Cahn Is The Man!-Part 1

I'm back with a long entry. Actually, I won't have time to write the whole thing in one entry. It's your lucky day!

As most moviegoers are aware Dawn Of The Dead was the number one movie a few years ago. Of course it's a remake of George Romero's ground breaking film from 1978. I didn't like the remake but since the original one of my favorite color horror movie of all time I really don't think I can give an objective review!

Anyway, since the original Dawn started a whole series of Euro-Cannibal Blood and Gore movies like Lucio Fulci's "Zombie" which was called "Zombie 2" in Italy because DOD was called "Zombie" there and Umberto Lenzi's all out gross-fest "Make Them Die Slowly" I thought I'd mention some movies that probably influenced Dawn.

Well, surprise! There really ain't any with the possible exception of Romero's own film directorial debut, the now and forever 1968 classic NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD!!! So what influenced Romero??

Well, you could make an arguement that Herk Harvey's eerie CARNIVAL OF SOULS (1962) was one. It's very low budget, it has undead "things" menacing a living human (kind of) and like Romero, it was director Harvey's first foray into the motion picture biz after making industrial films and shorts (unlike Romero however, "Carnival" would be Harvey's only full length film!). But you really have to go back farther than that. 

In fact all the way back to the 1950's and an underrated director by the name of Edward L. Cahn.....

(to be continued)

Back for a Bit

Due to personal problems I haven't been posting lately. After today maybe I'll be back on track. This one is very short...




SAMURAI SPY-(1965)-I saw this Japanese period piece on IFC recently. It's a pretty cool sword drama involving two clans who constantly betray each other. Samurai Sarutobi tracks down a spy named Nojiri while the mysterious Sakon has his own agenda. A bit talky but it doesn't take away from the overall plot.

Thanks for reading!

Ghost Dog

GHOST DOG : THE WAY OF THE SAMURAI-1999-This very unusual drama stars Forrest Whitaker as a philosophical hit man involved with the disappearance of a mob bosses’ daughter. He uses pigeons to communicate with his “retainer” (John Tormey) and his only friends are a French ice cream vendor ( who doesn’t understand English ) and a little girl he discusses books with. He likes to steal cars too.

Henry Silva is the unsmiling mob boss who likes to watch cartoons (Felix The Cat is one of them). Cliff Gorman is his rap music loving second in command who has a memorable death. All the gangsters seem mean and ugly but are really old, comical, kind of inept and at the end of the line. Much like Ghost Dog himself. A landlord keeps hassling Gorman’s character for rent money!

Whitaker’s character (minus the samurai references) reminded me a little of his character in DIARY OF A HITMAN! Like much of writer/director Jim Jarmusch’s work it’s very un-commercial and quite hypnotic but the ending is a downer and as Ghost Dog says “The end is important in all things”.........

Thanks for reading!

Mann Noir

RAILROADED!-1947-is an interesting film noir directed by Anthony Mann. John Ireland stars as a gangster who frames an innocent man for robbery and murder. Hugh Beaumont (10 years before he became father of TV's Beaver Cleaver) plays the detective out to stop him. Sheila Ryan plays the innocent man's sister who tries to help out too. 

Jane Randolph (ABBOTT & COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN) gives a nice performance as Ireland's drunken moll. Mann gives the film some great classic touches but the climax is a little too dark and quick for me.

Mann went on to make many more movies but has always been a little underrated in my book.

Thanks for reading!

Rima

GREEN MANSIONS-1959-Unusual love story set in The Amazon Jungle with Audrey Hepburn as the orphaned Rima who lives an isolated life in a "cursed jungle" with her grandfather (Lee J. Cobb) who holds a horrible secret. Anthony Perkins portrays a kind of explorer who falls in love with her. A nearby native tribe believes she is a demon and want her destroyed.

Japanese actor Sessue Hayakawa portrays the chief and Henry Silva (from Brooklyn) is his son! Although the acting and direction are good Hepburn is slightly mis-cast. Just a tad too old to be playing a "jungle girl". But this was typical in movies before the sixties.

GM was directed by Hepburn's then husband actor Mel Ferrer (who would later produce WAIT UNTIL DARK). After they divorced he directed for TV and made appearances in many explotation movies including EATEN ALIVE BY CANNIBALS and CITY OF THE WALKING DEAD.

Thanks for reading!

Hong Kong Kickboxing

KICKBOXER'S TEARS-1992-This starts out as a typical drama with some kickboxing matches thrown in. When a boxer is killed in a match rigged by gangsters his sister (Moon Lee from KILLER ANGELS) seeks revenge and when she gets atarted...look out!

Her fight scenes are excellent. She eventually gets even with the killer and even destroys the wife of the mob boss in a match. The climax features her and her two friends having a wild brutal match with the head guy. Justice seems to triumph until the police arrive in an abrupt fade out final. This may be due to the fact that I saw a US dubbed version. Otherwise KICKBOXER'S TEARS delivers the goods!! 

Thanks for reading!

Sleepy Hollow

THE LEGEND OF SLEEPY HOLLOW-1999-Another imaginative, off center effort by Tim Burton. Unlike his two previous films (ED WOOD and MARS ATTACKS, which are both great) this one was a hit. It’s a bizarre reworking of the famous Washington Irving tale set in upstate NY.

In this update, Johnny Depp stars as Icabod Crane, a police medical examiner send to Sleepy Hollow by Judge Christopher Lee (in a great cameo) to investigate a series of gory beheadings. Christina Ricci provides the romantic interest. Suspicious townsfolk include Michael Gambon, Miranda Richardson, Jeffery Jones and Michael Gough. Christopher Walken (who kind of looks like an evil jack ‘o lantern anyway) plays the evil Hessian horseman responsible for some of the best beheadings ever seen on film. Also with Casper Van Dien (from STARSHIP TROOPERS) and Martin Landau (in a pre-credit cameo) as the first victim. 

The SFX and story are good but I had a little problem with Depp’s character who couldn’t seem to decide whether to be a hero (with nerves of steel who boldly performs autopsies) or a coward (who faints at the sight of blood!).

Thanks for reading!