FILM FRENZY

Peter Cushing as Sherlock Holmes and Christopher Lee as Sherlock Holmes (Photo: Severin)

By Matt Brunson

(View From The Couch is a weekly column that reviews what’s new on Blu-ray, 4K and DVD. Ratings are on a four-star scale.)

CAN’T STOP THE MUSIC (1980). Here’s the movie that, along with Xanadu, inspired the creation of the Golden Raspberry Awards — and it was indeed the group’s first winner for Worst Picture, beating out nine other contenders including Cruising, Friday the 13th, The Jazz Singer, Saturn 3, and the aforementioned Xanadu (reviewed below under From Screen To Stream). This notorious megabomb from producer Allan Carr (Grease) was released moments after the disco era had effectively ended (at least in the hearts and minds of the general public) — opening a couple of years earlier might have helped it from a commercial standpoint but not a critical one, as its campiness and awkwardness would grate in any era. With “The Sound of the City” pulsating on the soundtrack, the film opens with a lovely aural and visual tribute to New York City, after which it immediately goes downhill. A fictionalized look at the career of French producer Jacques Morali (Americanized here in the form of Steve Guttenberg) and his creation of the Village People, the film includes distressingly few highlights, among them the perky Valerie Perrine (as den mother to all) and the “Y.M.C.A.” number. The remainder is pretty poor, starting with the abysmal performances by Bruce (now Caitlyn) Jenner as a close-minded lunkhead and Marilyn Sokol as a horny assistant (“That Indian is hot! Tell him I’ll make up for the indignities his people suffered in Roots.”). Still, the enjoyable level of kitsch places it above the other musical turkeys of the era, all of which are far more painful to endure (Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, Xanadu, The Apple).

Extras in the 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray edition include audio commentary by director Jeffrey Schwarz (The Fabulous Allan Carr) and comedy writer Bruce Vilanch; an interview with Randy Jones (The Cowboy); TV spots; and the theatrical trailer.

Movie: ★½

CIVIL WAR (2024). Blue State denizens, at ease. Red State citizens, chill. Even though the latest from Alex Garland (Ex Machina, Annihilation) is mired in political strife, it doesn’t take sides, just one of the calculated choices made by its writer-director. Except for a band of renegade white supremacists, the type that Trump would proudly tell to “stand back and stand by,” there’s no differentiating the good guys from the bad guys, as seemingly everyone in this near-future America is trigger-happy and ready to shed blood for their cause. Yet rising above the fray are the news reporters who seek only to capture this moment in history, and, as the picture begins, photojournalist Lee Smith (an excellent Kirsten Dunst) and reporter Joel (Wagner Moura) are trying to respectively snag the ultimate money shot and the ultimate quote. While the U.S. President (Nick Offerman), now in his third term, barricades himself inside the White House, rebel factions from California, Texas, and other secessionist states are making their way to Washington, D.C. — hoping to arrive first so they can interview and photograph the prez, Lee and Joel are joined in their journey by Lee’s mentor, veteran journalist Sammy (Stephen McKinley Henderson), and Jessie (Priscilla’s Cailee Spaeny), a naïve newbie photographer. Possibly by design, Garland’s film isn’t very deep — we never learn what finally caused the country to splinter, nor do we learn the philosophies of the warring factions — but it does paint the grimmest picture possible of a divided nation with bodies bodies bodies everywhere, and Garland keeps both his characters and his viewers on edge throughout. Too bad the final moments are so terrible, thanks to a predictable, self-sacrificial action and a rushed and thus unbelievable character transformation.

Extras in the 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital edition consist of a six-part making-of documentary and the theatrical trailer.

Movie: ★★★

THE COUNTRY GIRL (1954). Grace Kelly won the Best Actress Academy Award for her performance in writer-director George Seaton’s adaptation of Clifford Odets’ play, and while it’s hard to find any serious cinephile today who doesn’t believe the Oscar should have gone to Judy Garland for A Star Is Born, let’s remember two points. One is that Kelly is excellent in the movie — not quite Garland level but certainly worthy of one of the five slots that also housed Dorothy Dandridge (the first black Best Actress nominee) for Carmen Jones, Jane Wyman (already the ex-Mrs. Ronald Reagan) for Magnificent Obsession, and Audrey Hepburn (the year after winning for Roman Holiday) for Sabrina. The other point is that the future Princess of Monaco was Hollywood’s It Girl of 1954, co-starring in five high-profile films, including two for Hitchcock (Dial M for Murder and Rear Window). There was no way she was not gonna win. Kelly copped the statue, but her leading men are just as good, with Bing Crosby as Frank Elgin, the former singing star destroyed by both a personal tragedy and the alcoholism that followed, and William Holden (himself coming off a Best Actor Oscar win for Stalag 17) as Bernie Dodd, the director who gives Frank a shot at a comeback. Standing in between them is Georgie (Kelly), whose controlling nature around her husband is viewed as selfish and possessive by Bernie but might actually be selfless and sincere. Crosby is especially notable as the weak-willed drunk whose actions fall between self-preservation and self-deprecation — frankly, I didn’t think this lightweight thespian had it in him. Nominated for seven Oscars, including Best Picture, Actor (Crosby), and Director, this also won for Best Screenplay.

Blu-ray extras consist of film scholar audio commentary; the theatrical trailer; and trailers for other films offered by Kino.

Movie: ★★★½

NO WAY OUT (1987). Because No Way Out was filmed before The Untouchables, it was already primed for release when the Orion studio suits realized the Paramount picture was going to make Kevin Costner a star, and best to hold off and release their comparatively smaller movie after the Brian De Palma gangster flick. It was a sound strategy that paid off: The Untouchables opened June 3, 1987, and made Costner an overnight sensation, thus allowing No Way Out to reap some of the financial benefits when it finally opened August 14 of that summer. A loose adaptation of Kenneth Fearing’s novel The Big Clock (already made more faithfully in 1948, with Ray Milland and Charles Laughton), the book’s publishing-world setting has been replaced with a political stage, but the plot outline remains largely the same. Tom Farrell (Costner) is a Navy officer newly arrived in Washington, D.C., to work at the Pentagon under U.S. Secretary of State David Brice (Gene Hackman) and his right-hand man Scott Pritchard (Will Patton). Farrell meets Susan Atwell (Sean Young) at a party and they immediately embark on a steamy relationship, with Farrell only later learning that she’s Brice’s mistress. There’s a murder, Brice is involved, and Farrell is placed in charge of the investigation, quickly realizing that all of the mounting evidence points to him being the killer. No Way Out is a grade-A thriller, but at the time of its release, even most of its enthusiasts hated the tacked-on twist ending. It was a take-it-or-leave-it addition for me, but the ensuing years have been kind to it, as it offers the sort of narrative gumption often lacking from today’s brand of high-charged drama.

Extras in the 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray edition include audio commentary by director Roger Donaldson; an interview with Donaldson; and the theatrical trailer.

Movie: ★★★½

SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE DEADLY NECKLACE (1962) / SHERLOCK HOLMES (1968). Cushing and Lee, together again? Well, not quite.

Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee, the Hammer horror superstars who worked together in approximately two dozen movies, each appeared in various Sherlock Holmes adaptations over the decades, with the actors co-starring in the best of the bunch: Hammer’s 1959 The Hound of the Baskervilles, with Cushing as Holmes and Lee as Sir Henry Baskerville. Cushing also played the part in a 1984 TV movie, while Lee tackled Sherlock in a pair of early-90s TV movies and the role of Mycroft Holmes in Billy Wilder’s 1970 The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes. And then there are the two projects newly arrived on Blu-ray via the Severin label: a theatrical motion picture starring Lee as Arthur Conan Doyle’s intrepid sleuth and a television series that returns Cushing to the part.

Lee possessed one of the great voices in cinema, so Sherlock Holmes and the Deadly Necklace is immediately hobbled by the fact that we never have the pleasure of hearing him speak. That’s because this is one of those European co-productions — German-French-Italian, in this case — in which the dialogue is later added in post-production in more than one language so as to maximize the global reach. This particular picture was dubbed after the fact in both German and English, and while Lee spoke both languages fluently, neither he nor his co-stars, including Thorley Walters as Dr. Watson, were brought back to handle the vocals. Hearing another actor’s voice coming out of Lee’s mouth is jarring, to say the least — same with Walters, familiar to Hammer aficionados for his participation in such titles as Dracula: Prince of Darkness (with Lee) and Frankenstein Created Woman (with Cushing). Get past that, however, and what’s on view is a fairly entertaining yarn in which Holmes must keep a priceless necklace that once belonged to Cleopatra out of the clutches of Professor Moriarty (Hans Söhnker). Physically, Lee offers a commanding Sherlock, even if the 2K clarity of the Blu-ray image does make his phony putty nose stand out.

In 1964, the BBC produced a 12-episode Sherlock Holmes series starring Douglas Wilmer as the detective and Nigel Stock as Dr. Watson. Although the show was a success, Wilmer felt its quality was perpetually in decline and opted not to return when the show was revived in 1968 for a 16-episode run. Sherlock Holmes found Cushing now essaying the role, with Stock returning as Watson. Although the series was an even greater success than before, Cushing encountered many of the same problems as Wilmer, especially with production costs cut even more. (Indeed, the episodes appear to have been shot on cheaper video rather than film, given the flat look and complete lack of mobility.) While 16 episodes were produced, only six survive, considering that networks used to wipe clean their tapes in order to use them again for new filming. Of the six shows here, the best are the two parts of “The Hound of the Baskervilles,” with Cushing tackling a variation of the tale he had filmed before for Hammer in ’59. The remaining four — “A Study in Scarlet,” “The Boscombe Valley Mystery” (guest-starring Nick Tate, later of Space: 1999 fame), “The Sign of Four,” and “The Blue Carbuncle” — all find interesting mysteries attempting to get past drowsy storytelling, although Cushing is fun as a Sherlock so twinkly that he makes his air of superiority seem like a positive character trait.

Blu-ray extras on Sherlock Holmes and the Deadly Necklace consist of film historian audio commentary; an interview with director Terence Fisher; a piece on Fisher; and the trailer. Blu-ray extras on Sherlock Holmes consist of film historian audio commentaries on all six episodes; clips from missing episodes; an illustrated audio interview with Cushing; and, amusingly, the behind-the-scenes countdown clock for each episode.

Sherlock Holmes and the Deadly Necklace: ★★½

Sherlock Holmes: ★★½

THE STORY OF G.I. JOE (1945). At first glance, The Story of Ernie Pyle might seem like a better title for this fact-based World War II drama. After all, the legendary war correspondent is at the center of the picture and provides the through line, Burgess Meredith receives top billing as Pyle (although posters for the reissues moved co-star Robert Mitchum to the top), and it’s via the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist that most of the scenes unfold. But the moniker is correct: Pyle may provide the eyes and ears, but it’s the heroic exploits of American foot soldiers that drive the film, thus falling perfectly in line with Pyle’s philosophy of honoring the men in the most humane way possible. Made with the blessing of the U.S. Army (which also provided over 100 soldiers to serve as advisors and extras), this follows Pyle as he tags along with Company C 18th Infantry as it fights its way through Italy. The battles are fierce, but so are the bouts of boredom, the constant fatigue, and the mental breakdowns that affect the GIs. Pyle is impressed with the ability of these soldiers to nevertheless press forward, and he’s most in awe of the outfit’s inspiring leader, Lieutenant Walker (Mitchum in his star-making performance). Director William Wellman and his three scripters (working from Pyle’s books Here Is Your War and Brave Men) do a fine job of capturing the hellish aspects of combat, keeping the sentimental strokes to a minimum. Tragically, Pyle was killed by enemy fire during the Battle of Okinawa exactly two months before the film’s June 18, 1945, release — he was 44. The Story of G.I. Joe earned four Academy Award nominations, including Best Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor for Mitchum (the only nod in his lengthy career).

Blu-ray extras include film scholar audio commentary; an interview with Bill Wellman Jr.; a video essay; and a piece on the restoration.

Movie: ★★★½

FROM SCREEN TO STREAM

OPEN RANGE (2003). Decidedly “old school” in both content and intent, this adaptation of Lauran Paine’s The Open Range Men doesn’t expand the parameters of the Western but instead feels like a throwback to the types of genre flicks that populated moviehouses until their fizzle in the late 70s. Boss Spearman (Robert Duvall) and Charley Waite (Kevin Costner) are “freerangers,” cattlemen who allow their herd to roam the land with no thought to manmade claims of property possession — a point of view not shared by a vicious rancher (Michael Gambon) in a nearby town. Open Range marked Costner’s third shot at directing — following his Oscar-winning work on Dances With Wolves and his effort on the lambasted flop The Postman — and his lackadaisical approach (plenty of lengthy and meaningful exchanges) will leave viewers either feeling appreciative or irked. No scene feels hurried or forced, and even though the dialogue is occasionally a bit clunky, there’s a genuine maturity in the tender romance between Charley and a town resident (Annette Bening) as well a strong sense of mutual respect in the camaraderie between Charley and Spearman that harkens back to the approach taken in the classic Westerns of the past (I’m thinking primarily of John Wayne’s numerous efforts, particularly Rio Bravo). As for the shootouts, they’re presented as clumsy and chaotic — gritty dances of death that aren’t commented upon (as in Unforgiven) but that aren’t glamorized, either.

Movie: ★★★

XANADU (1980). For roughly 50 years, the musical was one of Hollywood’s most reliable genres, from Busby Berkeley and Astaire-Rogers in the 1930s through Saturday Night Fever and Grease in the 1970s. But it took only a handful of megabombs to kill off the genre, including this ghastly achievement that has nevertheless spawned a smash Broadway adaptation as well as legions of devoted groupies. The fans are welcome to this one: Managing to trumpet the worst excesses of both the fading ’70s disco craze and the burgeoning ’80s New Wave scene, this calamity stars Olivia Newton-John as Kira, a heavenly muse sent to inspire struggling artist Sonny Malone (Michael Beck) to realize his dream of becoming a success. It’s strictly a hands-off assignment, meaning complications ensue when Kira falls in love with the guy. Pop star Newton-John received a unanimous drubbing for her one-note performance (thereby killing any chance of a sustained post-Grease film career), but truthfully, co-star Beck is even worse. The tragedy is that this curdled kitsch marked the final big-screen outing for the legendary Gene Kelly: The man who delighted us with Singin’ In the Rain and On the Town (among many others) deserved better. Thankfully, director Robert Greenwald’s career survived this, as he became one of the preeminent helmers of informative movies railing against the anti-American right-wing agenda (e.g. Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch’s War on Journalism, Unconstitutional: The War on Our Civil Liberties).

Movie: ★

Review links for movies referenced in this column (all links open in new window):
Annihilation
The Apple
The Big Clock
Cruising
Dracula: Prince of Darkness
Ex Machina
Frankenstein Created Woman
Friday the 13th
Grease
The Hound of the Baskervilles
Magnificent Obsession
The Postman
Rio Bravo
Roman Holiday
Sabrina
Saturday Night Fever
Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
Singin’ in the Rain
Space: 1999
Stalag 17
The Untouchables