communicator-1 Reviews

A Farewell to Arms (1932)

Hemingway Was Right

[4/10 · 12 April 2020]

Hemingway reportedly hated this film adaption of his famous work. After watching it from beginning to end, I can see why. The Dialogue is awful, and Coop sounds silly repeating most of it. Helen Hayes is excellent, and is the only actor in the film that escapes looking ridiculous. The less said about Adolphe Menjou's performance, the better. I have watched many films older than this one that are far less dated.

Playtime (1967)

I Tried

[1/10 · 4 March 2020]

I am a big fan of most of the Silent Comedians, and most of the comedians of the talkie era. I love Comedy. I thought that Tati was supposed to be a comedian. However, all I see is a guy walking around observing others, while not doing anything remotely funny. Another reviewer compared him to Rowan Atkinson (Mr. Bean). The only difference between the two, is that Mr. Bean is funny.

Earth (1930)

Masterpiece?

[3/10 · 5 December 2015]

First, let me state that I am a big fan of Foreign and Silent Films. I count Ingmar Bergman and Sergei Eisenstein among my favorites. Because this film has such a favorable reputation I looked forward to viewing it. I sat through the entire film, because I thought I must be missing something. I wasn't. How can this boring and silly film be considered a masterpiece? The acting (acting?) conveys either boredom or ridiculous hysteria, with nothing in between. Story is nonexistent with a complete lack of editing. The camera dwells on objects for interminable lengths of time, to the point that you wonder if it was intentional. I suppose that art lies in the eyes of the beholder, but this film provided me with the longest 73 minutes of my life.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)

Stretched to the Max

[5/10 · 13 December 2012]

Ever hear the old expression, "Making a Mountain out of a Mole Hill"? Well that's exactly what we have here. Stretching a book that was less than one third the size of The Lord of the Rings Trilogies into three films, is more than a bit of a stretch. Originally planned as one film, it was later announced that there would be two films, and finally three. Why not four, or five? While I definitely felt that the original trilogy was done for love of the material, this one feels like it was done for the love of money.

While the production assets are top quality, and the acting is fine, the entire project feels bloated beyond reason. For that simple reason, I cannot recommend this film.

The Sound of Music (1965)

Rex Harrison

[3/10 · 20 March 2012]

When "The Sound of Music" premiered, Rex Harrison was in attendance. At the end of the show, he was asked what he thought of the movie. His answer, "It was the first time in my life that I rooted for the Nazis!"

I saw "The Sound of Music" on stage years ago, and it ran a little over 2 hours. This monstrosity of a film runs almost 3 hours. Talk about padding, and they even cut some of the songs from the stage version. While the stage presentation moved right along to keep your interest, this movie plods along at a snail's pace to bore you to tears. This show has great music, which is presented to much better effect on the Original Broadway Cast Recording with Mary Martin.

Sugar Daddies (1927)

Still Very Funny

[7/10 · 20 March 2010]

Two nights ago, I saw this film at the Old Town Music Hall in El Segundo, California. The theater was filled with college students who were there for an extra credit assignment. It can pretty safely be assumed that none of them had seen this film before, and probably have seen very little of Laurel and Hardy.

The point of all this is that this film got big laughs from this audience. All the way through. As a huge Laurel and Hardy fan myself, I thoroughly enjoyed seeing this early example of their work being so appreciated by a modern audience. Just goes to show, funny is always funny regardless of time and place.

Monarch of the Moon (2005)

Serial Fans Will Get It

[7/10 · 14 March 2008]

This serial spoof is a hoot from beginning to end. If you are a fan of the old Saturday Matinée serials, you will most likely enjoy this, as I did. I rented this from Blockbuster,and ended up buying it. All the clichés are intact, and the actors play their (ridiculous) characters with extreme earnestness. The cinematography includes scratches and fading at times, to give the impression of age. This must have been an interesting experience in movie theaters, as each episode ends with "continued next week", and the following episode recaps what you just saw. There are plenty of laughs, but perhaps you need to be a serial fan to "get" all of the references.

To the Shores of Hell (1966)

Not Bad for a Will Zens Film

[5/10 · 8 November 2007]

Probably no one will read this, as it is a very obscure, hard to find film. The action sequences are pretty good, and of course, Marshall Thompson is more than competent. With a fairly short running time, the film moves right along.

I discovered this film as a result of working with Richard Jordahl who plays Father Bourget in this film. We were coworkers from the 1980's through the 1990's. After he retired from the company (not film) we worked for, he moved to Beaumont, California. Beaumont is near Palm Springs. I lost track of him after that. Richard also did community theater, and he had a great sense of humor. For instance, he told me that his performance in this film set Catholicism back 50 years! The film Richard starred in, "Capture That Capsule", was sneaked at a small independent theater in Inglewood in 1960. I was there, and so was Richard although we didn't meet at that time. Small world.

If you can locate a copy of this film, most likely VHS, it is worth a viewing.

Here Comes Trouble (1948)

It's a Shame These Have Been Forgotten

[7/10 · 2 January 2007]

This film is actually one of the "Sgt. Doubleday" series that was popular in the 1940's. In this one, both Doubleday and Ames are civilians. Tracy is a reporter, and Sawyer is a police officer. They are more of a team in this film than they were in the Army comedies, even though their characters are the same.

This was one of the "Hal Roach Streamliner" comedies, and at a shorter than full length running time, it moves quickly from one situation to another. Fast paced and fun, these films deserve to be seen again. William Tracy was a very funny comedian, and Joe Sawyer was a perfect comical nemesis.

Another Nice Mess (1972)

Enjoyable If You Disliked Nixon

[7/10 · 17 May 2006]

I saw this film the first week it was released. I'm glad I did, because it was also the only week it was released! It opened and closed in Los Angeles within five days. Then, it disappeared forever.

It was silly, politically incorrect, and, for me, very enjoyable. I don't believe that Nixon, if he saw it, was amused. At 60 minutes, it moved right along, much like the Laurel and Hardy features it emulated. Rich Little did a perfect Nixon as Oliver Hardy impression, and if you are a Laurel and Hardy fan, you would probably get a kick out of it.

I would buy it, if it came out on DVD, but I have a feeling that it will never see the light of day again.

1/18/16 All these years later, I found the full film on youtube. https://youtu.be/0sImm2R6amU Enjoy.

Song of the South (1946)

Song of the South and Racism

[23 April 2006]

I have a Japanese import Laserdisc of this film, which I have watched many times. It amazes me that this film is available everywhere except the country it was produced in. Why? Because it is supposedly racist. I contend that it is not at all racist, but instead is an uplifting story that depicts Uncle Remus as the hero of the story. If we are all so sensitive to so-called racism, why was there no outcry for the black crows in Dumbo being voiced by black actors? By the same token, we cannot now see Bosco cartoons or the old Amos and Andy television show, both of which were very funny. The reasoning is that these films make black people look stupid. Well, maybe we should also ban The Three Stooges, Laurel and Hardy, Jerry Lewis, et all, because they make white people look stupid! Or maybe, just maybe, we should all grow thicker skin and stop censoring films because some people might become offended.

James Baskett did a wonderful job in this movie, playing Uncle Remus and voicing one of the cartoon characters. But because of censorship, his last film role is not available to the general public. That is the real shame.

Island in the Sky (1953)

Disappointing

[3/10 · 5 August 2005]

As a big John Wayne fan, I was eager to see this lost film from the 1950's. I'm sorry to say that I felt it was very poor. John Wayne gave one of his best performances in the service of a corny and poorly executed film. There were so many glaring mistakes, that I found distracting. For instance, the pilots can't see out of the windows because of all the ice, but when the planes are shown in flight, the windows are clear. Near the end of the film, a huge storm is approaching at night, but in the shots of the next day, it is still and the sun is shining. During a blizzard, the snow is blasting down and the wind is howling, but behind them, the tree branches aren't even moving. So much for attention to detail. The script was talky and the third party voice-over narration was corny even by 1950's standards. By the 50's,that kind of narration had been relegated to educational films shown in the public schools. All in all, one of the "Dukes" weakest films.

Utopia (1950)

The Ultimate Opinion

[2/10 · 28 July 2005]

First, let me start by saying that I am a Laurel and Hardy buff. I have read every book printed about them, and have seen all of their available films more than once. I even took a chance once, and called Stan on the telephone. He was very kind, and spoke with me for over ten minutes. I followed with a letter, and he wrote me a letter back. I still have that letter.

This film has some fine comedy moments, but Stan and Ollie are not up to their usual form. Stan was gravely ill during the production and looked worse than he did ten years later. In my opinion, any Laurel and Hardy film is worth seeing.

But the Ultimate opinion of this film comes from the great Stan Laurel himself. To quote him, "This film should never have been made."

Ichi the Killer (2001)

Puhleeese!!!

[1/10 · 12 July 2005]

After reading all of the positive comments about this film, I couldn't wait to get my hands on a copy. Last night, I did, and all I can say is Thank Goodness I didn't shell out for the DVD. This film is silly in the extreme. How could anyone take this seriously? It fails as drama, it fails as comedy, and as for the so called gore, YAWN. I've seen better special effects in student films. Red paint and pig intestines abound, and a crybaby killer slices one victim completely in half with a 3 inch blade that pops out of the heel of his boot. This is particularly effective in dismembering 2 1/2 inch thick opponents! By the way, that isn't Ichi on the cover of the DVD. That's the costar doing a bad impression of Jack Nicholson as the Joker. If you enjoy bad films, skip this and watch "Plan Nine From Outer Space" instead. At least that film has a somewhat coherent plot line.

Hell's Angels (1930)

Definitely PreCode

[8/10 · 17 June 2005]

I saw this movie many years ago, and just tonight on DVD. Wow. This film has been remastered by the UCLA Archives, and the sound is very clear. Clear enough, that you can hear some rather explicit language coming from Monte during the dogfight sequence. And if you understand German, there is even more. Definitely before the Code. This is a Great film, and for those who would criticize the acting, editing, etc, compare it to other films made during the first years of the "talkie era." It stands up very well. Pay special attention to the wounded pilots as they are dying in their planes. Very gritty. The realism of the aerial battles has never been equaled. This film is a true classic. How many other classic films circa 1930 come to mind? Not many.