Vultural

The L-Shaped Room - 1962 - 6/10

Jane, 27-years-old, finally escapes her provincial and conservative French family.
In England, she has a brief dalliance, and, first timeout, hits Baby Jackpot.
Unsure of what to do, she rents the top room in a cheap flophouse.
Starts meetings fellow tenants, sharing stories, listening, opening her heart.
Themes and characters and backstories seem well-advanced for cinema in 1962.
This is an adult drama of souls whose worlds and choices seem to constrict tighter every year.
Marvelous peek at the nightclub scene just at the cusp between the Beatnik and Swinging.

King Eagle - 1971 - 6/10
AKA - Ying Wang // 鷹王

Reclusive Kung Fu master Jin Fei, known as King Eagle, disdains worldly matters.
Ignoring intra-clan rivalries and assassinations.
Even when blood stained culprits try to eliminate him, he remains aloof.
Yet, when an especially attractive chief nurses a open wound, his reserve thaws.
Plenty of fights in this Shaw Brothers production (too many, for me).
Best by far is Li Ching in a dual role: the sweet sister and the wicked beauty.
Plot is the usual conflict for dominance of the guild – region – world – galaxy.

Hotel Coolgardie - 2016 - 7/10

Vacationing Finns, Lina and Stephanie had their credit cards stolen in Bali, their travel funds drained.
They make it to Australia where, hoping to rebuild their finances, they accept bartending jobs in the Outback.
Girls seem to come and go every few months. Fresh meat, the locals call them.
Coolgardie is a mining town, the bar fills with miners, lonely men, quietly aggressive men.
While sexism is paramount, social skills on display are low.

What is surprising is how participants knew cameras were rolling, comments recorded.
Lina and Steph are besieged throughout by eager faces.
And encouraged repeatedly to drink up, get wasted.
Unsettling documentary, often reminded me of Wake In Fright (1971).

Bullets Over Broadway - 1994 - 7/10

Roaring 20’s finds a young, aspiring playwright.
His script is a dud, yet he lands financing from a gangster, if he casts his girlfriend.
Along with the moll, Olive, tags a thug bodyguard, who watches rehearsals with increasing interest.
So much so, that he soon begins kibitzing, offering suggesting how to improve lines, scenes, narratives.
Excellent mix of crime and comedy, backstage antics and flawed ambitions.
Terrific ensemble cast garnered multiple award nominations.
One of Woody’s best films, although theatre goers may catch more jokes.

Nosferatu The Vampyre - 1979 - 7/10
AKA - Nosferatu: Phantom der Nacht

Mr, Harker travels to Transylvania to sell real estate to County Dracula.
The lifeless ship arrives, large rats sweep into the town.
As townsfolk die, the frightened whisper, “Plague”.
You know the tale as well as anyone.
Herzog has made this a mash of Stoker and Murnau.
A slow film, lacking the usual visceral thrills, focusing instead on the creeping malignance.
Kinski gives a layered, nuanced performance as the doomed, driven creature.

Preedy, George (M Bowen) - The Devil Snar’d

Grace had supported husband Philip during the rough years.
Reading his works, proofing, editing, advising.
Success finally arrived, and Philip, lionized was soon smitten by actress Angela.
Younger, prettier, glamorous.
Only Grace would not yield to the alluring rival, would not grant a divorce.
Then Philip moved Grace and himself to Medlar’s Farm, on the Scottish border.
The home had already witnessed murders and suicide. Cursed or haunted.
Grace soon believes she will never depart alive, certain Angela and Philip will murder her.
The story carefully balances supernatural elements with anxiety and mental breakdown.
While not a page turner, the narrative flows easily.
Character behavior and attitudes seem dated, even for the 1930’s when this was published.

Greed - 1924 - 7/10

Post Gold Rush, McTeague works one of the mines, still trickling ore.
He decides to become a dentist, sets up practice.
When a friends brings his betrothed, McTeague soon desires her.
The girlfriend, Trina, marries our poor dentist, then wins a lottery.
The winnings, she refuses to share, even to spend, but clutches tight to the money.
Greed, in various forms, plays out over and over.
Watching this, as I have numerous times over the years, requires tremendous commitment.
The 1999 Turner restoration is the best print, although running time is 4 hours.

The Bloody Judge - 1970 - 5/10
AKA - Il Trono di Fuoco

The original Hanging Judge, highly active during the time of James II, the Monmouth Rebellion and Bloody Assizes.
Judge Jeffreys tries, sentences and executes witches, and those suspected of being witches.
Along with those implicated in the Monmouth Rebellion, or suspected of being involved.
Or those accused, rightly or wrongly.
Period costume drama looks fine (except cheap battle sequences). Courtroom theatrics overblown.
Director Jess Franco adds nudity, bloody torture, sex and cannibalism to liven up things.
Christopher Lee delivers a hammy performance (during one scene, stunt hands are used).

Tilbury - 1987 - 6/10

Audun leaves the small village for Reyjavik, to swim in larger pools and help the British Army.
Reason, it’s 1940 and the Brits have set up fortifications around Iceland.
Audun is also on a mission to find his priest’s daughter, Gudrun, who disappeared in Reyjavik.
What he discovers, however, is that the beautiful Gudrun has a host of military admirers.
Among them, a strange character, almost misshapen that others seem oblivious to.
Strange folk horror of the tilberi, similar to a demon, suckled by a witch from a hidden teat.
The war setting adds incongruous humor, while Audun remains a back row student.

Murder In The Dark - 2024 - 6/10

An accident in a rural road leaves five passengers stranded in an isolated farm.
The aging, has-been pop star and his 20 year old girlfriend.
His brother, his ex, and his son, who he has ignored, only now junior is climbing the pop charts.
The new generation rocking the old.
Stuck inside, no WiFi, spotty electricity, the members begin raking up past sins.
Oh, yes, there is also the farmer owner, dotty perhaps, perhaps not.
The disjointed narrative goes from mystery, to possible supernatural, to recriminations.

Session 9 - 2001 - 6/10

Deemed “historic”, the sprawling mental hospital, closed for decades, is permeated with asbestos.
The five-man crew bids low, and promises they can be finished in one week.
From day one, the men are arguing and tensions simmering.
Memories begin to surface, too. Buried, or seeping in from the haunted compound.
There are hints of the supernatural, along with suggestions of abuse.
Several of the men seem to have agendas, and increasingly unlock the hidden.
For better or for worse, the shift to psychological terror gains traction midway.

Susie Q, Where Are You! - 2022 - 6/10

Susie disappears during a midnight swim in the swamp.
Straight off, I’m thinking gators, but I’m Southern.
Two months later, dating couples Deb and Russ, and Kim and Danny, are returning home from the drive-in.
Hey, lets swing by the swamp and Crazy Old Man Coombs, and find Susie.
Few scares, comedy is labored and mostly dumb jokes.
May work better depending on how many Scooby Snacks you chomp, or how many huffs.
Possibly good opener before the slasher feature.

The Black Vampire - 1953 - 6/10
AKA - El Vampiro Negro

No bats, no bloodsuckers in this imaginatively shot Argentinian Noir.
Another child victim surfaces, and the police arrest the man who finds the body and notifies them.
The cops know he is innocent, yet public panic surges as more children are killed.
Innovative retelling of M, adds a low-life nightclub, possibly dealing narcotics.
Chief prosecutor is inflexible and self-righteous, not one for leniency or compassion.
The Underworld in this outing is the Subterranean world: homeless, castoffs, scavengers, beggars.
One cam view this for the cinematography alone.

Candy Stripe Nurses - 1974 - 5/10

“Oh, you mean the Sex Clinic. To your left.”
The girls are not nurses, they are volunteers who seem to specialize in pleasing select patients.
One deals with a college jock taking amphetamines.
One tries to bag a has-been rock star.
The third plays a dangerous game of detective, trying to clear a patient’s name.
Roger Corman production exposes lots of skin, and adds plots akin to TV of the day.
This ain’t much, although the ladies are attractive.
Interesting moment during the basketball game when I recognized the Matadors.
My, God, my alma mater, I realized. Odd moment.

Cox, Michael - The Meaning Of Night

As bygone Common Reader would have put it, a thumping good read.
Edward Glapthorn, the special investigator (fixer) at Tredgold law firm, exceeds his brief to commit a casual, random murder.
Just to see if he could do it. This is only a trial run, for the actual deed.
Who does Glapthron want to kill? And why? Therein lies the tale.
Victorian thriller, steeped in Gothic and fog, vast libraries and brothels, set during the Crimean War.
Revenge for a life stolen, vengeance against an all-knowing adversary.
How much is factual? How much is in Glapthron’s imagination?
At 600 pages, this is a long book.
If you dislike length, florid language, dense writing, footnotes, then read something else.
The first two-thirds of this fly past. Latter sections echoed Thomas Hardy for me.
Nevertheless, the story is compelling, and satisfying.

The Fatal Glass Of Beer - 1933 - 6/10

“And it ain’t a fit night out for man or beast.”
Boosh!

Ma and Pa endure harsh winters in the Yukon.
On occasion, Pa ventures out of their rough cabin to milk the elk.
The tragedy of the family, is son Chester, in the Canadian prison.
Extremely funny Bill Fields satire on Vaudeville melodramas, popular a generation earlier, and outdoor adventures.

The Dentist - 1932 - 7/10

Over-protective father vents his anger and frustration upon his patients.
The girl desires to marry the man who delvers ice – certainly a long term career.
Patients who arrive in anxiety find their worst fears confirmed.
Those more laissez faire, do better. The Bolshevik and long-legged contortionist stand out.
In the middle of treatment, he takes off to play golf.
For those who have sat for hours in a medical waiting room – wondering – this has your name on it.

The Vikings - 1958 - 6/10

Unbeknownst to each other, heir apparent Einar and slave Eric are half brothers.
The Viking and English blood ties are muddled, as is the plot in this.
Very much a live action cartoon of battles, betrayals and blood.
Plenty of dismemberment in this (one wonders how many times George Lucas saw as a child).
Location filming boosts the look. Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh were still in love at this time.
Best, however, is Kirk Douglas as the seething Einar.
Memorable theme, as well as the final storming of the battlements using axes.
Am I the only one who sees a homo-erotic element in this film?

In The Bleak Midwinter - 1995 - 6/10

The rep group decides to tackle “Hamlet”.
Venue, an abandoned church, awaiting demolition.
The actors, a scattered tribe of six, dislike each other, and fear the worst, knowing there is no money.
No matter, in the spirit of “the show must go on” they rehearse, experiment, and find their characters.
A lot of time is spent on personalities and personal dramas.
Will they learn to get along, coalesce as a troupe (this is movie, friend).
By the end, however, the plot is absolutely crackling.
Indeed, while I dislike “Hamlet”, I wanted to see their version of the Dane, set during the 1920’s.

Don’t Be Afraid Of The Dark - 1973 - 6/10

After grandma dies, Sally inherits the big house.
She moves in with her husband, a social-climbing lawyer.
The caretaker warns Sally to leave certain things alone.
Since she possess the DNA of Pandora, Sally soon chips away a sealed area.
And releases house demons that had been imprisoned.
Or is this all in her mind?
Slow boil horror yields shocks for the very, very patient.
Kim Darby effective as the grating Sally.

Night Nurse - 1931 - 7/10

Night emergency is what nurses Lora and Malonney are assigned after breaking curfew.
Late night means crazies, gun wounds, and underworld characters.
The hospital setting is shown to be extraordinarily lacking, which would change after the Code came in.
Stanwyck and Blondell are nurse chums, both assets are on display, rude jokes, crass behavior.
More? Clark Gable as a thuggish chauffeur. Drug addiction, children in peril, skimpy lingerie.
Not quite Baby Face (1933), but this remains a wild film.
Essential Pre-Code gem, and one that roused the decency crowd and led to the Production Code.

Theatre Of Blood - 1973 - 6/10

After critics, once again, savage hammy Shakespearean actor Edward Lionhart, the player commits suicide.
Not so fast! He is rescued in the Thames, and a few years later, incognito, he is back for revenge.
Directed at whom? The critics, of course!
Vincent Price has a field day in this especially bloody comedy.
There is an edge in this, as each victim receives an inventive Shakespeare themed demise.
Stellar cast includes Diana Rigg, Ian Hendry, Jack Hawkins, Michael Horden, Diana Dors, Robert Morley …
Filmed, I believe, in a vacant theatre.
Oh, for a behind the scenes documentary, and to hear cast members carry on.

Dracula’s Daughter - 1935 - 6/10

After his death by Van Helsing, Dracula’s corpse is stolen by his daughter, Countess Marya.
A vampire herself, she hopes that by burning his body, she will lose her vampirism.
When that fails, she returns to hunting victims. Female victims.
Gloria Holden makes a chilly countess, and the role seems closer to Carmilla.
Typical of the era, marvelous Gothic sets.
The lesbian undercurrent, how did that slip past the censors?
Nevertheless, this is a melancholy story of a depressed and lonely soul.

Audra McDonald At The London Palladium - 2023 - 8/10

Spellbinding performance of one of our era’s greatest sopranos, literally at the top of her game.
At 52, she remains fearless, unafraid to chase after those high notes, nail them, then hold them.
(I cannot tell you how many concerts I have attended where the singer quits, or doesn’t try.)
This is an uplifting and soul-affirming show; a tonic against the one-note vitriol from our daily prophets of hated.
Hatred for the other, hatred of themselves, and of course, hatred for you and I.
♪ No use permitting some prophet of doom ♪
♪ To wipe every smile away ♪
Catch this, and push yourself back into the Parade.

The Other Woman - 1954 - 6/10

Studio hanger-on is given her lucky break for exposure.
A walk-on. Three lines. Which she bungles. Badly. Three times.
Too bad. She’s nervous, and not much of an actress.
No matter, it’s not her fault! It’s the director who gave her the chance. Yeah!
Sherry decides to get revenge, wreck his career, his marriage.
Trashy Noir from indie auteur Hugo Haas.
Has its moments, and Cleo Moore shines as the acid drenched vixen.