runtexas

IMDb member since December 2001
    Lifetime Total
    10+
    IMDb Member
    22 years

Reviews

The Walking Dead
(1936)

very good movie
This movie was broadcast on TCM early on a Saturday morning when they show a lot of short subjects. Recorded it just out of curiousity. Turned out to be a very good movie. Boris Karloff plays a gentle musician who is framed for a murder by a group of gangsters, led by Ricardo Cortez, who also plays the lawyer who defends Karloff and manages to lose the case. After Karloff is executed, his body is quickly retrieved by a doctor (not unlike Dr. Frankenstein) who brings him back to life. He is friendly to all until he meets Ricardo Cortez who he recognizes as an enemy, but doesn't know why. One by one, he confronts the gangsters who die, but not by Karloff's hand, he is just present when they die. At the same time, the gangsters are after Karloff, fearful he knows they framed him. In the meantime, the doctor who brought him back to life is trying to learn from Karloff what happens in death. The final scene takes a religious turn. The last of the gangsters have been killed in an auto accident, and Karloff tells the doctor to leave death to his maker. But he does manage to say death is peace as Karloff's character dies. It was if he was sent back to bring the gangsters to justice and then with the job done, he returns to death.

Head
(1968)

Dated, would rather watch an old Beatles movie
This movie appeared on TCM and decided to watch it. I was 15 when it came out in 1968, thought it would be fun to hear the music again. The intro to the movie made much of how The Monkeys were a copy of The Beatles, and that is correct. The Beatles were known as the fabfour (as in fabulous), the Monkeys were known as the prefab four (as in prefabricated). They were created for the TV show and were to be an American version of the Beatles. Only one (Mickey Dolenz) had any acting background, two (Peter Tork and Mike Nesmith) had a musical background. Initially, they were just the show, but they did eventually break out as a band with a number of hits. To be honest, I liked their music at the time, but was not a real Monkeys fan.

Watching the movie today, it is clearly a rip off of the Beatles, and in my mind, not a good one. I grew tired of it 10 minutes into the movie.

I grew up in the 60s, and this movie is clearly a product of that era. Even the psychedelic stuff was reminiscent of the ending scenes in 2001 A Space Odyssey.

If you have the patience to sit through a lot of dated stuff, the music is good. But I really couldn't get past the opening.

The Man from the Alamo
(1953)

Depends on what you want in a period movie
If you are looking for a Glenn Ford western from the early 50s, taking place in the post Civil War west, this is a good movie. Even has notable actors like Glenn Ford, Julie Adams, Chill Wills, Victor Jory, and a young Hugh O'Brian.

But if you are looking to see a western taking place in Texas during the Texas revolution in 1836, you will be very disappointed. Yes, it starts off in the Alamo and features Sam Houston, Travis, Bowie, and Crockett. But beyond that, everything is wrong. Uniforms, clothing, tactics, weapons, all are from the post Civil War era. Even the scenery is all wrong for that part of Texas.

There is a legend of the Alamo that when Travis drew the line in the sand, one person didn't cross the line and left, but he did not resemble the Glenn Ford character at all.

If you want to see a period picture from 1836 Texas, don't waste your time.

The First Texan
(1956)

marred by poor selection of filming location
I recently saw "Texas Rising" on Netflixs. Outside of the historical and stylistic errors, the biggest problem I saw in that series was the location chosen for filming, Durango, Mexico. That area is a mountainous desert. Most of the action in the Texas revolution takes place in a triangle bounded by San Antonio, Houston, and Goliad. San Antonio is in the Texas hill country, Houston and Goliad are in the gulf coast plain. There are no mountains in this area and it is not a desert. This movie, besides a number of historical and stylistic errors (this is Texas in 1836, not the American West in 1870), makes the same mistake. The retreat of the Texas army, where Sam Houston is leading his army east towards San Jacinto was filmed in an area that looks nothing like the area around today's city of Houston (San Jacinto is on the east side of the city).

I live about 10 miles from San Jacinto, it is very green, very wet, and very flat (about 25 feet above sea level). Why do Hollywood film makers not check out the area where the action took place? San Jacinto is bounded on the north by Buffalo Bayou (now the Houston Ship Channel) and the San Jacinto river, which flows into Galveston Bay, only about 7 miles away. The scene of the Mexican army camp with a mountain in the background was ludicrous.

There are highly improbably meetings between Sam Houston and many famous names from the Texas revolution and although they saved a lot of money by not showing the Alamo or Goliad, they relied on descriptions that are incorrect.

That said, I am native Texan and was disappointed. If viewed as just a typical western, it was ok, but as a movie of Sam Houston and the Texas revolution, was marred by the geographical, historical, and stylistic errors.

Berlin Correspondent
(1942)

not supposed to be a comedy, but...
We caught this movie on TCM. At first it struck us as having highly improbable scenes for Nazi Germany. But then, it struck us as being like the 1960s sitcom, "Hogan's Heroes". I can't help wondering if this movie inspired the makers of "Hogan's Heroes"?

The Alamo: Thirteen Days to Glory
(1987)

Question about one of the actesses
The problem with all movies about the Alamo is when you have a battle where one side is essentially wiped out, you will never know what happened to the detail shown in all the movies and this one is no exception. But there are somethings we do know. For example, the final assault on the morning of March 6 occurred before dawn and the battle was over as the sun was rising. This movie shows the final assault in broad daylight. Also, there were three assaults that morning (not two as shown in this version), the first two repulsed, the third made it over the walls.

But there is one mystery regarding the actors. Kathleen York played Mrs. Susanna Dickinson. IMDB shows her as being born in 1975, which means she would have been 12 in 1987 when she played Mrs. Dickinson! Something is not right on IMDB!

The Match King
(1932)

surprize sleeper
We stumbled on to this film on TCM. By chance, we also watched at the same time "Three On a Match", also starring Warren William, made the same year. The two movies have a slight connection as in "The Match King" we get the origin of the superstition tied to "Three On A Match". We recommend watching both movies.

Three on a Match
(1932)

surprize sleeper
We stumbled on to this film on TCM. By chance, we watched "The Match King", also starring Warren William, made the same year. The two movies have a slight connection as in "The Match King" we get the origin of the superstition tied to "Three On A Match". We recommend watching both movies.

JAG: Need to Know
(2002)
Episode 7, Season 8

goof at the end
It was an interesting episode, but at the end was a major goof. They claimed to be showing the funeral at sea for the bodies of the crew which were recovered. The problem which I saw immediately is that this was footage of a burial at sea from WWII. The uniforms, rifles, and helmets, were clearly WWII era and the flags draped on the coffins were 48 star flags.

Northern Exposure: The Mystery of the Old Curio Shop
(1993)
Episode 2, Season 5

goof - Maurice in Social Security
My wife and I are long time fans of Northern Exposure. Being Jewish, we enjoyed the reference to the long forgotten Jewish member of the community from the 1700s. But there was one part that did not seem correct, Maurice being signed up for Social Security (SS). My wife and I are both retired and this is not how to sign up for SS. You sign yourself up, but only when you are ready. But more important, as a retired NASA engineer (I spent 35 years at the Johnson Space Center), I know that Maurice would not be in SS. Unless he worked for a significant amount before going into the military. He is retired-military, they are not in SS. Had he become a civilian employee of NASA he also would not have been in SS, but in the civil service retirement system (NASA employees hired after 1986 would be in SS).

Still, I gave it a high rating because overall, the episode was very good.

It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World
(1963)

hilarious fun film
I saw this movie when it first came out and had the opportunity to see it recently on TCM. It was as hilarious for me now as it was for me as a kid. So many comedic stars from the 40s, 50s, and 60s, many who made short cameos. There were some just starting their careers, others making comebacks. And a number of serious actors doing slapstick comedy. I highly recommend it as a fun comedy for the entire family.

That's Right - You're Wrong
(1939)

a fun movie
A really fun movie, worth watching, particularly if you are a fan of the pre WWII big bands. Other big bands, i.e., Glenn Miller, Benny Goodman, also made musical movies at that time. The best thing about those movies is seeing and hearing the great big bands. Lucille Ball also does a great job in this movie.

I Dream Too Much
(1935)

Lily Pons' singing makes this movie
I found this movie on TCM. Lily Pons' singing is awesome, it makes the movie. I was born too late to hear her sing in person, but thanks to movies like this I can hear her.

The Librarians: And the Curse of Cindy
(2017)
Episode 7, Season 3

poor story line
Through the first two seasons we enjoyed this series, but in season three, the episodes began slipping. Season three started off fine, the first five episodes of season three were good, but the next two episodes were, to be blunt, awful. Episode 6, "And the Trial of the Triangle" was so bad we couldn't finish it. It was just dumb. We were able to get through this episode, "And the Curse of Cindy", but it was also pretty bad. Poor story line. As to the main "guest" character, Cindy, we had no sympathy and would have voted Cindy off the reality show too! Hope the remaining episodes are better.

The Librarians: And the Trial of the Triangle
(2016)
Episode 6, Season 3

poor story line
Through the first two seasons we enjoyed this series, but in season three, the episodes began slipping. Season three started off fine, the first five episodes of season three were good, but the next episode was, to be blunt, awful. Episode 6, "And the Trial of the Triangle" was so bad we couldn't finish it. It was just dumb, and not the fault of the actors, it was just a poor story line.

Death in Paradise: Lucky in Love
(2021)
Episode 3, Season 10

disappointing
We have been fans of this series since it started. The quirky British inspectors, supported by an excellent island police force were always a big part of the success of this series. However, the latest season is pushing too much. The antics of the current British inspector have become too much and are quite tiresome. The newest member of the police force, a con artist with a rap sheet a mile long is also too much. Commissioner Patterson gave Ruby (his niece) a hard time for one indiscretion as a teenager, but turns a blind eye to the newest member's criminal past and even gives him a pass after pocketing money intended for the repair of the police motorcycle. This episode was disappointing in how the murder was solved, but more important, this show is rapidly going downhill.

A Connecticut Yankee
(1931)

fun movie
Before seeing this on TCM, I only knew of the Bing Crosby version. Started off slow, but once Will Rogers goes back in time, the movie becomes more fun in a silly way. He does the jousting match "cowboy style" as in the Bing Crosby version, but here, Will Rogers really was a cowboy. Will Rogers brings a lot more of 1931 into circa 528 Camelot, with lots of funny scenes. The final scene, with the knights to the rescue in 1931 automobiles and even 1 WWI tank is hilarious. Will Rogers "aw shucks" style works well.

12 O'Clock High: I Am the Enemy
(1965)
Episode 9, Season 2

great series
Overall, I like the series 12 o'clock high. I remember when it was first broadcast, they made a point of explaining the show was deliberately shot in black and white because they would be using considerable WWII footage and didn't want to bounce between color and black and white. This particular episode strikes me as Captain Kirk pilots a B-17, he acts exactly as he did on Star Trek. There is one blooper I saw when watching it recently. The US flag on William Shatner's uniform is a 50 star flag! Incorrect for 1943. Paul Burke's uniform has the correct 48 star flag.

Miss Fisher and the Crypt of Tears
(2020)

Disappointed
We were fans of the original series and were looking forward to the continuing adventures of Phryne and Jack as they solved murder mysteries, this time in a feature length movie. Instead, we got Phryne becomes Indiana Jones. Solving the murders took a back seat to a not so believable Indiana Jones adventure with flaws in the story line. They are in a rush to return to the middle east from England to end the curse, but do so by biplane. Did the writers think about how slow biplanes flew? Average top speed, about 75 mph. Adding in stops to refuel, it would have been faster to return to the middle east by ship! Just one of the many flaws in the plot. They should have stuck to what made the series so popular, solving murder mysteries in the roaring 20s.

See all reviews