City Heat is undeniably a very stupid, throwaway movie. Its all instantly forgettable, and ended up being a box office disappointment, but it has some fun moments. Clint Eastwood and Burt Reynolds co-star as, respectively, a cop and a private eye in 1930s Kansas City. The plot is irrelevant, though. Its all about the chemistry…
Dr Who And The Daleks / Daleks’ Invasion Earth 2150 AD
For any British kid growing up in the 70s, Dr Who was a TV touchstone. I first came across the Jon Pertwee iteration of the Doctor, then Tom Baker’s flamboyant, scarf-wearing version. Some of the episodes I remember as being relatively scary for young kids, not least those featuring the Doctor’s most famous adversaries –…
VIdeodrome
Videodrome is one of my favourite David Cronenberg movies. This cult classic continues the ‘body horror’ themes from his earlier works (Shivers, Rabid), with a bigger budget and better actors. James Woods gives a high octane performance in the lead, and there is a memorable supporting turn from Blondie’s Debbie Harry too. There’s also a…
Forbidden Planet
Memorabilia from Forbidden Planet makes for some of the most collectible movie items out here. If I had an original release US poster I would be a rich man. But I have to make do with this rather less valuable 60s re-release Spanish herald (plus my Australian poster for The Invisible Boy – not a sequel…
It’s A Wonderful Life
Frank Capra’s It’s A Wonderful Life is a Christmas stalwart – it’s upbeat message encapsulated in the climactic scene of a deliriously happy James Stewart yelling ‘Merry Christmas’ at passersby in a picture perfect snowy town. And yet…the vast majority of the lengthy run-time is actually rather bleak and depressing. Stewart’s character attempts suicide and…
A Day At The Races / Go West
I’ve not seen any Marx Brothers movies in years, but I used to love them when they came on TV. Above is a Spanish herald for arguably their best and most famous movie, A Day At The Races. This was the even more successful follow-up to their hit A Night At The Opera, and featured…
The Wizard Of Oz
“We’re not in Kansas anymore. We must be over the rainbow…” I’m probably more familiar with that line because one of my favourite rock groups, Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow, used it as their intro tape on their live shows and live albums than from The Wizard Of Oz itself. I think I’ve seen the movie years…
Cat On A Hot Tin Roof
This is one of those classic movies which I don’t recall ever seeing. I’ve certainly read Tennessee Williams’ play, as I studied it at university. He’s undoubtedly one of the all-time great American playwrights. The movie pairs Elizabeth Taylor as Maggie “the Cat” and Paul Newman as her husband Brick, with Burl Ives as his…
Spanish heralds (ii)
I wrote previously about my recent discovery of Spanish heralds. Here’s 3 more recently acquired fun items from the 50s, these all with a loose nautical theme. Take your pick from Gregory Peck in Captain Horatio Hornblower, Rock Hudson in Sea Devils or the one and only Esther Williams in Million Dollar Mermaid. I don’t…
The Right Stuff
I remember I saw The Right Stuff on a late night press screening while reviewing movies for my university magazine, and I found it hugely impressive. Writer/director Philip Kaufman does a fine job weaving a coherent narrative out of the true story of early NASA test pilots leading up to John Glenn being the first…