|
WAYNE
AND WELLMAN : The aviation
dramas ISLAND IN THE SKY (1953) and THE
HIGH AND THE MIGHTY (1954), both based
on Ernest K. Gann novels, were highly
successful collaborations between superstar
John Wayne and director extraordinaire
William “Wild Bill” Wellman. Produced
for Wayne's Batjac Productions, both movies
have been withheld by the Wayne family
for 25 years. Paramount Home Video has
just released both titles, restored and
remastered, as special edition DVDs, and
they are a must for your collection. Both
films represent some of the finest work
by both actor and director, and Paramount
has done Wayne and Wellman justice with
two of the best vintage discs of the year.
THE HIGH AND THE MIGHTY in particular
has been one of the most requested titles
in DVD's brief history, ranking Number
Two on Amazon.com's pre-order list for
weeks, after MILLION DOLLAR BABY.
Not bad for a fifty-year-old movie.
Both DVDs are introduced by Leonard Maltin,
who also guides the audio commentary on
both discs. On ISLAND IN THE SKY, he is
joined on commentary by William Wellman,
Jr., actors Darryl Hickman and James Lydon,
and aviation expert Vincent Longo. There
is an excellent documentary on the making
of the picture, as well as featurettes
on Gann, Wayne stock company player Harry
Carey, Jr., and William Clothier's aerial
cinematography. We're also treated to
the theatrical trailer, newsreel footage
of the premiere, a montage of Batjac trailers,
and Wayne's introduction to the first
episode of GUNSMOKE (his pal James Arness
co-stars in ISLAND).
THE HIGH AND THE MIGHTY is a double disc,
with commentary by Maltin, Wellman Jr.,
Longo and actors Karen Sharpe and Pedro
Gonzalez-Gonzalez. Again, there is a terrific
documentary on the movie, with plenty
of stories from the set, featurettes on
Batjac, Wellman, Gann, composer Dimitri
Tiomkin (his score won an Oscar), flying
in the Fifties, premiere footage, and
the restoration.
For the record, both movies look and sound
sensational.
Readers
of this column are aware of my Wellmania;
here are excerpts from my forthcoming
book:
ISLAND
IN THE SKY: United Artists producer Robert
Stillman (CHAMPION, HOME OF THE BRAVE)
bought the Gann book in June 1950, and
hired the author to collaborate on the
screenplay with Seton I. Miller.
Wayne-Fellows Productions (later re-named
Batjac) was formed in March 1952, located
at 1022 Palm Avenue, and bought the property
from Stillman in November 1952, signing
Wellman to direct. It was originally to
start shooting in late December at Big
Bear, with Ward Bond and Noah Beery Jr.
originally cast; the picture was postponed
by lack of snow and both actors moved
to other commitments. Production began
on February 4, 1953 at Truckee, California,
with cast and crew staying at the Donner
Lake Lodge and the Gateway Motel. To film
in the snow, a specially constructed Army
"Wesel" camera car was built
by George Dye and J.H. Cooley, who had
designed the standard Blue Goose camera
cars.
The Truckee location was originally scheduled
for 13 days; Wellman did it in just six
then returned to Hollywood and filmed
at Goldwyn Studios Stages 4 and 5 for
the colonel's headquarters, the hotel
room, air base briefing office, army mess
hall, snow hut interiors, and four DC3
mockups. A second unit spent 12 days doing
flight scenes over Oakland airport during
the last two weeks of January. February
25 was the last day of shooting, a location
at Ocean Park amusement park with Sean
McClory and Phyllis Winger. The picture
came in nine days under schedule. Wellman
was in rare form; he made 378 setups during
the whole film, with 245 done in just
one take! In Truckee, 114 setups were
made, 73 in one take. Only five setups
in the film required more than two takes.
On March 2, Wellman recorded his voiceover
narration at Goldwyn. The final budget
was $967,000.
Wayne-Fellows
Productions was at the vanguard of an
industry trend in which movie stars broke
away from studio rule to produce their
own pictures. For his first production,
this adaptation of Ernest Gann's novel,
John Wayne signed Wellman, who had directed
him in bit parts in CENTRAL AIRPORT and
COLLEGE COACH twenty years earlier. Wayne
and his partner, veteran producer Robert
Fellows, granted the director creative
freedom and a healthy profit participation
in the films they made together. ISLAND
IN THE SKY was perfect material for Wellman,
and he made it a loving tribute to fliers,
telling the story with a straightforward
humanity. Wellman himself narrates the
movie: "This is a story about professional
pilots and their special guarded world,
their island in the sky."
During World War Two, an Army transport
plane flying supply cargoes across the
North Atlantic is forced down in the Arctic
wastelands of Labrador. The pilot, Captain
Dooley (Wayne), leads his young crew in
a struggle for survival, coping with lack
of food, shelter, and communication, battling
the harsh elements of the Canadian winter.
Their fight to stay alive is crosscut
with the rescue attempts of their fellow
fliers. Stranded for five days, the crew
is finally rescued on the sixth day.
These are not the dogfighters of Wellman's
WINGS (1927) and LAFAYETTE ESCADRILLE
(1958), or the pioneers of MEN WITH WINGS
(1938) and GALLANT JOUNEY (1946), but
the unsung heroes of a wartime supply
line. Wellman dramatizes their psychological
stress with flashbacks in which the fliers
think about their families, and the possibility
of never seeing them again. In a recurring
bit of slapstick, rescuer James Arness
(in his pre-GUNSMOKE days) is continually
awakened from his sleep by Wellman perennial
George Chandler, who is repeatedly tossed
out a window by Arness into a snow bank.
Conversely, Wellman uses the Arness character
in a touch of macho sentimentality; Arness
cries when he hears word of the lost plane.
ISLAND IN THE SKY was one of the director's
favorite pictures, and no wonder, with
its theme of camaraderie among aviators
and the situation of a group isolated
in a treacherous setting.
Wellman was reunited with two magnificent
cameramen -- Archie Stout and William
Clothier. Stout, who had shot Wellman's
DANGEROUS PARADISE (1930) and YOUNG EAGLES
(1930) and portions of BEAU GESTE (1939),
had just shared an Oscar with Winton Hoch
for Ford's THE QUIET MAN (1952), while
Clothier had manned one of the many cameras
on WINGS. During World War Two, Clothier
shot William Wyler's combat documentary
MEMPHIS BELLE (1944) and worked as Stout's
assistant on Ford's FORT APACHE (1948).
Clothier stayed with Wellman for the remainder
of the director's
career, and also photographed the last
pictures of Ford, Walsh, Borzage, Curtiz,
and Hawks.
THE
HIGH AND THE MIGHTY : At Wellman's
recommendation, Wayne-Fellows bought the
Gann novel in April 1953, signing Wellman
on April 22 and giving him 30% of the
profits. It was originally to be filmed
in 3-D, with Bob Cummings as Sullivan.
On June 16, Wayne said he wouldn't be
appearing in the film; his choices for
Dan Roman were Gary Cooper or Randolph
Scott. During July and August, Wayne-Fellows
negotiated with Spencer Tracy to play
Dan, but his asking price was too high.
Henry Fonda turned down the role, and
on August 13 Wayne was announced for the
part, still to co-star with Cummings.
Offers were made to Loretta Young for
Lydia and Ronald Colman for Gustav, and
on September 15, Bette Davis asked to
read the script, but the parts were considered
too small and they passed, as did Joan
Crawford, Ginger Rogers, Ida Lupino, Barbara
Stanwyck and Dorothy McGuire. Ann Sheridan,
Jack Carson, James Arness and Andy Devine
were also considered. Shortly before filming,
Lionel Barrymore and Keenan Wynn were
replaced by Sidney Blackmer and Paul Fix.
Production began on November 15, 1953
in San Francisco for eight days of locations
at the S.F. and Oakland airports, the
Coast Guard station, Fisherman's Wharf,
and the Pacific Union Club on Knob Hill.
Ruth Dwyer (the star of Wellman's 1923
SECOND HAND LOVE) arranged for Bay area
extras. On the first day of shooting,
Wayne presented Wellman with a director's
chair inscribed "Sweet William"
instead of "Wild Bill." Airplane
interiors began on November 30 at the
Goldwyn Studios. Additional locations
included Hawaii (Honolulu Airport, Royal
Hawaiian Hotel, Waikiki Beach); and the
Grand Central Air Terminal in Glendale,
California. Ernest Gann and cameraman
William Clothier also did second unit
aerial shots in San Francisco. The company
received technical advice and cooperation
from Transocean Airlines. The final budget
was $1,465,000, over by $145,000; the
picture grossed $8.5 million worldwide.
The
best-seller status of Ernest Gann's novel,
John Wayne's name on the marquee, and
the 1954 state-of-the-art splendor of
wide-screen CinemaScope and stereophonic
sound assured THE HIGH AND THE MIGHTY
of box office success, and it became the
highest grossing film of Wellman's career.
Set on a commercial flight from Hawaii
to San Francisco, the picture details
the personal problems of the passengers
as a sort of GRAND HOTEL or STAGECOACH
in the air, or more appropriately, Soap
Opera in the Sky. When the plane blows
an engine, Wellman carefully builds pressure
and suspense, and like ISLAND IN THE SKY,
counters the group's danger with airport
rescue efforts. Wellman handled his large
cast skillfully, with the characters clearly
a cross-section of mid-50's America. We
get their back-stories through monologues,
and, to break away from the confines of
the airplane set, flashbacks. There is
a warm comedic flashback of Phil Harris
and Ann Doran on their second honeymoon,
and a striking flashback revealing Wayne
as the only survivor of a crash that killed
his wife and son. Wellman surmounted the
monstrous proportions of the narrative,
and while the film is long at 147 minutes,
it is never boring. Anticipating the AIRPORT
series, a truly suspenseful conclusion
has Wayne and Stack overcoming their neuroses
to pilot the damaged aircraft to a safe
landing.
MORE
FROM PARAMOUNT HOME VIDEO :
In addition to the Wayne titles, this
has been a banner year for Paramount's
DVD releases, as they continue to dig
into their substantial Fifties, Sixties
and Seventies catalogue items. Their most
exciting release has been a special edition
of the cult classic DANGER: DIABOLIK
(1968), based on Italy's popular
fumettis (comics). Diabolik
(John Phillip Law) is an arch-criminal
who, partnered with his gorgeous girlfriend
Eva (Marisa Mel), runs amok from one impossible
crime to another, aided by 007 gadgetry
and the fabulous Ennio Morricone soundtrack.
It's as if James Bond decided on an unapologetic
life of crime ... and it's a whole lot
of fun for all of us. This movie, directed
by genre genius Mario Bava (BLACK SABBATH),
has been a long sought after cult item,
hugely influencing the Austin Powers movies
as well as Roman Coppola's underrated
homage CQ (2001). DANGER: DIABOLIK is
all about reckless abandon and unbridled
energy, truly one of the very best comic
book adaptations ever made. John Philip
Law is present here for an audio commentary,
guided by Bava biographer Tim Lucas, offering
an endlessly fascinating conversation
about its making and significance.
Another
surprise from Paramount is the uncut version
of PRIME CUT (1972),
the first feature by the late Michael
Ritchie (THE BAD NEWS BEARS, DOWNHILL
RACER, THE CANDIDATE). Lee Marvin is at
his best as an enforcer for the Chicago
mob, sent to the Kansas countryside to
collect from crime boss Gene Hackman.
These two great character actors go at
it head to head, and Ritchie stages some
very good action setpieces in the farmland
setting. While the movie has been shown
on commercial television, a number of
very explicit scenes are always cut, particularly
the shocking sequence in Hackman's cattle
auction house … instead of cattle in the
pens, he's selling stark naked virgins
(including Sissy Spacek in her screen
debut)!
Three
Sophia Loren titles make their DVD debuts:
IT STARTED IN NAPLES
(1959) is an absolutely delightful romantic
comedy with Clark Gable as an initially
ugly American sent to settle his brother's
estate in Italy, only to find that he's
had a little boy, under the care of Loren;
the great director Vittorio DeSica heads
the supporting cast. Exquisite location
photography and a vivacious Loren performance
make this movie a joy. George Cukor's
HELLER IN PINK TIGHTS
(1960) is one of his best, and quite neglected
pictures. Loren and Anthony Quinn play
the leads in a traveling dramatic troupe
touring the Old West in this highly entertaining
picaresque comedy . A BREATH OF
SCANDAL (1960) is less successful,
one of the last films from Michael Curtiz
(CASABLANCA, ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD),
a romantic comedy set in 1907 Vienna,
based on a Molnar play about the princess
who wants to marry a commoner. Maurice
Chevalier (and of course, a typically
stunning Loren) are the film's only redeeming
values.
THE
ADVENTURERS (1970) has to be seen to be
believed. This lavish, epic production
is one of the great trash classics of
all time, based on a Harold Robbins novel.
Dax (the incredibly bad Bekim Fehmiu)
is a playboy who has escaped his South
American country after witnessing the
rape-murders of his mother and sister,
growing up in luxury in Italy and embarking
on a sleep-your-way-to-the-top position
of power. The supporting cast includes
Candice Bergen (before she learned how
to act), Olivia de Havilland, Charles
Aznavour, Rossano Brazzi, and an hilariously
over-the-top Ernest Borgnine. At three
hours, THE ADVENTURERS is definitely an
endurance test but has enough so-bad-it's-good
appeal for half a dozen movies!
THE
RAINMAKER (1955) is a masterful adaptation
of the F. Richard Nash play (scripted
by Nash himself), with Burt Lancaster
as the con man who influences lives at
a Western ranch headed by father (Cameron
Prud'homme), two sons (Lloyd Bridges,
Earl Holliman) and spinster sister (Katharine
Hepburn). Nash's words have a simple poetry,
and with director Joseph Anthony, he sculpts
a really special piece of Americana about
dreams and dreamers, beautifully acted
by Hepburn in an Oscar-nominated performance
(Alex North's score was nominated as well).
This
month also sees the release from Paramount
of two terrific Peter Weir movies in special
editions – WITNESS
(1985) and THE TRUMAN SHOW
(1998). WITNESS is still a taut, suspenseful
thriller, with the love story of Philadelphia
detective Harrison Ford and Amish maiden
Kelly McGillis at its heart. What could
have been just another corrupt cop shoot-em-up
is elevated by Weir's elegant directorial
style, his careful handling of young Lukas
Haas as the Amish boy who has witnessed
a murder, and attention to the cross-cultural
details of the urbanites and the Pennsylvania
Dutch. The acting here is excellent across
the board – this was Ford's first
opportunity to do something besides Han
Solo/Indiana Jones action guy, Danny Glover
attracted his first notice (playing a
heavy), and Viggo Mortenson has a small
part as one of the Amish. The disc includes
a deleted scene between McGillis and Patti
Lupone, and an especially well-done five-part
documentary featuring interviews with
Weir, cinematographer John Seale, producer
Edward Feldman and the cast. Feldman
also produced THE TRUMAN SHOW, based on
Andrew Niccol's unique original script
about a man with a normal life who is
actually the surreptitious subject of
a reality show. Indeed, with the subsequent
onslaught of reality TV, Peter Weir's
film takes on even more relevance. Jim
Carrey proved he could act, Laura Linney
made her mark as his TV wife, and Ed Harris
excels as the director pulling the strings
of Carrey's life. The disc includes four
deleted scenes and a making-of documentary.
WARNER
HOME VIDEO : IN 1991, NEW
JACK CITY was released and caused
an instant sensation as the first real
hip-hop gangster movie. It made Wesley
Snipes a movie star, started Ice T's acting
career, and revitalized the urban action
movie genre. As experienced in a new two-disc
special edition from WHV, the movie still
retains its power despite years of imitators.
Snipes is electrifying as drug czar Nino
and Ice T, cast against type as a narcotics
detective, exhibits a naturalistic style
that could only come from real life's
mean streets. Judd Nelson, director Mario
Van Peebles and a young Chris Rock provide
able support, and Van Peebles and cameraman
Francis Kenny take full advantage of the
New York locations. If you haven't seen
NEW JACK CITY in a while by all means
check this out – there's audio commentary
from Van Peebles, an excellent documentary
on the movie featuring all the principals,
another documentary featuring hip-hop
artists talking about the film's influence,
and a third piece with Van Peebles and
his kids taking an historical and cultural
tour around Harlem. And there's the added
bonus of three music videos featuring
songs from the movie's best-selling soundtrack,
including Ice T's fantastic “New Jack
Hustler (Nino's Theme.” I was fortunate
to direct Ice T in the movie THE DELI
(available in a special edition DVD from
Synapse/Ryko) and he was a total natural,
playing a rare comedic role in my film;
his natural star power and charisma is
abundantly evident in NEW JACK CITY.
NO
SHAME FILMS: Lovers of Italian
cinema (and who isn't?) can rejoice at
the launch of No Shame Films, a new company
dedicated to presenting rare Italian gems
with the best possible image, sound, subtitling,
all with heavy extras and fun packaging.
Their first releases are a fabulously
eclectic selection. BOCCACCIO
'70 (1962) has been one of the
great lost movies of Italy's post-neo-realistic
era, an omnibus film (nearly four hours
long) that has been virtually impossible
to see in this country in any kind of
decent print. The country's best directors
of the time (Federico Fellini, Vittorio
DeSica, Luchino Visconti, Mario Monicelli)
each made a film inspired by Renaissance
poet Giovanni Boccaccio, and it's a fascinating
collection. Monicelli's episode, “Renzo
e Luciana”, was deleted prior to its release;
producer Carlo Ponti gave the excuse that
stars Marisa Solinas and Germano Giloli
had no international marquee value. It's
a lovely episode about a young couple
trying to find some privacy, never-before-available
in the United States. Fellini's contribution,
“La Tentazioni del dottor Antonio” (“The
Temptation of Dr. Antonio”) casts Anita
Ekberg as a 50-foot poster girl who comes
down from her billboard to tempt Peppino
DeFilippo. It's minor Fellini but Fellini
nonetheless, with a memorable Nino Rota
score and the Maestro's puckish sensibility.
Luchino Visconti offers “Il Lavoro” (“The
Job”), with Romy Schneider outstanding
as a noblewoman who wants to work for
a living; coming in between Visconti's
masterworks ROCCO AND HIS BROTHERS (1961)
and THE LEOPARD (1963), it's an excellent
example of Visconti's infallible elegance
and taste. Finally, we have my favorite
episode, “La Riffa” (“The Raffle”), teaming
frequent collaborators Vittorio DeSica
and Sophia Loren in their very special
kind of Neapolitan sex farce, as Loren
raffles her sexual favors at a small town
carnival. Extras on the two-disc set include
dozens of photos and posters, a brief
contemporary interview with DeSica, and
a collectible booklet with liner notes
and a complete reprint of the original
American press book.
YESTERDAY, TODAY AND TOMORROW
(1964) is another anthology
film, with Sophia Loren and Marcello Mastroianni
directed in all three episodes by Vittorio
DeSica. While this movie had considerable
success in the States (winning both the
Oscar and the NBR Awards for Best Foreign
Film), and has been readily available
on VHS, No Shame's release is an absolutely
gorgeous transfer, restored in collaboration
with The DeSica Foundation.
In the first episode, Sophia and Marcello
are married, living in happy squalor.
When Sophia is arrested for selling black
market cigarettes, a legal loophole allows
her to stay out of jail as long as she
remains pregnant … a situation that keeps
her in the family way for years. The second
episode presents Sophia as a jet-setting
socialite trifling with Marcello's affections,
while the final installment casts her
as a prostitute teaching life lessons
to a young divinity student, much to Marcello's
frustration (this scene has the famous
Loren striptease that Altman would recreate
25 years later in PRET-A-PORTER). YESTERDAY,
TODAY AND TOMORROW is a total joy from
beginning to end; presented with lots
of photos and a reprint of the Japanese
press book, it has never looked better.
THE RAILROAD MAN (1956)
is a major revelation … a total classic,
winner of the Critics Choice Award at
Cannes, yet never released uncut in this
country. It's a nitty gritty neo-realist
masterpiece, an overwhelming emotional
experience, as if we'd never seen or heard
of LA STRADA until now. Clearly influenced
by DeSica's BICYCLE THIEVES (1948), this
story of a railroad worker and his family
generates its own power with devastating
honesty. The film's director, Pietro Germi,
also stars in the title role, making his
accomplishment all the more staggering.
What I find most incredible is that just
a few years later, Germi directed two
of my all time favorite comedies, DIVORCE
ITALIAN STYLE (1961) and SEDUCED AND ABANDONED
(1964), films so completely different
in tone and style as to have been made
by a different filmmaker altogether. This
is a two-disc set that also includes a
feature-length documentary on Germi, highlighted
by the effusive storytelling of screenwriter
Luciano Vincenzoni. No Shame deserves
some kind of award for making THE RAILROAD
MAN available after fifty years of neglect.
STORY OF A LOVE AFFAIR (1953)
is another key missing link film, the
dramatic feature debut of Michelangelo
Antonioni after helming several acclaimed
documentaries. A riveting relationship
drama (hailed by Martin Scorsese as one
of his favorite films) about a jealous
husband who unwittingly sabotages his
own marriage, Antonioni's film looks forward
to his seminal early 60s trilogy of L'AVVENTURA,
LA NOTTE and L'ECLISSE. The double disc
edition is loaded with extras –
an interview with cinematographer Guiseppe
Rotunno on restoring the film; extensive
poster and still galleries; documentaries
on the screening of the restored print
in Rome, a visit to the original locations
with the assistant director, critical
commentary on the film, and a collectible
booklet with two Antonioni interviews
and a Rotunno article.
Switching gears completely, the first
batch of No Shame releases introduce us
to the exploitation cinema of Sergio Martino,
a key figure in the development of the
Italiano giallo , or thriller.
Mario Bava and Dario Argento are best
known in the States as the great practitioners
of this Hitchcockian genre; the Italian
take on the genre is of course more bloody,
more erotic, more everything! THE
STRANGE VICE OF MRS.WARDH (1970)
and THE CASE OF THE SCORPION'S
TAIL (1971) are the first two
Martino giallos offered by No
Shame; Martino's YOUR VICE IS A CLOSED
ROOM AND ONLY I HAVE THE KEY is coming
this fall (yes, that's the title!). THE
STRANGE VICE was particularly influential,
long desired in the States by giallo
fans, as scream queen Ewige Fenech
stars in the titular role of a woman stalked
by a serial killer. It seems that ALL
Italian films have spectacular musical
scores, and this film is no exception,
with music composed by Nora Orlandi and
actually recycled by Quentin Tarantino
for the Michael Madsen exterior trailer
scenes in KILL BILL: VOL. 2. Both STRANGE
VICE and SCORPION'S TAIL are stylish directorial
tour-de-forces, starring giallo
superstar George Hilton, and both of these
releases are uncut and uncensored, with
accompanying documentaries featuring interviews
with Martino and his stars. Martino also
directed No Shame's release of GAMBLING
CITY (1974), a lighter crime
thriller centered in Milano's underworld
casinos, starring Luc Merenda and Dayle
Haddon (NORTH DALLAS FORTY); there's a
documentary on this disc too featuring
an interview with Martino. The final title
in No Shame's first round of releases
is Umberto Lenzi's ALMOST HUMAN
(1974), an absolutely smashing
action thriller starring Thomas Milian
(TRAFFIC) as a demented kidnapper, pursued
by action icon Henry Silva (OCEAN'S ELEVEN).
This is a must for action fans, a rollercoaster
ride from its opening car chase to its
inevitable conclusion.
So, welcome and congratulations to No
Shame Films. We'll be looking forward
to more arthouse classics (including Bertolucci's
PARTNER, coming soon) and more super-cool
Italian genre flicks. A special thanks
to No Shame for their commitment to quality
and DVD extras!
FOX
STUDIO CLASSICS : Robert Aldrich (THE
DIRTY DOZEN, THE LONGEST YARD) had a huge
success pairing Bette Davis and Joan Crawford
in the Gothic horror tale WHATEVER HAPPENED
TO BABY JANE? (1962), reviving Davis'
career for the second time (the first
was ALL ABOUT EVE). He reteamed the pair
in HUSH …. HUSH, SWEET CHARLOTTE (1964),
another Grand Guignol shock show, this
one set in a magnolia draped small Southern
town. Crawford fell ill early in the shoot
and was replaced by Olivia de Havilland,
an even better choice because of her GONE
WITH THE WIND connection. It's a vastly
entertaining mystery, one of the first
mainstream Hollywood movies to feature
gore, highlighted by an outstanding
cast (Davis, DeHavilland, Joseph Cotten,
Agnes Moorehead, Bruce Dern, Victor Buono,
and Mary Astor in her final role). Despite
its grisly nature, the movie earned Oscar
nominations for Supporting Actress (Moorehead),
Black-and-White Cinematography (Joe Biroc),
Black-and-White Art Direction, Editing,
Music Score and Song. The DVD includes
excellent commentary by Glenn Ericksen
(beloved by DVD fans as reviewer DVD Savant
at www.dvdtalk.com
) and some trailers and TV spots.
THE
MAN IN THE GRAY FLANNEL SUIT
(1956) is a key Fifties film, based on
a Sloan Wilson best-seller about a nuclear
suburban family (Gregory Peck, Jennifer
Jones and three kids) trying to keep it
all together under the pressure of Peck's
Madison Avenue job, an attempt to debate
his grandmother's will, and the revelation
that he fathered a son ten years before
during the war in Italy. This is slick
glossy soap opera, the kind of thing Hollywood
used to do so well, produced by Darryl
Zanuck and adapted and directed by Nunnally
Johnson. Fredric March, Henry Daniell,
Lee J. Cobb, Marsia Pavan
and
Keenan Wynn provide stellar support; indeed,
it is always a treat to watch Fredric
March, surely one of our greatest film
actors. The disc includes restoration
comparison, footage from the New York
and Los Angeles premieres, and interesting
commentary by author-publisher James Monaco,
who points out that this release is the
first time the movie has been seen its
proper widescreen CinemaScope aspect ratio.
Henry
King's IN OLD CHICAGO
(1937) comes to DVD in two versions, the
theatrical version (94 minutes) and the
original road show version (110 minutes).
When, after less than two years in business,
Zanuck merged his super-successful 20
th Century Pictures with the faltering
Fox Films in 1935, he inherited only a
handful of stars – Will Rogers,
Janet Gaynor and Shirley Temple. Rogers
was tragically killed in a plane crash,
Gaynor would leave the studio in 1936,
and Temple had her own series of very
specialized films, so the studio chief
had to create his own stars in order to
compete with the Metros and Paramounts.
Zanuck created a strong trio with Tyrone
Power, Alice Faye and Don Ameche, and
the epic IN OLD CHICAGO helped establish
their popularity, garnering five Oscar
nominations, including Best Picture and
Best Supporting Actress (Alice Brady as
Mrs. O'Leary, whose cow starts the great
inferno). Romance, family values, greed,
action – and of course the climactic
Chicago fire – made this movie a
hit, and it's still entertaining. The
DVD includes a BIOGRAPHY episode on Ameche,
along with footage of the film's premieres.
A
word about the Fox Studio Classics line:
they are all beautifully produced, but,
just like its affiliated Fox Movie Channel,
neglects the treasure trove of 1930s titles
in their library – THE BOWERY (1933),
BLOOD MONEY (1933), LES MISERABLES (1935),
CALL OF THE WILD (1935), PRISONER OF SHARK
ISLAND (1936), LOVE IS NEWS (1937), YOUNG
MR. LINCOLN (1939), to name just a few.
Hopefully the powers that be will let
these great movies see the light of day.
BUENA
VISTA HOME ENTERTAINMENT :
SIN CITY (2005) is an
utterly unique motion picture, an experiment
in preserving the integrity of a graphic
novel. Director Robert Rodriguez has said
he didn't want to make Robert Rodriguez'
SIN CITY, he wanted to do Frank Miller's
SIN CITY, so Rodriguez and author Miller
actually collaborated for perhaps the
most faithful rendering of a graphic novel
ever. It's all style but what style it
is. After a few minutes of being distracted
by the visuals, I was caught up in the
tremendous Mickey Rourke characterization
and went along breathlessly for the whole
ride. Steeped in noir tradition, extremely
violent, and perfectly acted by a large
PULP FICTION-like ensemble that includes
Bruce Willis, Jessica Alba, Clive Owen,
Benicio Del Toro, Rosario Dawson, Michael
Madsen, Brittany Murphy and Josh Hartnett.
Rodriguez crony Quentin Tarantino is billed
as “Special Guest Director” – he
did the relatively brief Clive Owen-Benicio
Del Toro driving sequence. There's a production
featurette but that's it, so I'm sure
there'll be a Special Edition one of these
days. Let's hope the critics remember
SIN CITY at awards time later this year.
Buena
Vista also release two volumes of WALT
DISNEY'S TIMELESS TALES , consisting
primarily of classic Silly Symphonies
from the early Thirties. Mickey Mouse's
super stardom enabled Disney to make these
perfect cartoons, and here are some of
the best in magnificent Technicolor. Volume
One offers the historically important
THREE LITTLE PIGS (1933), an Oscar winner
for Best Short Subject that became a tonic
for Depression-weary audiences; THE PIED
PIPER (1933); THE TORTOISE AND THE HARE
(1934), another Oscar winner; THE GRASSHOPPER
AND THE ANTS; and the 1990 THE PRINCE
AND THE PAUPER starring Mickey Mouse.
Volume Two's selections are two more Oscar
winners, THE COUNTRY COUSIN (1935) and
THE UGLY DUCKLING (1939), plus FERDINAND
THE BULL (1938) and THE WIND IN THE WILLOWS,
which was the first half of the 1949 feature
ADVENTURES OF ICHABOD AND MR. TOAD. These
are all wonderful shorts, with resplendent
Disney craftsmanship, perfect, as they
say, for kids of all ages.
SONY
PICTURES HOME ENTERTAINMENT :
Matthew Vaughan produced Guy Ritchie's
British gangster movies LOCK, STOCK AND
TWO SMOKING BARRELS and SNATCH. With LAYER
CAKE (2004), he makes his directorial
debut in the same genre. While he shares
Ritchie's visual flair and taste for quirky
characters, he plays it much straighter
than Ritchie and the result should satisfy
any crime movie fan. Daniel Craig gives
a breakthrough performance as the slick
drug dealer who thinks he can retire early;
he's been rightfully compared to Steve
McQueen, and touted to be the next James
Bond (it would be perfect casting, although
he'll be seen next in Spielberg's MUNICH).
I had a little trouble with some of the
English accents, as I had on LOCK, STOCK,
and found myself jumping back and forth
to the subtitle option but the picture
was really a pleasant surprise. Vaughan
and Craig are presented in a long q-and-a
session at the National Film Theatre,
provide audio commentary on the whole
feature, and are of course present on
the making-of featurette. Highly recommended.
In
the wake of the sad news that there will
be no third season of CHAPPELLE'S SHOW,
we can take a little consolation in SPHE's
release of FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH:
DAVE CHAPPELLE LIVE AT THE FILLMORE (
2005). The live standup performance
from San Francisco's legendary venue features
Chappelle at his hilarious best, uncensored
to the max as he riffs on sex, drugs and
celebrity (including his own). He is clearly
one of our funniest comedic artists and
this is primo Chappelle. An interesting
extra on the DVD shows Chappelle working
out his material in a small comedy club.
Until we see where his brilliant career
leads him next, grab a load of belly laughs
from this disc.
Sony
took over MGM a few months ago; MANNA
FROM HEAVEN (2003) seems to
be one of the last releases under Leo
the Lion's solo banner. It's a lovely
independent film that gives new meaning
to “family film,” directed by sisters
Gabrielle C. and Michelle Burton, scripted
by mom Gabrielle B. Burton, starring sisters
(and co-producers) Maria and Ursula Burton,
produced by sisters Charity, Gabrielle
C., Maria, Ursula and Jennifer; and co-produced
by mom and dad Gabrielle B. and Philip
Burton! The premise is would have fit
Frank Capra or Leo McCarey – a loose
money truck door opens and cash literally
rains down on a family's suburban Buffalo
house. The family splits the loot and
pursues their individual dreams; years
later the youngest daughter (whose become
a nun) realizes that God has loaned them
the money and it's time for payback. This
is a really refreshing movie that has
a whole lot of entertainment value, something
I find lacking in many indies. The Burton
sisters assembled a cast that includes
Seymour Cassel, Shirley Jones, Louise
Fletcher, Shelley Duvall, Cloris Leachman,
Jill Eikenberry and the late Frank Gorshin
– not bad for a low budget picture.
The DVD includes deleted and extended
scenes, audio commentary from the Burtons,
a q-and-a session, and an interesting
featurette that illustrates how the filmmakers
traveled around the country exhibiting
the film. MANNA FROM HEAVEN is perfect
family fare.
CRITERION
: Another Italian delicacy
… Luchino Visconti's LE NOTTI
BIANCHI (WHITE NIGHTS) (1957)
finally comes to DVD, with Guiseppe Rotunno's
black-and-white cinematography dazzling
the eyes like never before. Criterion
has newly restored the film under Rotunno's
supervision, and included interviews
with the cinematographer, screenwriter
Suso Cecchi D'Amico, costume designer
Piero Tosi, and critics Laura Delli Colli
and Lino Micciche. Visconti took the Dostoevsky
short story about a young man (Marcello
Mastroianni) who falls for a young woman
(Maria Schell) who is waiting for her
lover (Jean Marais) to return. The filmmakers
constructed an incredible exterior urban
canal set at Cinecitta Studios, setting
the movie at night, and the result is
visually compelling and emotionally exhausting
in its portrayal of human loneliness.
Mastroianni was brilliant at comedic acting
(DIVORCE ITALIAN STYLE, BIG DEAL ON MADONNA
STREET); with Fellini's LA DOLCE VITA,
this is his finest dramatic hour. Ten
years before this film, Visconti had defined
neo-realism with LA TERRA TREMA; a decade
later, he has transposed his vision onto
the artifice of a film set. The DVD includes
screen test footage of Mastroianni and
Schell, a new 115-minute recording of
the short story, and an essay by film
scholar Geoffrey Nowell Smith.
KINO
: Hats off to Kino Video
for the Alain Delon Collection, three
tremendous French crime flicks from the
early Seventies. Delon shot to international
fame in the early Sixties as the star
of Clement's PURPLE NOON (1960), Antonioni's
L'ECLISSE (1962) and especially Visconti's
ROCCO AND HIS BROTHERS (1961) and THE
LEOPARD (1963). His stunning good looks
and Euro sex appeal carried him to a few
lackluster English-language films before
he returned to France and re-invented
himself as a tough guy actor. In Melville's
LE SAMOURAI (1967) and Verneuil's THE
SICILIAN CLAN (1969) he became once again
one of Europe's greatest movie stars.
Kino's collection includes TWO
MEN IN TOWN (1973), BORSALINO
& CO . (1974) and FLIC
STORY (1975). In TWO MEN IN
TOWN, Delon plays an ex-convict trying
to go straight after ten years in prison,
helped by parole officer (the magnificent
Jean Gabin) who becomes a father figure,
and hounded by a Javert-like police inspector
(Michel Piccoli). Delon's performance
is nothing short of brilliant, and the
film itself is a scathing indictment of
capital punishment and the French justice
system. BORSALINO & CO. is set in
pre-war Marseilles, etched with wonderful
period detail, with Delon as a gang chief
involved in a relentless vendetta against
a rival gang, heavily influence by the
more violent aspects of Coppola's THE
GODFATHER. In FLIC STORY, Delon is on
the right side of the law, playing a police
investigator embroiled in a cat-and-mouse
game against a psychotic, coldly calculating
murderer-thief, enacted by Jean-Louis
Trintignant with the same kind of cool
aplomb he brought to the title role in
Bertolucci's THE CONFORMIST (1970). Delon
developed and produced all three of these
films, and he is really their auteur;
thanks to Kino for making these titles
available for the first time in the U.S.
in their original, subtitled forms –
all deserve to be well known here. All
three discs include ten trailers from
other Seventies Delon crime films … which
Kino will hopefully release in the not
too distant future.
Kino is also one of the leading purveyors
of silent cinema, and this month they
spotlight two films by the great visual
stylist Maurice Tourneur, father of noir
auteur Jacques Tourneur (CAT PEOPLE, OUT
OF THE PAST). THE BLUE BIRD
(1918), based on Maeterlinck's children's
fantasy, highlights Tourneur's extraordinary
eye and his predilection for unusual art
direction, as he unfolds the fable of
two children traveling in a dream world.
Tourneur is really ahead of his time with
this film, making Griffith look like a
primitive, anticipating CALIGARI's expressionism
by a year, and following in the fantastic
tradition of Melies, coordinating special
effects, costumes and sets into a seamless
whole. George Eastman House has preserved
the film with its original color tints,
and although some sections reveal blotchy
nitrate decomposition, we are very lucky
to have the film available after nine
decades. LORNA DOONE
(1921) is a more traditional adventure
film, based on the R.D. Blackmore classic
of romance and intrigue during the English
Civil War. As he did in his key production
of THE LAST OF THE MOHICANS (1920), Tourneur
uses composition and landscape in a highly
pictorial manner that influenced a generation
of directors, including Ford and Vidor.
Madge Bellamy and John Bowers star; Bowers
was one of the inspirations for the tragic
Norman Maine character in Wellman's A
STAR IS BORN (1937), and LORNA DOONE is
one of our only opportunities to see his
work. Kino provides new scores for both
Tourneur films.
CLASSIC
TELEVISION : The DVD revolution
has made it easy for fans to collect
entire seasons of their favorite TV shows,
both old and new. I had never seen THE
SHIELD, for example, until my friend Ira
Gallen loaned me the first season; 48
sleepless hours later I had watched the
entire first season. It's especially fun
to collect some childhood favorites, and
there's a lot to choose from. As a tie-in
with the new Nicole Kidman film, Sony
Pictures Home Entertainment released the
entire first season of BEWITCHED
(36 episodes) from 1964-65. While
the series eventually grew tiresome, this
first season is really quite funny and
inventive, with Elizabeth Montgomery at
her most appealing and Agnes Moorehead
at her most bitchy, I mean witchy. Dick
York co-stars as husband Darrin, with
George Tobias and Alice Pearce as the
nosy neighbors and priceless Marion Lorne
as nutty Aunt Clara; Raquel Welch and
Adam West are among the guest stars. For
die hard BEWITCHED fans, SPHE has also
released all 12 episodes of the 1977-78
series spin-off TABITHA, with Lisa Hartman
as Samantha's grown daughter.
20
th Century-Fox Home Entertainment has
two seasons of THE MARY TYLER
MOORE SHOW available. Season
Two (24 episodes from 1972-73) was just
released and features Mary, Lou Grant
(Ed Saner), Rhoda (Valerie Harper), Murray
(Gavin MacLeod) and Phyllis (Cloris Leachman)
… all overshadowed by the comedic brilliance
of Ted Knight as WJM-TV anchorman Ted
Baxter. Among the best shows of Season
Two are Mary's high school reunion, and
the episode where Ted has Mary pose as
his girlfriend to impress his actor brother
(Jack Haley). Extras include audio commentary
by cast and crew on selected episodes,
an all-new documentary and a 1973 documentary,
a trivia challenge, a MAD magazine parody
and even a karaoke track!
Paramount
Home Video has been a leader in the TV
field. Three seasons of THE ANDY
GRIFFITH SHOW are available,
with Season Three (1962-63) the most recent
release, highlighting the Emmy-wining
performance of Don Knotts as Deputy Barney
Fife, with Sheriff Andy Taylor (Griffith),
Opie (young Ron Howard), Aunt Bea (Frances
Bavier), Floyd the Barber (Howard McNear)
and Gomer Pyle (Jim Nabors) taking us
back to a simpler small-town time. Thirty-two
episodes are included in Season Three,
along with original sponsor spots starring
the cast regulars. These shows really
stand the test of time, and are always
guaranteed to give you a warm fuzzy feeling
and some honest laughs.
One
of the best presentations of a TV series
are the DVD sets of I LOVE LUCY
from Paramount Home Video. Season
Five (1955-56) was just released, featuring
the last several episodes of the Ricardos
and the Mertzes trip to Hollywood (particularly
the hilarious episode “Lucy and John Wayne”
in which Lucy steals Duke's cement footprints
from Grauman's Chinese, not to mention
their European sojourn with Lucy stomping
grapes in an Italian vineyard). The four-disc
set includes 26 remastered episodes, restored
with their original , pre-syndication
titles and network i.d.'s, plus flubs,
lost scenes, restored music, original
animated sequences, script excerpts, notes
on scripts and guest cast, promotional
spots, interviews with series creator
Jess Oppenheimer, and five complete episodes
of the radio show MY FAVORITE HUSBAND,
the precursor to I LOVE LUCY.
JOHN GALLAGHER
jgmovie@aol.com
|
