Watched last night

[cassidy]

Kicked off with Lance Comforts "Man From Tangier" 1957 with Robert Hutton and Lisa Gastoni. As far as I was concerned he should have got the first plane back to Tangier. Followed that with John Ford's classic "Rio Grande" 1950 which is my personal favourite of his cavalry trilogy. The Duke, Maureen o'Hara, Ben Johnson, Harry Carey jnr, Victor McLaglen and other Ford regulars. Wonderful.

[A Pemberton]

I've just finished watching these myself (plus the two 20th Century Fox films) as part of Definitive Collection box set. Once you get past the early WWII flag-wavers, producer/director Roy William Neill heads of to his preferred gothic style,

At least modern audiences have a chance to see them thanks to UCLA restoring all scenes ands cuts and transferring them to polyester film. It's disgraceful that the only surviving print of Dressed to Kill was missing the end credits and is now damaged beyond all hope. UCLA just managed to get a transfer in the nick of time.

As for the canonical debate .... well, if you accept that non-Doyle originals set in later times on their own merits (as with BBC's new Sherlock).

Strangely enough it was enjoying the Cumberbatch Sherlock that revived the desire to revisit the Universal/Fox Rathbone series again.They are showing on TCM.The Rathbone Bruce series has a certain pace to it which gives it great energy and excitiement but Im afraid modern audiences would baulk at the perhaps simplicity of it all, but therein for me lies the pleasure of it ,a good old fashioned serial with all the ingredients of imminent danger, speeding trains,missing diamonds,nazis,beautiful women,criminals with outrageous accents and Holmes aloof and one step ahead,Watson always bumbling and always behind,prefectly illustraited at the start of Terror by Night Holmes boarding the train plans well in hand,Watson running late and unaware hes harbouring the villian ...great fun...

[Reeldigger]

Sherlock Holmes Terror by Night,Sherlock Holmes and the Voice of Terror


Revisiting the splendid Basil Rathbone Nigel Bruce series which must be said has dated somewhat,however ignore the mini bugdet they were made from,ignore that in Terror they pass a german train station on the way London to Edinburgh,ignore the model trains and the outrageous attempts at English accents and you have Rathbone and Bruce attacking their roles with a real gusto
I cant fault the stars energy they put in and project as the super smart but cold Holmes
and the bumbling but friendly Dr Watson
A pleasure to watch again ,but because of its age and look it wont find the audience and recognition it deserves........

Up next The Women in Green and Dressed to Kill

The movie is packed with every stock train shot the studio had in their vaults which would explain all the incompatabilities you correctly noted. But why the criticize the "outrageous attempts at English accents?" I think there's only one non-Brit in the entire cast (Renee Godfrey as the slinky brunette).

[dpgmel]

I watched Daniel Birt's Background Valerie Hobson is marries to barrister Philip Friend but their best friend Norman Wooland is in her love with her but everyone is frightfully nice about it .

Adapted from a play the film rather betrays it's stage origins but going to see this in the theatre must have been sleep inducing as not a lot happens Messrs Hobson and Wooland's affair seems to consist of sharing a bag of sweets at a midday cinema matinee

A reminder of gentler times if not much else.

[Johnallan]

As far as inducing sleep is concerned I’ve always found that watching Norman Wooland in anything is much more effective that a Mogodon pill.

[dpgmel]

As far as inducing sleep is concerned I’ve always found that watching Norman Wooland in anything is much more effective that a Mogodon pill.

Yes he does tend to make Derek Farr look like Action Man

[Rowdon]

I saw the last Jonathan Creek episode. Not the last one chronologically, but the only one I hadn't seen, "The Grinning Man". The question is, why? I don't know. I watched one episode on a recommendation, and found myself working through all the series, and the specials. Every time I gave up because it's such an irritating programme, I found I had something akin to withdrawal symptoms. Not because it's good, but because it's so nostalgic. It's such safe, Sunday, Christmas-in-England telly that I realised it was like an hour of 'going home'. Isn't that weird? I didn't even like it that much. I shall miss it now it's gone. The Grinning Man itself was OK.

Later, I watched a Saint episode, and it was another great one. "Iris" was the title, made in 1963 and starring Barbara Murray. Not only was it full of little bits of Templarism (there's one moment where he lights a cigarette with a gold lighter - I'm assuming gold, it's in b&w - while talking about blackmail that just makes you want to spend the rest of your life as Simon Templar. But without the dangerous bits. Just the suits and the lighters and the cufflinks and that. And in the 'to-camera' bit he glances up at his halo and smirks, which he did in the later series, but hadn't begun to do at this point) but there is actually a blackmail payment drop-off at Battersea Funfair! Cue stock footage of the entrance, kids running round the park. I mean, it's possible that all of Roger Moore's scenes (mainly staking out in a car) were done with back projection in some studio in Nassau (I have no idea what budget they were on) but just the idea that the makers of the Saint considered the area where my Mum was at that very moment pushing my pram round as important enough to shoot a scene made me feel proud to be British .. or something. You know what I mean.

All this TV while I've got classic DVDs still wrapped waiting to go ... There's just not enough time in the day for everything that's available.

[A Pemberton]

The movie is packed with every stock train shot the studio had in their vaults which would explain all the incompatabilities you correctly noted. But why the criticize the "outrageous attempts at English accents?" I think there's only one non-Brit in the entire cast (Renee Godfrey as the slinky brunette).

I was trying to make a generalization over the whole series, not just Terror, and in retrospect I should have made that clear,sorry,though Renee Godfrey does make a poor attempt an English accent,and in my defence there are some hideous attempts when Holmes visits Limehouse in Dressed to Kill,one scene where a patron places his thumbs in the top of his waistcoat and begins a rant that Im sure Dick Van Dyke used as inspiration for Mary Poppins.
In my opinion most actors struggle with any kind of dialect and should stay away from use,its not important in my view and more often that not ruins a performance.Peter Sellers had the right idea to satirize to the extreme for comedic effect in the Pink Panther films......

It doesnt detract for me personally for the Holmes series ,they are great fun

[Tigon Man]

The Long Arm (1956)

From the days when the police drove black Wolseley's and called villains 'chummy' comes Superintendant Jack Hawkins, who with the help of eager beaver Detective Sergeant John Stratton, gets on the trail of master safebreaker Richard Leech.

Ealing's last movie is a faithful police procedural with a top notch cast including Geoffrey Keen, Ian Bannen, Sydney Tafler, Ursula Howells and Dorothy Alison. Even in minor roles you can delight in spotting PC Nicholas Parsons or the recently departed Frederick Treves uncredited as a plain clothes detective.

There's also a fascinating glimpse of London life in the mid fifties, culminating in a splendid chase around the Festival Hall.

[batman]

Val Guest's superb 'whodunnit' Jigsaw. Jack Warner and Ronald Lewis are the Brighton detectives on the trail of a 'trunk murderer'. Guest's direction is top class as are the script and performances, especially that of Michael Goodliffe as a randy vacuum cleaner salesman mixed up in the crime. The locations are well chosen and the black and white photography is crisp and clear. A faultless piece of film-making with a very satisfying conclusion. Very highly recommended.

Also .... TBW's first viewing of Mysterious Doctor Satan, Republic's classic cliffhanger serial with Bob Wilcox as 'The Copperhead'. Great fun for both little kids and big kids.

[Tigon Man]

Val Guest's superb 'whodunnit' Jigsaw. Jack Warner and Ronald Lewis are the Brighton detectives on the trail of a 'trunk murderer'. Guest's direction is top class as are the script and performances, especially that of Michael Goodliffe as a randy vacuum cleaner salesman mixed up in the crime. The locations are well chosen and the black and white photography is crisp and clear. A faultless piece of film-making with a very satisfying conclusion. Very highly recommended.

Also .... TBW's first viewing of Mysterious Doctor Satan, Republic's classic cliffhanger serial with Bob Wilcox as 'The Copperhead'. Great fun for both little kids and big kids.

Yep an absolute classic Bats, one of my top ten favourite films and being from Brighton myself gives it an added resonance. There's so much to enjoy from the look of Brighton in the early sixties, to the then undeveloped areas of Saltdean where the murder was committed.

There's some great character acting from the likes of Norman Chappell and his excited description of the suspects A60 to John Barron's edgy lettings agent. You are right though sleazy Michael Goodliffe of the Gary Hardware company takes the acting honours.
The only irritating point is that Southampton beating my Brighton & Hove Albion 2-3, the only unbelieveable thing in the movie...

[batman]

The only irritating point is that Southampton beating my Brighton & Hove Albion 2-3, the only unbelieveable thing in the movie...

Sorry to have to tell you but the score was actually 3-5.

[batman]

Just watched this (again) ..... and very good it was too. Exciting to watch and technically oustanding. A triumph for all concerned.

[Gerald Lovell]

Meet Mr. Callaghan (1953). Enjoyable private tec film with a weary-eyed Derrick de Marney as the title character, who unscrupulously schemes and chain smokes his way through the Will-scam plot, which gives us glimpses of Adrienne Corri, Belinda Lee, John Longden, Frank Sieman and even Victor Harrington along the journey. The jaunty theme from Eric (CORONATION STREET) Spear seems to have been popular and there are quite a few cover versions of it.

[batman]

This morning's viewing was the pilot episode of Banacek, entitled Detour to Nowhere.

[agutterfan]

This morning's viewing was the pilot episode of Banacek, entitled Detour to Nowhere.

Starring George Peppard as the investigator who only took cases for a $1million fee (if memory serves). Part of NBC's Mystery Movie series that also included Columbo. The entire series is available on region 1 DVD.

[batman]

Starring George Peppard as the investigator who only took cases for a $1million fee

That was Cool Million with James Farentino .... 'Banacek' always took a percentage.

[dpgmel]

Well before last night's incredibly sad Britmovie news I watched Ken Hughes' The Long Haul, ex U S army man Victor Mature gets a job driving long distance lorries in England for crooked boss Patrick Allen

Actually a lot better than I feared, not a Mr Mature fan, and whilst it is very much like a poor mans Hell Drivers it is till exciting and fun to watch, Peter Reynolds and Diana Dors are also in the cast.

Well worth catching

I thought long and hard about if it seemed appropriate to post this review but then that's why Steve set the site up

[Elaine]

The White Countess. A poignant reminder of Natasha Richardson.

[frame69]

King of the Hill. Spanish 'sniper in the woods' film. Edgy with no too much dialect to take care of. Unusual ending too. Very good,my type of film.

Frame.