THE DEVIL COMMANDS (1941) - Boris Karloff and the world beyond...

THE DEVIL COMMANDS

(1941, USA)

In many, many of his horror movies, Boris Karloff plays a scientist who begins the story with the best of intentions. And then things go very wrong. The Devil Commands is unusual because for once he isn't a mad surgeon pioneering monkey brain transplants or reanimating corpses. Though it does deal with life after death, delivering similar chills as Vincent Price's Monsieur Valdemar in Tales of Terror (1962)...

The huge rise in the interest in spiritualism, communicating with the recently departed using seances and mediums, was understandably boosted by the first World War. This was filmed during the second, and mixes in fresh elements from the early days of science fiction pulp novels. Instead of using the mystical forces of crystal balls and Ouija boards, here the method is scientific, involving headgear that screams 'science from the future!

But this early sci-fi is also definitely horror, not just because of Karloff, but because of his character's methods... While I was familiar with publicity photos from the film, I was pleasantly shocked to discover the macabre story behind them - a uniquely weird tale, an early echo of Stuart Gordon's From Beyond (1986).

I first remember seeing this among a season of early Karloff horror films on late night TV. The 'mad doctor' ones have co-mingled in my memory and only this and The Man They Could Not Hang stood out at all clearly. Both containing plot elements I'd admired in much later films.

It's not just the story that helped it stand out, director Edward Dmytryk would soon claw his way out of B-movies onto the A-list, with the cherished film noir Farewell My Lovely, an Oscar  nomination for Crossfire and soon after the powerful navy drama The Caine Mutiny. 

He gets the most out of the cast and the low budget, much in the same way film noir would prosper. His staging of the actors constantly makes for interesting, intensely composed imagery, even with just two characters in frame. His direction also boosts the cast. For example Karloff's mostly mute laboratory sidekick is far more sensitively handled than Universal horror's mad hunchbacks.

Best of all is the lapsed spiritualist played by Anne Revere, the driving force behind Karloff's work. He's trying to contact the dead for personal reasons. Her character recognises the financial potential of such a discovery... As in The Sorcerers, Karloff defers any hint of evil, despite his (ahem) bizarre methods. It's the woman in the team who is greedy and murderous. Revere's performance is restrained but powerfully performed, and a revelation because I've only ever seen her play the most perfect of mothers, as in National Velvet (1944).

Like many B-movies this runs barely longer than an hour, but the story is tightly-packed and may even fascinate you. 

This time around I watched the US NTSC Sony DVD release from 2003. Most of Karloff's work from this era has been collected into boxsets, but I agree that this warranted a standalone release. I compared it to my 1990s UK TV recording and found that the DVD has a far superior transfer. Sharper detail and a wider reveal of the action. It's also the only DVD release there's been in the UK or USA.

More, recommended Boris Karloff films:

THE MASK OF FU MANCHU (1932)

THE MAN THEY COULD NOT HANG (1939)

DIE, MONSTER DIE (1965)

THE SORCERERS (1967)

JIN-ROH: THE WOLF BRIGADE (1999) - a fiercesome armoured police force

JIN-ROH: THE WOLF BRIGADE

(1999, Japan)

Alternately impressive and ponderous anime movie

Just rewatched this. But like many Studio Ghibli films, while I'm impressed by the animation, the detail and artistry of the visuals, I struggle to follow the meanings of the story. First time I watched Jin-Roh, about ten years ago, I was quite new to anime and Japanese cinema in general. Anything I didn't understand I'd let slide because I thought that Japanese culture was very different. Which in many ways it is, but not different enough for me to continually excuse its ambivalent politics or sexual politics.

In an imagined alternate future, a few years after World War II, shortages and harsh government leadership inspire civil unrest and violent demonstrations in the streets. Rather than give the problem to the military or the police force, a new domestic strike force clamps down on demonstrations, trained to be without compassion in dealing with 'revolutionaries'.

After a particularly bloody riot, in which a young woman has supplied the freedom fighters with a deadly homemade bomb, the task force is chasing the leaders down in the sewers. But Fuse, a young member of the heavily-armed task squad, is unable to shoot down the young woman as she tries to deliver a second device...

Fuse is then questioned as to why he didn't kill her. He's kept under observation in case he's a member of a vigilante group within the Jin-Roh, known as The Wolf Brigade. Kept away from active service, he's shocked to meet a young woman who looks exactly like the one he couldn't kill in the sewers...

Directed by Hiroyuki Okiura one of Production I.G's animators, and written by Ghost In The Shell's creator Mamoru Oshii, Jin-Roh is impressive visually, but only really works during the intricate high-calibre action scenes. Most of the story is a low-key investigation into the allegiance of the central characters, rather than any study of their tactics - obliterating demonstrators with heavy weaponry.




The constant references to the German tale of Red Riding Hood, and the characters talking in metaphors make the dialogue hard to follow. Kei's character, who looks to be schoolgirl age, might not be much younger than Fuse, but her physical stature makes her look far younger. Their potential romance looks transgressive though her childlike behaviour is at odds with her extremely dangerous job. This blurring of whether characters are women or girls continues to make Japanese drama look outdated, especially the genres aimed at young men.

Jin-Roh was made after a couple of low-budget live-action films featured the same fictional tactical squad - the barely comprehensible The Red Spectacles (1987) and Stray Dog: Kerberos Panzer Cops (1991), both of which feature the impressive armour (above).


The trilogy, more specifically the look of the Jin-Roh squad, have of course led to impressively-detailed Japanese action figures, not to mention some very similar looking soldiers in video game sci-fi shooters.

(In an attempt to better represent what I've been watching, I want to write more reviews. This was an experiment in writing in 'one sitting'. A short review that doesn't take much longer than a movie running-length to write. Of course, I'll still devote the same silly amount of time to the heavily-researched articles...)

The Making of Slap Shot - a new book on the 1977 sports comedy

I've added a review of the 2011 Jonathon Jackson book to my piece on Slap Shot. Rather than spread items about the same film all around the blog, it's all been included in my 2008 review of the film.

Having just read the book and watched the blu-ray for the first time, I've updated and expanded my review... Slap Shot (1977)

A ton of GODZILLA movies new to blu-ray

Thirteen new Godzilla blu-ray releases on the way...

While we hold our radioactive breath for Gareth Edwards' gigantic Godzilla movie, it's already good news for kaiju fans as half of the Japanese Godzilla films will soon be on blu-ray.

The story so far - not all Godzilla films have yet hit DVD in the USA (Godzilla 1984, below, still hasn't materialised). And besides the American Godzilla (1998), only three have so far been released on blu-ray... 

Godzilla 1984 - still missing from DVD in the USA

Two editions of the very first 1954 Godzilla were released on blu-ray by Criterion (below) and Classic Media. Destroy All Monsters (1968), which confusingly hasn't got 'Godzilla' in the title, was released on blu-ray by Media Blasters in 2011. Godzilla vs Biollante (1989) was released on blu-ray by Miramax in 2012.

Godzilla (1954) - one of three already on blu-ray

But NOW, the imminent second American Godzilla blockbuster has triggered a tidal wave of Godzilla reissues on DVD and thirteen blu-ray debuts. With the rights to Japanese Godzilla films split among different worldwide distributors, there've been four separate announcements of new Godzilla releases made this year. While Sci-Fi Japan have most of the news scoops, what I'm doing here is compiling a checklist of all these new blu releases in one place. I'll also update my master Godzilla DVD list accordingly as they're confirmed. I'll obviously have to rethink the name... disc list? ...digital Godzillas?

Universal Studios will release King Kong vs Godzilla (1963) and King Kong Escapes on blu-ray in April. The American version of King Kong vs Godzilla was very different to the Japanese, but I believe this is the only version that will be released. It was the first Godzilla film to be made in colour. Its sequel King Kong Escapes (1967) also features a mechanical King Kong and the Gorosaurus (that later popped up in Destroy All Monsters), but Godzilla himself doesn't appear in this story.
Details on Blu-ray.com.

Also in April, Media Blasters will be reissuing Destroy All Monsters (1968) on blu-ray and DVD, but also Godzilla vs Megalon (1973) will be appearing on blu-ray (above) for the first time.
Full story from Sci-Fi Japan here.

Three more classic Godzillas will arrive on blu-ray in May from Kraken releasing. Be careful though, as each film has two alternate names (the titles were often re-translated for their US release). 
Godzilla vs the Sea Monster / Ebirah - Horror of the Deep (1966). 
Godzilla vs the Smog Monster / Godzilla vs Hedorah (1971, above). 
Godzilla vs Gigan / Godzilla on Monster Island (1972).
Sci-Fi Japan has the cover art of all three releases.

Also in May, Sony are set to release EIGHT MORE Godzilla movies on four double-bill blu-rays. Deep breath...

Godzilla vs King Ghidorah (1991) and Godzilla vs Mothra (1992),
Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla II (1993) and Godzilla vs Space Godzilla (1994),
Godzilla vs Destoroyah (1995) and Godzilla vs Megaguirus (2000),
Godzilla: Final Wars (2004) and Godzilla: Tokyo SOS (2003)

These are all up for pre-order on Amazon. There should be DVD releases of all of them as well.
More news on these sets from The Good, the Bad and the Godzilla.




Of course, I'm holding my breath to see how good these will look in high-definition. US releases don't always have access to the original Japanese film materials to make the best transfers of films that date up to sixty years old. The blu-ray of Destroy All Monsters was certainly a disappointment. But it's going to be fun finding out.

Kaiju fans have already been treated to the awesome 1995-1999 Gamera Trilogy on blu-ray (from Mill Creek, above) as well as the later 2006 sequel Gamera The Brave (from Tokyo Shock). The good news is that now Mill Creek are also releasing the original six Gamera films in two blu-ray sets (below).
More details from Sci-FI Japan here.

For all the latest news on these and other Japanese science-fantasy, please follow...
Sci-Fi Japan
The Good the Bad and the Godzilla

My full list of where to find all the Japanese Godzilla films on DVD... 
is kept updated here.

THE DEMON (1963) - Daliah Lavi and IL DEMONIO

THE DEMON

(1963, Italy, original title IL DEMONIO)

For years, I only knew Daliah Lavi as the sensual, secret agent 'James Bond' in Casino Royale (1967) - to be fair, everyone in the film is called James Bond. But she has some great scenes, especially when she's up against ineptly villainous Woody Allen, whilst completely naked. If you've not seen it, she's also well known (to horror fans) for Mario Bava's The Whip and the Body (1963) opposite Christopher Lee.

The extensive Video Watchdog interview (in issue 170) with her surprised me when they discussed at length another Italian horror film where she plays a possessed woman who performs a backbending spider walk ten years earlier than Regan in The Exorcist. 

This alone made it a must-see for me, and while I wasn't expecting an unbridled exorcism shocker, The Demon has a consistent, unique quality and plenty of harsh surprises. Shortly after reading about the film, a subtitled version appeared on YouTube. This was lucky, as the film has only been available on DVD in Italy without English subtitles (above). That's a shame because it's quite mesmerising as well as Daliah's favourite of her many screen performances. 

Set in a remote Italian farming village, Puri is very unhappy that the love of her life is marrying another woman. She tries simple, elemental witchcraft to gain his affections. She performs a ceremony high on the cliffs above the church while he gets married to try and curse the couples' good luck. She stalks their home on wedding night, using dead animals to distract the guards. Is she possessed? Is she a witch? Is she mentally unbalanced?

Dressed in black, her defiant appearance and physical presence simply doesn't fit in. The villagers even believe she's a blight on their crops. They use a local faith healer to try and cast out the demon in her. His private ceremony involves trussing her up and then he takes advantage of her. 

Throughout the story, many try to cure her, usually with disproportionate violence. As her behaviour becomes more and more extreme, their methods also escalate.

The superstitious villagers use simple chants and tokens to ward her off, though her behaviour looks just as much like a distraught woman having a breakdown. Though her spider walk in a cathedral and her violent reaction to nuns and rosary beads appears to be a demonic possession.

The film has an episodic, semi-documentary look and sometimes not much explanation to link the abrupt change between locations or to examine the implications of what has just happened. But her extraordinary performance and the spectacular rural locations make this uniquely memorable.

Reading her VW interview again, this was based on a true story and Daliah met the girl she was playing! Director Brunello Rondi, a scriptwriter for Fellini, had her acting amongst (unprepared) real people in real locations, which makes it even more interesting.

I MARRIED A MONSTER FROM OUTER SPACE (1958)

I MARRIED A MONSTER FROM OUTER SPACE

(1958, USA)

Sex rears it's ugly head

There are some great movies with lousy titles. 'I Married A Monster From Outer Space' would be better as a tabloid headline or the title of a musical comedy. Looking past the screaming poster and the title, which deserves at least two exclamation marks, there's a sinister sci-fi horror lurking beyond. Not much of a budget, but moody black and white cinematography that money can't buy and a script brimming with sexual tension and subtext.

The decade of the 1950s, when you couldn't talk directly about sex or show it. But that's the core of this story. A newlywed couple has had the groom swapped out on his wedding night, replaced with an alien from outer space. The question looms in every scene - will she have sex with an alien? And what does he want? But they can't talk about it explicitly...

There are many 'aliens that look like humans' stories, the best being Invaders From Mars, Invasion of the Body Snatchers and the TV series The Invaders - all obsessed with finding the details in appearance and behaviour that allow us to tell friend from foe.

Here the paranoia has reached the bedroom, which makes for an enduring theme - who are you sleeping with? Beneath the sci-fi story are layers of sexual angst and hints of impotence and frigidity. 

It's also enjoyable as sci-fi, played deadly serious by all involved. Creepy too, but the delicate way we learn about what goes on between these two newlyweds still has dramatic punch without showing everything. There's also a strong element of Rosemary's Baby (written nine years later) as the new bride turns to friends for help, only to find that they've been taken over as well...

The extraordinary alien make-up was sculpted by Charles Gemora, who also built (and performed) the alien E.T. in The War of the Worlds (1953).

After many rewatches over the years, This keeps on giving - the dramatic and visual shocks still work. This time round I recognised a young Ty Hardin (as one of Tom Tryon's beefcake swimming buddies). Probably missed him because he's credited here as Ty Hungerford. He later played the boyfriend of, gulp, Joan Crawford in Berserk (1967). Hardin was also the FIRST choice to play 1966 Batman - only because he was unavailable did Adam West get the part.

As the groom, Tom Tryon is very good at doing very little - a spaced out, distant look, similar to Keir Dullea after his brain was fried by the trip through the star gate.

The bride, Gloria Talbott, made a handful of low budget horrors (The Cyclops, Daughter of Dr Jekyll, The Leech Woman), but this is easily the best. Her performance anchors the entire story, undermined by being imprisoned in too-tight teenage angora sweaters, her chest lit as carefully as her face. Though this emphasises the limits of how sexuality could be portrayed at the time.

Director Gene Fowler Jr worked on as much TV as film, and mainly as an editor (one of his last credits was Skatetown U.S.A.!). His experience is evident in some seamless scene transitions, and a clever, subtle use of back projection and reflections.

Besides the other 'they look just like us' stories, this would make a great double-bill with I Was A Teenage Werewolf (1957). The same director saddled with another silly title, but again a serious horror film with sexuality barely contained beneath the surface. This time the agonies of adolescence with a teenager who can't hide his raging lust (above).

The DVD is presented anamorphic widescreen, though it looks a little tight top and bottom. This isn't too distracting, but the lack of clean-up of film scratches in a movie that takes place mostly at night certainly is.

More posters on Wrong Side of the Art...

Flashback 1979 (part one) - SUPERMAN, JAWS 2, THE WIZ, THE WARRIORS...

A look through British movie magazines published in 1979. Spread over two posts because it's picture-heavy... 


Photoplay Film Annual 1979

Revisiting the 1979 Photoplay Annual at the end of last year proved timely because I'd just seen Persistence of Vision, the documentary about how Richard Williams never completed this epic animated film The Thief and the Cobbler. Here he is in 1978 drawing caricatures of Vincent Price for the villain of the story.



Photoplay Film Annual 1979

This photo of Gene Wilder's Bel Air home in California includes a rare colour look at the portrait of his character's father in Young Frankenstein (1974). Er, I mean, Fronkensteen.

Film Review, January

The overdue sequel to The Guns of Navarone starring (pictured below) Harrison Ford, Robert Shaw (Jaws), Edward Fox (The Day of the Jackal) and Carl Weathers (halfway between Rocky and Predator). The bridge in the background is the target of their mission.

Photoplay Film Annual 1979

By the time Force 10 From Navarone was released, Robert Shaw had passed away, during the filming of Avalanche Express.



Film Review, January

Just when you thought it was safe to go back to the cinema, Jaws returned. Jaws 2 followed Sweeney 2's lead by using a number '2' instead of the stuffy Roman numerals of Damien: Omen II and Exorcist II: The Heretic (and so on).

As you can see, Jaws 2 opened on Boxing Day. A summer movie in the USA that landed for the Christmas holidays in Britain!

Film Review, February

By the way, the ghastly half-eaten corpse of the killer whale was a full-sized prop built for the film. I know this because of the book of the making of the film - The Jaws 2 Log.

More about Jaws 2 here.

Film Review, February

As a general rule, I like Woody Allen films when he's trying to be funny and Clint Eastwood films when he isn't. I went to see it at the time because it was Clint, but the slapstick biker gang and orang-utan with terrible teeth haven't lured me back for a rewatch, despite Ruth Gordon.

Superman - The Movie landed before Christmas. Most of the newspaper stories focussed on Brando's salary. The publicity pushed the special visual effects developed for the flying sequences. The production team had experimented with some desperate methods to make human flight look realistic, including firing dummies out of a cannon. Wirework and bluescreen to the rescue!

Film Review, February

Film Review, May

Superman - The Movie proved so successful that it was still playing in West End cinemas six months after it had opened!






Films and Filming, February

Capricorn One is responsible for boosting the idea that the Moon missions were faked in a movie studio. The conspiracy angle is well portrayed but diluted by comedy and a heap of action. But the climactic helicopter chase scene is remains superbly thrilling.

More about Capricorn One here,



Film Review, March

Meanwhile, Britain was in a post-apocalyptic mood - the final Quatermass TV series was made independently (and shown on ITV) because the BBC thought Nigel Kneale's Quatermass script was too downbeat. Here's John Mills on the set of Ringstone Round. Also known as The Quatermass Conclusion.

More about Quatermass (1979) here.

America has always found Anthony Hopkins creepy. His first leading roles in the US were in horror films, long before The Silence of the Lambs - after Audrey Rose (1977) he had a hit with this creepy puppet murder mystery Magic.

Films and Filming, February

Photoplay, March

Damien: Omen II tracks the son of the Devil heading towards the White House. Anyone who stands in his way mysteriously removed by accidents and crazed animals... Notice above an early memorable role for Lance Henriksen, and the star of Roger Corman's The Tomb of Ligeia (1964), Elizabeth Shepherd (in red), returning to the horror genre as a haunted journalist with an unfortunate roadside manner.

After the success of The Omen, three sequels were announced. But Omen III: The Final Conflict wrapped up the story early.

More about Damien: Omen II here.



Film Review, April

Another winner based on an imaginative novel by Ira Levin (Rosemary's Baby, The Stepford Wives). The Boys From Brazil played upon then-current fears that many surviving senior Nazis were up to something in South America. Though surely Dr Mengele's ghoulish experience with cloning would surely have been welcomed in a dozen other countries?

Film Review, April

Philip Kaufman's (below right) Invasion of the Body Snatchers is more a sequel than a remake of the 1956 original. Kevin McCarthy (below left) even continues his role. Starring Donald Sutherland, Nancy Allen, Veronica Cartwright, Jeff Goldblum and Leonard Nimoy, it's found a new audience with new blu-ray releases in the UK and US.



Films and Filming, April

More about Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978) here.

Battlestar Galactica first hit Britain as a movie, edited together from several TV episodes, mainly the first three of the series. The Sensurround rumble track added to the experience. Two more films were released before all the episodes were televised.



Film Review, June

Film Review, April

Despite not having a clue who was popular on Saturday Night Live (it was never broadcast in Britain), or what National Lampoon was and barely even knowing what a 'frat house' was, National Lampoon's Animal House was still a hit in Britain, serving as a skewed introduction to American college life.


When the war was over, Vietnam war films rapidly became a cliche. But The Deer Hunter and Apocalypse Now were major front-runners.


Photoplay, April

These early publicity photos from The Deer Hunter show the main characters in pre-war happiness. The photos that accompanied the reviews were usually from the shattering and controversial scenes of 'Russian roulette'.

Film Review, May

This was a huge hit for Robert De Niro and young Christopher Walken (above). The critics also praised John Cazale's performance, but publicity for the actor was more muted because he'd sadly passed away the previous year, The Deer Hunter his final film.

Photoplay, March





Film Review, May

Richard Beckinsale had also died prematurely, just as publicity was beginning for the BBC spin-off movie for Porridge, later released in the summer.






Film Review, May

I'd read about Fantasia but it still hadn't appeared on TV, like many of the major animated Disney films. This re-release was a rare chance to see it in the cinema with its original stereo sound restored.





Film Review, May

While Richard Williams was working on his tale of the Arabian Nights, this remake of The Thief of Baghdad arrived just before Arabian Adventure. Notice the completely insane pairing with another Spiderman live-action (TV) movie.

Film Review, May

After the success of Animal House, young director John Landis' previous comedy Kentucky Fried Movie had an overdue release in Britain. From the writers of Airplane, this sketch compilation is far less well-known, despite including a disaster movie spoof and the use of famous cameos with actors playing ridiculous situations straight-faced. 



Film Review, June

Here's director John Landis performing stunts in his fight with an escaped gorilla - actually a great Rick Baker suit. For their previous film together, John Landis had been made up by Baker as the titular missing link 'Schlock'. Later collaborations included extensive make-up effects in American Werewolf In London, Coming To America and Michael Jackson's Thriller. Baker had returned to low-budget films despite his extensive work on the 1976 King Kong blockbuster, for which he had very little credit.

Remake! The Wiz was an expansion of the hit Broadway musical that retold The Wizard of Oz with a black cast. Inventive reimaginings of the characters included early make-up effects from Stan Winston. The production substituted a tweaked version of Manhattan to represent Dorothy's journey to Oz, memorably the Brooklyn Bridge and the climax at the World Trade Centre. I'm not sure how this did in Britain but the double album soundtrack was certainly successful. 


Photoplay, May

Critics weren't fooled by 33 year-old Diana Ross playing Dorothy, but The Wiz needed star power. Richard Pryor has little more than a cameo and Michael Jackson was a rising pop star rather than a box office name. Note Joel Schumacher in the credits as screenwriter, building on his success with the script for Car Wash.

Photoplay, May

The title of the article says it all! Here's Kurt Russell portraying Elvis in a American TV movie directed by John Carpenter (this is before Escape From New York). Part of the rush to commemorate The King, who died in 1977. Kurt had been doing TV since his early run as a young star in Disney movies. This also known as Elvis - The Movie!

A sultry Jan-Michael Vincent as one of the three surfers up against Big Wednesday, written and directed by John Milius.

Film Review, June

Films Illustrated, June

After the critical success of Badlands, writer and director Terrence Malick spent a looooong time filming the epic western Days of Heaven. The exterior cinematography was mainly filmed during the 'magic hour' and the script was written during the shoot. The press savaged it because of the runaway budget and here it is opening at only one, smaller West End screen. Malick's continued attention to detail and refusal to rush into projects has encouraged his past work to be reappraised and celebrated.

Walter Hill's The Warriors had far more obvious appeal to teenaged me, and remains a mythic treat. The epic story of a street gang trying to elude every other in order to get to their home turf like, er, Dorothy. As in The Wiz, New York City is a romanticised backdrop, looking almost friendly compared to the nightmares encountered on this major location shoot around Manhattan.

Films and Filming, April

Gang violence was and is a huge problem and the tough image and promise of street fights made the Daily Mail do back flips as they continued to denounce 'screen violence'. Despite The Warriors only shedding one dribble of blood at the hands of the police. But actual gang fights in cinemas remained a problem in the US and the film had to be withdrawn there.

More about The Warriors here. 

My photos of The Warriors 'home turf' at Coney Island here.


Film Review, June

 

Film Review, June

The Lady Vanishes, the last official Hammer film for over thirty years was a successful Hitchcock remake but a long way from their roots of years of horror.