Harbottle

Circle of Danger (1951) DVD-R. Ray Milland travels to Britain to learn the truth surrounding the circumstances of his brothers death during WW2. Perhaps the love interest (Patricia Roc) detracts slightly from Milland's quest, but the latter part of the film is very good indeed when the tension builds. A host of welcome faces also make this enjoyable, Marius Goring and Naunton Wayne are especially noteworthy.

dremble wedge

Fisher was unused to the Babelesque working conditions with everyone speaking their own languages!

Apparently Lee's English vocal track still exists and rumours surface every now and then that it will be restored.

batman

Lee has also offered to re-dub it.

Jingle bells Batman smells ... I heard that at school Daddy.

BAT QUIZ 16 HAS JUST BEEN POSTED IN THE COMPETITION THREAD - 06/01/09

bertie

Strangely, given all the WW2 films I've seen, I hadn't seen this one before. All in all well worth it. Host of names from that time, of course - too many to mention.

Checked it out after seeing the title in the enormous list of War films on another thread.

Lord Brett

Park Plaza 605, starring Tom Conway in a British attempt to duplicate his success as The Falcon, RKO's hollywood b-movie detective series in which he took over the part from his own brother, George Sanders.

Here, Conway plays the absurdly named Norman Conquest, the very Simon Templar-esque hero of a series of novels by Berkeley Gray. The action sets off in probably the most absurd way imaginable, as Conquest accidentally hits a pidgeon with his golf shot, to find it has a secret message tied to its leg!

Things don't get any more believable from there, and the film looks to be a goos ten years behind the times in its 1953 attempt to evoke the spirit to 40s Hollywood.

Great fun can be had actor spotting, though, with Sid James as the copper out to get Conquest, but who likes him really, and Richard Wattis as a villain. Anton Differing has one scene, Terence Alexander plays a hotel manager, and baddies are played by Edwin Richfied (who used to turn up a lot in The Avengers and various ITC series), Michael Balfour and an uncredited Sam Kydd.

Eva Bartok look ravishing, while hero's girlfriend Joy Shelton gets herslf tied up in what looks to modern eyes as a rather knowingly S&M fashion.

Good fun which doesn't take itself at all seriously.

batman

If you enjoyed PP605 ... check out Breakaway in which Tom plays Duke Martin. That one is even more of a Falcon-clone. All of Tom's UK films are in the same vein and are a real treat for B-movie lovers.

Jingle bells Batman smells ... I heard that at school Daddy.

BAT QUIZ 16 HAS JUST BEEN POSTED IN THE COMPETITION THREAD - 06/01/09

dpgmel

Watched "Jigsaw" with Jack Warner and Ronald Lewis

A very enjoyable Val Guset thriller set in early 60's Brighton.

IMHO deserves to be more widely known.

batman

It's one of my favourite Brit detective films and has fine performances all round a a truly surprising denouement.

Jingle bells Batman smells ... I heard that at school Daddy.

BAT QUIZ 16 HAS JUST BEEN POSTED IN THE COMPETITION THREAD - 06/01/09

dpgmel

Agree totally, and features one of my favourite actors : Michael Goodlife in a small but meaty role.

Steve Crook

Ray Mears Goes Walkabout
BBC2 8-9 tonight
In many ways Ray Mears has been carrying on the work started by Les Hiddins, the Bush Tucker Man. Ray has been doing a similar sort of thing around the world. Exploring inhospitable areas, meeting the indigenous peoples there, learning techniques from them and re-inspiring them to continue with those techniques and teach the next generation.

So this evening's episode of Ray's programme was great because he's back in Australia and meets up with the original Bush Tucker Man, Les Hiddins. Les grew up in Queensland and when he joined the Australian Army he found an opportunity to put his knowledge to good use. He started travelling around, meeting aboriginal people and learning more and then putting that information on the back of the maps. That way, if anyone crash landed in the bush, there would be a good chance they'd have a map with them and would therefore have the information that would help them survive.

Les's TV series The Bush Tucker Man was often shown through the late 1980s and 1990s and he always impressed me. Not only with his knowledge, but his personality, his attitude towards aboriginal peoples and his ability as a natural communicator and teacher.

These are qualities that Ray also has and he's done a great job with his TV series - and so it was lovely to see them together.

Steve

batman

Bond of Fear - a rather nifty little B-thriller with Dermot Walsh and the under-rated John Colicos. Colicos plays a killer on the run who takes Walsh and family hostage while they are on a caravan holiday. Nothing we haven't seen before or since but good performances and some unusual location filming make this one worth watching. Recommended.

Jingle bells Batman smells ... I heard that at school Daddy.

BAT QUIZ 16 HAS JUST BEEN POSTED IN THE COMPETITION THREAD - 06/01/09

Joe Fraguela

Last night I watched While I Live from 1947 starring Sonia Dresdel, Tom Walls, Carol Raye, Clifford Evans, Patricia Burke, John Warwick, Charles Victor, Ernest Butcher, Edward Lexy, Audrey Fildes and Enid Hewitt.

Sonia Dresdel plays Julia Trevelyan who still obsesses after the death of her composer sister Olwen Trevelyan. 25 years have passed and on the very anniversay of her Sister's death, a young woman suffering from amnesia enters the house and runs to the piano and starts playing The Dream of Olwyn, the last work Julia's sister was composing. Julia concludes that her sister has returned reincarnated.

A very entertaining film with a powerful performance from Sonia Dresdel.

Following on was Strangers Meeting from 1957 starring Peter Arne, Delphi Lawrence, Conrad Phillips, David Lodge, Barbara Archer, Victor Maddern, Selma Vas Dias, David Ritch, Doris Hare, Norman Rossington and John Kelly. Peter Arne plays Harry Belair an ex circus performer who was sentenced to prison for a murder he didn't commit, but at the time pleaded guilty. He breaks out of prison intent on finding the real culprit. A quick crime drama.

wadsy

The Dark Man 1951 . Very good. Maxwell Reed is a great villain. Also

watched Seven Keys to Baldpate1947. I really enjoyed this. A good

storyline & fine performances from Philip Terry & Jacqueline White made it

good fun!

suzepulcheria

Over the weekend I watched (courtesy of Bats- my Maxwell Reed competition prize, thanks) the Square Ring. It is a series of cautionary tales, strung together, about life in the boxing world. I enjoyed it enormously. Having just watched series 2 Dynasty it was very interesting to compare the 1953 Joan Collins with the 1983 version!

"I've come a long way you know!" "Equally long way to go back..."

batman

- he is indeed!

Jingle bells Batman smells ... I heard that at school Daddy.

BAT QUIZ 16 HAS JUST BEEN POSTED IN THE COMPETITION THREAD - 06/01/09