BY LEE PFEIFFER

In 1986, Paul Hogan rocked the film world, coming out of nowhere in the Australian independent comedy "Crocodile Dundee". Shrewdly marketed to international audiences, the film became a blockbuster worldwide and catapulted Hogan to major stardom overnight. He had already been a very popular personality Down Under but his genial comedic skills were largely unknown to most of the world. Hogan found himself to (briefly) be the toast of the film industry as well as an unofficial goodwill ambassador for his native country. Two years later, a sequel to the film would also be deemed a major success but by the time a third Dundee movie was released in 2001, the bloom was off the rose. Hogan didn't have viable follow-up plans for a post-Dundee film career that would appeal to international audiences, even while he has remained revered in Australia. Thus, it must have seemed like a good idea to revisit Hogan and his Dundee persona in a mockumentary-style film that would show the world what he has been up to in recent years. The result is "The Very Excellent Mr. Dundee", directed by Dean Murphy and co-written by Murphy and Robert Mond.

The film presents Hogan living a very comfortable lifestyle in Hollywood, sharing his home with his party boy son (Jacob Elordi), when he is invited to a studio meeting to discuss making another sequel to "Crocodile Dundee". Hogan is old school, set in his ways and out of step with contemporary society. During the pitch meeting with the studio executives, Hogan is shocked to find they intend to cast Will Smith as his biological son. When he tries to point out that this would be an absurdity, he is quickly labeled a racist and his name is back in the news for all the wrong reasons. The film follows the beleaguered Hogan as his innocent statements and good deeds are misconstrued and his reputation continues to suffer, endangering a possible knighthood from the Queen (who is unnecessarily referred to as "The Queen of England") The meandering script never has a central focus, just unconnected vignettes peppered by cameos from well-known stars. Some of them are moderately funny. Chevy Chase appears a couple of times and the joke is that he is widely beloved by his peers in the entertainment industry, when, in fact, his real-life reputation is somewhat less than sterling. Olivia Newton-John convinces Hogan to fill in at the last minute for John Travolta for a "Grease" reunion charity benefit with predictably disastrous results. Wayne Knight becomes an uninvited house guest of Hogan's as he manically tries to hide from his wife. Most amusing is a financially-strapped John Cleese who is making ends meet as an Uber driver without a license. But Hogan's image as a nonplussed personality results in his performance being virtually lifeless. One can appreciate his ability to indulge in self-deprecating humor and one wishes certain prominent political figures might possess the same attribute. However, the film is largely a misfire that seems to have been improvised rather than scripted. The tossed salad scenario drifts between sight gags and mushy sentimentalism as Hogan connects on Facetime with his granddaughter in Oz. A particularly unfunny aspect is a plot device that sees him befriend a comically inept paparazzi. Director Dean Murphy doesn't help by encouraging his cast to play to the rafters and overact at every turn.

One hates to be a grump about a Paul Hogan comeback movie, but the movie squanders its comedic possibilities as we observe Hogan treading and plodding the streets of L.A. (some of which is doubled by location shooting in Melbourne) and encountering the requisite weirdos. There are some (almost) saving graces. While the film remains refreshingly free of smutty humor and overt political statements, it does take a couple of pot shots at contemporary society, mostly aimed at a "woke" Hollywood culture that is all-to-eager to crucify anyone who doesn't meet its standards of inclusiveness. There are also some humorous observations about the gullibility of the public to believe all manner of absurdities: a portly street impersonator of Crocodile Dundee is deemed to be more believable than Hogan, who tries to convince him that his recitation of a key line of the film's dialogue is being misquoted. Chevy Chase has convinced the public that he is an Oscar winner, despite Hogan's attempts to correct the record.The point being that if a lie is told often and sincerely enough, vast numbers of people will believe it even in the face of opposing facts, an observation that certainly is especially relevant today.

The Lionsgate DVD offers a crisp, clear transfer and includes a very brief "behind the scenes" featurette and a trailer. The film bypassed theaters due to the virus epidemic and is also available for viewing on Amazon Prime. Stay through the end credits because you'll catch a glimpse of Hogan in his Dundee attire. It only makes you wonder why he didn't simply choose to return as the legendary character in another sequel. It would have been interesting to see his take as an 80 year-old screen hero.

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Cinema Retro columnist Mark Cerulli has long championed indie horror films. They generally have one thing in common: the need to use innovative methods to compensate for less-than-extravagant budgets. Cerulli finally decided the best way to experience what it's like making one of these films was to participate in aspects of its creative process. Here is his report.

BY MARK CERULLI

As a writer/producer for HBO, I had been on a number of film sets to do interviews and shoot “B-roll”… tolerated, sometimes even welcomed but never a part of the actual film. As a scriptwriter I had also piled up an impressive number of “passes” (my favorite was from Steven Seagal’s nutritionist!). Then in a Hollywood coincidence I met director Sean Haitz at the premiere of Rob Zombie’s Three from Hell. We discovered that we shared an interest in Area 51, the mysterious military base in the high desert outside Las Vegas and UFOs. We batted ideas around, agreed on a story and I wrote a first draft. Sean came up with a catchy title - AREA 5150 – and revised the script. At age 34, this would be Sean’s 4^th film. (His latest, Cannibal Comedian will be out soon.) He gets things done. Last December, we even took a quick trip to the real Area 51 to shoot some exteriors, all under the watchful eye of “the Cammo Dudes”, the private security force who guard all approaches to the base.

After 10 or 11 drafts, Sean’s very capable Assistant Director, CJ Guerrero, imported our script into studio software where it underwent further changes. My first inkling of that was when Sean cheerfully said, “You might want to wear a cup.”

Oh really?

At the end of February I, along with the cast and a young crew of 15, were in Morongo Valley, a quiet desert community about 30 mins from Palm Springs. Sean had the run of a sprawling vehicle graveyard – cars, buses, construction equipment and the abandoned property next door (“a trap house” as actor D’Shae Beasley called it). Set decorator, prop master and makeup artist Andrea Davoren turned the vacant house into a functional-looking home – albeit without heat, running water or even plumbing. Much mayhem ensued with the walls pierced by hammers, screams and a custom chainsaw. And, of course, splattered with fake blood. (Fun fact: there are two varieties – one for the body, and a minty version for spewing out of your mouth!)

The most surreal event was staging a dinner scene that Sean wanted to do as an homage to Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Since the house had no electricity we had to use an outside generator so the floor was always a forest of cables. (My dropping an axe on one, cutting the power didn’t help!) Since our script had a crazy father role, I asked to play it as I had acted in high school and college and took some classes in NYC before chickening out on pursuing it full time. Even so, I underestimated what was involved in being in front of the camera…

Inside the house, the only source of heat was the old hearth, which production assistants thankfully kept filling with branches from the overgrown property. As it got later and later, the temperature dropped into the 30s. By the time we got ready to shoot dinner – around 2AM - we were all freezing. The others at the table – Aaron Prager (star of Sean’s upcoming Cannibal Comedian), lovely Claire Brauer (a real trooper in a skimpy cutoff t-shirt) and Rob Wight (playing my dimwitted son #2) were all professional actors. Assistant Art Director August Kingsley played my mutant offspring, Timmy, under a custom latex mask. I had foolishly written a speech for my character and suddenly realized I had to deliver it. My first take - sometime after 3 AM - was…um… lackluster. “We’re all tired. You look it and sound it…” the director said from behind the monitor. I took a deep breath and remembered what Bruce Glover (who teaches acting when he’s not trying to kill James Bond) said about “locking up”. I managed a better delivery and we finally wrapped for the night.

For a small film, Sean Haitz managed to get maximum bang for every buck – like getting a helicopter for a key scene. Original landing location dropped out? No problem: he staged a landing on a side road next to a busy highway! Our female lead tried to get away in a car so my (screen) daughter, Ruby Rose (played by our special effects guru, Matthew Lucero) crushed the car and flipped it over with a backhoe! We benefitted from having a great young Director of Photography, Kraig Bryant, who was shooting his first feature after working on music videos. He and cameraman Josh Wagner made full use of every hour of daylight, literally shooting until the sun went down.

Every movie villain deserves a wicked death and mine was a doozy – involving a circular saw and a certain body part. (Hence the cup.) I was wired with tubes running up my pants to a compressor tank filled with a gallon of fake blood. The result was a spectacular Tarantino-ish shower of gore! I drove back to the hotel drenched in drying blood, praying not to get pulled over by a cop.

After 8 long, exhilarating days, over 8 terabytes of data were digitally “in the can”. We had a movie! And I had a new cinematic family – we had all grown close during those days in the desert. That is the part of making Area 5150 I think I cherish the most.

Cinema Retro continues to shine the spotlight on worthy independent films.

BY GIACOMO SELLONI

Three pensioners in Rome find love where they least expect it. In themselves.

Citizen of the World is a sweet and ultimate touching story that centers around two old friends, now retired, collecting their pensions that barely keep them afloat in expensive Rome, who discuss leaving Italy to find a place where they can "live as kings" on their measly pensions. Giorgio Colangeli plays Giorgetto, a cantankerous ne'er do well who's rarely worked in his life and is addicted to scratch off lottery tickets. He lives in a ramshackle apartment, the bathroom of which is up a spiral, metal staircase. He allows a homeless immigrant from Africa, Abu, (a sweet performance by first time actor Salih Saadin Khalid), to use his shower.

The director, Gianni Di Gregorio (called Italy's "Larry David" for the films he makes that are about nothing and everything) portrays Il Professore. A retired professor of Latin and Greek, hes much of day in a little bar/cafe musing with Giorgetto about their hard lives. He, at least, has a more hospitable abode. It's filled with books, some rare.Giorgetto says he knows a guy who moved to Santo Domingo and lives like a king. He doesn't actually know the guy, but he 'knows' the guy's brother. He gets the brother's phone number and arranges a meeting at the man's villa in Tor Tre Treste (a district of Rome outside of the city walls) where they hope to question him and "get some info." But a trip to Tor Tre Treste requires a long walk to a bus, to a train and than another kilometer walk to find this villa, "the one with a motorcycle in the yard."  Here the meet Attilio (a wonderful Ennio Fantastichini), the jack-of-all-trades whose brother lives in Terracina, a city on the coast, 56 kilometers south of Rome, not in Santo Domingo. Attilio also dreams of leaving. He's traveled, whereas Il Professore and Giorgetto have not. He has as many stories as Aesop and numerous occupations. Now he sells and restores antique furniture. He, unlike his new friends, does not receive a pension. But, he says he's thought about it and he can leave if he wants; he's a "citizen of the world. I'm a free man!"

The entire story plays out over the course of one week. We witness the ups and downs of planning where they could go. On the advice of one of Attilio's clients (another professor) they learn it must be a place with a good exchange rate, purchasing power, a stable government, little chance of disease, natural hazards... Xenophobia could be a problem; they'll be foreigners. You get the picture.

They need to come up with funds, a float to get them on their way. They go about it in different ways. Do they get it? Do they go to....? And what about Abu, the homeless immigrant?

Our three main characters gel and spar with great chemistry. Also of note is Daphne Scoccia, who plays Attilio's, free-spirited, beauty salon owning daughter, Fiorella.

One of the most touching parts of this film has little to do with the script. Salih Saadin Khalid, in real life, was a homeless migrant living in Rome. His pay from this film allowed him to join what's left of his family in Canada.

Viewing this film has me interested in seeing more of Di Gregorio's films and more of Ennio Fantastichini's work as well. He passed away at the age of 63 in December of 2018 with 94 film credits in his career.

I highly recommend traveling with these citizens of the world.

Available for streaming now on Ovid.tv

Available now for streaming on Amazon.

(For more about Ovid.tv, click here)

BY LEE PFEIFFER

Released in 1962, Boys' Night Out was considered to be a rather racy comedy that touched upon sexual infidelity in the era when June and Ward Cleaver represented the average American household. The story centers on four businessmen- James Garner, Tony Randall, Howard Duff and Howard Morris- who indulge in a weekly night out that consists of nothing more daring than having some drinks and discussing sex. In a moment of deviancy, they decide to chip in and rent a plush Manhattan apartment, with Garner- the only bachelor of the group- acting as the beard and putting the lease in his name. They then intend to hire a hot blonde to service them on different nights of the week. The plan seems to work swimmingly. The apartment is rented and the requisite blonde (Kim Novak) appears ready, willing and able to indulge. What they don't know is that Novak is actually a student working on a thesis about sexual habits of the typical suburban male. She concocts various ways to ensure that each of her paramours never consummates the relationship, yet all the while maintaining the persona of a woman of easy virtue.

The plot becomes as predictable as yesterday's news as each of the men tries to con his friends into thinking he's had sex with Novak, when, in fact, the relationships remain completely chaste, as was the norm with these sexless sex comedies of era. Complications occur when Garner falls head over heels for Novak, but believing she is a prostitute, can't bring himself to become seriously involved with her. Although the men are paper tigers in the lovemaking department, they are deceiving their wives and families about the boys' night out, which leads to feelings of guilt and remorse. What elevates this above standard sitcom fare of the era is the remarkable cast. Aside from the charismatic leads, the supporting players include Jim Backus, Fred Clark, Oscar Homolka, Jessie Royce Landis, William Bendix and Patti Page, whose warbling of the catchy title song became a major hit on the charts at the time. It's a fun romp, despite the cliches, and Howard Morris, in his big screen debut, is most amusing in the role of an everyday guy. Henceforth, he would primarily play wacky eccentrics on TV and in film as well as earn a reputation as a top comedy director. Novak is stunningly beautiful, and the fashions she wears accentuate the reason she became a Hollywood glamor icon.

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RETRO-ACTIVE: THE BEST FROM THE CINEMA RETRO ARCHIVES

“THE LADY VANISHES ONE MORE TIME”

BY RAYMOND BENSON

The Criterion Collection has issued a Blu-ray upgrade to a previous winning DVD release—Carol Reed’s World War II suspense adventure, Night Train to Munich. It’s a terrific example of the fine cinema Britain was managing to produce even while at war. Released there in August of 1940, the country was already in the conflict, although the Blitz had not yet occurred. (The picture was released in the U.S. in December 1940, smack dab in the middle of the Blitz.)

What’s more striking is its resemblance to Alfred Hitchcock’s The Lady Vanishes (1938) in tone, setting, and even characters. Marketing pushes at the time suggested that Night Train to Munich was a “sequel” to Vanishes, which was an extremely popular movie on both sides of the Atlantic. Night Train is not a sequel, though—it’s more of a remake.

Somebody at the studio must have thought they needed “another movie like Lady Vanishes” so writers Sidney Gilliat and Frank Launder, who were responsible for the previous screenplay, were secured to pen the new one. Both pictures have plots that involve spies, double agents and Nazis, and a major portion of the stories takes place on a passenger train. To sell the “sequel” concept even more to the public, popular actress Margaret Lockwood, the star of Vanishes, was cast as the lead, this time opposite a young Rex Harrison instead of Michael Redgrave. Most curious, though, is the inclusion of two characters (and the actors who played them) from Vanishes—the duo of the very British, comical, possibly gay men known as Charters and Caldicott (played by Basil Radford and Naunton Wayne). The couple was such a hit the first time around, the two fellows had to be passengers on board Night Train, too. There has been much discussion about Charters and Caldicott’s sexual orientation since their several appearances in these and a few other films of the late thirties and early forties. Are they gay? There are certainly several humorous “clues” in these two first titles to suggest it. Since something like that couldn’t be blatantly talked about in those days, it was best for the audience to simply find it funny that two men are traveling together (again, on a train?) and possibly using the same bed (in Vanishes).

In Night Train, Lockwood plays the daughter of a Czech scientist who is the MacGuffin of the story—both the Allies and the Nazis want him. When father and daughter are captured and held in Berlin, Harrison, a British agent whose cover is to perform and sell sheet music in an English seaside town, is sent to Germany to free and bring them back to the U.K. He impersonates a Nazi major in order to get “inside,” and his impromptu escape plan involves the boarding of a train traveling from Berlin to Munich (with fellow passengers Charters and Caldicott willing to help!). In the meantime, a Nazi captain played by Paul Henreid (here credited as Paul von Henreid—before he moved to Hollywood to be in Casablanca) is dedicated to keeping the scientist and his daughter under the thumb of the Reich. Never mind that both Harrison and Henreid are both in love with Lockwood.

Sounds pretty far-fetched, doesn’t it? Forget it—this is a fast-paced, intelligently-written, well-acted, and suspenseful adventure film. Mixed in with all the excitement is light humor, in the tradition of Hitchcock’s picture, thus providing viewers with an entertaining ride. Reed, who would go on to make other classic British thrillers such as Odd Man Out and The Third Man, handles the material with panache and style—just as Hitchcock did—but with a more personal, friendlier touch.

The new disk comes with a restored, high-definition digital transfer, with an uncompressed monaural soundtrack. The image is remarkably clear and sharp, a testament to the outstanding job Criterion does in presenting vintage cinema. Supplements include a fascinating 2010 conversation between film scholars Peter Evans and Bruce Babington about the director, writers, and the socio-political climate at the time the picture was made, and an essay in the booklet by film critic Philip Kemp.

So “All aboard!” and take another ride on the thriller-adventure train. It doesn’t matter if you don’t know The Lady Vanishes—Night Train to Munich stands on its own as top notch filmmaking. Better yet, get them both and make it a double feature!

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This 1970 film industry trade advertisement promotes forthcoming films for release from the now-defunct Cinerama Releasing company. A brief glimpse at the titles indicate that, with the exception of "Willard" and "The House That Dripped Blood", all of these titles were financial bombs. That doesn't mean some didn't have artistic merit, but it does indicate why Cinerama Releasing's days as a major film distribution company were winding down.

BY LEE PFEIFFER

Actress Jessica Walter has died peacefully in her sleep at her home in New York City. She was 80 years old. Walter enjoyed a distinguished career that included an Emmy win and three other nominations. She made her big screen debut in "Lilith" in 1964 and two years later joined other female stars-in-making for director Sidney Lumet's "The Group". She went on to appear in "Grand Prix", Lumet's comedy "Bye, Bye Braverman" and opposite Charlton Heston in "Number One". However, her star-making role was as the female lead opposite Clint Eastwood in the 1971 thriller "Play Misty for Me", which marked Eastwood's debut as a director. In the film, Eastwood has what he believes is a one-night stand with Walter, who makes it clear she expects them to be in a traditional, monogamous relationship. When Eastwood spurns her, she unveils psychotic and murderous tendencies. Walter's performance was so powerful, it arguably merited an Oscar nomination.

Walter's big screen career never took off, although she did land a plum role in the hit 1984 comedy "The Flamingo Kid". However, she found great success in live theater and on television. She won an Emmy for the 1970s TV series "Amy Prentiss" and would be nominated three other times. In recent years, she played a key role in the popular sitcom "Arrested Development". She also served as 2nd National Vice President of the Screen Actors Guild and also served on the Board of Directors. Click here for more.

Cinema Retro has received the following press release:

Celebrate the 40^th Anniversary of Raiders of the Lost Ark with All Four Indiana Jones Movie Adventures on 4K Ultra HD for the First Time

HOLLYWOOD, Calif. (March 15, 2021) – Relive the unforgettable exploits of world-renowned, globetrotting hero Indiana Jones in spectacular 4K Ultra HD when the INDIANA JONES 4-MOVIE COLLECTION arrives in a new 4K Ultra HD set June 8, 2021 from Lucasfilm Ltd. and Paramount Home Entertainment.

The cinematic classic that started it all—Raiders of the Lost Ark—celebrates its 40^th anniversary this year, having first introduced audiences to the man with the hat on June 12, 1981.  Forty years later, the legendary hero continues to captivate new generations of fans.

Now, for the first time ever, all four films are available together in 4K Ultra HD with Dolby Vision^® and HDR-10 for ultra-vivid picture quality and state-of-the-art Dolby Atmos^® audio^*.  Each film has been meticulously remastered from 4K scans of the original negatives with extensive visual effects work done to ensure the most pristine and highest quality image.  All picture work was approved by director Steven Spielberg.

In addition, all four films were remixed at Skywalker Sound under the supervision of legendary sound designer Ben Burtt to create the Dolby Atmos^® soundtracks.  All original sound elements were used to achieve the fully immersive Dolby Atmos^® mixes while staying true to each film’s original creative intent.

The INDIANA JONES 4-MOVIE COLLECTION includes a collectible booklet with behind-the-scenes images from all four films.  Each film is presented on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc with original theatrical trailers and access to digital copies.  The set also includes a Blu-ray^â„¢ with seven hours of previously released bonus content as detailed below:

·         On Set with Raiders of the Lost Ark

  From Jungle to Desert

  From Adventure to Legend

·         Making the Films

The Making of Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981 documentary)

The Making of Raiders of the Lost Ark

The Making of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom

The Making of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
The Making of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (HD)

     Behind the Scenes

   The Stunts of Indiana Jones

   The Sound of Indiana Jones

   The Music of Indiana Jones

   The Light and Magic of Indiana Jones

   Raiders: The Melting Face!

   Indiana Jones and the Creepy Crawlies (with optional pop-ups)

   Travel with Indiana Jones: Locations (with optional pop-ups)

   Indy’s Women: The American Film Institute Tribute

   Indy’s Friends and Enemies

  Iconic Props (Kingdom of the Crystal Skull) (HD)

  The Effects of Indy (Kingdom of the Crystal Skull) (HD)

  Adventures in Post Production (Kingdom of the Crystal Skull) (HD)

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BY LEE PFEIFFER

Actor George Segal has passed away at age 87. Segal became a rising young star in the 1960s and went on to enjoy success in both feature films and television. He made his big screen debut in "The Young Doctors" in 1961 and within a few years had appeared in "Ship of Fools" and his first starring role in "King Rat". The 1965 adaptation of James Clavell's novel found Segal as an American prisoner in a Japanese P.O.W. camp in WWII. He uses his guile and survival skills to not only stay alive but to thrive, much to disgust of British P.O.W.s who think his actions border on collaboration with the enemy. Segal's biggest break came the following year when he was cast in Mike Nichols' screen adaptation of Edward Albee's Broadway smash "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?". The film has only four main characters in it. Segal played the key role of Nick, a handsome young college professor who, along with his immature wife (Sandy Dennis), spend a fateful evening in the company of his colleague George (Richard Burton) and his vulgar wife Martha (Elizabeth Taylor). In the course of a seemingly endless evening, witty banter turns to heavy drinking, personal insults, illicit sex and the revelation of secrets about each person that leaves the two couples emotionally shattered. The film is regarded as a classic. Taylor won the Best Actress Oscar and Dennis won for Best Supporting Actress. Burton was nominated for Best Actor and Segal was nominated for Best Supporting Actor. Now a bankable leading man, Segal went on to star in an eclectic selection of films including the spy thriller "The Quiller Memorandum", "The St. Valentine's Day Massacre", "Bye, Bye Braverman", "No  Way to Treat a Lady" and the cult comedy "Where's Poppa?". In 1969, Segal was filming the WWII movie "The Bridge at Remagen" in Czechoslovakia with Robert Vaughn and Ben Gazzara when the Soviet invasion occurred, leaving the stars and production company to fend for themselves to escape the country.

Segal's other prominent films include "The Owl and the Pussycat" (opposite Barbra Streisand), "Loving", "Blume in Love", "The Hot Rock", "A Touch of Class" , "Rollercoaster" , "Fun with Dick and Jane", "Look Who's Talking" and "The Cable Guy". In the 1997, he was cast in the hit sitcom "Just Shoot Me!". More recently, he he played the role of Albert "Pops" Solomon in the long-running TV series "The Goldbergs". Segal's final episode of the series is to broadcast in April. 

For more about his life and career, click here. For tributes from his colleagues, click here.

“HATE IS A LOADED GUN”

By Raymond Benson

The years of the 1940s following World War II exhibited a striking change in Hollywood movies. The moods and world outlooks of post-war GIs and the people they had left behind and to whom they returned were more reflective and serious. Awareness of societal ills that had always been with us were now at the forefront… and Hollywood stepped up to address this new American angst in the form of a) what film historians call “social problem films” that tackled issues such as alcoholism, drug addiction, anti-Semitism, racism, government corruption, and other hitherto taboos of motion pictures, and b) film noir, the gritty crime dramas that never sugar-coated anything and portrayed both men and women—the femmes fatale—as hard-boiled, cynical, and paranoid.

Two pictures were released in 1947 that tackled anti-Semitism with frank, hard-hitting realism. One was Elia Kazan’s Gentleman’s Agreement, a more passive investigation of anti-Semitism in America that won the Oscar for Best Picture. Often overlooked today, however, is the other Best Picture nominee of that year—the film noir crime drama, Crossfire, which examined the subject in a more violent and edgy concoction. Directed by Edward Dmytryk, who would just a year later be under investigation by the House Un-American Activities Committee and ultimately become one of the infamously blacklisted “Hollywood Ten,” Crossfire could very well be the more substantially shocking movie of the two. It also appeared in theaters three months earlier.

Besides the Best Picture nomination, Dmytryk was nominated for Best Director, the script by John Paxton was up for Adapted Screenplay, and both Robert Ryan and Gloria Grahame were nominated for Supporting Actor and Actress, respectively. Crossfire was no throwaway B-movie film noir. It is both a film noir and a social problem film!

Ironically, the story was not supposed to be about anti-Semitism at all. The movie is based on a novel, The Brick Foxhole, by Richard Brooks (yes, the same Richard Brooks who went on to become a formidable screenwriter/director in the 50s, 60s, and 70s). The novel is about the murder of a homosexual—not a Jew! At the time, there was no way the Hays Office (Production Code) would allow a film to be made with this subject matter, so producer Adrian Scott and Dmytryk changed the tale… and yet the film could really be about any “other” against whom racist, bigoted, homophobic, or intolerant people might hate. As police captain Finlay (Robert Young) says in the picture, “Hate is a loaded gun.” The murder victim could have been homosexual, black, Asian, Irish, or whatever—and the movie would have the same potency.

A man named Joseph Samuels is found beaten to death in his apartment. We later learn that the man was Jewish, which was the motivation for his killing. The story unfolds that a group of GIs have been demobilized in Washington DC and are waiting for either further orders or a discharge. They are all disillusioned and restless. Sergeant Keeley (Robert Mitchum) is the world-weary leader of the group, which consists of hot-headed and abrasive Montgomery (Robert Ryan), sensitive and “lost” Mitchell (George Cooper), and hard-up-for-money Bowers (Steve Brodie). Flashbacks reveal that Montgomery, Mitchell, and Bowers met civilian Samuels (Sam Levene) and his girlfriend, Miss Lewis (Marlo Dwyer) in a bar. Samuels empathized with Mitchell’s unhappiness and invited him to come along to dinner with them. They stopped at his apartment first while Miss Lewis went home to change. Montgomery and Bowers followed them, thinking that the party had simply moved locations. Later, once Captain Finlay begins the investigation, Mitchell has disappeared and has become the prime suspect. But all is not what it seems.

This is a tightly-wound, suspenseful picture presented in classic film noir style (expressionistic lighting and photography, brutal characterizations, and plenty of tough talk). The actors are all excellent, especially Young, who handles the proceedings with calm, thoughtful deliberation. Ryan, in this early appearance, established himself as a contender with a showy role that justifies the Oscar nomination. Gloria Grahame, in a small role, portrays a jaded, no-nonsense bar girl whom Mitchell befriends—she, too, displays the hallmarks of many of her onscreen characterizations.

Warner Archive’s new Blu-ray restoration looks terrific in its glorious black and white. It comes with an audio commentary by film historians Alain Silver and James Ursini, and there are audio interview excerpts with director Dmytryk. A short featurette on the film’s making and impact is also a welcome supplement.

Crossfire is still relevant today—perhaps even more so than it was in 1947. The only thing dated about it is the 1940s film noir filmmaking style—and what’s wrong with that? Nothing! Highly recommended.

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“BIG TOP SOAP OPERA”

By Raymond Benson

One of the more controversial Best Picture Oscar winners is Cecil B. DeMille’s The Greatest Show on Earth (it won the top prize for the year 1952, as well as a trophy for Best Story—a category that was discontinued four years later). The movie is often cited in pundits’ lists of “Worst Best Picture Oscar Winners,” mainly because many film buffs believe that there were more deserving nominees that year (such as High Noon or The Quiet Man, or even Singin’ in the Rain, which wasn’t even nominated!). The win for Greatest Show was perhaps somewhat of an overdue honor for DeMille, who had been working in Hollywood since the 1910s, was a hugely successful and popular director, and he had never won a Best Picture Academy Award. In this case, then, why didn’t he win Best Director (John Ford did for The Quiet Man)?

Controversy aside, The Greatest Show on Earth is still spectacular entertainment and worth 2-1/2 hours of a viewer’s time, especially with Paramount Present’s new Blu-ray restoration that looks absolutely gorgeous. Steven Spielberg has often pointed to Greatest Show as a landmark for him because he remembers it as the first movie his parents ever took him to see, and he has placed nods to it in some of his own features. It is grand, Hollywood epic-style spectacle, much of which overshadows the rather melodramatic and soap opera plot going on in the story. It must be said that the melodrama is often corny and eye-rolling in its heightened angst. Furthermore, it’s a plot that probably couldn’t be made in today’s social/political climate of #MeToo. But, hey, this is a movie from 1952.

The Ringling Brothers & Barnum & Bailey Circus was indeed known as “the greatest show on earth” during its magnificent heyday decades of the early part of the 20th Century to at least the 1980s, after which the circus began to have PR problems and audience dwindling. Animal rights activists, especially, came down hard on all circuses, and eventually the sensation became something of a past glory of a bygone era.

When DeMille set about making a motion picture about the circus, he made a deal with Ringling Brothers & Barnum & Bailey Circus—then the biggest and best—to be in the movie. Thus, there literally is a cast of thousands in the film—all 1,400 of the circus employees appear in it, along with the select Hollywood actors cast to play important roles. The story follows the day-to-day running of a circus tour in an almost documentary-like fashion, complete with DeMille himself narrating sections of the movie as we see crews assembling the big top tent, loading/unloading equipment, performers rehearsing and dressing, and the breakdown and travel after each stop on the road. This is surely the best aspect of Greatest Show—it is a time capsule of what circus life was really like in those halcyon years.

Brad Braden (Charlton Heston, in an early screen performance) is the manager of the traveling circus, and he is very much a “show must go on” type of guy who takes no guff or excuses from anyone, even his on-again, off-again girlfriend, trapeze artist Holly (Betty Hutton, who receives top billing on the film). In order to keep the circus “in the black” and do a full tour, he is forced by the corporate bosses to hire a big star for the center ring, and this comes in the form of “The Great Sebastian” (Cornel Wilde), a ladies’ man and a fellow known for trouble. Holly is hurt by being kicked out of the center ring to the first ring, so she begins to make a play for Sebastian to make Brad jealous. In the meantime, elephant act performer Angel (Gloria Grahame) also has eyes for Brad, but she is the object of affection of not-so-nice elephant trainer Klaus (Lyle Bettger). Then there is lovable Buttons the Clown (James Stewart, who is in clown makeup through the entire movie and never reveals his clean face!), who we learn is on the run from the law because of a mysterious crime in his past. Added to all this are some gangsters led by “Mr. Henderson” (Lawrence Tierney) who run crooked midway games, and one of his men plans to rob the circus of its takings during a harrowing train holdup.

Thus, there are love triangles and criminal shenanigans going on, but mostly the movie is a visual documentation of the circus-going experience. We see many acts in full, and there are numerous reaction shots of audience members (some of whom are cameo appearances by celebrities like Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Danny Thomas, and more).

Perhaps the most impressive thing is that the actors learned how to do much of their characters’ jobs in the circus. For example, Betty Hutton and Cornel Wilde really did learn and perform, on camera, the trapeze acts. Whether or not the terribly difficult ones are done by Hutton and Wilde (doubtful), the Hollywood PR machine insisted that they did all their own stunts (unlikely). Nevertheless, that’s really Gloria Grahame being picked up by the mouth of an elephant and carried away as she lounges happily for the audience. James Stewart performs silly slapstick routines with none other than the great Emmett Kelly and Lou Jacobs, two of the greatest clown performers in circus history.

Paramount Presents’ Blu-ray disk is impressive and a treat for the eyes. Unfortunately, the only supplement is a 7-1/2-minute featurette about the movie narrated by Leonard Maltin, which is fine as an “intro” to viewing the picture, but one wishes that more documentary “making-of” material could have been included.

The Greatest Show on Earth may not have been the Greatest Best Picture Oscar Winner, but it is still a fun and colorful spectacle that captures a now long-lost phenomenon.

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We are pleased to announce that Cinema Retro magazine has once again been nominated for Best Magazine by the Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Awards. (Rondo Hatton was the famed character actor who often played villains in "B" movies that are now cult favorites.) Although Cinema Retro differs from most of our worthy competitors because we are not strictly a horror-themed magazine, apparently we do cover the genre enough to impress the nominating group. It's a lot of fun participating in the awards which cover many other categories such as best film, best DVD/Blu-ray commentary, best DVD/Blu-ray extras, best restoration, etc. We'll put a blatant plug in for our own contributing writer, Tom Lisanti, whose biography of actress Carol Lynley has been justifiably nominated for Book of the Year. We're also proud of our London photographer and writer Mark Mawston, who has been nominated in the "Best Article" category for his commemoration of Ray Harryhausen's 100th birthday. Mark obtained tributes for the late, great SFX genius from the likes of John Carpenter, John Landis, John Richardson, Caroline Munro, Martine Beswick and Ray's daughter Vanessa. The article was published in Scary Monsters issue #119.

You can click here to submit your votes. Thanks for your continued support.

BY LEE PFEIFFER

Alan R. Trustman wrote the screenplay for the 1968 version of "The Thomas Crown Affair", which presented Steve McQueen as a master crook who becomes romantically involved with Faye Dunaway as the insurance investigator who is trying to bring him to justice. In the 1973 film "Lady Ice", Trustman co-wrote the screenplay that presents Donald Sutherland as an insurance investigator who becomes involved with master criminal Jennifer O'Neill, who he is trying to bring to justice. Clearly, the acorn hadn't fallen far from the tree. "Thomas Crown" had been a major success but, alas, few remember "Lady Ice" in spite of- or perhaps because of the plot similarities between the two films. Nonetheless, it's a reasonably entertaining and stylish caper film directed by the often underrated Tom Gries.

O'Neill plays Paula Booth, who, along with her lover Eddie Stell (John Cypher) and her widowed father Paul (Patrick Magee), operate a daring, highly successful jewel theft operation out of Miami. The buy high end stolen gems and then convert them to unrecognizable pieces which are fenced to buyers at eye-popping prices. Sutherland is Andy Hammon, a mysterious and somewhat ethically challenged freelancer employed by insurance companies to thwart crimes and recovered stolen loot. He successfully retrieves a priceless necklace from a courier before he can sell it to the Booths. The mob in Chicago assumes the hapless man has stolen it for himself and assassinates him. Hammon makes it known to the Booths and Stell that he has the precious necklace and a cat-and-mouse game ensues in which we are never sure what Hammon's motivations or allegiances are. There are double crosses and shady characters in abundance, as the self-assured Paula carries on relationships with Eddie Stell and a secret lover in the smuggling racket, Peter Brinker (Eric Braeden), all the while flirting with Hammon. There are plenty of car chases, beatings and a driving 70s score by Perry Botkin Jr. The plot becomes a bit confusing and convoluted but it moves at a brisk pace and the locations in Miami, Chicago and Nassau are marvelously photographed by the great Lucien Ballard. Sutherland is always a joy to watch and he is well-tailored to the role he plays here. Jennifer O'Neill provides the glamour and a very good performance, which makes it all the more distressing that chaotic developments in her personal life largely compromised her promising career in feature films. One gripe: Robert Duvall is largely wasted in a bland, colorless role as a Miami police detective who butts heads with Sutherland.

The Scorpion Blu-ray is of superb quality. Bonus extras include a recent, interesting interview with composer Perry Botkin, Jr and a gallery of trailers for other Scorpion video releases.

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Cinema Retro has received the following press release:

Debuting May 25, 2021, 4K Ultra HD/Blu-ray Combo Includes Over Two Hours of Bonus Content

Relive the romance, music, and comedic charms of the indelible classic MY FAIR LADY, debuting on 4K Ultra HD May 25, 2021 from Paramount Home Entertainment.

Winner of eight Academy Awards*, including Best Picture, MY FAIR LADY also won the Best Picture Golden Globe and was selected for the Library of Congress National Film Registry.  Adapted from the Broadway stage hit, the film stars Rex Harrison as Professor Higgins, a role that earned him the Oscar for Best Actor in a Leading Role, and Audrey Hepburn as the unforgettable Eliza Doolittle.

The 4K Ultra HD release features stunning picture quality courtesy of a recent 8K film transfer, as well as English 7.1 Dolby TrueHD sound for the finest home presentation.  The 4K Ultra HD/Blu-ray Combo also includes access to a digital copy of the film and more than two hours of previously released bonus content as detailed below:

4K Ultra HD Disc

·         Feature film in 4K Ultra HD

Blu-ray Disc

·         More Loverly Than Ever: The Making of My Fair Lady Then & Now

·         1963 Production Kick-Off Dinner

·         Los Angeles Premiere 10/28/1964

·         British Premiere

·         George Cukor Directs Baroness Bina Rothschild

·         Rex Harrison Radio Interview

·         Production Tests

o   Lighting

o   Wilfred Hyde White make-up

o   Rain/set

o   Covent Garden lighting test

o   Alt. Higgins/Pickering screen test

·         Alternate Audrey Hepburn Vocals

o   Show Me

o   Wouldn’t It Be Loverly?

·         Galleries

·         Comments on a Lady

o   Andrew Lloyd Webber

o   Martin Scorsese

·         Theatrical Featurettes

·         Story of a Lady

·         Design for a Lady

·         The Fairest Fair Lady

·         Trailers

·         Theatrical Reissue: Poster Illustration

·         Theatrical Reissue: Poster Illustration Reserved Seats Trailer

·         Theatrical Reissue: Poster Illustration Awards

·         Theatrical Reissue

·         Awards

o   Rex Harrison BFI Honor

o   Rex Harrison Golden Globe Acceptance Speech

o   Academy Awards Ceremony Highlights 4/5/65

Synopsis

This beloved adaptation of the Broadway stage hit stars Audrey Hepburn as Eliza Doolittle, a sassy, working-class London street vendor, and Rex Harrison as the elitist Professor Higgins, who attempts to turn Eliza into a sophisticated lady through proper tutoring. But, when the humble flower girl blossoms into the toast of London society, her teacher may have a lesson or two to learn himself.

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BY GIACOMO SELLONI

You may be aware of the fact that Christopher Columbus was not the first European to reach the Americas. Do you also know that he was not Italian? He couldn't read, write or even speak the language. He was either a "Converso" - a Jew who converted to Christianity to avoid Ferdinand and Isabella's Inquisition, or hid his Judaism. He spoke Spanish among other languages including Greek, Latin and, most telling, Ladino - the Spanish equivalent of Yiddish. Letters to his son were written in this language, and the pages contained coded Jewish references. He also knew the world was spherical (most sailors, by his time, were aware of this), his first voyage had calm seas, not dangerous ones and the crew weren't mutineers. [See: Lies My Teacher Told Me - James W. Loewen, The New Press 2nd Edition ©2007 and https://www.aish.com/jw/s/Christopher-Columbus-Secret-Jew.html]

You may be asking "what does this have to do with a review of a film documentary?" The reason is most historians are lazy and habitual plagiarists. When adding something new to the historical record they often reprint the same falsehoods that were disseminated generations earlier. Not unlike many superstitions, tall tales, and mistaken attributions. Cary Grant never said: "Judy, Judy, Judy..."

And thus were the accomplishments of Alice Guy-Blaché, arguably the first storytelling film director of all time, were glossed over, ignored or attributed to someone else; to all men, by the way. Her story is told in the documentary “Be Natural: The Untold Story of Alice Guy-Blaché”, directed by Pamela B. Green and narrated by Jodie Foster. The film is now available on DVD from Kino Lorber.

Yes, Edison and the Lumière Brothers made the first moving pictures but what did they give us?

Edison: The Sneeze - a four second film starring assistant Fred Ott. The Kiss - an 18-second long reenactment of the kiss between May Irwin and John Rice from the final scene of the stage musical The Widow Jones.

The Brothers Lumière: - Their first films were of such exciting subjects as: "The exit from the Lumière factory in Lyon," "The disembarkment of the Congress of Photographers in Lyon," and the riveting "Jumping onto the Blanket." Along with seven other films, all lasting between 38 and 49 seconds (approximately what a filmstrip of 17 meters long would run hand cranked through a projector) they were screened before a paying public in December of 1895 in Paris. Were these pioneers’ first efforts "Films" as we know them? Not to this reviewer. Moving pictures are not FILMS. They can be called films only by the fact that film was the medium they were created and distributed upon.

Nine months earlier, on March 22, 1895, The Lumières demonstrated their new invention, the Cinématographe, beating Edison to the market with the first reliable method to project motion pictures, in front of a small audience of friends and colleagues.

Among those in attendance were Léon Gaumont, then director of the company the Comptoir Géneral de la Photographie and his 22 year-old secretary Alice Ida Antoinette Guy (later Guy-Blaché). "Something better can be done than documenting daily life. Why not tell stories through film?" she thought at the time.

With the approval of her boss, in 1896 she writes, directs and produces what is generally thought to be the first narrative film ever made – “La Feé Aux Choux" or "The Fairy of the Cabbages" that brought to life the story parents told their younger children about where babies come from. The success of this film led to her becoming the lead director and Head of Production for Gaumont Studios. She was one of the first to use many film techniques such as close ups, hand-tinted color, stop action, reverse cranking of the camera and synchronized sound. Her success as a filmmaker helped add to Gaumont's success which enabled them to build the biggest studio stage in the world.

Alice Guy produces and directs the first film shot in the new studio. “La Esméralda”, based on Victor Hugo's “The Hunchback of Notre-Dame”. While hiring new directors and set designers for the company she continues to write and direct her own takes on fashion, children, parenthood, even child abuse. She wrote roles for children when no one else was doing so.

She made comedies of seduction, chase films, utilizing methods she had learned at Gaumont from her mentor, Frédéric Dillaye.

Writer/Director Peter Farrelly on “The Gamekeeper's Son” - "I was tense watching it, afraid for the kid. The father died, it was heartbreaking, and that she could tell that kind of story in four of five minutes and get you at the edge of your seats was incredible."

Alan Williams, film historian/author - "She was the first great comic director. Most of her comedies have just absolute perfect comic timing. The timing on “The Drunken Mattress” is really astonishing." "Whoever that was who kept picking up that mattress should get an Academy Award. I've never seen anybody fall down so much." - Peter Bogdanovich.

Many of her comedies were "raunchy films," especially for the times. See “The Sticky Woman” for example. Her 1906 “The Consequences of Feminism” is described by Bogdanovich: "I think is very witty. It's a satirical comment on male fear of feminism." Julie Taymor: "Still to this day I haven't seen anything like that, where she has women in women's clothes and men in men's clothes, these men are acting like women and the women are acting as men. It's revolutionary." She was making great comedies more than a decade before anyone heard of Chaplin, Keaton, Lloyd or the Keystone Cops.

In his memoirs, Sergei Eisenstein recalls that he saw this film at eight years old. "The women rebelled. They started frequenting cafes. talk politics, smoke cigars, while their husbands sat at home doing the washing." Eisenstein named it his main influential film which can be seen in his 1928 film, “October”.

Guy uses the Tissot Bible as reference material for her largest production to date, “The Passion”. She creates 25 episodes with about 300 extras to tell the story of the life of Christ. The series contained some very early special effects. In one case Jesus rising out of the cave.

BY ADRIAN SMITH

BY TODD GARBARINI

Tsugunobo Kotani is a film director whose name does not roll off the tongue throughout film circles. A handful of titles to his credit consist of Hatsukoi (1975), The Last Dinosaur (1977), The Ivory Ape (1980), and The Bloody Bushido Blade (1981), and there are a good number of Japanese-language titles that appear in his early filmography. An Internet search of “Tom Kotani,” the Americanized variant of Tsugunobo and the director’s name as it appears in some of his movies, yields even less information. While most people may not recognize him, there is a small but significant percentage of film viewers, yours truly included, who have been deeply affected by one of his films in particular: the made-for-television undersea effort The Bermuda Depths. Filmed in the British Overseas Territory of the Bermudas in 1977, The Bermuda Depths is mysterious for several reasons. It is a film that is difficult to categorize as it touches upon several genres: action, fantasy, romance, and science fiction. It attempts to mix several elements of the fantastic (a giant turtle and its relation to a voluptuous young maiden lost at sea) with the realistic (a young man in search of the truth behind his father’s mysterious and untimely death).

Arguably the most memorable film “inspired” by Stephen Spielberg’s Jaws (1975), The Bermuda Depths was originally broadcasted on the ABC Friday Night Movie on January 27, 1978 and was repeated on Friday, August 29, 1980. A smattering of repeat broadcasts and a curiously unheralded VHS release followed. It benefits from a touch of myth from Ambroise Paré’s “On Monsters and Marvels” and plays out in a dreamlike fashion. Leigh McCloskey stars as Magnus Dens, a drifter who returns to the scene of his father’s death hoping to find closure. He encounters an old friend, Eric (Carl Weathers), who is completing his master’s degree in Marine Biology while working for the avuncular Dr. Paulus (Burl Ives). The scientists are both interested in abnormalities and gigantism in sea life, technically known as Teratology, and are looking for any sea creatures that live in the deepest depths of the ocean to study them. At the heart of all of this is an enigmatic woman named Jennie Haniver (Connie Sellecca) who may or may not be real. Jennie lives in the ocean and comes ashore when Magnus shouts her name. Jennie and Magnus used to play together as children, and on the beach they found a large turtle upon which they inscribed their initials. Now the turtle has reached enormous physical proportions and lives deep in the ocean, occasionally rising to the surface. The last third of the film concerns Eric’s futile attempts to capture the sea creature and gives the filmmakers the opportunity to put the three men on a boat a la Sam Quint, Matt Hooper, and Chief Martin Brody, with the “Panulirus” sitting in the for the “Orca”.

If The Bermuda Depths is about anything that we can be absolutely sure of, it’s that highly successful films inevitably spurn imitations. This was certainly the case during the mid-1970’s when everyone and his brother was scrambling to re-enact the success of Jaws. The Bermuda Depths takes the unusual step of adding a supernatural love story into the mix and successfully creates a tragic tale of love and doom. Mr. McCloskey was a successful television actor by this point, best known for the Rich Man, Poor Man (1976) mini-series, and sports the natural Southern California good looks that make Magnus appealing to young women. Carl Weathers of Rocky (1976) fame embodies Eric with terrific zeal, although his truncated half-shirt near the film’s ending is a questionable wardrobe choice. Burl Ives is wonderful as the elder who tries his best to get Eric to look at the situation through scientific eyes. Connie Sellecca, in her first film role at age twenty-two, does an exceptional turn as Jennie Haniver. She possesses a magical, ethereal quality and is achingly beautiful. Julie Woodson, Playboy Magazine’s Miss April 1973, is remarkably beautiful and quite good as Eric’s wife Doshan. Ruth Attaway, who played the nurse in The Taking of Pelham 123 (1974) to comedic effect, is mysterious and eerie as Delia, the housekeeper and proverbial party pooper who warns Magnus about the Legend of Jennie Haniver, seemingly a believer in the supernatural.

The Rankin Bass team responsible for their wonderful collaborations in the Sixties and Seventies on the Christmas holiday television show specials that millions grew up on, especially Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964) which also featured Mr. Ives, produced the film. There is a definite “Rankin Bass” feel to The Bermuda Depths, particularly in the special effects which today look quite amateurish: the helicopter crash sequence near the film’s end looks similar to the finale of the Mad Monster Party? explosion on the island, and close-up shots of the vessel’s propeller and the trawler crashing against the ocean waves in slow-mo look as though they was filmed in a bathtub. The special effects-laden ending almost compromises the intriguing supernatural and romantic mystery that precedes it. This is a case where the film’s style almost outweighs its substance. Despite this, however, the low-budget effects add a certain charm to the film, a reminder of filmmaking from days gone by when less money and more ingenuity was considered an asset.

The film possesses more than its share of derivations: Dr. Paulus’s throwaway line about needing “a bigger boat”; Eric’s decision to pursue the turtle on the Fourth of July of all days; Delia’s unexplained disappearance from the second half of the film; and Magnus’s inquiry into his father’s death mirrors Luke Skywalker asking the same of Obi-Wan Kenobi, whom Dr. Paulus even resembles. Composer Maury Laws provides a beautiful score which I always wished would appear as a soundtrack album. Hopefully, some independent label (i.e. Waxwork Records) will give this score its due.

While the film does appear somewhat corny after more than forty years, it possesses an innocent quality about it that is sadly lacking in most entertainment product of late. The slow and languid images of Magnus and Jennie on the beach and in the cave recall a time in American filmmaking when the audience failed to be bombarded by fast editing and could actually digest the images presented to them. Unquestionably there are those who will complain about the film’s slow pace, but there are plenty of treasures here film to make it one that deserves a new generation of admirers: the eerie day-for-night photography which Mr. Spielberg also employed in the opening of his 1975 masterwork; Maury Laws’ soothing title tune “Jennie” with vocals by Claude Carmichael; and the use of Antonio Vivaldi’s elegiac “Largo” from his “Concerto for Lute (Guitar), Two Violins and Basso Continuo in D Major” as the lovers’ theme.

BY FRED BLOSSER

In “Stiletto,” a 1969 release from Joseph E. Levine’s Avco Embassy Pictures, Cesare Cardinali (Alex Cord) enjoys a jet-setting lifestyle rivaling and maybe even surpassing those of his real-life contemporaries in the “Playboy” era. He resides in a lavish Midtown Manhattan penthouse, hobnobs with movie stars and minor European royalty at red-carpet parties, races cars on the international circuit, and romances two beautiful girlfriends. But he’s increasingly uneasy about what he has to do to keep the money coming. On the books, he earns his millions through a lucrative importing business. In reality, he’s on the Mafia’s payroll through his patron, crime boss Ettore Matteo (Joseph Wiseman). Whenever a particularly important murder contract is ordered, Cesare is called in to do the job. His specialized tool is a medieval stiletto, and although he’s good at what he does, he’s begun to worry that, sooner or later, as all those knife-punctured bodies pile up, the law will trace the murders to him. When he tells Matteo that he wants to retire before that happens, reasoning that he has more than repaid the Mafia for its support, Matteo and the big Boss in Sicily, Don Andrea (Eduardo Ciannelli), decide that the hit man has become more a liability than a valued asset. Their fears are underlined when a tenacious detective, Baker (Patrick O’Neal), finds circumstantial evidence linking Cardinali to two recent murders ordered by Matteo. With the clock ticking to bring a case against the Mafioso, Baker sends word that he’s closing in.

“Stiletto” was one of five high-profile films executive-produced by Joseph E. Levine from the best-selling novels of Harold Robbins, back in the days when people devoted as much time to light, leisure reading as they now spend on Facebook and Netflix. As movie historian David Del Valle and filmmaker David DeCoteau observe in an excellent audio commentary on a new Blu-ray edition of “Stiletto” from Kino-Lorber Studio Classics, Robbins and Levine maintained an association for several years that nearly bordered on symbiosis. One partner thrived on the other. Robbins wrote trashy but shrewdly crafted pulp novels like “The Carpetbaggers” and “The Adventurers,” and tirelessly promoted them through TV and press interviews in those ancient days before social media. Levine then processed them into equally highly publicized movies, each branded with the Robbins name, promising viewers a level of sex and glamor that they couldn’t find in the staid TV shows of the time. In turn, the movies primed audiences for Robbins’ next book. Even after the careers of Levine and Robbins eventually diverged, the novelist pursued the same strategy with other producers on properties like “The Betsy” and “The Lonely Lady.”

If you’ve forgotten “Stiletto” or never heard of it in the first place, there are many plausible reasons why, as Del Valle and DeCoteau discuss in their commentary. As a traditional, mid-list studio release, it had the misfortune to appear in theaters in the pivotal year of 1969, when studios, critics, and audiences were focused instead on game-changing arrivals like “Midnight Cowboy,” “Easy Rider,” and “The Wild Bunch.” The cast was competent but unexciting, the direction by TV veteran Bernard L. Kowalski plodding and uninspired, and fans may have been disappointed that the production didn’t really deliver the promised goods of sex and nudity. The movie’s only topless scene occurs early on, when an enthusiastic casino patron momentarily spills out of her low-cut dress. The lady’s bare breasts appear so briefly that the scene itself readily qualifies as a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment, to borrow a phrase that my brother in law likes to use. As Cesare’s girlfriends, Britt Ekland and Barbara McNair remain more or less fully clothed, and the bedroom scenes go to fade before anything becomes explicit.

Still, as with any obscure movie, there’s always the chance that new viewers will find something to like that eluded the rest of us. On that count, it’s encouraging to see “Stiletto” given new exposure on Blu-ray. Fashionistas will enjoy the garish Age of Aquarius clothing styles on display in a party scene, and there’s a nighttime escape through Midtown traffic on a motorcycle at night, with the old Hotel Manhattan looming briefly in the background, to remind us that movies didn’t always depend on computer-generated scenery. Producers used to spend money to film on actual locations. In their commentary, the two Davids have fun spotting various Cinema Retro-era actors in supporting roles who would shortly go on to bigger credits, including Charles Durning, Olympia Dukakis, Raul Julia, and as Matteo’s oily lawyer, Roy Scheider. In fact, the droll, informed exchanges between Del Valle and DeCoteau are worth the purchase price of the Blu-ray alone. Their anecdotes about Robbins, Levine, the glitzy trash literature of the ‘60s, and the downslope careers of once-famous actors suggest that a movie about the making of “Stiletto” would be more enthralling than “Stiletto” itself.

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(Fred Blosser is the author of "Sons of Ringo: The Great Spaghetti Western Heroes". Click here to order from Amazon)

BY LEE PFEIFFER

Yaphet Kotto, the distinctive and distinguished actor, has passed away at age 81. Kotto was born in Harlem and began to study acting at age 16. He made his big screen debut in 1964 in the acclaimed race-themed drama "Nothing But a Man" opposite Ivan Dixon, a fellow African-American whose star would rise on the basis of the film. Kotto also appeared in "The Thomas Crown Affair" (1968) and was a regular presence in guest star roles on top TV series such as "Gunsmoke", "Daniel Boone", "Night Gallery", "The Big Valley", "Hawaii Five-0", "Mannix" and "The High Chapparal". He was nominated for an Emmy award for his performance as Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in the 1976 TV production of "Raid on Entebbe". Kotto simultaneously kept landing good parts in major movies such as "5 Card Stud", "The Liberation of L.B. Jones" and "Across 110th Street". In 1973, he appeared in what is perhaps his most memorable role, opposite Roger Moore in the James Bond film "Live and Let Die". In it, he played the villain Dr. Kananga, who uses his Caribbean base of operations and the symbolism of voodoo to terrify the local population and gain control of an international drug smuggling operation. In 1979, Kotto played another prominent role in the classic science fiction film "Alien", appearing as a member of a doomed space flight crew that is being systematically killed by a monstrous being from another planet. Kotto's other films include "Report to the Commissioner", "Friday Foster", "Drum", "Midnight Run", "Brubaker", "The Star Chamber" and "The Running Man". In the 1990s, he was one of the stars of the long-running hit TV series "Homocide: Life on the Streets". For more about his life and career, click here.

BY TODD GARBARINI

In the pantheon of great cinematographers there are certain names that immediately come to mind: Gregg Toland (Citizen Kane, 1941); Robert Burks (Vertigo, 1958); Owen Roizman (The French Connection, 1971; The Exorcist, 1973); Gordon Willis (The Godfather, 1972; The Godfather Part II, 1974); Vittorio Storaro (The Conformist, 1970; The Last Emperor, 1987); and Sven Nykvist (Persona, 1966; Cries and Whispers, 1973) to name just a few. The late great Carlo Di Palma, who passed away in 2004 after amassing just over 60 screen credits, is one such master and is the subject of the 2016 documentary Water and Sugar: Carlo Di Palma, The Colours of Life, which opened in Manhattan on Friday, July 28, 2017.

The film performs a tightrope act of trying to be both a loving tribute to an artist by director Fariborz Kamkari, who mixes scenes from the films that Signor Di Palma cut his teeth on in the business and also an appreciation by his widow, Adriana Chiesa Di Palma, who appears in much of the film as a gateway to many film industry people who offer up their thoughts on Sig. Di Palma, often interjecting their own feelings and impressions of his work. The film is at its most interesting, however, when looking directly at his career through past interviews and behind-the-scenes stills, beginning in Italian cinema in the early 1940s as a focus puller and camera operator – at the age of fifteen no less! - for notable Neo-Realist director Luchino Visconti (Ossessione, 1943) and later for Vittorio DeSica (The Bicycle Thief, 1948), while graduating to more high-brow and intellectual fare. Specifically, these were the films he shot for the highly acclaimed and award-winning Italian master Michelangelo Antonioni: Red Desert (1964) with its colorful, pollution-drenched cities swallowing up everyday people; Blow-Up (1966) with the message that one must create their own reality; and the Cannes Film Festival Award-Winning Identification of a Woman (1982) with Tomas Milian as a divorced filmmaker trying to understand women.

Sr. Di Palma worked most prolifically with Woody Allen beginning with one of the director’s greatest films, 1986’s Hannah and Her Sisters and the period films Radio Days (1987), Shadows and Fog (1992) and Bullets Over Broadway (1994). His hand-held work on Husbands and Wives (1992) is also dissected. Ample time is allotted Mr. Allen, who recalls his experiences working with the cinematographer and how they discussed films over lunch and dinner.

The juxtaposing of interview footage with the film’s subject and comments from contemporaries, such as the late great Bernardo Bertolucci who worked with Sig. Di Palma on 1981’s Tragedy of a Ridiculous Man, are insightful and contemplative; there is also the amazing recollection of how a very young Sven Nykvist happened upon Sr. Di Palma, a fact verified decades later; and finally, the explanation for the film’s title.

Alec Baldwin, who appeared in Mr. Allen’s 1990 fantasy film Alice, makes the case that movies like the ones shot by Sr. Di Palma are art. It makes one wonder about the wisdom on the part of the distribution companies that offer up documentaries about cinematographers, generally only presenting them in the standard definition format of DVD. Without taking anything away from Disney and big-screen Marvel Comics epics that rule home video in 4K Ultra High Definition and Dolby Atmos, would it not make sense to showcase the stories of cinema’s finest visual stylists on Blu-ray as well? The scenes offered up in Water and Sugar examples of the beautiful color palettes of Sig. Di Palma’s greatest works which aided in the accolades bestowed upon these films. The Kino Lorber DVD includes the original trailer as the only bonus feature.

Last of all, can someone please correct the indignity of Sig. Di Palma’s profile pic on his IMDB.com page? It erroneously depicts Italian cinematographer Marco Onorato accepting an award at the European Film Awards on December 6, 2008 in Copenhagen, Denmark. While no disrespect is meant to Sr. Marco Onorato, who sadly passed away at age 59, the least that the IMDB can do is correct this unfortunate and persistent oversight.

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