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Post by Jesse on Dec 18, 2018 10:46:22 GMT -5
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Post by chadwilliam on Dec 18, 2018 23:59:28 GMT -5
When I was a kid, Vincent Price was the guy who played Egghead and through some clerical error, wound up doing some horror work as well.
"That guy is going to be huge when people see this movie!", said eight old me in 1987 when I watched Jaws: The Revenge. The guy I was speaking of was Michael Caine, who sure enough, did a thoroughly entertaining and compelling Jack The Ripper film to mark the centennial anniversary of The Ripper killings the following year. "See! What'd I tell you? HUGE!"
And this year, after watching Werewolf of London (1935) for the third or fourth time, I thought I'd see if Warner Oland did any other films of note during this period. I swear to God, how I can be so oblivious to the larger details of someone's career while aware of such minutiae is beyond me. The guy was Charlie Chan for 16 films - how did I not know this until about two months ago?
And how come I can't get into them?
I could watch Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes endlessly (or really, most any actor as Sherlock Holmes for that matter) and like Rathbone, you have the definitive Charlie Chan in Warner Oland (yes, I feel safe saying that even though I know he doesn't match the real life Chan, Chang Apana nor have I see anyone else in the role) and it's a masterful performance, but the movies just haven't done anything for me. Even when paired up with Bela Lugosi in The Black Camel or Boris Karloff in Charlie Chan at the Opera I can't get into these things. There's some great dialogue, some clever crimes, but other than Oland as Chan, nothing really clicks for me. I can watch Bela Lugosi again and again regardless of whether he's starring in one of the classic greats or one of the lesser Monogram pictures he did; same goes for Karloff; I enjoy Oland's performance greatly and already have an interest in old detective tales; and yet in spite of all the ingredients being there, it feels as if something's missing. I suspect it's the way Oland generally has to carry the picture on his own and that "everybody's just biding time until Chan shows up again" feeling I get when he isn't on screen, but it's still disappointing. Maybe it's the basic, straight forward motives and plots, the all too normal bad guy, the lack of any real sense of danger, absence of goose-stepping munchkins, but yeah, nada.
The Black Camel, Charlie Chan at the Opera, Charlie Chan in Egypt (with Steppin' Fetchit, ugh) - have I seen the best of what this series has to offer? Anyone want to try and talk me into continuing on?
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Post by beccabear67 on Dec 19, 2018 14:31:50 GMT -5
Charlie Chan, Mr. Moto, Judge Dee, Fu Manchu... a lot of that stuff seems colored by western ideas and stereotypes about Asians and played by non-Asians, so it is hard to relate to now if not as extreme as say Eddie Cantor or Al Jolson in blackface. There was a '70s Dr. Who they wouldn't show in Canada because of a stereotyped Chinese villain in it. Charlie Chan maybe lasted the longest and was the least mocking though, and I remember watching a cartoon version... The Amazing Chan And The Chan Clan!
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Post by codystarbuck on Dec 19, 2018 14:48:06 GMT -5
Couple of problems with the Chan films, apart from Yellowface; the stereotyped black character didn't help, the fortune cookie dialogue didn't help, and it veered a bit too much to the comedic, sometimes at the expense of the mystery. More so in the later films, than the earlier ones. The Thin Man kind of loses the mystery, too; but, the character interplay was what made those films (and the novel, really).
Ross Martin did a decent, if unspectacular tv movie version, though the Yellowface issue is still a problem (and, like Oland, he was given an Asian-American actor for his son).
The brilliant Keye Luke played Number One son in several of those films, as well as Kato, in the Green Hornet serials. i always wanted to see him as Chan, especially in light of his Master Po, in Kung Fu. Racially, he was perfect; and, he was a damn fine actor who could have added some dignity to the role, returning it to ints inspiration and source material (the real Chang Apana and the Chan novels).
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Post by Hoosier X on Dec 20, 2018 16:21:57 GMT -5
I've seen quite a few Charlie Chan films over the years and I like them well enough. Sydney Toler took over for Oland in the late 1930s and I think he's pretty good too, just a lot more irritable at times! Maybe that's because he's always having to babysit the chauffer (Mantan Moreland as Birmingham Brown) and Number Three Son (or is that Number Four Son?) played by Benson Fong instead of being helped by Number One Son, who was a lot more competent than his successors.
I don't really know which are the good ones. I've seen The Black Camel, Egypt (isn't Rita Hayworth in that?) and Opera, and I liked them all. I also remember Charlie Chan at the Olympics and Charlie Chan at the Circus as being really good. But I'm thinking that if you didn't like Charlie Chan at the Opera, you're probably just not susceptible to the dubious charms of the Chan series.
Weird trivia: Jodie Foster was a voice actress on The Amazing Chan and the Chan Clan.
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Post by Hoosier X on Dec 20, 2018 16:25:22 GMT -5
Last night I watched Kes (1969), a British film from the "1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die" list. Apparently this is a very well known film in Britain. I was seeing comments like "We watched this every year in school when I was a kid!"
It left me wondering if every single person in Yorkshire is a dick.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 20, 2018 18:11:15 GMT -5
Hoosier X ... Rita Hayworth was in Charlie Chan in Egypt ... 1935, as Nayda, as Rita Cansino back then. I just watched that movie a year ago at a friend's home.
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Post by beccabear67 on Dec 20, 2018 18:29:28 GMT -5
Last night I watched Kes (1969), a British film from the "1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die" list. Apparently this is a very well known film in Britain. I was seeing comments like "We watched this every year in school when I was a kid!" It left me wondering if every single person in Yorkshire is a dick. I have to go back to a grandparent from there who would respond to anything you complained of (or whinged about) that it "built character". So if they were it was for your own good. And nay, you can nowt have no hawk fer pet! I liked Kes though, even have the soundtrack album.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 24, 2018 13:15:00 GMT -5
Movie ReportFriday, December 21st on Turner Classic Movies Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961)Way We Were, The (1973)I only watched these two movies -- The Audrey Hepburn Classic and the Way We Were the Streisand/Redford romance drama that was always a favorite of mine. I haven't been watching movies in the past 2-3 weeks because of the new cable box, watching tons of sports, and working on my Club that I run. Because of the holidays, I don't watch much movies and with family and friends in the next few days ... I really don't do much movies. I'm planning on watching the Aquaman Movie the day after Christmas and hopefully check out some additional movies in other channels. Audrey Hepburn in Tiffany'sWay We Were StarsI just wished that these stars made more movies together ... they were so great together.
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Post by Hoosier X on Dec 30, 2018 22:01:48 GMT -5
On Wednesday and Thursday, I watched 1900 (1976), a film by Bernardo Bertolucci with Robert DeNiro and Gerard Depardieu. It's more than five hours long. Great movie! But still five hours long. Then last night I watched A Touch of Zen, a Taiwanese martial arts film from 1971. Another great movie! It's three hours long. So that's two very long movies from the List that I watched as the year ends, and I think it's very unlikely that I will be watching any more movies from the "1001 Films You Must See Before You Die" list before the end of December. So that's why I'm posting my December list a little early. (My New Year's Eve tradition is to watch an Astaire and Rogers movie. I have Shall We Dance (my favorite!) and Top Hat on the DVR. I may watch both of them tomorrow night.) It was a great month for the List for the movies I watched! I always see a lot of good movies, but in the middle of the month, I saw four in a row that weren't just really good movies, they were great movies! They were movies that make me very glad I'm working my way through the List because otherwise I might not ever have seen these films. I saw Vagabond (1985), Night of the Shooting Stars (1982), The White Balloon (1995) and Peking Opera Blues (1986) in a little over a week. Just one great movie after another! I think my favorite was Peking Opera Blues. But The White Balloon and Vagabond are both amazing! Anyway, here's all the movies from the List that I saw in December: 1. Vidas secas (Barren Lives) (1963) 2. Kes (1969) 3. A Touch of Zen (1971) - All the martial arts movies on the List have been great! 4. Two-Lane Blacktop (1971) - I would probably have liked this better if I hadn't just seen so many really great ones! (1971) 5. Cria cuervos (1975) - This is a very strange Spanish movie about a girl who would probably give Wednesday Addams the creeps! Great movie! Another one I would have rated a lot higher if I had seen it a different month. 6. 1900 (1976) - Donald Sutherland is also in this. He's literally a Fascist. His character is a piece of work. I don't even want to go into it. 7. Ceddo (1977) - A very good movie from Senegal. 8. Yol (1982) - The Turks know how to make some messed-up movies. 9. Night of the Shooting Stars (1982) - This amazing Italian film covers some of the same ground as a few scenes in 1900, but it's a lot more focused. The end of World War II in Italy was NOT a great time to be a local Fascist official facing your angry neighbors. 10. Vagabond (1985) - I love filmmaker Agnes Varda SO MUCH! And I think this is my favorite film of hers. Just see it! 11. Peking Opera Blues (1986) - I've seen a lot of Hong Kong films over the years (including Chinese Ghost Story last month) and I have my favorites. But this one might just beat them all. This movie has a lot of heart and a lot of character and a lot of chaos! I especially like Brigitte Lin (pictured above). 12. The White Balloon (1995) - This is an Iranian film about a little girl trying to buy a special goldfish for No Ruz (Persian New Year). Oh boy! She makes it a lot harder than it needs to be and you get to see every agonizing second of every encounter with dervishes, shopowners, passersby and all and sundry as she tries to complete her mission with nothing but her wits to help her. Not quite my favorite Iranian film but it's up there!
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Post by Deleted on Dec 31, 2018 18:56:51 GMT -5
Movies that I watched recently
Sunday, December 30th
CASABLANCA (1942) PICCADILLY (1929)
Piccadilly is an excellent film and I was treated with delights of Gilda Gray, Anna May Wong, and Jameson Thomas and this silent movie really take a notice of me. This is the first time that I seen this movie.
Monday, December 31st
THIN MAN, THE (1934) AFTER THE THIN MAN (1936) ANOTHER THIN MAN (1939) SHADOW OF THE THIN MAN (1941) THIN MAN GOES HOME, THE (1945) SONG OF THE THIN MAN (1947)
I actually enjoyed the 1945 movie very much and I hadn't seen this in years and I do enjoy these movies very much and I'm a sucker for the team of William Powell and Myrna Loy. All of these movies were on Turner Classic Movies.
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Post by brutalis on Jan 2, 2019 8:53:03 GMT -5
Spent New Year's day watching the 2 best and favorite Western movies that I know of: The Magnificent 7 and Silverado! Both movies expertly made and acted with spectacular visuals and action music and some of the best writing and lines ever. I could spend all day raving upon both of these classics so I won't go on endlessly other than to say if you haven't ever watched both of these Western gems'; then why the hell not?!? What's keeping you???
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Post by Deleted on Jan 2, 2019 8:55:38 GMT -5
Spent New Year's day watching the 2 best and favorite Western movies that I know of: The Magnificent 7 and Silverado! Both movies expertly made and acted with spectacular visuals and action music and some of the best writing and lines ever. I could spend all day raving upon both of these classics so I won't go on endlessly other than to say if you haven't ever watched both of these Western gems'; then why the hell not?!? What's keeping you??? I'll be seeing Silverado in a week at my friend's place on his 65 inch plasma and looking forward to it.
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Post by codystarbuck on Jan 2, 2019 16:43:11 GMT -5
Was watching Midway, one of the last (along with A Bridge Too Far) of the big name actor war films. My dad took us (my siblings and I) to see it, when it was originally in the theater. The film documents the planning and build up to the battle, the major events during it, and the real people involved. The film features Henry Fonda (as Adm. Nimitz), Robert Mitchum (as Adm Halsey, who had to temporarily give up command, after the Battle of the Coral Sea)), Glen Ford (as Adm Spruance, in command of the USS Hornet and Enterprise strike group), Robert Webber (Adm Fletcher, commander of the Yorktown and overall command of the US forces in the battle), Toshiro Mifune (Adm Yamamoto, commander of the japanese Fleet and architect of the attack on Pearl Harbor), Hal Holbrook (Cdr Rochefort, who led the Navy code breaking team), and Charlton Heston as the fictional Captain Matt Garth. Eddie Albert Jr plays Heston's son, a new naval aviator, who is in love with a Nisei girl, who has been arrested by the FBI. The subplot of Heston & Albert (who are somewhat estranged) and the fate of the girl and her family somewhat detracts from the focus of the film; but, served to highlight the Japanese internment (my first exposure to it, in film) and set up an emotional connection to Albert and Heston and their fate in the battle. The film follows the Japanese planning for a strike on Midway and the Aleutian Islands, following the Doolittle Raid on Tokyo. It then sees the Navy code breaking effort, which uncovers traffic about an objective, code-named "AF." Through their efforts and logical deduction, they identify the US installation at Midway as the possible target. to verify, they slip a message into Midway's radio traffic that their water condenser is down. When Japanese intercepts report that AF's water condenser is down, plans go into effect to intercept the Japanese fleet en route to Midway and destroy them in a decisive battle. the Japanese fleet consists of 4 carries: the Kaga, Akagi, Hiryu and Soryu, all of which took part in the attack on Pearl Harbor. Pitted against them are the USS Hornet (from which the Doolittle B-25 raid was launched), the USS Enterprise (first carrier of that name) and the USS Yorktown, which had been badly damaged in the Battle of the Coral Sea. The Yorktown was refitted and repaired and steaming in 72 hours (with some repair crews still on board) and joined the other two carriers to ambush the Japanese fleet. The film depicts the search efforts by Navy PBY Catalina flying boat patrol craft and by the aircraft of the carriers to locate and then engage the Japanese fleet. It also shows the initial air attack on Midway, which was part of what doomed the Japanese. The battle resulted in the total destruction of the 4 Japanese carriers, with the ultimate loss of the Yorktown, after the battle (when torpedoed by a Japanese sub). We see the complete loss of the Hornet's Torpedo Squadron 8, as it was forced to attack the Japanese ships without fighter escort, as the F4F Wildcats had run out of fuel and had to turn back or ditch, after a prolonged search for the Japanese (due to following an incorrect compass heading), then the more successful attacks by Dive Bomber squadrons. It even shows Ens George Gray, a torpedo bomber pilot who ditched in the ocean and spent the duration of the battle, floating in the ocean, while the battle raged around hm, before being rescued by a PBY, after the battle. He spent 30 hours floating in the water, before rescue and was the only survivor of Torpedo Squadron 8. The film makes great use of footage shot by John Ford's film unti, at the actual Battle of Midway, as well as other historical footage. It also uses footage from the films Tora, Tora, Tora, 30 Seconds Over Tokyo, and The Battle of Britain (you can spot a Messerschmidt in at least one combat scene). The film opens with the Doolittle raid, using the footage from 30 Seconds and uses footage of the Japanese from Tora, Tora, Tora for the Japanese departure and the attack on Midway (right down to resuing the footage of a B-17 landing on one wheel). Eddie Albert Jr has a horrific scene in the film, which was mostly cut when re-broadcast for tv. The tv broadcast cut out other more graphic footage and added a further subplot, with Susan Sullivan, as Heston's lover. The film is filled with notable names from the era: James Coburn, Robert Wagner, Cliff Robertson, Pat Morita, James Ito, John Fujioka, James Shigeta, Clyde Kusatsu (who all appeared in Kung Fu and/or MASH, in the 70s), Tom Selleck (without the 'tache!), Larry Csonka (who was still in the NFL), Erik Estrada, Monte Markham (Six Million Dollar Man, narrator and host on the early days of the History Channel), Dabney Coleman, and Larry Pennell (Dash Riprock, on The Beverly Hillbillies). The film did much to highlight Cdr Rochefort and the Navy code breaking team in in identifying the Japanese operation and putting the US in a position to win their first decisive victory against the Japanese. Much of that info was top secret during the war and Rochefort had made some political enemies in the Navy. It wasn't until the end of the war that he received the Legion of merit, yet received no recognition immediately after the Battle of Midway. The film is a bit long; but, engaging, with some fine character actors doing what they do best. It was also released to select theaters in Sensurround, where added speakers created an immersive environment of sound and vibration (used in films like Earthquake and the theatrical release of the Battlestar Galactica pilot movie) This was also the film I saw when I first saw the teaser trailer for Star Wars.
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Post by codystarbuck on Jan 2, 2019 17:12:27 GMT -5
We also watched a few films with our grandkids, over the holiday: Jurassic Park, Radio Flyer, Powder and the Boy Who Could Fly. The kids had seen the more recent JP films, so we showed them the original. Still holds up well, if you ignore a lot of leaps in logic. it also has Jeff Goldblum at his sexiest, for the ladies (and some guys) Although I hated how Sam Neil's character was saddled with the unease around children, I did feel the film greatly improved the novel by distilling the long sections about chaos theory into one scene that did a much better job. crighton could get rather long winded. A lot of the science is shaky (or theoretical) and I never understood why the game control expert was using a shotgun against the velociraptors (too short a range and lacking power, even with rifled slugs) instead of a larger bore rifle; but, it looked more high tech on screen (they used a SPAS 12 military/law enforcement model, which has both pump action and semi-auto features and looked futuristic, in 1993). The dinosaur's still look good and the use of puppets and animatronics is blended well. Also, Sam Jackson doesn't get to call anyone an MFer. We watched Radio Flyer because my wife remembered that the boy, Tim, from JP, had been in it. She forgot that his brother is played by young Elijah Wood. The film follows two brothers and their mother, as they move to California and she remarries, to an alcoholic who physically abuses the youngest boy (beatings with an electrical chord). They seek to escape by turning their Radio Flyer wagon into a light aircraft. The film is narrated by Tom Hanks , as the adult version of Elijah Wood's character. Lorraine Brocco is the other and Adam Baldwin the abusive stepfather. Well done, though i thought it was a little to horrific for our youngest grandson (who is 6). They then watched Powder, with Goldblum, Mary Steenburgen and Sean Patrick Flannery,as an albino teen with the ability to sense thoughts and emotions and share them with people, as well as a strange relationship with electricity. He is rejected by his father at birth and raised by his grandparents, who keep him hidden in a cellar of a farm house. After his grandfather passes away he is taken into care, where he is exposed to outsiders and treated as an outcast, though his abilities help others heal from emotional pain. It's a so-so film that was overshadowed by the director's previous conviction for sexually abusing a 12 year-old actor on the set of his previous film, along with counts of filming the act and possession of child pornography. The film was backed by Disney and their were calls for a boycott, including from the survivor of the sexual abuse. The Boy Who Could Fly had Bonnie Bedelia (of Die Hard) and a guest cameo from Louise "Nurse Ratchet" Fletcher ( One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest), as well as featured the original cinematic Human Torch, Jay Underwood (from the Corman quickie film). It is sappy stuff and I didn't think much of it. It also features Herman Munster, Ed Gwynne, as Underwood's uncle. We also watched Stand By Me with them, which is great, though I wasn't happy about the language, with the 6 year-old. However, they have seen modern rated R films (thanks Dad) and didn't blink. I've come across a lot of young kids with mouths that would make sailors blush (and believe me, we could curse for the US, in the Profane Olympics); but, I don't like to see kids exposed to such vulgarity without understanding context and without learning how to express themselves more positively and intelligently. I had to shake my head, as most of the films were suggested by my wife and all feature families with emotional problems. I kind of thought it was a bit much in one go; but, the kids seemed to enjoy them enough. She walked out on the kids grandfather after physical and emotional abuse and mostly raised their son (the kids' dad) on her own. The films have personal elements for her, which saddens me; but, we have been together for 11 years and present the grandkids a more positive environment than their granddad's home. I also exposed them to King Kong vs Godzilla and King Kong Escapes, (with the villain Dr Who!!) for a bit more light-hearted monster stomping. They got a kick out of guys in rubber suits stomping on toy tanks and trains, while smashing through buildings; so, there is hope for more monster fights, in the future (they've seen Skull Island and the modern Godzilla). I noticed how the Japanese tv network boss, when in his jungle gear, looked like an Asian Groucho Marx. I kept waiting for him to break out into a rendition of "Hooray for Captain Spaulding!"
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