FILM FRENZY

Nicolas Cage, Carla Gugino, and Joel Fabiani in Snake Eyes (Photo: Kino & Paramount)

By Matt Brunson

(For a review of the new 4K UHD + Blu-ray release Wallace & Gromit: The Complete Cracking Collection, go here. For a review of the new Blu-ray release of The Complete Thin Man Collection, go here.)

(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.)

8½ (1963). Federico Fellini’s 8½ may or may not be his most beloved picture, as many folks are awfully fond of La Dolce Vita and Amarcord. But given its prominence on “all-time best films” lists as well as its influential reach (Woody Allen’s intriguing Stardust Memories, the unappealing film version of Nine, etc.), it clearly should be declared his magnum opus. Marcello Mastroianni is Guido Alselmi, a director whose inability to make any progress on his current project infects all aspects of his life. An ambitious, ambiguous, and experimental form of navel-gazing, it’s the sort of film that demands and rewards multiple viewings. Earning Oscar nominations for Best Director, Original Screenplay (Fellini sharing credit with three other scripters), and Black-and-White Art Direction-Set Decoration (Piero Gherardi), this Italian import won for Best Foreign Language Film and Best Black-and-White Costume Design (also Gherardi).

Extras in the 4K + Blu-ray edition include an introduction by Terry Gilliam; the 1969 documentary Fellini: A Director’s Notebook; and a photo gallery.

Movie: ★★★★

THE GIANT SPIDER INVASION (1975). Bill Rebane, the Wisconsin filmmaker who once claimed that Ronald Reagan almost starred in his 1965 abomination Monster a Go-Go, scored his biggest hit with this $300,000 production that grossed either (according to Rebane) $15 million or (according to others) $4 million — a huge hit either way, given its budget. More easily digestible than most of Rebane’s largely unwatchable oeuvre (go here for the reviews), it’s still an amateurish attempt at horror, with an enormous arachnid from another dimension invading Midwestern farm country. That’s Alan Hale Jr. as the cheerful sheriff — and, yes, Gilligan’s Island’s Skipper even calls someone “little buddy.” That tumble down the hill by aging leads Steve Brodie and Barbara Hale is so awkward and embarrassing that it’s best to turn away from the screen — perhaps no spiders were harmed during the making of this movie, but the performers’ dignity sure took a direct hit.

The Blu-ray includes the Dark Force label’s own in-house riff track.

Movie: ★½

HARD WOOD: THE ADULT FEATURES OF ED WOOD (1971-1972). Edward D. Wood, Jr. is of course legendary as the creator of such classic clunkers as Plan 9 From Outer Space and Bride of the Monster, but after his, uh, golden era ended, he found himself writing and/or directing a number of hardcore and softcore porn flicks. This Blu-ray set corrals three such titles, all rather wretched. Still, those interested in this collection are doubtless less worried about quality than in having their curiosity sated, meaning they’ll find some takeaway here. Necromania: A Tale of Weird Love (1971), which finds Wood employing the pseudonym Don Miller, deals with a couple — he’s impotent, she’s bi-curious — who turn to a necromancer to spice up their love life. The Only House in Town (1971), with Wood operating as Flint Holloway, involves a group of people breaking into a house and proceeding to roll around naked on the floor. And The Young Marrieds (1972), with Wood billing himself as Richard Trent for what would turn out to be his final feature (he would die four years later of a heart attack, at the age of 54), focuses on the swinger lifestyle as a husband tries to get his wife to loosen up.

Among the special features are nine hardcore sex loops that Wood created. There’s also a bonus film that was written (but not directed) by Wood: the 1963 comedy Shotgun Wedding, originally plugged as being shot in “Flaming Hillbilly Color.” Starring character actors J. Pat O’Malley and William Schallert, it’s the most entertaining (if still average) film of the lot, no small irony since it’s also the most innocuous (no sex, violence or profanity). Other extras include audio commentaries on all three adult flicks; a 1989 episode of The Incredibly Strange Film Show dedicated to Wood; and a discussion of Wood by filmmaker Bobcat Goldthwait and comedian Dana Gould.

Collection: ★★

HATARI! (1962). One of the top grossing films of 1962 (#7, right below To Kill a Mockingbird), Hatari! was the only non-Western among the five collaborations between John Wayne and director Howard Hawks. Wayne stars as Sean Mercer, the head of a group of game wranglers in Tanganyika who capture animals for zoos. When not out pursuing wild beasts (astonishingly, stunt performers were rarely used for these exciting sequences), the daredevils pass the time bickering amongst themselves. In other words, it’s a patented Hawks picture, with a love for the gift of gab, a statement on the necessity of teamwork, and opportunities for both men and women to prove themselves as equals. Hatari! (Swahili for danger) earned Russell Harlan a Best Color Cinematography Oscar nomination while Henry Mancini nabbed four Grammy nominations and one win for his musical contributions, with his ditty “Baby Elephant Walk” also landing on the Billboard Top 100 chart.

Extras in the 4K + Blu-ray edition include film historian audio commentary and the theatrical trailer.

Movie: ★★★

THE KILLER IS LOOSE (1956). In this sturdy revenge flick, Joseph Cotten plays Sam Wagner, a detective who learns that meek bank clerk Leon Poole (Wendell Corey) was the inside man on a recent robbery. When the cops arrive at Leon’s apartment to make the arrest, a gunfight ensues, with Sam accidentally shooting and killing Leon’s innocent wife (played by stuntwoman Martha Crawford). Naturally, Leon blames Sam, not himself, for her death and swears to get even. That opportunity presents itself after Leon escapes from prison, but rather than murdering Sam, he instead plots to kill the copper’s wife Lila (Rhonda Fleming). The scenes focusing on the police work, or on the relationship between Sam and Lila, are fairly conventional — what gives the film a massive lift are the suspenseful segments focusing on Leon, chiseled into a different sort of villain by Corey’s strong performance.

Blu-ray extras consist of film historian audio commentary; the theatrical trailer; and trailers for other movies on the Kino label.

Movie: ★★★

LAS VEGAS HILLBILLYS (1966). This past August, VCI released a Blu-ray edition of 1967’s Hillbillys in a Haunted House, starring Ferlin Husky and Don Bowman as rednecks who get involved in seemingly spooky shenanigans. Perhaps belatedly learning that the movie was a sequel to the previous year’s Las Vegas Hillbillys, the outfit suits decided to now release that first picture as well. Not that the viewing order really matters when it comes to following the plots or grasping the characters — I mean, viewing Hillbillys in a Haunted House before Las Vegas Hillbillys isn’t exactly like watching The Matrix Reloaded before The Matrix. Jayne Mansfield, the poor man’s Marilyn Monroe, and Mamie Van Doren, the even poorer man’s Jayne Mansfield, are among those taking part in this feeble comedy about a moonshiner (Husky) inheriting a ramshackle bar. Lots of country music, little actual entertainment value.

Blu-ray extras consist of podcaster audio commentary; a photo gallery; and the theatrical trailer.

Movie: ★½

LEGENDS OF THE FALL (1994). In early 20th century Montana, a rancher (Anthony Hopkins) finds his family being torn apart by various factors, not least being that his three sons (Brad Pitt, Aidan Quinn, and Henry Thomas, E.T.’s buddy) are all in love with the same woman (bland Julia Ormond). Thelma & Louise and A River Runs Through It may have gotten the wheels turning on the Brad Pitt Heartthrob Express, but it was this handsomely mounted epic that turned the actor into a pinup fave and, more significantly, a genuine star. Good performances and Edward Zwick’s sure-footed direction help prevent this from drowning in melodramatic excess. Earning Academy Award nominations for Best Art Direction-Set Decoration and Best Sound, it won John Toll the Oscar for Best Cinematography.

Extras in the 4K + Digital edition include audio commentary by Pitt and Zwick; audio commentary by Toll and production designer Lilly Kilvert; a vintage making-of featurette; and deleted scenes.

Movie: ★★★

MONTE WALSH (1970). Like 1962’s Ride the High Country and 1976’s The Shootist, here’s another of the many contemplative Westerns in which old-school cowboys must deal with the gradual encroachment of the modern age. Here, that would be Monte Walsh (Lee Marvin) and Chet Rollins (Jack Palance), best friends who find employment opportunities dwindling as ranches close down and the train overtakes the horse as the preferred mode of transportation. Nevertheless, both men try to lead honest lives — the same can’t be said for their friend and fellow cowhand Shorty (Mitchell Ryan), whose swerve into crime leads to tragedy. This pensive drama is an alternative to the traditional elegiac lament, painting the cowboy not as the typical maverick gunslinger straddling the law but as a conscientious type who only asks for a little freedom to go along with his responsibilities.

Blu-ray extras include audio commentary by Lee Marvin biographer Dwayne Epstein and the theatrical trailer.

Movie: ★★★

SALT OF THE EARTH (1954). This independent feature demands equal rights for women, equal pay for Latinos, and decent living conditions for all. It says a lot about the dark side of this country that it was condemned by both the rightwing government (specifically HUAC) and the supposedly liberal media (including Pauline Kael in a frothing-at-the-mouth review), with death threats made against its participants, labs refusing to develop the film, and even the FBI attempting to build a criminal case against its creators. Made by a mix of blacklisted filmmakers and actual Latin American laborers, this centers on a miners’ strike in New Mexico and how it particularly affects a labor leader (real-life union president Juan Chacón) and his wife (Mexican actress Rosaura Revueltas in an unforgettable performance). Today, only a conservative troglodyte could view this film as anti-American — instead, it is proudly, deeply, defiantly humanistic, and shot in a documentary style that further accentuates its cultural relevance and social responsibility.

The only Blu-ray extra is film historian audio commentary.

Movie: ★★★½

SNAKE EYES (1998). This middling effort from Brian De Palma (scripting with David Koepp) finds Nicolas Cage delivering a wild and crazy performance as Rick Santoro, an Atlantic City detective attempting to locate an assassin in a stadium of 14,000 fans who have gathered to watch a boxing match. The victim’s the Secretary of Defense (Joel Fabiani), and among those who may hold the answers are U.S. Navy Commander (and Santoro’s best friend) Kevin Dunne (Gary Sinise), heavyweight champion Lincoln Tyler (Stan Shaw), and a potential femme fatale (Carla Gugino). As in many De Palma pictures, there are some stunning set-pieces, and here they include the opening tracking shot, an overhead POV that whisks through various hotel rooms, and a split screen following two connecting plot threads. But the storyline is only marginally compelling and grows exponentially sillier as the film progresses, and the climax is particularly risible.

Extras in the 4K + Blu-ray edition consist of film historian audio commentary; the theatrical trailer; and additional Kino label trailers.

Movie: ★★½

THE TALK OF THE TOWN (1942). With Cary Grant and Jean Arthur heading the cast, one would reasonably expect this to be a fast-paced screwball comedy on the order of Grant’s His Girl Friday or Arthur’s The Devil and Miss Jones. Instead, it’s a seriocomedy in which laughs and legalities easily commingle. Grant is cast as a factory worker falsely accused of arson and murder, Arthur plays the teacher who shelters him, and Ronald Colman provides the final point of the triangle as a professor (and Supreme Court nominee) whose rigid interpretation of the law leads to philosophical debates with the more progressive fugitive. This earned seven Oscar nominations, including bids for Best Picture and Best Original Story. (Colman was nominated that year for his lead turn in Random Harvest, which coincidentally also went 0-for-7 at the ceremony.)

Extras in the 4K + Digital edition consist of film historian audio commentary and an interview with director George Stevens’ son, George Stevens Jr.

Movie: ★★★½

FROM SCREEN TO STREAM

THE MUPPET MOVIE (1979). With The Muppet Show a smash success on television, Jim Henson and his fellow puppeteers rolled the dice on producing a feature-length motion picture that would require fans of the series to get off the couch and drop some dough at the local movie house. It was a gamble that paid off, resulting in a box office hit, a string of (increasingly inferior) sequels, and a delightful 2011 reboot. In this one, Kermit leaves his beloved swamp and heads to Hollywood seeking stardom; along the way, he picks up many familiar passengers and tries to stay one step ahead of a food-chain owner (Charles Durning) who specializes in frog legs. Over a dozen stars appear in cameos, some more memorable (Steve Martin, Mel Brooks) than others (James Coburn, Elliott Gould), but as expected, Fozzie the Bear and the old geezers Statler and Waldorf receive the lion’s share of the choice lines. Paul Williams and Kenny Ascher earned a pair of Oscar nominations for Best Original Song Score and Best Original Song (the gorgeous tune “The Rainbow Connection”).

Movie: ★★★½

ONLY ANGELS HAVE WINGS (1939). As noted in the Hatari! review above, director Howard Hawks’ world generally consisted of macho guys performing daring tasks, tough women who could hold their own against the boys, razor-sharp dialogue that flew off the lips, and a sense that camaraderie mattered more than anything else in the world. It’s a template wonderfully employed by the director in such classics as Rio Bravo, The Big Sleep, and His Girl Friday — here, the framework is transplanted to an airstrip in South America, where pilots working for a transport company headed by the fearless Geoff Carter (Cary Grant) risk their lives on a daily basis flying over rugged terrain in less than ideal conditions. Grant’s The Talk of the Town co-star Jean Arthur, Rita Hayworth, and workaholic Thomas Mitchell (five films in 1939 alone, including his Oscar-winning turn in Stagecoach) lead a sterling supporting cast in this rock-solid adventure yarn which earned Oscar nominations for its visual effects and cinematography.

Movie: ★★★½