News

Director Robert Siodmak and actress Ella Raines both had a hell of a busy 1944, even by workhorse studio-system standards. Raines, a striking, slightly opaque beauty who had made her movie debut just a year earlier, appeared in five features, including the Preston Sturges classic-in-waiting Hail The Conquering Hero and the...

Stars: Susan George, Leo Genn, Judy Huxtable, Barry Evans, Christopher Sandford, Alan Curtis | Written by Murray Smith | Directed by Pete Walker

Directed by Pete Walker, Die Screaming Marianne is a British exploitation thriller that blends psychological tension with elements of a family drama and a hint of sleazy horror. The film revolves around Marianne (Susan George), a go-go dancer on the run from her corrupt father, a retired judge (Leo Genn), and her manipulative half-sister Hildegarde (Judy Huxtable), both of whom are desperate to get their hands on a hidden fortune that Marianne unknowingly controls.

The film’s storyline is thin but serviceable, with much of its appeal relying on the suspense and cat-and-mouse chase between Marianne and her family. Marianne’s dance sequences, while not particularly central to the plot, set a suggestive tone that emphasizes her vulnerability. The Mediterranean setting adds a layer of exotic danger, but the...

To mark the release of Tosh on 6th June, we’ve been given 3 copies to give away on DVD.

This is the definitive portrait of John Toshack. Welsh, Liverpool and Swansea legend, and one of football’s most inspirational figures. Relive the unbelievable story of a man who, after leaving European champions Liverpool in 1978, took on struggling Swansea City and guided them on a miraculous journey from fourth, to the first division, in just four years. Discover how this passionate player and manager galvanised a side, and a city, ultimately leading him to a hugely successful managerial career across Europe and latterly with the Welsh national team.

This must-see documentary features exclusive interviews from Toshack himself, and players including Alan Curtis, Wyndham Evans, Jeremy Charles, Nigel Stevenson, David Giles, Ian Callaghan, Leighton James, Danny Bartley, Neil Robinson, Dzemal Hadziabdic, and close relatives of club heroes Robbie James and John Charles.

"He brought a big time 'feel' to the club, and really a belief that if you follow Tosh, then you're going to be successful." Kaleidoscope Home Ent. debuted this official UK trailer for a sports documentary titled Tosh, profiling the life of John Toshack – one of football's most inspirational figures. The extraordinary story and fairytale rise of Swansea City under John Toshack. "Tosh" joined the Swans at the bottom of the 4th Division in 1978, and by spring 1982 they were top of the 1st Division. This must-see documentary features interviews from Toshack himself, and with many players including Alan Curtis, Wyndham Evans, Jeremy Charles, Nigel Stevenson, David Giles, Ian Callaghan, Leighton James, Danny Bartley, Dzemal Hadziabdic, and close relatives of club heroes Robbie James and John Charles. It's made by a lifelong Swansea fan who "lived through these moments." Even if you're not familiar with this player or these moments from British football (aka soccer) history,...

Warning: contains spoilers for Inside No. 9 series six.

In series six, Inside No. 9 pulled off a diamond heist, explored obsessive geek fandom, framed a cuckold in an international conspiracy, let a grotesque true crime bleed from reality to fiction and back again, made a deal with the devil, and killed Jesus. Where, one might well ask, next?

Anywhere it wants, is the answer to that question. The BBC Two anthology series can float from location to location, story to story, unhampered by the need to put down roots in any one place. Series seven brings half a dozen brand new films to screen, scored by composer Christian Henson, and each one as different as the last.

The official synopsis describes the new episodes as taking us “from the Welsh valleys to an abandoned house, from kidnappers to detectives, and from a day trip out in a pedalo to a public information film.

An old favorite receives a quality restoration: Raoul Walsh, John Huston, W.R. Burnett and actress Ida Lupino launch Humphrey Bogart as an A-list star deemed strong enough to carry romantic leads. Bogart’s gangster Roy Earle is a classic anti-hero; audiences in 1941 surely thought the film’s play with wrongdoing and heroism was edgy material. Lupino’s loser-turned-lover is a dynamite asset for a man on the run, and the sentimental touches don’t mar the spectacular finale: this all-American bandit meets his end on a California peak, not a dirty urban gutter. A second disc carries the full feature Colorado Territory, a remake/transposition of the Bogie classic into an excellent western with Joel McCrea and Virginia Mayo.

High Sierra

+ Colorado Territory

Blu-ray

The Criterion Collection 1099

1941 / B&w / 1:37 Academy / 100 min. / available through The Criterion Collection / Street Date October 12, 2021 / 39.95

Starring: Ida Lupino, Humphrey Bogart, Alan Curtis, Arthur Kennedy,

Joan Leslie,...

Robert Siodmak’s first film noir is a visually expressive masterpiece in the lush romantic tradition that imposes a dreamlike mood on a nightmarish story. Ella Raines goes to extreme lengths to break the conspiracy that’s sending her boss to Death Row, aided by the Kafka-like indifference of modern Manhattanites. Franchot Tone is the man with the weird hands, but Woody Bredell’s chiaroscuro cinematography is what puts this proto-feminist tale in the top tier.

Phantom Lady

Blu-ray

Arrow Academy

1944 / B&W / 1:37 Academy / 87 min. / Street Date March 5, 2019 / Available from Arrow Video / 39.95

Starring: Franchot Tone, Ella Raines, Alan Curtis, Aurora Miranda, Thomas Gomez, Fay Helm, Elisha Cook Jr., Andrew Tombes, Regis Toomey, Joseph Crehan, Doris Lloyd, Virginia Brissac, Milburn Stone.

Cinematography: Woody Bredell

Film Editor: Arthur Hilton

Written by Bernard C. Schoenfeld, based on the novel by William Irish (Cornell Woolrich)

Produced by Joan Harrison

Directed by Robert Siodmak

1944’s...

Hitler's Madman, a WWII propaganda film, had a complex origin story: filmed shortly after the real events it depicts (the assassination of senior Nazi Reinhard Heydrich and the subsequent massacre of the Czech town of Lidice in reprisal), the appearance of Fritz Lang's similarly-themed Hangmen Also Die! caused its release to be delayed and it also suffered a title change from the catchier Hitler's Hangman. On the plus side, the tiny independent production, shot in just a week, was acquired by MGM and given a bigger budget for re-shoots to enhance its production values. But Sirk ruefully admitted the new scenes actually weakened the film's Poverty Row sensibility, which gave it a slight documentary flavor which was useful.The Lang film is, I think, superior all round, but the two make interesting companions and Sirk's is tougher, in a way. Lang's movie, originally written by Brecht, attempts to build in a small victory,...

Douglas Sirk's first American movie came out so well that Prc sold it to MGM, earning Sirk a promotion out of the Poverty Row studios. John Carradine is excellent - and underplays! -- as the Hangman of Prague who moonlights as a depraved sex criminal. But the context in this wartime propaganda movie is serious -- it commemorates the Nazi murder of an entire Czech town. Hitler's Madman DVD-r The Warner Archive Collection 1943 / B&W / 1:37 flat Academy / 84 min. / Street Date December 1, 2015 / available through the WBshop / 18.95 Starring Patricia Morrison, John Carradine, Alan Curtis, Howard Freeman, Ralph Morgan, Ludwig Stössel, Edgar Kennedy, Al Shean, Elizabeth Russell, Jimmy Conlin, Ava Gardner, Natalie Draper, Victor Kilian, Otto Reichow, Peter van Eyck, Hans Heinrich von Twardowski, Blanch Yurka. Cinematography (Eugen Schüfftan, credited as Technical Advisor), Jack Greenhalgh Film Editor Dan Milner Second unit and uncredited production designer Edgar G. Ulmer Original Music...

Phantom Lady

Written by Bernard C. Schoenfeld

Directed by Robert Siodmak

U.S.A., 1944

Scott Henderson (Alan Curtis), owner of a small engineering company in New York, is already experiencing a poor evening as he enters a neighborhood bar and grill. His luck with an unknown woman has proven sour, the latter having stood him up. Stuck with a pair of tickets to a musical, he invites a lavishly dressed if visibly unhappy looking stranger (Fay Helm) to accompany him. The evening goes well enough although Scott’s lady companion, reserved and nervous, never shares her name before leaving for the night. Scott returns home to find the police, led by inspector Burgess (Thomas Gomez), who accuse him of murdering his wife, whose body lies stone cold in the bedroom. Unable to produce his strongest alibi, the ‘phantom lady’ with the exotic hat, it is up to Scott’s personal...

Humphrey Bogart movies: ‘The Maltese Falcon,’ ‘High Sierra’ (Image: Most famous Humphrey Bogart quote: ‘The stuff that dreams are made of’ from ‘The Maltese Falcon’) (See previous post: “Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall Movies.”) Besides 1948, 1941 was another great year for Humphrey Bogart — one also featuring a movie with the word “Sierra” in the title. Indeed, that was when Bogart became a major star thanks to Raoul Walsh’s High Sierra and John Huston’s The Maltese Falcon. In the former, Bogart plays an ex-con who falls in love with top-billed Ida Lupino — though both are outacted by ingénue-with-a-heart-of-tin Joan Leslie. In the latter, Bogart plays Dashiel Hammett’s private detective Sam Spade, trying to discover the fate of the titular object; along the way, he is outacted by just about every other cast member, from Mary Astor’s is-she-for-real dame-in-distress to Best Supporting Actor Academy Award nominee Sydney Greenstreet. John Huston...

On May 27th Altitude Films are releasing Seven classic horror films and we are offering you the chance to win them all.

Our two lucky winners will each receive a copy of The Black Cat, Madhouse, The Raven, Scream and Scream Again, Black Friday, Phantom Lady and The Legend of Hell House.

Here’s the details of the films…

Scream And Scream Again (1970) – Christopher Lee, Vincent Price, Peter Cushing

A serial killer, who drains his victims for blood is on the loose in London, the Police follow him to a house owned by an eccentric scientist.

The Legend Of Hell House (1973) – Roddy McDowall, Pamela Franklin

A team consisting of a physicist, his wife, a young female psychic and the only survivor of the previous visit are sent to the notorious Hell House to prove/disprove survival after death.

The Raven (1935) – Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi

A brilliant surgeon obsessed with Poe...

To celebrate the release of the classic horror Phantom Lady on May 27th, we are offering you the chance to win one of three copies of the DVD.

Scott Henderson (Alan Curtis) is drowning his sorrows after yet another fight with his wife. At a local bar, he meets a woman and they strike up a conversation. Sensing the woman is also feeling down and not wishing to be alone, he invites her to the theatre. She agrees under one condition; she does not wish to divulge her name, preferring to remain anonymous.

When Henderson returns home he finds police officers waiting for him. His wife has been murdered, strangled with one of his neckties, and he is the main suspect. Maintaining his innocence he suggests they go back and speak with someone who might provide an alibi. But no one seems to remember the mysterious lady.

Charged with the murder of his wife,...

Universal will mark its 100th anniversary in 2012, and will commemorate its centennial with a yearlong celebration honoring the studio's rich film history and cultural legacy. The campaign draws its inspiration from Universal's extraordinary and diverse library of films, many of which will be highlighted throughout the year, and is designed to engage fans of all ages in the art of moviemaking.

A significant element of the centennial includes the extensive restoration of 13 of the studio's most beloved titles such as To Kill a Mockingbird, All Quiet on the Western Front, Jaws, The Sting, Out of Africa, Frankenstein and Schindler's List.

Universal Studios Home Entertainment will kick off the celebration in January with a special 50th anniversary release of To Kill a Mockingbird, debuting on Blu-ray for the first time ever. Throughout the year, Universal will pay tribute to other influential films in the Universal library with special events and Blu-ray...

Jennifer Jones, Humphrey Bogart, Gina Lollobrigida, Beat the Devil Humphrey Bogart on TCM: The Caine Mutiny, The Maltese Falcon, Sahara Schedule (Et) and synopses from the TCM website: 6:00 Am Bogart: The Untold Story (1996) Stephen Bogart hosts this one-hour special on the life and career of his legendary father, Humphrey Bogart. Dir: Chris Hunt. Cast: Stephen Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Robert Sklar. C-46 mins. 7:00 Am Bullets Or Ballots (1936) A cop goes undercover to crack an influential crime ring. Dir: William Keighley. Cast: Edward G. Robinson, Joan Blondell, Barton MacLane. Bw-82 mins. 8:30 Am San Quentin (1937) A convict's sister falls for the captain of the prison guards. Dir: Lloyd Bacon. Cast: Pat O'Brien, Humphrey Bogart, Ann Sheridan. Bw-70 mins. 9:45 Am King Of The Underworld (1939) A lady doctor gets mixed up with a criminal gang. Dir: Lewis Seiler. Cast: Humphrey Bogart, Kay Francis, James Stephenson. Bw-67 mins. 11:00 Am To Have And Have Not...