Month: August 2020

The Seashell and the Clergyman (1928)

THE SEASHELL AND THE CLERGYMAN (1928)
aka La coquille et le clergyman
Article 4891 by Dave Sindelar
Date: 8-5-2015
Directed by Germaine Dulac
Featuring Alex Allin, Genica Athanasiou, Lucien Bataille
Country: France
What it is: Avant-garde

A clergyman suffers from lust for a woman and hatred for a general.

Years ago I wrote a report on Antonin Artaud for a theatre history class; his sanity was questionable, and he was a proponent of what he called the “Theatre of Cruelty” in which the intent was to theatrically assault the audience. Once I saw his name on the credits of this one, I was fully prepared for something strange. Apparently, he himself hated what the film did to his screenplay; he insulted Germaine Dulac at the premiere, calling her “a cow”. Therefore, I assume that Dulac is primarily responsible for the non-linear strangeness of this one; though the lust of the clergyman appears to be the primary theme, there is no real narrative to the story and it plays out like a dream. Some of the sequences are quite striking, and there’s a dance scene that reminded me so much of a similar one in CARNIVAL OF SOULS that I wonder if Herk Harvey was familiar with this film. User comments on IMDB mention the film as a possible companion piece to UN CHIEN ANDALOU. On a side note, the movie was banned in the United Kingdom; the censors said “If it has a meaning, it is doubtless objectionable.”

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Die Insel der Seligen (1913)

DIE INSEL DER SELIGEN (1913)
aka Island of the Blessed
Article 4890 by Dave Sindelar
Date: 8-4-2015
Directed by Max Reinhardt
Featuring Paul Davidson, Erika De Planque, Wilhelm Diegelmann
Country: Germany
What it is: Odd fantasy

Two young women, two young men, two rotund fathers, and two weird suitors all visit an island inhabited by the Roman gods, who proceed to interfere with their lives.

The intertitles are in German on this silent film, so I couldn’t rely on them to help me with sorting out the plot. The basic premise is fairly clear, though; several mortals find their lives changed due to the interference of a gaggle of gods. It’s basically a variation on “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” with one crucial difference; by the end of the movie, the gods do not undo the damage and mischief they’ve done, and the ending is a bit grotesque. In fact, it’s not just the ending that is grotesque; some of the human characters seem a little bizarre and twisted, and though I suspect these are supposed to be comic touches, it’s rather hard to tell. The end result is a movie that, instead of coming across as comic, comes across as weird and unsettling. Incidentally, Max Reinhardt was a noted theatrical director who is primarily remembered for having helmed the 1935 version of A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM.

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Fig Leaves (1926)

FIG LEAVES (1926)
Article 4889 by Dave Sindelar
Date: 8-3-2015
Directed by Howard Hawks
Featuring George O’Brien, Olive Borden, Phyllis Haver
Country: USA
What it is: Comedy

A plumber’s wife’s desire for new clothes inadvertently leads to a rift in the marriage, especially when a scheming neighbor and a narcissistic fashion designer come upon the scene.

This certainly doesn’t sound anything like the usual fare I cover, but fans of fantastic cinema will want to tune in for the first twelve minutes of the movie. This section takes place in prehistoric/garden of Eden times, and before we’re through, we’re treated to a giant chimpanzee, two dinosaurs (one providing bus transportation) and a talking snake; it’s a bit like an early version of “The Flintstones”. As for the rest of the movie, the efficient direction of Howard Hawks and the genuinely witty script make it an enjoyable affair. Still, I wouldn’t blame anyone for getting a little bored during a lengthy “fashion show” sequence which was originally shot in color, but only exists nowadays in black and white. The dinosaurs aren’t really convincing, but they are fun, especially a full-size prop triceratops. This one was quite entertaining.

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The King of Kings (1927)

THE KING OF KINGS (1927)
Article 4888 by Dave Sindelar
Date: 8-1-2015
Directed by Cecil B. DeMille
Featuring H.B. Warner, Dorothy Cumming, Ernest Torrence
Country: USA
What it is: The Christ story

The story of Jesus Christ’s arrival in Jerusalem, miracles, arrest, crucifixion and resurrection is told.

Of the various versions of the Christ story I’ve seen so far, this one is easily the best. Why? For one thing, it makes no attempt to tell the whole story; the movie omits the birth of Christ, the early years and picks and chooses which episodes to cover. Various events are taken out of order and juxtaposed together, and new details are added that, as far as I remember, were not in the gospels. The end result is a streamlined version of the story with the emphasis on maximum dramatic effect. There are some brilliant sequences here. One of my favorite moments is the first appearance of Christ. He does not appear until about twenty minutes into the movie; our first view coincides with the miracle of the sight being restored to a blind boy, and it’s a very effective entrance. The sequence where the seven deadly sins are cast out of Mary Magdalene is also quite memorable. Much emphasis is given to the surrounding characters; Judas, Simon Peter, Caiaphas and Pontius Pilate are all given memorable characters and moments. There are some wonderful touches here; one of my favorite moments is when Simon of Cyrene first tries to help Jesus carry the cross. A good deal of credit must also go to the performance of H.B. Warner; in his hands, Christ does much more than solemnly gesture, but is given a natural and quite moving personality. Furthermore, the movie even relaxes enough to have a sense of humor on occasion, such as the scene where the Roman soldiers go fishing. Yes, at two and a half hours, it is a long movie, but it would have felt a lot longer if the various elements hadn’t gelled. As it is, this one is very effective.

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Somewhere in Time (1980)

SOMEWHERE IN TIME (1980)
Article 4887 by Dave Sindelar
Date: 7-31-2015
Directed by Jeannot Szwarc
Featuring Christopher Reeve, Jane Seymour, Christoper Plummer
Country: USA
What it is: Time travel romance

A playwright from 1979 becomes enamored with an actress in 1912, and finds a way to travel back to the past to meet her.

I hated this movie when I first saw it years ago. Watching it again now, I can see why I hated it; once the symphonic score rears it lush romantic head, the movie practically grabs me by the lapels, shakes me and screams “THIS IS A ROMANCE!!!!”, and I must confess I’m not actually keen on being shaken, especially for a romance. However, having spotted the culprit that made me hate the movie the first time, I found the movie much easier to endure now that I know what drove me away the last time. Even at that, I didn’t really grow to like anything about the movie until the playwright actually does travel to 1912, because it’s only at that point that the movie loosens up and starts to relax. Easily the best thing about the movie is Christopher Reeve’s performance; despite the fact that he is the epitome of the “handsome leading man”, his ability to play up a character’s nervousness and awkwardness and his knack for finding the humor makes him feel likable and approachable. In fact, the movie is well-acted by all concerned, and I can admire that despite the fact that the movie was made in the late seventies, it projects an aura of being a movie from the forties. Still, the movie is what it is, and that’s a tear-jerking romance, and if that’s not what you’re looking for, the movie’s appeal will be somewhat limited. No, I don’t hate the movie anymore, but it has moved to the category of “movies I don’t have a whole lot of use for”, which isn’t exactly a recommendation, either.

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Silver Bullet (1985)

SILVER BULLET (1985)
aka Stephen King’s Silver Bullet
Article 4886 by Dave Sindelar
Date: 7-30-2015
Directed by David Attias
Featuring Gary Busey, Everett McGill, Corey Haim
Country: USA / Netherlands
What it is: Werewolf movie

A young crippled boy stumbles upon the existence of a werewolf who is responsible for several murders in the area, but can he convince anyone of it?

Stephen King adapted his own novella into the screenplay for this adaptation of his work. I do have a few minor quibbles with the movie. The special effects, while being similar to those in AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON, aren’t quite as impressive, The motorcycle/wheelchair combo designed for the boy is a cutesy touch that seems to be in the wrong movie, and the movie leaves some of its interesting ideas undeveloped. Nevertheless, it’s a credit to the movie that those ideas are there in the first place, and what I like about the movie, I really like. There’s a certain Bradbury-like feel to the movie, what with its small-town setting and being told from a child’s point of view. I also like the relationships and conflicts between the characters. And I love the ways it uses its references to THE WOLF MAN; the first victim of the werewolf bears a strong resemblance to Lon Chaney Jr., and the movie not only uses the ground fog from the earlier movie, but it actually finds a practical horrific use for the effect. And I love the line about the Lone Ranger. All in all, I really liked this one.

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Red Sonja (1985)

RED SONJA (1985)
Article 4885 by Dave Sindelar
Date: 7-29-2013
Directed by Richard Fleischer
Featuring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Brigitte Nielsen, Sandahl Bergman
Country: Netherlands / USA
What it is: Sword and sorcery

A female swordsmaster does battle with an evil queen who has acquired a destructive talisman.

Had the filmmakers been able to acquire the rights to the name, this would have been the third Conan movie; as it is, the Conan substitute is named Kalidor, and Schwarzenegger, despite getting top billing, is consigned to an awkward supporting role which was originally intended to be a mere cameo. As might be expected, there is much sword-clanging going on here, but the action sequences are merely adequate. The story is thread-bare and cliched, and much of the dialogue is written in a rather stiff and florid style that requires a certain aplomb from the actors; sadly, many of them aren’t quite up to the task, and it ends up sounding pretty silly. I also couldn’t help but notice that Sandahl Bergman’s scar make-up isn’t always there; usually, I don’t notice goofs like that, but they made such a big deal of it that you’d expect they would have taken more care. To me, the best thing about the movie was some of elaborate sets; as for the rest, I found it pretty forgettable.

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The House that Jack Built (1900)

THE HOUSE THAT JACK BUILT (1900)
Article 4884 by Dave Sindelar
Date: 7-28-2015
Directed by George Albert Smith
Featuring Dorothy Smith and Harold Smith
Country: UK
What it is: Simple trick short

A little girl builds a house with blocks, but becomes upset when her brother knocks it down piece by piece. However, thanks to the magic of reverse motion, all is made well.

This is a very simple trick short illustrating the effect of running footage in reverse. We see the house being knocked down, and then it rebuilds itself when the footage is reversed. As such, the action is well-suited to demonstrate the technique, and the house rebuilding itself does look like magic, hence its fantastic content. The short runs about thirty seconds long. Yes, it looks primitive nowadays, but it’s fun to imagine what it must have been like in the early days of cinema to discover these tricks and techniques.

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Psycho III (1986)

PSYCHO III (1986)
Article 4883 by Dave Sindelar
Date: 7-27-2015
Directed by Anthony Perkins
Featuring Anthony Perkins, Diana Scarwid, Jeff Fahey
Country: USA
What it is: Another visit to the Bates Motel

Norman is running the Bates Motel again, and he encounters a drifter seeking temporary employment as well as a woman who bears a resemblance to Marion Crane. Then the murders start up again…

After watching this movie, I found myself asking what Alfred Hitchcock would have done if he’d directed a sequel to PSYCHO. My first answer is, of course, “he wouldn’t”. My second answer is “if he did, he certainly wouldn’t spend most of the movie referencing his scenes from the earlier movie”. Of course, none of the sequels had a director the calibre of Hitchcock, and for this one, I got tired of the way so many scenes were set up to remind us of scenes from the earlier movie (though it does throw in a VERTIGO reference for good measure). The best thing about this movie is Anthony Perkins the actor (as to differentiate from Anthony Perkins the director); he’s still fascinating to watch in the role of Norman Bates, though it’s starting to become clear that he’s treading ground he’s already covered before. The script has one good twist when the movie is referencing the shower scene, but I’m less impressed with the rest of it; some of the murders occur simply because it was a convenient time to shoehorn another murder into the story. By the time the ending rolled around, the whole thing was starting to feel rather silly. That didn’t keep another sequel from being produced, though reportedly that one’s a prequel.

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Planet of Dinosaurs (1977)

PLANET OF DINOSAURS (1977)
Article 4882 by Dave Sindelar
Date: 7-26-2015
Directed by James K. Shea
Featuring Mary Appleseth, Harvey Shain, Derna Wylde
Country: USA
What it is: Dinosaur movie

A crew from outer space lands on a prehistoric planet inhabited by dinosaurs. Will they survive long enough to be rescued… if they ever are?

Those that want to grouse will find plenty of fodder in this movie. The script is full of stock situations and clunky dialogue, and the cast is generally not up to the task of making the dialogue sound anything but stiff and awkward. There’s a lot of dead space in the movie, particularly during the walking and climbing scenes. Weak direction is also a problem (this is James K. Shea’s sole directorial credit), and production values are lacking, especially during the night scenes. In a sense, though, these elements seem to be mostly a framing device for movie’s real purpose, which is to showcase the stop-motion dinosaur effects, and these are solid, creative and enjoyable. They’re good enough to almost make you forgive the movie’s shortcomings. However, you’ll notice I said “almost”; it doesn’t quite compensate for saddling us with one of the worst comic-relief characters of all time, the whining, pompous and ineffectual company man; he’s not funny and is incredibly annoying. Well, I will give the script some credit for at least managing to find a good use for the character at about the halfway point of the movie when he goes searching for a giant chicken.

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