Blast from the past.....

Yesterday was one of those days that makes blogging really worthwhile. At the beginning of the year I posted a piece about my days working at Columbia Pictures offices at Film House, 142 Wardour Street in London between 1962 and 1968. One of my colleagues then was a man named Ernie Raymond and yesterday, after forty years, I was able to speak on the telephone to his son, Neil. We were able to share a few memories and hopefully I will be able to put Neil in touch with somebody else who remembers his dad. Neil had read my piece on this blog and decided to make contact to see it I knew his dad. He is a big movie fan so hopefully we might see a comment or two in the Fleapit.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

Before CGI there was...

RAY HARRYHAUSEN

88 today and still full of wonder!

HOLLOW TRIUMPH/The Scar (1948)

,If you catch this movie on DVD it will probably be under its re-release title, THE SCAR, and it is also known as THE MAN WHO MURDERED HIMSELF. Under any title it's a pretty good movie. An atmospheric film noir featuring an unusually unsympathetic Paul Henreid as an educated career criminal who gets out of prison and gathers his old gang together to rob a mob controlled casino. Of course, it all goes horribly wrong and one by one the gang are hunted down until only Hendreid is left. By accident he learns of a psychiatrist who is his physical double and he sets out to assume his identity. Of course there is much more to it than that and the film has a keen sense of character observation - particularly in the case of the psychiatrist's secretary played by Joan Bennett (who surely deserves a chapter to herself in the history of Film Noir) and a lovely cameo from the ever excellent John Qualen. As with Lawrence Tierney in THE HOODLUM Henreid eschews audience sympathy almost completely - almost, because there is a brief scene involving a cleaning lady where his humanity shows through. It is an unexpected moment in the film and as well as being both revealing and touching it is a nice comment on human nature in general. HOLLOW TRIUMPH is directed by Steve Sekely who seems to have done little of note and today is probably best remembered for the 1960's sci-fi film THE DAY OF THE TRIFFIDS which wasn't very good. Who knows ? There may be another gem lurking out there in the valley of forgotten films. Rating ***

Another professional creep to love!

Skelton Knaggs

1911 - 1955

Pictures from http://www.findagrave.com

WHO IS THE BIRTHDAY BOY, THEN ?

PETER LORRE
1904 - 1964

WOMAN ON THE RUN (1950)

It is discovering movies like this that makes trawling through the products of Hollywood's underbelly really worth while. This is a neat little film noir directed by Norman Foster. Foster's place in film history seems to rest (somewhat unjustly) on JOURNEY INTO FEAR where his perfectly adequate direction has been overshadowed by the presence of Orson Welles. Foster's more representative work would seem to be far lighter as with his work for Disney such as the very successful DAVY CROCKETT, KING OF THE WILD FRONTIER and his later TV episode work - although, intriguingly his later career includes the wonderfully entitled DEATHSHEAD VIRGIN. But, back to WOMAN ON THE RUN, which is written by Alan Campbell who was Mr.Dorothy Parker. It starts atmospherically with a man out walking his dog late at night in San Francisco. He stops to light his pipe and witnesses a shooting and is nearly shot himself by the killer. Knowing that he could identify the killer and become a target himself he goes on the run. His estranged wife (a lovely turn from Ann Sheridan) sets off in pursuit and is herself tracked by a detective and a reporter....and the killer. The first half hour or so has a real noir look to it with lots of shadows and angled photography and then the film settles down to some fascinating locations work in 50's San Francisco and a finale set in a fun fare with two dramatic rollercoaster rides, the second of which is a truly surreal montage. As well as Miss Sheridan the rest of the cast is top notch with Dennis O'Keefe as the reporter, Robert Keith as the cop and further down the cast there is John Qualen as a timid store clerk and Victor Sen Young as a Chinese cabaret dancer (honest!). The script is sharp with some really snappy repartee, especially between Sheridan and Keith and when the film chooses to reveal the identity of the killer it comes as a genuine surprise...well, it did to me. Definitely one to seek out. Rating ***

THE HOODLUM (1951)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_Tierney

This is not so much a review as an appreciation. THE HOODLUM was directed by Max Nosseck who had steered actor Lawrence Tierney through his most famous film, DILLINGER, a few years before. Tierney is perfectly cast as sociopath Vincent Lubeck (it is pointed out at the beginning of the film that Lubeck's only redeeming feature is that he hasn't murdered anybody yet!) who is paroled from prison and proceeds to seduce his brother's girlfriend and plan a bank robbery. Nosseck's direction is pretty routine but Tierney's performance is something else. If, indeed, it is a performance as Tierney was pretty much a sociopath himself and one of those fascinating actors who never seek a second of audience sympathy. As in DILLINGER, Tierney is totally unredeemable (check him out in Robert Wise's classic BORN TO KILL for another great performance - not to mention his performance in Tarantino's RESOVOIR DOGS) a role that he seemed to have played in reel-life in a series of brawls both in and out of bars and threatening and intimidating film crews and fellow actors until the line between the real and reel was almost totally blurred. Rating *** www.eddiemuller.com/tierney.html