levels. One look at The
Expendables 2 would lead you to believe that the action genre needs a
bullet in the head to put it out of its misery. Thankfully a film has come along that firmly blows away the cobwebs and
kicks those geriatrics back to the retirement home they belong in. The Raid (known as The Raid: Redemption in the US), is a film which so utterly
revitalises the action genre that you will feel like you have never actually
seen people fighting in a movie before.
Shot in Indonesia with mostly
non-professional actors, The Raid is
the first major release from Welsh director Gareth Evans. A thirty story
building is home to gangsters, murderers, drug dealers and thieves, with one
major crime lord overseeing it all. The police, armed to the teeth, are sent in
with the express purpose of clearing the building and taking him down.
Outnumbered, outgunned and double-crossed, they find themselves trapped and
almost certain no to make it out alive. The plot of the film is mainly an
excuse for some phenomenal martial arts fighting which is photographed in such
inventive, bone-crunching and frenetic style that each scene feels fresh and
exciting. At the heart of the film is Iko Uwais, playing a rookie cop desperate
to make it out alive to get back to his pregnant wife. Incredibly he has only
acted once before, and he has terrific screen presence, balancing charisma and
vulnerability with the absolute assurance in his own skills. Discovered by
Evans in a Silat martial arts class just five years ago, he is clearly going to
become a major star, and it is no exaggeration to compare him with Bruce Lee or
a young Jackie Chan.
The Raid
will make you look at action cinema with raised expectations from now on, and
many films are going to struggle to make an impact in its wake. It is now
available on both DVD and Blu-ray, and is certainly worth seeing as soon as
possible. There are plenty of features which take you further into the story
behind the film, which will make you want to jump up from your armchair and get
straight to your nearest self-defense class.
(Note: Smith's review is of the UK Blu-ray release)
Click here to order the American Blu-ray special edition
Cinema Retro columnist Raymond Benson’s six original 007 novels, originally published between 1997 and 2002, are now available as e-books for Amazon Kindle (other formats will appear in the future).
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THE FACTS OF DEATH
HIGH TIME TO KILL
DOUBLESHOT
NEVER DREAM OF DYING
THE MAN WITH THE RED TATTOO
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