ripplinbuckethead

As a since 1986-long fan of the film Flight of the Navigator, I was shocked, of course, upon hearing that the star of the film, Joey Cramer, had been arrested in an attempted bank robbery several years ago. Certain details came out, but nothing to really explain it. Well, all his fans wondered what happened, but one fan, director Lisa Downs, actually reached out to Joey and they made a film together that explains everything, warts and all.

This is an excellent, heartfelt profile of Joey and his life, from early childhood to now, having gone through things most of us will never experience, the good and the bad. He really opens up, and knowing how long it took to film this whole project, we're able to follow his progress from good to better to best. Along the way, most of his co-stars from the movie are interviewed and offer nice insights. (even Sarah Jessica Parker makes a cameo, kinda/sorta!) I was impressed at the organic feel that Downs gave this, with a nice narrative throughout.

As with the original movie, you can tell this documentary was a labor of love. I was so excited when I first heard of it and have followed its progress for quite a while. And now having seen it, I'd have to think it could also be viewed as an additional kick in the pants for Joey to stay on the straight and narrow. ;) He's still a youthful, talented, handsome and, thankfully, healthy guy with an ongoing interest in the world of film, so don't be surprised if you see him on the big or little screen again sometime!

We're all rooting for you, Joey!

To be sure, there are a lot of great, funny animal clips in these. The third episode was especially good. However, the host and all the guests deliver the most bland, unfunny commentary...and there's a LOT of it. I'd say a good 70% of the show is devoted to the people rather than the real stars. Takes me maybe 7 or 8 minutes to watch 20 minutes of content because I skip all the talking head segments I can. Bit of a shame, because there are plenty of excellent clips surrounded by mediocrity, which is what will stand out to any viewer. :/

When police Sargeant Truman (Stanley Baker) is transferred to the Juvenile Liaison division, he views this as a somewhat humiliating demotion, especially as he had been in the middle of a case involving multiple arsons. He knows he can't help catch the firebug while basically being a truant officer. But when he gets involved with a couple of very young thieves, he soon discovers there's more to their family than he could've imagined.

There's a lot to like about this tense thriller. But before you get to that, you might get the feeling it's a light comedy, as the young twins Mary and Patrick are hilarious! But soon enough, the tone shifts slowly until it's deadly serious, and it really works. Some nice character development and genuine shocks drive the story along.

I would say it's Baker's movie, but also equally David McCallum's. It's a fairly early role for him and must've gained him a ton of attention. Nice, albeit smaller roles for Peter Cushing and Anne Heywood as well.

I was impressed with this one. I'm glad YouTube affords me the opportunity to see these gems now, especially living in areas where these lesser known British movies weren't exactly on heavy rotation on TV growing up.

A bank clerk (Charles Victor) puts up with a nagging harpy of a wife day after day to the point where he just wants to leave. Not to mean he's thinking of being unfaithful to her, mind you, he just wants to leave. Putting the money into the vault at the end of each day and passing by the local travel agency on his way home gets him in the mood for Rio. Will he take the money and run one of these days? Or will his recently diagnosed heart condition hold him back?

This one, while being generally lighthearted, is definitely bittersweet, especially once he starts meeting certain new people, several of whom affect his life in a large way. I did have thoughts of Ikiru at times because of certain parts of the storyline, but it's nowhere near that heavy. I liked the way the characters' stories intertwined and how important they all were to the whole. Well written and performed.

I enjoyed this one a lot, from the lighthearted beginning to the surprising and bold end, which made me give this a half star higher rating than I might've otherwise. Recommended!

In this police procedural with a twist, a group of police graduates are told the story of Dennis Nordell, a fellow graduate who went through all the training simply to use his new knowledge to become a better criminal, learning what not to do, as he put it. He and his gang then proceed to successfully knock off many liquor warehouses. But how will they eventually be caught?

I've always liked these Crime Does Not Pay shorts, having seen most on TCM. (even the copy I saw on YouTube is from a TCM airing) This one is directed by Joseph Losey, which is why I went into it, but I would've enjoyed it regardless. These shorts are always simple but interesting, designed to show the public to not even bother; you will be caught. Even in the days before computers and other hi-tech equipment, the departments could still be highly sophisticated in their own way.

As usual with these shorts, there were a few familiar faces, the most notable being Richard Gaines as Inspector Dana and Anthony Caruso as Frankie, but apparently Hugh Beaumont and good ol' Ray Teal are hanging around out back too. ;)

After being mugged by King (Oliver Reed) and his gang in London, American tourist Simon Wells (Macdonald Carey) is later visited on his boat by King's sister (Shirley Anne Field), who feels bad for Wells and regrets having lured him to the gang in the first place. She is invited onto the boat and later escapes with Wells when the gang shows up again. Violent, jealous, overprotective King vows to kill Wells as soon as he steps foot on land again. They debark on an island featuring a military establishment and when King eventually finds them, the trio are found by a group of strange, cold-skinned children who are part of some kind of experiment.

This is almost like two films, starting as a juvenile delinquent-type of thing, complete with oft-repeated rock 'n roll tune, then getting into an almost sci-fi-like feeling. But it works, as everything is grounded in reality. It's a Hammer film and feels like one, with a blend of sweet and sour. The performances were all very good, including that of Viveca Lindfors as a sculptor. Her role was the least necessary, but still interesting, and helped advance the stories of the other characters. Alexander Knox was also good as a Big Brother type.

I watched this to see more of Joseph Losey's work but would've enjoyed it regardless of who helmed it. Quite an interesting experience.

After being framed for the murder of an ex-partner in a dog racing track, Dave Barrett (Lex Barker) steals a car from a woman named Jessica Warren (Merle Oberon), who is in a phonebooth. He doesn't know that she is about to call the police to tell them that a man has been the victim of a hit-and-run...by her car, which she was driving at the time. She sees Barrett steal her car, then suddenly decides to let him take the fall for the accident. Now it's a double frame-up for Barrett!

This movie explores a lot of different themes, most of all fear; fear of getting caught, fear of the unknown, fear of failure, etc... It's a good title, as it covers many of the motivations for the characters. I liked how it keeps you guessing as to how Barrett and Warren will deal with ever-changing situations, which not only keep the movie rolling along, but makes it fairly deep. On top of all that, you have the criminal and police element making things difficult for all of them.

I found that the story wandered a bit, but is pretty tight overall. The performances were understated and natural. It was compelling and had a lot of nice surprises in it. A good noir-ish crime drama. Wouldn't have minded seeing more of Gia Scala in it, but despite that, I'd see it again someday.

Steve "Boley" Boleslavski (Edward G. Robinson) and Kansas Jackson (Edgar Buchanan) are old sea dogs who put together the second incarnation of a Navy destroyer called the John Paul Jones. Boley swears it's a great ship, but during its trials, it fails on many counts and is consigned to mail delivery. Morale is low, people want to leave, and on top of all that, Boley has trouble with a crewman named Mickey Donahue (Glenn Ford), who starts seeing Boley's daughter Mary (Marguerite Chapman). How will all these problems be resolved?

This was a fun one. I went in not knowing anything about it, just wanting to see more of Ford and Robinson. Though there are serious moments, mostly of the action variety, this is largely a light comedy, which is not surprising considering people like Buchanan, Leo Gorcey and Ed Brophy are in it. They provide levity, but also some heart.

Far from the best war picture I've seen, but still a good experience. Plus, it's always interesting to see these movies that were made in the middle of the war. Always adds another angle to things.

P.S. Good ol' Regis Toomey has a nice role in this as Boley's superior officer (once trained by Boley), and shockingly, he doesn't play a cop! Well, unless you consider a Lt. Cmdr. in the Navy a cop.

Another fun Benchley short about he and his wife going to see a movie and the various foibles they go through before and during.

As an aside, I can't imagine having a kid staring at me like that. I can laugh at it in this context, but if it really happened to me, I'd change seats way faster than he did!

A mild-mannered bank cashier and hobbyist painter (Edward G. Robinson) is played for a sucker by a woman (Joan Bennett) and her boyfriend (Dan Duryea) after they stage a mugging. He continues to spend time with her and she keeps using him for his money...that he doesn't really have. Her sob stories lead him to get loans and even contemplate stealing from the bank vault. She even starts selling his paintings, putting her name on them. Will he ever wise up?

This is another gem from the same cast and director (Fritz Lang) of The Woman in the Window, even featuring a somewhat similar story, though I like this one more, especially since it has a much stronger ending. It had me thinking of The Bigamist at one point, which is a good thing, in that it makes you kinda feel sorry for people despite them having done bad things. A testament to the quality of the writing and acting.

If you haven't seen it, for cat's sake, do so! ;)

After killing her adopted father in self-defense, a girl (Louise Brooks) is discovered by a passing hobo (Richard Arlen) looking for a meal. She explains what happened and he sympathizes. They run away together, planning to go to Canada, where he has an uncle. Along the way, they meet a sort of self-appointed King of the Hobos, named Oklahoma Red (Wallace Beery). He finds out that the girl is wanted, with a $1,000 bounty on her head. Will he help them escape or help himself to the reward money?

This is the first silent Beery film I'd seen, and even without hearing his booming voice, he still has a large presence. (plus, I read the title cards hearing his voice, anyway) Once he started doing talkies, I bet people really got a kick out of finally hearing him. First time I'd seen Brooks as well, and I enjoyed her role. This is a simple story done well, with enough ambiguity in the characters to keep you guessing how different situations will play out.

A stuffy, by-the-books banker (Peter Cushing) is visited by a man (André Morell) claiming to be from their insurance company. He has come to examine the bank and make sure everything is operating smoothly. The problem is, no one has checked his credentials and he soon holds Cushing hostage, threatening his family and forcing him to help him rob the bank of nearly £100,000. Everything has been meticulously planned for over a year. Will he pull off his perfect crime?

Really fun Hammer film here, full of tension, twists both big and small, and featuring the excellent performances of Cushing, who starts as a bit of a tyrant (think Grand Moff Tarkin lite) and Morell, playing the very charming borderline sociopath. It's a modern retelling of A Christmas Carol, though I don't know if I clued in to that on my first viewing years ago. It had been long enough that I'd forgotten the twists, which was nice.

If I saw this on TV around the holidays at the same time as A Christmas Carol, I'd watch this every time. ;)

When the Treasury Department suspects a luggage company-which has recently run a contest offering a European cruise-of smuggling diamonds, they plant a woman as a secretary in their office, and a t-man on the cruise ship. There will be intrigue and danger both on the high seas and on the land...

I watched this one simply because Preston Foster is the lead, and as usual, he made it fun. Fiesty Irene Hervey was good as his co-worker/on again, off again love interest too, as was Fred Keating as one of the main crooks. Throw in Frank Jenks in a cute role, and good ol' Regis Toomey as the t-man (of course) planted on the cruise and you've got yourself a solid cast.

I wouldn't say this was one of Foster's best, but I still liked the story, there's some witty dialogue, and a couple of surprises, too. Worth a look!

A drifter (Paul Muni) is kicked off a ship he'd been stowing away in and begins wandering around town. At the same time, a poor young boy named Giacomo (Vittorio Manunta) is sent by his mother to get milk. He doesn't have enough money and decides to steal it while the shopkeeper isn't looking. As he leaves the shop, he passes the drifter, who begins eating a piece of cheese. The shopkeeper objects, he grabs and silences her, and she dies. (heart attack?) Now both are on the run from the police and they stick together.

This was an interesting one. It's a sort of slice-of-life-in-Italy film, focusing on the poor and abused, who just happen to get embroiled in some very difficult circumstances. The story is decent, the scenery is nice, and performances are solid, including that of Joan Lorring as a woman who steals from her lecherous employer and is forced to pay for it his way. But it all kinda feels a little average and a bit too long. It has its moments, but there are no real big moments that grab you (save for the end, to a degree), and the empathy for, or interest in, the characters isn't strong enough to make the tension tense enough.

Certainly not Muni's best, nor Losey's, but still worth a look.

An interesting Disney animation adaptation of a book by American author Gregor Ziemer, who lived in Germany for several years before WWII. It details the life of a young boy named Hans, from his registration as a baby, through his education as one of Hitler's Youth, to a fully grown stormtrooper. Very serious stuff.

However...the seriousness of the piece is balanced (?) by the usual ultra-goofy portrayals of Hitler and his cronies that was popular at the time. We see a Nazi version of a fairy tale, with Hitler slaying the evil democracy witch and waking/rescuing Germany, in the form of a morbidly obese woman. It's a goofy, yet somewhat adult, scene shoehorned into the serious story of Hans, most likely for the benefit of American soldiers watching.

This is beautifully animated, with some striking imagery, but I wonder who this was really aimed at. Kids would laugh at the Hitler scene, not really understanding it, and miss the overall point, I think. I guess adults would've felt about it like I do now, though with a thick schmeer of wartime fervor on top. I know it was probably pretty much verboten at Disney then to show Hitler as a serious character, or even with a realistic look, but adding that scene for laughs took away from the rest of it. I dunno...it's a weird experience that has me thinking all over the place about it.

Hard to rate something like this, so I'll give it a 6, which means 'above average' on my scale, mostly due to the animations and scenes involving Hans.

A banker named Kenneth Holden (Albert Dekker) has been stealing funds from an estate and wants to marry the heiress named Claire (Catherine Craig) to basically keep the cashflow going. However, she has a fiancé. Holden orders a hit on him, simply saying to kill the guy the heiress is with. However (part 2), in short order, Claire breaks up with her fiancé and begins seeing Holden. But wait a minute, wasn't there something about a hit...?

There's another movie or two like this I've seen with the same general premise, but I can't remember the names. For all I know, maybe this predates them. I will say that for the first 2/3 of the movie, it's somewhat slow...but man does it pick up in the last 1/3! It gets really interesting and kinda twisty. A good plot gets better and better, anchored by Dekker's even-keeledness, never going overboard even when things got really bad.

In the end, I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I would. I'd see it again someday, in fact!

P.S. Recognize the second butler? It's Charles Middleton, probably most famous for playing Ming the Merciless. :)

Aliens from Mars invade Earth, incinerating everything in their path. Conventional weapons are useless against them. Can the scientists, led by Dr. Forrester (Gene Barry) stop them somehow, or is the planet doomed?

I've seen this one several times in the past, but my mother hadn't, so I showed it to her. Thankfully, it had been many years since my last viewing, so the little details were somewhat fuzzy. I never ranked this one as highly as other classic sci-fi movies like The Day the Earth Stood Still or The Time Machine, but I've always enjoyed it a lot. So many cool touches to it! And man, I had forgotten how intense it is!

When I was looking this up, I noticed a 2005 version. I thought 'there's a newer one?,' completely forgetting about the Tom Cruise version. Is it any good? I asked a friend, but I don't trust his judgment movie-wise. ;)

We begin with a scene under the opening credits where a man (John Payne) is being held at gunpoint by a man in a wheelchair and his cronies. What's going on? Turns out the one being held up is a former D.A. assistant, now a bouncer, hired to retrieve a missing ruby on a Caribbean island, where he knows his ex-girlfriend (Mary Murphy) is. When he gets there and sees her in a market, she runs away. He finds out that there is intrigue aplenty and his ex is possibly in it up to her neck. Can he trust her?

This was a decent one, the third of three teamings of John Payne with director Phil Karlson. (first was Kansas City Confidential, second was 99 River Street) It uses a lot of familiar elements from other noirs and does so mostly successfully. I found the story kinda bogged down here and there, but is generally solid. Some good action and surprises.

The other two movies I mentioned are better, especially the mighty K.C.C., but this is still worth a look, especially if you enjoy Payne as a tough guy.

As an aside, Mary Murphy sure can walk away!



*the lovely actress, not the incredibly annoying screeching woman on those dance shows!

After receiving an acquittal for Myra Leeds (Angela Lansbury), the woman he secretly loves who, lawyer Craig Carlson (Raymond Burr) finds out that it wasn't such an open and shut case. She is guilty of murdering her husband (whom she'd been offered a divorce from), and Carlson's conscience won't allow her to get away with it. He now swears to devote his life to proving her guilt.

Oh man...

This is one of the most original murder mysteries I've ever seen. Even the beginning grabs you, as Burr goes into a pawn shop, buys a gun, then starts speaking into a tape recorder, explaining that in a short while, he'll be dead. From there, it just gets more and more interesting. This is super solid overall, as were the performances, which also included Dick Foran as the murdered husdand, and John Dehner as the D.A.

The overall rating is kinda average, but I'm so glad I didn't let that throw me off when I came looking up the synopsis before I watched. To say I was impressed by the story is an understatement. I'd love to see this one again someday once I've forgotten all the new revelations it throws at you.

An American filmmaker living in London named Reggie Wilson (Richard Basehart) has been receiving letters from a woman named Evelyn (Mary Murphy), speaking about their past together. The problem is, he knows it didn't happen. But Evelyn knows it did. Is Wilson going crazy? How will Wilson convince his wife-and even himself-that this is just an elaborate case of blackmail?

Quite an interesting mystery here. The stories that Evelyn presents and her conviction about them sound so convincing that Wilson even sees a doctor to find out if there's something wrong with him that he'd forget something like that so completely.

The performances were solid and I like how it played out. A good one that the uncredited Joseph Losey was probably happy with.

I should also point out that the timing is pretty funny, since I chose this one at random to watch today when just last night, I watched an episode of Donahue on YouTube where former KISS drummer Peter Criss was on to confront a homeless impersonator who had caused him a lot of trouble...along with an actress who was taking care of the impersonator and claimed she and Criss had a relationship in the past.

True story of Caryl Chessman, here under the name "Whit" Whittier (Whittier being Chessman's real middle name), played by William Campbell, a juvenile delinquent who got worse and worse and worse... He eventually ends up in death row, where we are introduced to him, and his life up to that point is recounted.

Campbell does a nice job here, if not a little hammy at times. (but that's just the way he is naturally, it seems) There are other familiar faces and everyone does well, but this is really Campbell's time to shine. Knowing the events were real, the movie being based on Chessman's book of the same name, it was interesting to follow, especially knowing his became his own lawyer and basically added years to his life by studying law books.

Interestingly, this movie came out while he was on death row and is based on the first of four books he'd write, so things were still very much up in the air in the end! His wiki article is worth a look if you want to know how things turned out for him. Overall, this was pretty good. Definitely engaging. Certainly not one of those movies where you kinda secretly cheer for the fictional bad guy inside (know what I mean?), though, as he was a real, really bad guy.

Out of work Americans in Mexico named Hobbs (Humphrey Bogart) and Curtin (Tim Holt) are offered a job at an oil derrick by a man named McCormick (Barton MacLane). However, it turns out McCormick is a cheat, and after a brutal fight with him, Hobbs and Curtin take what they're owed and go to the local flophouse for the night. There, they meet Howard (Walter Huston), an old prospector who speaks of the good ol' days looking for gold. He says he can find it again, so they agree to use their money to buy equipment, and soon, the three of them are in them thar hills. But there will be danger in many forms, maybe even from within...

I first saw this over 6 years ago and loved it. I knew I wanted to see it again and I loved it all over again. It really has it all; top notch story, performances, and action, some surprises, and even some humor here and there. It had been long enough that I had forgotten most of the little details (even many of the big ones, to be honest), of which there are tons. And now, as I look through the full cast list at IMDb, it's fun seeing some of the details in how the performers are related to others. (for example, Tim Holt's father Jack was in the flophouse scene, and Walter Huston's son John, also the director of this movie, played the guy in the white suit who gave Hobbs money). Oh, and the kid that sold the lottery tickets was Robert Blake. :)

I will very happily see this for a third time someday. It's one of the all-time greats.

A beautiful young woman named Molly (Belinda Lee) begrudgingly gets involved with her brother Mike (David McCallum) in a diamond heist, meticulously planned by a small-time crook (Ronald Lewis). It's super risky, involving the impersonation of police, but amazingly, they get away with it. Sadly, a boy named Freddie (Michael Brooke), who has a crush on Molly, also becomes involved without his knowledge, and now he's in danger too.

This one features shades of The Window, which is a good thing. It's not on par with that one for various reasons, but still very enjoyable, with some good surprises. The story is engaging, adding layers that keep interest high, especially when Freddie's little brother finds something he shouldn't have, which sets off an entirely new, somewhat amusing chain of events.

All the performances were enjoyable, but Michael Brooke was the real revelation here. He did a fine job in the last of eight roles in his short career. (I also saw him in X the Unknown, but it wouldn't have been significant to me at the time)

I was very pleasantly surprised with this one. Recommended!

A former football star named Dave "Whizz" Tyler (Robert Kent) is released from prison on parole and gets a good job, partly due to the head of the sports department at the newspaper having written that Tyler will need a job on release. Tyler swears he was framed and spends his time trying to find out who sent him up the river, even risking parole violations to do it. Along the way, he falls for the sister of his new employer, and that's its own trouble on multiple fronts.

This was a fairly standard story, but enjoyable, with an interesting ending involving Tyler's boss. Kent was likeable and played it cool, never going over the top, where others might have. I liked how the sports writer, played by Ben Alexander, played into things. Victor Kilian as the parole officer and Maude Eburne as the whiny landlady were good too.

I wouldn't say rush out and see this one, but it is a decent way to spend an hour.

P.S. The poster here is for the wrong movie. Perhaps for the 1930 movie of the same name? No idea who that kid is.

A professor (Edward G. Robinson) has been teaching American history in Rio for 30 years. He retires and returns to the States, where he goes to see an old friend in crime. He wants to rob the diamond repository across the street from his school in Rio. For that, he'll need to send four criminal experts to do the dirty work. It's a complicated plan, but things get much more complicated when they discover that the safe is now protected by a new multi-microphone system called Grand Slam 70, which sets off an alarm if it detects any noise above 14 decibels. Plus, there's the matter of getting a special key from the repository's special secretary (the special Janet Leigh), and that's going nowhere fast. Looks like the deal is off...

No, of course it's not. ;) This was fun movie, a grand caper featuring the beautiful backdrop of Rio during Carnival (with some scenes taking place in Rome, London and New York as well), with some good Mission: Impossible-style ingenuity and obstacles, and even some infighting, providing decent tension. I liked it a lot, from beginning to end. Only a couple of downsides, in that Robinson was barely in it (and I'm not big on the apparently always miserable Klaus Kinski, though I admit he is good at what he does), plus the setup, essentially the first 1/4 of the movie, felt a little longer than necessary. The whole movie could've easily worked in 90 minutes or less. Other than that, though, it's a really good'un!

P.S. That categorized master criminal list was pretty impressive. Wonder how many crimelords really had something like that, let alone that many connections.