Some "Cleopatra" Details + "The Least We Can Do Is Wave To Each Other" by Van der Graaf Generator

I hope I didn't shortchange you with my "Cleopatra" review. I know it was lengthy but I didn't mention much about the film's content. It was mostly about the hoopla surrounding the production and my raving about what a Monumental Epic it was, lol. I was kind of in a hurry to get it finished because I was due back at Pearl's for my current work cycle. That's where I'm writing from now (and I'll once again be publishing at night). Anyhow, I hope you enjoyed the review despite it's lack of plot details, and I'll try to make up for it with a short description of same. Here goes : Following his war with rival general Pompey, Julius Caesar sets off for Egypt to visit the boy-king Ptolemy. Caesar is concerned about maintaining Rome's wheat supply, which is imported from Alexandria. When he arrives he sees that Ptolemy is King in name only; really he's controlled by a group of older Eunuchs, one of whom calls most of the shots. To bolster his standing, the Eunuch has deposed Ptolemy's sister Cleopatra, who'd been appointed co-ruler by their late father, the former King Ptolemy VII Auletes, who intended the siblings to share the crown. The Enuch knew he couldn't push Cleopatra around as he does Ptolemy Jr., however, so he got rid of her. Now she's in hiding, but when Caesar shows up, she sees a chance to reclaim her half of the throne.

Knowing he is strong, and thus a potential powerful ally, she sets out to seduce Caesar. The seduction works - soon she's not only regained her authority but she's the sole ruler of Egypt, her brother having been executed in the coup. Caesar has fallen in love with her, too. Being ambitious, Cleopatra now sees a chance to become Queen of All Rome as well, with Caesar as King. They marry and plan to join forces. Oh, and there's a child on the way too, little Caesarian. He's the boy I told you I wasn't aware of, and in fact I didn't even know that Cleo hooked up with Julius Caesar, either. I suppose we learned that in 8th grade, but I forgot it. The first half of the movie involves their romance and attempted political alliance. But Caesar is informed by members of his Senate that the Roman public will never accept a King, especially one who's married to Cleopatra. She's despised by many of the Senators, who see her as an opportunistic witch, but in truth she's a brilliant politician who uses her intelligence and attributes to achieve her desires. The thing is, though, she doesn't seem to be doing any of this for the benefit of the Egyptian people, at least not in the way it's portrayed in the movie. She's no selfless Joan of Arc. What she's about is power, pure and simple, but because she enters the story as an Underdog, you root for her......up to an extent, but then Caesar is murdered ("Et tu, Brute"?) and you still have two hours to go.

The second half of the movie is about Cleopatra's second romance, with Marc Antony, Caesar's most steadfast General. Antony comes to her rescue after Caesar's assassination, and soon she has so captivated him that he renounces his Roman citizenship and decides to live with her in Egypt. By now, Octavius, Caesar's adopted son, has become ruler of Rome. He despises Mark Antony, especially after Antony's betrayal of Rome, and he's also jealous of the relationship between Antony and Cleopatra. I should repeat that I thought Roddy McDowall's portrayal of Octavius was the strongest in the movie. The remainder of the story will hinge on his attempts to bring down both Antony and Cleopatra, but as I've noted over and over, there are a lot of other subplots happening as well, all historically based and involving dozens of characters.

So there's some of the story for you. I know most folks won't wanna sit through a four hour movie, but if you'd like to see what I'm talking about, then you have no choice haha. Just whatever you do, don't watch it in two parts or break it up in any way. If you're gonna watch, make sure you're ready, and set aside enough time with no distractions. You can either thank me or chastise me later.  :)   ///////  

My album for today was "The Least We Can Do Is Wave To Each Other" by Van der Graaf Generator. Though the musical themes are simple compared to their later works like "Godbluff" and "Still Life", and while the songs have similar chord progressions, this record is nonetheless brilliant and emotionally involving, due to the songwriting and vocal performance of Peter Hammill, who was all of 21 years old when he made this record with his bandmates.

It was released in 1969, just after the first Genesis record, which isn't nearly as strong (not even close), and besides that, it wasn't the VDGG debut. That would be "The Aerosol Grey Machine", released six months earlier, and one month before "In The Court of the Crimson King". While few records can match "Court", just the fact that Hammill and company launched their first effort at the same time as KC is noteworthy, especially since it wasn't a subpar debut ala "Genesis to Revelation". Quite the opposite - "Aerosol Grey Machine" is a solid album that stands up today, over 50 years later. I mention this because I'm a huge Van der Graaf fan, but also because Peter Hammill, who writes all the VDGG music, was doing so as a 21 year old kid, and was releasing strong albums at that age, at a time when The Beatles were still together. He was there at the birth of Progressive Music, and he's still doing it today. Listen to his recent solo album "From the Trees", but listen to "Wave To Each Other" first. Hammill's lyrics and vocals on that record are something very special.

That's basically all I've got for tonight. I did watch a movie this evening, but it was a WW1 documentary ("The Guns of August" from 1965), and while it was tremendous, I won't give you a detailed review because we have done WW1 by now, and if you wanna know more you can research the subject for yourself.

I just finished James Patterson's "The Last Days of John Lennon", which was a quick read and very gripping, but he presents the lowlife who I won't name as a main character, which will be off putting to any but the most strong-willed Lennon fans. Still, if you can read it in spite of that person's inclusion, it's one heck of a story.

Now I am beginning "Paul McCartney : The Life"(2016), by Philip Norman.

I'll see you in the morning and I hope you have a great day. Tons of love.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxo  :):)

The Epic to End All Epics : "Cleopatra", starring Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton and Rex Harrison

Recently I've been hinting at an Epic I planned to watch, as part of a larger plan that I think I announced at the end of last year, to try and catch up on some of the Hollywood Spectaculars from the 50s and 60s that were produced when 70mm and widescreen projection technology came into being. I may also have listed a few of the ones I'd never seen, such as "Dr. Zhivago", "Far from the Madding Crowd" and "The Lion in Winter". Or even the classic "Lawrence of Arabia", which I was taken to see as a child but was too young to appreciate. Yes, it was time to explore the Great Epics from the end of the Studio Era, and tonight I began with the one I've been meaning to see for several months now (and it fact it jump started my entire quest) : the Epic to End All Epics, the much-maligned "Cleopatra"(1963), all 4 hours 8 minutes of it, starring Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton and Rex Harrison. Yes, I watched it all the way through in one sitting, and........

Oh my goodness, where should I start? Well, lets go back to it's release date, which was June 12, 1963 (thanks, Google). One of my earliest memories is hearing my Dad comment on "Cleopatra" as it was being made. My recollection is hazy, the long-gone snapshot of a three-year old, but when you're small, your world revolves around your parents, and at the time Dad was Vice President of Deluxe Laboratories, one of the Big Three film developing plants in Hollywood (the other two being Technicolor and Metrocolor). In truth, Technicolor was "Coke" to Deluxe's "Pepsi" (and Metro didn't come into their own until the 70s, when they emerged in a big way), but many cinephiles thought Deluxe colors were more subtle and varied than the saturated hues of Technicolor. The early 60s was Deluxe's heyday, when they had perfected a full color palette with pastel tinges. They didn't call it "Color by Deluxe" for nothing, and no other laboratory had such a slogan.

As the Veep, Dad would've been tasked with being on the spot where "Cleopatra" was concerned, to dailies coming in, to the color timing of the film, negatives being cut, prints going out, coordination with the director, the producers, the studio, etc. He would've been the liaison between the lab and the studio, and at the time 20th Century was the parent company of Deluxe. And I remember him talking about "Cleopatra" a lot, as it was in production. It was probably on his mind because, at the time, it was the most expensive motion picture ever made. Indeed, Elizabeth Taylor became the first woman to wrest a one million dollar contract from the clutches of Hollywood, for her starring role as the legendary Egyptian Queen. In other words, the pressure was on the studio to produce big time results, because of the dollars involved, and that pressure - after it passed by the filmmakers themselves - ended up at Deluxe. The film lab is the final frontier on any movie, because the color must be perfect and the prints must get out by the release date, no matter how many delays are incurred on the set. And on "Cleopatra", there were delays galore. Some even made it to the gossip columns, such as the torrid romance between Liz & Dick, and Burton's heavy drinking.

The budget was also a story, because it was far and away the most money ever spent on a film.

So what I remember is that Dad and Mom went to the premier, where the audience would have included everyone associated with the movie as well as a lot of critics. And I remember my folks came home that night, and Dad simply hated "Cleopatra". Keep in mind that it was over four hours long (trimmed down from six hours!), which is a very long time to ask an audience to sit. Also remember the dollars forked over by the studio, and that a lot of executives would have been watching simply to see if they got their money's worth. Having seen it now myself, I can't imagine any of them being disappointed on that score. But for Dad, and - as it turned out - for many film critics as well - "Cleopatra" was a disaster, largely due to Elizabeth Taylor's performance. And all of this added up to form one of my earliest memories, or set of memories, that you could call "The Cleopatra Debacle". Even though it went on to be the #1 movie at the box office for 1963, it still didn't earn it's money back, and the cost nearly bankrupted 20th Century Fox. As the years went on, "Cleopatra" became synonymous with "box office bomb", and would hold that dubious distinction until "Heaven's Gate" was released in 1980.

I write all of this as a preface to my review, because watching "Cleopatra" would not have occurred to me for the above reasons. All these years I just assumed it was a terrible, bloated movie. But then about six months ago (and I may have mentioned this), one night at Pearl's I saw a few scenes on TCM. And I was stopped dead in my tracks, because I'd never seen a movie that looked remotely like it. What is this flick? Is it what I think it is? OMG. 

Right then and there I told myself, "you have got to see the whole thing", and now I have. I could actually write a dissertation on what I think of it, so varied are it's aspects, but because we'd be here all day, I'm just gonna run through some talking points (but if you ever do wanna have a day-long conversation about "Cleopatra", just let me know.....).  

First off, let's get one thing straight. As noted in the first paragraph, from purely a production standpoint it's the Epic to end All Epics, the Most Spectacular Film Ever Made. Nothing will ever  top it, in sets, in color, nor in storytelling (including romance, and especially history). It is far and away the most monumental production in Hollywood history. This was in an era before CGI, and the sets and color schemes must be seen to be believed.

Now to Elizabeth Taylor's performance : I think it helps to watch her with 60 years worth of hindsight, because in 1963 she was the biggest female star in the world and also one of the biggest celebrities, with all the baggage those things connote. And in Taylor's case, the baggage was heavy. She was always more noted for her beauty and her love affairs than she was for her acting ability, so at the time it was probably easy to hate her. But with 60 years gone past? From that perspective, I was able to view her performance dispassionately, and I accepted it for what it was. She's Elizabeth Taylor playing "Cleopatra". Both women were larger than life. And while Taylor has limited range (she basically gives a variation on the same performance whether she's playing Virginia Woolf or The Queen of the Nile), without her, the movie wouldn't work. Substitute a classically trained actress for Taylor, and the film would lose much of it's magnitude. So you have to forgive her occasional lapses in accent (sometimes her vowels sound American), and her sometimes wooden line readings. Given that she carries the movie, however, and that she's in at least 3/4s of the scenes, she's actually not bad overall, and in some scenes very good. The bottom line is that she is Cleopatra.

No Taylor, no Spectacle. It's as simple as that. 

Richard Burton as "Mark Antony" is very good but not Oscar caliber, which you would expect in such a movie. He seems to be either on fire or subdued. When he's hot, he's shouting and running his lines together, and when he's cold all the steam goes out of him. He was reportedly drunk during part of the filming, and you can see it in a scene or two. Still, he's quite good overall, as is Rex Harrison as "Julius Caesar", though he can't help but slip into "Sexy Rexy" mode here and there. Two of the best performances are by Martin Landau as Antony's loyal lieutenant "Rufio", and Roddy McDowall as "Octavian", the sullen heir to Caesar's throne. He despises Mark Antony, a hate that will culminate in a final, historic showdown.  

As also mentioned, this is an incredible script, involving so much history that you'll learn things you never knew, such as that Cleopatra had a child with Caesar. I don't wanna tell you too much because You Have To See This Movie, it's the Must Watch Of All Must Watches. Oh, here's something I can tell ya, that I found really cool. There's a brief battle scene in which the Phalanx fighting formation is demonstrated. I recently read about it in "The History of Warfare" and it was fascinating to see it in the movie. This is such a Saga that it's like you are living inside it, with so many scene changes and set after monumental set, color schemes upon color schemes, that you'll feel you're in an alternate reality, in real time Ancient Egypt as interpreted by Hollywood circa 1963. And once again, because it has to be stressed : as far as the production design of this film is concerned, they should just create a "Cleopatra Award" for all future aspirants, because the bar has been set so high it can never be topped. 

Some scenes work better than others, but there are so many you'd have to choose favorites for yourself. Watching it was one of the great Motion Picture Experiences of my life, and I can only imagine how amazing it would be to see it on a gigantic theater screen, say at "The Egyptian" in Hollywood (wink wink, nudge nudge).

Even if you strip away everything, it still works as a drama, and quite effectively. I could go on and on about this film, because it represents a form of filmmaking that doesn't exist anymore, and only did exist for about 20 years, not counting the Silent Spectaculars of D.W. Griffith and Cecil B. Demille.

Without a freaking doubt, "Cleopatra" is on your list of Films You Must See Before You Die. I know I  haven't given you much of the plot, but it would take far too long. Though it does have it's faults, it's a great film, one that earns Two Gigantic Thumbs Up, my highest recommendation. You've quite simply never seen anything like it. ////

That's all for the moment. Have an awesome day. Tons of love as always!  xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo  :):)

"Johnny Stool Pigeon", directed by William Castle + "Friday the 13: The Series" (with Robey)

The cast was what drew me to tonight's film. How's this for a line-up : Howard Duff, Dan Duryea, Shelly Winters, a very young Tony Curtis (billed as Anthony Curtis), classic bad guy John McIntire, and in minor roles sci-fi hero Charles Drake and Leif Erickson, who we've enjoyed in the "High Chaparral" TV series. Put 'em all together and you've got "Johnny Stool Pigeon"(1948), a tight little Noir directed by our old friend William Castle, he of the classic black and white horror films from the early 60s. Castle is known for his "no-fat" style and he maintains that here, in a basic story with no subplots, but plenty of action in the streets of San Francisco.

"Johnny" is one of those noirs with a narrator, who informs us of the Mission of the Treasury Department. In post-war 'Frisco there's a big problem with narcotics trafficking, specifically heroin coming in from China. But how is it arriving? The docks are tightly policed, there's no sign of it being shipped in. As the movie opens, there's a shootout inside a hotel. Treasury man Duff chases down a hood who escapes, but is then shot dead in an alleyway. Not by Howard Duff, but by a third man (Tony Curtis, a mere kid here). Curtis is an enforcer for a major heroin importer. He's shot the dead man, another one of the gang, to prevent him from talking. Curtis runs off into the night and is not seen again until later.

Having no leads, Howard Duff has little choice but to enlist the help of a convict - Dan Duryea - who's serving a lengthy term at San Quentin. Duryea's doing time for exactly the same thing - drug trafficking - so Duff figures he might know some of the players in the current gang. They also know each other. Duff helped put Duryea away, and Dan hates him for it. But, Duff has an offer for him. If Duryea will help him track down the leaders of the heroin gang, he'll get him a 24 hour pass from prison. Duryea will be able to leave the Joint for a full day, in the company of Duff and his fellow agents. When Duryea balks at the offer ("I ain't no Stool Pigeon"!), Duff shows him a photograph. It's a recent morgue shot of Duryea's little sister, dead on the slab from an overdose. "These guys are evil, Johnny. They threw her life away for money". The revelation turns Johnny against his former crime-mates and earns Duff just enough loyalty from him that he agrees to the deal. But Johnny still hates Duff, telling him : "I'll help you but one day I'm gonna kill you".

And we're off! Johnny is out of prison, and he and Duff are now impersonating "investors", big money men in three piece suits who want in on the heroin trade. Johnny's connections lead them to the Canadian border, where they meet a big shot in the gang. So that's how the Junk is getting in! Through Canada. But this guy turns out to be only a middleman. They're after the Top Dog, who operates from Tuscon, Arizona. The trail takes them to a desert Dude Ranch. Along the way they pick up Shelly Winters, a troubled gal with a heart of gold. She's attached to the gang as a good time girl. Duff wants to keep her out of the takedown - it's too dangerous - but Duryea is falling in love with her and won't continue to play along unless she's included.

So there you have it. That's most of the plot. As I mentioned, it's not complex, but with Castle at the helm it's tightly composed. At 72 minutes, it moves continually from start to finish and your attention never wanes. As also noted, the cast is excellent, with no big stars but plenty of well known names, talented actors all. Keep an eye on Tony Curtis, here in a non-speaking role. He will get ample screen time later in the film, and will have to do everything with his eyes. He's spooky as a mob assassin, and we can see why he became a great actor later in his career.

I give "Johnny Stool Pigeon" Two Solid Thumbs Up", a minor noir lifted up by the cast and William Castle's direction. It's well worth a watch, and we'll have to look for more early (pre-horror) Castle. ////

I've also got a TV show for you : "Friday the 13th, The Series". Does anyone remember it? You might if you're a horror fan. It ran from 1987-90, during a time when there were several such series on the air, based on familiar fright franchises, including "Freddy's Nightmares", which arrived in '88 and was named after You Know Who, and also "Tales from the Crypt", which began it's run in 1989 and lasted seven years, the longest of them all. That one aired on HBO, and since we didn't have cable, I never saw it, but I watched "Freddy's Nightmares" religiously, and as I would come to find out, I'd been a fan of "Friday" as well. I just didn't remember it until recently.

I became re-attuned to it through one of the Usual Suspects, an Amazon recommendation. The synopsis made clear that it was unrelated to the Jason movies, and in reading the description I had a vague recollection of seeing an episode or two, but I needed a new series to binge watch, and what sold me was the price, about 21 bucks for over 70 one hour episodes. You can't beat that, and the era was right (80s horror ruled), so I bought the box set a couple months ago and just recently dug in.

Then something weird happened. As soon as I pressed play on the first episode, the theme music began. "Hmmm.....that sounds familiar". The notes were few, but I was sure I recognized the melody, eerie and simple. It wasn't until the opening credits began to roll, however, that I had my "Aha!" moment. After introducing "John D. Lemay" in the lead male role, the next credit read, simply, "Robey".

That was all it took for me to remember that I'd not only seen a few episodes of this show, but had watched it weekly for quite some time, for at least fifty percent of it's run!

Does anyone remember Robey? She was (and is) a Canadian actress, 27 when the show began, who had just the right look and personality for her role as "Mickey", the female half of a duo of supernatural sleuths, and more on that in a moment, but most of all, she might be remembered for her head of Gigantic Red Hair. If ever an actress captured the Big Hair Ethos of the 1980s, it was Robey, whose fiery mane dominated the small screen, week in and week out. Her full name, I see on IMDB, is Louise Robey, and in truth she only has five credits as an actress. Apparently she was mostly a pop singer and a socialite (married to some Canadian prince or another). Her background suggests high breeding, so maybe she never needed the money, but boy did she pull off her role in the "Friday the 13th" series. It is the only role she is known for, but it was a memorable one. So memorable in fact, that one fan's review suggests that she might've been a prototype for Gillian Anderson's legendary Scully in "The X-Files".

The fan in question wrote something along the lines of "Chris Carter must've been watching" and it's hard to disagree. Robey and Anderson have similar bone structure, similar plucky personas, and both have red hair. Robey's is huge, while Gillian's is close cropped and neck length, but once the reviewer pointed these things out, and included the sleuthing aspect, and Robey's partnership with actor John D. Lemay, it was hard to argue against Chris Carter having seen this series, and that it influenced him to create Mulder and Scully.

I am writing all of this because I'd forgotten all about Robey until some subliminal influence (either Bezos or Mabuse) enticed me to purchase "Friday the 13th : The Series", and it's just plain freakin' weird how you can watch someone on a TV show, they leave a mark on you, however transitory, and then you forget they ever existed, but then they come back and you remember them as if it were yesterday.

We could go one step further and suggest that Stephen King was watching, too. In "Friday" the TV series, Robey and Lemay co-own an antique shop named "Curious Goods", out of which they seek to buy back items of the occult that should never have been sold in the first place. To reclaim these items, which are being used for ill intent, they must first locate the purchasers. This requires them to become Sleuths, and to risk their lives week after week, as they enter into malefic domains with the help of Chris Wiggins, who plays an occult historian.

But as to Stephen King, in 1991, the year after the series finale, he wrote "Needful Things", about a man who sells evil goods to (needful) buyers out of a simliar antique shop, named after the title of the book and subsequent movie.

You tell me : were King and Chris Carter influenced, or were they not? And keep in mind that it doesn't always have to mean a deliberate rip off. Witness the Led Zeppelin/Spirit "Stairway to Heaven" trial. Sometimes an artistic influence can be subliminal yet direct.

Finally, I see on Robey's IMDB that she was "discovered" by J.H. Lartigue, the notable French photographer who captured everyday life in the early 20th century. I only know of Lartigue because Dad had one of his picture books, which I may still have in my Closet Full of Stuff that I don't have room to display in my Tiny Apartment. But yeah.........J.H. Lartigue! The late, great David F. ("Freedy") also liked the Lartigue book, and would often flip through it's pages when he visited 9032.

Ah, the strange connections of life. "It's all too much", said George Harrison. But yeah, check out "Friday the 13th : The Series". It's a lot of fun, with good scripts and horror effects, and it'll take you back to the 80s which is always a good place to be.  :)

Have an awesome day. Tons of love as always!  xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo  :):) 

More Mabuse! : "The Return of Dr. Mabuse" and "The Invisible Dr. Mabuse"

Did someone say "More Mabuse"? I could've sworn I heard those words, echoing in my mind just above the conscious level. Was it you who said them? Or maybe it was the Mad Doctor himself, compelling me to watch the rest of his movies, but whatever the case, be it mind control or a sub-aural message........it worked. I found I suddenly needed More Mabuse indeed, so I Googled the next installment, saw that it was called "The Return of Dr. Mabuse"(1961) and discovered there was a print available on Youtube. Then I pressed "play".

Going in, I knew Fritz Lang was not involved. As mentioned in the last blog, "1000 Eyes" was both his last Mabuse and his final film, so I wasn't expecting another arty triumph. A new director was at the helm, one with a host of unknown German credits. As a Mabuse fan, I'd read years ago about the final set of post-Lang sequels, none of which was said to be very good. No one described them as garbage, either, just average fare, but because they were being compared to the early classics of the franchise (begun almost 40 years previous), they were given less-than-favorable treatment in the reviews I read. Consequently I never sought them out. But after we were pulled back in, as it were, by the actress Dawn Addams (and cue Al Pacino), and after "1000 Eyes" turned out to be as top notch as the first two movies, I figured I might as well keep going and give the other sequels a shot. Especially after I heard that Voice in my head.....("More Mabuse! Watch more Mabuse!") 

And who can refuse the Mad Doctor? Not I, your Intrepid Reviewer, nor apparently a group of convicts, locked down in a Behr-LEEN prison. Let me explain.....

As "Return" opens, an Interpol agent is killed on a train. He'd been in Berlin, collecting evidence on a German mob link to the Syndicate in Chicago. Are the Mafia branching out, or is it something different? The Police Inspector is back (Gert Frobe from "1000 Eyes") and has his own suspicions, especially after a woman with Chi-town connections is murdered late one night after leaving a bar. The killers' method, using a truck equipped with a flamethrower, leads him to suspect an old foe, the mysterious Dr. Mabuse. The idea is cemented in his head after an investigator finds a book in the dead woman's coat, entitled "The Devil's Anatomy". Inside it's burned cover, the contents page reveals four chapters : "The Myth of Satan", "The Myth of Dracula", "The Wolfman Myth", and finally, "The Myth of Dr. Mabuse". Keep in mind that the Devil's greatest achievement is convincing us he doesn't exist, and there you have the purpose of the book, written by a local priest, who may or may not be complicit in the scheme.

Look......what's the deal already? Does Mabuse exist or doesn't he? And don't give The Inspector a lot of guff about how he "died" years ago. Frobe knows, from previous ex-schperience, that Mabuse never dies. That's why he's on par with The Wolfman, Dracula and Satan. So please stop selling him short, you investigators you! He ain't dead, gravestone or no gravestone. Inspector Frobe tries to keep this knowledge to himself to avoid disbelief among his colleagues, then sets out to solve the two murders.

This time, he has help from handsome Lex Barker, an American with multiple i.d.s : FBI agent, American tourist, Chicago mobster.  

There's a ton of evil stuff going on, with prisoners turned into zombies via an inoculation process, where they are given shots that destroy their free will. This is presented by the prison warden as a vaccination against disease, but for Mabuse it's very effective when it comes to committing crimes, giving him an army of team players who don't ask questions......

His ultimate goal, after jailbreaking the prisoners, is to have them blow up a nearby nuclear power plant, which will trigger the end of the world. Though it doesn't match the artistry of it's Lang-directed  predecessors, "The Return of Dr. Mabuse" still works as an effective crime thriller with demonic overtones. There is one glaring problem, however : there isn't much Mabuse! Holy smokes! I mean, he's continually talked about, and investigated by Frobe and Barker, but he's rarely onscreen, except in disguise. But that doesn't count because he's "disguised" as other characters. Still and all, I do recommend "Return", with Two Solid Thumbs Up, because of it's steady plot, always involving. ///// 

But wait! We aren't done yet because there's More Mabuse still! Unfortunately though, it's gonna become a little formulaic by the time we get to the next entry, "The Invisible Dr. Mabuse"(1962), which I watched last night. The same director is back (Harald Reinl), and while he's clearly a competent craftsman, in place to keep the franchise going and using a similar format to the one he utilised in "Return of Mabuse", he's lost much of the tension of that movie, which juggled several subthemes and kept the audience guessing. And even though Fritz Lang was long gone by then, and thus "Return" lacked his considerable artistic touches, it still had the traction of a tight crime thriller, even if there wasn't much Mabuse til the end. Part of the problem with "Invisible Mabuse" is that the inimitable Police Inspector is not on board. I didn't know this until I checked his IMDB, but by 1964, actor Gert Frobe would go on to portray "Goldfinger" in the Bond flick of the same name. Maybe he checked out of the Mabuse series to do that (and as an aside, it would be an adventure to try a pronunciation, Ad Style, of Frobe's last name, which has an umlaut over the "o". Just for a quickie, we could try Frrurrrb-ah, or maybe Frrairr-buh or just plain Frrurrb.) Umlauts are fun, in the same way as pronouncing "Oeuvre" is fun.  :) 

But at any rate, what you get in "Invisible Mabuse" is exactly what you might imagine : a take-off on "The Invisible Man", only with the Mad Mr. M on the rampage instead of Claude Rains. The trouble is that it's a paint-by-numbers affair. The movie opens inside a Berlin (pronun.) theater, where a disembodied pair of spyglasses watches the stage performance, a magic act featuring clowns and a beautiful actress, who is taken to the guillotine for the grand finale. Of course, it's all make believe and as the curtain opens for the encore, she's right there taking her bows. Invisible Mabuse can't get enough of her, or the show, and we see him - or rather just his binoculars - at several performances, night after night. The usual Unexplained Murders happen, but this time, as mentioned, there's no Gert Frobe to investigate. His presence carried a lot of weight in the two previous sequels, and while Alex Baldwin-lookalike Lex Barker returns as "Joe Como, FBI Agent", and does a decent job, he lacks the casual jocularity and hearty German-ness of Frobe, a cigar-chomping biggie who gave "Return" it's heart.

There is some interesting science in "Invisible Mabuse", such as when a physicist explains to Barker the wave theory behind the Doctor's invisibility. He draws the whole thing out on a chalkboard and his explanation is quite fascinating. I wish there had been a lot more scenes like this, instead of the numerous cuts of Barker running from place to place and the inevitable, forced romance with the movie's heroine (the stage actress). Also - once again there's not a lot of Mabuse. Wolfgang Preiss, the actor who plays him, must've had a contract stipulation that limited his screen time, because while he was all over the place in "1000 Eyes", he's barely there in "Return" and "Invisible", and Mabuse's presense is instead insinuated by "disguises", i.e. other characters. You're supposed to wonder, "Is it the physicist, or is it Mabuse? Is it the priest, or is it Mabuse?". This was okay, and fun, in "Return", but as I say, it becomes a formulaic plot device by the time we get to "Invisible".

And yet.......yet again I'm gonna give it a recommendation. "The Invisible Dr. Mabuse" earns Two Regular Thumbs Up, one rating down from "The Return of Dr. Mabuse", but still it squeaks by as a watchable b-grade thriller, and on it's interesting scientific qualities, including a "de-invisiblizing" finish. ////

That's all I've got for today. Believe it or not, there are still three more Mabuse sequels for us to wade through. They'll have to wait for several days, as I have library flicks to catch up on, but we'll get to 'em eventually. Have a wonderful afternoon, and tons of love as always.  xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo  :):)

"The 1000 Eyes of Dr. Mabuse", an amazing film from Fritz Lang (plus books & music)

Last night I had an amazing find : "The 1000 Eyes of Dr. Mabuse"(1960), the third film in the Mabuse series and the last one directed by it's creator, the legendary Fritz Lang. I wasn't looking for Lang or Mabuse; I found the movie on Youtube as a result of an IMDB search for an actress named Dawn Addams, who I'd seen in an episode of "Danger Man", the brilliant 60s series starring Patrick McGoohan that I own on dvd. Browsing Miss Addams' credits, I saw that she was in this film, and as a huge fan of Dr. Mabuse, my interest was piqued. Over the years I'd read mixed reviews on "1000 Eyes". Coming as it did 38 years after the first installment :"Dr. Mabuse, the Gambler" (Silent, 1922), and 27 years after it's classic sequel "The Testament of Dr. Mabuse", some critics and fans thought it was second rate, and merely an attempt by Lang to cash in one final time. Others said it was a worthy update on the Mabuse saga, that of the Notorious Megacriminal, who is so diabolical that he wants to overthrow not only the government, not just the whole world, but the entire Universe. What convinced me to watch was the notation the uploader included on his Youtube post that said "HD". I'm a sucker for a razor sharp print, and I love Dr. Mabuse, so I figured "what the heck" and pressed play.

I'll preface my review by saying that, if you have the intention of watching "1000 Eyes", you should at the very least watch "The Testament of Dr. Mabuse" first. If you have the patience to sit through a 4 1/2 hour Silent film, I'd suggest starting at the beginning, with "Dr. Mabuse, the Gambler", just to get a full picture of the Mad Doctor, who - due to his dominant mental and psychic abilities  - does indeed have the power to achieve his goal. How interesting that Lang foreshadowed the rise of Hitler with the first two Mabuse films, and while Mabuse works covertly (by subterfuge and mind control) versus the overt aggression and militarism of Der Fuhrer, the end result is the same, or at least is desired by each megalomaniac. We should thank God that Mabuse was not, in the end, more deadly than Hitler, or we'd be back to Square One prior to the Big Bang, the Universe having collapsed in on itself as a result of his mischief.

At any rate, 'how's the movie Ad'? I found it to be very enjoyable and stylish, a mid-century modern Mabuse, with sharp-angled German interiors substituting for the chiaroscuro griminess of the first films. Most of the action takes place at the Hotel Luxor, in an unnamed city (likely Behr-LEEN). As the movie opens, a TV reporter is shot while sitting in his car at a stoplight. His cause of death is ruled a heart attack, however, as there is no visible bullet wound in his body. Shortly after this, a woman (Dawn Addams) stands on the ledge of an upper floor at the Luxor, threatening to jump. After some coaxing by another resident, she comes back inside and is treated by her psychiatrist, a Dr. Jordan.

The police inspector becomes intrigued after learning of the suicide attempt, for the TV reporter had been conducting interviews with a renowned psychic who lives at the hotel. Was the woman's despair related to the reporter's death? Both are connected to the Luxor. The inspector orders an autopsy on the reporter and the coroner discovers what we already knew - that he was murdered, shot in the head with a thin, nearly undetectable needle. But why?

The psychic then calls the inspector to report that he "envisioned" the reporter's death in a clairvoyant trance, and may be able to provide more details if a seance is conducted. This will happen a little later in the film.

But what of the suicidal woman? She is taken under the wing of the man who rescued her, an American industrialist named "Henry Travers" (Peter van Eyck). Travers is falling in love with Addams, and as she recovers he entrusts her to no one but the good Dr. Jordan. Addams gives vague reasons for her stand on the ledge, including her abusive marriage, but they don't add up. Something else is bothering her, Mr. Travers can sense it, but what on Earth could it be?

Meanwhile, an attempt is made on the life of the inspector. I won't reveal the details, but it'll make you jump out of your seat! While doing research into previous terrorist bombings, he comes across the name of a Dr. Mabuse,  a criminally insane individual who caused havoc in the city years earlier. But Mabuse died in 1932, so it couldn't be him...........I mean, it couldn't possibly be him, right? He's been dead for almost thirty years. But I mean, c'mon; the movie is called "The 1000 Eyes of Dr. Mabuse". If he's dead, why is his name in the title?

Well, maybe it's because of his "1000 Eyes". They do indeed live on, but I'm not gonna tell you much about them, and I'm gonna leave you guessing about the above-ground viability of Mabuse himself. There is another character hanging around the hotel who always seems to be present when something plotwise is going down. He's a portly,self-effacing insurance salesman named "Hieronymus P. Mistelsweig" ("the 'P' is for 'Paunch', he says when introducing himself). Hieronymus P. is funny, and can often be found in the bar, but he's also kinda weird. He bases all of his sales on the Zodiac profiles of potential clients, and won't insure anyone whose planets are unfavorable. He's even done a chart on the Hotel Luxor, and reports to Mr. Travers that the building was born under a bad sign, in addition to being originally built as a billet for Nazi officials during the Third Reich. Mistelsweig is also nosy, and wants in on the seance. His affinity for the occult is received well by the psychic, who includes him in the group when the event occurs.

That's all I'm gonna tell you about the plot. There's more than enough to digest, and actually there's so much going on that you may find it hard to follow at times, because Lang doesn't explain everything as it is happening. In fact, it's a film I'll need to see twice just to tie up a few details I may have missed the first time. Because of it's many layers and sometimes confusing nature, I was not thinking "classic" as I watched, but rather "competent thriller". But now, the next morning, I am re-thinking that first-glance opinion. This film may well be a classic. As mentioned, it doesn't have the Expressionistic look of "The Testament of Dr. Mabuse", but the notable Fritz Lang production design is present in every scene. There's a little bit of James Bond to the look, in the modern hotel suites, but he furnishes each room with a Kandinsky-esque painting, in keeping with the Lang tradition for art and composition. In that regard, the photography is flawless, as good in framing and texture as in any movie from the European New Wave cinema. Overall, though it has strong touches of sci-fi and avant-garde theosophy, I'd still call it a thriller. And I do indeed think it's a classic. In looking it up on IMDB, I just now see that is was the last film Fritz Lang ever directed.

He really went out with a bang. "The 1000 Eyes of Dr. Mabuse" gets Two Huge Thumbs Up from me. Whether you're already a fan of The Doctor or new to his crazy ways, it's a Must See, and the print is razor sharp. One small caveat is that the dialogue is dubbed to English rather than subtitled, but it's pretty well matched to the lip movements of the actors, so not to worry. See it tonight!  /////         

I just finished reading "Dreamland", the autobiography of Bob Lazar, and I highly recommend it to anyone fascinated with the subject of UFOs, but also to anyone who wants insight into (or is already familiar with) the consequences of involvement in a National Security event. It's a mindblower of a book to say the least.

I also finished Lyn Macdonald's "1918 : To The Last Man", and will be putting World War One aside for a while, for the simple reason that it's so gutwrenching to read about. Macdonald is an exemplary historian, however, and a talented writer. I've now completed two of her WW1 books and we'll return to the rest of them eventually. Next up is "The Last Days of John Lennon" by none other than James Patterson, the world's best selling author. He's mainly a novelist (his Bill Clinton-coauthored thriller is a must read), and I don't know yet if "Last Days" is presented as fiction or non-fiction, but I'm gonna dig in tonight and I'll get back to you. My album last evening was "Sofronitsky Plays Schumann", i.e. classical piano music. I'm gonna try to include more rock while I read, but as I've mentioned before, for some reason I find it hard to concentrate when there are vocals in the music. Why would that be? Words sung competing with words being read, I suppose. Well anyhow, onward and upward.  /////

Have an awesome day. I send you Tons of Love as always.  xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo  :):)

More Paul Henreid in "Night Train to Munich", plus "The Somme" (2005) and Mars Perseverance

You wanted more Paul Henreid and you got him, in "Night Train To Munich"(1940), directed by Carol Reed, the Englishman who also brought us the classics "Odd Man Out" and "The Third Man". Henreid, billed as Paul von Henreid this time around (perhaps to make him sound more JAIR-Mun), plays a Gestapo (Gesch-schtappo) officer tasked with enforcing the co-operation of a brilliant Czech scientist, who has developed a special armor plating coveted by the Nazis. He's trying to flee his country after the German annexation of Czechoslovakia in 1939, and the Nazis have put his daughter (Margaret Lockwood) into a Prague concentration camp in retaliation, to coerce her into revealing his whereabouts. She won't do it, but instead of torturing her they try a different tactic. In the camp, she is befriended by Karl Marsen (Henried), a virulent anti-Fascist who shouts down their captors and is beaten to a pulp. He's unbowed by his punishment and plans an escape, in which he invites the daughter to participate.

While planning the getaway, Marsen ingratiates himself to her, and gains enough trust that Lockwood reveals to him the details of her father's whereabouts. This proves to be disastrous, for the escape was a ruse, and Marsen was never a real prisoner; he was actually a plant, a Gestapo Leftenant, and the escape plot was deliberately set up to allow Lockwood to run free, in the belief that she'd go straight to her father who could then be captured. But after the escape, she can't locate him as expected. He's moved again. So, she ends up in England, where she is assisted by a veddy Brrittissh intelligence agent named "Dickie Randall" (Rex Harrison). Like Henreid his German counterpart, Harrison is also posing, in his case as a sheet music salesman who belts out the popular songs of the day to draw customers. This gives ol' Rex a chance to show off some of the song-and-dance talent he was later famous for, but in "Night Train", we've gotta ditch all of that because he's gonna help Lockwood get her father back, while trying to get rid of Paul Henreid in the process. In doing so, he will have to disguise himself as a Nazi, in order to enter the lion's den.    

There's a ton of good stuff happening in this movie, including the prison escape, dialogue between officious, uptight Nazi adjutants (the kind who are played as caricatures in wartime films), there are car chases, a double romance (both men are wooing Lockwood), and finally in the last act, the half-hour ride aboard the train, en route to Munich, where Henreid will attempt to expose Rex Harrison as a spy. Harrison, however, finds help in the form of of two ordinary British chaps who know him from London. The whole thing winds up in a Hitchcockian cliffhanger over the Swiss Alps. It's as great a finale as you will ever see, and a fine finish to this suspenseful and highly entertaining movie.

Two Very Big Thumbs Up for "Night Train to Munich".  ////

I also watched an English television documentary called "The Somme" (2005), based on the hellish World War One battle of the same name, which is depicted in the film though re-enactments and a handful of real life clips from war footage filmed in 1916, which was part of a silent movie, also called "The Somme" that was rushed to theatres in Britain at the time, in an effort to generate public support for the war. In the 2005 film, narrated by Tilda Swinton, the battle is retold, ala Ken Burns' "Civil War", in the words of the soldiers themselves, from letters sent home and diaries later recovered. It's a sad, sombre affair that drives home the insanity of war, but especially trench warfare, which in this case - the Battle of the Somme - cost the lives of one million young men, British, French and German. And that was just one battle. The point is quietly made, without accusation, that the massive loss of life was all at the insistence of one British General, in order to gain a few hundred yards of ground. There is a poetic undertow to "The Somme", and no shortage of courage, but it's a sad film, and so I recommend it for war buffs only, or the purpose of history.

Watch it to honor the young men on all sides, many of them only teenagers, who died fighting their European neighbors all those years ago. No soldier should ever be forgotten.  //// 

I promise to return to our usual late night posting schedule by the next blog or two. I've been wiped out by the events of the past few days, but I'm feeling better and we'll get things back on track, Maybe we can start adding a musical element as well, nothing lengthy but just an "Album of the Day", perhaps. Right now I'm still listening to my Handel Organ Concertos, but I've also had an earworm for Francois Couperin's "Les Barricades Mysterieuses" (aka Mysterious Barricades), which you've no doubt heard. Though it's short, I think it's one of the most beautiful pieces of music ever written, originally for harpsichord but in the versions I love the most, played on piano. My favorite one is by Gyorgy Cziffra, a Hungarian pianist who recorded it in 1982. For a different interpretation, I also like Alexandre Tharaud's take, played fast but without loss of feeling.

I just now watched the Perseverance land on Mars - super exciting! It's gonna be driving around looking for Little Green Men, and who knows........it may already have found a few.  :) Maybe they can send one of their Rovers down here in return. That would be pretty cool, eh?

Have a great day, and Tons of Love as always. I'll get the blog back on track at the regularly scheduled time (pronounced shedge-yooled as I'm sure you are aware).  :)

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo  :):)

Paul Henreid in "The Scar"

Here's a star we haven't seen much of : Paul Henreid. In fact, we may not have seen him at all, which is a bit shocking given his reputation as a fine actor who exudes charisma, and among other notable roles was featured in "Casablanca" (which - even more shockingly - we haven't seen either!) Tonight, however, we remedied the situation with a movie called "The Scar"(1948), in which Henreid plays a paroled felon who goes straight back to his gang, to plan the robbery of a casino. His stooges want no part of it, telling him that the casino owner is not someone to mess with : "He'll track you down if it takes twenty years". But Henreid figures he's got the job all figured out, and convinces the boys to go along. "We're gonna score 200 grand", he tells them.

But there's a fly in the ointment, and something happens during the robbery that Henreid didn't plan for. Two of his henchmen end up dead and the others have ratted him out. Now he's on the run.

By sheer Screenwriter's Coincidence, he's walking down the street one day when he sees a man who appears to be following him. Thinking it might be one of the casino man's thugs, he confronts the guy, who turns out to be merely a dentist who has an office nearby. The poor guy's a nebbish, and as he nervously explains to Henreid : "I'm sorry I followed you. It was only because I thought you were someone else. You look exactly like a psychiatrist in my building". And here we have the true raison d'etre for the plot; The Old Impersonation Game once again. We've seen it used recently in "The House on 92nd Street" and it works well as a tension builder. It turns out that while Henreid was in the slammer (prior to the start of the film), he spent time reading up on psychiatry and psychology in the prison library. Isn't it amazing the details a screenwriter can turn up about a guy? But yeah, Henreid is a man of intelligence, who's studied the mysteries of the mind, and if you can believe it (which you can because in movies you suspend disbelief), all of a sudden, after a Man on the Street tells him he's the exact double for a local psychiatrist, he decides to pass himself off as the shrink, which will help steer him clear of both the crooks and the cops.

Henreid observes the man as he leaves his office. They do look alike! The only difference is a lengthy scar on the doctor's face, which Henreid recreates on his own mug when he gets back to his hotel room. Keep the scar in mind, because it will play a role in the outcome (and while I shouldn't have told you that, the movie's title gives it away). Of course, there can't be two shrinks of the same name and look, so Henreid is forced to do away with The Original, which is not too big a deal for him as he's already a hardened convict.

But the thing is, he's a Suave Con, and in fact, as I watched I thought : "I'm not sure I've seen anyone suaver". I think Paul Henried must have invented the 1940s pose of holding your cigarette sideways, between your thumb and ring finger, and twisting your wrist as you bring it to your pursed lips to take a puff through squinted eyes. Yeah, Bogie was good at it too, but he's got nothing on this guy. Henreid was tall and handsome in a slightly rugged way, and he had Just The Right Amount of German Accent (pronounced CHURR-Munn), to occupy the thespian's no man's land, where he could play either Nazis or Wealthy Continentals, or in this case, a criminal who is intelligent enough to pose as a psychiatrist while retaining his All Important Suaveness. That aspect can't be emphasized enough!

After doing away with the shrink, he walks into what is now "his" office, and greets his secretary Joan Bennett, a film noir dame if there ever was one. What he doesn't know is that Bennett (who we saw last month in "The Reckless Moment") had been carrying on an affair with the real doctor. She sees Henreid with his manufactured scar and can't tell the difference. Now he's got himself a new girlfriend along with his new "practice", but will it screen him from his pursuers?

"The Scar" starts strong, and at first it looks like your basic high-stakes Heist Flick. But then the brakes screech and we're thrown into a swerving U-Turn, plotwise. Things bog down for a few minutes, when Henreid meets Bennett and the romance develops, but only because the dialogue feels stiff and forced in those scenes, like they were going for a Bogie/Bergman look in two-shot closeups. It's out of place after all the action we've witnessed, but the lull only lasts a few minutes, then things perk up again for the last half of the movie, as we wait on tenterhooks to see if Henried will be outed as an impostor. 

Two Very Big Thumbs Up for "The Scar", and let's look for more Paul Henreid (and when are we gonna finally watch "Casablanca"? Man, what kind of movie fans are we, anyway?)

I apologize for the lateness of the blog this time. I usually deliver it right before going to bed, but I've had a rough couple of days and am worn to a frazzle as a result. Some of it is work related, but I'm also living in an entirely untenable situation in my apartment building, which is so bad that I dread coming home on days off. This is no exaggeration. I live next to The Neighbors From Hell, and so if anyone knows of a quiet building that is reasonably priced, please let me know, I beeseech you. I'm at the point where I'm ready to move all of my stuff into storage and just stay in a motel during my time off from Pearl's. I'm an Alzheimer's caregiver, just trying to do the best job I can. I haven't missed a single day of work in 11 years, and I am extremely good at what I do, but it isn't appreciated, and on top of that, when I come home I am subjected to constant noise in a tenement apartment building. My blood pressure is probably off the charts and I don't want to die.

So, I'm sorry to complain, because it isn't seemly, but I'm aware from my page counter that several people read this blog, and even though no one has ever offered a single comment, nor acknowledged being a reader in my 23 years of blogging, I'm just reaching out because I'm in a very difficult situation, and I could use a helping hand.

One day, you may find me in the Mojave Desert, far away from the insanity of Los Angeles.

End of complaint. Tons of love as always, have a good day.  xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

"Cause for Alarm!" starring Loretta Young & "British Intelligence" w/ Boris Karloff (another great double feature)

I'm back at home since last night, and I've got a great double feature for you. This evening I watched a nerve-wracking thriller called "Cause for Alarm!"(1951, exclamation point included in the title), starring Loretta Young as a housewife caring for her bitter, invalid husband (Barry Sullivan, in a frightening performance). They met when he was still in the Army, virile and handsome, but years later, now that he's bedridden with a heart condition, he's mad at the world and jealous of everyone around him, especially Loretta, who Sullivan thinks is in love with the doctor who is treating him. Though she dotes on her husband, he responds with contempt, and - even worse - he's convinced himself that Young and the doctor are conspiring to kill him so they can finally be together. In his paranoia, Sullivan has gone so far as to write a letter to the District Attorney, laying out his case against the pair, and saying that if anything happens to him, they should be considered the prime suspects.

This letter will be of prime importance to the plot, and I really shouldn't tell you any more because this movie grabs hold from the start and never lets you go until the final frame. It was made by MGM and has one of their major stars, so I'm surprised it's not more well known. It's essentially a "woman in peril" plot, and Loretta Young brings a stressed out energy to her role, to the point where she's about to have a nervous breakdown. Something happens after Sullivan writes his letter to the D.A., and I can't tell you what it is, but it causes Loretta to come apart at the seams as she has to deal with this consequence, and at the same time try to maintain a facade of normalcy with the various neighborhood characters she comes in contact with, including a bothersome-but-cute little boy who rides a trike and is always knocking on her door, asking for cookies.

Her postman also figures prominently in the plot, and though he doesn't ring twice, he's certainly committed to the creed of the USPS : "Neither wind nor rain, etc. etc.". Poor Loretta nearly has a conniption fit in dealing with him.

I think I've told ya too much, but make sure you watch this one. It gets Two Big Thumbs Up, and has an ending that may be different from what you're expecting. Really good stuff, filmed in beautiful black and white in what looks like West L.A. circa 1951.  

Last night I was in espionage mode, with "British Intelligence"(1940), starring Boris Karloff and Margaret Lindsay. This was also a really good one! I should point out that Lindsay is the real star of the film (so we have two heroines in our movies this time around), and while Boris has a substantial role, he gets first billing strictly due to box office draw. Anyhow, the plot : the RAF is losing an inordinate amount of planes on missions that are supposed to be Top Secret. Naturally, they suspect a leak coming from someone privy to classified information. They track a German agent to London, a master spy named Strendler. The problem is that no one has ever seen him; no photographs exist, so nobody knows what he looks like. Meanwhile, pretty Miss Lindsay is also working for the Germans, impersonating the niece of a Brrrittish Cabinet Minister (and man, the whole thing is as Brrrittish as all get out). As for Boris Karloff, he's the Minster's valet, a Frenchman named Valdar. He walks with a limp and has a scarred face, so there's a touch of Klassic Karloff Horror to his role, but to his credit Boris goes outside the box here, in a multifaceted part that includes him in the spy game. I can't reveal to what extent, but then, in "British Intelligence", as with their real life counterparts in the MI-5 (or is it 6?), the Brits always play things so close to the vest that you won't know who's who until the end. 

It's not a simple Ten Little Indians plot, however. The writing, editing and direction are all finely layered and composed, and you are present in the moment as the intrigue builds and the British spooks have to continually reassess their options, as they try to expose the elusive "Strendler". "British Intelligence" runs only 61 minutes, but takes us back to a time, not too long ago, when we were raving about the ability of Golden Era screenwriters to pack a truckload of plot, character development and subtheme into a short format. They do so here, and while this is Margaret Lindsay's film, it's also a great vehicle for Boris Karloff to show some versitality. The print on Youtube is average but watchable, and one hopes for a Criterion-level restoration of this very worthy picture. /////

The wind outside is howling as I write, some of the spookiest gale-force Santa Anas we've had in a while. I've just begun a new book : "Dreamland" by Bob Lazar, the guy who brought Area 51 to public attention back in 1989. Lazar worked at that facility and this is his autobiography. I'm fifty pages in, and it's a mindblower. While reading, I listened to a disc from my new 3 cd set of Handel Organ Concertos. I hadn't explored Handel very much over the years, knowing him mostly for the "Messiah", which is of course a masterwork, but after hearing one of the concertos the other night, on Jim Svejda's show on KUSC, I knew I had to have them all. In a word, they're smokin'. (think Rick Wakeman if he'd been alive in 1753).

That's all I know for tonight. I wish you a Happy Valentine's Day tomorrow, and tons of love as always.

See you in the morning.  xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo  :):)

"The House on Telegraph Hill" starring Valentina Cortese + Leon Ames + The Trump Trial

Tonight I've got a Grade A thriller for you, directed by Robert Wise no less, called "The House on Telegraph Hill"(1951). Italian actress Valentina Cortese stars as a Polish refugee from the Bergen Belsen concentration camp. At the end of the war, in order to start a new life, she's assumed the identity of a friend who died there. Cortese has no family and doesn't want to be sent back to Warsaw, but her friend had an aunt in America, in San Francisco. She knows enough details of the friend's life story to pass herself off as the woman when she is questioned by a US Army Major, as part of the repatriation process. After enduring a few weeks of bureaucratic tie-ups, she makes her way to The City by the Bay, where a lawyer awaits her, representing the family of her "aunt". Confusing perhaps, but all of this takes only five minutes, and is easy to follow in the film.

And now the real plot begins, for she discovers that her "aunt" was very wealthy, and lived in an old Victorian mansion on Telegraph Hill. The aunt is now deceased, and there is a child involved - the son of the woman who died at Belsen. Cortese is pretending to be her, the boy's long lost mother. The lawyer is representing our pal Richard Basehart, who like Edward Arnold we've seen a lot of recently. Basehart is suing for custody of the child, as he was assumed to be the only surviving relative of the aunt, until Valentina Cortese showed up at any rate. But now she is a rival for the aunt's money, so he does the only thing possible : he marries her.

The trouble for Cortese is that he may be a psycho. She thinks Basehart wants to kill her, and if so, he may have help in the form of an ultra-repressed nanny who has cared for the child since he was an infant, after he was shipped to San Francisco when his real mother was sent to Belsen.

It's all very Hitchcockian, and much better viewed than read about, because there's a lot of nuance. I was thinking that the Basehart character might have a past himself. He's supposed to be a Polish-American; but could he be passing himself off as well? My guess was that he was actually a former Nazi, escaped to the US. I was way off, but you will also find yourself guessing right up until the end. This is Valentina Cortese's movie all the way, though Basehart is excellent as always. But he's gaslighting her, so she has to react, and I think her performance was worthy of an Oscar nomination.

Keep an eye on the Army Major too, because he will turn up in a Screenwiter's Coincidence.

Two Very Big Thumbs Up for "The House on Telegraph Hill". The black and white photography is rich with texture and touches of Noir, and Wise tightens the suspense like a spring. The payoff........well, you might have a different take on it than I did, but I'll say no more. But by all means see this movie, which has a razor sharp print available on Youtube. It's a big league release by major talent, and highly recommended.

For a quickie second feature, last night's movie was "Panama Patrol"(1939), the sequel to "Cipher Bureau" (which we reviewed a couple nights ago), and like that film it was a ton of fun. As it opens, Leon Ames (playing "Major Phillip Waring", head of the bureau) is at the Marriage Licence office with his Gal Friday (Charlotte Wynters). They fell for each other in the first flick and are about to tie the knot, when a call comes in. It's urgent; the pair are needed back at headquarters. A code has been intercepted of Asian origin, they've gotta call off the wedding until the end of the movie, because the plot is more important. 

Y'know, even during "Cipher Bureau", it'd been bugging me where I'd previously seen Leon Ames. You might recall that I described him as "recognizable" in our last blog. Well, as I watched "Panama Patrol" the question continued to nag at me, and about halfway through, the answer arrived. "Of course! Ames is the father to Judy Garland and her sisters in 'Meet Me In St. Louis', one of the greatest musicals of all time and also a Christmas Classic that I own on dvd and have watched many times". I didn't actually say those exact words in quotes, but you get the gist........Leon Ames is great in the two Cipher Bureau movies, and Charlotte Wynters makes a great romantic foil as his trusty secretary. The code breaking scenes are the real draw, however, and are interesting just on a level of Stuff You Never Knew About.

Both of those films are also recommended. /////

After watching the House Managers' presentations at the Trump Trial these past two days, I don't see how any Senator could vote to acquit the SOB, especially after viewing the video footage. What is it about Trump that these Republican Senators are still so afraid of, even though he's no longer the president? The way I see it, by voting to acquit an obviously guilty man, in the long run they are shooting themselves in the foot, because by continuing to support this MF (who should be in prison already), they are dooming the Republican Party to extinction. The seriousness of what took place on January 6th is only beginning to sink in, for all sane people anyway, and the repercussions are going to be severe for the lowlifes who stormed the Capitol, beat down police officers and threatened to kill members of Congress and the Vice President.

Justice is coming for Donald Trump. Whether or not is is exacted with the help of Republican Senators doesn't matter. He's going down the tubes, one way or the other, because that's what happens to all megalomaniacs eventually. And when he goes down, every one of the sycophants who supported him at every turn will go down with him, and that may wind up being the death of the Republican Party as we now know it. I do feel for the old school Repubs - if there are any left besides Mitt Romney - because even though I don't share their politics, they used to be a party of gentlemen. Now they've all been reduced to kissing the ass of a two bit thug, a New York Mafioso who should have been in prison even before he ran for president.

But he's gonna go down, and hard, because they always do. You can count on it. ////

That's all for tonight. See you in the morning. Tons of love as always.  xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo  :):)

Two 30s Flicks That are Low Budget But Very Entertaining

This part of the blog was written last night, February 8th, 2021 :

 I wanted a night off from War Fare (and you probably did too), so I decided to look for something fun, short and easy, and I ended up with a Ten Little Indians mystery called "Secret of the Blue Room"(1933), which came with the bonus of having our pal Edward Arnold in a featured role. Gloria Stuart stars as "Irene von Heldorf", a charming young woman who lives in a castle with her widowed father (Lionel Atwill). This is one of those Single Location movies which are usually the context for TLI plots, and the castle - with it's many rooms (and the all important Blue Room) - serves as that location.

Irene is celebrating her 21st birthday with her father and three suitors, each of whom swears he loves her more than the other two. The youngest one, Tommy, has known Irene since childhood and is especially passionate in his declarations toward her. During the birthday dinner, Irene's father has regaled her boyfriends with tales of the castle's history, including that of the "cursed" Blue Room, in which several guests have mysteriously died over the years. Tommy wants to win Irene so badly that he challenges her other two beaus to a contest : each of them will spend a night in the Blue Room. Tommy will go first. Whomever survives will claim Irene's hand. It's a macho dare coming from Tommy, thrown up at the older gents, one of whom is a military officer, the other a sophisticate.

Against Irene's protestations, Tommy does spend a night in the Blue Room, and when he goes missing, Edward Arnold, playing the local detective, turns up to investigate. At a certain point it will be necessary for him to call the entire cast into the living room to solve the crime, as per the formula in all Ten Little Indians movies, but this one has a spark to it. It's not overly talky (many of these films have too much expository dialogue), and there is an intriguing mystery that continues to build as the other two chaps take their turns sleeping in the dreaded Blue Room. At 66 minutes, you can't go wrong, especially when Arnold shows up in the second half, to put the screws on everyone he suspects in Tommy's disappearance.

Two Thumbs Up then, for "Secret of the Blue Room", and we're not quite done, because.......

This part of the blog was written tonight, February 9th, 2021, and I have another motion picture for you, entitled "Cipher Bureau" (1938). Just a brief review for this one, which stars early (but recognizable) actor Leon Ames as the head of a government code-breaking unit, which intercepts radio transmissions from spies on American soil and sets about translating their messages. When Ames' brother - a naval officer - is assigned to the group, he becomes easy prey for a beautiful Double Agent (Joan Woodbury), because he's a newbie in the spy game. But of course she falls in love with him, according to the laws of box office plot.

However, instead of being - again - a dialogue based exposition fest, this flick has action and a level of energy rare for a movie from a cash strapped studio. It not only moves, but features some truly interesting scenes where we see the codes being broadcast, over bulky radio sets, by foreign agents reciting their messages phonetically, voicing only vowel sounds, including all the variants on the letter "A", and so on. Later, an enemy pianist plays his new composition over the air. The codebreakers figure out that he's using the corresponding letters in the musical scale to send yet another message, and they have a translator at the ready who can transcribe the notes on a special typewriter at a thousand miles an hour. For these scenes alone the movie is recommended, but the forward motion of the story is the main draw. It's proof that an extremely low budget doesn't have to mean an uninspired production. Two Thumbs Yet Again (he shoots he scores....)

That's all for tonight. In books, I am still working on "To the Last Man : Spring 1918" by Lyn Macdonald, so I'm not done with the World Wars just yet, and I suspect we'll be watching some more documentaries down the road, but during my next period off work - which begins on Friday - we'll tackle another Rossellini History movie, and another legendary epic that I've reserved from the Libe. That one is over four hours long, so be sure to eat your Wheaties when the time comes. ///

And as Henry replied, when asked what he knew by Mary's father as they sat at the dinner table in "Eraserhead" : 

"Oh........not much of anything". 

See you in the morning. Tons of love.  xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo  :):)

Brady + Two Important WW2 Documentaries

Pearl & I had fun watching the Super Bowl today, and though the game wasn't a classic, it's a hell of a thing to watch Tom Brady, at age 43, just keep rolling along. A truly amazing Brady stat is that he won his first Super Bowl nineteen years ago, and his latest one today, with a different team and at an age when most QBs have long since called it quits. I used to be a world class Brady Hater, because that first championship came at the expense of Kurt Warner and the Rams (who were in St. Louis then). The Rams have always been my team, and Kurt was our hero, having QBed the team to victory in the previous SB. At the time, all the pundits were picking Kurt to become the next Joe Montana, but then in the 2002 Super Bowl, this freakin' kid came along and beat the Rams on the last drive of the game. That kid was Tom Brady, and for years I couldn't stand him. Of course, I wasn't alone, because besides winning all the time, he's just so Brady (all that TB12 stuff, the diet and robotic lifestyle) that just as many fans hated him as loved him.

But as the years passed, and the guy just kept doing it, I had to throw in the towel. I couldn't hate him anymore, especially now that he'd become an elder statesman, and way past any player's expiration date except George Blanda. The turning point came for me when Kurt Warner himself, now an NFL commentator, called Brady the G.O.A.T. a couple of Super Bowls ago. Up until then, I was still hanging on to Joe Montana as The Greatest of All Time (and I once hated him too, haha), but after Kurt said that about Tom Brady I had to agree, grudgingly at first, but in his last couple of SBs I've actually been rooting for him. He's the Babe Ruth of football, or maybe the Einstein, or whomever you care to name. You think of a superlative; I'm all outta words. Anybody who dedicates themselves that thoroughly to any endeavor, be it sport or what have you, is not only worthy of admiration in my book, but is also a special kind of person, who shows us what can be achieved with total focus on the goal.

So here's to Tom Brady. He didn't win today's game by himself - that Tampa defense was off the charts, but do you think they'd have won the Super Bowl (or even made it there) without him? Holy Smokes, folks. ///

My movies for the past two nights were another couple of World War Two documentaries. You might be getting sick 'of em by now, lol, so I'll refrain from getting on my Historical Soapbox and talking about the moral imperatives of the war, or it's legacy, and I'll just give you the basic details instead. The first film, watched last evening, was called "The Fighting Lady"(1944). It was produced by the U.S. Navy with the help of Hollywood, so you could call it a propaganda movie, but it was exceptionally well done. The title subject was the USS Yorktown, an aircraft carrier and the Navy's latest secret weapon in their battle against the Japanese fleet. Lieutenant Robert Taylor (yes, that Robert Taylor) narrates the story of the carrier's deployment in the vast Pacific Ocean and it's victories toward the end goal of taking Japan's islands.

All footage is actual - there is no dramatisation - and Robert Taylor's narration is frank and to the point as enemy ships are sunk and their planes shot down. There is no attempt to put a shine on the proceedings, the battle scenes are brutal, but we also get a tour of The Fighting Lady, which houses a crew of 3000 and qualifies as a small city, with the necessity of every occupation that would include, from bakers and butchers, to plumbers and electricians, to firefighters, airplane mechanics and administrators. Taylor points out that the entire effort is to serve the pilots onboard, whose missions against the Japanese coast are all important. The film was directed by a man named Edward Steichen, who interestingly enough I first heard about in my high school photography class, for he was one of the greatest still photographers in the 20th century, and of all time. Our teacher Mister Ibach talked about Steichen all the time, and now here he is directing a war documentary. But as I said, the Navy worked hand in hand with Hollywood on this short picture (61 minutes). Alfred Newman did the music, William Wyler co-directed.

I had never heard of it before last night, but it's without doubt of major importance as a record of what happened. It is imperative that this history never fades away, because it is precisely this kind of footage that will help to prevent it happening again. ////

Tonight's documentary was called "The Memphis Belle"(2004), and I'm just gonna give you a couple sentences cause it's late. I reserved this film from the Libe because I thought it was William Wyler's movie of the same name, which he filmed as a Lieutenant Colonel in the 8th Air Force based in England. A good many men from the motion picture industry in Hollywood went to war (including Jimmy Stewart, who was a bomber pilot), and Wyler, who was a famed director, actually shot combat footage from the Memphis Belle, a B-17 whose crew survived 25 missions, a rare feat.

The dvd I got from the library was not Wyler's documentary but an English production from 2004, where they used some of Wyler's footage to make their own presentation. While it was well done, I still want to see the original, by William Wyler, which ran 45 minutes and won an Academy Award for Best Documentary in 1944. ////

That's all for tonight. Don't take any wooden nickels. See you in the morning.  :)

Tons of love.  xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo  :):)  

 

It is heartening to see that Alex and Geddy are set to work together again, as they have done since they were fourteen years old. There is something so "garage" about that, something so pure to the spirit of rock n' roll which seems forgotten now in the non-musical age of pop, that two guys who reached the pinnacle of rock heights would "start over", even though, yeah, I know they're rich and famous, after the loss of their bandmate who took the ride with them. It's like Al & Ged are starting over again, at 67 going on 15, starting a new band and looking for (a drummer.......sacrilege!) or just looking to make new music, even though if they are playing rock they'll need a drummer. I'm sure they'll pick someone Neil would approve of, but to be honest, I wouldn't mind if they just went acoustic, because I can't imagine music from Alex and geddy without Neil.

Do it right, guys. Make it the Lee Lifeson Band, with guest musicians. And I'm sure they will. But most of all I just like that Garage Factor, of two legendary musicians who have done it all going back to the spirit of why they did it in the first place. I think Neil is making them do it. Thanks Neil.  :)  

A Noir and A War : "Crack-Up" starring Pat O'Brien and "First Light", the story of a Spitfire pilot + Elizabeth

Tonight's movie was a Noir with an interesting premise and a different kind of hero. Pat O'Brien stars as an art curator who suspects that the museum he works for is housing forged paintings. Entitled "Crack-Up"(1946), it begins with O'Brien beating his fists against the building's glass front doors. He's delirious, and finally throws his body against the glass to break through. It's late at night, but the board of directors is having a meeting. They rush out to the lobby to investigate the noise and discover O'Brien on the floor, babbling that he's just been in a train crash. Not a bad start, eh?

The board members think he's drunk and perhaps losing his marbles, and they call the cops. We are shown in flashback that, in addition to his duties as a steward at the museum, O'Brien is also a lecturer and art critic who detests Modernism. Being that their patrons donate enormous sums of money in the name of Modern Art, the board uses his predilections as a convenient excuse to can him, citing also his claim of the train crash, which apparently didn't happen. The police run it down and find no evidence. O'Brien is painted as a nut, and his job with the museum is over.

But he also has a past. He was a witness at the Nuremberg Trials, testifying about the Nazis' stolen artworks, so his expertise is not in question. By chance he runs into an old flame (Claire Trevor), who agrees to help him prove the train crash, which will show that his firing was unjust. But's she's hooked up with the Always Debonair (and Veddy Brrrittish) Herbert Marshall, who seems to be a little too inquisitive about Pat O'Brien's predicament. Is he also an investigator of some kind? The plot is too complex to describe in detail, but the direction is evenly paced, so while the story is slow in places, it's never confusing.

As far as O'Briens go, normally you'd expect to see Edmond in a film noir. He was one of the kings of the genre. Pat O'Brien, on the other hand, usually played cops and priests, Irish-American good guys in post-Depression dramas. But he was a solid actor and burly enough to be believable in the rough and tumble of a noir plot, especially this one with it's cultural leanings. There is a lot of to and fro about the legitimacy of a certain Gainsborough painting, and a Durer. Especially interesting is when O'Brien and Trevor gain the use of an X-Ray machine (via a colleague), to "see through" a canvas in order to ascertain if it's been painted over, which would indicate it was a work by the original artist rather than a copy.

As mentioned, the suspense level in this film is slightly lackluster, but the story moves forward and involves a subject not often dealt with in crime movies, namely..........Art.

That alone make it a Worthwhile Watch, and hey.........don't forget about the train crash. Did it actually happen, or what? To sum up, a very good script slightly marginalized by low key direction, but all in all a recommended film indeed.   /////

Last night I watched yet another tale of the RAF, this time a movie made for English TV in 2010. It was called "First Light", and though the more recent production date marked a change in my preference for older war films, especially where docudramas are concerned, I went with the Youtube recommendation and was not disappointed, though not without some caveats. "First Light" was written by a gentleman named Geoffrey Wellum, who in his youth became a Spitfire pilot at the age of 19 and flew combat missions during the Battle of Britain. Mr. Wellum is featured in the movie as a narrator, now in his 90s and still robust, shown driving to his local pub in real time, as he reminisces about his flying experience during the war.

I've been doing a lot of reading, and general research, into the lives of pilots and air crews during World War Two, from the RAF mostly, because my research began with reading about World War One, during which the British suffered horrific losses, and so I wanted to know more about their war experiences, having already studied those of the soldiers of the United States.

Because "First Light" was made in the modern era, in 2010, it suffers from the gauzy, BBC filtered nostalgic haze, in which every actor looks like a model (male and female), and the rear view period depiction lacks the authenticity we have already become used to in actual military docudramas like "Coastal Command". While that is not in itself a hindrance, and the film is very moving in it's entirety, it is more the story of a young pilot's gradual breakdown from the stress of combat. There isn't much flying, and the lingering scenes on the ground, at the airbase, seem sketched, like a series of vignettes. The film adds up emotionally when it's over, and you are glad you watched, but as it's unfolding, the story is less than the sum of it's parts. It's no doubt not what Mr. Wellum intended, as his real life experience was certainly beyond comprehension.

Still, having said all of that, I do recommend "First Light", not as a great movie but as one that will hit you in the heart later on, after it is over.    

Elizabeth, I am very happy to see that your films are getting screened, and that the festivals are happening again. You must be feeling great, just to have things somewhat back to normal, career-wise. It won't be long until you are out there shooting your next one, so keep your artistic focus at the forefront, and remember what you've already accomplished.........which is a lot. 

Keep your goals and dreams intact and keep going. This pandemic has been a delay, but that's all. ///

And that's all I know for tonight. I got "Today's Number" right (it was 9), so I am happy. See you in the morning, tons of love. Stay safe and stay well.  xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo  :):)

Two Excellent War Docudramas, one from the RAF, one FBI (plus "Project Blue Book")

 Before I begin my movie review, I'd like to once again put in a plug for the "Project Blue Book" series, which aired on The History Channel from 2019-2020. I just finished watching Season Two, and I must say that it's not only the best show of it's kind since The X-Files, but in my opinion it equals that series in every respect, and carries on it's motto, that "The Truth is Out There". Unfortunately, it was canceled after only two seasons, and maybe History is not the best venue for straight-up dramatic television. Perhaps they were trying to expand their audience, I dunno, but isn't it huge enough already? The good news is that there is a petition circulating, initiated by a fan of the show on Change.org, to continue it on another network. As of tonight there are over 26,000 signatures, including mine (signed a little while ago). Their goal is 35K.

Apparently other shows have been rescued from oblivion by organised fan support, and I recall that the Twin Peaks sequel received similar assistance from the fan base when David Lynch threatened to walk away after Showtime refused him creative control. The petitions in that case resulted in Lynch getting everything he wanted. He ended up directing all 18 episodes, of what this fan considers to be his overall artistic masterpiece. So as far as petitions go, there might be hope for Blue Book yet. In the meantime, you should immediately binge-watch the twenty episodes that are available. If you don't become hooked, I'll give you your 15 hours back. Hmmm, how could I do that? Maybe become your servant for a day or two?

But the thing is, that would never happen. Because once you watch this show, it's like Lay's Potato Chips, and you know what that means. So start watching. And sign the petition when you're done. Thanks. /////

Now on to tonight's movie, I found an interesting docudrama, produced by the Royal Air Force Film Production Unit, entitled "School For Danger"(1944). The story follows two British agents, a man and a woman, as they train to pose as French citizens during the Occupation of that country. Their physical training is rigourous, for they are set to parachute into the French countryside and then make their way to a village where they will meet their contacts. Their mission is to recruit members of the local populace for the Resistance movement, which will engage in acts of sabotage against the occupying German army. Besides their military training, the pair of agents are taught to speak French in the local accent (they were both already fluent in the language). They must also memorize the details of their new identities, and finally, they are given cyanide pills in the event they are caught.

One cool thing about this film is that the two agents are played by themselves, the real people who lived the mission. In this respect, the movie - which is played as a drama - has the same authenticity as another RAF production we saw recently, "Coastal Command", with it's dashing pilots acting in their own roles in that picture.

The direction in "School For Danger" is a little stiff compared to "Coastal" (and who directs RAF movies anyway?) but it's still chock full of fascinating - and actual - spy manoeuvers.  I could watch a hundred of these films and will be looking for more.

Last night's movie was in a similar vein. I got a Youtube recommendation for a flick called "The House on 92nd Street", starring Tyrone Power lookalike William Eythe as a German-American college grad who is recruited by the FBI to infiltrate a Nazi spy ring operating in New York. Like the RAF films, this movie was made with official help, in this case the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and is likewise presented as a docudrama with footage of actual FBI operations interwoven with the dramatic narrative. It's kind of mindblowing, and not in a good way, that Nazis were able to set up small intelligence groups here in the US, but I suppose I'm shocked mainly because it is something we never learned in history class. 

"92nd Street" was directed by the great Henry Hathaway, and despite being produced as war propaganda, it has more of a traditional "box office" feel to it than do the British pictures. If you take away the newsreel inspired narration, and the footage of FBI employees at work, it plays like a traditional dramatic movie with famous actors, including Lloyd Nolan, who plays the FBI inspector overseeing William Eythe, who has to walk an extremely fine line in pretending to sympathize with the fascistic German nationals living on American soil. Even though Eythe is on his home turf, in New York City, he is hampered by American democratic rules. This is a good thing, and in the movie it shows the power of the 1st Amendment at work.

But his life is also at risk, in his own country by people who are loyal to a foreign power, and because of our legal processes, they cannot be arrested without sufficient evidence, even though they would not hesitate to kill Eythe in a split second if they discovered he was an agent.

Such is the difference in our system from that of the Russians or Chinese, say what you will about America. And now we are at a crossroads trying to decide how to deal with nutcases like Marjorie Taylor Greene, and other Q-Anon crazies in the Republican Party, and - even worse - the Republican wimps who will not denounce them. Again, say what you will about America - and we'd better be careful because folks like Ms. Greene are dead serious in their opposition - but if this were Russia or China, what do you suppose would be her fate? She's fortunate, as are we all, to live in a country with freedom of speech. ////

Having said that, I hope she gets shut down big time. And all these other right wing kooks as well. We didn't go through two World Wars in the last century only to end up with a contingent of crazies fighting for the national directive. You can't yell "fire" in a crowded theater. Freedom of speech only extends so far, and as the Brits could tell you, fascism is always just around the corner. Better to shut it down now, here in the USA.

See you in the morning. Tons of love.  xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo  :):) 

"Tiger Bay" starring Hayley Mills and Horst Buchholz + John Agar and Mr. Reeves in "Man of Conflict" (man what a double bill)

Tonight's movie was once again a surprise find : an English crime thriller called "Tiger Bay"(1959), starring Hayley Mills as an adolescent tomboy who witnesses a murder in the tenement apartment building where she lives with her Aunt. The location is on the coast (city unnamed) near the docks. A merchant seaman (Horst Buchholz) has just disembarked after a long voyage and makes his way to Hayley's building to visit his girlfriend. When he arrives, though, she tells him she's got a new man. She's tired waiting for him while he's at sea, and their relationship is over. An argument ensues, the woman pulls a gun from a drawer, Bucholz wrests it from her and shoots her dead. All of this is witnessed by Hayley, a precocious sort who's been looking through the mail slot of the apartment.

She's also a bit of a juvenile delinquent, so after Horst Buchholz leaves, stashing the gun in a crawlspace, Hayley retrieves it, because it will make a great showpiece for the boys on her street who are always shutting her out of their games of Cops and Robbers. She's got a real gun to show off and is thinking "how d'ya like me now"? Actually, it's a bit more discreet than that. The next Sunday she brings it to church, where she sings in the choir (hooray for choir singers, nudge nudge). During a break, she shows the gun to a local boy, but she doesn't know that Horst Buchholz has attended the service, and has seen her, until it's too late.

This will begin a chase, with Buchholz trying to pin down the elusive Mills, who has all the energy of a twelve year old, and knows every hiding place in her neighborhood. Once he does find her, however, a friendship begins, and this is the real theme of the movie. Horst Buchholz was a German actor who crossed over to international stardom in the early 60s, and he is about 25 here. He's also very handsome. The young Mills character immediately sees a kinship in a fellow "outlaw" and also idolises him because he's older. She has no parents, only her too-busy-to-be bothered Aunt, and she has no role models, only her own street smarts to rely on. In Buchholz, she sees a romantic leader who she hopes will take her out to sea with him on his next odyssey. So when the police come calling (in the form of Haley's real life father Sir John Mills)  to ask her questions about the murder, she protects Buchholz by lying about what she saw. 

I was impressed, but not surprised, to discover on IMDB that the movie won a BAFTA award for Best Newcomer (Hayley Mills) and was nominated for Best British Picture. This was Mills' debut, and she shot right out of the gate as a personable child star. Of course, people my age remember her in the mid-60s for her teenage roles in the original "Parent Trap" and "That Darn Cat!", by which time she was a major earner for Disney.

All told, "Tiger Bay" has the context of a solid suspense movie, and director J. Lee Thompson keeps the wire stretched taut. But it's really about the need for love and companionship between two youthful outsiders who have no one else in the world to hold on to. The print of this film is razor sharp on Youtube, and it gets a very high recommendation on all counts, but especially for the performances of Hayley Mills and Horst Buchholz, two young actors who were extremely talented.  /////

Don't go away yet, because I've got another movie for you. I felt bad after delivering a short blog last time, so tonight I've got a Double Feature. Last evening I was searching for another Edward Arnold movie, having enjoyed him as the blind detective in "Eyes in the Night", and I found a film called "Man of Conflict"(1953), which came with an unexpected bonus when I checked IMDB, and discovered that Arnold's co-star was none other than John Agar! (a round of high fives is in order, you can stop reading momentarily to deliver one). So anyway, there was no question I was gonna watch, and as the opening credits rolled, I saw another name listed toward the end : Dick Reeves, in another bit part as a heavy, and I realised I'd hit the Trifecta, having searched for an Edward Arnold flick, then getting John Agar as a bonus, with the final addition of Mr. Reeves, who lived across the street from us in Reseda. Me and Pearl go past his house every day. If you don't know Mr. Reeves by now you haven't been paying attention.  :)

Arnold plays "J.R. Compton", a cold hearted industrialist who heads up a large manufacturing plant. He also owns the town his workers live in (which looks like a SoCal suburb in the early 50s). He's the head of the Whole Shebang and his employees better damn well appreciate it.

As the movie opens, his son John Agar is returning from college, having just earned an MBA. Arnold plans to groom him to take over the company, but Agar - not having a ruthless business sense - wants instead to learn the factory from the ground up. He wants to start as a lathe worker, a machinist. "How better can I understand the needs and responsibilities of our workers"?, he asks his Dad.

But as Mr. Howell once said on an episode of Gilligan's Island, concerning a similar situation, "Well, that's all very nice Gilligan, very warm and sympathetic..........but stupid".

Mr. Howell was of course the Ultimate Capitalist, and in this movie the character of J.R. Compton is not far behind. He's about profits over people, but his son is entirely the opposite, much to J.R.'s dismay. This is one of John Agar's Sincere Roles, and I find that I am liking him every bit as much in this capacity as I do when he's playing things arrogant or smug in a cheezy sci-fi flick. Here, he falls in love with the daughter of a co-worker whom his father despises.

That's all I'm gonna give ya of the plot, because the hour is late, but it's a worthwhile view, clocking in at 72 minutes, and what's more, you'll get to see Mr. Reeves punching out John Agar and vice versa. If that isn't legendary, I don't know what is.

See you in the morning. Tons of love.  xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo  :):)