sam66 Reviews

Destination Inner Space (1966)

I LIKE IT VERY MUCH

[7/10 · 2 February 2002]

I cry more often now that Mystery Science Theatre 3000 quit making new episodes, and rarely harder than this evening after viewing "Destination Inner Space." This film features a yellow (sometimes orange, depending on aquarium clarity) crucifix-shaped Sealab ("Aquasphere") reached via a yellow-painted soup can on a string and filled with abrasive oxygen-depleting humans being stalked by the Wisconsin state record bluegill. I would applaud the many silent hours of scuba diving, but Scott Brady looks exquisitely uncomfortable in his extremely snug wetsuit; also the lovely silence is often disturbed by loud outbreaks of soundtrack. I like actress Sheree North and was sorry that her character was pressured into falling for the pickup line "Shove that under your microscope and study it." This movie hurts quite a bit, yet amuses in that painful MST3K style, so I recommend it highly to cheese admirers who can drown it out with their own commentary. Grab a puppet and wipe those tears away!

The Dawning (1988)

Lovely little movie...

[8/10 · 28 August 2001]

No big drama. No overblown action. Just a beautifully-filmed little movie that tells a simple story against a background of Irish political upheaval. Rebecca Pidgeon plays a sheltered, shabby-genteel girl just turning eighteen, who still has a bit of the outward appearance and behavior of a child. Orphaned young but raised by a loving aunt, grandfather, and housekeeper, she knows her mother is well and truly dead but has doubts about her father and tries to place him among the men she casually observes around town. When a man of suitable age appears on the beach near her rural home, she takes great interest--especially as his secretive nature offers few clues to his identity. Anthony Hopkins, eternally superb, plays the multi-layered character of the "tramp," and the relationship that develops between the two is the heart of the film. Look also for fine performances by Jean Simmons and Hugh Grant, as well as a host of familiar faces in small roles, and take the time to appreciate the lovely wind-whipped seaside locale and green inland vistas. A movie like this relies on character and scenery--The Dawning is a treasury of both.

Morituri (1965)

Bleak, fascinating war pic

[28 August 2001]

An interesting and rather dark war story that takes place aboard a German merchant vessel during WWII. The black and white filming adds to the generally drab and realistic ambiance of the ocean crossing. Marlon Brando's expatriate is trapped into a scheme of espionage/sabotage, and his grim, softly sneering coolness gives the character of Robert Crain an added dimension. Yul Brynner plays the captain of the ship, out of favor with the Nazi party and under surveillance, yet still "pragmatically patriotic" to the Fatherland. Brynner is an oft-underrated actor because of the larger-than-life roles he played, but this film better showcases the subtlety he was capable of, and at times his performance excels. This is a complex and tense war movie that views both sides through a curtain of ugliness, yet captures moments of honor and loyalty and even kindness, a facet that other war movies in this genre often lack. The realism of the shipboard action is crucial--you could get a flutter of seasickness just watching--and all of the characters show depth and detail. No spoilers here; try to find this flick at the video store and watch it a couple of times. It's worth the search.

Spacehunter: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone (1983)

Brain-free fun

[9/10 · 27 August 2001]

Oh boy do I ever enjoy this movie. For some reason I've managed to see it at least once a year since it was released and I never get sick of it and I really have no idea why. Mental disorder, perhaps. This movie redefines camp for post-apocalyptic scifi quest adventure 3-D crap. Peter Strauss and Molly Ringwald are both great in their stock roles--Strauss is refreshingly down-to-earth, so unlike the usual all-knowing megalomaniac space ranger with a girl in every port (his girl is a purchased robot companion, which says things about a guy); Ringwald's whine would give God a

headache, but she's got the right proportion of bravado and vulnerability to create a believable, occasionally endearing space orphan. I like the random nature of their search, designed to place them in situations where the production can use up a set or two that might have been intended for some other movie. Plenty of rubbery creatures abound. And the Thunderdome-esque stuff is actually pretty cool--I'm reminded of Leela's test in that Doctor Who episode (something people who like Spacehunter are a plausible demographic to remember). All in all this is a happily-brainless-yet-somehow-lovable piece of space junk and I'm crazy about it. Or just crazy.

The Sound and the Fury (1959)

Southern classic

[10/10 · 27 August 2001]

My all-time favorite Southern movie! Highly underrated! I saw this film one summer afternoon as a teenager and spent the next several years searching for it in the local TV guide to no avail--nor was it available on video (still isn't!). Despite the PBS host who referred to it as "more sound than fury," I was knocked for a loop by the whole atmosphere created in this movie, which is very loosely based on the William Faulkner novel and the Compson characters in general. A couple years ago the True Stories movie channel (?) played it and I grabbed it on tape! My only complaint is that it is a Cinemascope feature and should be played in letterbox format to display the fine '50s-style clear-as-crystal cinematography to its maximum advantage. This is a movie that clocks you over the head with the soundtrack immediately, and the music defines the settings and characters throughout. Bear in mind that this is NOT a slavish interpretation of the mind-ripping book (not even close) nor could it be given its original release date! However, some of the characters are well-represented and even a few lines spoken word-for-word, and the production does an excellent job of capturing the heated Southern intensity of the original story. Joanne Woodward plays young Quentin Compson and the movie revolves around her teenage compulsion to connect with her mother (tall Margaret Leighton wonderfully cast as the wornout, dragged-down Caddy returning home after seventeen years' absence) and escape her cold, sarcastic, pitiless uncle, the "keeper," to a life she imagines will be flavored with love and freedom. Yul Brynner, cast as Jason Compson (not the book version--that guy was nearly insane), is perfect in the role of Quentin's enemy uncle. He captures the character's seething anger, always on the verge of rising to the surface and exploding. At the same time he is a person with a powerful sense of responsibility, and it is truly enjoyable to watch him struggle to keep his highly dysfunctional family in some semblance of order. A few familiar faces from the book include Dilsey (Ethel Waters in a superior performance), strong, softhearted and stressed by the Compson downfall, and little Luster, always put to taking care of huge half-witted Benjy (Jack Warden, who works to capture a very intense and disturbed personality behind a blank expression). Quentin's other uncle, Howard, keeps his father's drinking tradition alive as well as the eternal unhealthy fascination of the Compson boys for sister Caddy; Jason's Cajun mother just stays in bed most of the day, longsuffering and tiresome to all. I love the way this movie features vignettes of the individual lives these people lead, and the way they intersect without ever fully connecting. Anger, passion, frailty, loyalty--all against this wonderful backdrop of decrepit mansions and closeminded small-town malice. I refuse to complain about the way it strays from the novel because as a movie it stands on its own, a separate work, and tremendously enjoyable. Recommended!

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)

the dubbed version

[10/10 · 18 August 2001]

This comment is directed specifically at the dubbed version of the film. I rented it by accident, found out it was dubbed, groaned loudly ("not letterbox/subtitled? scandalous!"), and proceeded to watch it anyway because I figured I could at least enjoy the fight scenes. I'm used to the horrifying dubbing in Hongkong action pics, after all. Well, let me say that this movie is a million miles away from any other dubbed flick I've ever endured. It is clear from the beginning that the dubbing was accomplished with a great deal of time and care in order to capture the poetry of the original script while seeking to better fit the actors' mouths. Also, Michelle Yeoh and Chow Yun-Fat have beautiful voices and dubbed their lines in the prevailing mood of each scene. I appreciate the kind of work that went into making the dubbed version the equal of the subtitled version--I'm not kidding! I've watched both versions and any way you see it this movie is a perfect gem. I must admit that I'm swayed by other factors in placing CTHD high among my all-time favorites: I love kung fu movies, wirework "chi," period pieces, Michelle Yeoh, Chow Yun-Fat, Ang Lee, "girl power," and cool-looking weapons. I feel like this pic was made for me! And the dubbed version is as good as dubbing can get.

Dangerous Crossing (1953)

cool shipboard mystery!

[9/10 · 17 August 2001]

This movie is a nice, tense little b/w thriller, set aboard a transatlantic passenger liner headed to England. Jeanne Crain plays a new bride; her husband immediately goes missing after boarding the ship in New York, leaving her in a state of panic as she can not convince the ship's crew or passengers that he even exists. Suspicions rise as a hint of her mental unstability comes to light, and bits of her past are made known. Questionable characters lurk around every dark corner of the ship during the fog-enshrouded crossing, offering an atmosphere of doubt and danger. Jeanne Crain portrays the sheltered, distressed young woman with an ideal sensitivity, and Britsh actor Michael Rennie is especially effective as the ship's doctor who treats her with thoughtful compassion. I enjoyed the shipbound suspense of this movie, particularly the scenes where the young lady tries to conduct her own investigation, searching the darkened decks in spite of her overwhelming fear and despair. The cast is good, the direction tight, and the mystery unravels without any dead spots to cool your interest. As a side note, did any actor ever look better in uniform than tall Michael Rennie?