Coney island

Good old-time musical
I saw all her movies when a kid, and I enjoyed watching them again. Also, the Technicolor is beautiful. Music great.

Finally out on Official DVD- never available on VHS
As Phil Silvers would say, "Glad to see ya!". Well, I'm glad to see this film on DVD! Finally, finally - after waiting years and years. It's nice to have this film (and it's "twin", Wabash Avenue) out on official DVD. There's plenty of bootlegs of this film (and many other Betty Grable films) running around out there - buyer beware!. Neither Coney Island or Wabash Avenue have ever been available on VHS or DVD. Both films are part of the "bare bones" Fox Cinema Archives collection - no chapters, no fancy inserts, no extras of any kind. Just the movie. I have had a bad, taped from TV bootleg of this movie for years because it never was available. Finally Fox has smartened up and realized that there is a market for this type of film, after all - look at how many badly made bootlegs there are out there. I just think that Betty deserves fancier packaging.

The only thing I don't like about this film is that George Montgomery's singing voice (obviously dubbed) doesn't match his...

A Feast for the Eyes
Not great cinema, but a heck of a lot of fun to watch. The print is wonderful . . . sharp, colorful and clean. The sound is so good that it almost sounds like stereo. Coney Island is typical 1940s 20th Century Fox fare but Betty Grable is major joy to watch, especially in technicolor. No wonder she was so popular. If you like the genre, if you are a fan of Grable, or if you just enjoy a good time, this one's for you.

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Warlock

Near brilliant, undiscovered western
The 1959 film "Warlock" is one of those great surprises for movie fans. It's a classic western, undiscovered, awaiting the lucky viewer who happens to stumble across it. After viewing this dark, almost gothic oater, most viewers will ask themselves, "Why haven't I heard of this film?!"

I'm not sure as to why "Warlock" has been relatively ignored over the years, though I think the film is derivative of other films. I think the generic Hollywood backlots where "Warlock" was undoubtedly filmed certainly detract from its overall allure. But simply put, "Warlock" fell through the cracks, and it's a film deserving of reexamination.

Part "High Noon," part "Shane," part "The Searchers," "Warlock" tells the tale of a town victimized by crime. They hire a gunfighter in the form of Henry Fonda, who arrives with a crippled sidekick (Anthony Quinn) in tow. Fonda's character becomes a semi-celebrity,...

One Of The Best Westerns Of The 50's!
Warlock is one of those movies that got lost in the shuffle in the years following its release. Subsequent classics like The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, The Magnificent Seven, The Man With No Name trilogy, The Wild Bunch, etc, all diverted attention away from this 1959 Western masterpiece. Expertly directed by Edward Dmytryk and starring Richard Widmark, Henry Fonda (in one of his best Western roles), Anthony Quinn (in arguably HIS best Western role), DeForest Kelley, and Dorothy Malone, this is a movie that - upon further review - truly does hold up very well against even the best Westerns of all time.

Fonda plays a Marshall (gun) for hire who is brought in to "clean up" the town of Warlock. He does so with the proviso that he can do it his way, with no interference from the town council. They agree, but he warns them that at first they will love him and what he does, but later on they will come to hate him and his methods. His prediction comes true, but the way the...

Warlock ain't for me
One of the great, forgotten westerns, Edward Dmytryk's WARLOCK is the story of the little southwestern town of Warlock and its ongoing battle with a gang of law breaking desperados. The gang is led by Abe McQuown (Tom Drake,) a bad hombre who we can safely assume has ruled Warlock for a long, long time. The first scene in the film shows McQuown and gang `calling out' the town's deputy sheriff. If the opening scene is a little reminiscent of the closing scenes of `High Noon', the deputy sheriff's inglorious exit is not. He's humiliated out of town, and McQuown's control of the cowed town is once again secure and unquestioned.

One emergency town council meeting later the town agrees to spend the exorbitant amount of $400 a month to buy the services of gunslinger Clay Blaisedell (Henry Fonda) and his tag-along friend, gambling operator and dime magazine hero Tom Morgan (Anthony Quinn), the `Black Rattlesnake of St. James.' Since Warlock is not an incorporated town,...

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Oscar Romero: A Martyr's Homily

Product Quality
The content of the product is outstanding, however there is no mention in the description of the item does it state the product is a DVR even though it is described as a DVD. The quality is that of a VHS transfer. Had the product been about half the price, this could have been expected. Disappointed.





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The Next American Revolution: Beyond Corporate Capitalism & State Socialism

Excellent tool for education and action
I saw the trailer to this movie on Vimeo and was blown away, so I bought it on through Amazon and had it arrive at my house three days later. The film didn't disappoint--I set up a screening for friends on Facebook and Eventbrite, and used the movie's website resources to do a discussion afterward.

The film is great because it gives people an analysis of what the long term trends of the U.S. economy are (stagnating wages, environmental destruction, rising inequality) and how they affect American politics. The most important thing, though, is that it offers solutions. As communities around the country build up economic power through practical initiatives, Alperovitz shows how that can translate into progressive political power, and hopefully a way to break open the corporate stranglehold that's preventing us from dealing with climate change, a bloated financial sector represented by Wall Street, wasteful and exclusive health care, and wealth inequality. Alperovitz says that...

This DVD is a great summary of Alperovitz's ideas.
I heard about Alperovitz on NPR, googled him finding a five minute video, and had this DVD within a week. I immediately bought his book What Then Must We Do? and have benefited from his clear summary of the problems that face America and the solutions.

Succinct, very relevant, and professionally presented
At last, the Mondragon model has found traction outside of Spain: it call it socialist capitalism or capitalist socialism - cooperation at the grassroots works!

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Mister 880

Surprisingly good comedy...
This is the story of an old man (Edmund Gwenn) living alone and feeding himself by "collecting antiques"..mainly other peoples junk....and selling it. He finds an old printing press and starts to print money but ONLY when he is running short of cash at the end of the month. The Treasury Dept case file is "#880" and the agents start calling him "Mr 880" because they cannot find him. Years go by and still he remains anonymous .....that is until a "hot shot" special agent is sent from Washington (Burt Lancaster).....the agent tracks him down..........very good story...with some humor....some viewers will need a Kleenex box handy....overall a good story.....

Nice old hard-to-find gem.
I had seen this movie when it first came out in 1950 and not since. It was not available on Netflix or Amazon Prime (Roku) or from www.Oldies.com or other venues I have used. I was so glad that I was able to find it online at Amazon.com.
It has a great cast. Previously, Edmund Gwenn played Kris Kringle in "Miracle on 34th Street", Burt Lancaster was the title character in "The Crimson Pirate" and Dorothy McGuire starred as the mother in "A Tree Grows In Brooklyn".

it is very difficult to find this item anywhere else so I recommend checking Amazon for those hard-to-find items.

Catching a Counterfeiter
Mister 880, 1950 film

Counterfeiting has been known since money was invented. This is one case that was long outstanding, unlike most counterfeiters. An agent is brought in from Los Angeles, someone with a fresh look. You see the city streets of that time. "Skipper" deals in antiques (junk to some people). He has a bill to pay so he gets money from "Henry", a rich relative. "Skipper" has a map of New York city. One taxi driver knows who gave him a phony dollar. The agents follow her to her workplace and continue to watch her. Watch how they arrange to get close to her! Ann is a French interpreter at the United Nations. Steve Buchanan cultivates her. Carlos tells Ann that Steve was there earlier! Ann learns more about that incident and does research. [Why operatives should use a cover name.]

Steve visits Ann. [Note the unlocked doors in New York city.] Ann types a trick letter, it interests Steve. [Could this backfire?] Did his partner search her apartment without...

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Say One For Me

Only one third of the image, and a travesty of a worthy film.
Thanks to the previous reviewer for saving me the disappointment and money of ordering this. It's the same pan and scan print Fox shows on TV, and so it's reputation continues to troll in the mud. In point of fact, though, Tashlin did a lot of creative stuff with the scope frame, especially with the choreography and in the bar scene, and Crosby and Walston are terrific in it. Don't buy this version though. It's total butchery. Shame on Fox for charging top dollar or any dollar for the kind of print you might have seen on TV at 3 am 30 years ago.

SAY ONE FOR ME
SAY ONE FOR ME was made in cinemascope but i but i think this dvd is full screen since all other that were released that were cinemascope films were full screen. So i would not buy this film which i like very much but i already have a copy from tv. And charging a price of 19.99 is shear robbery. They start the movie in widescreen but after the credits it goes full screen it is a disgrace and they should sell them for 5.00.

JEERS TO FOX HOME VIDEO!!!!!
FOX HOME VIDEO has got to be kidding releasing WIDESCREEN films in the pan and scan (fullscreen) version...most TVs now are widescreen and every home video distributor releases films in their original WIDESCREEN format...even the on demand films released by Warner Home Video...If I wanted the fullscreen version I would have taped it off of Fox Movie Channel...VERY BAD NEWS for the consumers who buy these films...stay away from FOX CINEMA ARCHIVES COLLECTION!!

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Remember the Day

Remember the Day (1941)...
This movie has entered the rotation on my cable system (Time-Warner) and I've seen this excellent movie from 1941 for the second time (today, 04/09/2012). Sentimental in nature, it basically deals with Claudette Colbert's character recalling events prior to World War I as a young teacher, the life she led, and the love that she had - and lost due to that terrible conflict. Also, there is a focus on a particular young student that had a terrible crush on her at that time - who now was a candidate running for President.

Personally, any movie that Ms. Colbert did during the 30's into the early 40's is good enough for me (by default)!

Of course, the best part of the movie was the ending - with the candidate/former student looking up at two of the most important women in his life. Take heed, you might just feel a little something that takes you back...to YOUR school days!

See the movie for yourself!

I rate "Remember the Day (1941)"...Five...

Sentimental & Schmaltzy - but I love it!
I can't imagine a film like Remember the Day being produced today. It's very sentimental, which doesn't appeal to today's audiences. However, because of the sentiment, it does appeal to me. Claudette Colbert is very good in this film; John Payne is handsome and proved that he could act when given a good part. In just about every Playbill bio I've ever read about John Payne, he had listed this as one of his favorite films (Miracle on 34th Street being another one on his list). He's wonderful in the scene at the bandstand, when he's about to go off to war. Chokes me up every time.

I've had a bad, taped from TV VHS tape of this film for years because it was never available on VHS or DVD (until now). Part of the Fox Cinema Archives series, it's strictly "bare bones" - no chapters, no fancy inserts, no extras of any type - just the movie.

Remember the Day When movies were Fantastic
I purchased this DVD as I love Claudette Colbert and I have to say I was not disappointed. Claudette is amazing in this role and she ages 50 years throught the movie. It is definitely a good story about love and loss and if you ever had a crush on a teacher when you were younger, you will definitely hold "Remember the Day" in your heart. A good wholesome movie for those who are tired of the trash they put out today.

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23 Paces to Baker Street

Another Fox pan and scan!
This great Cinemascope film is another issue from Fox in pan and scan. Why they keep doing this is of course beyond
any one's comprehension.
I thankfully have Fox's official Spanish release in all its 2.35 widescreen glory.
As I have remarked in previous reviews, why do Fox keep on issuing 2.35 films in 1.33 pan and scan?
The 5 stars are of course for the film itself.
I have just found out that it has been issued in the U.K. in 2.35 ratio and is available from
Amazon.co.uk This is obviously the one to buy.

More pan & scan awfulness from News Corporation
I can't believe I fell for it again-- maybe because I love anything Van Johnson and Vera Miles are in and I've wanted this movie for years. It's nice of News Corporation (multimedia conglomerate owner of the proud 20th Century Fox film library) to include the original poster art-- with "CinemaScope" blaring across the cover. But push play and sure enough it's Pan & Scan. Absolutely no respect for its customers, after all the complaints about previous DVD issues in this series. They should be boycotted. But I want these movies so badly I'll probably buy pre-widescreen era releases-- I just refuse to buy anything that's widescreen era from this joke of a company. Long live Warner Archive-- and News Corp can go to you know where.

Underrated Suspense Film Noir.
Excellent Hitchcockian mystery thriller about an emotionally volatile & embittered mystery writer (Van Johnson) who is blind and overhears a partial conversation he believes is related to the planning of a kidnapping. Due to the skepticism of the authorities he becomes obsessed with trying to solve the case by himself. Complicated characters with an unconventional villian and targeted victim. Filmed on location there is a wonderful 1950s London ambience to the picture.
Great cast and exciting entertainment. Directed by film noir master Henry Hathaway--also underrated.

"23 Paces To Baker Street" is the perfect film to watch on a long rainy afternoon, so pour yourself a cup of tea (or whatever) and enjoy this neglected gem.

Sorry, but I cannot vouch for the print quality of this film. Buyer beware.

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Travel to France

How to really travel in France
What a great video..it really shows France up close and personal. If you travel the world while sitting in your arm chair..this video is for you... do not miss seeing it.





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A Message to Garcia

Mediocre DVD transfer for a So-So Movie
The DVD release of this 1936 20th Century Fox Film is mediocre. It is grainy in some places...but acceptable. Its not bad but not good either. So, also, for the movie. Wallace Beery is an acquired taste. John Boles, a handsome leading man of the 1930's is fine as the hero. But poor Barbara Stanwyck.....even with her brilliant acting skills she is straining credibility as a Cuban Senorita. She has been photographed beautifully with false eye lashes and lip gloss galore. There are even a couple of stunning close-ups of her. But she is miscast in this so-so melodrama. It is exciting in some places but the mediocre DVD transfer distracts considerably.

If the DVD transfer had been better the film would have been much more enjoyable. That said, it is always a treat to watch Stanwyck, even when she is miscast. She always brings things up to her level which is first class. Stanwyck's work has always been first class, even when applied to material that is not. This is...

Typical 1930's action adventure....
The story line is a young Army officer (John Boles) is hand picked to deliver a personal message from the US president to a guerilla leader in Cuba who is trying to overthrow the Spanish gov't. He has all sorts of problems along the way and meets a girl (a VERY young Barbara Stanwyck) and an old Marine deserter (Wallace Berry).....after fighting Spanish troops, spies, the Cuban jungle, bandits, and others, he eventually delivers the message....and is the "hero"......pretty good story with lots of action.......was probably a hit when released....



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Special 26 (Hindi Movie / Bollywood Film / Indian Cinema - DVD) 2013

It is not only difficult to catch Ajay Vardhan... it's impossible
More or less based on true events, SPECIAL 26 tells of a rash of fake raids conducted by an audacious band of thieves passing itself off as CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) agents or Income Tax inspectors across the breadth of India back in the mid-1980s. That these con jobs went unreported is indicative of the mastermind's acuity in selecting his victims, most of whom were shady businessmen or politicians whose loss of ill-gotten gains wasn't near as detrimental as the resulting negative publicity would've been should they had brought in the proper authorities. These thieves never resorted to flashing guns. Instead they wielded a tool that was even more intimidating, that of governmental authority.

When asked how many such raids had been executed, one accomplice reluctantly admits to half a century. So, given that sheer number and that, it turns out, thirteen such cases had been detected in the past two years, perhaps it's inevitable that, at some point, the real CBI...

DVD does not work
I was looking forward to see this movie, heard that Akshay Kumar acually "acts" in this movie. However, the DVD does not work. Tried it on multiple devices.

Good movie
A true story very well done in a timely manner, It happened a long time ago. Their may be a second one soon.

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Wilson

An invitation to better histories of this important era
Lavish biodrama on the life and times of President Woodrow Wilson (and therefore the US's involvement in the First World War, which traditionally is called the Great War, of course, and in its time and for some years was called The World War). This film seems to be getting discovered lately, though it has been available on tape since the 1980s. Some of it is even accurate, no small thing for a 1940s biodrama dealing with human complexities. Alexander Knox in the title role is differently shaped and less serious-looking than his namesake, but he does capture well the habit of lecturing everybody.

There's an intense sequence in the middle around the entry of the US into the war. In the actual events, late on January 31, 1917, Ambassador Count Johann von Bernstorff notified the US State Department that Germany would resume submarine warfare against neutral (i.e., US) vessels in blockade areas (a policy, by the way, that Bernstorff himself had lobbied against vigorously with his...

Had to have it!
Alexander Knox's portrayl of President Woodrow Wilson was spot on-right down to the pince-nez glasses. If you are a fan of presidential movies, you will surely want this one added to your collection. I just wish that they would put this out on DVD.

wilson: Why isn't this on DVD?
Why isn't this movie on DVD? Despite its flaws, it is a very thought provoking portrayal of on of our five greatest presidents.

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Lisa

heartwarming
I first saw this film many years ago when I was a teenager and instantly fell in love with it. Over the years it could be seen on tv quite frequently but then as so often happens the powers that be stopped making it available.
As the film begins we see Stephen Boyd's charactor hunting Lisa as though she were some sort of criminal, but then the unthinkable happens and he begins to see how deeply she longs to return to her homeland and begins a long and illegal journey with her to make her dream come true making himself a wanted man himself in the process.
I don't want to give away what happens but suffice it to say that as the story progresses the viewer is drawn in and begins to want that happy ending we all hope each film has. In it's own way it does happen here but only with a great deal of love and sacrifice.
For those who are looking for a film with integrity, a good story, good acting and a few twists and turns to keep your attention, then this is it.

Unforgettable
I saw "Lisa" exactly one time, many decades ago, when I was a kid. I watched it on a black and white TV, late at night, interrupted by many annoying commercials. I've never forgotten "Lisa": Dolores Hart played a Holocaust survivor determined, by any means necessary, to get to Palestine at a time when the British were interdicting such arrivals. Ruggedly handsome Stephen Boyd was Inspector Jongman. He began by hindering Lisa's pilgrimage and ended up helping her. For comic relief, there was Hugh Griffith, a smuggler who used a tennis racket in his ongoing battle with the bats that invaded his exotic Tangiers apartment at dusk.

Most importantly, I never shook the feeling that the film aroused in me - this film literally made me sick, and terrified, but it also moved and inspired me.

In the intervening years, I read somewhere that "Lisa" was an early attempt to depict the Holocaust in a mainstream Hollywood movie. That just increased my curiosity. Some kind soul...

Holocaust Survivor
I saw "Lisa" many years ago and forgot both the name of the movie and the stars, but I never forgot the emotional impact of the story. Today I stumbled across it on TV and watched it again, finding the same emotional impact. We must never let the world forget the Holocaust and the survivors all have a story that is important for us to remember. Palestine and its beginnings are part of this story.

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Tender is the Night

Erratic adaptation of the F. Scott Fitzgerald classic
A psychiatrist (Jason Robards) in a Swiss clinic on the verge of a brilliant career falls in love with one of his patients, an heiress (Jennifer Jones) with schizophrenic tendencies. Against his better judgement, he marries her and it proves his undoing. Directed by Henry King and based on the celebrated novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the film only glosses over the complexities and layers of Fitzgerald's work. Actually, if there had been no Fitzgerald's TENDER IS THE NIGHT, the film might have been more impressive. To the film's credit, it doesn't shy away from the incest theme which may have seemed too provocative for 1962 audiences. Indeed, the film is quite frank including a sequence of a father taking his gay son to Robards' psychiatrist to be "cured" of his homosexuality. The fragile Nicole seems like the role Jennifer Jones was born to play, so it's a pity that it happened about 15 years too late. Jones looks smashing in her 1920s garb and bobbed hair but she's clearly a matron...

Glossy CinemaScope reduced to a 4:3 stream.
F. Scott Fitzgerald isn't the best basis for a glossy 50's CinemaScope soap opera, but that doesn't mean you won't get a trashy melodrama that is definitely worth the wallow. Jennifer Jones and Jason Robards almost play themselves here, and the location work is impressive. The sassy and uber sexy Jill St. John is a plum asset, and there is a moody Bernard Herrmann score that's better than the picture. Hardly a waste of time, but sadly, this streaming version is a worthless 4:3, pan-and-scan version, albeit with fine DeLuxe color and the original 4-track stereo mix.

Don't Buy This DVD-R
This wonderful film has an old transfer - it is Panned and Scanned with a 4:3 aspect ratio.
It is outrageous for Fox Archives to publish this movie without a good widescreen transfer.
Contrast this release with Warner Bros. Archives: I have dozens of their titles, all correctly
transferred.

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Holiday for Lovers

HOLIDAY FOR LOVERS .. Entertaining from memory ... BUT ...
Another wasted opportunity from 20th Century Fox if the AMAZON presis is to be believed:

"Presented in 1.77:1 ratio"

HOLIDAY FOR LOVERS is a sort-of THREE COINS IN THE FOUNTAIN with lots of good "travelog" footage so surely we can reasonably expect a proper release to DVD.

Why haven't they yet realised we want these Scope films as they were produced and directed to be viewed - what are Flatscreen TV's for!!!

Eric GLASBY Australia

Mild, harmless comedy
Well, at least this CinemaScope film is presented in Widescreen. This is a very mild, not very funny Clifton Webb vehicle. The travelogue aspect of South America is not that effective. Plus, the color of this print is often dark and not as vibrant as it should be. The cast is OK, especially Jane Wyman and Webb, as usual, plays Webb. Thin plot should have been funnier.

Not as bubbly as it should be
When their eldest daughter (Jill St. John) travels to Brazil with a tour group and decides not to return, a psychologist (Clifton Webb), his wife (Jane Wyman) and their precocious younger daughter (Carol Lynley) trek down to South America to see what's going on. Based on the Broadway play by Ronald Alexander, the attractive cast can't do much with the sitcom material. It doesn't help that there's an unpleasant pre-feminist undertone to the proceedings. Webb wants his daughters to further their education but they're more concerned with boys/men and his wife seems to implicitly encourage them. One of the more hideous examples of the film's tone: when Lynley refuses to marry Gary Crosby, he takes her over his knee and spanks her! Webb is offended at this but Mama Wyman thinks it's cute! Yes, yes I know it was a different time but still. Furthermore although the film takes place in Brazil, it doesn't appear any of the cast went there, just the second unit as the actors play out their...

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Clive of India

A Favourite Movie
I've loved this movie for years, and was so glad to find it! A lively adventure with Ronald Colman, the exquisite Loretta Young and ever British Character actor that Hollywood could round up. This film isn't great "history", but it more than fulfills the purpose of Great Entertainment!

As a footnote* * This film had a featured performance by character actor COLIN CLIVE....a direct descendant (through his mother) of one of "Clive of India's" Cousins!





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The Marriage-Go-Round

ANOTHER GREAT SUSAN HAYWARD FILM THAT SHOULD BE ON DVD.....PLEASE 20TH CENTURY FOX CONSIDER.....
THE MARRIAGE-GO-ROUND IS ONE OF THE FEW COMEDIES THAT SUSAN HAYWARD APPEARED IN. ALTHOUGH, KNOWN MOSTLY FOR DRAMA SHE OFFERS A VERY APPEALING, PLEASING PERFORMANCE ALONGSIDE JAMES MASON AND JULIE NEWMAR. THE FILM IS FUN AND ENTERTAINING AND TAKES US BACK TO THE HOLLYWOOD OF THE EARLY 1960S. IT WOULD CERTAINLY MAKE FOR A GREAT DVD THAT IS FUNNY AND APPEALING--SOMETHING VERY LACKING IN THE COMEDY OF TODAY. PLEASE 20TH CENTURY FOX DO THE RIGHT THING AND RELEASE "THE MARRIAGE-GO-ROUND" ON DVD......IT WILL MEAN ANOTHER SUSAN HAYWARD FILM WILL ENTERTAIN THE WORLD........THANK YOU...........GARY JASINKONIS....EAST NORTHPORT, NEW YORK........THE ULTIMATE SUSAN HAYWARD FAN..........

Susan Hayward also brilliant in comedy !
This is an interesting film in Susan Hayward's filmography since it is one of the few comedies she was in.
Made two years after her oscar winning role,"I want to live", Hayward is vey spiritual in this diverting 1960 movie,co starring the talented James Mason and Julie Newmar.

It is also in technicolor and gives again the possibility to watch "The redhead from Brooklyn" in color, which is always a feast for the eyes.

I for one am eagerly waiting for the anounced release of this DVD.Let's hope 20 century Fox hurry up with its release.

Please Please Please put this out on DVD
I can't agree more with the other two reviews. An Excellent, fun movie starring 3 great actors. Susan Hayward, James Mason, and Julie Newmar are a fantastic mix. I waited forever for Susan Hayward's "Soldier of Fortune" with Clark Gable to be released on DVD and bought it the instant I knew it was out. This great movie is on the top of my wish list.

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Unfaithfully Yours

His Last Bow
In hindsight, Paramount's decision to terminate their relationship with Preston Sturges occupies the region between 'insane', 'irresponsible' and that old standby, 'stupid'. Sturges' subsequent relocation to Fox was, of course, utterly disastrous; which makes UNFAITHFULLY YOURS as much a miracle as it is a great comedy. His stock company (save for a very funny Rudy Vallee) was now a thing of the past; although the cast he assembled here is game and lively, Edgar Kennedy foremost among them. Nevertheless, UNFAITHFULLY YOURS is Sturges' second consecutive attempt (after MAD WEDNESDAY) to move away from his trademark of the inspired dialogue-comedy and towards a more visual (or in this case, audio-visual) farce. Fortunately for us, he succeeded brilliantly (not that it cut him any ice in an increasingly desperate studio-system that not only didn't know what to do with its few geniuses but began to openly despise them). Rex Harrison plays a vain, high-strung symphony conductor who -thanks...

One of Sturges' very best
Only The Lady Eve forces me to edge this movie out of number-one spot among Preston Sturges' comedies. The dialogue is snappy as ever (Doltish husband: "Too much temperament! Give me the simple viewpoint!" His wisecracking wife: "You've got it, kid. You don't have to yearn for it.") but the slapstick of the finale is cleverer by far than any in his other movies. The use of music is inspired, both in Harrison's concert revenge-fantasies and in his later attempts to put them into action, when the music is spiked with comic effects. A little slow to get started, this movie soon enough develops a quirky, unpredictable, and completely fascinating story line. Don't deprive yourself of seeing this!

Classic Struges comedy finally comes to DVD
In "Unfaithfully Yours" Rex Harrison plays a conductor who imagines what he would do to his wife (who he believes to be cheating on him)during a performance. Unfortunately, he discovers that real life never works as smoothly as one's fantasies. A classic Preston Sturges comedy, "Unfaithfully Yours" captures the brilliant comedy director in top form. Although there was an anemic remake with Dudley Moore in 1984 (with a screenplay co-written by Valerie Curtain the cousin of Jane Curtain of "Saturday Night Live" fame and one of the original cast members of "Three's Company"), all it does is prove not to mess with a classic film.

This new Criterion edition has some really cool extras and the image quality is very, very good. The audio Audio commentary by Sturges scholars James Harvey, Diane Jacobs, and Brian Henderson are fascinating but I honestly preferred the video appreciation by Terry Jones (of Monty Python fame) as well as the video interview with Sandy Sturges. There's...

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Holy Motors

BEWARE: VOD Version is CENSORED
I am appalled to discover that Amazon censors movies on VOD. And I thought censorship was dead. Well, it's not. It's alive and flourishing at Amazon!

Knowing little about the scene in question, I initially thought the blur was the director's choice, perhaps to suggest that Mr. Merde had no genitalia. But, now, I understand differently and I am rather disappointed in Amazon and will AVOID RENTING R, NC-17 or unrated titles through their VOD service in future. They may not require membership, but they still charge a fee, so shouldn't their VOD be treated similarly to NetFlix, who I can confirm appears to not be constrained by FCC rules and regulations for TV/cable broadcast?

At any rate, I'm going to be more cautious now when renting streaming movies from Amazon.

UPDATE: I can't hold Amazon completely responsible, anymore, though they should be aware of any censorship in their streaming titles, and I would expect them to refuse titles from companies who...

"Being an actor is the loneliest thing in the world." James Dean
Enter at your own risk. This movie is quite capable of confusing you and making you angry. It could delight or overwhelm you, win you over or enrage you. It could make you feel like cursing and truly hate all art-house in general, French art-house in particular, and Leon Carax, and his collaborators, specifically.

For me, "Holy Motors" is very interesting, unpredictable, shocking and ever-changing. It is my kind of movie in which the writer/director expresses his admiration for cinema as an art form. I've always felt a deep respect for the filmmakers who use in their original and unpredictable pictures the references, allusions, and direct calls to the other movies and to film creators who inspired them. "Holy Motors" is one of those pictures - about film and film-making.

Our life - is a (movie) theater, and we are actors in the movie that plays in the theater. For me, it is the first thing to keep in mind when you try to make sense of what is actually...

True work of beauty (differs for every beholder)
Some movies are made for a very specific audience. The kind of audience that yearns for a creation that has never been tried before and when transformed into an audio-visual format, leaves you speechless and spellbound once you have had the luck and the pleasure to view it. That's Holy Motors for you. There are quite a few actors in the movie. And kudos to the director for extracting every bit of acting abilities from each one of them. Be it the lead protagonist or the assistant of the photographer who gets shocked when trying to interrupt him from admiring beauty or even the kid playing his teenaged daughter. No matter how big or small the size of your role or your screen time, everyone did an amazing job - thanks to the director.

It is not very often that you get the opportunity to watch a movie that has almost no relationship to anything you might have seen before on the big screen or has any association with life as it exists (for the most part) and yet is not about...

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Plain Clothes [Blu-ray]

Finally Gets the Digital Treatment w/ Director's Commentary
I discovered this movie on cable quite by accident about 25 years ago and fell in love with it. The quirky screenplay by Scott Frank ('Get Shorty', 'Little Man Tate') under the skilled and well-thought-out direction of Martha Coolidge ('Real Genius', 'Valley Girl') made for a tight, yet low-key and funny-as-all-get-out movie that stands head and shoulders above a lot of the other films of its day that seemed somehow to garner more unwarranted attention.

The cast, ranging from relative unknowns Arliss Howard and Suzy Amis to screen legend Robert Stack, do an astounding turn in this movie, neither taking themselves too seriously, nor poking fun at the source material. As Martha Coolidge says about the film in her commentary, 'it's a good, fun romp!' It's sad that this got lost in the shuffle during its theatrical release, but fortunately, it's now on Blu-Ray and DVD.

The transfer is very good (full-screen, unfortunately, but a very good one), the sound and...

great find
I had never heard of this film before/but I love 80s movies.
And from what I read it sounded like a good film.
So after watching a preview on you tube.
I decided to buy this Blu-Ray.
And it turned out to be a great find.
Kinda like when you go to the Video store back in the day.And find that classic film.
And fall in love with it.
Kudos to Olive films I think they are doiing a outstanding job.!
Very good A/V presentation.!

Been looking for this!
This was a simple but funny movie that we had on VHS tape recorded off TV. We have been looking for it for years and were pleased to find it on Amazon.

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