Vultural

Robinson Crusoe On Mars - 1964 - 6/10

After crash landing on Mars, the lone surviving astronaut must find water, oxygen and food.
The isolation, the loneliness, proves to be the most challenging.
First half is a thoughtful SciFi, close to hard science, at least for the 1960’s.
Afterward, it goes into action adventure territory.
Flashy special effects, excellent models and miniatures.
The cinematography is quite widescreen, and beautiful (I think Death Valley locations).

The Prisoner Of Zenda - 1937 - 7/10

The King Of Ruritaria is kidnapped before his coronation.
By chance, a distant English cousin resembles him and is asked to impersonate before villains seize the crown.
Brisk moving adventure holds up strongly.
Mystery, some romance, the duplicity of relatives, dangers of drink.
The paraphrase the page turners, this is a thumping good romp.
A large chunk of the “British Colony” seems to be here.
Ronald Colman excellent in dual roles. Douglas Fairbanks Jr., however, is absolutely unforgettable as the charming rogue, Rupert Of Hentzau.

Enemy Gold - 1993 - 4/10

During the Civil War, or War Between The States for you lost cause diehards, a pair of Johnny Rebs hide a mess of gold in the roots of a tree.
Their plan to retrieve the loot later on dies when both are killed. D-E-D = dead.
Jump ahead 130 years later, when Federal agents, tracking swamp drug dealers, find the stash!
Who’d’ve thunk it?
In no time flat, crooked Feds are after the trio, along with the drug gang, and a female assassin in a bikini.
(How she ain’t getting all bit up by mosquitoes, ticks and chiggers is beyond comprehension.)
Oh, wait a minute! The good agents, they find time to get naked and get frisky whenever the mood strikes.
Nonsense from Drew Sidaris (Andy’s kid).
Fans of Julie Strain will relish watching her try to out-act a tree stump.

Dead Or Alive - 1999 - 7/10
AKA - Deddo oa Araibu: Hanzaisha // 犯罪者

The opening ten minutes is demonstration time!
Unbelievable sequence of quick cutting introduces characters, a decadent yakuza, a high voltage heist.
The editing is a jaw dropping example of concision, along with the show, don’t say ethos.
A low level street gang robs a powerful yakuza boss.
The boss, in turn, coerces an indebted cop to track the gang and bring them to him.
What follows is a weird, ugly crime film of betrayals and vengeance.
A film that grows progressively stranger, with an off-the-rails finale.

The.Walls Of Memory - 2019 - 5/10
AKA - Les Murs du Souvenir

Followup to The Mists Of Memory, which was adequate at best.
This is more of the same, as the detective wrestles with personal problems, while that forensic anthropologist is something between needy teenage, puppy love and outright stalking.
Their personal stories blow, man. The duo exhibit negative chemistry.

Meanwhile, a dead Totenkopf SS officer is found inside a wall during demolition.
The plot is immediately suspect. 99.9% of French would say, “Oh, dead Nazi from 70 years ago? Who cares. Common grave. Case closed.”
Nope, not here. There are complications.
Far-fetched story, ludicrous finale, two leads with appeal of wilted zucchini.

The Vampire Family - 1990 - 6/10
AKA - Semya Vurdalakov

The newspaper photographer is renowned for capturing gruesome scenes.
Next assignment, the small village where most of the residents have died or fled.
It is remote, primitive, and the last household is superstitious.
The dead don’t stay dead. They return within nine days. Hungry, no, make that thirsty.

Visibly dark film manages to be claustrophobic and eerie.
The city guest is out of his depth, but he makes an ideal observer.
Looking without grasping.
The film is not remotely slick, in fact it is incoherent at times.
Nevertheless, the otherness of the place, along with the forbidding suspense. is chilling.

Rye Lane - 2023 - 7/10

Dom is in rough territory. His girlfriend has left him for – who else – his best friend.
While crying in a bathroom stall, a female overhears and comments.
“This is the men’s room.” He says. “No, unisex,” she answers.
Aha, the “meet-cute” moment in his RomCom set in South London.
The pair skip the train, skip the bus, and start a walk home.
Talking the whole time. Eventually turning into the Quest.
Both characters are intelligent, the visuals highly entertaining.
Yes, there is a cameo. Yes, that’s him!

Fear City: A Family-Style Comedy - 1994 - 6/10
AKA - La Cité de la Peur

The slasher film, Red Is Dead, is so bad, even critics refuse to write about it.
Until life imitates art, and a maniacal series killer starts cutting theater staff.
Bad press is better than no press, and murders are best of all!
Suddenly the terrible movie is buzz worthy at Cannes.
Hit n miss comedy is loaded with film references, gags, and lots of cameos.
The form swings between farce and innuendo and slapstick.
Misfires might have been French puns that I missed.
If you have a fondness for silly (and those around me laughed throughout) this is for you.

Boiler Room - 2000 - 7/10

Investment advisor cold calls the sheep.
OK, deadbeat Seth hires on as trainee at small, high-rolling brokerage house.
Specialty? Aggressive sales of shaky stocks and municipals.
Targets? Greedy rich, overworked professionals, wannabees, fools.
This is hardly a legitimate firm. Ethics are casual.
Rapid fire, blistering paced film is an soured fun ride.
Probably worse if you are among the fleeced.

The New Age - 1994 - 5/10

Odd indie film about the yuppie couple, going broke in glossy LA.
They are foolish with money, their careers unsatisfying.
Satire of the hyper materialism of the Reagan / Bush years into the brink.
The couple (low key Peter Weller, crackling Judy Davis) try to reinvigorate themselves.
Today’s fads are tomorrow’s failures, and the noose of financial reality tightens.
Uncomfortably funny film, dated for a few years, now resonating again.
Watch for Judy Davis, and a surprisingly good Adam West.
Finale in the boiler room is sad, poignant, hopeful.

Weird Woman - 1944 - 6/10

Professor Reed comes across a South Seas tribal ceremony.
Among the villagers, Paula, daughter of his old mentor.
Even before we witness sparks, the pair are stateside, newly married.
Where the college is now something like a snakepit.
Fortunately for Prof Reed, Paula knows magic spells to protect him!
Version of Fritz Leiber’s “Conjure Wife”, bears passing resemblance to the source.
Nary a supernatural element in this academic melodrama.
Breezy commentary by Justin Humphreys and Del Howison goes into Leiber and Chaney.
As well as the three leading ladies who had deep roots in Horror.
At barely an hour, watch the film, rewind for the comments.

Mulholland Drive - 2001 - 8/10

The only Lynch item I like, despite baffling elements with every rewatch.
A dense film about identity, reality, madness, narcissism, Hollywood.
Betty, hoping to make it big in Hollywood arrives at her aunt’s bungalow, and finds amnesiac Rita.
Betty auditions, moguls tug the strings. Then she and Rita search for clues about the latter’s amnesia.
One almost has to view this three times before half the plot makes sense.
On physical copies (eg: DVD) Lynch has left “helpful hints” on what to watch for.
They may be helpful, they may be jokes from this, at times, maddening director.
A hypnotic film.

Warning! Faithful fans already know the site below.
New arrivals to Mulholland Drive, visit at your own risk:
https://www.mulholland-drive.net/studies/theories.htm

The Doors - 1991 - 7/10

Iffy biopic of the group, focusing on frontman, Jim Morrison.
Val Kilmer disappears into Morrison, even doing much of his own singing.
Film charts the genesis on Venice Beach though heyday, debauchery, odd conclusion.
Midway, the film captures the fin de siècle vibe of the 60’s end.
Purists and band members have a problem with Stone’s storyline, as he seems to use the Doors’ narrative as a metaphor for the decade itself.
This is not Jim the poet, this is gonzo Jim, the lizard king, Jimbo. This unbalances the movie.
Outstanding music, stellar casting (save for Meg Ryan who is too wholesome, too prudish).
Flawed as history, but spectacular in its own right.

The Mists Of Memory - 2017 - 6/10
AKA - Les Brumes du Souvenir

The honorary mayor of an obliterated village in Verdun is murdered on the eve of Armistice Day.
Thousands of Great War bodes are still unearthed, targets for looters who sell relics online.
Searching, another, more recent skeleton is dug up.
Local police expect a prosecutor to arrive, not a rival detective since locals may be “too close”.
This breaks with most French mysteries, which invariably pair a detective with a legal official,
Also, the local gendarme continually marginalizes and undercuts the detective.
Watchable French mystery shuffles along by fits and starts.

Kirk, Richard A - Magpie’s Ladder

And the ladder is long, extending into the Darkling Lands, realm of Mr. Magpie, a puzzling character who Lily senses she ought to avoid, focus on her work, her marriage, and yet she is drawn.
Nor is Magpie as harmless as he seemed, as Lily discovers to her despair. The title story is one of bitter experience, the price of education that leaves a scar.
George has been with the firm for ages. From the previous chairman to his son. The is not enough pay, so he boosts his revenue with a little … well … counterfeiting has such a connotation, doesn’t it? He is caught, although in “The Engrosser” he is given an option. Descend to the basement – no, deeper than that – and find out what is going on down there.
“Elephant Bridge” floats downstream with weathered Aunt Justine and young Gillian. Very far, down to where the bridge is, the structure that allegedly contains hundreds of wooden drawers. The old are seldom curious, but the young, oh, how insatiable their inquisitiveness.
A collection that goes into secrets, although answers are not forthcoming and rarely satisfy. On the plus side, this packed with Kirk’s illustrations. Readers of Clive Barker, Caitlín Kiernan, China Miéville, Thomas Ligotti will recognize his style immediately.

Ever After - 1998 - 7/10

Charming adaptation of Cinderella, applying a few modern sensibilities.
Cinderella here is a rather feisty heroine, a can-do girl who strives.
A fine family film, this not Disney, not Hallmark… No cloying syrup in this.
Drew Barrymore, well cast, has enough girlishness for the role.
She also really sells her character.
The rest of the cast is first rate, from Angelica Huston to Jeanne Moreau.
As noted, a good family film, bordering on classic, one your kids won’t roll their eyes at.

Blume In Love - 1973 - 5/10

Nina divorces hotshot lawyer Blume (George Segal), who cannot accept she left him.
And that she has taken up with a laid back musician (Kris Kristofferson).
Well acted, but this basic love triangle borders on obsessive melodrama.
Aside from Kristofferson and a radiant Marsha Mason, the characters are narcissists.
Unless you were there, and still remember, the 70’s were “The Me Decade”.
While this showcases that attitude, along with the empty, hedonistic values, the character stories are rather trite if not outright boring.
A message film, and the final message is flat out wrong. Even for the 70’s.

Conan The Destroyer - 1984 - 6/10

What happened here?
Conan The Barbarian (1982) was faithful to Robert E Howard and Frank Frazetta.
Brutal, sexy, dark, bloody. Breathe the Hyborian Age.
This followup is more cartoonish. Silly at times.
Anyway, the Cimmerian is tasked with escorting a virgin princess to restore a horn on the god Dagoth (Dagon?).
Adventures follow in this disappointing sequel.
Great cast, fabulous sets, all wasted.
John Milius and Oliver Stone sorely missed.

The Relic - 1997 - 6/10

Uh! Don’t drink the water. Don’t drink the medicine stew from the South American jungle tribe.
Yes, I know, one wants to fit in, be accepted, especially if you are an anthropologist.
Well, don’t blame me when you don’t feel so well upon your return to Chicago.
Then the killings start.
Glorified B-Horror is akin to monster in the museum.
OK premise of creature feasting on brains in closed building is spooky enough.
Film excessively dark, most of the characters are dull as putty.
Tolerable if you don’t analyze too much.

The Red Circle - 1970 - 8/10
AKA - Le Cercle Rouge

Before being released from prison, one of the guards tells Corey about a perfect heist.
Meanwhile, prisoner transfer Vogel escapes from a train.
Chance – Fate – Luck. The two criminals meet, start planning the caper, assembling the team.
Wonderful Noir is an example of minimalism and efficiency.
Almost no music, dialogue is spare.
These are professionals, men, who respect each other and don’t babble like 30 year old manboys.
Honor among thieves, at odds with human weakness and treachery.

Something For Everyone - 1970 - 7/10

Wickedly funny comedy will definitely not be for all tastes.
Konrad is the charming, young opportunist who glides into the castle of the von Ornsteins.
They are impoverished, as is he, yet he is calculating.
As daughter Lotte declares, “Thinking all of the time. Clickety-click.”
Enter the visiting nouveau riche boors, what they lack in manners, they compensate with gobs of money.
One can see how this failed in the States. Much too European in sensibilities and sexuality.

L’autre Aile - 1923 - 6/10

After Reymat perishes in an aeroplane crash, wealthy fiancé Hélène decides to be an aviatrix
In no time flat, this buxom beauty is the toast of the tarmac.
The press adores her, men chase and grope after her, women hate her.
One even tries to kill her!
Yes, Grade A melodrama.
Restoration is outstanding, tinting sublime, aerial sequences likely state of the art in the 1920’s.

Rocketship X-M - 1950 - 6/10

On a trip to the Moon, X-M over-accelerates and is swept to Mars.
Well, as long as we are here, our crew decides to explore.

Finding an extinct, advanced civilization. Catastrophe? No, nuclear war.
Very low budget is blessing and curse for “message” film.
Thought provoking, yet the odd series of predicaments look cheap.
Lloyd Bridges leads this old favorite, enjoyable if you don’t dissect the “science” too much.

Ruby - 2020 - 6/10

Unemployed, bills piling up, Ava decides to take on phone work.
Adult phone work. Not for prudes, not for squeamish, as callers can be pretty filthy.
There is a stalker, though. One who realizes who she is, where she lives.
Short, borderline thriller, too mild-mannered to be erotic, and lacks thrills.

Clarence And Ginni Thomas: Politics, Power And The Supreme Court - 2023 - 7/10

Informative documentary, very enlightening about background and influence.
Clarence Thomas is especially interesting, viewing his swing from young Malcolm X radical to far right Conservative.
Ginni Thomas less compelling, as she was a very conservative child, and never changed.
The closer the time frame nears our current period, the more producers tiptoe.
There is money involved, perhaps influence peddling, perhaps bribery, which is briefly commented on.
Also, by extension, if justices can be purchased, then Courts are corrupt and meaningless.