Daily Archives: July 9, 2010

July 9, 2010

Complete List Of Movies

By Millsie
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    1 Comment | posted in My Thoughts

    July 9, 2010

    My Little Chickadee

    By Millsie

    Directed by Edward F. Cline
    Produced by Lester Cowan
    Written by Mae West & W.C.Fields
    Starring Mae West
    W.C.Fields
    Music by Frank Skinner
    Cinematography Joseph A. Valentine
    Editing by Edward Curtiss
    Distributed by Universal
    Release date 15 March 1940
    Running time 83 min
    Country USA
    Language English

    W. C. Fields and Mae West were two of the sharpest tongues in Hollywood with only Groucho Marx rivalling them for delivering the best one liners and double entendres. Whilst they do get a few great zingers into My Chickadee and there are a few laugh out loud moments, this film feels a bit odd. I think it’s because of the lack of chemistry between Fields and West. Whilst there are rumours of both the stars not liking each other and that they let their egos run rampant, trying to one up each other with the best lines, I don’t think any of this has been truly confirmed. I did read that Mae was a bit unhappy with Fields’ unprofessionalism and how he lived his drunken gimmick, but she still admired his comic abilities.

    The film isn’t Fields’ or West’s best but it’s still a damn sight better than most other comedies.
    My Little Chickadee is a part of the W.C. Fields Comedy Collection with The Bank Dick, You Can’t Cheat An Honest Man, International House and It’s A Gift. This DVD box set is available from Amazon for $46.99. You can purchase it by clicking here…

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    1 Comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | posted in 1940s, Comedy, Mae West, W. C. Fields

    July 9, 2010

    Hatari

    By Millsie

    Directed by Howard Hawks
    Produced by Howard Hawks & Paul Helmick
    Written by Harry Kurnitz
    Leigh Brackett
    Starring John Wayne
    Elsa Martinelli
    Hardy Krüger
    Red Buttons
    Music by Henry Mancini
    Cinematography Russell Harlan
    Distributed by Paramount Pictures
    Release date October 6, 1962
    Running time 157 min

    Hatari is another manly John Wayne movie. It’s not as manly as The Quiet Man, but it is pretty close. Of course John Wayne is a man’s man, even if there are photos of him wearing women’s clothing which somehow hasn’t made it to the internet yet! (Perhaps he is so manly that the internet refuses to believe that he was into transvetitism!). Hatari is such a manly film that even the woman act manly, no matter how hot they are. In one scene that lasted about five minutes Elsa Martinelli smokes three cigarettes and drinks a beer. The film is just dripping with testosterone.

    Seriously it is an enjoyable, although overlong, film. There are lots of exotic animals and dangers in the African savannah and there is also a lot of good-natured humour. With John Wayne you always know what you are going to get as he always plays the same type of character. Perhaps he didn’t need much of an acting range since he was so manly?!

    I should also mention the music and that at the end of the film we are treated to Mancini’s Baby Elephant Walk and the sight of three cute baby elephants running amok.  All in all an enjoyable way to waste 2 1/2 hours and best thing is that you can get the DVD from Big W for less than ten bucks.

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    1 Comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , | posted in 1960s, Action, Drama, Epic

    July 9, 2010

    Hold That Ghost

    By Millsie

    Directed by Arthur Lubin
    Produced by Burt Kelly & Glenn Tryon
    Written by Robert Lees, Fred Rinaldo & John Grant
    Starring Bud Abbott
    Lou Costello
    Richard Carlson
    The Andrews Sisters
    Shemp Howard
    Music by H.J. Salter Editing by Philip Cahn
    Distributed by Universal Pictures
    Release date August 6, 1941 (U.S. release)
    Running time 85 min
    Language English

    Universal Australia are currently re-releasing a lot of their Universal classics onto DVD, but it seems that in this country anyway, they don’t want to release any of the classic Abbott & Costello movies of the 1940s. Before the end of the year some Laurel and Hardy films will be released (great) but no A&C. (Not even the classic A&C Meet Frankenstein) I am actually not entirely sure whether there have been any official A&C DVD releases in Australia, although I do know that Africa Screams is available on a cheap public domain DVD. It’s a shame as they are really good films.

    Hold That Ghost is one of the earliest A&C films and their first foray into the comedy/horror genre that they would do to greater effect a few years later. One of the first things that I noticed with this film is just how abusive Bud is to Lou. There are occasions where he hits Costello with all the fervour of Moe Howard slapping Larry and Curly in the 3 Stooges shorts. It is quite uncomfortable to watch and I am glad that this element was toned down in later films as it doesn’t seem to have the cartoony humour of the Stooges. It just seems really mean.

    It is a pretty funny film and it did provide quite a few laughs, although I found Lou to be a tad more annoying than he is in later films. Here he is a man/child rather than a proper, well defined character. I guess as this was just the third film that Abbott & Costello (but fourth released) made they were still honing their screen personas, even though they had been working together on the vaudeville circuit for many years. He also does that annoying whistle thing that Warner Bros. Babbitt and Catstello always parodied. Otherwise he does have a few golden moments, including the famed candle sequence and is quite funny.

    It should be noted that Shemp Howard, one of the 3 Stooges appears briefly in this film as a bartender. He doesn’t really do anything of note but it’s always interesting to see Shemp pop up in non-Stooge films. This was in the years when Shemp was trying to make it on his own and Curly took his place in the Stooges. (Although Shemp would replace Curly a few years later after Curly’s stroke) He’s also in W.C. Fields’ The Bank Dick.

    I enjoyed the film a lot and wish that this and other A&C comedies would be officially released in this country onto DVD. They have been released several times in the USA so it’s not that difficult for Universal Australia to do (hint, hint).

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    4 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , | posted in 1940s, Abbott & Costello, Comedy, Horror/Monster, Musical

    July 9, 2010

    Movie Posters

    By Millsie

    Here are some cool movie posters. (Well I found them interesting anyway.) It’s funny how a good poster can make you want to watch even the worst movie. (Not saying any of these movies are bad by the way.)

    The Thing With Two Heads

    I have seen The Thing With Two Heads before and if I could find a copy I would definitely watch it. How could I not want to watch it again?

     

    Ebony, Ivory And Jade

    Ebony, Ivory and Jade was the inspiration for Fox Force 5, the TV pilot that was talked about in Pulp Fiction.

    I wonder why they never make any  more interacial women in Filipino prison kung-fu movies any more.

    Wasp Woman

    Roger Corman’s Wasp Woman is a film I haven’t seen and I wonder if it is as comic booky as the poster looks.

     

    Glen Or Glenda

    People may say that Glen Or Glenda is so bad it’s good but they are lying. I found it quite boring, except for Lugosi’s bizarre ramblings about snails and puppy dog’s tails.

     

     

     

     

    1 Comment | posted in My Thoughts, Posters