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Nightmare! The Birth Of Horror - Dracula - 1996 - 6/10

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Good horror documentary about the genesis and development of Dracula.
Not the film, nor the Romanian prince, but the Bram Stoker creation.
Sorry folks, Bram never seemed to have journeyed to Bran Castle.
Stoker’s biography is sketched, but the focus is on how he fleshed out the story, where he kept coming up with fresh ideas and settings.
Films barely touched on, as cinema flowered after Stoker’s death.
Manuscripts - photographs - first printing books among highlights.

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Caught On A Train - 1980 - 7/10

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Publishing agent climbs the battered Orient Express, and finds misunderstandings and gamesmanship.
Initially, all is fine.  Fellow passengers, even an attractive American girl he tries to impress.
Then the imperious, elderly woman storms into the cabin.
Superbly acted test of wills will thrill live theatre buffs.
People who have ridden some older trains will recognize the discomfiture and disorientation.
Especially European border crossing checks, which sadly, one only finds in Eastern Europe now.

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Grapes Of Death - 1978 - 6/10
AKA - Les raisins de la Mort

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Sour grapes, in this case, tainted by pesticides, turn a village into murderous fiends.
Not zombies, as often referenced.
Being a Jean Rollin film, there are beautiful and imaginative visuals, and a sleepy tempo.
One female, trying to make her way to her boyfriend’s vineyard runs the obstacle course.
Rural wastelands and a small village are the main settings after she flees a train.
The afflicted stagger at times, only to bolt into action.
Gore is minimal.

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Beasts Of No Nation - 2015 - 8/10

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Tour de force story of boy indoctrinated into wartime militia unit.
Though no nation is specified, you could toss a dart at a global map and strike conflict.
The Commandant (Idris Elba) leads his charges, convincing them they are impervious.
Rivalries within the unit run undercurrent, as well as rebel politics facing the Commandant.
I worried this would be a sad or depressing film, but did not find it so.
Provocative, yes.  Disturbing, though I accept that humans enjoy killing each other.

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The Girl From Rio - 1969 - 5/10
AKA - Rio 70 // The Seven Secrets of Sumuru

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Yeah, I knew this was going to be bad.  Still ...
This was based on Sax Rohmer’s Sumuru character and I have read those books.
Plus, ole Jess Franco directs with probably the biggest budget he ever had.
Thief escapes to Rio de Janeiro with $10M in a briefcase.
A crime syndicate headed by George Sanders ties to forcibly seize it.
Sumuru, here called Sumitra, also covets the loot to fund her female army and rule the world!
Chases, fisticuffs, nudity, a phone that still works after being underwater, Carnival costumes.
Outstanding location filming, and finally memorable Goldfinger girl Shirley Eaton (in her final film) as a blonde and a brunette.
Sadly, there is no plot, no sense of style, not even a genre to hang onto.
Waste of cast and resources.

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The Crimean War - 1997 - 7/10

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Three-part documentary about an almost forgotten conflict.
This makes full use of photos, letters, engravings, drawings.
Talking heads are minimal - fine by me, too many speakers smack of padding.
First section deals with the causation. Russia wanting Istanbul,
Next is of the war itself, blunders, starvation or freezing of soldiers.
Finally, the aftermath and the seeds laid for World War One.
Actual voices include Tennyson reading “The Charge Of The Light Brigade,”
as well as one of the original buglers, playing the call to charge.

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Legend Of The Witches - 1970 - 5/10

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Predominately nude “documentary” of history and practices of witches and covens in England.
Indoctrination, rites, magick, hand holding innocents traipsing round the bonfire.
Omniscient male narrator drones an already drowsy  experience.
Camera work, on the other hand, is excellent, given that the budget must have been laughable.
Contrast is sharp, interesting angles throughout, effective use of shadows and firelight.
Probably quite steamy back in the day, a curio now.

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L'empire des Loups - 2005 - 6/10
AKA - Empire Of The Wolves

Forget the plot, dismiss the young stud, overlook the amnesia hottie.
This is Jean Reno’s film and he kicks ass throughout!

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Three young girls have been murdered and mutilated in the Turkish quarter of Paris.
The young inspector is stymied, and is advised to reach out to a disgraced, ex-cop.
Schiffer, known in the force as Mr Shifty.
To the illegal Turk underworld, he is The Shaft.  Interrogation of terrified contacts is brutal.
Meanwhile, there is a girl with amnesia, pursued by cops, doctors, and the Gray Wolves (Turkish assassins).
Loud music foreshadows action, galloping mindless plot, characters with the personalities of biscuits.
French film, apparently influenced by Michael Bay.
Wowza on a big scale, if you can follow along.

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Fast And Furious - 1939 - 5/10

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Alert readers will spy the picture, then the date.
MGM might have assumed third time would be the charm for this overlooked series.
This is the weakest of the trio that includes Fast Company and Fast And Loose.
Those rare book dealers are back, but the only clue to their line of work is the office door.
Next thing, they are on their way to a beachside beauty pageant.
And - of course - murder, shifty characters, an abundance of liars.
Oh, almost forgot hundreds of stunning lovelies.
Directed by Busby Berkeley, but no dance numbers.
Breezy, forgettable fluff.  Catch the first installments before this.

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The Witness - 2015 - 6/10

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Documentary with unanswered questions may prove frustrating.
Kitty Genovese was repeatedly stabbed in 1964.  Twice.  Half hour apart.
38 people watched from windows, no one helped, no one phoned the police.
Fifty years later, her brother searches for answers.  Truth.  Closure.
Such as, why no one tried to rescue her.  Especially since there were two attacks.
Or did the press bend the story?  Was this fake news?
Cross between a study of brother Bill and a remembrance of Kitty, the person.

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Are You Listening? - 1932 - 6/10

Bleak Pre-Code title from MGM, starring Billy Haines and a confusing assortment of blondes.
Haines writes and directs (commercials, comedies, dramas) for a radio station.

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He carries on with another writer, deals with his scold of a wife (actress Karen Morley rips this).
A cynical film, Are You Listening has a dark tone and captures the anxiety of the Depression.
The other narrative is of the three sisters trying to “make it" in the City.

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Women chase husband material (wealthy or high earners), men grope as casual predators.
Being Pre-Code, expect negligees, easy access relationships, unscrupulous villains.
Numerous old stars and character actors in downbeat film.

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The Daughter - 2015 - 7/10

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Family pater prepares to marry half his age, trophy wife, as he closes the mill which his family has run for generations.
Invited is his damaged, alcoholic son who reconnects with old school friends.
His mother had committed suicide, and the new wedding rankles him.
He uncovers skeletons and must weigh what damage revealing the truth may cause against stoking his pity party.
The small town, likewise breaking apart with the mill closure, seems a metaphor for the family crisis.
Or vice versa.
Acting uniformly fine.  Paul Schneider memorable as self-righteous son.

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Inside The White Slave Traffic and Traffic In Souls

Two “docu-dramas” released during the frenzied phenomena of white slavery paranoia.

Inside The White Slave Traffic - 1913 - 5/10

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Inside The White Slave Traffic is the briefer and more crude of the pair.
An exploitation quickie, this roused censors and authorities wherever it was screened.
Female is lured into prostitution - where she remains for the remainder of the movie.
Despite two lost reels, this shows tricks for luring girls, slang words, and the nationwide network of slavers.
Outdoor photography in this captures dirt streets, boardwalks, horse and wagons.

Traffic In Souls - 1913 - 6/10

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Traffic In Souls is a better film, storywise and budget wise.  At 88 minutes, this is also an early feature.
There are multiple storylines: the rich family, the two sisters, and two sets of girls who arrive in New York.
Methods and roles within the slave ring are displayed, also some eavesdropping technology.
Acting in both films is melodramatic.  (Pickford would largely change that.)
DVD of Traffic In Souls has an insightful commentary by historian Shelley Stamp.
Most of her comments pertain to social mores of 1913, film reaction, and white slave hysteria.

While I prefer Silent films from the 20s, the earlier films have their own creaky charm.
The look and attitudes hark back to the Edwardian or Gilded Age.
Moralizing intertitles, declarative gestures, formal manners, swept away in the Roaring 20s.

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Love And Crime - 1969 - 6/10
AKA - Meiji · Taishô · Shôwa: Ryôki onna hanzai-shi

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Japanese anthology compilation, heavy on sex and violence.
Predatory females work their assets for gain or revenge, based on actual individuals.
Sada Abe would be the most famous, or infamous, for the marathon bout of coitus climaxing in strangulation and castration.
Oden was the last female beheaded in Japan, and Toyokaku was a woman who murdered her way to her own inn.
Fast paced little film with ample nudity, killings, and corpses.
Knowing that these were real people may increase appreciation.
Male viewers might wish to avert their gaze when scissors appear.

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Lidice - 2011 - 7/10

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Companion to 2016‘s Anthropoid shows the Czech village of Lidace before - and after - the assassination of SS Obergruppenführer Reinhard Heydrich.
There is a mirror narrative of one of the villagers, in prison for murder.
Two murders, different punishments:  incarceration versus liquidation.
The massacre of Lidice became legendary.
Staging and cinematography is excellent, and enough time is allotted to many characters so one gets a feel for them as individuals.

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The Founder - 2016 - 7/10

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Aging, over-the-hill salesman investigates one of his few “good” clients.
Pair of brothers doing gangbuster business with their hamburger stand.
Salesman offers to help them launch franchises and expand nationwide.
Against their instincts, the McDonald brothers agree.
Story of how Roy Kroc built an empire and took it away from the founders.

Mixed feelings watching this, much as I have mixed feelings about the McDonald’s chain.
Kroc is a predatory, unscrupulous wolf, but I think the brothers never could have rivaled his achievements.
Loved McDonald’s when they arrived in my town when I was 10.  Outgrew them by 18, but still visit when options are limited.  City to city, country to country, fare is predictable.  And those fries ...

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Rakka - 2017 - 7/10

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Terrific short, something between a pitch and a pilot.
Alien bipeds enslave humanity, torture and experiment, and start major terra-forming.
Resistance is small, and tiny victories result in harsh reprisals.
At barely 20 minutes, this alien invasion genre packs in a lot of images, action, storylines and proto-characters.
One element I did not care for smacked of tinfoil, that is a quibble.
Sigourney Weaver leads a solid cast, directed by Neil Blomkamp for new studio.
If there is interest ($$), they will craft more, and I would watch.
For what it is, Rakka is outstanding, though it is quite brief.

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Snodgrass - 2013 - 6/10

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1991, John Lennon is behind in rent and applying for a lowly job.
Some still remember him.  “You’re the guy who quit the Beatles!”
This version of the Beatles, however, without Lennon, never quite made it.
Lennon views those around him as dim fools, the man, the wad - - - Snodgrasses.
Angry, sarcastic, bitter, venting when no one gives a damn.
Ian Hart excels as 50 year old washout, spitting rage, cocksure that the lads never ought to have compromised and agreed to sing that “How Do You Do It” trifle.
What if story.  Unpleasant - except - this John still breathes in 1991.

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Beyond The Black Rainbow - 2010 - 5/10

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Futuristic tale of company that helps you create “a better you.”
Except experimentation now seems their locus.
Camera work reeks of student film class:  slow dissolves, step printing, colorization.
Acting is ponderous and stilted to the nth degree.
The opening corporate mission statement indicates 1983 and the music remains 80s throughout.
Synthesizers and musique concrète.
A lot of visually impressive work undermined by exhausting, dreary, glacial pace.

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Ouija: Origin of Evil - 2016 - 6/10

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Old school style yarn of family messing with Ouija board, getting more than they bargained for.
Recently widowed mother earns pocket money by holding seances.
Revenue is meager, though, and PAST DUE bills stack up.
Mom really doesn’t have the gift, either, but the youngest daughter does.  (The child who plays Doris is well directed.)
Thing about the open-ended Ouija board.  When you make contact, it works both ways.
And to reference Rocky TF Squirrel, are they friendly spirits?  Not in this movie.
Set in 1967, though cars, clothes, soda fountain, echo the 50s.
OK scares, no gore, no nudity.  “Child in danger,”  a trope I generally dislike.

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