In a Variety profile of legendary composer John Williams earlier this year, director Steven Spielberg singled out a reason why the musician's work seems to stand out among his contemporaries.
"Every score he's ever composed, and even the ones that might have the most complicated orchestrations, he always has a beautiful main theme," Spielberg said. "And I don't hear themes being written for movies as much as they used to be by Jerry Goldsmith, Elmer Bernstein, Max Steiner, Dimitri Tiomkin and Bernard Herrmann. Film composition isn't a lost art, but thematic scoring is becoming more and more a lost art. And the great thing about Johnny is, he's still got it."
Of course, to say Williams has "still got it" is something of an understatement. The prolific composer is synonymous with the type of sweeping, powerful, emotional music that helped to define blockbuster filmmaking. A crucial part of why those scores clicked with audiences,...
"Every score he's ever composed, and even the ones that might have the most complicated orchestrations, he always has a beautiful main theme," Spielberg said. "And I don't hear themes being written for movies as much as they used to be by Jerry Goldsmith, Elmer Bernstein, Max Steiner, Dimitri Tiomkin and Bernard Herrmann. Film composition isn't a lost art, but thematic scoring is becoming more and more a lost art. And the great thing about Johnny is, he's still got it."
Of course, to say Williams has "still got it" is something of an understatement. The prolific composer is synonymous with the type of sweeping, powerful, emotional music that helped to define blockbuster filmmaking. A crucial part of why those scores clicked with audiences,...
- 6/12/2024
- by Ben Pearson
- Slash Film
Social media is always posting clips of belligerent airline passengers having meltdowns even getting into fisticuffs with flight attendants and fellow travelers. But today’s outbursts look positively tame to compared to the ill-behavior of the passengers and even the crew on a plane bound to San Francisco from Honolulu in “The High and the Mighty,” which opened in L.A. on May 27, 1954. The film went into general release in July. They drink, they cry, they fight and even restrain a passenger who has a gun.Meanwhile, the young pilot nearly loses it, the veteran pilot is haunted with memories of a crash, the navigator is a nervous wreck. Smoking, even by the crew, is allowed.
Directed by William A. Wellman, who helmed another airplane classic 1927’s Oscar-winner “Wings,” adapted by Ernest Gann from his best seller and produced by star John Wayne and his partner Robert Fellows, “The High and the Mighty...
Directed by William A. Wellman, who helmed another airplane classic 1927’s Oscar-winner “Wings,” adapted by Ernest Gann from his best seller and produced by star John Wayne and his partner Robert Fellows, “The High and the Mighty...
- 5/28/2024
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
“This is the first Oscar in Ukrainian history,” said filmmaker Mstyslav Chernov, accepting the award for Best Documentary Feature for “20 Days in Mariupol,” onstage March 10 at the Dolby Theater. “I’m honored, but I will probably be the first director on this stage to say I wish I’d never made this film.”
The Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist captured the first three weeks of the deadly siege of the devastated Ukrainian port city for his Oscar-winning documentary. The strategic offensive, which lasted from February to May 2022, killed at least 8,000 people at the onset of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
“I wish to be able to exchange this,” Chernov said, hoisting his Oscar, “to Russia never attacking Ukraine, never occupying our cities. I wish to give all the recognition to Russians now killing tens of thousands of my fellow Ukrainians. I wish for them to release all the hostages, all the...
The Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist captured the first three weeks of the deadly siege of the devastated Ukrainian port city for his Oscar-winning documentary. The strategic offensive, which lasted from February to May 2022, killed at least 8,000 people at the onset of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
“I wish to be able to exchange this,” Chernov said, hoisting his Oscar, “to Russia never attacking Ukraine, never occupying our cities. I wish to give all the recognition to Russians now killing tens of thousands of my fellow Ukrainians. I wish for them to release all the hostages, all the...
- 3/11/2024
- by Alison Foreman
- Indiewire
At its core, John Sturges’s Gunfight at the O.K. Corral is another retelling of the exploits of Wyatt Earp (Burt Lancaster) and Doc Holliday (Kirk Douglas) where the facts are buried under layers of myth. Doc is introduced as a surly card sharp and drunk, and he’s ultimately steered out of trouble by Wyatt. This is a different approach from John Ford’s My Darling Clementine, in which Doc doesn’t appear until well into the film and is a public nuisance to Wyatt and others. By initially focusing on Doc, who’s more receptive to Wyatt’s council here, the film winds up giving the men equal footing as protagonists, making this something closer to a buddy picture.
After a prologue set in Fort Griffin, Texas, the film’s story is neatly mapped out in a two-act structure, with the characters travelling from Dodge City to Tombstone,...
After a prologue set in Fort Griffin, Texas, the film’s story is neatly mapped out in a two-act structure, with the characters travelling from Dodge City to Tombstone,...
- 2/26/2024
- by Clayton Dillard
- Slant Magazine
Bradley Cooper’s “Maestro” about the composer/musicians/conductor extraordinaire Leonard Bernstein is in contention for seven Oscars including three for Cooper. We’ll have to wait until the Academy Awards on March 10 to see how “Maestro” does.
But did you know that Bernstein received an Oscar nomination for his evocative and powerful score for the 1954 classic “On the Waterfront”? And just what score won that year? Veteran Dimitri Tiomkin’s “The High and the Mighty.”
Bernstein was also a powerhouse on television. According to LeonardBernstein.com, he “came of age artistically as television became part of everyday life and he immediately saw the potential to share and explore music with the mass audience. A generation of Americans appreciate music because of Bernstein.” His CBS series “Leonard Bernstein’s Young People’s Concerts with the New York Philharmonic” debuted Jan. 18, 1958, just two weeks after he became the Music Director for the Philharmonic.
But did you know that Bernstein received an Oscar nomination for his evocative and powerful score for the 1954 classic “On the Waterfront”? And just what score won that year? Veteran Dimitri Tiomkin’s “The High and the Mighty.”
Bernstein was also a powerhouse on television. According to LeonardBernstein.com, he “came of age artistically as television became part of everyday life and he immediately saw the potential to share and explore music with the mass audience. A generation of Americans appreciate music because of Bernstein.” His CBS series “Leonard Bernstein’s Young People’s Concerts with the New York Philharmonic” debuted Jan. 18, 1958, just two weeks after he became the Music Director for the Philharmonic.
- 1/29/2024
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
Not since old man Potter stole $8000 from Uncle Billy and the Savings & Loan has poor George Bailey had to deal with so much misfortune on Christmas Eve. At least, that’s what I thought when I was skimming PlutoTV last night and discovered, to my horror, that the version of It’s a Wonderful Life streaming on the service’s 24-hour channel dedicated solely to that movie has an alternate score. Indeed, Dimitri Tiomkin’s classic score has been replaced by a new score that sounds like it was lifted out of a Hallmark holiday movie. No, scratch that. That’s not fair to Hallmark movies. It sounds like the kind of score you’d hear in a Canadian Hallmark rip-off or something on the Great American Family Network. And that’s not it. The movie also has a new title, A Wonderful Life, and the credits claim it’s...
- 12/24/2023
- by Chris Bumbray
- JoBlo.com
William Wellman’s soap opera in the sky is the granddaddy of disaster films, in particular Airport and its many sequels. John Wayne plays the harried pilot who experiences more than his share of turbulence including jealous husbands and an airliner that is slowly dismantling itself. Claire Trevor, Wayne’s old flame from Stagecoach, is on board along with Robert Stack as The Duke’s nerve-wracked co-pilot. Dimitri Tiomkin’s haunting theme song was nominated for an Oscar.
The post The High and the Mighty appeared first on Trailers From Hell.
The post The High and the Mighty appeared first on Trailers From Hell.
- 2/3/2023
- by TFH Team
- Trailers from Hell
In a missive sent around to 2022’s Oscar nominees, stars were told to “read the room” when delivering speeches at the Academy Awards this month. Translation: Get off the stage before the orchestra is forced to awkwardly play you out.
In 1943, Greer Garson set a Guinness World Record for Longest Oscars Acceptance Speech, with her address upon accepting her Best Actress award forMrs Miniver clocking in at five and a half minutes.
Garson isn’t the only winner guilty of indulgence though. Hilary Swank, Adrien Brody and Al Pacino have all ignored the 45-second limit and consequently found themselves at the receiving end of a passive aggressive “Will you wrap this up?” stare.
Some actors, however, know that not every story needs to be so long and that brevity is an undervalued quality. Franklin D Roosevelt’s adage – “Be sincere, be brief, be seated” – could very well be the tagline for this year’s ceremony.
In 1943, Greer Garson set a Guinness World Record for Longest Oscars Acceptance Speech, with her address upon accepting her Best Actress award forMrs Miniver clocking in at five and a half minutes.
Garson isn’t the only winner guilty of indulgence though. Hilary Swank, Adrien Brody and Al Pacino have all ignored the 45-second limit and consequently found themselves at the receiving end of a passive aggressive “Will you wrap this up?” stare.
Some actors, however, know that not every story needs to be so long and that brevity is an undervalued quality. Franklin D Roosevelt’s adage – “Be sincere, be brief, be seated” – could very well be the tagline for this year’s ceremony.
- 1/30/2023
- by Annabel Nugent
- The Independent - Film
In a missive sent around to 2022’s Oscar nominees, stars were told to “read the room” when delivering speeches at the Academy Awards this month. Translation: Get off the stage before the orchestra is forced to awkwardly play you out.
In 1943, Greer Garson set a Guinness World Record for Longest Oscars Acceptance Speech, with her address upon accepting her Best Actress award forMrs Miniver clocking in at five and a half minutes.
Garson isn’t the only winner guilty of indulgence though. Hilary Swank, Adrien Brody and Al Pacino have all ignored the 45-second limit and consequently found themselves at the receiving end of a passive aggressive “Will you wrap this up?” stare.
Some actors, however, know that not every story needs to be so long and that brevity is an undervalued quality. Franklin D Roosevelt’s adage – “Be sincere, be brief, be seated” – could very well be the tagline for this year’s ceremony.
In 1943, Greer Garson set a Guinness World Record for Longest Oscars Acceptance Speech, with her address upon accepting her Best Actress award forMrs Miniver clocking in at five and a half minutes.
Garson isn’t the only winner guilty of indulgence though. Hilary Swank, Adrien Brody and Al Pacino have all ignored the 45-second limit and consequently found themselves at the receiving end of a passive aggressive “Will you wrap this up?” stare.
Some actors, however, know that not every story needs to be so long and that brevity is an undervalued quality. Franklin D Roosevelt’s adage – “Be sincere, be brief, be seated” – could very well be the tagline for this year’s ceremony.
- 1/29/2023
- by Annabel Nugent
- The Independent - Film
In a missive sent around to last year’s Oscar nominees, stars were told to “read the room” when delivering speeches at the Academy Awards this month. Translation: Get off the stage before the orchestra is forced to awkwardly play you out.
In 1943, Greer Garson set a Guinness World Record for Longest Oscars Acceptance Speech, with her address upon accepting her Best Actress award forMrs Miniver clocking in at five and a half minutes.
Garson isn’t the only winner guilty of indulgence though. Hilary Swank, Adrien Brody and Al Pacino have all ignored the 45-second limit and consequently found themselves at the receiving end of a passive aggressive “Will you wrap this up?” stare.
Some actors, however, know that not every story needs to be so long and that brevity is an undervalued quality. Franklin D Roosevelt’s adage – “Be sincere, be brief, be seated” – could very well be...
In 1943, Greer Garson set a Guinness World Record for Longest Oscars Acceptance Speech, with her address upon accepting her Best Actress award forMrs Miniver clocking in at five and a half minutes.
Garson isn’t the only winner guilty of indulgence though. Hilary Swank, Adrien Brody and Al Pacino have all ignored the 45-second limit and consequently found themselves at the receiving end of a passive aggressive “Will you wrap this up?” stare.
Some actors, however, know that not every story needs to be so long and that brevity is an undervalued quality. Franklin D Roosevelt’s adage – “Be sincere, be brief, be seated” – could very well be...
- 1/29/2023
- by Annabel Nugent
- The Independent - Film
In a missive sent around to this last year’s Oscar nominees, stars were told to “read the room” when delivering speeches at the Academy Awards this month. Translation: Get off the stage before the orchestra is forced to awkwardly play you out.
In 1943, Greer Garson set a Guinness World Record for Longest Oscars Acceptance Speech, with her address upon accepting her Best Actress award forMrs Miniver clocking in at five and a half minutes.
Garson isn’t the only winner guilty of indulgence though. Hilary Swank, Adrien Brody and Al Pacino have all ignored the 45-second limit and consequently found themselves at the receiving end of a passive aggressive “Will you wrap this up?” stare.
Some actors, however, know that not every story needs to be so long and that brevity is an undervalued quality. Franklin D Roosevelt’s adage – “Be sincere, be brief, be seated” – could very well...
In 1943, Greer Garson set a Guinness World Record for Longest Oscars Acceptance Speech, with her address upon accepting her Best Actress award forMrs Miniver clocking in at five and a half minutes.
Garson isn’t the only winner guilty of indulgence though. Hilary Swank, Adrien Brody and Al Pacino have all ignored the 45-second limit and consequently found themselves at the receiving end of a passive aggressive “Will you wrap this up?” stare.
Some actors, however, know that not every story needs to be so long and that brevity is an undervalued quality. Franklin D Roosevelt’s adage – “Be sincere, be brief, be seated” – could very well...
- 1/29/2023
- by Annabel Nugent
- The Independent - Film
This year’s Golden Globe nominees for Best Original Score contain a multitude of established composers from different genres of films, including four previous winners in the category. One of those winners, Justin Hurwitz, has a perfect record with the Globes as he’s won all three of his prior bids: score for “La La Land,” song for “City of Stars” (from “La La Land”) and score for “First Man.” Now he’s up for Paramount Pictures’ “Babylon,” which revolves around the early days and the transition of Hollywood in the roaring 1920s. Can Hurwitz continue his undefeated streak and win his fourth career Golden Globe, or will one of the other esteemed composers stop him in his tracks?
This is Hurwitz’s fifth collaboration with director Damien Chazelle, with whom he has composed all of his films and shared his awards career with. While Hurwitz has been up and...
This is Hurwitz’s fifth collaboration with director Damien Chazelle, with whom he has composed all of his films and shared his awards career with. While Hurwitz has been up and...
- 1/10/2023
- by Christopher Tsang
- Gold Derby
Who doesn't love John Wayne? The tough-talking cowboy dominated the silver screen for decades, captivating audiences with his endless charisma and dynamic swagger. Growing up, I saw many of the Duke's films — my mom loved him — but only later discovered some of his greatest adventures, including "The Searchers." All told, Wayne appeared in over 250 films, earned three Academy Award nominations, and took home an Oscar for Best Actor ("True Grit"). One need only glance at his resume to notice a handful of classic films: "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance," "Sands of Iwo Jima," "The Quiet Man," "Rio Bravo," "The Shootist," and "Stagecoach," among many, many others.
Each of these films comes with a plethora of memorable scenes. Be it a line of colorful dialogue, a well-executed action sequence, or a simple character beat in which Wayne shows off his effortless charm, there are plenty of unforgettable Duke moments to choose from,...
Each of these films comes with a plethora of memorable scenes. Be it a line of colorful dialogue, a well-executed action sequence, or a simple character beat in which Wayne shows off his effortless charm, there are plenty of unforgettable Duke moments to choose from,...
- 12/3/2022
- by Jeff Ames
- Slash Film
One of the best yet least seen of John Sturges’ westerns couples a fine screenplay with strong star perfs and superb direction: the straightforward story builds tension throughout. Kirk Douglas is a sheriff out for both justice and revenge and Anthony Quinn is the he-bull rancher who stands in his way: the guilty party is Quinn’s son. It looks sensational in VistaVision, with a fine music score by Dimitri Tiomkin — it’s a pleasure all the way through, with strong support from Carolyn (swoon) Jones, Earl Holliman, Brian Hutton and Brad Dexter.
Last Train from Gun Hill
Region-free Blu-ray
Viavision [Imprint] 101
1959 / Color / 1:78 widescreen (VistaVision) / 95 min. / Street Date December 29, 2021 / Available from Imprint and Amazon / 39.95
Starring: Kirk Douglas, Anthony Quinn, Carolyn Jones, Earl Holliman, Brad Dexter, Brian G. Hutton, Ziva Rodann, Bing Russell, Val Avery, Walter Sande, John Anderson, Dabbs Greer, Ty Hardin, Glenn Strange, Julius Tannen, Sid Tomack.
Cinematography:...
Last Train from Gun Hill
Region-free Blu-ray
Viavision [Imprint] 101
1959 / Color / 1:78 widescreen (VistaVision) / 95 min. / Street Date December 29, 2021 / Available from Imprint and Amazon / 39.95
Starring: Kirk Douglas, Anthony Quinn, Carolyn Jones, Earl Holliman, Brad Dexter, Brian G. Hutton, Ziva Rodann, Bing Russell, Val Avery, Walter Sande, John Anderson, Dabbs Greer, Ty Hardin, Glenn Strange, Julius Tannen, Sid Tomack.
Cinematography:...
- 1/22/2022
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
The public considers the Academy Awards as a Hollywood event. True, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences is headquartered in Southern California, and most of the best pic contenders are American and/or in the English language. But Oscar history proves they have been an international event from the beginning.
In the first year (1927-28), there were nominations for directors Herbert Brenon (born in Ireland) and Lewis Milestone (born in Moldova), plus a special award to Charlie Chaplin (from the U.K.).
The next five years saw two noms apiece for directors Ernst Lubitsch (Germany) and Josef von Sternberg (Austria). And the second best actress Academy Award was given to Canadian Mary Pickford.
The early years of Oscar featured a slew of non-Americans. Aside from mega-star Chaplin, the list of early Academy Award winners includes Emil Jannings, George Arliss (U.K.), Claudette Colbert (raised in the U.S. but...
In the first year (1927-28), there were nominations for directors Herbert Brenon (born in Ireland) and Lewis Milestone (born in Moldova), plus a special award to Charlie Chaplin (from the U.K.).
The next five years saw two noms apiece for directors Ernst Lubitsch (Germany) and Josef von Sternberg (Austria). And the second best actress Academy Award was given to Canadian Mary Pickford.
The early years of Oscar featured a slew of non-Americans. Aside from mega-star Chaplin, the list of early Academy Award winners includes Emil Jannings, George Arliss (U.K.), Claudette Colbert (raised in the U.S. but...
- 1/22/2022
- by Tim Gray
- Variety Film + TV
It’s the Gold Standard of Christmas movies and likely the oldest feature still broadcast on network TV during the holidays: Frank Capra’s sentimental favorite is his most human movie, the kind of show that convinced people that raising a family is a great idea. Although we’re now a full three generations removed from the world events that surround the story of George Bailey, his problems haven’t dated. Paramount’s anniversary disc gives us a new encoding from a 4K scan, a repressing of the older colorized version, a good making-of piece by Craig Barron and Ben Burtt, a reel of home movies from the film’s wrap picnic in the summer of ’46. . . and a set of ‘Bailey Family Recipe Cards.’
It’s a Wonderful Life 75th Anniversary
Blu-ray
Paramount
1946 / B&w + Colorized / 1:37 Academy / 130 min. / Street Date November 16, 2021 / Available from /
Starring: James Stewart, Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore,...
It’s a Wonderful Life 75th Anniversary
Blu-ray
Paramount
1946 / B&w + Colorized / 1:37 Academy / 130 min. / Street Date November 16, 2021 / Available from /
Starring: James Stewart, Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore,...
- 11/30/2021
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
What a Halloween treat! Karl Freund stopped directing after this classic, which is a shame — it’s German expressionism’s most exciting foray into classic Hollywood horror of the ’30s. Peter Lorre is incredible as Dr. Gogol, making himself as creepy and repulsive as possible while retaining a giddy audience sympathy. It’s Grand Guignol all the way — macabre, funny and irresistible. The screenplay toys with uncomfortable Body Horror and psychological weirdness; Colin Clive must contend with becoming the recipient of murderous hands. Frances Drake is the beauty that drives Dr. Gogol mad, and comedian Edward Brophy is a highlight in a non-comedic scene. “I have conquered science. Why can I not conquer love?!”
Mad Love
Blu-ray
Warner Archive Collection
1935 / B&w / 1:37 Academy / 68 (86) min. / Available at Amazon.com / Street Date October 19, 2021 / 21.99
Starring: Peter Lorre, Frances Drake, Colin Clive, Ted Healy, Sara Haden, Edward Brophy, Henry Kolker, Keye Luke, May Beatty, Billy Gilbert,...
Mad Love
Blu-ray
Warner Archive Collection
1935 / B&w / 1:37 Academy / 68 (86) min. / Available at Amazon.com / Street Date October 19, 2021 / 21.99
Starring: Peter Lorre, Frances Drake, Colin Clive, Ted Healy, Sara Haden, Edward Brophy, Henry Kolker, Keye Luke, May Beatty, Billy Gilbert,...
- 10/26/2021
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
When John Carpenter was making his movies Assault on Precinct 13 and Halloween, he wrote and recorded the scores himself almost as an afterthought because he had to: there was no budget for a composer. Here he had these hair-raising, suspenseful stories with murderers wending through darkness, but it all happened in silence. So the budding filmmaker — whose favorite music was the Stones and the Beatles, though he loved the scores of Bernard Herrmann and Dimitri Tiomkin — drew upon the basics of composition he’d learned from his dad, a...
- 2/4/2021
- by Kory Grow
- Rollingstone.com
Paul Greengrass’ western drama “New of the World” starring Tom Hanks and Helena Zengel is gaining traction during this pandemic awards season despite the fact that sagebrush sagas often get short shrift at the Oscars. Only three traditional Westerns — 1931’s “Cimarron,” 1990’s “Dances with Wolves” and 1992’s “Unforgiven” — and one contemporary Western (2007’s “No Country for Old Men”) have won the Best Picture Oscar.
Among the oaters to be nominated for the top prize at the Academy Awards: John Ford’s 1939 “Stagecoach,” William A. Wellman’s 1943 “The Ox-Bow Incident,” Fred Zinnemann’s 1952’s “High Noon” (Gary Cooper won the Oscar for Best Actor), George Stevens’ 1953 “Shane”; 1960’s “The Alamo;” 1962’s “How the West Was Won”; and George Roy Hill’s 1969’s “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.”
But some of the most acclaimed, treasure and influential Westerns have been all but ignored. Here’s a look at some of the...
Among the oaters to be nominated for the top prize at the Academy Awards: John Ford’s 1939 “Stagecoach,” William A. Wellman’s 1943 “The Ox-Bow Incident,” Fred Zinnemann’s 1952’s “High Noon” (Gary Cooper won the Oscar for Best Actor), George Stevens’ 1953 “Shane”; 1960’s “The Alamo;” 1962’s “How the West Was Won”; and George Roy Hill’s 1969’s “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.”
But some of the most acclaimed, treasure and influential Westerns have been all but ignored. Here’s a look at some of the...
- 1/12/2021
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
Alice in Wonderland
Blu ray
Kino Lorber
1933 / 1.33:1/ 76 min.
Starring Charlotte Henry, W.C. Fields, Gary Cooper
Cinematography by Bert Glennon, Henry Sharp
Directed by Norman Z. McLeod
Written by Harvey Kurtzman with art by Jack Davis, Mad‘s 1954 parody of Alice in Wonderland stands as a succinct critique of Paramount Pictures’s 1933 adaptation. The film stars crowd pleasing performers like Cary Grant and W.C. Fields yet manages to be one of the most uniquely disturbing studio pictures ever made.
Directed by Norman Z. McLeod and written by Joseph L. Mankiewicz and William Cameron Menzies, the movie began production in 1932, the centennial of Lewis Carroll’s birth. Carroll’s classic was ripe for Paramount – the studio on Melrose was ground zero for absurdist humor in the early ’30s. McLeod had just wrapped the Marx Brothers’ sublime Horse Feathers while the Mankiewicz-scripted Million Dollar Legs was released the same year – both...
Blu ray
Kino Lorber
1933 / 1.33:1/ 76 min.
Starring Charlotte Henry, W.C. Fields, Gary Cooper
Cinematography by Bert Glennon, Henry Sharp
Directed by Norman Z. McLeod
Written by Harvey Kurtzman with art by Jack Davis, Mad‘s 1954 parody of Alice in Wonderland stands as a succinct critique of Paramount Pictures’s 1933 adaptation. The film stars crowd pleasing performers like Cary Grant and W.C. Fields yet manages to be one of the most uniquely disturbing studio pictures ever made.
Directed by Norman Z. McLeod and written by Joseph L. Mankiewicz and William Cameron Menzies, the movie began production in 1932, the centennial of Lewis Carroll’s birth. Carroll’s classic was ripe for Paramount – the studio on Melrose was ground zero for absurdist humor in the early ’30s. McLeod had just wrapped the Marx Brothers’ sublime Horse Feathers while the Mankiewicz-scripted Million Dollar Legs was released the same year – both...
- 6/6/2020
- by Charlie Largent
- Trailers from Hell
"Wtf Value"
By Raymond Benson
Only serious film history aficionados and perhaps viewers of Turner Classic Movies will be aware that there was once a live-action version of Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland adapted by Hollywood in the early pre-code years. It was released in 1933 by Paramount and directed by Norman Z. McLeod, the guy who had helmed the Marx Brothers’ comedies Monkey Business (1931) and Horse Feathers (1932). McLeod would go on to make such titles as It’s a Gift (1934), Topper (1937), The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (1947), and The Paleface (1948).
The production of Alice in 1933 boasts a screenplay by none other than heavyweights Joseph L. Mankiewicz and William Cameron Menzies, the man behind Things to Come and a production designer whose hands were all over Hollywood and British productions over the next two decades. The script also borrows heavily from the popular and then-current stage production written by Eva La Gallienne and Florida Friebus,...
By Raymond Benson
Only serious film history aficionados and perhaps viewers of Turner Classic Movies will be aware that there was once a live-action version of Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland adapted by Hollywood in the early pre-code years. It was released in 1933 by Paramount and directed by Norman Z. McLeod, the guy who had helmed the Marx Brothers’ comedies Monkey Business (1931) and Horse Feathers (1932). McLeod would go on to make such titles as It’s a Gift (1934), Topper (1937), The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (1947), and The Paleface (1948).
The production of Alice in 1933 boasts a screenplay by none other than heavyweights Joseph L. Mankiewicz and William Cameron Menzies, the man behind Things to Come and a production designer whose hands were all over Hollywood and British productions over the next two decades. The script also borrows heavily from the popular and then-current stage production written by Eva La Gallienne and Florida Friebus,...
- 5/18/2020
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
James Stewart’s final western of the 1950s is a high-gloss family show with more than its share of spirited desperados and adventuresome women. But it’s really the split-up project that ended the productive Stewart-Anthony Mann filmmaking combo. The ‘folksy’ touches could only have come from Stewart himself, who hopefully didn’t show up to parties with his accordion in tow. Opposite Stewart as a ‘good bad guy’ is Audie Murphy, who rises to the standard set by his high-class co-star. If old-time railroads have appeal, this is the show for you: an un-billed co-star is the spectacular Denver and Rio Grande.
Night Passage
Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1957 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / 90 min. / Street Date March 10, 2020 / available through Kino Lorber / 24.95
Starring: James Stewart, Audie Murphy, Dan Duryea, Dianne Foster, Elaine Stewart, Brandon De Wilde, Jay C. Flippen, Herbert Anderson, Robert J. Wilke, Hugh Beaumont, Jack Elam, Olive Carey, Ellen Corby,...
Night Passage
Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1957 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / 90 min. / Street Date March 10, 2020 / available through Kino Lorber / 24.95
Starring: James Stewart, Audie Murphy, Dan Duryea, Dianne Foster, Elaine Stewart, Brandon De Wilde, Jay C. Flippen, Herbert Anderson, Robert J. Wilke, Hugh Beaumont, Jack Elam, Olive Carey, Ellen Corby,...
- 4/11/2020
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
There’s nothing like being honored for your 52nd Oscar nomination on your 88th birthday and finding yourself serenaded by 350 of the town’s top composers and songwriters. But that was Saturday afternoon for composer John Williams at the Society of Composers & Lyricists’ annual Oscar music reception, which was attended by nearly all of the original-score and original-song nominees on the day before the Academy Awards ceremony.
Williams — nominated this year for “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” — responded by pulling out the ceremonial baton he had just been awarded by Scl and conducting the last few bars of “Happy Birthday” being sung by the appreciative crowd.
The famous composer of “Jaws,” “Star Wars,” “E.T.” and many other classics said that receiving Oscar nominations “rather late in life, mean more all the time, the opposite of what you might think.” Williams’ 52 nominations are more than any other living individual...
Williams — nominated this year for “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” — responded by pulling out the ceremonial baton he had just been awarded by Scl and conducting the last few bars of “Happy Birthday” being sung by the appreciative crowd.
The famous composer of “Jaws,” “Star Wars,” “E.T.” and many other classics said that receiving Oscar nominations “rather late in life, mean more all the time, the opposite of what you might think.” Williams’ 52 nominations are more than any other living individual...
- 2/9/2020
- by Jon Burlingame
- Variety Film + TV
So you thought compact discs were a dead format? Not to soundtrack collectors. Film music labels continue to thrive, turning from current scores to, increasingly, limited-edition expansions and even new recordings of classic scores from the past.
Many film studios have (as they did in the 1950s and ’60s) formed their own in-house music labels and frequently release digital-only albums of their movie and TV soundtracks. So the traditional soundtrack labels are focusing more on older, classic material, often expanding the old 30-to-40 minute albums to CD length of 75 minutes or more. They’re also tracking down and licensing previously unreleased soundtracks of interest to collectors.
It’s a business model that seems to be working for more than a dozen labels in the U.S. and Europe that are devoted to releasing music from movies and TV. Here then, alphabetically, are our choices for the best classic film music...
Many film studios have (as they did in the 1950s and ’60s) formed their own in-house music labels and frequently release digital-only albums of their movie and TV soundtracks. So the traditional soundtrack labels are focusing more on older, classic material, often expanding the old 30-to-40 minute albums to CD length of 75 minutes or more. They’re also tracking down and licensing previously unreleased soundtracks of interest to collectors.
It’s a business model that seems to be working for more than a dozen labels in the U.S. and Europe that are devoted to releasing music from movies and TV. Here then, alphabetically, are our choices for the best classic film music...
- 12/31/2019
- by Jon Burlingame
- Variety Film + TV
The slate of awards hopefuls is new each year, but there is always a sense of continuity, of new contenders’ connections to the past.
For example, Alexandre Desplat, a strong Golden Globes and Oscar possibility this year for his score to Sony’s “Little Women,” can trace the influence of his predecessors on his work. Growing up in Paris, Desplat knew he wanted to be a film composer. “When I was very young, I was collecting soundtracks and it was an education. I learned to listen to music outside the film. When home video arrived, I would watch a movie over and over, to figure out when the music started and when it stopped and why.
“I listened to Nino Rota, Ennio Morricone, John Barry, Maurice Jarre. And my parents had earlier scores, by George Duning, Bernard Herrmann and many others. I was also very much into the earlier Hollywood composers: Max Steiner,...
For example, Alexandre Desplat, a strong Golden Globes and Oscar possibility this year for his score to Sony’s “Little Women,” can trace the influence of his predecessors on his work. Growing up in Paris, Desplat knew he wanted to be a film composer. “When I was very young, I was collecting soundtracks and it was an education. I learned to listen to music outside the film. When home video arrived, I would watch a movie over and over, to figure out when the music started and when it stopped and why.
“I listened to Nino Rota, Ennio Morricone, John Barry, Maurice Jarre. And my parents had earlier scores, by George Duning, Bernard Herrmann and many others. I was also very much into the earlier Hollywood composers: Max Steiner,...
- 11/20/2019
- by Tim Gray
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: The looming new year brings with it a double anniversary in the singular career of the great Danny Elfman. It will mark the 40th anniversary of the composer’s first film soundtrack as well as the 40th anniversary of Oingo Boingo, the new wave band with a brassy boneyard sound and loads of lyrical mischief in alt-rock standards like Dead Man’s Party, Only A Lad, Little Girls and Weird Science.
Elfman remains a movie maestro in high demand and the Los Angeles native has no plans to pass off the baton anytime soon. Still, Elfman has found himself contemplating his legacy more in recent seasons and the thought process has led the erstwhile rock star to a new and unexpected place: the classroom.
With “Making Music Out of Chaos,” Elfman’s just-released addition to the highly regarded MasterClass series, the 66-year-old...
Elfman remains a movie maestro in high demand and the Los Angeles native has no plans to pass off the baton anytime soon. Still, Elfman has found himself contemplating his legacy more in recent seasons and the thought process has led the erstwhile rock star to a new and unexpected place: the classroom.
With “Making Music Out of Chaos,” Elfman’s just-released addition to the highly regarded MasterClass series, the 66-year-old...
- 11/14/2019
- by Geoff Boucher
- Deadline Film + TV
[This Halloween season, we're paying tribute to classic horror cinema by celebrating films released before 1970! Check back on Daily Dead this month for more retrospectives on classic horror films, and visit our online hub to catch up on all of our Halloween 2019 special features!]
Looking for more intrigue and thrills than shrieks and blood spills this Halloween season? We know that our readers have varying tastes in movie watching, and with only four more days left until the big day, may I suggest Alfred Hitchcock's Dial M For Murder (1954)? The film is just as over the top (in the best way) as the title suggests. It's got attempted murder, a double-crossing, a back-stabbing spouse, and it will keep you guessing from start to finish—all the makings of a good film noir crime drama.
In the 1950s, the effects of World War II were still felt by everyone involved, so it comes as no surprise that film in that time period would be changed as well. Cinematic subject matter got darker and more cynical as well as the performances in films. Film noir or "dark film" flourished throughout the 1940s and '50s...
Looking for more intrigue and thrills than shrieks and blood spills this Halloween season? We know that our readers have varying tastes in movie watching, and with only four more days left until the big day, may I suggest Alfred Hitchcock's Dial M For Murder (1954)? The film is just as over the top (in the best way) as the title suggests. It's got attempted murder, a double-crossing, a back-stabbing spouse, and it will keep you guessing from start to finish—all the makings of a good film noir crime drama.
In the 1950s, the effects of World War II were still felt by everyone involved, so it comes as no surprise that film in that time period would be changed as well. Cinematic subject matter got darker and more cynical as well as the performances in films. Film noir or "dark film" flourished throughout the 1940s and '50s...
- 10/28/2019
- by Tamika Jones
- DailyDead
David Crow Aug 22, 2019
We examine the wrathful movie magic of Inglourious Basterds' ending, and why Quentin Tarantino and Shosanna went there.
Some audiences were baffled in 2009 when the fifth chapter of Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds began. Whereas other sections of the film were either cordoned off under titles like “Once Upon a Time… in Nazi Occupied France” or the name of the movie itself, what could the whimsical “Revenge of the Giant Face” possibly signify? The meaning became self-evident by the time Shosanna’s (Mélanie Laurent) visage cackled with delight from a burning movie screen, and the High Command of the Third Reich was beckoned into Hell. In a dazzling rewrite of history, Tarantino’s fictional characters, including both the titular “Inglourious Basterds” and Shosanna’s giant projected face, defy reality and end World War II in a gruesome climax of bloodlust and Old Testament wrath. The lingering...
We examine the wrathful movie magic of Inglourious Basterds' ending, and why Quentin Tarantino and Shosanna went there.
Some audiences were baffled in 2009 when the fifth chapter of Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds began. Whereas other sections of the film were either cordoned off under titles like “Once Upon a Time… in Nazi Occupied France” or the name of the movie itself, what could the whimsical “Revenge of the Giant Face” possibly signify? The meaning became self-evident by the time Shosanna’s (Mélanie Laurent) visage cackled with delight from a burning movie screen, and the High Command of the Third Reich was beckoned into Hell. In a dazzling rewrite of history, Tarantino’s fictional characters, including both the titular “Inglourious Basterds” and Shosanna’s giant projected face, defy reality and end World War II in a gruesome climax of bloodlust and Old Testament wrath. The lingering...
- 8/13/2019
- Den of Geek
Exciting news for fans of classic sci-fi! Kenneth Tobey and James Arness in The Thing From Another World (1951) is available on Blu-ray from Warner Archives. Ordering information can be found Here
Howard Hawks’ production of The Thing From Another World, adapted from the classic story “Who Goes There?” by Science Fiction Grandmaster John W. Campbell, is a pitch perfect example of genre filmmaking at its finest and, much like his entire oeuvre – from screwball comedy to melodrama to hardboiled detective to western – a treasure that makes movie magic. Under Christian Nyby’s lean direction, Charles Lederer’s rapid-fire dialogue and a cast of fine journeymen performers, this tale of scientists and servicemen confronting the unknown above the Arctic Circle shines with crisp atomic-age radiation in this scintillating HD presentation in all its glorious Black and White wonder.
Arctic researchers discover a huge, frozen spaceling inside a crash-landed UFO, then fight...
Howard Hawks’ production of The Thing From Another World, adapted from the classic story “Who Goes There?” by Science Fiction Grandmaster John W. Campbell, is a pitch perfect example of genre filmmaking at its finest and, much like his entire oeuvre – from screwball comedy to melodrama to hardboiled detective to western – a treasure that makes movie magic. Under Christian Nyby’s lean direction, Charles Lederer’s rapid-fire dialogue and a cast of fine journeymen performers, this tale of scientists and servicemen confronting the unknown above the Arctic Circle shines with crisp atomic-age radiation in this scintillating HD presentation in all its glorious Black and White wonder.
Arctic researchers discover a huge, frozen spaceling inside a crash-landed UFO, then fight...
- 12/10/2018
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Intrepid soldiers and scientists battle a bloodsucking alien invader at the top of the world! The Warner Archive Collection releases Howard Hawks’ incomparable Science Fiction thriller, a long-desired favorite. Long handicapped by missing scenes, this Rko classic is intact again, complete with its nerve-rattling bombastic Dimitri Tiomkin music score.
The Thing from Another World
Blu-ray
Warner Archive Collection
1951 / B&W / 1:37 Academy / 87 min. / Street Date December 18, 2018 / 21.99
Starring: Margaret Sheridan, Kenneth Tobey, Robert Cornthwaite, Douglas Spencer, James R. Young, Dewey Martin, Robert Nichols, William Self, Eduard Franz, James Arness, Paul Frees, George Fenneman, John Dierkes.
Cinematography: Russell Harlan
Art Direction: Albert S. D’Agostino, John J. Hughes
Film Editor: Roland Gross
Original Music: Dimitri Tiomkin
Written by Charles Lederer from a short story by John W. Campbell Jr.
Produced by Howard Hawks
Directed by Christian Nyby
Still one of the all-time favorites of 1950s science fiction filmmaking, Howard Hawks’ The Thing from Another World...
The Thing from Another World
Blu-ray
Warner Archive Collection
1951 / B&W / 1:37 Academy / 87 min. / Street Date December 18, 2018 / 21.99
Starring: Margaret Sheridan, Kenneth Tobey, Robert Cornthwaite, Douglas Spencer, James R. Young, Dewey Martin, Robert Nichols, William Self, Eduard Franz, James Arness, Paul Frees, George Fenneman, John Dierkes.
Cinematography: Russell Harlan
Art Direction: Albert S. D’Agostino, John J. Hughes
Film Editor: Roland Gross
Original Music: Dimitri Tiomkin
Written by Charles Lederer from a short story by John W. Campbell Jr.
Produced by Howard Hawks
Directed by Christian Nyby
Still one of the all-time favorites of 1950s science fiction filmmaking, Howard Hawks’ The Thing from Another World...
- 12/6/2018
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Two-time Oscar nominee Carter Burwell has penned music for the films of Joel and Ethan Coen for more than 30 years, including such classics as “Fargo” and “The Big Lebowski.” But “The Ballad of Buster Scruggs” was unique: a six-part Western with stories ranging from comic to bleak. As Joel Coen told him, the single thread that bound all six together was that they all involved “non-accidental death.”
“Each of the films is so different in tone and characters and story that I couldn’t find a musical solution that would work for all of them,” Burwell concedes. Ultimately, he decided to bookend the film with versions of the old cowboy song “Streets of Laredo,” and there are guitars, harmonica and tack piano sprinkled throughout.
But, he adds, “We needed a big, traditional Western sound” for four of the six segments, which needed “a Dimitri Tiomkin sense of scale,” referring to...
“Each of the films is so different in tone and characters and story that I couldn’t find a musical solution that would work for all of them,” Burwell concedes. Ultimately, he decided to bookend the film with versions of the old cowboy song “Streets of Laredo,” and there are guitars, harmonica and tack piano sprinkled throughout.
But, he adds, “We needed a big, traditional Western sound” for four of the six segments, which needed “a Dimitri Tiomkin sense of scale,” referring to...
- 11/29/2018
- by Jon Burlingame
- Variety Film + TV
One of John Carpenter's favorite horror movies (and one that he also remade as 1982's classic The Thing), 1951's The Thing from Another World is coming to Blu-ray with a new HD master from Warner Archive.
A specific release date for The Thing from Another World Blu-ray has not yet been announced, but Blu-ray.com reveals that the new home media release is expected to come out later this year, and Amazon has it listed for a November 20th release.
According to Blu-ray.com, The Thing from Another World Blu-ray will include the following special features and specs:
Original Theatrical Trailer (Sd) Theatrical Re-Release Trailer (HD) Optional English Sdh subtitles for the main feature
Stay tuned to Daily Dead for more updates, read on for additional details from Warner Archive, and check out the Blu-ray cover art and theatrical trailer for The Thing from Another World:
From Warner Archive:...
A specific release date for The Thing from Another World Blu-ray has not yet been announced, but Blu-ray.com reveals that the new home media release is expected to come out later this year, and Amazon has it listed for a November 20th release.
According to Blu-ray.com, The Thing from Another World Blu-ray will include the following special features and specs:
Original Theatrical Trailer (Sd) Theatrical Re-Release Trailer (HD) Optional English Sdh subtitles for the main feature
Stay tuned to Daily Dead for more updates, read on for additional details from Warner Archive, and check out the Blu-ray cover art and theatrical trailer for The Thing from Another World:
From Warner Archive:...
- 10/24/2018
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
John Carpenter can hardly be bothered with an interview today. The Brett Kavanaugh hearing is on TV, and his dog is barking at whoever’s ringing the doorbell. “I may get distracted,” he warns. “But I’ll come back.” His demeanor is somehow both friendly and curt, regardless of whether the questions are about his filmmaking or composing career. He’s someone who won’t suffer fools gladly, but when the topic of the new Halloween movie comes up, he perks up.
After decades of disavowing sequels to the slasher...
After decades of disavowing sequels to the slasher...
- 10/17/2018
- by Kory Grow
- Rollingstone.com
This article marks Part 8 of the Gold Derby series analyzing 84 years of Best Original Song at the Oscars. Join us as we look back at the timeless tunes recognized in this category, the results of each race and the overall rankings of the Academy Awards winners.
The 1960 Oscar nominees in Best Original Song were:
“The Green Leaves of Summer” from “The Alamo”
“The Facts of Life” from “The Facts of Life”
“The Second Time Around” from “High Time”
“Never on Sunday” from “Never on Sunday”
“Faraway Part of Town” from “Pepe”
Won: “Never on Sunday” from “Never on Sunday”
Should’ve won: “The Green Leaves of Summer” from “The Alamo”
1960 Best Original Song is a mostly enjoyable affair and remarkable in at least one regard – it produced the first winner to hail from a foreign language film, the Melina Mercouri vehicle “Never on Sunday,” which also garnered a boatload of other nominations that year,...
The 1960 Oscar nominees in Best Original Song were:
“The Green Leaves of Summer” from “The Alamo”
“The Facts of Life” from “The Facts of Life”
“The Second Time Around” from “High Time”
“Never on Sunday” from “Never on Sunday”
“Faraway Part of Town” from “Pepe”
Won: “Never on Sunday” from “Never on Sunday”
Should’ve won: “The Green Leaves of Summer” from “The Alamo”
1960 Best Original Song is a mostly enjoyable affair and remarkable in at least one regard – it produced the first winner to hail from a foreign language film, the Melina Mercouri vehicle “Never on Sunday,” which also garnered a boatload of other nominations that year,...
- 9/25/2018
- by Andrew Carden
- Gold Derby
This article marks Part 6 of the Gold Derby series analyzing 84 years of Best Original Song at the Oscars. Join us as we look back at the timeless tunes recognized in this category, the results of each race and the overall rankings of the Academy Awards winners.
The 1954 Oscar nominees in Best Original Song were:
“The High and the Mighty” from “The High and the Mighty”
“The Man That Got Away” from “A Star Is Born”
“Hold My Hand” from “Susan Slept Here”
“Three Coins in the Fountain” from “Three Coins in the Fountain”
“Count Your Blessings (Instead of Sheep)” from “White Christmas”
Won: “Three Coins in the Fountain” from “Three Coins in the Fountain”
Should’ve won: “The Man That Got Away” from “A Star Is Born”
Sure, the 1954 Oscar ceremony could have gone a lot worse. “On the Waterfront” and leading man Marlon Brando could have, for instance, fallen...
The 1954 Oscar nominees in Best Original Song were:
“The High and the Mighty” from “The High and the Mighty”
“The Man That Got Away” from “A Star Is Born”
“Hold My Hand” from “Susan Slept Here”
“Three Coins in the Fountain” from “Three Coins in the Fountain”
“Count Your Blessings (Instead of Sheep)” from “White Christmas”
Won: “Three Coins in the Fountain” from “Three Coins in the Fountain”
Should’ve won: “The Man That Got Away” from “A Star Is Born”
Sure, the 1954 Oscar ceremony could have gone a lot worse. “On the Waterfront” and leading man Marlon Brando could have, for instance, fallen...
- 8/27/2018
- by Andrew Carden
- Gold Derby
It’s the great Anthony Mann-James Stewart western that Mann didn’t direct: Stewart goes it alone, over-filling a good western idea with ‘cute’ scenes and conservative messages Mann had no use for. But it’s an exciting picture, and one of co-star Audie Murphy’s best — and it’s the first feature in the splendid oversized format known as Technirama.
Night Passage
Blu-ray
Explosive Media (De)
1957 / color / 2:35 widescreen / 90 min. / available at Amazon.de / Die Uhr ist abgelaufen /Street Date August 10, 2017 / Eur 17,99
Starring: James Stewart, Audie Murphy, Dan Duryea, Dianne Foster, Elaine Stewart, Brandon De Wilde, Jay C. Flippen, Herbert Anderson, Robert J. Wilke, Hugh Beaumont, Jack Elam, Olive Carey, Ellen Corby, Chuck Roberson.
Cinematography: William Daniels
Film Editor: Sherman Todd
Original Music: Dimitri Tiomkin
Written by Borden Chase
Produced by Aaron Rosenberg
Directed by James Neilson
Universal-International didn’t spare the production values for their big-screen western Night Passage.
Night Passage
Blu-ray
Explosive Media (De)
1957 / color / 2:35 widescreen / 90 min. / available at Amazon.de / Die Uhr ist abgelaufen /Street Date August 10, 2017 / Eur 17,99
Starring: James Stewart, Audie Murphy, Dan Duryea, Dianne Foster, Elaine Stewart, Brandon De Wilde, Jay C. Flippen, Herbert Anderson, Robert J. Wilke, Hugh Beaumont, Jack Elam, Olive Carey, Ellen Corby, Chuck Roberson.
Cinematography: William Daniels
Film Editor: Sherman Todd
Original Music: Dimitri Tiomkin
Written by Borden Chase
Produced by Aaron Rosenberg
Directed by James Neilson
Universal-International didn’t spare the production values for their big-screen western Night Passage.
- 12/12/2017
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Here’s an Army booster production that got way out of hand: it’s a semi-docu using real soldiers, and filmed in Korea near the real combat zones – and filmed in full-scale 3-D. The soldiers, the equipment, everything is real — even the ammunition used is live, not blanks.
Cease Fire!
Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1953 / B&W / 1:66 widescreen / 75 min. / Street Date November 21, 2017 / 34.96
Starring: Captain Roy Thompson Jr., Corporal Henry Goszkowski, Sergeant Richard Karl Elliott, Sergeant First Class Albert Bernard Cook, Private Johnnie L. Mayes, Cheong Yul Bak, Sergeant First Class Howard E. Strait, Private First Class Gilbert L. Gazaille, Private First Class Harry L. Hofelich, Corporal Charlie W. Owen, Corporal Harold D. English, Private First Class Edmund Joseph Pruchniewski, Private Otis Wright, Private First Class Ricardo Carrasco, John Maxwell.
Cinematography: Ellis W. Carter
Film Editor: John Woodcock
Original Music: Dimitri Tiomkin
Written by Walter Doniger, story by Owen Crump
Produced...
Cease Fire!
Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1953 / B&W / 1:66 widescreen / 75 min. / Street Date November 21, 2017 / 34.96
Starring: Captain Roy Thompson Jr., Corporal Henry Goszkowski, Sergeant Richard Karl Elliott, Sergeant First Class Albert Bernard Cook, Private Johnnie L. Mayes, Cheong Yul Bak, Sergeant First Class Howard E. Strait, Private First Class Gilbert L. Gazaille, Private First Class Harry L. Hofelich, Corporal Charlie W. Owen, Corporal Harold D. English, Private First Class Edmund Joseph Pruchniewski, Private Otis Wright, Private First Class Ricardo Carrasco, John Maxwell.
Cinematography: Ellis W. Carter
Film Editor: John Woodcock
Original Music: Dimitri Tiomkin
Written by Walter Doniger, story by Owen Crump
Produced...
- 11/11/2017
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
It’s a wonder movie from the 1930s, a political fantasy that imagines a Utopia of peace and kindness hidden away in a distant mountain range — or in our daydreams. Sony’s new restoration is indeed impressive. Ronald Colman is seduced by a vision of a non-sectarian Heaven on Earth, while Savant indulges his anti-Frank Capra grumblings in his admiring but hesitant review essay.
Lost Horizon (1937)
80th Anniversary Blu-ray + HD Digital
Sony
1937 / B&W / 1:37 Academy / 133 min. / Street Date October 3, 2017 / 19.99
Starring: Ronald Colman, Jane Wyatt, Edward Everett Horton, John Howard, Thomas Mitchell, Margo, Isabel Jewell, H.B. Warner, Sam Jaffe, Noble Johnson, Richard Loo.
Cinematography: Joseph Walker
Film Editors: Gene Havelick, Gene Milford
Art Direction: Stephen Goosson
Musical director: Max Steiner
Original Music: Dimitri Tiomkin
Written by Robert Riskin from the novel by James Hilton
Produced and Directed by Frank Capra
Frank Capra had a way with actors and comedy...
Lost Horizon (1937)
80th Anniversary Blu-ray + HD Digital
Sony
1937 / B&W / 1:37 Academy / 133 min. / Street Date October 3, 2017 / 19.99
Starring: Ronald Colman, Jane Wyatt, Edward Everett Horton, John Howard, Thomas Mitchell, Margo, Isabel Jewell, H.B. Warner, Sam Jaffe, Noble Johnson, Richard Loo.
Cinematography: Joseph Walker
Film Editors: Gene Havelick, Gene Milford
Art Direction: Stephen Goosson
Musical director: Max Steiner
Original Music: Dimitri Tiomkin
Written by Robert Riskin from the novel by James Hilton
Produced and Directed by Frank Capra
Frank Capra had a way with actors and comedy...
- 10/10/2017
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
David O. Selznick’s marvelous romantic fantasy ode to Jennifer Jones was almost wholly unappreciated back in 1948. It’s one of those peculiar pictures that either melts one’s heart or doesn’t. Backed by a music score adapted from Debussy, just one breathy “Oh Eben . . . “ will turn average romantics into mush.
Portrait of Jennie
Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1948 / B&W w/ Color Insert / 1:37 flat Academy / 86 min. / Street Date October 24, 2017 / available through Kino Lorber / 29.95
Starring: Jennifer Jones, Joseph Cotten, Ethel Barrymore, Lillian Gish, Cecil Kellaway, David Wayne, Albert Sharpe.
Cinematography: Joseph H. August
Production Designers: J. MacMillan Johnson, Joseph B. Platt
Original Music: Dimitri Tiomkin, also adapting themes from Claude Debussy; Bernard Herrmann
Written by Leonardo Bercovici, Peter Berneis, Paul Osborn, from the novella by Robert Nathan
Produced by David O. Selznick
Directed by William Dieterle
Once upon a time David O. Selznick’s Portrait of Jennie was an...
Portrait of Jennie
Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1948 / B&W w/ Color Insert / 1:37 flat Academy / 86 min. / Street Date October 24, 2017 / available through Kino Lorber / 29.95
Starring: Jennifer Jones, Joseph Cotten, Ethel Barrymore, Lillian Gish, Cecil Kellaway, David Wayne, Albert Sharpe.
Cinematography: Joseph H. August
Production Designers: J. MacMillan Johnson, Joseph B. Platt
Original Music: Dimitri Tiomkin, also adapting themes from Claude Debussy; Bernard Herrmann
Written by Leonardo Bercovici, Peter Berneis, Paul Osborn, from the novella by Robert Nathan
Produced by David O. Selznick
Directed by William Dieterle
Once upon a time David O. Selznick’s Portrait of Jennie was an...
- 10/10/2017
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
David O. Selznick’s absurdly over-cooked western epic is a great picture, even if much of it induces a kind of hypnotic, mouth-hanging-open disbelief. Is this monument to the sex appeal of Jennifer Jones, Kitsch in terrible taste, or have Selznick and his army of Hollywood talents found a new level of hyped melodramatic harmony? It certainly has the star-power, beginning with Gregory Peck as a cowboy rapist who learned his bedside manners from Popeye’s Bluto. It’s all hugely enjoyable.
Duel in the Sun
Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1946 / Color / 1:37 flat Academy / 144 min. / Special Edition / Street Date August 15, 2017 / available through Kino Lorber / 29.95
Starring Jennifer Jones, Gregory Peck, Joseph Cotten, Lionel Barrymore, Lillian Gish, Walter Huston, Butterfly McQueen, Charles Bickford, Tilly Losch.
Cinematography Lee Garmes, Ray Rennahan and Harold Rosson
Production Designer J. McMillan Johnson
Film Editor Hal C. Kern, John Saure and William H. Ziegler
Original Music Dimitri Tiomkin
Written by Niven Busch,...
Duel in the Sun
Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1946 / Color / 1:37 flat Academy / 144 min. / Special Edition / Street Date August 15, 2017 / available through Kino Lorber / 29.95
Starring Jennifer Jones, Gregory Peck, Joseph Cotten, Lionel Barrymore, Lillian Gish, Walter Huston, Butterfly McQueen, Charles Bickford, Tilly Losch.
Cinematography Lee Garmes, Ray Rennahan and Harold Rosson
Production Designer J. McMillan Johnson
Film Editor Hal C. Kern, John Saure and William H. Ziegler
Original Music Dimitri Tiomkin
Written by Niven Busch,...
- 8/15/2017
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
The original Quinn the Eskimo (no kidding) is another life-loving rough portrait from Anthony Quinn, in Nicholas Ray’s rather successful final spin as a writer-director. Despite some technical awkwardness, Ray’s sensitivity to outsider souls finds full expression. Humans don’t get any more ‘outside’ than Inuk, a primitive unequipped to deal with the modern world.
The Savage Innocents
Blu-ray
Olive Films
1960 / Color / 2:35 widescreen (Super Technirama 70) / 110 min. / Street Date June 27, 2017 / available through the Olive Films website / 29.98
Starring: Anthony Quinn, Yoko Tani, Carlo Giustini, Peter O’Toole, Marie Yang, Marco Guglielmi, Anthony Chinn, Francis De Wolff.
Cinematography: Peter Hennessey, Aldo Tonti
Film Editor: Eraldo Da Roma, Ralph Kemplen
Original Music: Angelo Francesco Lavagnino
Written by Nicholas Ray, adapted by Franco Solinas, Baccio Bandini, Hans Ruesch from his novel
Produced by Maleno Malenotti
Directed by Nicholas Ray
It’s arguable that Nicholas Ray’s career began to fall apart as...
The Savage Innocents
Blu-ray
Olive Films
1960 / Color / 2:35 widescreen (Super Technirama 70) / 110 min. / Street Date June 27, 2017 / available through the Olive Films website / 29.98
Starring: Anthony Quinn, Yoko Tani, Carlo Giustini, Peter O’Toole, Marie Yang, Marco Guglielmi, Anthony Chinn, Francis De Wolff.
Cinematography: Peter Hennessey, Aldo Tonti
Film Editor: Eraldo Da Roma, Ralph Kemplen
Original Music: Angelo Francesco Lavagnino
Written by Nicholas Ray, adapted by Franco Solinas, Baccio Bandini, Hans Ruesch from his novel
Produced by Maleno Malenotti
Directed by Nicholas Ray
It’s arguable that Nicholas Ray’s career began to fall apart as...
- 6/27/2017
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Every week, IndieWire asks a select handful of film and TV critics two questions and publishes the results on Monday. (The answer to the second, “What is the best film in theaters right now?”, can be found at the end of this post.)
This week’s question: Inspired by Baby Groot’s “Mr. Blue Sky” dance sequence at the beginning of “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2,” what movie has the best opening credits sequence?
April Wolfe (@awolfeful), La Weekly
Hands down, it’s R.W. Fassbinder’s “The Marriage of Maria Braun.” I watch the opening sequence at least three times a year and show it to every filmmaker I can. I love any film that begins with a bang, and this one does quite literally: We open up on an explosion that rips out a hunk of brick wall, exposing a German couple in the middle of a rushed marriage ceremony.
This week’s question: Inspired by Baby Groot’s “Mr. Blue Sky” dance sequence at the beginning of “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2,” what movie has the best opening credits sequence?
April Wolfe (@awolfeful), La Weekly
Hands down, it’s R.W. Fassbinder’s “The Marriage of Maria Braun.” I watch the opening sequence at least three times a year and show it to every filmmaker I can. I love any film that begins with a bang, and this one does quite literally: We open up on an explosion that rips out a hunk of brick wall, exposing a German couple in the middle of a rushed marriage ceremony.
- 5/8/2017
- by David Ehrlich
- Indiewire
Long before movies routinely created ‘worlds’ with their own twisted fantasy logic, only a few paranoid thrillers, usually odd genre items, tried out twisted stories of deceptive ‘hidden realities.’ Like an extended Twilight Zone entry, this lively James Garner war pic morphs into a bizarre conspiracy worthy of Philip K. Dick. If only it weren’t so “L-a-o” — Literal And Obvious.
36 Hours
Blu-ray
Warner Archive Collection
1965 / B&W / 2:35 widescreen / 115 min. / Street Date April 11, 2017 / available through the WBshop / 21.99
Starring: James Garner, Eva Marie Saint, Rod Taylor, Werner Peters, John Banner, Russell Thorson, Alan Napier, Oscar Beregi, Ed Gilbert, Sig Ruman, Celia Lovsky, Karl Held, James Doohan.
Cinematography Philip H. Lathrop
Art Direction Edward Carfagno, George W. Davis
Film Editor Adrienne Fazan
Original Music Dimitri Tiomkin
Written by George Seaton, Carl K. Hittleman, Luis H. Vance from a story by Roald Dahl
Produced by William Perlberg
Directed by George Seaton
Released...
36 Hours
Blu-ray
Warner Archive Collection
1965 / B&W / 2:35 widescreen / 115 min. / Street Date April 11, 2017 / available through the WBshop / 21.99
Starring: James Garner, Eva Marie Saint, Rod Taylor, Werner Peters, John Banner, Russell Thorson, Alan Napier, Oscar Beregi, Ed Gilbert, Sig Ruman, Celia Lovsky, Karl Held, James Doohan.
Cinematography Philip H. Lathrop
Art Direction Edward Carfagno, George W. Davis
Film Editor Adrienne Fazan
Original Music Dimitri Tiomkin
Written by George Seaton, Carl K. Hittleman, Luis H. Vance from a story by Roald Dahl
Produced by William Perlberg
Directed by George Seaton
Released...
- 4/11/2017
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Chicago – The Chicago Symphony Orchestra (Cso) has come up with the perfect celebration for the pre-holiday weekend, presenting Frank Capra’s classic film “It’s a Wonderful Life in Concert.” On Dec. 10th and 11th, 2016. The Cso will accompany the soundtrack on a restored version of the film.
Rating: 5.0/5.0
This is “It’s a Wonderful Life” (Iawl) as you’ve never seen it before, restored to a brilliant print and with the original Dimitri Tiomkin soundtrack score enhanced by the majesty of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. The film is projected above the orchestra, and with each symphonic moment in the story, the musicians and choral singers take over the music live. Iawl had many variations of themes in the soundtrack, so besides the Tiomkin original score, there are snippets of WW2 songs “Over There” and “This is the Army, Mr. Jones,” along with the holiday songs “Hark the Herald Angels Sing,...
Rating: 5.0/5.0
This is “It’s a Wonderful Life” (Iawl) as you’ve never seen it before, restored to a brilliant print and with the original Dimitri Tiomkin soundtrack score enhanced by the majesty of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. The film is projected above the orchestra, and with each symphonic moment in the story, the musicians and choral singers take over the music live. Iawl had many variations of themes in the soundtrack, so besides the Tiomkin original score, there are snippets of WW2 songs “Over There” and “This is the Army, Mr. Jones,” along with the holiday songs “Hark the Herald Angels Sing,...
- 12/10/2016
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
The Ussr’s Cinerama knockoff proved a ‘good business’ between the rival superpowers, when some producers imported and re-edited six Soviet Kinopanorama travelogues to make an action- & culture-packed 3-panel Cinerama attraction. In some ways it’s one of the best.
Cinerama’s Russian Adventure
Blu-ray + DVD
Flicker Alley
1966 / Color / Smilebox widescreen / 127 min. / Street Date November 22, 2016 / 39.95
Narrated by Bing Crosby
Cinematography Eduard Ezov, Nikolai Generalov, Ilya Gutman, Georgiy Kholnyy, Anatol Koloschin, V. Kryklin, Sergei Mdeynskiy, Arkadi Missyura, Vladimir Vorontsov
Film Editor Hal J. Dennis
Original Music Alexsandr Lokshin
Written by Homer McCoy
Produced by Thomas Conroy, Harold J. Dennis, J. Jay Frankel
Directed by Boris Dolin, Roman Karmen, Vasily Katanyan, Solomon Kogan, Leonid Kristi, Oleg Lebedev
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
And Now for Something Completely Different, or, There’s Always Something New to Learn. The excellent Flicker Alley series of Cinerama restorations dazzle us with their technical virtuosity and inform us...
Cinerama’s Russian Adventure
Blu-ray + DVD
Flicker Alley
1966 / Color / Smilebox widescreen / 127 min. / Street Date November 22, 2016 / 39.95
Narrated by Bing Crosby
Cinematography Eduard Ezov, Nikolai Generalov, Ilya Gutman, Georgiy Kholnyy, Anatol Koloschin, V. Kryklin, Sergei Mdeynskiy, Arkadi Missyura, Vladimir Vorontsov
Film Editor Hal J. Dennis
Original Music Alexsandr Lokshin
Written by Homer McCoy
Produced by Thomas Conroy, Harold J. Dennis, J. Jay Frankel
Directed by Boris Dolin, Roman Karmen, Vasily Katanyan, Solomon Kogan, Leonid Kristi, Oleg Lebedev
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
And Now for Something Completely Different, or, There’s Always Something New to Learn. The excellent Flicker Alley series of Cinerama restorations dazzle us with their technical virtuosity and inform us...
- 11/21/2016
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Another release of the Kramer-Foreman-Zinnemann classic gives Savant another chance to make his argument that this supposedly 'liberal' movie is too confused to be anything but political quicksand -- if anything, its statement is bitterly hawkish. High Noon Blu-ray Olive Signature 1952 / B&W / 1:37 flat Academy / 85 min. / Street Date September 20, 2016 / available through the Olive Films website / 39.95 Starring Gary Cooper, Thomas Mitchell, Grace Kelly, Katy Jurado, Lloyd Bridges, Lon Chaney Jr, Harry Morgan, Otto Kruger, Lee Van Cleef. Cinematography Floyd Crosby Production Designer Rudolph Sternad Film Editor Elmo Williams Original Music Dimitri Tiomkin Written by Carl Foreman Produced by Stanley Kramer Directed by Fred Zinnemann
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
This is my fourth time out with a review of High Noon, starting fourteen years ago with a pretty miserable Artisan DVD, then a Lionsgate 'ultimate edition,' followed by Olive Film's first, quite good Blu-ray. Olive now revisits the 1952 classic as...
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
This is my fourth time out with a review of High Noon, starting fourteen years ago with a pretty miserable Artisan DVD, then a Lionsgate 'ultimate edition,' followed by Olive Film's first, quite good Blu-ray. Olive now revisits the 1952 classic as...
- 10/1/2016
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Randolph Scott fights to let the railroad go through in this old-fashioned rip-snorting action adventure movie, the kind where shooting bad guys means never having to say you're sorry. Jane Wyatt gets top billing but the big burner on this prairie is newcomer Nancy Olson, who puts more sex appeal into her homegrown heroine than all of her later roles combined. Canadian Pacific Blu-ray Kl Studio Classics 1949 / Color /1:37 flat Academy / 95 min. / Street Date August 9, 2016 / available through Kino Lorber / 29.95 Starring Randolph Scott, Jane Wyatt, J. Carrol Nash, Victor Jory, Nancy Olson, Robert Barrat, Walter Sande, Don Haggerty, Grandon Rhodes, John Hamilton, George Chandler, Holmes Herbert, Norman Jewison, Chief Yowlachie. Cinematography Fred Jackman, Jr., Film Editor Philip Martin Art Direction Ernst Fegeé Original Music Dimitri Tiomkin Written by Jack DeWitt, Kenneth Gamet story by Jack DeWitt Produced by Nat Holt Directed by Edwin L. Marin Reviewed by Glenn Erickson All Randolph Scott movies aren't created equal,...
- 9/25/2016
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
At the bitter end of a ten-year slide into ever-cheaper productions, The Cannon Group sends stars David Bradley (a nice guy), Steve James (everyone's favorite) and Marjoe Gortner (a stiff) to South Africa for an anemic entry in this series. Cannon is considered a 'fun' subject this year because of those funny documentaries that came out. Savant cut the trailer for this particular picture, so takes the opportunity to talk about the wild life and times in the Cannon trailer department. American Ninja 3: Blood Hunt Blu-ray Olive Films 19 / B&W / 2:35 1:85 widescreen / 1:37 flat Academy / 90 min. / Street Date August 16, 2016 / available through the Olive Films website / 29.98 Starring David Bradley, Steve James, Marjoe Gortner, Michele Chan,Yehuda Efroni, Alan Swerdlow. Cinematography George Bartels Film Editor Michael J. Duthie Original Music George S. Clinton Written by Gary Conway from characters by Avi Kleinberger & Gideon Amir Produced by Harry Alan Towers Directed...
- 8/30/2016
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
William Wellman’s soap opera in the sky is the granddaddy of disaster films, in particular Airport and its many sequels. John Wayne plays the harried pilot who experiences more than his share of turbulence including jealous husbands and an airliner that is slowly dismantling itself. Claire Trevor, Wayne’s old flame from Stagecoach, is on board along with Robert Stack as The Duke’s nerve-wracked co-pilot. Dimitri Tiomkin’s haunting theme song was nominated for an Oscar.
- 2/29/2016
- by Trailers From Hell
- Thompson on Hollywood
By Lee Pfeiffer
Remember the old days when unpredictable occurrences seemed to predictably occur at the Oscars ceremony? There was the nude streaker who failed to unravel the ever-unflappable David Niven. There were the political activist winners who used the forum to grandstand for their favorite causes. This included Vanessa Redgrave's pro-Palestinian, anti-Zionist remarks during her acceptance speech, Marlon Brando sending a surrogate to reject his "Godfather" Oscar in protest of Hollywood's treatment of Native Americans, "Patton" winner George C. Scott refusing to show up at all in protest of the competitive nature of awards shows, the producers of the anti-Vietnam War documentary "Hearts and Minds" taking solace that that the nation was about to be "liberated" by a brutal communist regime, which caused another stir when Frank Sinatra was pushed on stage at Bob Hope's urging to read a hastily-scribbled denouncement of the remark. The Oscars haven't...
Remember the old days when unpredictable occurrences seemed to predictably occur at the Oscars ceremony? There was the nude streaker who failed to unravel the ever-unflappable David Niven. There were the political activist winners who used the forum to grandstand for their favorite causes. This included Vanessa Redgrave's pro-Palestinian, anti-Zionist remarks during her acceptance speech, Marlon Brando sending a surrogate to reject his "Godfather" Oscar in protest of Hollywood's treatment of Native Americans, "Patton" winner George C. Scott refusing to show up at all in protest of the competitive nature of awards shows, the producers of the anti-Vietnam War documentary "Hearts and Minds" taking solace that that the nation was about to be "liberated" by a brutal communist regime, which caused another stir when Frank Sinatra was pushed on stage at Bob Hope's urging to read a hastily-scribbled denouncement of the remark. The Oscars haven't...
- 2/29/2016
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
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