Category: Film

Johnny Eck from Baltimore was in ‘Freaks’

Johnny Eck was from Baltimore.

Tweets on The Little Shop of Horrors

The Little Shop of Horrors is a comedy horror film by Roger Corman. It was later made into a musical and film of the musical. It’s in the public domain and available online. It’s a lot of fun.

When I was in high school, there was a TV show in Philadelphia hosted by Dr. Shock that showed low-budget horror films. That’s where I originally saw this film.

This is a lobby card that I have owned since I was in high school over 50 years ago.

I recommend two films by Soi Cheung

These are brutal dark Hong Kong action films directed by Soi Cheung that tale place in a very violent world where most people meet a bad end.The cops and criminals are both violent and will do whatever it takes to get what they want.

I thought Limbo looked great in black and white. Dog Bite Dog is in color but it’s very dark and may have worked better in black and white. They are not profound and the plots are not deep but the visual world they create is great. Much ofLimbo takes place in trash dumps.

I also watched Motorway which deals with high speed car chases. It’s not as good as the other two but worth a look.

I have seen the four films which star Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake

All four have now been issued on Blu-ray since Saigon was released this year. The films are:

This Gun for Hire (1942) is based on a Graham Greene novel.

The Glass Key (1942) is based on a Dashiell Hammett novel

The Blue Dahlia (1946) has a script by Raymond Chandler

Saigon (1948)

They are all worth seeing. I would classify them all as crime films with This Gun for Hire as the best and Saigon (with a very unfocused plot) as the weakest.

This Gun for Hire, The Glass Key, and The Blue Dahlia are currently on DVD as part of a collection: Film Noir 10-Movie Spotlight Collection

The first three are on Blu-ray from Shout Factory; Saigon is on Blu-ray ffrom Kino Lorber

I just watched China (1943) which stars Ladd and Loretta Young. It’s worth seeing.

Posts about Billy Wilder

Billy Wilder is one of the greatest film directors ever.

Billy Wilder’s grave

Martin Mull 1943-2024

Martin Mull was a musician and actor

This is the front and back of his “greatest hits” album

IndieWire ranks the top 100 Westerns

My favorite is The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (#10)

Some others I like are #90 The Good, The Bad, The Weird:

#72 Lone Star

#71 True Grit (2010)

#70 Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia is certainly the most bizarre Western I know. It’s not very coherent. #44 The Wild Bunch is much better.#36

#36 Treasure of the Sierra Madre

#22 Red River

#20 The Wind. I haven’t seen this in 50 years but remember it was excellent. It have never been on DVD or Blu-ray

#16 The Searchers

#5 McCabe & Mrs. Miller

#1 Johnny Guitar – I wouldn’t put in #1 but it’s a strange film well worth seeing