Topic: Reviews and ramblings by Gunnar

[GSyren]

I haven't gotten to the extras disc in the BD set yet. Maybe there is more info there.

Lester was a good director. I love both of his Beatles films, and a few of his other films, but I think he was the wrong choice for Superman II and III. But a whole lot better than IV's Sidney J. Furie. While he had done some good films, especially The Ipcress File, I don't think he was suited to do comic book adaptions.

[Dragonfire]

There probably is.  I think from some of the reviews I read before that there is a commentary.  I didn't listen to that.  I need to someday.

I think I've seen some other movies that Lester directed and liked.  But he was not a good choice for Superman at all.  Not at all.  He went too...silly, as evidenced in Superman III.  And yes, IV is worse.  But the downward spiral started long before IV. 

[GSyren]

Title	Clambake (Disc ID: 6B9C-892B-2F44-538F)
Director	Arthur H. Nadel
Actors	Elvis Presley, Shelley Fabares, Will Hutchins, Bill Bixby, Gary Merrill
Produced	1967 in United States
Runtime	99 minutes
Audio	English Dolby Digital Mono, Spanish Dolby Digital Mono
Subtitles	French, Spanish
Overview	Elvis Presley sizzles as a lovelorn million-'heir' in this riveting and romantic rock 'n' roll romp. Vying for the attentions of the lovely Shelley Fabares ('Coach'), Elvis finds himself caught up in a rivalry with playboy Bill Bixby ('The Incredible Hulk') "against a tuneful background of comedy, romance, and speedboat racing" ('Film Daily')! Clambake is "pleasing escape entertainment" ('Boxoffice') and the wildest party to hit the beach since they invented the beach ball! It's a hip version of 'The Prince and the Pauper' as Elvis relinquishes his oil-baron's fortune and trades identities with a penniless water ski instructor (Will Hutchins) to learn about life from the bottom up. Suddenly short on money but long on determination, he repairs a radically designed powerboat in order to win the regatta and the affection of a girl who's determined to marry rich!
My thoughts	Some movies are always great, no matter when you view them. Some movies are always trash. And then there are some movies that depend entirely on your mood when you watch them. For me, Elvis Presley movies usually fall into that category. So today I needed some light fluff, and Clambake fit the bill very well. It's certainly no cinematic masterpiece, but I liked it fine enough. Elvis has a certain charm, and Shelley Fabares sure doesn't hurt my eyes. On another day I could very well have disliked this movie intensely. The songs are not very memorable. The story is weak, and the quality of the DVD leaves a lot to be desired. But fortunately today was not “another day”. Take my three stars with a grain of salt.
My rating

[DSig]

Clambake and Frankie and Johnny have always been pretty low on my Elvis list.  True you have to be in a mood but hey it is Elvis .. the King.

Kid Galahad will get that Clambake taste out of your mouth

[GSyren]

"Hey it's Elvis"

Yepp. That was exactly my thought when I bought this box with 4 Elvis movies that I had not seen before. I knew they were not his best, so I figured they were movies that you would need to be in the right mood to enjoy. And judging from Clambake I was right. I was more annoyed about the quality of the DVD than about the quality of the movie. Non-anamorphic widescreen, bah! But even that didn't ruin my day day, because hey - it's Elvis!

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

I knew they were not his best

??
Is there anything like a "good" movie with Elvis?
From what I've seen of them I considered Elvis to be a good example why singers shouldn't try to act.

[GSyren]

Well, I'll have to agree that Elvis wasn't an outstanding actor, but I guess one's appreciation of the films depend to a large degree if one likes the type of movies where the lead actor bursts out in song every now and then.

That said I do believe that there are films that are generally thought of as good, like King Creole or Flaming Star.

[GSyren]

Title	Trog (883316-397206)
Director	Freddie Francis
Actors	Joan Crawford, Michael Gough, Bernard Kay, Kim Braden, David Griffin
Produced	1969 in United States
Runtime	91 minutes
Audio	English Dolby Digital Mono
Subtitles	English, French
Overview	The Abominable Snowman of the Himalayas. Bigfoot of the Pacific Northwest. Few claim to have seen these links to our primitive past. But when a wild half-man/half-ape emerges from his countryside cave, TV cameras are there to observe the event – and the terror! People call him Trog, short for a prehistoric cave dweller called a troglodyte. To an anthropologist (Joan Crawford in her final film), he’s the scientific discovery of the age. To others, he’s walking death. A grocer is impaled on a meat hook, a car is tossed aside like a twig, a child is kidnapped – all after local resident Sam Murdock (Michael Gough) prods the brute into a blind rampage. In true horror tradition, the world’s Murdocks leave no doubt who the real savages are – and who is the part-man, part-monster, all Trog!
My thoughts	Well, what can I say about Trog? For a long time I hesitated to buy it. I knew it was bad. But in the end I couldn't resist. It's Joan Crawford's last feature film. I must say she was a trooper. There is no indication that she gave it any less than all she could. I can't say the same about Michael Gough. He can be a great character actor, but when he hams it up, he really hams it up. Freddie Francis had his ups and downs as a director, but this is one of his lesser accomplishments, to put it kindly. The only one that I can think of that might be worse is The Deadly Bees, although I think I liked that better, for some reason. The “monster” looks silly in part of an ape costume left over from 2001: A Space Odyssey. But the script is equally silly. For example, Trog, the missing link, remembers a battle between a couple of dinosaurs (stock footage from The Animal World). I guess he must have had a time machine so he could travel a long way back in time first, before – allegedly – being frozen and thawed up in the 20th century. Unless you're into “so bad it's good” movies, avoid this one.
My rating

[DSig]

Well, I'll have to agree that Elvis wasn't an outstanding actor, but I guess one's appreciation of the films depend to a large degree if one likes the type of movies where the lead actor bursts out in song every now and then.

That said I do believe that there are films that are generally thought of as good, like King Creole or Flaming Star.

Flaming Star is one of my favorites.  He could have become a good actor, i think, in the William Shatner "over acting school of acting"   but some of his fun ones are .. well .. fun.  Excepts Clambake I really hate clams

[GSyren]

Flaming Star is one of my favorites.

Yes, I liked Flaming Star, too. I'm surprised it's not available on blu-ray. I mean, Viva Las Vegas is getting it's second BD release in August! 

[GSyren]

Title	The Shadow of the Cat (5-060057-210895)
Director	John Gilling
Actors	Andre Morell, Barbara Shelley, William Lucas, Freda Jackson, Conrad Phillips
Produced	1961 in United Kingdom
Runtime	75 minutes
Audio	English Dolby Digital Mono
Subtitles	English
Overview	The wealthy Ella Venable (Catherine Lacey) is the victim of a vicious plot conceived  by her husband Walter (Andre Morell), her housekeeper Clara (Freda Jackson)  and her servant Andrew (Andrew Crawford). Andrew beats Ella to death and the  three conspirators bury her body in nearby woods. They then plan to share Ella’s  considerable fortune, but they haven't counted on Ella’s pet Tabatha, who witnessed  both the murder and the burial.  One by one, the cat exacts a terrible revenge on those who conspired ‘to kill her  mistress...
My thoughts	The Shadow of the Cat is an interesting film, for several reasons. It's a Hammer collaboration that doesn't bear the Hammer name. In a time when most Hammer films were in color and widescreen, this is neither. And despite the title, the cat's shadow plays no part in the intrigue. Apparently, the intent in the original script by George Baxter was that the actual cat should not be seen, but only its shadow. But director John Gilling didn't like that, so he rewrote the script so the cat was actually shown. I'm not sure this was an improvement, because the cat really doesn't look scary. The film isn't really a horror story. It's more of an Old Dark House story. So it's a bit of a throwback to Hammer's films before their horror period that started with The Curse of Frankenstein in 1957. That said, it's not a bad film. It has some great actors, like André Morell, Freda Jackson and Barbara Shelley. It's just not terribly exciting. The story of the film is rather more interesting than the story in the film, if you know what I mean.
My rating

[GSyren]

Title	Postal (883476-004631)
Director	Uwe Boll
Actors	Zack Ward, Dave Foley, Chris Coppola, Jackie Tohn, J. K. Simmons
Produced	2007 in United States
Runtime	109 minutes
Audio	English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, English Dolby Digital 2-Channel Stereo
Subtitles	None
Overview	Prepare yourself for the hilarious, laugh-packed comedy Postal, the irrelevant and outrageous film based on the popular video game. After a clueless slacker named the Postal Dude (Zack Ward) loses his job, he joins his shady Uncle Dave (Dave Foley) and a bevy of big-breasted, scantily-clad female cult followers in a scheme to steal a shipment of hot new toys. But first they must foil a band of ruthless terrorists — led by none other than Osama Bin Laden —  and save the world from destruction in this offensive, mayhem-ridden laugh riot that threatens the very limits of common decency.
My thoughts	I had heard so much about how bad Uwe Boll's films are that I felt that I should at least watch one of them. So I opted for the one that seemed to be the least badmouthed. Still, I came to it with extremely low expectations. And I guess that was a good thing. I didn't think it was all that bad. Yes, the tagline is true; “Disgusting, Offensive, Stupid”. It's all that. And politically incorrect to the max. But at the same time it's kind of fun. It's not a film for everybody. But I guess I was in the right mood for it, and had no expectations. And that kind of worked for me. But a good movie it is not.
My rating

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

Sure it's not a "good" movie, but it seems to be Boll's best one.

In fact I loved it when I first watched it, but on rewatching it I had to reduce the rating to , mainly because some of the "surprising appearances" don't work anymore in the second go.

[GSyren]

Title	Pretty in Pink (097361-380544)
Director	Howard Deutch
Actors	Molly Ringwald, Harry Dean Stanton, Jon Cryer, Annie Potts, James Spader
Produced	1986 in United States
Runtime	97 minutes
Audio	English Dolby Digital 5.1, French Dolby Digital Mono
Subtitles	English
Overview	Molly Ringwald is the smart girl from the wrong side of the tracks. Andrew McCarthy is the rich boy who genuinely loves her. And Jon Cryer is... just Duckie. And they are all back in the brand-new "Everything's Duckie" Special Collector's Edition of Pretty in Pink! Written by John Hughes and directed by Howard Deutch, Pretty in Pink will take you back to the prom... the laughter, the tears, and that very first kiss.
My thoughts	I never saw any of the brat pack movies (unless Ferris Bueller's Day Off counts, but I don't think it does), because they just didn't seem to be my kind of movies. Now, almost 30 years later, it seemed that I should at least give one a try. So I choose Pretty in Pink. And it pretty much confirmed my initial suspicions. It was not my kind of a movie. Probably a generation thing...
My rating

[Achim]

I never saw any of the brat pack movies (unless Ferris Bueller's Day Off counts, but I don't think it does), because they just didn't seem to be my kind of movies.

There was two groups: The Brat Pack (I think they were basically all in the film "St. Elmo's Fire"; Rob Lowe, Ally Sheedy, Emiio Estevez, etc.) and then there was the entourage around John Hughes (actors were Molly Ringwald, Jon Cryer, Anthony Michael Hall, etc.). I would count this film to the latter, as with "Ferris Bueller's Day Off".

I love John Hughes's movies (that includes "Planes, Trains and Automobiles"), but don't care for the ones of his clones, like Howard Deutch.

It's too long ago, I can't even remember which ones were the Brat Pack movies (besides the before-mentioned "St. Elmo's Fire").