Month: March 2021

Articles, Review, Top Blu-rays

Top 20 Blu-Rays of 2020: Number 7-The Curse of Frankenstein: Two-Disc Special Edition

7. The Curse of Frankenstein: Two-Disc Special Edition

Hammer Horror raises the dead with their gothic-horror take on the original gothic-horror story, Frankenstein.

In Switzerland, Baron Victor Frankenstein (Peter Cushing) is imprisoned, awaiting execution for killing his maid Justine. Victor is visited by a priest who he tells his horrific tale.

After the death of his mother, Victor Frankenstein is left his families fortune, and he sets to hire a tutor named Paul Krempe (Robert Urquhart) to teach him about science. After years of tutoring, Frankenstein and Krempe are able to bring a dead puppy back to life.

Victor decides that he is going to make the perfect person by harvesting body parts and murdering a respected professor.

Krempe can no longer stand by while Victor conducts his evil experiments and his horrified when “The Creature” (Christopher Lee) is brought to life!

Although it is based on Mary Shelley’s famous novel, and some of the elements of the film are familiar, Hammer delivers a great Frankenstein film. The strongest aspect of the film is the incredible cast that brings the film to life. Cushing is terrifying as the Baron. Urquhart is also outstanding as his sympathetic tutor Paul. Lee does much with the non-speaking role of the Creature. Terrence Fisher is at the helm and he delivers the goods yet again. The film looks stunning, and the violence is horrific. Condemned when it was released, The Curse of Frankenstein is now recognized as one of Hammer’s best films.

The Curse of Frankenstein unleashes its horror on a stunning new 4K transfer from The Warner Archive Collection. The blood, the makeup a are gruesome. The lighting, the detail are some of the best I’ve seen from Warner Archive and that is truly saying something. The Collector’s Edition of The Curse of Frankenstein has three separate versions of the film. The 1:85:1 and the 1:66:1 are located on disc one, and a really cool bonus feature on disc two is 1:37:1 version, which if you saw the film on TV is the version you might know the best, each have the same 4K scan so no matter which version you prefer you are seeing a great transfer of the film.

The Curse of Frankenstein lurches from the laboratory with a thundering DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio and it screams excellence. The dialogue and music sound fresh and clear. No scratches or other imperfections are found on the soundtrack.

The Curse of Frankenstein rises from the grave with some of the best extras to be found on a release in 2020.

Disc 1

Audio Commentary: The recurring team of Constantine Nasr and Steve Haberman deliver yet another great commentary.

Disc 2

Open Matte Version

The Resurrection Men: Hammer, Frankenstein and the Rebirth of the Horror Film: An outstanding documentary about the making of the film, how it saved Hammer Films and ushered in the modern horror film.

Hideous Progeny: The Curse of Frankenstein and the English Gothic Tradition: A sit down with Author and Cultural Historian Sir Christopher Frayling delves not only into the film but the book as well. This is a great piece.

Torrents of Light: The Art of Jack Asher: Cinematographer David J. Miller (Veep, The Good Place) talks the brilliance of fellow Cinematographer Jack Asher.

Diabolus in Musica: James Bernard and the Sound of Hammer Horror: Composer Christopher Drake (Injustice: Gods Among Us, Tusk) offers praise for Composer James Bernard.

Trailer

The Curse of Frankenstein is given the royal treatment by The Warner Archive Collection and the label delivers one of the best blu-rays of the year. From three different versions of the film to some of the most entertaining and informative bonus features make this a must-buy!

Film: A-

Video: A+

Audio: A

Extras: A+

Overall: A

Articles, Review, Top Blu-rays

Top 20 Blu-Rays of 2020: Number 8-The Lady Eve

8. The Lady Eve

Three con artists, Jean Harrington (Barbara Stanwyck), her father Colonel Harrington, and his partner Gerald aboard a cruise ship set their sights on the heir of millions. What they don’t count on is that Jean falls for the bumbling soon-to-be millionaire Charles Pike (Henry Fonda).

Jean tries to keep Charles from finding out about their schemes, but as she falls more in love with him, the more she feels guilty about lying to him.

Eventually Charles finds out about Jean and her scheming ways and dumps her. Jean doesn’t go away however, when she learns that there is a party with the wealthy in Connecticut and Charles will be there, Jean disguises herself as Lady Eve Sidwich. At the party Charles is taken aback by “Lady Eve’s” beauty and is head over heels for her. They soon marry, and Charles can’t shake the feeling that Eve might be Jean…

An absolute winning screwball comedy by master director Preston Sturges (Sullivan’s Travels). The film is whip smart, funny and a master class in comedy by Stanwyck. She’s easy on the eyes and easy to fall in love with. Up to the challenge as well is lovable Fonda, who plays a bumbling fool all too well.

I had never seen The Lady Eve, I bought solely on the star power of Stanwyck and Sturges. I have now watched it three times in a matter of months, catching new jokes, new character nuances and overall, just appreciating one of the best comedies ever.

The Lady Eve arrives on The Criterion Collection with a sparkling new transfer. Although the text that accompanies the disc says that they had to source the film from a Universal Studios 35mm fine-grain master positive, as it was the best element to scan, it looks awesome. Some mild softness can be found, but I did check a streaming version of this film and I can say that the Criterion release knocked it out of the park.

The Lady Eve speaks its mind with a crystal-clear mono track. No hissing, cracks or pops, this movie sounds great. Which is so important as the dialogue is first rate and needs to be heard.

The Lady Eve crashes the party with a great amount of features that are worth your time to watch.

Introduction by Peter Bogdanovich

Commentary by Film Scholar Marian Keane

Tom Sturges and Friends: The son of the acclaimed director sits down on video conference with some of familiar movie fans, like Leonard Maltin, and Ron Shelton to name a few.

The Lady Deceives: Film critic David Cairns discusses the film.

Costume Designs by Edith Head: A look at the costuming in the film.

Lux Radio Theatre Presentation: Stanwyk reprises her role for the radio.

Up the Amazon: the opening number from the musical based on The Lady Eve.

Trailer and Essay

The Lady Eve is one of the best comedies ever. You would be foolish to not pick up this gem of a release by The Criterion Collection.

Film: A+

Video: A

Audio: A

Extras: A

Overall: A

Articles, Review, Show Time

Movie Madness 2021: Selection Monday Announcement

Well, we had so much time last year that we decided to bring it back.

In case you missed it, last year, In light of the post-season college basketball tournaments being canceled, I thought, “What better way to keep the crazy competitiveness of March alive than with a movie tournament?”

So, I introduced Corinne’s Movie Madness.

Just like the basketball tournaments, we had a field of competitors facing off in one-on-one competitions. You, the Reel Nerds fans, decided which of the two movies in a given match-up advanced to the next round, and eventually crowned The Princess Bride as last year’s champion.

(Sidenote: A special thank you to Brad for the excellent graphic!)

This year, with the help of the other Nerds, we are doing a themed Movie Madness tournament.

The competitors and bracket mechanics

Unlike other competitions, this one is very selective. Only 16 films qualified for a coveted spot on the bracket. No doubt you’re wondering exactly how we picked 16 films out of thousands of good ones.

We decided this year that our field will be entirely composed of animated Disney and Pixar movies. Each Nerd picked four of their favorites for the bracket.

We figured the fairest way to do it would be to have each Nerds’ four films as their own region or division. That way, each of us will definitely have one movie in the semifinals / the Final (four) Films.

And, just like the tournament, each movie has a “seed” or ranking within its Nerd’s division. As far as I can tell, we gave the rankings based on how much we like each of them. #1 is our favorite, #2 second-favorite, etc.

How you participate

Just like the college basketball tournament, Movie Madness will start on Thursday, March 18.

That day, we will post the first match-up on the Nerds’ social media pages and you go and vote for whichever you think is the better movie! Simple as that.

For instance, on March 18, it’ll be the 1-seed vs. the 4-seed in Ryan’s division; whichever movie receives more votes before midnight will advance to the next round. (In the case of a tie, the higher seed will win; so if you like the lower-seeded movie, get your friends to vote for it too.)

Eight days later, we will advance to the second-round match-ups, and the procedure will be the same until a movie is crowned the winner. If I’m counting right, our championship match-up should be on April 1.

Announcing the field

So, this year, in the spirit of the NCAA tournament and its Selection Sunday show, friend of the podcast Gerry the Artist and I recorded a special bracket announcement segment that should be hitting the Reel Nerds podcast feeds today, or soon. As I announced the match-ups, Gerry gave his spur-of-the-moment analyses of each first-round match-up and the divisions overall.

Here’s the video file if that’s your preference:

But, in case you don’t have 26 minutes to spare, let’s get you caught up:

  • On Thursday, March 18, we will have Ryan‘s 1-seed Pinocchio versus his 4-seed Dumbo.
  • On Friday, March 19, Ryan’s 2-seed Toy Story 2 facing off against his 3-seed The Lion King.
  • On Saturday, March 20, kicking off Brad‘s division is his 1-seed Wall-E against his 4-seed Robin Hood.
  • On Sunday, March 21, Brad’s 2-seed Oliver & Company will go up against his 3-seed Ratatouille.
  • On Monday, March 22, we will have a Disney princess showdown between my (Corinne‘s) 1-seed Beauty & the Beast versus my 4-seed The Little Mermaid.
  • On Tuesday, March 23, we’ll see a Pixar afterlife movie match-up when my 2-seed Coco takes on 3-seed Soul.
  • On Wednesday, March 24, Zach‘s 1-seed Fun & Fancy Free takes on his 4-seed (and Gerry-identified dark horse of the tournament) The Great Mouse Detective.
  • On Thursday, March 25, we conclude the first round of the tournament with Zach’s 2-seed Ichabod & Mr. Toad against his 3-seed The Jungle Book.

(And in case you didn’t watch / listen to the bracket announcement, these are all the classic 2D-animated Disney films, and not the the “live-action” remakes.)

Thus, on Friday, March 26, we will start the second round and on April 1, we will have our championship showdown.

Here is your full field:

Which of these 16 films will be crowned the Champion of Corinne’s Movie Madness 2021?

Visit the Reel Nerds social media pages to cast your vote!

Articles, Review, Top Blu-rays

Top 20 Blu-Rays of 2020-Number 9: Holiday (1938)

9. Holiday (1938)

Ideals clash in a comedy that pits Cary Grant’s Johnny against his girlfriend Julia’s (Doris Nolan) against her family, who view the world differently.

Johnny arrives at Julia’s home as her family is planning a big New Year’s Eve party. Johnny is planning on marrying Julia and their engagement will be announced at midnight. Johnny is surprised to learn that Julia’s family is extremely wealthy and her father Edward Seton (Henry Kolker) has a nice job at his bank all lined up for Johnny. Johnny however has plans of his own. Johnny wants to see the world and experience it before settling down. Johnny finds a kindred spirit in Julia’s older sister Linda (Katharine Hepburn). Johnny soon realizes that he might be marrying the wrong sister.

A winning comedy from Director George Cukor that deals with a popular subject in the late 1930’s and that’s you don’t need money to be happy. Holiday is a fast moving, funny and at times touching film. Grant and Hepburn are of course magical, picking up their amazing chemistry they displayed in two previous films together and will serve them even better in 1940’s screwball classic The Philadelphia Story.

Holiday is an easy movie to love. Grant is still really early in his movie career as he arrived in Hollywood just six years earlier, but starting with 1937’s Topper, Grant is starting to establish himself as the best comedian in film as he had The Awful Truth (my favorite Grant film) and Bringing Up Baby under his belt. Hepburn is no slouch either. Her timing is impeccable as too is her physical comedy chops, both are on full display in Holiday.

And while Holiday never reaches the heights of Bringing Up Baby or The Philadelphia Story, it is still a must see.

Holiday arrived on blu-ray from the Criterion Collection with a new 4K scan that was handled by Sony Pictures. It is stunning. I watched this film on DVD just a couple years ago and Sony delivers a sparkling new transfer. Blacks are deep and full, and the film has a great amount of beautiful detail that I missed watching it on DVD.

Holiday cheers onto blu-ray with a solid mono track. No hissing or scratching can be found on the soundtrack. This is a healthy sounding track for a film that is 82 years old.

The Criterion Collection delivers yet again with some truly great bonus features.

Holiday (1930)-presented here is the 1930 version of Holiday. It is ok, but how can you compare with Grant and Hepburn, you can’t. Hats off to Criterion however for including it.

A conversation with Filmmaker Michael Schlesinger and Film Critic Michael Sragow: An hour and a half discussion about the two Holiday films and the play. They discuss the differences and how they are alike.

Audio excerpt with George Cukor: Cukor talks about Holiday in 1971 and 72.

Costume Gallery: A look at the film’s costumes

Holiday is a fun, light comedy that is a must buy for fans of Grant, Hepburn or just golden age comedies in general.

Film: A

Video: A

Audio: A-

Extras: A

Overall: A

Articles, Review, Top Blu-rays

Top 20 Blu-Rays of 2020: Number 10-The Curse of the Werewolf

10. The Curse of the Werewolf

Hammer delivers a strong entry into werewolf lore with 1961’s The Curse of the Werewolf.

Leon is a young orphan whose mother was sexually assaulted by a feral man in prison. Leon’s mother dies after giving birth to him on Christmas Day, which to his mother is unlucky because he will become a werewolf. Leon becomes an orphan looked after by Alfredo Corledo and his housekeeper Teresa.

Leon soon starts changing into a monster who kills the villages goats, which a dog is blamed, Alfredo hides Leon’s monster nature hoping that it will never return.

Leon now thirteen years older, leaves his home for work. Leon decides to work in a wine cellar and falls in love with the owner’s daughter, Cristina. Leon, is fearful of marrying Cristina however and joins his Jose to a brothel.

At the brothel Leon transforms into a werewolf and kills a woman of the night. Leon also kills Jose and is locked in jail for murder.

Leon can’t be contained however as the werewolf soon is unleashed on the village.

A solid entry in Hammer’s horror film cannon, The Curse of the Werewolf is a winning film with stellar direction by Terence Fisher, moody production design and a powerful performance by Oliver Reed as Leon. The gothic take on werewolf lore is fun, even if some of the elements of the script do not make much sense. I am still not sure why a baby born on Christmas is cursed, maybe it has to do with who the father of the child is? I don’t know it’s never explained.

The werewolf transformation is awesome, and although there is only about 10 minutes of werewolf mayhem, it is effective and brutal. I have been watching a lot of Hammer films as of late and what I truly think sets them apart is not only the atmosphere they create but the stellar casting. In The Curse of the Werewolf all involved bring their A-game and deliver a truly special horror film.

The Curse of the Werewolf rips into a brand new 4K scan from Shout Factory. The video presentation is outstanding with all the elements as clear as a full moon. The make-up effects are truly mesmerizing in the film, enhanced by a new coat of paint.

The Curse of the Werewolf delivers an ear shattering howl of effectiveness. The dialogue is crystal clear and the macabre sounds of a werewolf terrorizing villagers is awesome.

The Curse of the Werewolf gets the Collector’s Edition treatment from Scream Factory which means it is absolutely packed with great interviews and commentaries.

Commentary: Actress Yvonne Romain and special effects artist Mike Hill sit down for a breezy, fun commentary.

Commentary: the always enjoyable film historian Constantine Nasr is joined by fellow historian Steve Haberman. The duo give a nice fluid commentary throughout the film.

The Men Who Made Hammer: A fun interview with Richard Klemensen who recounts the work of make-up artist Roy Ashton and his incredible contributions to Hammer Films.

Serial Killer: The work of composer Benjamin Frankel is discussed here, with some fascinating tidbits from his life.

Making of The Curse of the Werewolf: A really great documentary cobbled together from not only video interviews but audio interviews from the cast and crew. They discuss the making of the film and the challenges it presented when it was released.

Lycanthropy: A quick look at werewolves.

Censoring the Werewolf: The 1960’s were a challenging time to make a horror film, and The Curse of the Werewolf had many. A fascinating look at censors and the role the played in releasing films during that time.

Trailers from Hell: John Landis shares his love for The Curse of the Werewolf.

Radio Spot, Theatrical Trailer and Still Gallery

The Curse of the Werewolf was a blind buy that I took a chance on due to its reputation as being a solid werewolf flick. It is and the Scream Factory release is a great one.

Film: B

Video: A+

Audio: A

Extras; A+

Overall: A

Articles, Review, Top Blu-rays

Top 20 Blu-Rays of 2020: Number 11- Jaws 4K: 45th Anniversary Best Buy Exclusive Steelbook

11. Jaws 45th Anniversary 4K-Best Buy exclusive Steelbook

One of the greatest films of all time gets a stunning 4K upgrade, and Best Buy delivers one hell of a cool steelbook.

The island community of Amity is under attack. A blood-thirsty great white shark is stalking the waters, unleashing terror.

Has anyone actually not seen Jaws? It seems silly to recap the film since it is so engrained in pop culture and everyone’s sub-conscious. Jaws could very well be a perfect film. The opening is one of the most terrifying in film history. The shocking death of a female swimmer sets the tone for the rest of the film. What Steven Spielberg does so effectively is build tension without seeing much of the shark. We learn in the special features he really did not have a choice; the shark would not work. Smartly, though he focuses on the characters and tension.

Chief Martin Brody played with great kindness and urgency by Roy Scheider shows a man trying to do the right thing by closing the beaches, he is blocked by the City Council and the Mayor of Amity Larry Vaughan (Murray Hamilton, who is amazing in the film). Richard Dreyfuss is winning as a hotshot scientist, Hooper who teams up with Brody and shark hunter Quint (Robert Shaw) to take down the shark after it kills a young boy on a crowded beach.

Too many scenes are classics to recount them all, but Shaw’s story of the USS Indianapolis is a stunning, haunting recount of the infamous sinking battleship.

The score by John Williams, is the most iconic villain music of all, or is it his work on Star Wars? Or Indiana Jones? I can’t pick, just know his scores define music in films.

Jaws’ waters have never been clearer with an absolute showcase UHD. From the glow of the fire in the opening scenes to the textures on the Orca, I am not sure there is a better looking film on 4K. What is truly awesome is that Jaws retains its natural film look throughout. I say this a lot but it’s like watching the movie for first time. The 45th Anniversary of Jaws in 4K is that good.

Jaws gnaws at the bones with a cracking audio mix. The Dolby Atmos soundtrack is another showcase piece. The sound is so important to Jaws and it has never sounded better.

Although there are no new extras, the ported over extras from the previous blu-ray are included and most are found on the 4K disc.

The Making of Jaws: At over 2 hours, this is one hell of a making-of documentary.

The Shark is Still Working: The Impact and Legacy of Jaws: Another incredible documentary, this time nearly 2 hours delving into how Jaws continues to terrify moviegoers.

Jaws: The Restoration: A brief look at the process of restoring the film.

Deleted Scenes and Outtakes: Almost 15 minutes of scenes.

From the Set: Vintage look at Jaws.

Theatrical Trailer

Jaws Archives: This is found on the accompanying blu-ray, Production Photos, Storyboards and Marketing Materials.

Jaws is one of the greatest films ever and is given a stunning UHD release.

Film: A+

Video: A+

Audio: A+

Extras: A

Steelbook: A

Overall: A

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