For a film that is riddled with cinematic cliches, CRAZY HEART is nevertheless a thoroughly enjoyable watch. One reason for that is Jeff Bridges, an actor so talented and so likable that it's always a pleasure to watch him do anything. His sensitive portrayal of Otis "Bad" Blake, a once successful country singer who is in the midst of a professional and personal decline, is believable and heartbreaking. Although the Blake character is one we've all seen before, Bridges wisely underplays the role and makes it seem totally original. The other reason for enjoying the film is the music. The soundtrack is filled with good, solid country music, some of it performed by Bridges and his co-stars Colin Farrell and Robert Duvall. Farrell plays Tommy Sweet, who was once Blake's singing partner and still considers the older man to be his mentor. Duvall plays an old friend of Blake's who helps him to get sober and turn his life around.
Duvall, of course, is famous for his portrayal of another alcoholic country singer who tries to turn his life around: Mac Sledge in TENDER MERCIES (1983), a classic film that is completely devoid of cliches. Duvall is also one of the producers of CRAZY HEART, along with first time director Scott Cooper and singer/songwriter T Bone Burnett, who composed some of the music for the film.
Much of the film rings true in spite of the deja vu factor. What doesn't ring true is the romance between the 57 year-old Blake and the much younger divorced mom, Jean Craddock, played by Maggie Gyllenhaal. The actress does her best with what the script gives her. But it makes little sense that a young woman who has been burned once by a bad marriage would drift into a relationship with an alcoholic who is old enough to be her father and allow him to become an influence on her four year-old son. Is it just celebrity worship? The attraction-to-bad-boys syndrome? Or is Jean every bit as self-destructive as Blake, albeit in a different way? The movie doesn't tell us. And, honestly, who cares?
So, in keeping with the genre of fallen musicians climbing their way back to redemption, Blake hits rock bottom, sobers up and gets a new lease on life. And we have the happy ending we needed, if not exactly the one we were hoping for. The most interesting thing about the film is what they decided to cut out, as we can see in the extra features included on the Blu-ray. There is a long sequence where Blake goes to meet the 28 year-old son he hasn't seen or spoken to in 24 years. The son is played by Brian Gleason. The encounter between the two men is performed brilliantly and is filled with tension and emotional energy. Not a cliche in sight. Another deleted scene shows Blake relapsing from his sobriety, picking up a woman in a bar, and ending up stranded in the middle of nowhere. Also expertly played and believable. I think they should have left these scenes in and cut out some of the exchanges between Blake and Jean.
Jeff Bridges won an Oscar for his performance in the film. I suspect the award was given for his long career and commendable body of work as much as for this particular role. Whatever the case, the award was much deserved.
Three years before he starred in the iconic EASY RIDER (1969) Peter Fonda first tried his luck on a motorcycle in this innovative exploitation flick that was produced and directed by Roger Corman for American-International Pictures. With this film, Fonda abandoned his clean cut screen image (1963's TAMMY AND THE DOCTOR) and made the big plunge into the Counterculture.
The real-life motorcycle gang, The Hell's Angels, lend their name to the fictional gang in the film. Fonda plays the gang leader, who is stuck with the unlikely name Heavenly Blues. (??) Along with his girlfriend, Mike (Nancy Sinatra), his best friend, Loser (Bruce Dern), and his girl, Gaysh (Diane Ladd, Dern's wife at the time), and some of the real-life Angels, they ride, fight, party, make out, etc., all to a soundtrack of innocuous rock music, similar to the music heard in other "hip" movies of the period.
The plot has the gang setting out to retrieve a bike that was stolen from Loser. A brawl ensues. The cops show up. The gang flees, but Loser gets left behind. He steals a police motorcycle and is shot in the back during a getaway chase. His injuries are serious and he undergoes surgery. The gang springs him from the hospital and he dies soon afterward. They take Loser's body to his home town in the California mountains. The funeral in a small church turns into a drunken, violent orgy. When the gang tries to bury Loser's body in the local cemetery, some townspeople confront them. A brawl ensues. The cops show up. Everyone flees, except for Heavenly Blues, who laments to Mike: "There's nowhere to go."
This unsavory little photoplay was the beginning of a long string of similar biker flicks to follow, some of them released by AIP. Roger Corman may have considered this film to be a kind of sequel or homage to the 1953 Marlon Brando classic THE WILD ONE. Or maybe he didn't. In either case, the two films have little in common, other than the central theme of a motorcycle gang. There are some good moments in THE WILD ANGELS, most of them involving Bruce Dern's excellent performance in a relatively small role. But the overall feeling is one of cheap sensationalism and an attempt to preach to the audience about the yearnings of young people caught up in the 60's culture. During the climactic funeral sequence, Heavenly Blues gets to passionately speak lines such as: "We want to ride our machines without getting hassled by The Man!" And: "We want to get loaded!!" Peter Fonda must have learned something valuable from this experience. In EASY RIDER, his character, Wyatt, is tight-lipped and doesn't say much of anything during the entire movie.
For American-International, THE WILD ANGELS marked the beginning of their next phase of film production. Having successfully made and marketed horror movies and beach party movies, they were ready to move into more adult content. In the next few years, the biker flicks would be released, along with other countercultural films such as THE TRIP, PSYCH OUT, and MARYJANE. Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello would step aside to make room for Jack Nicholson and Susan Strasberg.
Also featured in the cast are Buck Taylor, Gayle Hunnicutt, Joan Shawlee, Michael J. Pollard, Frank Maxwell, and a brief appearance by Corman regular Dick Miller, always a welcome presence in any movie.
A delightful combination of comedy, music and mystery, LADY ON A TRAIN was created primarily as a vehicle for Deanna Durbin, Universal Pictures' number one box office star from 1936 until her retirement in 1948. From her beginnings as a teenage operatic prodigy, Miss Durbin had matured into a beautiful and talented young woman in possession of more warmth and charisma than most female stars of her era. This is one of her best films. Directed by Charles David, who would later become Miss Durbin's husband, the film also stars David Bruce, Ralph Bellamy, Edward Everett Horton, Dan Duryea, Elizabeth Patterson, Patricia Morison, George Coulouris and Allen Jenkins. Based on an unpublished story by Leslie Charteris.
LADY ON A TRAIN is included in the book Film Noir: An Encyclopedic Reference To The American Style, edited by Alain Silver and Elizabeth Ward. It may be considered an odd choice for such a classification, given the overall lighthearted nature of the movie. However, there are many moments of Noir sensibility throughout the film, thanks in part to the striking cinematography of Woody Bredell, who shot the low budget classic PHANTOM LADY at Universal in 1944.
Nikki Collins (Durbin) is on a train pulling into Grand Central Station when she witnesses a man being murdered in a nearby office building. But she doesn't see the face of the killer. When she is unable to get the police to believe her, she enlists the help of mystery writer Wayne Morgan (Bruce). Nikki learns that the murder victim was a man named Waring, a shipping magnate. She goes to his mansion and meets his rather bizarre family, headed by crusty old Aunt Charlotte (Patterson). She also meets Waring's nephews, Jonathan (Bellamy) and Arnold (Duryea). The plot from there is a combination of mistaken identity, broad physical comedy, and three musical numbers performed by Miss Durbin, one of which is a stunning rendition of Cole Porter's Night and Day.
It shouldn't be surprising that the same studio that had produced so many marvelous, atmospheric horror films would be able to add convincingly dark sequences even into their best comedies. And that is the case with LADY ON A TRAIN, mainly at the beginning and toward the end of the film. The scene where Nikki looks out of her window and witnesses the murder, which occurs right after the opening credits, could easily have been the beginning of a serious Noir crime thriller. The fact that Nikki was reading a pulp crime novel, and her overstated reaction to the murder, add a comic veneer to the scene.
At the film's climax, however, when Nikki learns the identity of the murderer, the atmosphere turns exceedingly dark and serious. Trapped in the exact location of the murder, Nikki is confronted by both of the Waring brothers, played convincingly by Ralph Bellamy and Film Noir regular Dan Duryea. Which one is the killer? The revelation is expertly played out in the darkness of the deserted building. There is one memorable shot of Miss Durbin's face as a ghostly reflection in a glass door as she gazes in terror at the killer. And there is also a nice bit of psychological weirdness thrown in as the killer, addressing Nikki, alludes to a twisted, incestuous relationship between old Aunt Charlotte and himself that began in his childhood. Some pretty heavy stuff for a 1940's comedy with music!
A thoroughly engaging film on so many levels, LADY ON A TRAIN is highly recommended. And I dare you not to fall madly in love with Deanna Durbin!
This 66 minute programmer from Mascot Pictures follows the pattern of many similar "old dark house" mystery-comedies. Wealthy old guy Jasper White (Charlie Grapewin), who has one foot in the grave, gathers together a small group of family members and other associates, including the family housekeeper, to announce his plans to give each of them one million dollars. That is, of course, unless he is able to find his long lost granddaughter, Doris Waverly, in which case all of the money will go to her. Well, lo and behold, guess who shows up at the front door? The long lost granddaughter (Evelyn Knapp). While everyone in the house is trying to process this alarming development, another woman (Mary Carlisle) appears, also claiming to be the granddaughter. Mayhem ensues.
Christy Cabanne directed this movie with all of the appropriate dark-and-stormy-night atmosphere and creepy old mansion sets. The black and white cinematography is very good, especially in the opening moments. Also featured are Lucien Littlefield, Regis Toomey, Wallace Ford, Arthur Hohl, Hedda Hopper, Clarence Wilson and Rafaele Ottiano.
SWAMP WOMAN (1941)
The woman inhabiting this particular swamp is burlesque queen Ann Corio, whose performance strongly suggests she would be better off concentrating on stripping in front of a live audience rather than emoting in front of a camera. The beautiful Miss Corio is joined in this cinematic swamp by perennial tough guy Jack La Rue, this time cast as a good guy and giving the best performance in this low budget programmer from PRC. Miss Corio plays, believe it or not, a burlesque queen who returns to her close knit backwoods community in the Deep South Swampland. While there, she gets involved with an escaped convict, an unsolved murder, and tries to entice her former boyfriend La Rue into some hot, swampy love. We get to see a few of her mildly suggestive dance moves as the film meanders to its eventual, and not terribly exciting, conclusion, whereupon life in the swamp is peaceful once again.
Sometimes we go to the movies and have a good time. And then sometimes we go to the movies and end up feeling like we've had our insides ripped out and stomped on by mutant gorillas. The latter description applies to my experience while watching Lynne Ramsay's YOU WERE NEVER REALLY HERE.
This dark, brooding, visceral film is like a fever dream with a linear story that weaves its way into your consciousness alongside relentlessly ugly, violent imagery. Joaquin Phoenix, in a powerful performance, plays a guy named Joe, a veteran with PTSD, who lives with and cares for his elderly mother. Joe is also a former FBI agent who works for a clandestine organization that rescues young girls who have been abducted into the world of sex trafficking. When he's called to do a job involving a politician who's trying to get his daughter back, Joe finds himself caught up in a conspiracy that threatens his life and the lives of those he cares about.
For those who have an aversion to violence and bloodletting, this film can be difficult to watch in some places. Be forewarned. However, the subject matter and the presence of Phoenix make it worthwhile. To be honest, the film could be much more violent than it is. But the director shoots many scenes in such a way that confrontations occur mostly off screen or are seen through a remote security camera. My sincere gratitude to Ms. Ramsay!
Trivial tidbit: Judith Roberts, the actress who plays Joe's mother, is the same woman who played the beautiful, mysterious prostitute living across the hall from Henry (Jack Nance) in David Lynch's ERASERHEAD (1977).
This fourth version of the venerable rags-to-riches-to-heartache-and-ending-in-outright-tragedy showbiz saga accomplishes what the title promises by successfully turning flamboyant entertainer Lady Gaga into a movie star. The fact that the whole force of the Hollywood glamour machine is deployed to deglamorize the outrageous Gaga image only adds to the fun of watching her and seeing what a good actress she is. As for Bradley Cooper, he's a major star already, and no glamour treatment is needed for him to deliver yet another heartfelt performance demonstrating his talent and versatility. He also makes a commendable debut as a director.
The first one-third of the film is pure magic as working class, aspiring singer Ally Campano and damaged rock star Jackson Maine meet, fall in love, and begin working together. The story seems to lose its way a little as Ally becomes famous overnight and soon begins to morph into something resembling a Jennifer Lopez blow-up fetish doll while Jackson declines almost too rapidly with each successive scene. But the film finds its way back toward the end and once again grabs the viewer's heart.
The music as performed by both of the stars is very impressive. The Oscar nominated song "Shallow" is a dramatic standout. Before I saw the movie, I watched Cooper and Gaga sing this song on the Oscar broadcast and I didn't find it to be at all moving or interesting. But when performed within the context of the story, it works beautifully.
Miss Gaga, having added the title of Screen Goddess to her list of professional conquests, will no doubt go on to make other movies. After all, once a star has been born she usually likes to keep her face in front of the cameras. But she may never be able to find a showcase role quite like this one.
The final shot of the film, a closeup of Ally's face, filled with emotion, connects this updated version of the story to its three predecessors. In the end, they're all about the same thing: a one man woman looking for the man that got away.
Forget CITIZEN KANE. This is the movie magic you're really hungering for.
Shot in only eight days for $70,000, this enduring epic tells the story of giant mutant leeches causing mayhem in the Florida Everglades when they get over aggressive and start dragging innocent people into their underwater cave in order to suck their blood. One of the hapless victims is sleazy tart Liz Walker (Yvette Vickers), who is cheating on her sleazy husband, Dave (Bruno VeSota) with one of his sleazy friends, Cal Moulton (Michael Emmett). Stalwart game warden Steve Benton (Ken Clark) is called upon to find a way to defeat the slimy leech critters so as to make the Everglades safe once again for all manner of sleazy activiy. The handsome Clark's primary acting duties consist of posing with his shirt off and being generally heroic. His girlfriend, Nan Grayson, is portrayed by Jan Shepherd. Her function is to nag Steve incessantly and pour coffee for various cast members.
The leeches are portrayed by humans in badly fitted rubber suits (Or are they just trash bags? Hard to tell.) with suction cups attached. Fortunately for the costume designers' reputations, the slimy looking monsters are only partially visible at any given time. The film was directed by Bernard L. Kowalski. Produced by Roger and Gene Corman. Screenplay by Leo Gordon.
Yvette Vickers had appeared in another science fiction classic the year before, ATTACK OF THE 50 FOOT WOMAN, in which she also played a sleazy tart. Miss Vickers was always better than the material she was usually given and deserved much more of a chance in films. She is the main reason this low budget gem is remembered.
This interesting entry into the vampire genre used to show up on television quite frequently during the 1960's and 1970's and was always great fun to watch. In spite of its low budget and brief running time (77 minutes) it takes the subject matter very seriously and has many effective sequences.
The story, set in 1958, has Count Dracula emigrating from Eastern Europe to the United States in search of fresh blood. He does away with, and assumes the identity of, a fellow countryman named Belak who was coming to California to live with relatives. He moves in with Belak's cousin, a widow with a young son and a teenage daughter, Rachel. Dracula somehow manages to hide his coffin in a nearby cave and gets busy sampling the local feminine blood supply, while casting a cold, hungry eye on the nubile Rachel.
Dracula is portrayed by Francis Lederer, a Czech actor with a long film career going all the way back to the silent era. One of his notable roles was opposite Louise Brooks in the 1929 German classic PANDORA'S BOX. Lederer's dark features, expressive eyes and thick accent give him a commanding Lugosi-esque presence that makes his interpretation of the Count very impressive and mysterious. He wisely underplays the role, forgoing dramatic gestures and relying on a steady gaze and a quiet, controlled voice inflection.
The cinematography is in black & white. But there is a brief, rather shocking, moment in color when a vampire girl in a white shroud (Don't they always wear white shrouds?) geta a stake driven into her heart with blood spurting all over the place. The film is lacking in special photographic effects, but it does make good use of mist whenever Dracula makes a nocturnal entrance.
Rachel is played by a young, beautiful actress named Norma Eberhardt, who only made a handful of film and television appearances (notably LIVE FAST, DIE YOUNG, also in 1958) before leaving show business. A real shame, too, as she was talented and distinctive. Also featuring Ray Striklyn, Virginia Vincent and Jimmie Baird. Directed by Paul Landers.
Add this one to your list of Halloween cinematic treats.
If you're in a good mood when you decide to pop PLAY IT AS IT LAYS into the old DVD player and give it a watch, then prepare to be depressed when it's over. If you happen to be depressed to begin with, then get ready to go right over the edge into the pit of existential despair. Directed by Frank Perry, this is one of those early 1970's films that glory in showing us the emptiness and pointlessness of American life. And this particular story takes place in Hollywood/Los Angeles, which means emptiness is enthroned as a form of art. As if all of this weren't downbeat enough, the second most important location is Las Vegas. Need another Zoloft yet?
Tuesday Weld stars as Maria Wyeth, a B-Movie actress whose life has taken a dark turn. Her marriage to self-absorbed director Carter Lang (Adam Roarke) is crumbling. Their young daughter is mentally disturbed and institutionalized. Maria becomes pregnant from an adulterous affair, has an abortion, and gets a divorce. As her life spins out of control in a series of one night stands and increasingly erratic behavior, her only mainstay is her unhappy gay friend BZ Mendenhall (Anthony Perkins). BZ finally decides to kill himself and invites Maria to join him. She refuses, but does nothing to stop her friend from carrying out his suicide. After BZ's death, Maria is confined to a mental hospital.
The screenplay by Joan Didion and John Gregory Dunne is based on Didion's novel of the same name. While the film is largely an endless talk fest populated by cliched, one dimensional characters, it does have many effective moments. Perry's directing style consists of jump cuts and very brief scenes that seem to reflect the disjointed mindsets of the characters, especially Maria. The film opens with Maria telling her story as she walks the grounds of the hospital. Everything we see depicted in the film is her point of view, the story as she remembers it. While the story is indeed dark, the relentless California sunshine provides a bizarre visual contrast, Maria spends much of her time driving her gorgeous yellow Corvette. The film is devoid of music, except for what we hear occasionally on her car radio.
Anthony Perkins is excellent as the tragic BZ. He and Miss Weld had worked together two years previously in a low budget gem entitled PRETTY POISON and the two have marvelous chemistry between them. Also featured are Tammy Grimes, Ruth Ford, Eddie Firestone and Diana Ewing. Tyne Daly has a few lines as a journalist. And handsome, tough guy actor Tony Young appears as handsome, tough guy actor Johnny Waters, who has a fling with Maria.
The primary reason to appreciate this movie is its beautiful star. For those of us who revere Tuesday Weld not only as the most enigmatic of screen goddesses, but also a truly gifted actress, PLAY IT AS IT LAYS is almost the ultimate Weld experience. She is in practically every scene, with one lovely close-up after another allowing us to gaze at her expressive face. She gives a very good performance as the troubled movie star. It's tempting to believe that Miss Weld is acting out scenes from her own life. After all, she was pushed into a modelling career by her mother at the age of three and had a nervous breakdown when she was nine. She started in films when she was barely in her teens and lived a somewhat troubled life. And yet, she survived. My DVD edition of PLAY IT AS IT LAYS includes an interview Miss Weld did on The Dick Cavett Show in 1971. She speaks with honesty about her early life and the difficulties she experienced. She also exudes the same warmth and sincerity that she brought to so many of her performances. Tuesday Weld hasn't made a film since the early 2000's. I hope she has found peace in her life. And I hope she knows how many of us still love her.
This admittedly energetic adaptation of the now all too familiar Dracula story is filled with both artistic flourish and a bounty of blood. It also contains the obligatory amounts of sex and violence necessary to get a modern horror film released in the first place. Added to these attributes are lots of color, atmosphere, and the expected use of Christian symbolism (both Catholic and Orthodox) dramatically displayed as mere fetish objects to a contemporary audience that no longer believes in such things unless they appear in horror films.
What it lacks, besides Bela Lugosi or Christopher Lee, is any real sense of Gothic mystery. But then, it's difficult to establish mystery when everything that should be seen in the dark is instead shown in blazing light and shoved right into the viewer's face. And, really, Gothic mystery is superfluous in a slasher flick, which is essentially what Francis Ford Coppola has made here.
Gary Oldman works hard in another presto change-o type of performance that has finally won him an Oscar for THE DARKEST HOUR. I would imagine the bulk of the movie's budget was used for his various costumes, wigs and facial makeup. Winona Ryder has feverishly entered the scream queen zone and manages to emote with great effort. Keanu Reeves, attempting to speak BBC British, appears to be auditioning for a dinner theater production of Shakespeare, while Anthony Hopkins provides some much needed cynical flair as Van Helsing, vampire hunter. The acting honors, in my opinion, belong to Tom Waits as Renfield. Waits finally has a chance to play full tilt crazy, and he runs with it.
For some reason I was unable to take any of this seriously and found myself wondering what Roger Corman or Mario Bava might have done with this project.
The late Debbie Reynolds had three signature film roles in her long show business career. First, there was aspiring singer Kathy Selden in SINGIN' IN THE RAIN (1952), arguably the best movie musical ever made and the movie that made her a star. Second, there was TAMMY AND THE BACHELOR (1957), in which she played the lovable backwoods child/woman Tammy Tyree, a role that seemed to solidify the innocent girl-next-door (or in this case girl-in-the-houseboat-next-door) image in which she was increasingly classified. And finally, there was her Oscar nominated portrayal of THE UNSINKABLE MOLLY BROWN (1964), which could have been retitled TAMMY ON STEROIDS. In this film, Reynolds' screen persona reached its zenith, as she seemed to explode with almost too much energy, revealing the core of steel that had always existed underneath that diminutive, cheerful facade.
But Reynolds also had two other very important signature roles in her public/private life. There was the scandal in 1958-59 when her husband, Eddie Fisher, abandoned Reynolds and their two small children and ran off with Elizabeth Taylor, whom he would eventually marry. In this role that she was forced to play in front of the entire world, Reynolds was forever cast as the victimized wife and mother, cruelly thrown aside by a no-good, unfaithful husband who took up with the most desirable wicked woman who had ever broken up a marriage. Decades after this scandal had passed into history, Reynolds would never do an interview in which she wasn't asked to comment about this sad part of her life. Wisely, she addressed it with frankness, humor, and forgiveness (at least toward Miss Taylor), an approach that added to the public support she had always been given. She also addressed the scandal humorously in her subsequent live performances.
Her other public/private role was as mother of the insanely famous Carrie Fisher, whose star persona had managed to eclipse Reynolds' own fame. This role was particularly difficult, as the mother-daughter relationship wasn't always a happy one. However, as the two women matured, they grew very close and appeared to be comfortable sharing endless personal details with their respective fan bases. When Fisher died unexpectedly, followed by Reynolds' own shocking death the next day, it almost seemed as if a fascinating Hollywood studio biopic had come to a tragic end.
Therefore, it becomes impossible to watch a bit of 1950's fantasy fluff, which TAMMY AND THE BACHELOR most definitely is, without thinking about the spectacle of Debbie Reynolds' entire life. I watched this film for the first time fairly recently, and I couldn't look at this image of innocence without realizing what the real life actress was going to experience in a very short time. And without remembering how her long, complicated life would reach its conclusion. In a way, it made the film more interesting that it might have been otherwise. TAMMY is one of those movies that suffers from almost terminal sweetness, and most of the enjoyment is due to Reynolds herself. She is able to breathe life into Tammy Tyree by underplaying a role which could have been unbearable if played by a less talented actress. And we get to hear her sing the hit song "Tammy", which is a delight. One can't help loving Tammy Tyree, but one loves Debbie Reynolds much more.
The rest of the cast includes the always enjoyable Walter Brennan, the lovely Fay Wray, Mildred Natwick, Sydney Blackmer, Louise Beavers, and Mala Powers. The bachelor of the title is played by a young Leslie Nielsen, long before he turned into one of the most popular comic actors in film history. He plays a military pilot who crash lands in a swamp and gets rescued by Tammy and her grandfather. Since Nielsen had played a space captain the previous year in FORBIDDEN PLANET, it's fun to speculate that he had somehow been ejected form his space ship for unexplained reasons and landed in the swamp at Universal Studios.
The film was directed by Joseph Pevney. Two sequels were made: TAMMY TELL ME TRUE (1961) and TAMMY AND THE DOCTOR (1963), with Sandra Dee in the title role.
Any movie that ends with Film Noir icon Joan Bennett standing waist deep in the Salton Sea with her feet stuck in quicksand is, in my opinion, a true classic. By the time Miss Bennett found herself in this precarious situation, she was years away from the critically acclaimed films she made with Fritz Lang ( SCARLET STREET, THE WOMAN IN THE WINDOW). A quickly made (in ten days), low budget crime drama may be considered a comedown for an actress of her stature. Nevertheless, she gives a strong performance, as does her co-star, Richard Conte, another veteran of the Film Noir universe (CALL NORTHSIDE 777, HOUSE OF STRANGERS).
The screenplay was based on a story by Roger Corman (his debut as a writer for the screen) entitled The House In The Sea. Conte plays ex-Marine Jim Henry who is in Las Vegas to visit an old friend. While having a drink in a casino, he has an altercation with an intoxicated model (Mary Beth Hughes in a very good performance). The following day she is found murdered and Jim is arrested. He manages to escape from the police and steal their car. Heading for California, he abandons the car and hitches a ride with a photographer (Bennett) and her model (Wanda Hendrix). The story follows their exploits on the road as the two women find out Jim is a fugitive and try to get away from him. While the young model becomes attracted to Jim, we find out that the photographer is hiding a desperate secret.
There may be more than a few holes in the plot, but they don't take away from the fun of watching this fast paced programmer. Much of the film was shot on location in the Coachella Valley of California and we get to see some familiar character actors along the way. Iris Adrian, the undisputed Queen of the Cinematic Wisecracking Dames, shows up as a waitress in a roadside diner. And stalwart Reed Hadley of TV's RACKET SQUAD is the police detective determined to bring Jim to justice.
HIGHWAY DRAGNET was directed by Nathan Juran, a former art director who won an Oscar for HOW GREEN WAS MY VALLEY. When he switched to directing, he brought some classic science fiction to the screen: THE DEADLY MANTIS, THE BRAIN FROM PLANET AROUS, ATTACK OF THE 50 FOOT WOMAN. Now there is a legacy any director can be proud of.
Richard Conte is a fine actor, and always at his most sympathetic when playing men who are fighting against the system to prove their innocence, as he did in CALL NORTHSIDE 777. The only flaw in the film is the budding relationship between Jim and the model. Conte and Hendrix are let down by the script in this regard and are unable to achieve any believable chemistry between them. Fortunately, that is of no importance. What matters is Joan Bennett standing waist deep in the Salton Sea with her feet stuck in quicksand. This image alone makes watching HIGHWAY DRAGNET worthwhile.
Imagine for a moment that you are a movie fan in the year 1944. Now imagine that you've just heard of a new film from Universal Pictures called CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY starring Deanna Durbin, one of the most popular musical personalities of the day, and Gene Kelly, the dancing sensation of FOR ME AND MY GAL (1942) and COVER GIRL (1944). Because of the title and the two stars, the average movie goer would most likely be expecting a pleasant, sentimental musical. The very last thing that same movie goer might be expecting is a moody, downbeat Film Noir about obsessive relationships and murder.
Of course, movie fans might get a clue that this isn't your standard musical when they learn that the story is based on a novel by W. Somerset Maugham, and that the director is Robert Siodmak, the German Expressionist who had also directed SON OF DRACULA (1943) and PHANTOM LADY (1944) at Universal. What's more, the film was released during the summer, not at Christmas time.
Deanna Durbin was Universal's top box office star at the time. The operatic prodigy had signed with MGM in 1935 for a specific film that ended up not being made. The studio, not knowing what else to do with a fourteen year old girl who sang like an adult diva, cast her in a short subject called EVERY SUNDAY. Her co-star in this little epic was Judy Garland, another child prodigy with a big, adult singing voice. EVERY SUNDAY showcased the two youngsters beautifully, with Durbin singing opera and thirteen year old Garland singing swing. For some reason, MGM decided to drop Durbin and keep Garland, an action that some credit to a misunderstood directive from studio mogul Louis B. Mayer. Durbin was immediately signed by Universal and became an overnight star in a picture called THREE SMART GIRLS (1936). A series of similar pictures continued to showcase that extraordinary voice as well as Durbin's warmth and sincerity as she grew from a fetching teenager into a lovely young woman. But by the mid-1940's, the star was eager to do a different kind of role other than "Little Miss Fix-it who bursts into song", as she herself would describe her screen persona. So Universal gave their musical darling her big chance at drama with CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY, and, while she has real talent as an actress, the results are mixed.
The novel by Maugham had been substantially reworked by screen writer Herman J. Mankiewicz. The story begins with Lt. Charles Mason (Dean Harens) on his way to San Francisco for Christmas leave when his plane is forced to land in New Orleans. He is invited to visit a night club/brothel where he meets singer and "hostess" Jackie Lamont. She asks him to take her to a Christmas Eve Midnight Mass. While there, Jackie is overcome with emotion and falls to her knees, weeping. After the Mass, the two go to a coffee shop where Jackie begins telling Lt. Mason her story. Her real name is Abigail Manette. Her husband, Robert (Gene Kelly), is in prison for killing a bookie. She tells Mason how she and her husband met, got married, and lived with his mother (Gale Sondergaard), and how her marriage began to fall apart when Robert refused to give up his gambling habit. When he was convicted of murder and sent to prison for life, his mother blamed Abigail. Alone and filled with grief and despair, Abigail went to work at the brothel. Robert breaks out of prison and intends to kill his wife for what he calls her "unfaithfulness". Abigail tells Robert she went to work at the brothel so that she, too, would be in a kind of prison. The police shoot and kill Robert, and Abigail is finally free from her past.
Since this was 1944 and the Motion Picture Code was in full force, the place where Jackie/Abigail works is simply called a night club and the women are called hostesses. This little trick of terminology had been used in other films, notably the 1937 Bette Davis classic MARKED WOMAN at Warner Brothers. Since Jackie is a singer, it isn't clear what the rest of her job description might include. The owner of the club, Valerie de Merode (Gladys George), acts more like a den mother than a madam. But the film's introduction to the night club leaves little ambiguity as to what kind of "club" it is, with women sitting around tables being approached by men, women seen going upstairs, and the overall sleazy atmosphere. Durbin's fans were shocked to see her in a movie like this. Surprisingly, it was a financial success. But Miss Durbin would never get a chance like this again.
There are many good things going on in this film. The black and white cinematography by Woody Bredell is sensational. Bredell had shot some of Universal's best films, such as GHOST OF FRANKENSTEIN (1942) and the aforementioned PHANTOM LADY. He also worked with Deanna Durbin several times. Bredell imbues the film with a strong Noir sensibility. When we first enter the club, it is shrouded in a moody darkness that contrasts with the opening scenes of the film that are lit in a normal, innocuous manner. Our entrance into the nightclub signifies our emergence into a Noir universe. The camera prowls through the darkness until we reach a table where several women are seated. One of the women, who has her back to us, gets up and walks to the stage. She turns around to face the microphone, and only then do we realize that the women is Deanna Durbin. A very interesting way for a film to introduce such a major star.
The film's climactic ending also takes place at the club. After Robert is shot, the focus is completely on Abigail.As she looks up at the stars, the lovely, tear-stained face of Miss Durbin is bathed in an increasing amount of celestial light, showing us that Abigail's dark obsession, i.e., her love for her no good husband, has ended. As she gazes heavenward, there are two shots of the night sky, with the clouds parting so the light from the stars can shine through. I assume these were stock shots that Universal kept available for other movies. I couldn't help wondering if these shots had been used for The Wolf Man series, with Lon Chaney, Jr., and not Deanna Durbin, looking up to see if the moon was full. In any other Durbin movie, one would have expected her to start singing. In this movie, I half expected her to turn into a werewolf. She does neither.
Miss Durbin does sing in CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY, however. When she is first introduced in the club scene, she sings a song called "Spring Will Be A Little Late This Year". She also sings the Irving Berlin tune "Always", first in a situational setting at the Manette home, and later at the club.
The problems with the film are not the fault of the actors. Everyone does a good job with their roles. Gene Kelly is completely believable as the weak, flawed, but handsome and seductive husband. There was always a slightly roguish edge to the characters Kelly played in his film career, and he is perfectly cast here. Gale Sondergaard is sublimely over dramatic as Robert's possessive mother. In fact, when her character is introduced, we suddenly enter into a different movie. Robert brings Abigail home to meet Mother and we soon learn that the handsome, cheerful man Abigail has fallen for is actually a very messed up individual. Mother Manette uses a cryptic tone while telling Abigail about "certain traits" Robert has, and her hope that together she and Abigail can "save" him.
And therein lies the biggest problem with the film. Robert Manette is really the central character, since his misdeeds, and everyone's reactions to them, are the source of all the drama. But the heart of the character, as written into the novel, has been cut out. I haven't read the novel, but my understanding is that Robert had homosexual tendencies, as well as an obsessive, almost incestuous connection with his mother. Since neither of these ideas could be explored in the cinema of the time, the script reduced his "certain traits" to a weakness for gambling and violence. That particular weakness could certainly be used to generate drama and tragedy in a Film Noir. But a propensity toward gambling doesn't seem to warrant the overwrought emotion of the mother or the moral descent of the wife.
Something else happens after Mother Manette is introduced. Abigail, having been accepted by Robert's mother as the daughter-in-law who will join her in "saving" her wayward son, is immediately recast as Robert's second mother.From this point on, Durbin is almost as matronly as Sondergaard. It's easy to understand Robert's growing frustration. In one amazing scene at the Manette home, when everything is still going alright with the marriage, we see a perfect display of domestic bliss. Robert is at the piano and Abigail is standing behind him singing "Always". She folds her arms around his neck. From the angle of Robert's head and the look on his face, she seems to be strangling him. Mother Manette, sitting close by, knits furiously as she looks on with approval. Poor Robert doesn't stand a chance.
There are other problems with the character of Abigail. And I don't necessarily blame Miss Durbin. Some of Abigail's dialogue simply doesn't come off as believable. In her early scenes, Durbin is convincing and terribly moving. But when she begins to tell her story, leading into the classic Noir flashback segment, her lines seem contrived and unnatural. As for directorial mishaps, there is a later scene that, I feel, plays quite badly. When Robert's trial has ended with him being found guilty, Abigail and his mother leave the courtroom together. For some strange reason they look like two soldiers marching swiftly in perfect cadence. Then, suddenly, Mother Manette stops, whips Abigail around, and slaps her hard across the face, proclaiming: "You killed him!!", and walking away. I can't help thinking this scene should have either been redone or left on the cutting room floor. To be fair, though, this awkward scene does help to prove what a delusional monster Mother Manette really is.
Contributing to the look of the film is the use of locations. The authentic footage of the beautiful Latin Mass is followed later on by a classical music concert in a large hall. The sets designed to look like old New Orleans, especially the decaying elegance of the Manette home, are done very well.
CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY is definitely worth seeing. As a serious drama filmed in the Noir style, it has much to offer in the way of atmosphere and cinematography. Film buffs interested in the work of Robert Siodmak will certainly appreciate it. As for Deanna Durbin, she went right back to musicals after this movie. In 1945 she would star in the marvelous LADY ON A TRAIN, a perfect mixture of music, comedy, and mystery that showcased the very best of her talents.
Between December 1958 and January 1959 a disturbed nineteen-year-old kid named Charles "Charlie" Starkweather murdered eleven people in Nebraska and Wyoming. He was accompanied on this cross country killing spree by his fourteen-year-old girlfriend Caril Ann Fugate. After the two were apprehended, Charlie was sentenced to death and executed seventeen months after the events. Fugate was sent to prison and was released on parole in 1976.
This sad chapter in American history rivals the exploits of such notorious criminals as Charles Manson and the legendary team of Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow. It is also the basis for several film adaptations. The best known of these are Terrence Malick's BADLANDS (1973) and Oliver Stone's NATURAL BORN KILLERS (1994). Other film adaptations were KALIFORNIA (1993) and STARKWEATHER (2004). The first film adaptation, however, was released just four years after the killing spree occurred. THE SADIST is a low budget exploitational feature made for the drive-in and grindhouse trade and isn't as well known as the highly regarded art house film BADLANDS and the popular bloodbath known as NATURAL BORN KILLERS. It was made by Fairway International Pictures, the company operated by former actor and stuntman Arch Hall, Sr. The enterprising Hall had formed the company in 1961 and had produced a few low budget films starring his teenage son, Arch, Jr., titles such as THE CHOPPERS (1961), WILD GUITAR (1962) and his biggest money maker EEGAH (1963).
Among most knowledgeable cinephiles, especially those interested in low budget films, THE SADIST is considered to be a true gem, a classic. I can't remember when I first heard of it. If it played in any of the local (Danville, Illinois) theaters in 1963, my twelve-year-old self was completely unaware of it. I must have read about the film in genre magazines and books sometime during the late 1970's and early 1980's, as well as in the Sinister Cinema catalog, one of my first sources for obscure movies available on VHS. Like many other films designated as "cult films" by people who at least claimed to know what they were talking about, I knew about THE SADIST years before I actually saw it. I love the film and encourage people to check it out. I find it amazing what the producers were able to accomplish with such a low budget and a troupe of mostly untrained actors.
The screenplay was written by James Landis, who also directed the film. The story takes place in California rather than Nebraska and Wyoming. Three school teachers, Ed Stiles (Richard Alden), Doris Page (Helen Hovey) and Carl Oliver (Don Russell) are driving from Lancaster to Los Angeles to attend a Dodgers game. When they experience car trouble out in the middle of nowhere, they pull into a garage/salvage yard that appears to be deserted. The house on the property is unlocked and there is a half eaten Sunday dinner on the dining room table. Unable to locate anyone, Ed determines that his car needs a new fuel pump and finds one in another car in the salvage yard. He begins to remove it while the other two teachers look around for the people who live in the house and operate the garage. Suddenly, they are confronted by Charlie Tibbs (Arch Hall, Jr.) a twenty-year-old man holding a gun, and his eighteen-year-old girlfriend, Judy Bradshaw (Marilyn Manning). The two are responsible for a string of random killings along the highway. Charlie orders Ed to complete the repairs on the car so that he and Judy can get back on the road and run from the police who are on their trail. Charlie threatens to kill all three of the teachers if Ed doesn't comply. While Ed tries to finish the work, Charlie taunts and brutalizes Doris and Carl. He says both he and Judy hate teachers because of how they were treated in school. Charlie hits Carl twice with his gun, causing a serious injury. He knocks Doris to the ground and grinds her face in the dirt, also tearing her dress and touching her inappropriately. Soon after, he shoots Carl at close range and kills him. Ed and Doris are terrified and try to figure out how to get away before they too are killed. Judy doesn't say a word to the teachers. She giggles and acts childlike and only communicates with Charlie by whispering to him. When two policemen on motorcycles pull in to the property, Charlie kills them both in cold blood. When Ed finally is ready to try starting the car, he primes the fuel pump with gas. He suddenly sprays Charlie's face with gasoline, temporarily blinding him. While Charlie flails about shooting the gun and screaming, Ed and Doris run. Charlie accidentally shoots and kills Judy. Ed and Doris split up and hide. Doris finds the dead bodies of the man and woman who lived in the house. Charlie corners Ed and kills him and Doris runs away into the desert, trying to find her way back to the highway. Charlie gets into Ed's car and drives after her. She manages to get away from him and hides in an abandoned house. Charlie finds her and she runs from him. When he chases after her he falls into a covered up snake pit. The pit is filled with rattlesnakes which start attacking him. Charlie tries to climb out of the pit, but is unable to. Doris hears him screaming in pain and terror as he is repeatedly bitten by the snakes. As she walks back to the car, she hears the radio playing the Dodgers game. The announcer is inviting everyone to come to the game and enjoy a wonderful day at the ballpark. Doris wanders away slowly into the desert.
The film is 95 minutes long and the story happens in real time. Fast moving and loaded with tension, there isn't a single wasted moment. The excellent cinematography was done by Vilmos Zsigmond, credited here as William Zsigmond. He began his feature film career with THE SADIST and worked on other low budget films, including some for Fairway International Pictures (WHAT'S UP FRONT! and THE NASTY RABBIT, both in 1964, and DEADWOOD 76 in 1965, the latter two also starring Arch Hall, Jr.), before achieving fame with films like DELIVERANCE (1972), CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND (1977) and THE DEER HUNTER (1978). James Landis has eight credits as a director listed on IMDB and fifteen credits as a writer. He directed the aforementioned THE NASTY RABBIT and DEADWOOD 76 as well as another excellent low budget cult movie entitled RAT FINK in 1965, which was also photographed by Zsigmond. I haven't been able to find out very much about Landis, but it's a shame he didn't have a more extensive career, as the man obviously had talent.
Arch Hall, Jr., as Charlie, is the centerpiece of the movie, and he does a terrific job. He is totally convincing as a deranged, violent young man with no regard for human life. Physically, Hall is perfect for the part, an embodiment of toxic masculinity, totally unlike the nice guys he played in his other films. There was always an edgy kind of glint in Hall's eyes, and that comes in handy for his portrayal of Charlie Tibbs. Hall's six-film career ended in 1965. He went on to a long career as a commercial pilot and also published a novel. Now retired, he sometimes attends film conventions and interacts with his fans. He is modest about his brief career as an actor and is proud of his work in THE SADIST, saying it was his best opportunity to do some serious acting.
Richard Alden has the most acting experience with 25 credits listed on IMDB between 1961 and 1989, most of them on television. He gives a convincing performance as someone trying to contend with a bloodthirsty madman. Don Russell, who plays the gentle Carl Oliver, also worked as the production manager for the film, credited as D.B. Russell. He also worked in this capacity on THE NASTY RABBIT and WILD GUITAR. His only other acting credit was in Ray Dennis Steckler's sublimely insane THE INCREDIBLY STRANGE CREATURES WHO STOPPED LIVING AND BECAME MIXED-UP ZOMBIES (1964) as Ortega, the weird looking Gypsy. He was also the second unit director on that film, as well as two other Steckler creations: THE LEMON GROVE KIDS MEET THE MONSTERS (1965) and THE THRILL KILLERS (1964). He also directed a movie called TALES OF A SALESMAN in 1965.
Marilyn Manning is the weakest link in the cast. As Judy Bradshaw, she is supposed to be eighteen, when in reality she looks around thirty. In trying to act younger than she is, her mannerisms come off at times as pretentious. She giggles a lot, acts coquettish and literally skips instead of walks much of the time. Not the best casting choice. But even Manning is able to deliver when it counts, no doubt because of Landis' directing.
The most impressive member of the cast is Helen Hovey as Doris Page. Hovey was Arch Jr.'s cousin and this was her one and only acting performance. Hovey is a true natural beauty. At the beginning of the film, she is very repressed and shy. As the drama quickly heats up, she gives an increasingly intense, emotional performance that is completely believable and at times difficult to watch, considering the physical stress she has to endure.In the film's final moments when she is trying to escape from Charlie, she has to run barefoot through the desert. Landis and Zsigmond must have been aware of what a treasure she was, because they gave her the most exquisite close-ups you could possibly imagine. She looks like an actress from a Swedish art film or a neo-realist Italian film. Maybe if Ingmar Bergman had seen that lovely, sensual face he might have talked her into continuing as an actress. But at least we have this one performance to savor.
I've never been a big fan of screen violence, but I recognize that it's often necessary and crucial for the advancement of a story and the development of a character. The violence in THE SADIST is actually minimal when you consider the subject matter. But what violence the film has is effective and visceral without being overdone. For example, the brutality Charlie commits against Carl is just enough to be convincing and heartbreaking, but it isn't glorified or celebrated. It simply happens in a realistic, natural way. As for the twist at the end, when Charlie falls into the snake pit, what can be said? It comes straight out of nowhere, the last thing you could possibly expect to happen. A total shock. And a fitting end for the character!
THE SADIST has a terrific opening. Before the credits, there is a close-up of Arch Hall, Jr.'s angry eyes. We hear his voice saying:
"I have been hurt by others. And I will hurt them. I will make them suffer like I have suffered."
Then we hear the voice of Arch Hall, Sr., acting as narrator. He says:
"The words of a sadist, one of the most disruptive elements in human society. To have complete mastery over another, to make him a helpless object, to humiliate him, to enslave him, to inflict moral insanity on the innocent, that is his objective, his twisted pleasure."
For a twisted pleasure of your own, consider watching THE SADIST!
The independently owned motion picture theater has been an endangered species for many years. In this day and age even big theater chains with multiplex settings and IMAX features are struggling to survive. The options for home theater, both physical media and streaming services, have been encouraging more film lovers to relax in their homes instead of venturing out to pay high prices for tickets and concessions and dealing with the sometimes bad behavior of other moviegoers. And now, because of the forced shutdowns in the COVID-19 pandemic, the future of theaters of any type is in question. Here in Champaign, Illinois, where I've lived for over forty-five years, we were blessed with a marvelous resource called The Art Theater from 1987 until its closing on October 31, 2019. The managers of the theater were unable to survive financially in the changing landscape of the film world. Now the property has been put up for sale. There is always a chance, one supposes, that some enterprising souls will take over and reopen the place, but that is highly unlikely in today's business climate.
The Art began its life in 1913 as The Park. Its name was changed in 1958 when its focus was shifted to the showing of foreign and art type films. In 1971 it became an X rated venue. This state of affairs lasted until 1986 when the place closed down. Then in 1987 it was purchased and remodeled by a local entrepreneur and once again started showing not only foreign films, but also independent, avant garde features, short films, and retrospectives of classics and cult movies. There were some eventual changes in management personnel and in 2012 the theater became cooperative. People were able to buy memberships in the co-op and have a role in the decision making process regarding the future of the theater, needed repairs, etc. Co-op members were also given certain benefits such as free movie showings throughout the year.
Through the generosity of its patrons, The Art was able to install the equipment needed for the conversion to digital projection, without which the theater wouldn't have a chance of surviving the new world of the movie business. A few years later, enough donations were raised to install new and brighter marquee lights. And in February, 2019, the amount of $25,000 was requested by management in order to keep the theater going, and once again patrons came through. There was a lot of obvious love and support for The Art Theater.
Over the years, The Art was a godsend for film lovers in this area. Not only were we able to see new releases that would most likely never be shown in the multiplexes, but the theater management also organized film festivals showcasing a diversity of themes and genres. There were film festivals dedicated to Latin, Greek, Asian, LGBT, documentary and short films. Many of the films shown were introduced by local film scholars and critics and many were followed by panel discussions where audience members were invited to take part, ask questions and join in the discussions. One of the most memorable panel discussions I remember followed the screening of the 1948 film STRANGE VICTORY, which dealt with the struggles of African-American GIs in the years after World War 2.
The theater also held many retrospective screenings of classic and cult films. I was able to see my all time favorite film THE NIGHT OF THE HUNTER (1955) on the big screen for the very first time at The Art. I also saw, among so many others, THE LADY FROM SHANGHAI, Stanley Kubrick's THE KILLING, DONNIE DARKO, WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE?, CARMEN JONES, Ingmar Bergman's SUMMER WITH MONIKA, etc. There were many more classics shown that I unfortunately missed.
And then there were the late night movies, which were probably the most fun experiences of all. The most popular of the late night showings were THE BIG LEBOWSKI, MONTY PYTHON AND THE HOLY GRAIL, THE SECRET OF KELLS, DRIVE, and CABIN IN THE WOODS. Some of these I managed to miss. But I did go to see, VIDEODROME, LET THE RIGHT ONE IN, THE BABADOOK, BLADE RUNNER, BERBERIAN SOUND STUDIO, A GIRL WALKS HOME ALONE AT NIGHT, and Andrzej Korzynski's bizarre 1981 horror film POSSESSION. Without a doubt, one of the most popular recurring late night movies at The Art was Tommy Wiseau's 2003 epic THE ROOM, complete with enthusiastic audience participation,
There were also occasional silent films presented with live orchestral accompaniment, such as NOSFERATU (1922). And the theater even became a popular venue for weddings. With 246 seats, The Art wasn't the largest theater around. But its cultural impact over the years was huge, and its loss to our community is immeasurable. I, along with many others, hold out hope that it may reopen someday.
