BY ADRIAN SMITH

(The following pertains to the UK, Region 2 releases)  

Like Walt Disney before him, Gerry Anderson's name became a brand identifier in itself, a mark of quality. It is impossible to hear his name without automatically thinking of puppets on strings, whizzing spaceships and secret island hideouts. In tribute to Anderson, who sadly passed away two years ago before the completion of this documentary, Filmed in Supermarionation presents a brilliantly detailed history of his working life. The film is full of archival material detailing just how difficult it was bringing life to those puppets, along with interviews with many of those who worked alongside Anderson, most notably his wife and long-standing collaborator Sylvia who also provided the voice of Lady Penelope.

The documentary revisits some of the original studios that Anderson and his crew used and new footage is shot in Supermarionation (Gerry Anderson's term to describe his use of marionettes) to demonstrate the filmmaking process. Some of it is surprisingly low-tech but always ingenious. Alongside Gerry Anderson's son Jamie, Lady Penelope and her chauffeur Parker themselves act as presenters for the film, and whole sets are rebuilt and then blown up in slow motion. The documentary also reveals some of the tensions between Gerry Anderson and Lew Grade, the ITC producer who first bought their shows and then the whole company itself. It was under Grade that they made the move into colour and produced their most popular and well-loved show, Thunderbirds. Following the relative failure of the Thunderbirds Are GO movie in 1966 Anderson went slightly darker with his follow-up TV show Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons. Even another Thunderbirds movie two years later did not do well, perhaps because potential audiences felt they had seen it already on television.

Anderson continued to improve the process and develop technology that made his shows of such a high quality, including early use of video assist, which meant that his puppeteers could view the action live on monitors instead of just looking down at the puppets heads. Thankfully, unlike a lot of television production at the time which was shot on primitive video tape, Anderson's shows were shot on film, meaning they have been preserved and all look great today.

Despite often claiming to hate the puppets (he reveals that early on he hoped to become a director like Steven Spielberg) Gerry Anderson nevertheless worked with them throughout the 1960s before finally having the opportunity to work with real actors; first producing the theatrical film Journey to the Far Side of the Sun, and then the successful TV series' UFO and Space: 1999. Staying within science fiction, all of these shows still made extensive use of miniatures and the effects that he had developed in his earlier puppet shows.

Network Distributing have produced this documentary and are releasing it in both DVD and Blu-ray formats. For real fans and collectors there is a limited edition box set featuring books, comics and bonus original Gerry Anderson episodes of early shows like Four Feathers Fall, Fireball XL5 and Supercar, all restored and in HD. (This can be ordered by clicking here.)

You can order Filmed in Supermarionation here

BY ADRIAN SMITH

Although by the late 1970s Richard Burton's reputation was based more on his hard-drinking and turbulent marriages, he was still capable of demonstrating his powers as a dangerous and magnetic performer. Arguably by this time he had lost some of his former box-office draw and was taking roles in horror films like Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977) and The Medusa Touch to pay the bills, yet he was still a mesmerising screen presence and in this film can even command the attention of the audience whilst lying on a hospital bed in a coma.

The Medusa Touch is set in London and begins with a murder. In the opening scene we see renowned author John Morlar (Richard Burton) watching news of a space shuttle disaster on TV. Within seconds he is being bludgeoned to death by a blunt instrument. It is something of a shock to see the lead actor of a movie being killed before the credits have even rolled, however, all is not lost. When the police arrive, led by Inspector Brunel (Lino Ventura), a French detective on some kind of exchange visit to Scotland Yard, they realise that he is still alive. Just. He is whisked to hospital where he is put under the charge of Dr. Johnson (Gordon Jackson) and wired up to several monitors and machines in an effort to keep him alive. It is then up to Brunel to find out who tried to kill him and why.

So despite initially appearing that Burton is merely in this film as a cameo role, he does actually show up in several lengthy flashbacks as Brunel tries to track down anyone who knew him. One person who may be able to help is his psychiatrist, played by Lee Remick. She discloses that Morlar believed he had the power to cause disasters by willing them in his mind; the so-called "Medusa Touch". Initially believing this to be a curse, he gradually comes to the realisation that he can use this power to change the world.

The Medusa Touch features some spectacular special effects as Morlar's disasters grow and grow in scale and magnitude, from a horrific plane crash into a large apartment building to an a royal assassination attempt by demolishing a major London landmark. It does not take Brunel long to turn from being sceptical of these powers to being in a race against time to stop Morlar in his diabolical quest.

Briskly directed by Jack Gold, The Medusa Touch is pure entertainment throughout and plays like a cross between The Omen (1976) and an episode of Columbo. This new Blu-ray features an excellent transfer and some fascinating behind the scenes footage of the film's climax in Westminster Abbey. Jack Gold is accompanied on a commentary track by genre authorities Kim Newman (who has also written a booklet for this release) and Stephen Jones, where Gold is enthusiastic and full of praise for all those who worked on the film.

Click here to order and view original trailer. (This is for the UK, region 2 release.)  

(This review pertains to the British Blu-ray release by Network)

BY ADRIAN SMITH 

A mysterious Englishman with mystical powers, a sexy wife, a game of cricket and an insane asylum. In different hands these elements could have been combined to make an Amicus portmanteau film in the style of Tales From the Crypt or Asylum. In the hands of I, Claudius author Robert Graves and Palme d'Or-winning Polish director Jerzy Skolimowski it becomes a strange, hypnotic and fragmented tale that unsettles and confuses in equal measure.

Alan Bates, who could give Richard Burton a run for his money in the "brooding intensity" stakes, plays Crossley, a disheveled yet charismatic wanderer who bursts uninvited into the lives of Anthony and Rachel with devastating consequences. Anthony (John Hurt) is a Radiophonic Workshop-style musician who spends most of his time recording unusual noises and manipulating tape decks. Despite his apparent affair with the wife of the village cobbler, he is happily married, if somewhat distracted from her needs by his own sound obsessions. Rachel (Susannah York) is initially upset by the presence of Crossley, who invited himself in for Sunday lunch whilst Anthony was too polite to say no. Crossley claims to have spent the last eighteen years in the Australian outback married to an aboriginal woman, where he legally killed his children. He explains to Anthony that he also learned shamanic abilities, including a form of shout that when uttered can kill anyone and anything within earshot. Anthony is sceptical, yet with his interests in sound, he cannot resist a demonstration.

This plot setup could lead to a conventional thriller or horror film, but Skolimowski has created something entirely unconventional. Crossley is relating this tale to a young Tim Curry at a novelty cricket match being played between inmates and local villagers, which in itself seems a highly unlikely scenario. The Shout uses collage-style editing and an increasingly schizophrenic narrative until we are not entirely sure what is going on or whose version of events to believe.

The soundtrack is particularly inventive and unusual, making the most of the opportunity it was given in 1978 of being one of the first films distributed in Dolby Stereo. When Alan Bates does shout the audience must have all felt close to death. The cinematography is also spectacular, making the Devon landscape look both beautiful and dangerous. The Shout features a terrific cast who really embrace the concept without hamming it up, something which could easily have happened if a "killer shout" movie was being directed by anyone else. And if you have ever wanted to see Oscar-winner Jim Broadbent strip almost naked and smear himself in excrement then look no further.

This new Blu-ray features a new HD transfer from the original film elements, an interview with the film's producer Jeremy Thomas, an audio commentary from Stephen Jones and Kim Newman and a booklet featuring new writing from Newman and Karen Oughton.