SANGSTER DIRECTS HAMMER On 4K/Blu-ray From Severin

 

In my last post, a tribute to LITTLE SHOPPE OF HORRORS magazine, I mentioned that the Hammer Films brand may be stronger than ever. One prime example of that is this mammoth box set from Severin. It contains three Hammer movies--all directed by Jimmy Sangster--but it's the supplemental materials that make this set stand out. 

The set contains 7 total discs--3 UHD and 4 Blu-ray. There are 18 hours of special features spread out over the discs, and this set also contains a 312 page (!!!) book containing all sorts of articles on Hammer and English Gothic cinema. 

The films in this set are THE HORROR OF FRANKENSTEIN, LUST FOR A VAMPIRE, and FEAR IN THE NIGHT. All of these productions have been released on home video numerous times, and I wouldn't call any of them among Hammer's best (but I would put LUST FOR A VAMPIRE among Hammer's worst). The first chapter of the 312 page book has Severin's David Gregory even explaining why his company put out this set in the first place. Are these three films worthy of reappraisal? They haven't exactly been in hiding (I think you can even watch some of them for free on the Tubi streaming channel). It appears that Severin got a chance to put together a Hammer set with these three features, and they figured they better make it stand out....and it certainly does. 

Each of the three movies gets a UHD and Blu-ray disc, and each get plenty of extras, along with new audio commentaries. I've had this set for a couple months now, and I'm nowhere near watching or listening to everything on it.....but I'd much rather have a release that has too much stuff on it (if there is a sort of thing) instead of not enough. 

I'm not going to list all the extras in their entirety (you can go on the Severin website to find that) but I will list some of the highlights. There are new interviews with performers such as Judy Matheson, Christopher Neame, and Kirsten Lindholm, and archival talks with Veronica Carlson, Yutte Stensgaard, and David Prowse. There are special programs detailing the life and careers of Jimmy Sangster and Ralph Bates, along with a featurette on the horror film career of Joan Collins. There are also discussions on Mary Shelley, J. Sheridan Le Fanu, the Frankenstein myth, and lesbian vampire movies. 

Now we have to get to the book, which has chapters on Kate O'Mara, Ralph Bates, Mike Raven, David Prowse's performances as the Frankenstein Monster, and Hammer's production history during the early 1970s. The cover of the book has the famous (or some would say infamous) image of Yutte Stensgaard's blood-spattered Carmilla rising from her tomb, an image that pops up all over this set, as well it should. 

The accumulated extras are not just a bunch of random fluff--they are interesting and intriguing, and pure catnip for major Hammer fans. One could say that the extras on this set are more important than the films themselves. 

Speaking of the films, it must be pointed out that this is technically a Jimmy Sangster set. The program on his life and career makes the case that Sangster--whose main work in film was that as a writer--was an important player in classic English Gothic cinema. I agree with his importance to the genre--but I don't feel he was a great writer. I believe that Sangster was good at plot construction and good at coming up with ideas, and he certainly knew how to take famous tales and transform them into Hammer product. The extras on this set point out that Sangster did a lot of work on American television in the 1970s and 80s. That might surprise some, but his knack for quickly coming up with ideas and writing for a certain budget made him perfect for that era of TV. Sangster wasn't the best director in the world--an opinion he would have agreed with--but considering what he had to work and deal with, he did the best he could. I think Sangster's best work as a screenwriter was on the series of so-called "mini-Hitchcock" suspense stories he created for Hammer, and FEAR IN THE NIGHT, included in this set, is an example. 

I'm sure most Hammer fans already own the three films in this set, but Severin has provided so many exemplary extras that it is a must for English Gothic lovers. Severin knew they had to come up with something extraordinary to stand up to all the high-end sets Hammer themselves have been recently putting out, and you can't deny that they truly did so. 

An Ode To LITTLE SHOPPE OF HORRORS

 

The final issue of LITTLE SHOPPE OF HORRORS, "The Journal of Classic British Horror Films", is now available. Issue #53 marks the end of a publication that for decades has provided fans of Hammer Films and English Gothic cinema with pages and pages of insight and information on numerous genre movies and the people that were involved in making them. 

I first started buying LSOH in the mid-1990s (my first issue was #12). I've gotten every issue since. Not only has it been one of my favorite film magazines, I've wound up having a personal connection to it. 

I wrote an article on the making of Joshua Kennedy's Hammer-influenced HOUSE OF THE GORGON in issue #41, and I also provided a memorial tribute to my dear friend Veronica Carlson in issue #48. I've become friends with LSOH creator/editor Richard Klemensen, and I've also met and befriended talented LSOH contributors Mark Maddox, Neil Vokes, and Sam Irvin. LSOH writers John Hamilton and Bruce Hallenbeck are Facebook friends of mine. (By the way, my buddy Josh Kennedy also wrote the cover article of LSOH #47, concerning his favorite movie of all time, THE GORGON.) 

So yes, I'm a bit biased when it comes to the subject of LSOH. But even if I hadn't contributed anything to the magazine, or never even met anyone associated with it, I still would have been a dedicated reader. If you profess to be a fan of Hammer Films, you have to have read at least a few issues of LSOH. It has become an unofficial "official" guide and historical resource for everything and anything connected to and created by Hammer. 

LSOH has often been referred to as a "fanzine", since it is an independent publication that doesn't get shelf space at mainstream outlets, but I feel that description is undeserving. The word "fanzine" seems to bring to mind the idea of something amateurish, or below average. During its long history I've found LSOH to be far above average when it comes to genre films publications. Each issue is filled with insightful and informative articles and plenty of Hammer-related artwork from all sorts of talented individuals. Richard Klemensen (who I call Mr. K) has always steered the magazine on a steady course between Monster Kid goofiness and highbrow film theory. You don't have to be an Arts Major to enjoy LSOH, or even the greatest Hammer fan in the world. LSOH is a celebration of the movies of Hammer and its English Gothic cousins, but it also doesn't shy away from the fact that some of these films are not the best productions of all time. (I think the fact that Mr. K is from the American Midwest and that he actually worked for a living has a lot to do with LSOH's overall outlook). 

It goes without saying that LSOH has played an important role in how the films of Hammer have been looked upon and appreciated, but it needs to be pointed out that LSOH deserves a place in cinema history overall. Several people who worked in front of and behind the camera on various genre features have been interviewed in the pages of LSOH, and for most of them it was their only properly documented discussion. The thoughts, opinions and feelings of dozens of artists who worked in the movie industry only exist due to LSOH, and that fact alone makes the magazine worthy of high praise. 

Issue #53 may be the swan song of LSOH, but the magazine isn't taking a leisurely victory lap. #53 is a 162-page spectacular, and it fittingly features Peter Cushing on the cover (see above). It contains in-depth articles on THE ABOMINABLE SNOWMAN, THE GAMMA PEOPLE, and THE HORROR OF FRANKENSTEIN, and there are also archival interviews with Cushing, Christopher Lee, Roy Skeggs, and Anthony Hinds. There's also an eight-page color section showcasing fantastic artwork from some long-time LSOH contributors. 

I've seen a lot of horror & science fiction movie magazines come and go in my lifetime. Most of them faded away, some of them morphed into something totally different, and some others just simply limped along. LSOH is going out on its own terms, and it has never failed to be fresh, vital, and enjoyable for English Gothic cinema fans. I'm proud to have been a very small part of it, and I'm happy to know that back issues of LSOH will be available on the magazine's website. One could say that the Hammer brand name is bigger than ever, especially when one takes into account all the special edition home video sets and books dedicated to the company's product that have been released recently. Richard Klemensen and LITTLE SHOPPE OF HORRORS has had a major impact on the history of the classic Gothic horror film and on pop culture overall. 

HURRICANE ISLAND

 

HURRICANE ISLAND is about the most perfect example of a B movie that there is. It was produced (Sam Katzman) and directed (Lew Landers) by veterans of the form, it lasts only around 70 minutes, and it provides decent low-budget entertainment. 

This movie was shown recently on TCM as part of the cable channel's "Summer Under The Stars" day featuring the redoubtable Marie Windsor. She's the main reason to watch this pirate tale, which is set in the early 16th Century and deals with Spanish explorer Ponce de Leon's attempt to find the fabled Fountain of Youth in Florida. 

Windsor plays the striking and vivacious Jane Bolton, who leads her own pirate crew based in Cuba. (In her very first appearance, she is referred to as a "noisy wench".) Jane finds out about Ponce de Leon's expedition to Florida, and, assuming there will be gold found, joins up by infiltrating a group of women who are going along to become wives to those who will settle in the new land. 

Jane's ruse is soon discovered by Captain Carlos (Jon Hall), the second-in-command to de Leon (Edgar Barrier). Jane's crew follows along, and they and a tribe of natives cause plenty of trouble for the Spanish expedition. 

Sadly, Marie Windsor isn't used to her full advantage in HURRICANE ISLAND. Her character is so intriguing that she deserved her own movie, but in the later part of the story Jane Bolton gets very little to do. Windsor has far more screen presence than Jon Hall, a minor league Errol Flynn who for some reason got to play the lead in all sorts of period adventures. Windsor's Jane even falls for Hall by the end, an improbable turn of events that robs the viewer of the chance to see Marie heft a sword and engage in some daring-do of her own. The only standout in the supporting cast is long-time bad guy Marc Lawrence as Jane's treacherous pirate companion. 

Needless to say, historical accuracy wasn't much of a concern to those who were involved in HURRICANE ISLAND. No one acts as if they are Spanish, or even as if they come from the 16th Century, and the native tribe appears to be a mixture of Apaches and Polynesians. The climax is notable for the fact that it brings in a supernatural element. Not only does this element give a reason for the film's title, it also provides a twist that will be recognizable to any one who has seen any movie versions of H. Rider Haggard's SHE. 

HURRICANE ISLAND was filmed in a process known as "Supercinecolor", and the mediocre print shown by TCM didn't do it any favors. Marie Windsor still looked great, and it's too bad that the movie's budget and plot didn't do the actress justice. 

THE FORGOTTEN PISTOLERO

 

THE FORGOTTEN PISTOLERO is a 1969 Euro Western based on the ancient Greek tale of Orestes, a story concerning revenge and family betrayal. The movie's original title is IL PISTOLERO DELL'AVE MARIA, or GUNMEN OF AVA MARIA. 

This is a Spaghetti Western that is more concerned with the emotional dynamics between the main characters than violence or gunplay. It has a slower pace than most examples of the genre, and there are no quirky eccentric types to provide any comic relief. 

The story revolves around the murder of a well-to-do Mexican General named Carrasco. After returning home from fighting the French in the 1860s, the General is killed by his younger wife Anna (Luciana Paluzzi) and her lover Tomas (Alberto de Mendoza). Years later the General's son Sebastian (Leonard Mann) teams up with his boyhood friend Rafael (Peter Martell) to get revenge. Rafael has his own personal reasons for going after Carrasco's widow and Tomas--they have denied him the love of Sebastian's sister (Pilar Velazquez). 

A dark, brooding air hangs over THE FORGOTTEN PISTOLERO. Director Ferdinando Baldi made many other Italian Westerns and action-adventures that were far wilder and more rambunctious, but here he sticks to a mood of tragedy and regret. Leonard Mann and Peter Martell make effective, if dour, protagonists, but they resemble each other so much that at times it's hard to tell which one is which. 

The performance that really gets your attention in this film is that of Luciana Paluzzi as Anna. Paluzzi is best known for playing the feisty Fiona Volpe in THUNDERBALL, so one would assume that Anna is nothing more than a seductive, scheming femme fatale. She is that to an extent, but the script and Paluzzi give Anna some complexity--this is a woman who is haunted by what she has done, and she is well aware of how many other people she has hurt due to her actions. 

Perhaps the most notable aspect of THE FORGOTTEN PISTOLERO is its music score by Roberto Pregadio. Even if you have never heard of this movie, you've probably heard its main theme before, even without realizing it. The score is considered one of the best examples of Euro Western music (at least the best example of a score that wasn't composed by Ennio Morricone). Pregadio's theme has been used in various other movies, TV shows, documentaries, etc. It's a score that could be attached to every other Spaghetti Western ever made and still work. 

Tubi has an excellent-looking widescreen version of THE FORGOTTEN PISTOLERO with an English voice track, and it appears to be uncut as well. If you are looking for violent cheesy fun, this isn't the movie for you, but if you are interested in a Euro Western that takes a somewhat different tack, THE FORGOTTEN PISTOLERO is well worth your time. 

THE TALK OF THE TOWN

 

I recently purchased this movie on DVD at a discounted price (what did you expect??) I had seen THE TALK OF THE TOWN multiple times before, but it had never caught my fancy, despite the fact that it stars two of my favorites, Cary Grant and Jean Arthur. The film was produced and directed by George Stevens, and it wound up getting nominated for seven different Academy Awards (including Best Picture), but for me it is an uneasy mixture of screwball comedy and social drama. 

Jean Arthur plays Nora Shelley, a schoolteacher renting out her old family home during the summer to a distinguished Harvard law professor named Michael Lightcap (Ronald Colman). One night while Nora is getting the house ready for Lightcap's arrival, her childhood acquaintance Leopold Dilg (Cary Grant) shows up, looking for sanctuary. Dilg has escaped from jail, where he was awaiting trial on charges of murder & arson. The professor also shows up, a day early, and Nora has to hide Leopold while keeping the suspicious Lightcap happy. Leopold reveals himself, posing as a gardener, and he and Lightcap become friends, despite their very different opinions on the application of the law--the professor believes the law should be followed to the letter, while Leopold thinks a flexible human element should be injected into it. Both men are also attracted to Nora, while she's also attracted to them. Nora tries to figure out a way to get Lightcap to help Dilg prove his innocence while keeping the latter from being captured. 

Needless to say, the plot of THE TALK OF THE TOWN is rather convoluted. The story veers from romantic-triangle farce to discussions about law and its effect on the individual. There's also a political aspect to it--the movie takes place in a fictional town called Lochester, which happens to be corrupt. Dilg is accused of burning down the factory owned by the town big-wig, and it's highly likely that Leopold will be lynched if he is caught again. 

With all the various elements of the plot, the movie (and George Stevens) never figures out which tone to take. It appears that Stevens was trying to go down the Frank Capra route, but he isn't able to pull it off, despite all the award accolades the movie received. 

One big issue is that in my opinion Cary Grant is miscast as Leopold Dilg. It is established in the story that Dilg is the town malcontent, a guy always getting into trouble--and one just can't see Grant as that type of person. The very name "Leopold Dilg" suggests someone who has a working-class immigrant background, and that is decidedly not Cary Grant's screen persona. Someone like John Garfield would have been much better as a desperate wanted man with a chip on his shoulder. 

Another issue is that while Dilg and Professor Lightcap are set up as opposites, they wind up becoming fond of each other, almost as fond as each of them are to Nora. Predictably both men even come around to the other's point of view about the law. If the men really had been major romantic and intellectual rivals, the movie would have had more of an edge to it, and it would have been more interesting. (The dramatics over Dilg's plight are tempered by the fact that you just know Cary Grant isn't a murderer and an arsonist.) 

Jean Arthur's poor Nora is stuck in between both men and all the plot complications, and she spends the whole movie in a state of exasperated panic. Arthur is great in this type of role, but you never get the feeling that she's all that enamored of either Dilg or the professor--she worries about them simply because she's the main female lead, and that's what she's supposed to do. 

Among the supporting cast in THE TALK OF THE TOWN: Edgar Buchanan, Glenda Farrell, Tom Tyler, Rex Ingram, and a very small appearance by a young Lloyd Bridges. It's the three main stars that get all the attention, and there are plenty of talky scenes involving the trio that feel like they come from a stage play. 

Cary Grant and Jean Arthur are always worth watching, and Ronald Colman is quite good as the bemused upper-class fellow trying to do the proper thing, but THE TALK OF THE TOWN never seems to come together properly. It is a production that tries hard to be important instead of natural and entertaining. 

DESTINATION MOON On Blu-ray From Film Masters

 

Film Masters continues its series of home video releases of neglected classic genre films with a sparkling Blu-ray of George Pal's 1950 space exploration saga DESTINATION MOON. This release also comes with a bonus disc featuring the 1951 sci-fi adventure FLIGHT TO MARS, a movie about as different from DESTINATION MOON as you can get. (I will be covering FLIGHT TO MARS in a future blog post.) 

DESTINATION MOON was meant to be a serious and earnest attempt to dramatize a realistic trip to the moon, based upon what was known at the time. I'm sure that for many viewers today DESTINATION MOON comes off as quaint and old-fashioned, but one can't deny the honesty and integrity that producer Pal, artist Chesley Bonestell, and writer Robert A. Heinlein applied to the project. 

What needs to be realized is how far-sighted DESTINATION MOON actually was. The main plot details how a group of industrialists and businessmen band together to plan and implement a trip to the moon, despite the fact that the American government--and shadowy forces--are not too keen on the endeavor. That plot description has a very 21st Century feel to it. There are some elements of DESTINATION MOON that seem creaky--Dick Wesson's wisecracking "regular guy" crew member in particular--but the overall production holds up very well if one places it in the proper context. 

What's most important is how great DESTINATION MOON looks on this Blu-ray. The transfer was taken from a new 4K scan of 35mm elements, and it is colorful and clear, bringing out all sorts of detail. The sound quality is excellent as well. 

As usual, Film Masters provides plenty of nice extras. This release comes with an illustrated 15-page booklet that has an essay on the film's production history by Sloan De Forest. The disc has a 23 minute featurette which also details the movie's background and history, along with a gallery of pictures from the film's pressbook. There's also a 40 minute audio reading of an article written by Bob Burns detailing how he actually visited the set of DESTINATION MOON, and his long friendship with George Pal. This extra is presented by Tom Weaver, and it is set up to run along with the last half of the movie. An original restored trailer for the film is also included. 

The main extra is a new audio commentary by George Pal biographer Justin Humphreys. It is an excellent talk that is well-paced, insightful, and informative. Humphreys provides the listener with everything they need to know about DESTINATION MOON, and he rightfully goes out of his way to explain why the movie is one of the most important American genre films ever made. 

For some reason DESTINATION MOON very rarely gets shown on TV anymore, so hopefully this magnificent release gives the film some much-needed attention. A 75 year old movie about a trip to the moon may seem totally outdated to most, but it had a major impact on the cinematic science fiction boom of the 1950s, even though most of its brethren were not in any way as well crafted or as well thought out. Film Masters has been coming out with some impressive products recently, and this Blu-ray of DESTINATION MOON is one of their best releases yet. 

THE DEATH KISS

 

A few weeks ago I took advantage of Kino's summer sale to purchase a few items. One of the Blu-rays I picked up was THE DEATH KISS, a 1932 murder mystery that has become a public domain staple. 

THE DEATH KISS has had a multitude of home video releases over the years, mainly due to the fact that it features three performers from Universal's 1931 DRACULA: Bela Lugosi, David Manners, and Edward Van Sloan. Despite this, THE DEATH KISS is not a horror film--its main novelty comes from the story being set in a minor Hollywood studio. 

The movie starts out with a very clever double twist. We see a well-dressed man exiting what appears to be a nightclub, and a sultry woman proceeds to walk up to him and give him a kiss. The man is then gunned down in a very early cinematic example of a drive-by shooting. It is revealed, however, that this is a scene being staged for a film....and then it is revealed that the actor really was shot and killed. 

This sequence is the best thing in the movie, and it also provides the reason for the title (the man in the scene was given "the death kiss"). The murdered actor is Myles Brent, who despite being the leading man of Tonart Studios has a very bad reputation. Screenwriter Franklyn Drew (David Manners) takes it upon himself to investigate the crime, even though he's hampered by a sarcastic police inspector (John Wray) and the studio manager (Bela Lugosi). 

THE DEATH KISS is what I would call a nifty little feature. There's nothing outstanding about it, but it does provide 70 minutes of decent entertainment, especially if you are an old movie geek. Seeing the behind the camera aspects of a 1930s production company is one major highlight (the story was shot at the Tiffany Studios). There's also the bonus of seeing David Manners, Lugosi, and Edward Van Sloan playing different types of characters. I've always found David Manners to be lightweight and annoying, but he comes off more personable in this picture, even though I have to agree with the police inspector that the screenwriter is a bit of a noisy pain in the neck. Edward Van Sloan plays film director Tom Avery. Usually in a movie that is about movies, directors are portrayed as cartoonish dictatorial types, but Van Sloan's Avery is shown as someone who is trying to get a job done (in more ways than one). The only major female role, that of Tonart Studios' main leading lady, is played by Adrienne Ames, whose character appears to have some sort of involvement with every man in the story. 

Bela Lugosi fans have always been disappointed in THE DEATH KISS, for he really doesn't get all that much to do in it. Bela is once again a red herring, but this time he doesn't even act all that suspicious. At least in this film Lugosi got to play a "normal" role, and he looks quite sharp wearing early 1930s-era suits. A number of misleading publicity stills (see below) were taken for this movie in which it appears that Bela is some sort of diabolical menace, which he assuredly is not. 

The mystery aspects of THE DEATH KISS are quite good, and the methods of murder are quite inventive. The movie can't be called an all-out thriller due to its excess of comedic scenes. There's a dopey studio cop (Vincent Barnett) who gets way too much screen time, and there's also the studio president (Alexander Carr) who constantly mangles the English language, and a prissy production assistant. The movie is enlivened with some brief color hand-tinting, which was restored for this Kino Blu-ray. The hand tinting is striking, but there's very little of it. 

THE DEATH KISS was the directorial debut of Edwin L. Marin, who went on to become a solid Hollywood filmmaker. Like most early 1930s pictures, the story zips along, and it's fun to see a studio from the inside, so to speak. (This movie continues a cliche that I've seen over and over again--whenever a film or TV show is set on a studio lot, we always see cowboys and chorus girls wandering around in the background. The next time you watch a show or movie with studio scenes, look out for this--you could play a drinking game with this cliche.) 

I wouldn't call this Kino Blu-ray of THE DEATH KISS a brilliant restoration, but it is better looking than the usual versions one sees of this film. If you can get over the fact that Bela Lugosi doesn't have anything major to do in it, you'll find that THE DEATH KISS is a nice example of entertaining low-budget 1930s movie making. 

Bela Lugosi and Adrienne Ames in a very misleading publicity still for THE DEATH KISS