Vultural

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.

The Other Woman’s Story - 1925 - 6/10

The accused’s perhaps love interest
He is charged with murdering his wife’s divorce attorney.
Curious Silent film, set mostly in the courthouse, observes several witnesses.
Testimonies conflict, or don’t make sense, or they subsequently “correct” them.
Viewers, like jurors, must sift before the verdict.
Mind you, revelations and a hurried search arrives at the end.
Beautifully restored by the San Francisco Silent Film Festival.

The Quiet One - 2019 - 6/10

Bill Wyman … bass guitar. Member of a small British blues group.
The band had a few hits.
Wyman was always known as the Stones’ historian, archivist, diarist, keeper of the lore.
His thick, coffee table book, “Rolling With The Stones” is jammed with photos and memorabilia.
The narrative chronology in this is spot on, accompanying visuals less so.
Nonetheless, this is a lot of fun, and a must for Stones fans.
Excellent companion to 2023’s The Stones And Brian Jones.
Shoot, watch that first, then this!

The Music Of Erich Zann - 1980 - 6/10

One of the earlier HPL adaptations, this evokes rather than shows or tells.
A student, Charles Dexter Ward, takes rooms below a mute violinist.
The music haunts him, and he tries to befriend the elderly musician.
And yet a gulf separates them, for one has committed blasphemy.
Effective short gives a nice sense of the other-worldliness of the tale.

Stuart Schiff (“Whispers”) had recommended this decades ago.

The Last Edition - 1925 - 6/10

Wonderful Silent melodrama, filmed in and around San Francisco.
The McDonald family strikes the heights, suffers the blows.
Pa, expecting a promotion at the newspaper, is bumped for young blood.
Junior joins the District Attorney, where he is green and trusting.
The Chronicle tries to stay relevant, wile bootleggers protect their turf.
Most of the actors rely on facial expressions, subtle and quick, to help viewers.
No great shakes, but entertaining.
Note: In several scenes, workers gab or listen while the presses are rolling. That’s impossible. I was a paperboy; when those presses roll, the noise is deafening.

The Spider Woman - 1944 - 6/10

Following a series of strange suicides, Sherlock Holmes fakes his own death.
The victims were men, short of cash, and inveterate gamblers.
When they lose everything, they check out.
Holmes soon zeroes in on one Adrea Spedding, adventuress.
This Sherlock film is a patchwork of several Doyle stories.
Best, however, is Gale Sondergaard as the “female Moriarty”, although she more resembles Madame Sara (“The Sorceress Of The Strand” by L. T. Meade).

Mädchen In Uniform - 1931 - 6/10

14-year-old Manuela is sent to the strict girls school.
Mother dead, father away soldiering, her aunt just cannot be bothered.
The school scrimps on meals, confiscates any incoming food, and is harsh with punishment.
Not the nightmare that was Diary Of A Lost Girl, yet it is unpleasant.
The girls are a gregarious bunch, and teacher Fraulein Von Bernburg is adored by all.
In fact, Manuela soon develops a crush on the woman which leads to consequences.
Although viewed as a lesbian film (and there are overtones), these are young girls, desperate for affection.

Von Biela, Lisa - Skinshift

Please, just think shape shift and you’re halfway there.
Small time thieves leave their new recruit for dead in the Mojave.
Yes, they beat him up, but did not kill him, thinking the desert would kill him off.
Story switches back and forth between the petty losers and Grade-D sunburn, wanting revenge.
40 pages in, a magical coyote appears. Our villain drinks enchanted water, does a thing with the coyote, and moves plans for vengeance into high gear.
Late in the novella, new characters are introduced, and I knew exactly what their purpose would be,
Fast moving action, characters sketched enough to get a handle on them.
Nevertheless, this is awfully predictable.
Change of pace from many Delirium / Dark Fuse grief soaked releases.

Wolfen - 1981 - 6/10

Murders splash across Manhattan penthouses and rubbled Bronx tenements.
One might think random serial killer or spree killer, yet detective finds himself drawn into myth.
Legends from when New York was a native tribal area.
Of early Dutch settlements. Of beasts that still pad their territory.
Wolves, werewolves. Part slasher / part thriller. Add police procedural, surveillance and Capitalism.
Albert Finney and Gregory Hines make a great team.
Michael (“Woodstock”) Wadleigh’s rough cut – preferred cut – director’s cut remains unseen.

Mrs. Biggs - 2012 - 6/10

Mrs. Ronnie Biggs, longest refugee from justice for the 1963 Great Train Robbery.
Powerful acting by Sheridan Smith and Daniel Mays boost this greatly.
Ronnie, cheap crook, petty soul, gets into a whirlwind affair with Charmian.
Marriage, children, and the desire for “nice things” which they can ill afford.
The heist is well thought out and meticulously shown.
There are too many men in the heist, though. More men, greater chance of a weak link.
Caper is just one episode, followed by years on the run, evading, separate lives.
Aside from seeing clips of Biggs rollicking on the Rio beaches over the years, I knew little about this.
The real Charmian Biggs assisted in the script, so one hopes this is somewhat accurate.

The Lady From Shanghai - 1947 - 6/10

A sucker born every minute.
Irish seaman O’Hara takes a shine to blonde beauty Elsa.
She is married, but her husband is much older and a cripple.
He hires on as mate on their yacht, and is soon involved in murder.
Plot is hardly a mess, yet it is confusing.
Partly by Welles’ design, partly because much was cut, reshot and reedited.
Droll humor will be lost to many; it is key to appreciating.
Much of the film was shot on Errol Flynn’s yacht, the Zaca.

The Omega Man - 1971 - 6/10

Second adaptation of Matheson’s “I Am Legend”.
Following a global biological war, humans are down to survivors and mutants.
Dr. Neville has developed a vaccine, but the albino mutants ain’t buying it.
Luddites to the core, probably insane, technology has to go, as do any cures.
Heston is resourceful at keeping them at bay … for awhile.
There are logic holes, yet the suspense and pacing keep you riveted to the proceedings.

The Dive - 2023 - 6/10

Sisters Drew and May prepare for the annual family watery descent.
One gathers Dad exists no more, while Ma is a lost entity.
Bubbly Drew and glum May are polar opposites, as they drive down the coast of Malta.
Destination? An underwater cave. Have they told anyone?
So, early on, when the landslide occurs, the scatterbrained Drew is left safe.
Most of this is photographed deep down, so this is fairly dark.
Drew is something between a klutz and a dunce, a perky bobblehead.
Decent aqua-thriller, marred by overly excessive characterizations.

Night Shift: Money Heist - 2022 - 6/10

After forging their boss’s signature, and sorta buying stuff for themselves, two office drones get fired.
What to do? Drink, get high, then plot to heist the boss’s black money vault.
Bear in mind, our two schemers ain’t the brightest bulbs.
“Some heists work, some don’t.”
Sharp Hindi comedy.

Love Pants: Ian Dury & Jane Horrocks - 2022 - 7/10

Jane was 23 when she met the 45 year old Dury.
She was an up and coming actress, his mainstream appeal had waned, although he continued to have hits.
There relationship, tempestuous and toxic, barely endured a year.
Years after his death in 2000, she unearthed letters.
Love letters, loaded barbs, apologetic, pleading.
Reasons why she loved him, and why she had to leave.
Radio drama, for Dury fans, for those enmeshed in bitter love.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001g97b

Reasons To Be Cheerful - 2017 - 7/10

Blockheads, assemble! Ian Dury musical follows a pair of stiffs trying to see a concert.
Vinnie tells of when he and mate Colin schemed to attend a sold out Hammersmith show.
It’s also tribute to Vinnie’s father who has gone blind, yet remains defiantly anti-establishment.
In between, sometimes out of nowhere, the songs, pounding, aggressively in your face.
The Graeae Theatre Company features an all-disabled cast, though you will not notice after a few minutes.
Filmed live in a pub club, the sound is a mixed bag.
During dialogue / monologue volume is too low, whereas musical numbers roar full throttle.
The mixing person should have easily corrected this during or afterward.

House Of Usher - 1960 - 7/10

Philip arrives at the Usher mansion, home of his fiancée, Madeleine.
Only brother Roderick refuses, owing to the Usher curse.
Philip stays, listens to brother Roderick spin tales of family history and madness.
Surprisingly good film from Roger Corman.
Benefits from Vincent Price’s restrained, brooding performance.
Superb set design. DVD boasts commentary by Corman.

Last Plane From Baalbeck - 1964 - 6/10
AKA - F.B.I. Operazione Baalbeck

Energetic Italian Noir set in Beirut.
Interpol sends in a fresh agent to Lebanon to thwart gun runners.
Earlier agents had been liquidated.
On the plane, on the tarmac, in the terminal, everyone looks suspicious.
Fresh killings begin.
The narrative moves so fast that one doesn’t have time to think, or even sort cops from villains.
Beirut locations would have been exotic, especially when this city was considered the Paris of the Mideast.

The Medusa - 2023 - 6/10

Over cocktails, Professor Gleer gives old flame, Professor Dregler, a book.
Gleer is something of a boaster, and the book he picked up during foreign travels.
Dregler them strolls into an ever perplexing journey.
Decent Ligotti short mixes the everydayness with increasingly disorientation.
Note: Subtitles are indifferent. I captured, and was able to correct half. Have been unable to reach the creator to fix the remainder.

Gangster No. 1 - 2000 - 6/10

Freddy, spellbound by beauty onstage, fails to see the hungry gleam in his new recruit’s eye.
Not for the bird, but for Freddy’s clothes, flash, position.
He is ambitious, cold blooded, probably a sociopath.
The gang is a small, disparate bunch, and Freddy seems to be losing focus.
Set in “Swinging London” this evokes the Sixties, instead of offering slavish imitation.
Paul Bettany and Malcolm McDowell brilliantly channel the same gangster, decades apart.
Stylish, violent, with the blackest of comedy.

Bodyguards And Assassins - 2009 - 6/10
AKA - Shi Yue Wei Cheng // 十月围城

In 1905, Dr Sun Yat Sen plans to visit Hong Kong to unite provincial rebel factions.
The empress wants him assassinated.
A force of skilled murderers are gathered, strategies and snares laid.
In opposition, ordinary folk from rickshaw drivers to street vendors, students to disgraced nobles.
Continued slavery vs the chance at democracy.
Film is slow burn for about an hour, once Sun Yat Sen arrives, street fighting begins.
Second half overloaded with breathless action.
Dominated by Donnie Yen, Jun Hu, Simon Yam, Leon Lai.
Fights, dazzlingly choreographed, excessive and heroic.
Since that era, millions of Chinese have died, hoping for democracy; in 2024, democracy seems a dream.