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With the release of his fifth feature film, Deep Red (1975), Dario Argento was probably starting to believe his own hype. As the “Italian Hitchcock,” he’d proven himself a bankable director of international thrillers (and one obscure Western) who’d inspired hundreds of imitators in his own country and abroad. The competition was getting fierce. So Argento fired off one last salvo into the crowded giallo genre that would end the debates and put him firmly back on top. Deep Red is one of those films that catch a director working at the top of his game working with deceptive ease. David Hemmings, in a variation of his role in Blow Up , is the witness to a brutal crime who believes he saw a vital clue to the killer’s identity…but can’t quite recall the evidence of his own eyes. With the help of a nosy reporter (possible killer #1) and a fellow musician (possible killer #2), Hemmings stays one step ahead of a string of vicious murders that target anyone involved in the crime. Unl...

Inspired by the "bystander effect" documented after the 1964 rape and murder of Kitty Genovese where 37 witness allegedly did nothing to stop the attack, The Incident (1967) is constructed like a modern-day disaster film, introducing a eclectic cast of subway passengers who find themselves tormented by a pair of loose cannons (played to the hilt by Tony Musante and Martin Sheen) on a late-night ride to Times Square. As the duo pokes and prods for weak spots, no one bothers to lift a finger, content to allow the verbal and physical abuse to continue until someone else intervenes. It's a shameful game of chicken amongst strangers who count on anonymity as their only precarious protection. Shot in authentically urban black and white, but actually filmed on a clever subway set, The Incident does a wonderful job setting the stage for its stop-start morality play. Nicholas Baehr's script takes its time arranging each passenger's personal baggage then lets its a...

Much like the early work of Tim Burton, the films of director Frank Henenlotter exist in their own twisted universe. Only instead of a gothic suburban fairyland, Basket Case (1982) puts down stakes in a seedy Times Square hotel populated by an endearingly colorful collection of hookers, thieves and pimps. The newest tenant is Duane Bradley (Kevin Van Hentenryck), a naive upstate import whose most defining characteristic is the large wicker basket he carries under his arm. What's in the basket? Why, his separated Siamese twin, Belial, who looks more like a stumpy octopus, on a mission of revenge against the doctors who performed their illegal operation and "broke up the band," so to speak. Inheriting the "Midnight Movie" mantle from Rocky Horror (it had a two year run at one famous NYC theater), Basket Case wormed its way into the horror genre like a venereal disease. But Henenlotter's film has a DIY aesthetic that's charming even when it's...

Just a year after releasing Shadows and Fog - a film ensconced in the fog of 1920's German Expressionism - Woody Allen went and made the most modern film of his career. Husband and Wives (1992) is populated with the director's familiar group of urban elitists second-guessing their suspiciously shallow lives, but told with a hip visual style full of jump cuts, handheld shots and documentary confessionals. It's a refreshing change of pace that has an angry edge lacking in the rest of Allen's work. After their surprise separation announcement, Jack and Sally (Sydney Pollack and Judy Davis) bounce between rebound relationships and shallow sexual fulfillment. But their situation has an unintended effect on Gabe and Judy (Allen and Mia Farrow), who find their own previously stable relationship now falling apart. Allen doesn't rely on comic relief to ease the pressure; Husbands and Wives is a brutal parade of petty arguments and passive-aggressive bickering. An...

Having established himself as the premiere purveyor of the rather grungy and depressing British Kitchen-Sink movement with A Taste of Honey and The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner , director Tony Richardson spun about 180-degrees with 1963's joyful adaptation of Tom Jones , a giddy romp through 17th century England following the amorous adventures of a well-to-do bastard who was, by all accounts, "born to hang." While the rampant sexism may be as humorously out-of-date as the early Bond films, Albert Finney could charm the pants off 99% of the #MeToo movement with his star-making turn as the chivalrous but weak-willed hero desperately trying elevate his station and earn the love of his beloved Sophie Western (Susannah York). Raised as foundling by a wealthy landowner, Tom is blessed with dashing good looks and a heart of gold. Unfortunately, he's also a bit naive about the rules and regulations involved with aristocratic life. Framed for a pregnancy he d...

Now that streaming has become the de facto source of entertainment for most people under thirty, the doors have opened for courageous niche companies to take a chance on new material that hasn't been repurposed, repackaged and resold for the umpteenth time. Case in point, Arrow's limited edition box set Seijun Suzuki: The Early Years Volume 1 , which gathers five of the director's "youth" movies that have never seen the light of day outside Japan. Suzuki, probably best known for his stylish yakuza films like Branded to Kill that irked studio superiors, proves here he can work elegantly within the studio system, injecting some creative inspiration into otherwise cut-and-paste formulaic fare. Releasing films at a ridiculous pace to take advantage of passing fads, Nikkatsu Studios latched onto the burgeoning youth culture - most likely inspired by James Dean's iconic performance in Rebel Without A Cause - showcasing their own pantheon of juvenile delinqu...

The opening credits of The L-Shaped Room (1962), in which our main character tours the seedier side of London in search of an affordable flat, visually places the film comfortably within the "Kitchen Sink" category: a creative movement that shifted the spotlight to working-class protagonists struggling against social forces beyond their control. From domestic drama to controversial political issues to the mundane workings of every day life, the glamorized escapism of Hollywood was eschewed in favor of the harsh realities of British life. But director Bryan Forbes, despite ticking all the necessary boxes, manages to keep a toe in more traditional waters. While the film certainly has its share of "angry young men," there's an underlying message of acceptance and forgiveness that softens the blow. Pregnant and alone, Jane Fosset (Leslie Caron) rents a room in the only boarding house she can afford, populated by an odd - but not entirely off-putting - cast of ch...

At first glance Forever Amber (1947) could easily be mistaken for yet another sprawling piece of escapist filmmaking tied to a scandalous best-selling novel full of racy material that slipped past the production code under the guise of a seventeenth-century royal romance. Point in fact, that's exactly what Otto Preminger's film is; but the director makes so little attempt to camouflage the seedier elements of the plot that Forever Amber winds up feeling a bit more modern for its honest portrayal of a scheming social climber who sleeps her way to a title...but still loses the man she loves. Orphaned at birth and raised among a quiet farming community, Amber St. Clair (Linda Darnell) jumps at the chance to escape her fate as a housewife by tagging along with an idealistic soldier, Bruce Carlton (Cornel Wilde), who hopes to secure his own future with a commission from the newly crowned King Charles II (George Sanders). Despite being in love with her own ambitions, Amber fal...

The work of Paddy Chayefsky speaks for itself...yet somehow manages to give you plenty to talk about. And while Marty and Network figure most prominently in his Hollywood oeuvre, almost all of his work is designed to push your buttons. With 1971's The Hospital , a razor-sharp condemnation of institutionalized medicine, the writer jumps frenetically between scathing satire and middle-age emotional angst, challenging the audience to keep up with his unpredictable shifts in tone and disarmingly insightful dialogue. The Hospital 's rule-breaking Rube Goldberg script structure earned itself an Oscar and still feels as if it's pulling off something cinematically illegal...or at the very least entertainingly subversive. Dr. Herbert Bock (George C. Scott) is Chief of Medicine at one of the top hospitals in Manhattan, a facility that's bitten off more than it can chew, with patients herded like cattle through the administrative process while the board of directors plot ...

American International Pictures tackling an adaption of Wuthering Heights is about as likely as McDonalds adding filet mignon to the dollar menu. And yet in 1970, horror-exploitation specialists James H. Nicholson and Samuel Z. Arkoff put their names behind a no-bullshit adaptation of Emily Bronte's Gothic Romance classic starring relative unknowns Anna Calder-Marshall and Timothy Dalton as tortured lovers Cathy and Heathcliff. And while it's given a contemporary look by former Avengers director Robert Fuest, there's very little shock tactics on display here. This is a straight-faced, serious attempt at respectability by the same company who produced movies like Bloody Mama and Dr. Goldfoot and the Girl Bombs . Who'd have guessed? Actually, the success of Franco Zeffirelli's Romeo and Juliet two years earlier was probably the inspiration behind AIP's short-lived come-to-Jesus moment. But the film stands up quite well no matter what the financial ...

An Italian omnibus film produced by Dino De Laurentiis as a showcase for his wife - and former Miss Rome - Silvana Mangano, The Witches (1967), despite its supernatural title, follows the same dramatic formula as better-known '60s anthologies: pairing several exportable directors (De Sica, Visconti, etc) with a variety of short subjects. The scattershot approach is intentional, spreading audience interest between the tragic, comedic, romantic and just plain cinematic. Only in this case, Mangano serves as an anchor for each story, playing a different role in the five separate short films. Things begin with Luchino Visconti's "The Witch Burned Alive," a slow-to-develop critique of celebrity status and the personal sacrifices necessary to succeed in the film and fashion industry. Gloria (Mangano) attempts to escape her fame at a party hosted at a mountaintop cabin. But even amongst friends she's faced with petty jealousy, vicious comments, and sexual advance...

It was a testament to Tracey Wolfson's unflappable nature that she didn't blink an eye at the 4-foot tall rainbow-scaled alien on her doorstep. Of course, partial credit should go to the splash or two of Vodka she added to her V8 juice a moment earlier, but it was still a remarkably subdued reaction, certainly one of the calmest Jorsynx Yyl had ever seen. He made a quick mental note on his bio-recorder and launched into his standard spiel. "Groha-hi simxi egahh?" Tracey winced at the strange high-pitched noises emerging from the fish man's mouth and gill slits. Jorsynx realized his error immediately and, embarrassed at the interplanetary faux paus, activated his translator. "Mrs. Wolfson? I'm with GERI...the Gaia Experimental Research Institute. Could I have a few minutes of your time?" Tracey's eyes flicked left and right, checking for any potential eyewitnesses to her diminutive visitor then waived him inside. Jorsynx made a...

While it’s no fan favorite, The Cat O' Nine Tails (1971) is undoubtedly director Dario Argento's most accessible and Americanized production amongst an oeuvre that only become more and more outré. Fast-tracked to follow-up to his successful The Bird with the Crystal Plumage , Argento, still glowing with his new moniker as the "Italian Hitchcock," plunges ahead with his most straight-forward thriller, adding in some signature visual touches but restraining from the usual giallo excess that would become the genre's signature. The film begins with yet another accidental eyewitness to a crime - or in this case an ear- witness. Franco Anro (Karl Malden) is a blind ex-newspaperman who spends his retirement years solving crossword puzzles with the help of his 8-year-old niece, Lori. One night, the pair overhears a suspicious conversation that pulls them into a string of murders at a nearby research clinic. Reporter Carlo Giordani (James Franciscus) takes advant...

Writers often take comfort in the old adage "It's not the story, but how you tell it." Meaning even if an idea isn't all that original, one's unique storytelling style can still win the day. Director Yoji Yamada's The Yellow Handkerchief (1977) is adapted from a story by New York Post columnist Pete Hamill, later reprinted in Readers Digest, turned into a short film starring James Earl Jones and (according to IMDB) no less than three other theatrical and TV versions. But the story behind the story of a newly released ex-con who travels across the country to be reunited with his wife had been passed down in some way, shape or form for decades before, even inspiring the hit Tony Orlando and Dawn song Tie a Yellow Ribbon . Yamada's take combines the best elements of a traditional road movie, lighthearted comedy and serious drama. And even though there's a roadmap of material to work with, the film is pleasantly unpredictable, taking its chara...

Despite being the actor of his generation (or maybe because of it), Marlon Brando was responsible for more than a few instances of cinematic sabotage. His antics during the latter part of his career are well documented (with his pasty-faced performance in The Island of Dr. Moreau being the most high profile), but even early on the actor was forcing his decidedly off-beat creative choices on films that would have otherwise walked the straight-and-narrow. Sayonara (1957), based on James A. Michener's novel, is part Japanese travelogue, part social justice film; its beautiful scenery and edgy interracial romance playing out with predictable old Hollywood class. And then there's Brando. With his makeshift southern drawl, ad-libbed lines and mumbled delivery, the actor exists in a world apart from the rest of the film. It's a poor fit...but it's a hoot to watch him swagger through a big-budget, widescreen production with all the chutzpah of an Actor's Studio ...

Despite winning Best Picture, Best Director and Best Original Screenplay at the 1960 Oscar ceremony, popping up on countless Greatest Films of All Time lists and being added to the Library of Congress National Film Registry in 1994, Billy Wilder's dark romantic comedy The Apartment seems to have drifted out of the public eye. All the more ironic considering the film's plot is centered about workplace infidelity, gender inequality and upward mobility. As a follow-up to his crowd-pleaser Some Like It Hot , Wilder takes wonderful chances here with a much more mature approach - leaning heavily on Shirley MacLaine's second Oscar nominated performance - that results in career best for almost everyone involved. C.C. Baxter (Jack Lemmon) is a low-level employee in one of the nation's largest insurance companies, almost invisible amongst the thousands of desks inside the high-rise office building. But Baxter has been getting glowing reviews thanks to several sleazy exe...

A favorite from the early pay-cable days, Hell Night (1981) is a slasher on training wheels, keeping the sex and gore to a minimum while still providing some predictable jump scares in a gorgeous gothic environment. Linda Blair is likely the click bait for modern audiences, but the tone of the film is a far cry from her turn in The Exorcist . Here she leads a likable cast through a formulaic monster film that feels almost family friendly...in an R-rated sort of way. All prospective pledges from Alpha Sigma Rho are forced to spend one night in Garth Mansion; a sprawling but decrepit estate where 12 years earlier the owner murdered his deformed family then hung himself. Marti (Blair) and her three fellow pledges are prepared for pranks - recorded screams and phony skeletons all prearranged to scare them into embarrassment. But soon people begin dying for real , and Marti must take on the surviving residents of Garth Mansion if she ever expects to survive Hell Night! Some films succ...

As caveman movies go, 1966's One Million Years B.C. has had the top spot locked in for over 50 years. Shot on the primordial Canary Islands, the film combined Ray Harryhausen's singular stop-motion dinosaurs with Raquel Welch's now-iconic fur bikini. Produced by Hammer Films - and spawning a few lesser but still entertaining sequels - it was a match made in fantasy fan heaven. But Tumak and Loana's prehistoric adventures actually began nearly 30 years earlier in the 1940 version of One Million Years B.C. , starring Victor Mature and Carole Landis in the lead roles...and a terrarium full of lizards standing in for the carnivorous (and admittedly unconvincing) dinos. Directed by Hal Roach, whose copious work in the silent film era ironically made him a perfect match for the dialogue-free material, rumors suggest the assistance of none other than D.W. Griffith behind the camera. But whoever gets the credit, there's a lot of praise to be passed around. From t...

Michael Caine took quite a bit of heat for his appearance in 1987's Jaws: The Revenge which was admittedly nothing more than a paycheck for the Oscar winner (his actual quote regarding the film: "I have never seen it, but by all accounts it is terrible. However, I have seen the house that it built, and it is terrific!" ) But the real lesson learned here is that Caine brings a certain level of class to almost any production, no matter how muddled the script or how messy the execution. 1972's Pulp , which reunited the actor with director Mike Hodges, is a bit sloppy itself, revolving around the convoluted story of a ghostwriter who finds himself in jeopardy after agreeing to pen the memoirs of an expatriate Hollywood actor whose mafia ties run dangerously deep. Caine provides just enough smarmy charm - and an equally authentic film noir narration - to make this offbeat satire a serious cinephile conversation piece. Mickey King (Caine) is a crime writer, tossing ...

There's no denying that Woody Allen films are an acquired taste. But working at a pace of almost one movie every year for the past four decades, even the most particular cineaste will find something that suits their taste. More often than not, Allen's most effusive praise is reserved for his mid-70s oeuvre like Annie Hall and Manhattan , but his straight-up sketch comedies, predating his Oscar success, are not without their rabid fans too. Bananas (1971) is the director's third feature, and despite a timely plot centered around third-world dictators (do they ever really go out of style?), the film relies mostly on physical comedy routines straight out of the silent era. Fielding Mellish, another neurotic New Yorker played by Allen himself, is distraught after being dumped by Nancy (Louise Lasser), a die-hard political activist who finds him indescribably lacking. Ticket in hand, Mellish decides to go through with a planned trip to San Marcos, a fictional South Ame...

With a visual palette that predates the colorfully cluttered imaginations of Terry Gilliam and Wes Anderson, Doctor Dolittle (1967) should probably be referenced more often as an influential piece of fantasy filmmaking. Only there are so many dull moments in this otherwise picturesque family adventure that it doesn't linger long in temporal lobe. After taking home Oscars for original song and special effects, director Richard Fleischer's overloaded musical quickly drifted out of a pop culture more interested in mature films like The Graduate and Bonnie and Clyde . Now released on a limited edition Blu-ray from Twilight Time, the flaws are still there...but so is much of its forgotten charm. Fed up with being a "people" doctor, John Dolittle narrows his practice to the study of the veterinary arts after getting quick lesson in animal grammar from his pet parrot. A short stint in a traveling circus provides an infusion of cash necessary for his next project: th...

Watching Gidget (1959) in the modern era of women's rights issue and hourly sexual harassment scandals is a genuinely harrowing experience. What was most certainly an enjoyably empowering adventure about a 16-year-old tomboy blossoming into womanhood is now inescapably creepy. Male viewers will almost feel compelled to cover their eyes on the off chance they're held complicit with the film's multiple sexual predators competing for the affection of an obviously underage girl. Seriously. Of course any film produced in 1959 is bound to have its share of anachronisms. But this comic coming-of-age story, based on a string of popular books that also hit the small screen starring Sally Field, has incredibly bad timing, premiering on a 3000-copy limited edition blu-ray just when society has reached the breaking point when it comes to inappropriate, unwanted male-female relationships. And Gidget is full of them! Young Francie Lawrence (Sandra Dee) would much rather surf...

Horror, as a genre, is both timely and timeless. The shock tactics, as any fan will admit, are pleasantly predictable, but resource-challenged filmmakers tend to populate them with a fresh batch of pop culture references and trendy character quirks. In English? Horror movies make the most of the era in which they were made. Better Watch Out (2017) is no exception, starting with a done-to-death "home invasion" scenario then cleverly covering it tracks to attempt something fresh and new...relatively speaking. For her final babysitting job before leaving for college, Ashley (Olivia DeJonge) takes on her regular gig at the Lerner's with their son Luke (Levi Miller), a quiet 13-year-old she's been watching for years. Expertly fending off his misguided romantic advances, Ashley winds up fighting for both their lives when a stranger with a shotgun hunts them from room to room. But when the identity of the intruder is revealed, an innocent prank quickly escalates in...

Every bit as chilling, powerful and culturally relevant as better-known horror films like Night of the Living Dead and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre , 1974's Deathdream is an overlooked masterpiece in a genre that tosses the word around far too casually. But director Bob Clark ( A Christmas Story ) and writer Alan Ormsby deliver a legitimate shocker that also serves as a not-so-subtle commentary on the post-Vietnam experience. Anxious for word about their son, Andy, the Brooks family has dinner interrupted by a telegram announcing his death. Unwilling to accept the truth, Mrs. Brooks prays for his safe return; and her wish is granted, with terrible consequences. Andy's late-night arrival coincides with the brutal murder of a truck driver, and their son's behavior is nothing short of sociopathic. After Andy murders the family dog, Mr. Brooks calls on the local doctor for advice who quickly connects all the dots. Andy is actually "undead," injecting himsel...