The first issue of Cinema Retro's 15th season (#43) has now been mailed to subscribers around the globe. Thanks to our loyal readers, the world's most unique film magazine is entering another exciting year with every issue packed with the kind of coverage of classic cinema that you've come to expect. (Issue #44 will ship in April/May and issue #45 ships in September/October.)  Our kickoff issue for the new season features the following:

Tribute to the 50th anniversary of the James Bond classic "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" starring George Lazenby: a five-page photo feature packed with rare images, some never published before.

"Mackenna's Gold"- a look back fifty years on at the much-hyped big budget fiasco that has a fascinating back story.. This major article by Dave Worrall and Lee Pfeiffer is the most comprehensive ever written about the troubled production that starred Gregory Peck, Omar Sharif, Telly Savalas and an all star cast.

Cai Ross provides an exclusive interview with director Peter Medak, who recalls the little-seen Peter Sellers pirate comedy "Ghost in the Noonday Sun" and relates the maddening experience of working with the volatile comedy genius.

Dawn Dabell covers the 1966 British coming-of-age comedy "The Family Way", which allowed Hayley Mills her first adult role in a scathing comedy about coming of age during the sexual revolution. 

Brian Davdison looks back on the controversial "Assault", which is regarded as Britain's only true giallo.

Nick Anez analyzes director Robert Aldrich's bizarre-but-gripping Depression era crime drama "The Grissom Gang".

Gareth Owen examines the clues in the making of "Sleuth" starring Laurence Olivier and Michael Caine at Pinewood Studios

Brian Davidson pays tribute to actress Virginia Maskell, whose career and life were tragically short, but very impressive.

John V. Watson takes a nightmarish journey back to 1971 to examine the release of numerous high profile films that were extremely violent. Among them: "A Clockwork Orange", "Get Carter", "Villain", "Dirty Harry", "Straw Dogs" and "The Devils".

Plus Raymond Benson's "Cinema 101" column, Darren Allison's news about the latest soundtrack releases and our extensive reviews of new Blu-ray and DVD releases.

Help keep the dream of celebrating the greatest period in film history alive and in print format by subscribing or renewing today!

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Finney with Audrey Hepburn in Stanley Donen's "Two for the Road".

BY LEE PFEIFFER

Albert Finney, who rose to fame and acclaim as one of Britain's generation of actors known as "Angry Young Men", has died at age 82. A chest infection was cited as cause of death. Finney was among an exciting new generation of British actors who burst upon the scene in the 1950s and 1960s, reaping critical praise for their realistic portrayals often of troubled men who were being constrained by socio-economic conditions that afflicted the lower income class in post-War Britain. His star-making role came in director Karl Reisz's "kitchen sink" classic, the 1960 film "Saturday Night and Sunday Morning" which reflected the frustrations of the working class. Finney called upon his real life experiences growing up in Northwest England under somewhat spartan living conditions.

As a newly-minted star, he screen tested for director David Lean for the title role of "Lawrence of Arabia" but Finney didn't want to sign a five picture deal with the film's producer Sam Speigel. Peter O'Toole took the role and became a major name in international cinema. Finney was somewhat opaque compared to other young actors that emerged in the UK in the 1960s. He wasn't the publicity seeker that Richard Burton was, nor was he the hard-drinking, towel snapping joker Richard Harris was. He was thought by some critics to have not achieved his full promise on stage or screen, despite having been nominated for five Oscars and thirteen BAFTAs. (He won two of the latter.) Finney was a remote figure in a publicity-hungry industry. He rarely gave interviews and was often cynical about the shallowness of fame. He refused to attend any of the ceremonies at which he was nominated. Perhaps his best-loved role was in "Tom Jones", the 1963 screen adaptation of Henry Fielding's bawdy comedic novel. Yet, Finney's work on the big screen was spotty. He didn't work very frequently and sometimes chose projects that were not especially successful at the boxoffice. His more prominent films include "Murder on the Orient Express", "Erin Brockovich", "Two for the Road", "The Victors", "Scrooge", "Wolfen", "Shoot the Moon", "Annie", "Traffic", "The Bourne Ultimatum" and "The Bourne Legacy". He was off screen for a number of years while he waged a successful battle against cancer. His final role was a memorable one: as Kincade, the grumpy old farmer and boyhood friend of James Bond in the 2012 blockbuster "Skyfall". For more click here.

In the Hollywood Reporter, David Weiner interviews director Philip Kaufman about his brilliant, 1978 re-imagined interpretation of Don Siegel's classic 1956 sci-fi film "Invasion of the Body Snatchers". Kaufman's version was every bit the equal to the original, although the films are substantially different. Kaufman reflects back on the making of the movie and its sad significance in today's society.  Click here to read.

BY MARK CERULLI

Ian Fleming’s rise from newspaper journalist to worldwide best-selling author was not all jet-setting glamor.  In the early 1960s, with the Bond literary series well underway, Fleming was involved in a grueling legal battle regarding his novel, Thunderball – which later became the record-breaking 1965 EON film. The strain of the trial may well have contributed to Fleming’s death the following year at the relatively young age of 56…



Now the daughter of the original screenwriter, Jack Whittingham, has compiled a unique chronology of the entire episode titled, appropriately enough, "The Thunderball Story".  Sylvan Mason, an accomplished writer and photographer in her own right, has produced a spiral-bound, limited edition booklet of the behind-the-scenes battle that played out in British courts in 1963 and gave producer Kevin McClory the right to remake the story, eventually resulting in 1983’s Never Say Never Again.



Ms. Mason’s book reproduces a number of key documents and photographs, including letters, a UK premiere ticket and headlines from newspapers of the day.  There is also a highly detailed timeline from 1959 to 2003, encompassing all facets of the Thunderball story. All in all, it is a fascinating look at one of the more obscure, but important aspects of the James Bond Phenomenon – and given its limited edition status, once they’re gone, they’re gone!

If you are a Bond collector, you can order a copy here:

https://www.luisabbouplanisi.com/shop/sylvanamazingbook