FORBIDDEN PLANET (1956) Lobby Cards and Poster Art

Poster Art for Disney's 20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA (1954)

It is a true shame that this classic adventure film is only available on Blu-Ray directly from Disney through their club. I'm sure that they could sell hundreds of thousands of copies if it could be more easily purchased. But I'm not a Disney employee so what do I know? 

The Bloody Pit #164 - FLESH AND FANTASY (1943)

FLESH AND FANTASY (1943) is a film that should be much better known both in Horror fan circles and among fans of classic cinema in general. Directed by one of the giants of French cinema transplanted to America Julien Duvivier, this film shows the care and craftsmanship of a fine storyteller working with the full resources of a major studio. Following the template he had used in his earlier film TALES OF MANHATTAN (1942), this is an anthology with three vignettes linked by a framing device with humorist Robert Benchley. But that wasn’t exactly the original vision of this movie, as we will discuss.

Troy and I return to the Universal horror films with a true outlier this time. FLESH AND FANTASY is easily the most expensive production on our list of these 1940’s films with its large budget and cast of major movie stars being just the most obvious differences from the monster sequels surrounding it. The movie uses all its resources wonderfully to present a dazzling series of visuals and at least one of the best (possibly) supernatural stories the studio would ever make. The cast is fantastic and filmmaking a delight! It is a shock how underseen and underappreciated this excellent movie has been but with a Blu-Ray release just around the corner we hope that is about to change. Join us a for an interesting conversation about the production, structure and underlying themes of this hidden gem.

The show’s email address is thebloodypit@gmail.com and we’d love to hear your thoughts on FLESH AND FANTASY or any of the movies we’ve covered. Thank you for listening and we’ll be back with an email episode very soon.

The Bloody Pit #150 - PHANTOM OF THE OPERA (1943)

The show finally reaches episode #150 with a discussion of the 1943 version of PHANTOM OF THE OPERA!

Join Troy and I as we swing on the giant opera house chandelier! Say what you will, but it gives us a good view of the film’s successes and failures. This often-derided film is one of Universal’s Oscar winners and on Blu-Ray it is a gorgeous thing to behold. We never thought we’d use words like opulent or big budgeted or colorful to describe a ‘horror’ film from the 1940’s but here we are! Of course, comparisons to the 1925 version can’t be avoided and we also briefly touch on a few of the more well-known adaptations over the past eighty years.

We spend a lot of time digging into the question of Christine’s relationship with the Phantom and wondering why having him be her father was excised from the story. At least one review from the time indicates that there might have been something left in early prints that made this very clear. We talk about the cast and the director with attention paid to some poor staging that undercuts important moments. Complaints about the comedy elements of the film are voiced as are questions about the difficulty of assembling a music room in the Paris sewers. A good time is had by all with music leading the way!

Near the end of the show, we respond to a couple of emails sent to thebloodypit@gmail.com and I have a mini-rant about the sad tendency in film fans to hate all new things. It’s a brief spasm and the phrase Doppler Effect is tossed out but I recover quickly and get things back on track. Hell! I almost forgot about the emails. Thanks Troy. And thank you for listening. We’ll be back soon!

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Trailers From Hell - THE MAN WHO WOULD BE KING (1975)

 

I agree with everything Josh Olsen has to say about this fantastic John Huston film. It is one of the best movies ever made and neither of the two stars ever made a better film. If you've never seen this fun adventure then you are in luck - Warner has just put it out on Blu-Ray, so now is the time. 

The Bloody Pit #106 - THE KID BROTHER (1927)

The film under discussion in this episode is a silent movie and a comedy meaning that it represents two cinema topics that this show rarely touches on. In fact, this is the very first time that we’ve ever covered either of those types of movies on The Bloody Pit so, it’s long overdue! 

Usually when John Hudson guests on the show we discuss Antonio Margheriti films but after years of this we thought it would be a good idea to switch things up for a change of pace. Mr. Hudson suggested we look at one of his favorite funny movies THE KID BROTHER (1927) and since I knew nothing about it, I said yes. The film stars comedy genius Harold Lloyd who, by this time in his career, was one of the most popular filmmakers in the world and the highest paid film star of the 1920’s. He was in complete control of his movies usually generating the story ideas and co-directing them in a hands-on producer role.  His films are always energetic affairs filled with amusing chase scenes and daredevil action sequences as his central character struggles to overcome adversity and win the affections of his female co-stars. You might think it pretty standard stuff until you actually watch one of his movies and get caught up laughing and gasping in surprise at the inventiveness on display. Lloyd was an amazing performer and this film is a perfect example of his abilities. 

After Hudson and I catch up with each other’s recent viewing lists we dive into a discussion of THE KID BROTHER (1927) and do our best to find ways to remark on this crowd-pleasing tale when we can’t use sound clips to detail our points. John relates his history with Mr. Lloyd’s movies and his love of silent comedy in general. A good time is had by both of us and we hope that you enjoy listening to our discussion of this great film. 

Any comments or questions can be sent to thebloodypit@gmail.com or posted on the show’s FaceBook page. John and I will be returning to our usual subject matter the next time he visits but I suspect there will be more oddball choices for us down the road. Thanks for listening! 

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Video - Old Hollywood Bloopers

I get a kick out of these kinds of collections. It's quite fun to see some of the greats from the Golden Age of Hollywood flubbing lines and becoming frustrated with themselves. 

'Nuts!" 

The Bloody Pit #99 - THE WOLF MAN (1941)

Is this the last ‘great’ Universal monster movie? 

That is one of the questions Troy and I pose as we dive into a discussion of this beloved werewolf film. THE WOLF MAN (1941) is such an entertaining film that I, of course, found a way to begin our conversation with a few of the things that I find to be less than perfect. And from there it only gets odder as we dig into the questions the film always brings up about four-legged wolves and suddenly appearing clothing. But we start to color outside the lines when we consider the dark family relationships in Talbot castle as well as the unknown past of Bela the gypsy with his mother Maleva. And what was that gypsy lady’s real motivation for hanging around to help Larry once his animal side began rampaging in the night? She certainly had some sharp words for Lord Talbot in their one interaction. Is there a subtext of class anger between the two oldest characters in this tale bubbling just beneath the surface? Or is she just the world’s best werewolf whisperer? And what about pretty Gwen’s quick transition to being head-over-heels in love with a man who could be called a telescope stalker? Unhappy with her fiancé? Hussy? Gold-digger? The gossipy women of the town want to know!

I apologize for my out of place ramble about the Big Country album Steeltown at the beginning of the show. Sometimes I just can’t help myself. If you have any thoughts or comments, the email address remains thebloodypit@gmail.com and the show’s Facebook page is alive and well. We look forward to continuing this series of 1940’s shows and hope you enjoy what we do! Thanks for listening. 

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Guillermo del Toro on THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME (1939)

I'm long overdue for a rewatch of this classic. 

YouTube - THE SPIDER WOMAN STRIKES BACK (1946)

I should have included the YouTube link for this film in my previous post! Maybe if it gets enough attention Universal will release it. Or let Scream Factory do so! Yeah - that's what we need! A tricked-out Blu-Ray! 

The Bloody Pit #85 - HORROR ISLAND (1941)

HORROR ISLAND (1941) is one of the 1940's Universal horror films that gets very little attention. The main reason for this it that it does not feature any of the big horror stars the studio created in the 30's or even an actor from the 40's that went on to larger acclaim inside the genre. Although it reteams the male and female leads from THE MUMMY'S HAND (1940), playing essentially the same roles they enacted so well in that film, it seems that Universal didn't even bother to make note of the fact to ballyhoo this picture. Another thing working against it is the movie's lack of a monster of any kind. It sports a 'phantom' but beyond looking vaguely like The Shadow the character offers little in the way of classic chills to entice the thrill seeking crowd. So, what does HORROR ISLAND offer instead? A fog-bound castle off the coast of Florida, a cast of mildly interesting victims and a hunt for hidden pirate treasure are the ingredients tossed about by the script. It's all a bit light and silly but does this under seen film deliver the goods? 

Once I'm finished babbling about the DC Comics animated films for video Troy and I discuss the film's comedic tone, creepy setting and it's stalk & kill plotline while marveling at the cast. Where else are you going to see the classic western sidekick actor Fuzzy Knight running around a gothic castle? We talk about the production history, the sick day that cost the film it's final scene and the clever use of left over sets. There is some examination of the idea of how difficult it would be to quickly get in and out of a suit of medieval armor and we wonder about well timed crossbow bolts. This is a movie that throws a lot of things at the wall and not all of them stick.

We close the show with two excellent messages from listeners. If you would like to send us your thoughts the show can be reached at thebloodypit@gmail.com where we'd be thrilled to hear from you. Thank you for listening to the show. Please share it with others that might like what we do!

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Images from KING KONG (1933)

This film is never far from my mind. 

KING KONG (1933) Poster Art

On this day in 1933 KING KONG went into wide release. It is still one of the best films ever made. 

Quote from Leigh Brackett

The other night I watched for the first time a 59 minute Republic horror effort called THE VAMPIRE'S GHOST (1943). I picked it up on Blu-Ray out of curiosity and because I love the cheaper chillers from that period. I was shocked to realize that it was at least co-written by the amazing Leigh Brackett and that it seems to be her first official screen credit. Sadly, the film is pretty weak even with an interesting take on vampirism and some occasionally good dialog. When I looked up Miss Brackett's credits to verify her attachment to this film I came across this excellent quote from her -

"They were all collaborations. The filmmaking process is a team effort. A screenwriter cannot possibly do exactly what he wants, as if he was writing a novel. When I write a novel I am God at my own typewriter and there is nobody in between. But when I write a screenplay it must be a compromise because there are so many elements which are outside the writer's province."

That sums up so much of the mercurial nature of film-making and expresses the futility of being too precious about the work. James Cameron once used the analogy of 'Everyone pissing into the same bucket' to describe the collaborative process of screenwriting. Sounds like they were on the same page.

Video - THE OTHER DRACULA - THE VAMPIRE FILMS OF JOHN CARRADINE

Here's a fine look at the Universal Dracula that isn't discussed as often as the others. Thanks to Ted Newsom! 

CAPTAIN BLOOD (1935)

"Faith, but it’s an uncertain world entirely."

This was Errol Flynn's first leading role in a film and it turned him into a star. More than eighty years later it's still easy to see why. Captain Blood has daring heroics, amazing swordplay, big action sequences, strong characters and a great romance with one of the most beautiful women to ever make movies. Flynn's handsome, graceful but masculine onscreen presence made both men and women flock to his movies for escapist fun for nearly twenty years. Captain Blood is as good an example of perfect filmmaking as I can imagine. It's one of the greatest pirate films ever made and my own favorite movie of all time.

Flynn plays Doctor Peter Blood, who in 1685 is arrested and sentenced to slavery for treating rebels wounded in battle against the British crown. Shipped to the town of Port Royal in Jamaica he is bought in a fit of pique by Arabella Bishop (Olivia De Havilland), the niece of one of the island's major landowners, Colonel Bishop (Lionel Atwill). Unsure what to do with her impulse purchase she drops the doctor into the regular slave population working her uncle's plantation. Using his medical skills to treat the island governor's gout, Blood gains some privileges and secretly arranges to buy a boat for an escape attempt. Instead, fate intervenes when a Spanish attack on the colony enables him to steal a full-sized ship and make an escape with his fellow liberated slaves as crew.

Turning to piracy, Blood spends the next few years plundering any and all vessels that come under his sword until a partnership with flamboyant French pirate captain Levasseur (Basil Rathbone) goes badly. Having captured the ship bringing Miss Bishop back to the Caribbean from England, Levasseur plans to ransom her but Blood, emotionally torn about this beautiful, kind woman, tries to buy her away. When this fails the two captains fight to the death and Blood walks away with the lady his prisoner. At first relishing the turn of slave to master he ultimately cannot treat her cruelly and stubbornly sets out to return her to Port Royal even though he'll most likely be caught there and hanged by her uncle, who has become Jamaica's new governor. But there's a surprise or two at the island for Blood and his crew that will test their loyalties and their fighting abilities.

The film is so remarkably faithful an adaptation of the Raphael Sabatini novel that when I finally read the book I was shocked by its fidelity. I expected the usual monkeying typical of the movies but clearly Warner Brothers saw a great adventure story with exactly what Hollywood needed and stuck to it. In fact, like most novels of its time the story seems to have something for nearly everyone — political villainy, explosive sea battles, a noble hero, a classic swordfight, a smart romance and plenty of pirate action. Often with adventure movies there is little time for smaller moments but Captain Blood has sharply drawn minor characters and even the dialog is clever with dozens of smart, quotable lines that linger long after the fun is over.

A movie with so many elements could have easily flown out of control but as directed by the great Michael Curtiz (Casablanca) it never feels frantic, but rather moves so smoothly it seems to be a much shorter film than it really is. Indeed, what at first glance seems to be an episodic story of a man's fall from respected citizen to "thief and pirate" and his serendipitous return to grace reveals itself in hindsight to be a remarkably linear tale of overcoming unjust, oppressive authority. Of course, none of that would matter if the film wasn't fun and on that front it succeeds admirably. This is two of the most entertaining hours I've ever spent watching a film and I never tire of introducing new people to this classic.

Sadly, seeing Captain Blood in its original form hasn't always been easy. When I first saw and fell in love with it on commercial TV and it's first VHS release the running time was 99 minutes. To accommodate the necessities of a two-hour time slot on television a full 20 minutes of character and detail had been snipped out! For decades that was the only version of the movie available. Some have argued that these cuts didn't hurt the film, that at full length it's overcrowded and too busy. Ridiculous! These are the types of folks that would look at a gourmet banquet and complain that their plate was too small. Luckily in the late 1980's Ted Turner's TBS cable station started showing a beautiful uncut print... but only colorized! Mon dieu! But then in 1993 the 119 minute cut was released on tape (and later Laser Disc) with a banner on the cover that made Flynn fan hearts flutter: "In Glorious Black & White". The long overdue DVD release of Captain Blood put one more sword thrust into the shorter edit, relegating it to a reference book footnote. Warner - where is the Blu-Ray?