JEFF HUNTER & DANA ANDREWS IN WILLIAM CONRAD'S 'BRAINSTORM'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifJnk1uYRrv2R7CcEIl-djFMXPzYGtB6qJ-LqnnI1Mn6Lxp-aex6I19q_VWhV0ab-zaAW4Tbnx3rEPPRw027Do1x7MfKG6-fbolJBNrUynjz501BN2ZN7peKosn1JMMXSZL5Thi8CECdnhI3rHKiE97vnDZl6ny9YTC55xSs6MRbkAK7wuvYAtj6KLWWdv/s1896/Screen%20Shot%202023-11-19%20at%206.39.24%20PM.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="998" data-original-width="1896" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifJnk1uYRrv2R7CcEIl-djFMXPzYGtB6qJ-LqnnI1Mn6Lxp-aex6I19q_VWhV0ab-zaAW4Tbnx3rEPPRw027Do1x7MfKG6-fbolJBNrUynjz501BN2ZN7peKosn1JMMXSZL5Thi8CECdnhI3rHKiE97vnDZl6ny9YTC55xSs6MRbkAK7wuvYAtj6KLWWdv/s16000/Screen%20Shot%202023-11-19%20at%206.39.24%20PM.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Title: BRAINSTORM Director: William Conrad Year: 1965 Rates: ****1/2 </u><br></td></tr></tbody></table><p>In 1965, veteran actor Dana Andrews was busier acting than his BRAINSTORM director William Conrad was directing: making three movies (including <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2023/11/filldonahue.html">MY BLOOD RUNS COLD</a>) the same year that Andrews appeared in eight...</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>As characters ranging from cameos to leads, heroes to heavies... in BRAINSTORM Dana's deep, smooth voice suited a corporate (space age computer) tycoon that winds-up in a love triangle after his sharpest employee saves the life of — before falling in love with — young trophy-wife Anne Francis...</p><p><span></span></p>

dana andrews, jeffrey hunter, kathie browne, neo noir, sixties, thriller, viveca lindfors, warner archives, william conrad

JEFF HUNTER & DANA ANDREWS IN WILLIAM CONRAD'S 'BRAINSTORM'

Title: BRAINSTORM Director: William Conrad Year: 1965 Rates: ****1/2 In 1965, veteran actor Dana Andrews was busier acting than his BRAINSTO...

WILLAM CONRAD REINCARNATES NOIR WITH 'MY BLOOD RUNS COLD'

<p> </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpdZ_MgKiqEEUF1c6luN7nunit1uV-jXGdXgDbOQZIiNm85j85m6lq-AK0mkIR0nCN22W6_V3XthzfpSwBs7NsHQ7eU1reoGqhhLQC1PAoXpNn3BbSfGA2pUZgrAWNu2kYEHXVnnn0ia41NufpmFmPM81eR3gnrg-u0ak9vk_iff2qYF-boc2Jl7CTAKlv/s1082/Screen%20Shot%202023-11-17%20at%204.55.44%20PM.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="1082" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpdZ_MgKiqEEUF1c6luN7nunit1uV-jXGdXgDbOQZIiNm85j85m6lq-AK0mkIR0nCN22W6_V3XthzfpSwBs7NsHQ7eU1reoGqhhLQC1PAoXpNn3BbSfGA2pUZgrAWNu2kYEHXVnnn0ia41NufpmFmPM81eR3gnrg-u0ak9vk_iff2qYF-boc2Jl7CTAKlv/s16000/Screen%20Shot%202023-11-17%20at%204.55.44%20PM.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Title: MY BLOOD RUNS COLD Cast: Troy Donahue, Joey Heatherton  Year: 1965 Year: ****</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Along with a throwaway horror flick in an extremely busy three-picture-year of 1965, the best-known-for-television actor William Conrad directed an unintentional neo-noir double-feature, BRAINSTORM and MY BLOOD RUNS COLD, both unique, creative and eclectic while the latter provided limited-rage Troy Donahue a surprisingly intense performance... with layers...</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Albeit most of them intentionally hidden since his character is deeply enigmatic from the start, <i>and</i> desperately vulnerable — literally when he's almost killed by spoiled, fitfully gorgeous rich girl Joey Heatherton...</p><p><span></span></p>

barry sullivan, jazz-score, jeanette nolan, joey heatherton, melodrama, neo noir, nicolas coster, romance, sixties, thriller, troy donahue, william conrad

WILLAM CONRAD REINCARNATES NOIR WITH 'MY BLOOD RUNS COLD'

Title: MY BLOOD RUNS COLD Cast: Troy Donahue, Joey Heatherton  Year: 1965 Year: **** Along with a throwaway horror flick in an extremely bu...

JOI LANSING STEALS 'HOT CARS' STARRING JOHN BROMFIELD

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh-Fhh42mH5Pixsu1SHF84aJaKA19_LFxq0Bjr38vE96NyBi0UZwNqlZbSjYWHj3dnmzAsnIhBsQ9sCARAguTH25-_1XqU19QHnHJvdr6Qz-whU-fW7bOWlWgNRNGzbKX1BvrcHemH26v2jDvk7CqOub-m8uVQX1_F25skUsUD2o_KIBngcoAurKpPAFHy/s2084/1%202.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1150" data-original-width="2084" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh-Fhh42mH5Pixsu1SHF84aJaKA19_LFxq0Bjr38vE96NyBi0UZwNqlZbSjYWHj3dnmzAsnIhBsQ9sCARAguTH25-_1XqU19QHnHJvdr6Qz-whU-fW7bOWlWgNRNGzbKX1BvrcHemH26v2jDvk7CqOub-m8uVQX1_F25skUsUD2o_KIBngcoAurKpPAFHy/s16000/1%202.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Joi Lansing, John Bromfield, Carol Shanno & Mark Dana in HOT CARS Year: 1956 Rates: ****</u><u>*</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Despite not making any Film Noir lists, HOT CARS is the epitome of the seedy side of crime cinema led by an otherwise honest guy who, in this case, is ironically a used car salesman in John Bromfield, married to the perfect suburban wife and father of a sick child: thus needing extra money, and quick...</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Yet the best scenes occur in the first act when Bromfield's Nick can't catch a break, mainly from bullying boss Robert Osterloh, who both sophisticated desk-set villain Ralph Clanton and handsome killer henchman Mark Dano... eventually targeting token snoopy cop Dabs Greer... are initially a nice break from...</p><p><span></span></p>

bel air productions, fifties, film noir or melodrama, jazz-score, john bromfield, joi lansing, mark dana, robert osterloh, thriller

JOI LANSING STEALS 'HOT CARS' STARRING JOHN BROMFIELD

Joi Lansing, John Bromfield, Carol Shanno & Mark Dana in HOT CARS Year: 1956 Rates: **** * Despite not making any Film Noir lists, HOT C...

LEX BARKER, MALA POWERS & LEO GORDON 'THE YELLOW MOUNTAIN'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8kag3IvxoGjSCD6PWefbfb766MyLBaZ7fEhSmQAPGwEMFmSBxGYZJ5it9GxujVl92gyBmk_w9T-VF-wt_Z-5L3Rab5noRadFyqFYmMGxbdq3JHZgHBv7BIdbWd6g_i-us2kPoaGNkTfj5HWC8169R3HP8dKdxH4j7yZOFjueunAtltRu4NERsQiSt8mng/s2448/1%202%202.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1460" data-original-width="2448" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8kag3IvxoGjSCD6PWefbfb766MyLBaZ7fEhSmQAPGwEMFmSBxGYZJ5it9GxujVl92gyBmk_w9T-VF-wt_Z-5L3Rab5noRadFyqFYmMGxbdq3JHZgHBv7BIdbWd6g_i-us2kPoaGNkTfj5HWC8169R3HP8dKdxH4j7yZOFjueunAtltRu4NERsQiSt8mng/s16000/1%202%202.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Lex Barker & Leo Gordon in THE YELLOW MOUNTAIN Year: 1954 Rating: ****1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table>Any movie about mining for gold will eventually include double-crossing con artists, and THE YELLOW MOUNTAIN starts right off with honest hero Lex Barker punching his former backstabbing friend in the office of a saloon that's the central location: until they venture into the titular mine with two different names on the claims...</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>There's the shifty fella Barker fought with in charming, unpredictable Howard Duff, with his eyes on the gorgeous daughter of unlucky lifelong gambling miner William Demarest, a kind of passive version of <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2023/11/bogartgold.html">Walter Huston</a>...</p><p><span></span></p>

action, adventure, denver pyle, fifties, howard duff, john mcintire, leo gordon, lex barker, mala powers, treasure, western, william demarest

LEX BARKER, MALA POWERS & LEO GORDON 'THE YELLOW MOUNTAIN'

Lex Barker & Leo Gordon in THE YELLOW MOUNTAIN Year: 1954 Rating: ****1/2 Any movie about mining for gold will eventually include double...

HUMPHREY BOGART STEALS 'THE TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP05Q8k_mlvuts-jyov1Z6DOnr8ww2uPaRmLd5zdhsdXcp_13WWyOpr2BfDy-m3Z1qnvQ9OVKtKkcB3P9tfCLOoVuhupGTpGa3uMVyiDFKoeXpyzNUL-slTraGByf1pmuZNbPBTp5uTr_WKc40lL5Y3I5_W_iBVHy6JMDFmKJPoZKMv6w7XQSl8G193ox2/s1888/Screen%20Shot%202023-11-15%20at%204.08.19%20PM.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="931" data-original-width="1888" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP05Q8k_mlvuts-jyov1Z6DOnr8ww2uPaRmLd5zdhsdXcp_13WWyOpr2BfDy-m3Z1qnvQ9OVKtKkcB3P9tfCLOoVuhupGTpGa3uMVyiDFKoeXpyzNUL-slTraGByf1pmuZNbPBTp5uTr_WKc40lL5Y3I5_W_iBVHy6JMDFmKJPoZKMv6w7XQSl8G193ox2/s16000/Screen%20Shot%202023-11-15%20at%204.08.19%20PM.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Title: THE TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE Year: 1948 Rating: ****</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>By the time TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE came out, Humphrey Bogart was already a big star, having began (over a decade earlier) as unknown dressed-up dandies to successfully portraying cutthroat villains soon morphed into likeable scoundrels... and then outright heroes...</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>So for MADRE it was back to the heavy... yet his Fred C. Dobbs is initially more lightweight and affable, homeless and bumming throughout the crowded purgatory of 1920's Mexico with a new friend in perfect sidekick Tim Holt, both meeting an old yet energetic, experienced, tale-spinning and much-deserved Oscar-winning Walter Huston, director John Huston's father and the reason Bogart agreed playing another dark, sinister role: so that the veteran actor could intensely perform against such formidable, uncompromising tyranny...</p><p><span></span></p>

adventure, barton maclane, bruce bennett, forties, humphrey bogart, john huston, mexico, robert blake, thriller, tim holt, treasure, walter huston

HUMPHREY BOGART STEALS 'THE TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE'

Title: THE TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE Year: 1948 Rating: **** By the time TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE came out, Humphrey Bogart was alrea...

CLINT EASTWOOD IN 'THE EIGER SANCTION' WITH GEORGE KENNEDY

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidiwvn0rUnrwFPp06oSCfu1F5lsKVbuAHOkbMJiW_h8PwwqcYF79fEisWSvRMVRatpvsUo3X0Q9HUGVPRlYgBFrfyEf1fhLeSg05kJbAdQozKzqUExMJIUvnKeHrxa3IOaeQdGxtK4ev946LhMQ8nEzoDCSWt1Z6XnH3EQ21W0GESQ3v4b0VE-qGdu0Su3/s1602/1%203.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="728" data-original-width="1602" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidiwvn0rUnrwFPp06oSCfu1F5lsKVbuAHOkbMJiW_h8PwwqcYF79fEisWSvRMVRatpvsUo3X0Q9HUGVPRlYgBFrfyEf1fhLeSg05kJbAdQozKzqUExMJIUvnKeHrxa3IOaeQdGxtK4ev946LhMQ8nEzoDCSWt1Z6XnH3EQ21W0GESQ3v4b0VE-qGdu0Su3/s16000/1%203.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Title: THE EIGER SANCTION Year: 1975 Rating: *** Grade: C+</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Clint Eastwood's THE EIGER SANCTION foreshadows RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK having an otherwise mild-mannered, seemingly-average college professor with a dangerous side-job... </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Only here Clint's Jonathan Hemlock is far more dangerous being a hired assassin in what plays like a James Bond vehicle including an enigmatic, monologue-spouting code-name tycoon and several gorgeous, extremely easy women (featuring gorgeous blaxploitation starlet Vonetta McGee) who turn on the central hero...</p><p><span></span></p>

action, adventure, candice rialson, clint eastwood, george kennedy, gregory walcott, hit-man, jack cassidy, neo noir, seventies, thayer david, vonetta mcgee

CLINT EASTWOOD IN 'THE EIGER SANCTION' WITH GEORGE KENNEDY

Title: THE EIGER SANCTION Year: 1975 Rating: *** Grade: C+ Clint Eastwood's THE EIGER SANCTION foreshadows RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK havin...

ALEXANDER PAYNE & PAUL GIAMATTI REUNITE FOR 'THE HOLDOVERS'

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGek7Sz7Y0VIBHFoc-XjUJnSO-WL1PIYTjquUqUyW4SVXn3iICoPBCshEJHW2ZtsPhxMuZr62FhmrUa02Eq20K6ubCWf4RlW0CMPWoUQk_AsqM7tQRRDuNDySQEDxnt2CbC0CTpcQgDp4fsUwSCv6EedpRBd7XGtCfQAcnQLwOdwOMoCDHvSKnstMZqXQD/s1703/Screen%20Shot%202024-05-03%20at%2012.20.05%20AM.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="978" data-original-width="1703" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGek7Sz7Y0VIBHFoc-XjUJnSO-WL1PIYTjquUqUyW4SVXn3iICoPBCshEJHW2ZtsPhxMuZr62FhmrUa02Eq20K6ubCWf4RlW0CMPWoUQk_AsqM7tQRRDuNDySQEDxnt2CbC0CTpcQgDp4fsUwSCv6EedpRBd7XGtCfQAcnQLwOdwOMoCDHvSKnstMZqXQD/s16000/Screen%20Shot%202024-05-03%20at%2012.20.05%20AM.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Title: THE HOLDOVERS Year: 2023 Rating: ** </u><br></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Director Alexander Payne is passive/aggressive when it comes to his previous SIDEWAYS star Paul Giamatti's character Paul Hunham, a stuffy, curmudgeon-like professor at an all-boys boarding school, who in one scene angrily lectures his students while glibly handing-out failing grades, and the next idealistically defends the institution's grieving African-American cook from one of a small-handful of HOLDOVER teens, unable to go home for Christmas and having to spend a melancholy "detention" (like THE BREAKFAST CLUB meets DEAD POET'S SOCIETY meets 1972's CHILD'S PLAY) stuck in an otherwise empty campus...</p><p>Ironically, that particular scolded brat winds up getting a last-minute Christmas vacation reprieve... a shame since he had the kind of antagonistic attitude that would inevitably transition by the end...<br></p><p><span></span></p>

2023, alexander payne, comedy, counter-culture, drama, new, paul giamatti, teen, time period

ALEXANDER PAYNE & PAUL GIAMATTI REUNITE FOR 'THE HOLDOVERS'

Title: THE HOLDOVERS Year: 2023 Rating: ** Director Alexander Payne is passive/aggressive when it comes to his previous SIDEWAYS star Paul G...

DAN AYKROYD WITH HOWARD HESSEMAN IN 'DOCTOR DETROIT'

<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_lGXDbmhA9Gy679DyKILCu2e6gyr2156Z8iYnYctyRk7gsQUSAevr8z8bEWVEF2lv2YtJsr4ZMvEQ2ESegbUgUc5AyQq5NybbbHBQT0diLAEQPCxwqsUFs46s0A7eGmAodCGhNjJMJKkWsJKzteI83NF490uRzDS2ExC5cEoTH1Env9xf39Bb-Ad5_4PI/s1474/Screen%20Shot%202023-11-08%20at%201.54.32%20AM.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="668" data-original-width="1474" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_lGXDbmhA9Gy679DyKILCu2e6gyr2156Z8iYnYctyRk7gsQUSAevr8z8bEWVEF2lv2YtJsr4ZMvEQ2ESegbUgUc5AyQq5NybbbHBQT0diLAEQPCxwqsUFs46s0A7eGmAodCGhNjJMJKkWsJKzteI83NF490uRzDS2ExC5cEoTH1Env9xf39Bb-Ad5_4PI/s16000/Screen%20Shot%202023-11-08%20at%201.54.32%20AM.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>End Credit Fake Sequel Gag from DOCTOR DETROIT Year: 1982 Rating: ***1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>By 1982, Dan Aykroyd wasn't completely into playing a total goofball since, after four gorgeous limo-riding hookers spot his ultra-nerdy college professor Clifford Skridrow power-walking in an obviously rehearsed/notably overboard fashion, they can't quit noting how cute and even sexy he is, thus marking Dan's first stand-alone leading role following the tragic death of legendary comedy-partner John Belushi... </p><p></p><p>Basically a NUTTY PROFESSOR alter-ego theme, foreshadowing Aykroyd's forgettable THE COUCH TRIP in that an otherwise average dolt wields conveniently miraculous traits of an improvisational performer yet here, Clifford feels idealistically motivated to save those hookers (including future trophy wife Donna Dixon and mouthy Fran Drescher) from encroachment by viciously monopolizing Kate Murtaugh after their own flashy pimp Howard Hesseman, owing tons of money and driving the film's entire first act (while literally being driven by T.K. Carter), heads for the hills... </p><p><span></span></p>

andrew duggan, comedy, dan aykroyd, donna dixon, eighties, fran drescher, george furth, hank salas, howard hesseman, lynda lei, prostitute, t.k. carter

DAN AYKROYD WITH HOWARD HESSEMAN IN 'DOCTOR DETROIT'

End Credit Fake Sequel Gag from DOCTOR DETROIT Year: 1982 Rating: ***1/2 By 1982, Dan Aykroyd wasn't completely into playing a total go...

MICHAEL MADSEN AND SCOTT HAMM DUENAS IN 'FINAL WAGER'

<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigdkzOqtMKw5hMN5keaNjS7UFMcosEetHRO8MVq6DaCsxMb7GD7dsbA5nBiJMTeO1XtlqLQr-dVMYVilgdDUpIBkXCpz6_93wTyfjK339p2r2KZEy9Z2bZ4ZcBkb60yl93TFfxOeMI67YTuCoAoIXOqSAHfun_mbXEx_Q0nBNemTop1kmLZZhrv1tlNbt7/s1606/Screen%20Shot%202024-04-10%20at%2011.14.23%20PM.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="822" data-original-width="1606" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigdkzOqtMKw5hMN5keaNjS7UFMcosEetHRO8MVq6DaCsxMb7GD7dsbA5nBiJMTeO1XtlqLQr-dVMYVilgdDUpIBkXCpz6_93wTyfjK339p2r2KZEy9Z2bZ4ZcBkb60yl93TFfxOeMI67YTuCoAoIXOqSAHfun_mbXEx_Q0nBNemTop1kmLZZhrv1tlNbt7/s16000/Screen%20Shot%202024-04-10%20at%2011.14.23%20PM.png"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Michael Madsen in FINAL WAGER Year: 2024</u><br></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Michael Madsen's famous tough guy voice has become even harsher with age, providing an underline crime flick edge to FINAL WAGER, an otherwise tavern-set romantic-comedy with a TWILIGHT ZONE-style twist of an unlucky gambler who realizes he cannot lose a bet on Christmas: so it's also an upbeat Holiday flick... but without getting lost in sentimentalism despite a financial assistance subplot driving our resilient, likeable lead...<br></p><p></p><p>Instead, it's his fiance, played by down-to-earth, light-up-a-room beauty Fernanda Romero... owner of the central bar... who keeps the low-budget yet impressively slick and professional-looking indie not only intriguing, but surprisingly unpredictable despite the firmly established fact this lucky-streak-gambler will <i>always</i> win — because he can possibly lose his girl, and from beginning, middle and end, their relationship is what FINAL WAGER truly relies on. <br></p><p><span></span></p>

2024, christmas, comedy, fernanda romano, gambling, michael madsen, romantic comedy, scott hamm duenas

MICHAEL MADSEN AND SCOTT HAMM DUENAS IN 'FINAL WAGER'

Michael Madsen in FINAL WAGER Year: 2024 Michael Madsen's famous tough guy voice has become even harsher with age, providing an underlin...

CHRISTINA GREGG IN ROGER CORMAN'S 'THE YOUNG RACERS'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBesT6guVerp3AFTeMdA_0xE35S4vImVUDq4E3KsPqVg0il0WgMWrlScytSfFSILxUXCy4hbWyNZy-B4XYqjrtV_RhpqDjfhEo6xfKZqDibC4AGva-1C0WHQX40I2hcYY-SPven0F4g3SScEnr95d66798EoGx6d59LO_e7pejMad5yNcM2m-QAoAebEOq/s1762/1%202-1.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1048" data-original-width="1762" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBesT6guVerp3AFTeMdA_0xE35S4vImVUDq4E3KsPqVg0il0WgMWrlScytSfFSILxUXCy4hbWyNZy-B4XYqjrtV_RhpqDjfhEo6xfKZqDibC4AGva-1C0WHQX40I2hcYY-SPven0F4g3SScEnr95d66798EoGx6d59LO_e7pejMad5yNcM2m-QAoAebEOq/s16000/1%202-1.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Christina Gregg with Mark Damon in THE YOUNG RACERS Year: 1963 Rates: ** </u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>There are bad b-movies that are still entertaining, and then there are those that simply don't work — as is the case of Roger Corman's THE YOUNG RACERS,<i> that does use</i> genuine European Monte Carlo Grand Prix racing locations that don't resemble stock footage thrown into the melodramatic romance sequences, which this has far too much of...</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Howard Hawks fared much better (though not financially) with what this picture seems a precursor of, RED LINE 7000, following womanizing racers and their female conquests, some stronger than others, in particular Luana Anders as the central ingenue, stuck between THE YOUNG RACERS... </p><p><span></span></p>

action, christina gregg, exploitation, luana anders, mark damon, melodrama, race car, roger corman, romance, sixties, sport, william campbell, william shatner

CHRISTINA GREGG IN ROGER CORMAN'S 'THE YOUNG RACERS'

Christina Gregg with Mark Damon in THE YOUNG RACERS Year: 1963 Rates: ** There are bad b-movies that are still entertaining, and then there ...

HUMPHREY BOGART WITH LAUREN BACALL IN 'THE BIG SLEEP'

<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs4JR8kyc0_q1TlH_SucuKQDIEg7asFj0b_amfpQDYUX1Z0z0yQU9Aqd6gMngGNsAdZ4Z3IArT8REYNfWIElfnzsIwnTQ9rKMk6VNQqkO6pF1ukBUos8nowbpV6KCmDo4QW9swAfmyV5FY6BuktNu9kIrEzw9O4Vr9EEkmCSQHM2NiUIvhF-rOHqUqlwFH/s2066/Screen%20Shot%202023-11-01%20at%205.45.14%20PM.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1158" data-original-width="2066" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs4JR8kyc0_q1TlH_SucuKQDIEg7asFj0b_amfpQDYUX1Z0z0yQU9Aqd6gMngGNsAdZ4Z3IArT8REYNfWIElfnzsIwnTQ9rKMk6VNQqkO6pF1ukBUos8nowbpV6KCmDo4QW9swAfmyV5FY6BuktNu9kIrEzw9O4Vr9EEkmCSQHM2NiUIvhF-rOHqUqlwFH/s16000/Screen%20Shot%202023-11-01%20at%205.45.14%20PM.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Title: THE BIG SLEEP Year: 1946 Rating: ***1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>One of the most important agendas director Howard Hawks had for Humphrey Bogart in THE BIG SLEEP — following his breakthrough in HIGH SIERRA followed by THE MALTESE FALCON and CASABLANCA — was to not only sustain his snowballing stardom, but to make him a ravaging sex symbol...</p><p></p><p>Because every woman here wants him... needs him, even... from a sexy librarian, a sexier bookstore employee (Dorothy Malone)... and even a hot female cab driver gets his number, literally, for a possible nighttime tryst... </p><p><span></span></p>

dorothy malone, film noir or melodrama, gumshoe, howard hawks, humphrey bogart, lauren bacall, martha vickers, mystery, raymond chandler

HUMPHREY BOGART WITH LAUREN BACALL IN 'THE BIG SLEEP'

Title: THE BIG SLEEP Year: 1946 Rating: ***1/2 One of the most important agendas director Howard Hawks had for Humphrey Bogart in THE BIG SL...

HUMPHREY BOGART & LAUREN BACALL 'TO HAVE AND HAVE NOT'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhZF2XwOULxq2-7vzidub8EE7pMH7cPRv6rA2x1AErUbBg3aAXikZ0CC6cuDCWzJNY7FgOmbMdWw8zszro5VMZHl2junGIwcSL0dY5Kv_72AOTMgsHwasUk7EQukbSD9sSmA0lifPcua3-KaRhof90JlzE2r2zKHrtis4JwX3Qen2QPCG8y6-y7ExBhAt2/s1086/Screen%20Shot%202023-11-02%20at%204.39.07%20PM.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="557" data-original-width="1086" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhZF2XwOULxq2-7vzidub8EE7pMH7cPRv6rA2x1AErUbBg3aAXikZ0CC6cuDCWzJNY7FgOmbMdWw8zszro5VMZHl2junGIwcSL0dY5Kv_72AOTMgsHwasUk7EQukbSD9sSmA0lifPcua3-KaRhof90JlzE2r2zKHrtis4JwX3Qen2QPCG8y6-y7ExBhAt2/s16000/Screen%20Shot%202023-11-02%20at%204.39.07%20PM.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Title: TO HAVE AND HAVE NOT Year: 1944 Rating: ***1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>After Lauren Bacall, in her first feature film, says her iconic line about knowing how to whistle and leaves the room, there's a closeup on American charter boat captain Harry 'Steve' Morgan played by Humphrey Bogart, where he practically looks into the camera while doing a wolf-whistle, giving a knowing grin that seems more like a contrived promotion for the lovely newcomer than part of an action thriller, very loosely based on the novel... originally a magazine serial in pulp fiction style... by Ernest Hemingway...</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>However there are a few faithful elements, like the initial fishing trip with irate customer Walter Sande and Bogart's rummy sidekick Walter Brennan, who needs a drink every minute... only this being a movie, the score <i>Mickey Mouses</i> in a dated fashion (mirroring exact character movements), especially with Brennan who, despite being a pathetic lush, is the supposed comic relief in a picture with comedy as one of the genres...</p><span></span>

action, adventure, british film noir/melodrama, ernest hemingway, forties, howard hawks, humphrey bogart, lauren bacall, walter brennan, world war II

HUMPHREY BOGART & LAUREN BACALL 'TO HAVE AND HAVE NOT'

Title: TO HAVE AND HAVE NOT Year: 1944 Rating: ***1/2 After Lauren Bacall, in her first feature film, says her iconic line about knowing how...

HUMPHREY BOGART AND ROD STEIGER IN 'THE HARDER THEY FALL'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqlJgbzXIQuGEIvIbtWWbx3v2_yOGzeBYuOXySAX4bSHge4wjY8Nat5ILFGCWydR4srtQF89B1ijuLzFBjNwh31YWcOMxcqUnUu5oROi_VK4pbIrpRPiGCqv4PS7gitDNfO6BqcQC43AzCVP2v2WJqSrti1vCb2l2KRR-T9uXZnBpDcgtricd9wmXqKF7t/s971/first.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="618" data-original-width="971" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqlJgbzXIQuGEIvIbtWWbx3v2_yOGzeBYuOXySAX4bSHge4wjY8Nat5ILFGCWydR4srtQF89B1ijuLzFBjNwh31YWcOMxcqUnUu5oROi_VK4pbIrpRPiGCqv4PS7gitDNfO6BqcQC43AzCVP2v2WJqSrti1vCb2l2KRR-T9uXZnBpDcgtricd9wmXqKF7t/s16000/first.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Title: ANTS Year: 1977 Rating: ****</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>The legendary Humphrey Bogart's last movie, during the mid-1950's when the big message could become more important than the characters, which is the opposite of ON THE WATERFRONT that Mark Robson's extremely bias boxing scandal-expose THE HARDER THEY FALL attempts the suspenseful, brawny big city edginess of... armed gangsters ruling over muscular everymen... but in a passive, mainstream fashion...</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>A shame since the boxing sequences — where has-been sports-writer Bogart and his seedy promoter boss Rod Steiger have ringside seats — are filmed with brutal realism... both men making sure the opponents of their mediocre giant upstart take the same kind of fall that could have made Marlon Brando a contender....</p><p><span></span></p>

boxing, expose, felice orlandi, fifties, humphrey bogart, jan sterling, marian carr, mark robson, melodrama, nehemiah persoff, rod steiger, sport

HUMPHREY BOGART AND ROD STEIGER IN 'THE HARDER THEY FALL'

Title: ANTS Year: 1977 Rating: **** The legendary Humphrey Bogart's last movie, during the mid-1950's when the big message could bec...