11.16.11 | Irv Slifkin | Coming Attractions, DVD BeatPrint this Post
Sousa Phone Home: Finally, the 1952 biopic of marching band music composer John Phillip Sousa is marching onto DVD and Blu-ray. Stars and Stripes Forever, one of our most requested titles, is landing on the home market. Clifton Webb starred as Major Sousa, leader of the Marine Corps Band in the 1890s and composer of such standards as Semper Fidelis and the title song. Directed by Henry Koster (The Inspector General), this film focuses on Sousa’s work as a bandleader and composer, his relationship with his wife (Ruth Hussey) and friendship with Willie Little (Robert Wagner), the inventor of the instrument called the Sousaphone and boyfriend to Lily Becker (Debra Paget). This package includes DVD and Blu-ray versions as well as a color booklet about the film and the life of “The March King.”
Looking For Redemption: Redemption Films has, um, carved out a niche for itself among cult films. The collection leans heavily on the European, with offerings that mix the unsettling and sensual with the artsy. They are getting a new sendoff from the folks at Kino, so expect expert transfers and some nifty extras. The first batch of reissues includes such Jean Rollin offerings as Fascination (1979), in which a man settles into an isolated farm with a group of bloodsucking women; and The Naked Vampire (1969) , directed by Rollin, about a young man who finds that his father is involved with an group of sadistic men and a blood-drinking mute woman. Lips of Blood (1975) centers on a young man who finds a castle he recalled from his youth and finds four lesbian vampires living there; Shiver of the Vampires (1971) is more vampire erotica with a newlywed couple finding a bloodsucking clan with sexual longings in a scary castle; and The Iron Rose (1973) concerns a pair of young lovers’ trip to a cemetery that turns into a frightening experience with dead people. Other films down the road include Mario Bava’s Hatchet for a Honeymoon, Jack Cardiff’s Girl on a Motorcycle and Wes Craven’s The Hills Have Eyes, Part II. They will be in DVD and Blu-ray.
Count Him In: One of the most revered adventure epics of all-time finally lands on DVD as 1934’s The Count of Monte Cristo finally gets a home release in a newly mastered edition. Robert Donat stars as Edmond Dantes, the man wrongfully imprisoned for spying during the Napoleonic Wars. After spending ten bleak years in solitary confinement, Dantes breaks out of prison and poses as a count to punish the culprits who put him behind bars. Elissa Landi, Louis Calhern and Sidney Blackmer also appear in this much-requested film helmed by Rowland V. Lee (Son of Frankenstein). Down the road, expect the DVD arrival of 1939’s The Man in the Iron Mask, starring Louis Hayward and directed by the great James Whale (Frankenstein).
Criterion Corner: We’re always thrilled to report the diverse batch of DVDs and Blu-rays from the spot-on folks at Criterion.
On the docket are:
12 Angry Men (1957): Rookie director Sidney Lumet’s classic jury room drama with one of the greatest casts ever assembled: Henry Fonda, Jack Warden, Jack Klugman, Martin Balsam, Lee J. Cobb and many others. The disc will include the original TV version, commentaries and lots more.
Design for Living (1933): Ernst Lubitsch helmed this scenario, adapted from Noel Coward’s play by Ben Hecht, which tells of three Americans in Gay Paree who try to make a go of it as a romantic triangle when commercial artist Miriam Hopkins can’t decide which guy she prefers: painter Gary Cooper or playwright Frederic March. The pre-Code laughs and double entendres come fast and furious in this early screwballer boasting the typical treasure trove of Criterion extras.
Belle De Jour (1967): Luis Bunuel’s film centers on Catherine Deneuve, the restless wife of a doctor, whose sexual fantasizing leads her to become a prostitute. What current and past situations that drove her to this decision are what makes this landmark film so intriguing---and Deneuve so brilliant and beautiful.
Tokyo Drifter (1966): A gangster tries to get out of his dangerous line of work, but is summoned to tackle one last mission involving the destruction of rival hoods. Forget the plot and appreciate the wildly over-the-top antics and helmer Seijun Suzuki’s in-your-face style.
Branded to Kill (1967): Japanese New Wave auteur Seijun Suzuki was blacklisted for ten years after turning in the final cut of this whacked out saga. A high-ranking Yakuza hitman, obsessed with sniffing rice, is forced to face off against the deadliest assassin in the land when he botches an assignment.
Gojira (1954): The big green monster comes alive courtesy of Criterion in a special edition. In addition to the original Japanese effort Gojira, the 1956 American version of Godzilla: King of the Monsters is included. The release is loaded with expert commentaries and lots more.
Three Popular Films by Jean-Pierre Gorin: Best known for his collaborations with Jean-Luc Godard, French New Waver Gorin worked on his own as well, evidenced in these three eccentric documentaries. Poto and Cabenga (1976) looks at twins who invent their own language; Routine Pleasures (1986) studies model train fans and critic Manny Farber; and My Crasy Life (1992) surveys a Samoan gang in Long Beach, California.
Action Blast From The Past: An interesting double bill has been put together for fans of crime cinema, ‘70s style, in The Nickel Ride (1974) / 99 & 44 100% Dead (1974). The former stars Jason Miller as a low-level Los Angeles mobster who finds himself in danger when he has trouble finalizing a deal on important warehouse space. Linda Haynes and John Hillerman also star in this gritty drama from director Robert Mulligan (To Kill a Mockingbird). In 99 & 44 100% Dead, John Frankenheimer (The Manchurian Candidate) takes a satiric look at mafia sagas, with Richard Harris as a killer hired by Edmond O’Brien to oust rival Bradford Dillman, who has enlisted one-armed assassin Chuck Connors as his own champion.
DVD Archives Finds Andy Hardy
You’ve asked for ‘em, and we’ve got ‘em: More of the classic Andy Hardy films starring Mickey Rooney, courtesy of the Warner Archives program.
You’re Only Young Once (1937): Judge Hardy’s Catalina vacation offers an opportunity for sibs Andy and Marian (Cecelia Parker) to have romances.
Life Begins for Andy Hardy (1941): Andy leaves Carvel for New York City after finishing high school. But he encounters his share of problems in the Big Apple, leaving Judge Hardy (Lewis Stone) and Betsy Bloom (Judy Garland) to help him out.
Andy Hardy’s Private Secretary (1941): Andy might not be able to pass his finals without some help, so Judge Hardy prevails upon a young woman (Kathryn Grayson) to be his girl Friday.
Also on the way: Buster Keaton fans will be able to get their hands on his MGM talkies Sidewalks of New York (1931), Doughboys (1930) and What! No Beer? (1933)…Three requested finds from the portfolio of Wild Bill Wellman are coming: the semi-autobiographical WWI tale Lafayette Escadrille (1958), the charged Ricardo Montalban-Shelley Winters romancer My Man and I (1952) and the lurid pre-Code melodrama Safe in Hell (1931)…
More Archive Action
New release dispatches from around the world of manufacture-on-demand:
From Warner: Night Watch (1972): Elizabeth Taylor and Laurence Harvey star in a suspenser in which Liz thinks she’s seen the commission of a murder… Honolulu (1939): Eleanor Powell headlines this musical farce with Robert Young in dual roles as a Hollywood actor and Hawaiian plantation owner; with guest shots from Eddie “Rochester” Anderson, Burns & Allen…Ship Ahoy (1942): Musical shenanigans abound with Eleanor Powell’s cruise ship tap dancer getting involved with spies…The Duchess of Idaho (1950): Esther Williams and Van Johnson check out the splash and songs in Sun Valley...Texas Carnival (1950): Red Skelton and Esther Williams are dunk tank regulars in a Lone Star state resort with Howard Keel, Ann Miller checking in…Hollywood Party (1934): All-star MGM comedy fest with Laurel & Hardy, the Three Stooges, Jimmy Durante and many, many others…The Lost Stooges (1990): Rarely-seen escapades with Larry, Moe and Curly from their pre-Columbia stint with MGM…The Affairs of Dobie Gillis (1953): Fun youth musical with Debbie Reynolds, Bobby Van and Bob Fosse.
From MGM: GOG (1954): Undercover agents uncover robots with super-powers…Hannibal Brooks (1969): Brit POW Oliver Reed escapes the Nazis by way of elephants over the Alps…Pussycat, Pussycat, I Love You (1970): Oddball spinoff of What’s New, Pussycat with Ian MacShane seeking psychiatric advice…Hostile Witness (1968): Ray Milland directs and stars as a lawyer implicated in the revenge murder of his neighbor…The Big Caper (1957): Conman Rory Calhoun hatches a bank robbery plan to get out of debt… The First Time (1969): Teenagers find a bordello and Jackie Bisset…Three Came to Kill (1961): Asian leader targeted for assassination...The 1000 Plane Raid (1969): Air Force colonel Christopher George tries to end WWII with one air raid…You Have To Run Fast (1961): A physician is targeted by mobsters after he cares for one of their victims…Opposing Force (1986): A group of soldiers led by Tom Skerrit retaliate when a woman from their special mission crew is assaulted…Getting It Right (1989): Breezy Brit rom-com about a 31-year-old virgin involved with Lynn Redgrave, Helena Bonham Carter and Jane Horrocks…What Do You Say To A Naked Lady (1970): Allen Funt does an adult take on “Candid Camera”…Halls of Anger (1979): Black teacher Calvin Lockhart has his work cut out for him in a newly desegregated school…Zone Troopers (1985): Allied soldiers are joined by aliens fighting Nazis during WWII… A Small Town In Texas (1976): Timothy Bottoms vows revenge when crooked sheriff Bo Hopkins shacks up with girlfriend Susan George…The Bed-Sitting Room (1969): Richard Lester’s doomsday satire with Peter Cook and Dudley Moore…The Manchu Eagle Murder Caper Mystery (1975): Offbeat detective yarn with Bowery Boys Huntz Hall and Gabriel Dell…Don’t Worry, We’ll Think Of A Title (1966): Cook Morey Amsterdam is mistaken for a cosmonaut in this cameo-filled frolic…Golden Needles (1974): Seven powerful acupuncture needles are sought by Joe Don Baker and others…Ghost Warrior (1986): Ancient samurai unfrozen and running amuck in modern world…Malone (1987): CIA operative Burt Reynolds uncovers white supremacists…The Mugger (1958): Purse snatcher probed by police psychiatrist Kent Smith…Detective School Dropouts (1986): Goofy LA detectives land in Italy for an investigation.
From Sony: Island of Doomed Men (1940): Peter Lorre reigns over a penal colony…The Fuller Brush Man (1948): Red Skelton as inept salesman…Harmon of Michigan (1941): College gridiron great Tom Harmon plays himself in football biopic….Escape from San Quentin (1957): Johnny Desmond is a con trying to go straight…Town On Trial (1957): Scotland Yard investigator uncovers secrets of a town while looking into a murder…The Legend of Billie Jean (1985): Helen Slater gains media attention by going on the lam after shooting… Boston Blackie's Chinese Venture (1949): Final Chester Morris series entry with the detective accused of killing an Asian laundry man…Hart to Hart: Till Death Do Us Hart (1996): Robert Wagner. Stephanie Powers in final TV movie of series; Odongo (1956): African orphan goes on the run after being accused of releasing animals at a sanctuary…The Quest (1976): Pilot for Western series with Kurt Russell; Shadow of the Hawk (1976): Native-American Jan-Michael Vincent is called on to stop evil spirits; Storm Over the Nile (1955): reworking of The Four Feathers with Anthony Steel as the disgraced Foreign Legionnaire…You Must Be Joking! (1965): Soldiers embark on bizarre scavenger hunt.
More Paramount On The Way: It will likely take a while, but sources are reporting that titles from the Paramount library—lots of them—are on their way from Olive Films in both DVD and Blu-ray. We‘ve taken a look at the list and it is impressive to say the least, an eclectic mix of older and newer, classics and less-than-classics, films that have been issued on video before and films that have dropped off the radar screen. Among the movies slated are both versions of the Jean Lafitte biopic The Buccaneer, several Jerry Lewis efforts like The Geisha Boy and Boeing Boeing, western sagas like The Jayhawkers and The Hangman, cool films like Come Blow Your Horn and Who’s Got the Action?, William Castle entries like Shanks, and a whole lot more. In the meantime, the company still has Nicholas Ray’s The Savage Innocents, Robert Aldrich’s Twilight’s Last Gleaming and other prime titles to put out.
More Noir: Sony and TCM have put their efforts together for Film Noir Classics III, a dandy compendium of dark thrillers, macho men and lethal dames.
My Name is Julia Ross (1945) showcases Nina Foch as an unemployed secretary whose assignment to a wealthy widow somehow leads her to change her identity, which comes as a shock everyone around her. George Macready and Dame May Whitty star in this twisty thriller from Joseph H. Lewis (The Big Combo), later unofficially remade as Dead of Winter.
Broderick Crawford is at his tough guy best in The Mob (1951). He plays a cop who goes undercover as a longshoreman after being suspended, seeking to take down mob boss Matt Crawley. Richard Kiley, Neville Brand and Ernest Borgnine also star in this underseen companion film to On the Waterfront.
Ginger Rogers tries a change-of-pace part in 1955’s Tight Spot, directed by Phil Karlson (99 River Street). Ms. Rogers is a cynical convict convinced by the district attorney to testify against a group of hoods. Eventually, she is hidden in a hotel, where he encounters all sorts of danger while falling for her guard (Brian Keith). Edward G. Robinson also stars.
Based on a novel by David Goodis, The Burglar (1955) stars Jayne Mansfield as a member of a gang of hoodlums out to swipe a necklace owned by a fake Philadelphia psychic. Dan Dureya, Mickey Shaughnessy and local newscast legend John Facenda are also featured in this shot-in-Philly opus.
Drive a Crooked Road (1964) has Mickey Rooney as a race car enthusiast who is blackmailed into driving the getaway car during a bank robbery in this action-packed thriller that bears more than passing resemblance to the recent film Drive. Richard Quine (The Caine Mutiny) directs a script co-written by Blake Edwards.
