Vultural

The Young Poisoner’s Handbook - 1996 - 6/10

Mid-school Graham has an interest in and a flair for chemistry.
He is also into death, the dark side, and he’s more than a little morbid.
When his parents cross him, Graham poisons them.
He is institutionalized, where his keen intellect sets him apart.
Dark frightening comedy, is creepy and unsettling.
Especially for those (you and I) who have toiled next to an unstable coworker.
Not for all tastes, for those with a tolerance for black comedy.

John Carter - 2012 - 5/10

By any other name, Edgar Rice Burroughs’ “A Princess Of Mars”.
Civil War captain is teleported to the angry red planet.
Once there, and once he grasps his situation, Carter finds himself amid a forever war, and finds a princess.
Fairly standard plot here (can you say Star Wars?), yet this launches from 1912.
Despite an enthusiastic cast, this feels like leftovers.
The plot, alien creatures that seem from Lucas casting, a poor grip on pacing,
Result is overlong, old-fashioned, and just flat lacking sizzle.
At least one faneditor has tackled this, trimming 20”. Helps, but the flaws are merely lessened.

30 Coins: S02 - 2023 - 7/10
AKA - 30 Monedas

Season 02 splinters off in several directions with multiple characters.
Also, with a new foe, the ultra rich Barbow, with his own agenda.
We follow Father Vergara, in the fires of hell, dealing with nemesis Angelo (Mr Cipher).
Elsewhere, villagers flee, hide, or conspire. Fear not, everything coalesces.
The finale is a veritable avalanche of action and images.
Creator Álex de la Iglesia has announced that S03 episodes and conclusion are already written.
Lovecraft acolytes, this is a series of inspired insanity and mad brilliance.

Husbands And Wives - 1992 - 7/10

Long married couple Jack and Sally are breaking up.
To the dismay of their friends, who begin to reflect on their own marriage.
Consequences include wondering whether their own relationship is still sound.
One of Woody Allen’s darker comedy of manners, which is not always funny.
He probes here into jealousy, possession, mid-life crises.
Fiction may mirror reality here, as this was the last film between Allen and Farrow.
Their story, sadly, became public fodder, and the stuff of tabloid soap opera.

Dangerous Crossing - 1953 - 6/10

The new bride is jilted on her honeymoon cruise.
No husband. In fact, no one has heard of the husband.
Ruth had booked under her maiden name. But – but – and she faints.
Thank goodness the ship’s doctor is understanding, and handsome.
Old-fashioned mystery plays well in the tight corners of the ship.
Great use of fog and forced perspective.
Nonetheless, this feels padded. Listen to the earlier “Cabin B-13” on Suspense instead.

The Beaux’ Stratagem - 2015 - 7/10

Their fortunes lavished on assorted debaucheries, two gentlemen flee London creditors.
The new quarry? Young rural heiresses. Find em, fool em, fleece em, forget em.
Until one of the wastrels is smitten. As for the ladies, no lambs here.
Add a scheming innkeeper, a gypsy seductress, and a band of highwaymen.
Speaking of band, a combo of musicians provide accompaniment for stray songs and jigs.
Broadly comedy of manners from 1707 rollicks along; keep up with the staccato dialogue.
Theatre junkies, Jane Austen unbuttoned.

Koyaanisqatsi - 1982 - 8/10

Life out of balance.
Overpowering visual assault showing humanity dwarfed by our constructs.
The pace hurtles dizzyingly, the images a cascade.
Philip Glass score aids this tremendously.
Consider also, 1982 was pre-internet, pre-social media.
Nowadays, dwellers are likewise enthralled to devices, and, in turn, masters of those.
Forty years on, this remains as powerful and as troubling as ever.

Paddington In Peru - 2024 - 6/10

News by post reports that Aunt Lucy has disappeared from the Home For Retired Bears.
Thus, Paddington and Family Brown embrace the risk and travel to the Andes.
Third installment of the adventurous bear with rapids, fortune hunters, and shaky goings on.
Escapades, Peruvian in-jokes, along with a list of everything that goes wrong on trips.
This will be fine for family viewing, and fine of Paddington fans.
Not as good as the second film, yet better than the first.

Jaccard, Roland - Louise Brooks: Portrait Of An Anti-Star

One of those early books that helped fan the fame. When the original French edition was published in 1982, there were no home videos, and the superlative Barry Paris biography was a few years away.
This contains several of Brooksie’s articles, as well as dozens of photos from her own archives.
For newcomers, especially in 1986 (US edition), this and Lulu In Hollywood were essential for all Silent film buffs.
Glossy, perhaps superseded by later books (Paris and Cowie), this remains a must have for Louise fans.

Note: 15 MaF responds to PMs. He seldom checks this thread.

Double Vision - 2002 - 6/10
AKA - Shuang Tong // 雙瞳

The first victim died in his office, drowned or frozen to death.
Next one was incinerated in her apartment, nothing else was even scorched.
By victim three, a strange bacteria has been isolated.
Taiwan police, out of their depth, consult the FBI, who send a profiler.
Early on, the two sides barely tolerate each other, and that never subsides.
Strange murder mystery mixes scientific investigation with supernatural underpinnings.
Amidst the deaths are Taoist scriptures, a secretive cult, and immortality.
Alert: Two endings are out there.

Poodle Springs - 1998 - 6/10

“Philip Marlowe, private investigations. I don’t take divorce cases?”
Marlowe hears the request for help, the address, then gunshots.
He alerts the police, then hits the crime scene first. And is now suspect #1.
The setup, the frame. The patsy, and old enough to know better.
Perhaps too old, perhaps that’s the problem. Marlowe is old.
1963, set in the border between California and Nevada, amidst shady wives, gunsels and greedy developers.
James Caan well cast as Marlowe, fading detective from an earlier era.
Top notch writing. Chandler started this, Robert Parker finished it, Tom Stoppard adapted it.
Convoluted, confusing at times, yet unlike – ooh – Big Sleep, this does tie up fairly logically.
Keep track of the three ladies. Fine Neo-Noir for mystery fans.

The Big Bluff - 1955 - 5/10

Ne’re-do-well Rick confers with girlfriend Fritzi, sexpot dancer and wed to a jealous man.
Rightly so, too, as Rick and Fritizi glide in and out of each other’s rooms at any given chance.
Rick has now stumbled onto a cash cow. An attractive New York heiress.
Whose days are numbered owing to an incurable heart ailment.
In better hands, perhaps a creative director of photography, this might have been something.
Director Lee Wilder (Billy’s brother) does not have a lick of style.
The overall look is cheap and sleazy, actually fitting for the tawdry plot.

Mansion Of The Living Dead - 1982 - 5/10
AKA - La Mansión de los Muertos Vivientes

Four waitresses (strippers) holiday at a beachfront hotel.
Save for a desk employee and a gardener, the sprawling hotel is deserted.
Also the beach, utterly empty.
Nearby, however, there is an abandoned monastery.
Where, one by one, the females investigate, to their peril.
Jess Franco “Horror” outing, lethargic in pace, is replete with liminal wastes and incessant winds.
The “dead” wear white robes, their faces disfigured with papier-mâché masks or shaving cream.

Scala!!! Or The Incredibly Strange Rise And Fall Of The World’s Wildest Cinema - 2023 - 7/10

The venue at Kings Cross spanning its reincarnation in 1978 until its 1993 demise.
Essentially a revival house, Scala screened older fare, grindhouse, exploitation, queer and experimental.
Audiences were a wild mix of LGBTQ, cineastes, action enthusiasts, headcases.
Array of film clips among talking heads (audience, creative types, critics, staff).
For buffs, those who hit the seats several times a week, this is essential!
If only to get ideas for those obscure gems you somehow missed.
Perfect companion to Ed And Pauline (2014).
English subtitles = https://subsource.net/subtitle/scala-or-the-incredibly-strange-rise-and-fall-of-the-worlds-wildest-cinema-and-how-it-influenced-a-mixed-up-generation-of-weirdos-and-misfits-2023/english/10078129

When they showed the monthly calendars, I flashed back.
Both the Nuart and Sherman offered those, and Zelda and I would circle what we wanted to see.
Typically, we saw films 3-4 times a week. Unlike Scala, those theaters also carried arthouse fare.
Cleaner neighborhoods than Scala, yet audiences, especially late shows, were similar.

My Darling Clementine - 1946 - 7/10

Stopping over in Tombstone, the Earp brothers leave one in charge while they rest.
Next thing, their brother is murdered, cattle rustled, they’re broke and need jobs right quick.
Can you say Marshal Earp? And the prime suspects? The Clantons.
Dark, moody Western, heavily tinged with Noir.
Fonda ideal as Earp, Walter Brennan cast against type as the sinister Clanton.
Victor Mature a real eye-opener as the dying Doc Holiday.
Striking photography. Oh yes, and some business at the OK Corral.

It’s A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World - 1963 - 6/10

Like the title, this one is too long, excessively over the top, and over-indulgent.
A dying criminal tells a motley group of fellow commuters where he had hidden a huge stash of loot.
Start your engines, ready, go, and they’re off!
Share the money? Please. This is every man (and woman) for themselves, and then some.
OK, at 31/2 hours, this goes on and on and on.
As a comedy, hit and miss, ranging from farce to gags to puns.
That said, there are a gallery of stars (film, TV, Broadway) throughout.
Starring, supporting, quick cameos.
Film fanatics, you owe it to yourself to view at least once. Stock up on popcorn, though.

Ulysses - 1954 - 6/10
AKA - Ulisse

Kirk Douglas makes an impressive Argonaut in this fantasy adventure.
The Trojan War is minimized for his ten year detour-packed return.
Highlights include Cyclops Polyphemus, and especially Circe, the sorceress.
Douglas and Silvana Mangano (dual roles) exhibit sensuous chemistry; one wishes they had shared other projects.
Too much time is given over to Penelope’s efforts to repulse her army of suitors.
Entertainment in fits and starts. Action great, exposition dull.

Tish - 2023 - 7/10

Excellent biography of the working class, Newcastle photographer, Tish Murtha.
Presented by daughter Elle, who has really done her homework.
Time and again, in interviews, she pulls out photos and items that charge the conversation.
From college courses and mentors, to art school, to acclaim.
Nor does this gloss over her obstinacy, her refusal to “make nice” and take mundane commissions.
Her anti-establishment stance empowers her work, and led to later challenges.
Fantastic photos throughout. Slideshow = https://tishmurtha.co.uk/
English subtitles = https://subsource.net/subtitle/tish-2023/english/10078128

Targets - 1968 - 7/10

Horror film icon, Byron Orlok, is tired of it all. He is old-hat, old-fashioned, and wants to retire.
The everyday world is a more horrifying place than any of his creature features.
Even though the young scriptwriter has the perfect role for him, which will reinvigorate his career.
Meanwhile, a disturbed young husband tells his wife he suffers strange thoughts.
She does not listen. Actually, she cannot listen; she is shallow and empty.
Guns and ammunition stockpiled, and his fuse burns shorter.
While loosely based on Charles Whitman, this thriller eerily foretells weekly events in the USA.
For Boris Karloff, a superb role late in his career.

Vampire Lovers - 1970 - 6/10

The new neighbor arrives at the General’s ball only to be summoned away for an emergency.
Nonetheless, could the General take care of her ward, Marcilla? Of course!
And Marcilla, endears herself to the General’s niece, Laura, who soon weakens and dies.
Jump ahead.
After a coach crash, the hurrying ladyship agrees to entrust her niece, Carmilla, to another family.
And daughter Emma begins to waste away.
Stylish Hammer outing, Gothic settings, period costumes, rampant with lesbian overtones.
Le Fanu’s novella has been filmed numerous times, including a recent version in 2019.

The Inner Circle - 1946 - 5/10

Private investigator Johnny Strange advertises for a secretary.
In a heartbeat, Ginny Smith arrives and takes charge of the office, the caseload, and our thick-headed detective.
He’s soon up to his neck in the murder of a despised expose reporter.
The story bounces more than a pinball. Strange is framed, bailed out, beaten, rescued, ever three steps behind.
Marked as Noir, this is not. As a comedy, hardly.
B-Mystery, with a good supporting cast, while the “stars” stumble along.
Possibly the studio (Republic) was trying to emulate Boston Blackie.
English subtitles = https://subsource.net/subtitle/the-inner-circle-1946/english/10078127

Hilde Warren und der Tod - 1917 - 5/10

Actress Hilde has trouble relating to her role, which involves a suicidal character.
“I’m young, beautiful, with a world awaiting!”
Death appears, and foretells, soon enough she will beg for his embrace.

Hilde has a steadfast admirer, who offers marriage.
Yet, there are so many handsome men. With one in particular.
Honey-tongued, also a robber, liar, murderer.
Film explores the joys and griefs of living. And the planted seed.
Early script by Fritz Lang is a morality tale.

The Knowing - 2023 - 6/10

Following a miscarriage, Lea isolates herself in the cabin.
Where she is plagued by a noisy, growling entity.
Opaque, psychological short mixes guilt, fear and regret.
Never really frightening, although many couples, trying for children, will relate with her despair and choices.
English subtitles = https://subsource.net/subtitle/the-knowing-2023/english/10078126

The Mystery Of Room 327 - 2012 - 6/10
AKA - Chambre 327

Eve of his wedding, the young groom is found murdered in room 327 with a hooker.
Security cameras show the bride outside, and her handgun is found nearby.
Mom runs the hotel, erases the footage, hides the gun, lies to the police or evades answering.
French mystery is low on characterization (in fact, I disliked most of them).
That said, the writers have packed this with enough plotting and narrative for three films!
Rivals are trying to acquire the hotel, witnesses keep perishing, families argue.
Tight mystery that keeps one guessing until it plays a loose hand late in the proceedings.