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Reviews
Shower of Stars: A Christmas Carol (1954)
A Wonderful Trip Back To The 50's
I first saw the Shower of Stars production of A Christmas Carol as a child in 1954. I must say, my jaw dropped at the first sight of Sally Frazier (the Ghost of Christmas past). I thought she was a Goddess,easily the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. When I was able to purchase an obscure video tape of this show in 1988 however, imagine my disappointment at the trick my 11 year old eyes had played on me. While still beautiful, she was nothing like I remembered. (or imagined!) What I did not remember, and was pleasantly surprised at was the outstanding score by the great Bernard Herrman. From the opening sounds of a child trumpeting his flute for the coming (acappella) carolers who sing their message as a foreboding warning of things to come, (so Herrman!) to the well done musical interludes that DON'T intrude on the story, this was an unexpected delight! I wish this was available on DVD and at the very least, Bernard Herrman's wonderful and ORIGINAL Chistmas score should be made available.
The Search for the Nile (1971)
Whatever happened to SEARCH FOR THE NILE?
I first saw the British mini-series THE SEARCH FOR THE NILE on PBS in 1973 and was enthralled. My favorite film is LAWRENCE OF ARABIA and I felt this was the television equivalent. As Peter O'Toole stunned in "Lawrence", Kenneth Haigh as explorer, scientist, (and REBEL) Sir Richard Francis Burton is equally impressive in "Nile." In 1980 (when video tape was available) I had the chance to record this masterpiece on PBS and took every possible precaution to get it right AND DID! (standard play,best tape available,etc.) The tape has held up beautifully all these years and still looks the same, however 1980 standards are not up to todays digital demands. Why this EMMY winner (1971-72 award for best Docu-Drama) is virtually unknown in this day and age is a mystery to me. It has everything you could want in a film; drama,sweep,humor,(that wonderful British humor)flawless performances and a marvelous production design to match the on location shooting. This film hasn't been available in at least 20 years and I'm thinking the copyright owners don't want to spend the money necessary to restore this virtually unknown gem (if possible after all this time)to it's Lawrencelike beauty. Number 1 on my wish list is a restored SEARCH FOR THE NILE on DVD,then I'd die happy but I don't think I'll ever see it.