Cinema - Comments / Reviews by George Slv

Cinema - Comments / Reviews by George Slv

« Member Page

Page 4 of 5 : Previous : Next :

Member	Item		Review/Comment
George Slv 22nd Dec 2015		Cinema The Deep (1977) (1977)	Rated 2/10 This was one of the flop underwater movies that led to the very successful The Abyss. I saw this on a VHS rental. Nudity was cut out, which they say raised the rating on it. As I recall it seemed like a movie about nothing. A non-purpose non-event. Boring, with nothing interesting happening underwater either. The supposed menace of a moray eel turned out as nothing too. Next I recall Leviathan of 1989, which did not satisfy. So when The Abyss came everyone was saying "finally" a good undersea movie. 5 people found this review helpful. ✔︎ Helpful Review?
George Slv 22nd Dec 2015		Cinema Saturn 3 (1980) (1980)	Rated 2/10 A valiant attempt at a large-scale outer-space film. For me it did not work. It just did not make an impression in the end. Points of note: 1) Farrah Fawcett is sexy for heterosexuals. One shot shows her right breast for a couple seconds. In another she is naked just out of bed and Douglas throws a sheet over to her. That was one skillful shot. We don't see her body, the sheet is covering her flying thru the air til she catches it. In another scene they wanted her to drop her top below her breasts. She decided not to and just showed her shoulders. Take what you can get. 2) Kirk Douglas naked is what the producers were obviously more interested in. Another tremendously skilful shot that must have taken several takes. No sheet, he is just naked and runs toward the camera to pick something up, and his right knee covers his crotch. So this movie is not bashful. 3) [spoiler] The robot. We are told that it cannot be destroyed once activated. Not by water and not by cold. So at the end they destroy it by ... having it fall into cold water. That about wraps it up folks. Thump. Flop. 4 people found this review helpful. ✔︎ Helpful Review?
George Slv 21st Dec 2015		Cinema The Ice Pirates (1984) (1984)	Review In the future water is scarce in the solar system, ice is transported between planets, and this group of pirates steals from the transport spaceships. It is considered a turkey because it is. It is not exciting, it is not interesting, and the humour is not funny. It's a garbage production with what they call "toilet humor", crass attempts by low-class producers. There is a metal mechanical claw that castrates men so they can serve the princess. In one scene the princess is sleeping on her back with a sheet covering, and one of our boys goes to lift the top of the sheet to take a little peek. There is no nudity. They say it killed Mary Crosby's career, and almost the other stars. MGM studio never actually recovered from the loss of Louis Mayer in the 1950s, and this illustrates why. Bankruptcy ahead. You thought from the promotion that you will see something interesting in the Star Wars era. 3 people found this review helpful. ✔︎ Helpful Review?
George Slv 18th Dec 2015		Cinema Vampire Circus (1972) (1972)	Rated 10/10 This was the common situation of an outside producer making the film for Hammer Films. It turns out to be one of their best. It's the 1970s so there is nudity. A fascinating tale of a travelling circus that consists mainly of vampires, who can change into animals at will. They come to this town to avenge the killing years ago of the head local vampire, the typical local baron who takes local children as blood sacrifices. The usual crowd scene at the start of angry villagers with pitchforks and shovels marching on the castle and burning it down. At night with torches. What to do with these evil nobles ... that's feudalism for you. There was a problem with time and finances in filming, and some scenes were incomplete, leaving questions about the story. It may be those have been restored now, it seems fine. I don't know. The full UK edition was 1:27, the US censored edition was 1:24. Really colorful and appealing sensually and visually. 4 people found this review helpful. ✔︎ Helpful Review?
George Slv 17th Dec 2015		Cinema Winter A-Go-Go (1965) (1965)	Twistin, is your copy at CG (secret place)? I'm not sure what spherical means. It ends up on a 35mm film, which is AR 1.50. The lens is spherical anyway. Not that I care too much about it. The US VOD could not be sent outside US. The famous Reflections perform a half-baked song in it.
George Slv 14th Dec 2015		Cinema Winter A-Go-Go (1965) (1965)	You can see the movie on Youtube at the moment, a pale old VHS copy. Is there a good quality around? Looking at the title above I see the widescreen was made by cutting the top and bottom of the picture. The width is about the same on the 4:3 TV copy.
George Slv 5th Dec 2015		Cinema These Are The Damned (1963) (1963)	Review A fascinating science-fiction film that turned out far different from what Hammer studio first envisaged. The basic original story involves English characters like Oliver Reed, who explore this island off England, where they discover that a group of young children are being raised in a radioactive underground environment. They are not harmed by it, and it is planned that after a nuclear war they would emerge and continue the human race. These intruders create dangerous consequences. Joseph Losey, on the run from the US for being a communist, was hired to finish it. Well he does it in his style. Adds a character and brings his Jewish American friend Macdonald Carey to play the major role. More story elements are added involving him, which could be viewed as distracting and extraneous. In the US it was renamed The Damned and shortened. I've never seen that edit available, and would like to. 3 people found this review helpful. ✔︎ Helpful Review?
George Slv 30th Nov 2015		Cinema Carnival Rock (1957) (1957)	Bob Luman performs All Night Long, an early release of his [YouTube Video] YT video from House Rockin Channel 50's.
George Slv 30th Nov 2015		Cinema Carnival Rock (1957) (1957)	Review Another excuse for some interesting rock and roll performances. But everyone agrees that the drama aspect turns out miserable. There's this Greek concession owner in this New York carnival (Coney Island?), see, who provides music acts and a dance floor. He's an old guy who falls for one of his young female singers. He gets all broken up because she thinks he's too old for her. Then there's this group of Jewish guys who are out to screw him and take over his business. They cause him to lose in some set up gambling games, and he forfeits his joint to them. He's in a miserable state, so it's a "Greek tragedy". At least check Youtube for some music performances like by Bob Luman. A DVD can be found on the web. 3 people found this review helpful. ✔︎ Helpful Review?
George Slv 24th Nov 2015		Cinema The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn (1955)	Aha, this was an episode of the TV series Climax. They are the ones who brought us Casino Royale in 1954. I've been wondering about putting some of those up as TV movies, and didn't think it was allowed. Well, whatever you dare and can get away with. I can accept it.
George Slv 21st Nov 2015		Cinema Creatures The World Forgot (1971) (1971)	Review A Hammer Film followup to their previous successful prehistoric fantasies. This one is simpler. A tribe wanders around and goes thru various incidents. Two brothers fight for the leadership. Julie Ege is the fairest maiden and ends up in jeopardy. She had been Miss Norway. They hoped to make her sexy. A freak incident with a cameraman somewhat sabotaged that. The guy got a grudge against her, thinking she was standoffish. The next day of filming he did not capture her in the frame when she was to be featured in a sexy vest. Headquarters got incensed. So did I. There are no dinosaurs here. There is some topless female nudity, but not by Ege. 4 people found this review helpful. ✔︎ Helpful Review?
George Slv 21st Nov 2015		Cinema Back From Eternity (1956) (1956)	Review Eleven people are stranded in headhunter territory. The plane can be fixed but will only be able to fly five people. From my recollection of seeing this in the early days: It's a low budget black and white production which never gets out of its small Hollywood fake jungle set. For a supposedly exciting theme, it was rather uninteresting. Ends up being mainly dialog drama among the passengers. There are dangerous headhunters nearby, we hear their drums, but they never show. A plane flies over and doesn't notice them. Anita Ekberg is an attraction. She first shows up when her breasts walk into the airport -- I mean when she walks into the airport (that's how she was). In the jungle her blouse is ripped in a couple places. Slight uplifts in a dull movie. One IMDB reviewer made the interesting comment that it does "the one thing so many movies of today fail at their core to pull off - TELL A GOOD STORY." See what you think yourself. The title was one of the variations of the day on travelling to or from Hell or Eternity etc. I thi-i-i-nk there was some message in the drama somewhere. 2 people found this review helpful. ✔︎ Helpful Review?
George Slv 19th Nov 2015		Cinema Wolfman (1979) (1979)	Rated 6/10 Americans get very ornery. The reviews are wrong. Talk about hyperbole. It's not a top notch production but for its level it is a satisfactory tale. It was immensely popular in its time, which says more than a bunch of crabapple amateur critics. There haven't been any good serious werewolf movies since Hammer's 1961. This one is a good interesting effort, a satisfying story. (Oh hi Twistin. But your other comments have been good.) I rate it one more than 5, because it turns out interesting. 1 person found this review helpful. ✔︎ Helpful Review?
George Slv 18th Nov 2015		Cinema Surf Party (1964) (1964)	Jackie DeShannon sings Glory Wave at 54 minutes. [YouTube Video] YT from GSMusicMoments
George Slv 18th Nov 2015		Cinema C'mon, Let's Live A Little (1967) (1967)	Another teenage movie starring rock and roll singers of the day. I've just discovered that Jackie DeShannon was in two such movies in the 60s. VERY IMPORTANT information. This one is hard to find because it's considered a bomb.
George Slv 2nd Nov 2015		Cinema The Turn Of The Screw (1992) (1992) (1992)	Review I would say this is the favorite filming of this supernatural story that I've seen. The drama and horror suspense are good, and so is the photography and production. It's the famous American novella of Henry James filmed many times, including as The Haunting of Helen Walker, and as an excellent episode of TV's Nightmare Classics. The new governess for two young children finds that there are evil spirits influencing this country manor [old dark house]. That most famous 1961 version titled The Innocents with Deborah Kerr gets a zero from me, based on the effect and atmosphere. There's one problem to get past in this 1992 film. Kensit's initial job interview is filmed in such an oddball manner, that on TV I turned it off without continuing, not knowing what I missed. The story is told in flashback fashion with Marianne Faithful recounting it, and we realize later what her role had been. So it's one of those most excellent intense British productions. 3 people found this review helpful. ✔︎ Helpful Review?
George Slv 29th Oct 2015		Cinema The Four Horsemen Of The Apocalypse (1962)	Rated 1/10 A film about nothing. I saw it in 1962 and left not knowing what it was about. Look at what the title promised, with a poster showing four ominous horsemen flying thru the sky. But MGM had decided not to make a film about war or against war. What was left was a meaningless bunch of personal situations of family members while the World War 2 events were progressing. So MGM must have been content just to show some background Nazi history one one more more time. After Louis Mayer was forced to leave (for being anti-communist?) the studio went to the dogs. This is at the very bottom of the barrel of movie history. 1 person found this review helpful. ✔︎ Helpful Review?
George Slv 27th Oct 2015		Cinema Dr. Morelle: The Case Of The Missing Heiress (1949) (1949)	This is currently available at the Internet Archive or Youtube. One of Hammer's more successful early spooky thrillers.
George Slv 19th Oct 2015		Cinema Cleopatra (1963)	Review I'd say the problem with this movie was that it was written for the Shakespearean crowd. Wow, what a bunch of long serious dialog drama. The film turned out 6 hours, and they cut it down to four. That created holes in the screenplay. Then there was the hole created when America cut out the scene of Cleo in the lounge room because her fabric was too filmy. That's where Burton goes in and discusses the attack on Alexandria and the burning of the library with her. Audiences missed that entire point. A 40 million cost. They put a brave face on it, saying that Liz's attraction made it profitable. Was that a false claim? It made $16 million box office (not sure if that's US or worldwide). Has it made it up since then? But Elizabeth Taylor's career and the fabric of western society would not be complete if she hadn't made this film. ✔︎ Helpful Review?
George Slv 16th Oct 2015		Cinema Heidi (1952)	This English version is now available at the Internet Archive.
George Slv 9th Oct 2015		Cinema Man Bait (The Last Page ) (1952) (1952)	Produced by Hammer Films in England for the American producers. That eyeful Diana Dors was here first "introduced" to US audiences.
George Slv 7th Oct 2015		Cinema Where Eagles Dare (1968) (1968)	Written by Alistair MacLean. Ingrid Pitt in an early role as Heidi - that's the busty wench in a maid uniform. Catching the attention of James Carreras of Hammer. Burton explaining the plot in the movie: 'it may seem complicated, but to the English mind very easy'. Is that true? But MacLean was Scottish. Excellent.
George Slv 4th Oct 2015		Cinema Heidi (1952)	Here is the Youtube film in Swiss German, from Kanal Deutscher Sprache. And the film in French, from Françoise Dorléac. There was an international version DVD from the Swiss Praesens company including English. I haven't found a way to get it so far. Let me know if there's a way to get it in Canada.
George Slv 2nd Oct 2015		Cinema The Uninvited (1944)	This is where I learned how useless Ray Milland was as an actor. A role where he's dealing with suspense and ghosts in a house, all he can do is reel off his lines glibly just to get them over with. He wrecked the movie. Later he "said he was a screen star for years before he understood enough about acting".
George Slv 30th Sep 2015		Cinema Jack The Ripper (1959) (1959)	Oh yeah. Well the movie frame says 1888. Jacques le Rippeure.
George Slv 30th Sep 2015		Cinema Mogambo (1953) (1953)	Another Hollywood BUST. Made to look like an African adventure, it turns out mostly soap opera with Ava Gardner and Grace Kelly. Some staged or stock scenes with wild beasts and wild natives. What was Hollywood doing?
George Slv 30th Sep 2015		Cinema The Naked Jungle (1954) (1954)	What a mixed bag this film was. Great promise as a jungle adventure, but greatly diluted by the inclusion of the soap opera subplot with Eleanor Parker. They had to fill the time I guess, and maybe appeal to females. By the time it gets to the army ants it's exciting, especially for a young kid.
George Slv 30th Sep 2015		Cinema Soldier Of Fortune (1955)	A movie that promised much from the title and theme, but turned into somewhat of a flop adventure-wise. Inspired by the TV series of the day titled Soldiers Of Fortune.
George Slv 30th Sep 2015		Cinema Heidi (1965)	The entire movie was at Youtube. In the few minutes that I was entering this, the user actually removed it. Anyway great scenery, music, actors.
George Slv 28th Sep 2015		Cinema Jack The Ripper (1959) (1959)	Review A fictional account based on the true story of the London Jack The Ripper of 1888, who brutally killed several prostitutes in the Whitechapel district. Story written by Peter Hammond and Colin Craig. A well-done film in black and white, the writing, acting and photography are all good, creating an atmospheric foggy London mystery. No one knows for sure who the real Ripper was, but this story identifies him in the end, fictionally. He gets his just deserts, and the US release even added red color to one shot that showed his blood. Lee Patterson as Sam Lowry is the American detective who helps on the case. Eddie Byrne as Inspector O'Neill is in charge from Scotland Yard. This actor is apparently Jewish, has a rough and unserious manner, and does not add positively to the atmosphere of the film. Robert S. Baker and Monty Berman produced a series of good films at the time including Blood Of The Vampire and The Flesh And The Fiends. Then they moved on to television series production such as The Saint with Roger Moore. 3 people found this review helpful. ✔︎ Helpful Review?

Page 4 of 5 : Previous : Next :