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It Takes a Thief: 38-23-36 (1969)
a kind of lost series
The 60's was the great time for the spy genre and this is a variant of that, except that the hero is not a spy, but a thief. I dont recall it being on TV first time around, and I dont think i have ever seen this on cable or satelite, ,but its worth watching if you have never seen. The only problem with the series is that a lot of episodes are the same basic plot. The hero pretends to be a scientist or an art dealer or in this case its a photographer and so it goes. And some episodes are supposed to take place in England complete with the phoney british accents dont you know. I am watching this on a German box set, the only way i could obtain a new copy, and its a bother to set it to the correct language each time, but you soon get used to it. One thing bothers me. Given most of the same episodes seem to be the same plot, I dont know how it got to a third series. Well if Scooby Doo did it for all those years, then I guess this show could do to. Recommended, but dont watch them all at once.
Burke's Law: Who Killed Mr. Colby in Ladies' Lingerie? (1965)
An unexpected gem of a series
In the 60's spy and police series were the big thing. I thought I had seen them all as a child, but for some reason, this show never got shown in our TV area, and I dont recall it being repeated. I have only seen part of series two, but I notice there seems to be a constant trend. At the start someone gets killed and halfway though, Amos Burke meets an eccentric...someone who brings comic relief to the show. But here is my concern, thats exactly what happens in the UK 60's show The Avengers. Who copied who, or was it just a conincidence. The production values and story telling are great, its a mystery to me, why the show isnt shown more. Recommended.
Inside Out 2 (2024)
confused and confusing
I am not a fan of modern films with a bunch of characters talking in speeded up voices against a rinky tinky music soundtrack, but the original film entertained me enough to want to watch the sequel. But here is what annoys me, its all about ice hockey. I dont know anything about ice hockey so a lot simply washed over me. The plot had its usual cliffhangers.....literally...and the story itself was the usual plot of how are they going to solve this, but ultimately went nowhere. I mean did she make the team or not? We dont know! And I watched this on DVD that kept cutting out when it changed chapters. The original film left off with puberty being installed, yet this wasnt even mentioned? Hmmm, ok to watch the once, but it will spend the rest of its life at the back of my DVD cupbaird or be sold online.....
Love in a Goldfish Bowl (1961)
A Beach Movie before there were beach movies
I am a great fan of the beach movie genre, i know they are corny and dated, but that's their charm. They are a great snapshot of 60's America. However, this isnt a Beach Movie as it came out two years before the first one, but its like the bluepront of genre before it got started. Tommy Sands plays the Frankie Avalon character and Toby Micheals plays Annette. Fabian plays the bad guy as he would in subsequent films. I kept expecting a cheezy surf number to come on, with Dick Dale and Donna Loren, but I guess thats before their time in the movies and isnt the point here. Edward Andrews and John McGiver play the father and school teacher elements and well cast they are too. It was a pleasant suprise to find this online, as I thought I had seen all the films of this genre, but it just goes to show you have to keep looking. Watching the once, but not something you would want to watch again. Recommended.
Gazette: Arrival (1968)
brilliant but obscure TV series from a fledgling YTV
I am currently watching the sequel to this show "Hadleigh" starring Gerald Harper which is at times a glorified soap opera. I wanted to see where the idea for "Hadleigh" came from and its from this brilliant but obscure TV series from a fledgling YTV.
The pilot packs a real punch and draws you in, and I can't understand whilst it's not better known.
I am not sure if it was ever shown in colour as the production company YTV had colour equipment from the start, but it comes across in gritty black and white and is none the worse for it.
One thing that irritates is the over use of Yorkshire dialect with people saying "shut your gob" and silly things like that., but I guess the series was finding its own level.
Recommended. I am binge watching the series, but its a shame its not on TV more often.
One for Talking Pictures TV to show?
Panic in Year Zero! (1962)
starts off great but loses it momentum
I caught this on an oldies TV channel and thought it looked good. I was drawn into the plot and was not disappointed. However after about an hour, it got kinda boring. OK, you can stock up on a load of supplies if the worst happens, but what happens when that stock runs out? They camp out in a hidden cave, but where was the light coming from to illumnate the cave? The worst thing is that the film has an inconclusive ending, the sort of idea that was once accepted by film audiences, but now people find unsatisfying. Watch it and be entertained, but after that, most people will delete it from their set top box. Recommended with reservations.
Hadleigh: The Story of a Panic (1976)
A return to the classic formula
Hadleigh should be cult viewing, like The Prisoner or The Avengers, but uneven script writing means it is seldom seen. The first series was the best, but season two and three come across as glorified soap operas. This isnt a bad thing, given that back in the day this is what people wanted, but the series went downhill in this writers opinion. However, series four starts with a bang. Clever writing and his wife no longer around. Maybe she was in pantomime in Rotherham. I will be watching the next episode tomorrow, and cant wait, which means the series has got exciting again, but the uneven quality of the stories and scripts meant this would be the last series.
The Last Man on Earth (1964)
great actor but meh
First of all I have to say Vincent Price is legend. Period. But he was only as good as the part that paid the rent. The problem with this film is that it takes so long to get going, you wonder if you will watch it til the end. Dont get me wrong, Vincent Price does a great job, but the story telling really needs to get to the point earlier rather than having us guessing whats gone on to get to the point of why he is doing what he is doing. And the end made no sense, why did they have to kill him? The film has been remade several times......i do recall The Omega Man being shown a lot when I was younger, and i havent seen any modern versions.....but I didnt reckon much to this version. Not recommended.
First Man Into Space (1959)
much better than what you would think
I was waiting for midnight when i could book an online shopping slot, and was flicking around for something to watch and found this film. It looked like a Quatermass ripoff, but if thats what made money at the time, then you cant blame the producers for giving people what they wanted. As soon as the film started, I remembered it was one I had seen in the 70's as a teenager at a house of a friend of my late father. I recall at the time, we were watching the film on a valve TV with a weird tuning dial and an aerial connection that I must not touch cos it might give me a shock. Anyway, at the time in the 70's it still looked high tech, but now it looked so old fashioned. However, despite its budget, I really enjoyed it. I kept thinking the main guy was the actor from Daktari, but the story and production was well worth watching. Recommended.
There Was a Crooked Man (1960)
Worth the wait to actually see the film
I have been a Norman Wisdom film since my pre teen days, when they showed them every tuesday night on TV. I couldnt get enough of his films, so funny, such a great snapshot of england in the 50's. As with all great artists, he made the occasional questionable film, notably "the girl on the boat", and fans are divided by "Whats good for the goose", but he made a lot of other great films, too many list here. I thought I had seen them all, til i learned about this film a few years ago, and how it was only shown for a few days, then pulled, as the film company didnt have the rights to the film. What a frustration, a film by one of my all time comic heroes, was there in the vaults and it couldnt be seen. I since learned it had been shown on TV twice in the 60's, so chances are I had actually seen it at the time, but i would only been about five and wouldnt remember it.
And then the unbeleivable happened, they were going to release it on DVD. Oh happy day!!!
Here comes the serious bit, it was supposed to be digitally restored, but the it still looked like an old print, even though technically the prints wouldnt have been shown that much, so most of the original copies should have been pristine.
Down to the film itself, Norman doesnt play his usual "gump", but he doesnt play it straight either. What you get is Norman trying to move onto to something better, and develop his gump character, but it wasnt the crowd pleaser, and it didnt sell well at the time. Was this the reason why it was originally pulled? The sleeve note seem to indicate this, but why has it gone unseen for 50 years? My two cents goes with the original copyright holder passing on, and that meant it could be shown again. Maybe we will never know, but at least its out there.
Down to the nitty gritty, was it worth the wait? The film has an odd story line, and takes some beleiving, but there are funny moments, and its worth watching, but time hasnt done it any favours, and maybe people nit pick about things more nowadays, something that brings to light the films shortcomings. Now dont get me wrong, i will be watching this again, and again and again and again. Its a long lost film that i should have seen a million times since the early 70's, and i think it will get better each time i see it.
Imagine there was a long lost episode of star trek, and it met a mixed reaction, you would be grateful to have a chance to watch, and you would watch it again and again...this is like this.
This would make great material for "Talking Pictures" TV, but its not as good as his best things like "man of the moment" , "trouble in store" or "on the beat", but better than the one with the lady on the boat.
Recommended for fans...........other people will watch it once, and then probably erase it from their set top box.
Me? I will watch it again and again.
I would have given five out five if the picture quality was pristine 35mm, but it was worth the 50 year wait in any form :)
Hadleigh: Strained Relations (1973)
Oh dear whatever has happened to Hadleigh?
Oh dear whatever has happened to Hadleigh? It used to be a well written series with clever plots about money laundering and dodgy deals in the antique business. Series three however sees James Hadleigh getting married and the whole series has overnight become a glorified soap opera! Back in the day to attract bigger audiences there had to be a wedding, so first James gets married and then a story of his brides family getting married. No doubit it filled a lot of page space in the TV listings of the time, but to. Modern eyes, its sooooo boring. I know the writers have to liven things up now and again, but come on, if we want to watch a soap, we will watch Corrie! I shall watch the rest of the series, but then its time to take the DVD box set to the charity shop.
Hadleigh: The Diplomat (1971)
The worst Hadleigh ever....worse than the pilot.
Picutre this. England in the early in the early 70's. A lot of people remember WW2 and its an easy for story lines to talk about what people did in the war. Hmmm, yeah, this could lead to something that might make people sit up in their seats and watch. But the problem is that its sooooo boring. It doesnt help that its shot in monchrome due to the colour strike where the unions wouldnt allow anything to be made in the new fangled colour. Gerald Harper does his best and pulls a lot of concerned faces, but you end up looking at your watch wondering when this nonsense will end. Not recommended. Dont even watch this one. Bah humbug!
Hadleigh: The Sealed Offer (1971)
Absolute Classic Hadleigh!
Nowadays I dont bother with much on live TV, I mainly watch DVD's mainly of shows made in the lat 60's and early 70's, Hadleigh is on my DVD player and this episode is the best yet. A lot of shows of the time cover Comp. Purchase orders where the council in Northern Towns want to demolish the slums and build new houses. Every TV series has an episode like this, and in this instance the script is superb. Clever written, with a great story, this is one of the better epsiodes without the mushy love stories that the producers thought they would get the ratings. Recommended and then some. Watch again and again!
Hadleigh: First Impressions (1973)
Oh dear, why the revamp?
Hadleigh is one of those series from the early 70's you dont remember, but recall seeing it in The TV times of the day. Watching the first two series were a bit of a curates egg, good in parts. Series Three is a revamp, or reboot as we would say now. However here is my concern, the writing is so sloopy it could have been written by a 16 year old school boy trying to pass his o levels. No doubt the producers thought it boost the ratings, but I found it boring and wrong. As they say, it it aint broke dont fixt it. Oh wait, its broke., Its like this, I have paid for the DVD and will watch the rest, but come on, no wonder it only lasted four seasons....
The Philadelphia Experiment (2012)
Starts off good but the last half hour is awful
I know this is a TV movie remake of the original film, but I havent seen the original film, so I watched it with an open mind. To be honest, I quite enjoyed the film as the script was clever and made you think. If I watch a film, I give it to the commercial break and then make a decision whether I want to watch it, and after the first commercial break was over I carried on watching. The film has the good guys and the bad guys, but by the end of the film they seem to fight each other for about half an hour with the LOUDEST film sound track you ever heard. And here is the point, the LOUD film sound track make you want to turn it off, but you want to see how it ends. The end is worth waiting for, but to be honest, you wouldnt wanna watch the film again, Recommended you watch it, but dont bother with it again....
Hadleigh: Open Verdict (1971)
Absolute Classic Episode
I watch a lot of TV from the late 60's and early 70's on DVD, and a common theme is the demolition of slums and the building of new flats......flats that have now been pulled down and people are now back in new houses.
This episode tells the story of how a little girl dies and how Hadleigh gets involved to help the father get justice.
I wont give any spoilers on this, but the gritty story is well written and makes you give it your full attention.
The story is not predictable as so many modern shows would be, but ends happily for the father of the deceasd child, but badly for Hadleigh.
There is a seond story about a farm show, but that is really only there to aid the progress of the main story.
Recommended and then some.
Hadleigh: Nicola Penn (1971)
One of the better ones from series two
This episode has a really clever script concerning and old flame of Hadleigh and her new boyfriend who wants to get a business loan to fund a new factory. You would think that this would be a tired old rerun of a tired old script, the type of thing that even then would have been a cliche on a wel worn grove. However as the plot thickens, the story gets cleverer and cleverer, and you aren't sure how it will turn out. This should have been the pilot episode and would recommend this as an entry point to the series. Not many people remember this show, which is a shame as it has it's moments. However the willingness of the story writers to experiment may have alienated viewers back then, but this is one you must see. Recommended.
Hadleigh: A Letter to David (1971)
way too wordy
The Hadleigh series liked to think it was cutting edge by having story lines that were different to what shows were on at the time.
This episode focussed on. Progressive school where the Head Teacher is known by his first name and not sir. The kids took lessons if they felt like it, I think it was based around the Summerhill School.
Whilst an original idea for a TV show, it comes across as too wordy. Then there is the trial where the accused has to name his punishment. Way out, but to have the Head Teacher oil a bike he borrowed from a pupil, it just gets silly.
When you consider there is Jane Merrow from The Prisoner, Len Jones who was the voice of Joe 90, and the actor that played the newspaper owner in Press For Time, the acting skill was there. The plot was not. Not recommended.
Birds Do It (1966)
when will this ever end?
Soupy Sales was an American comic that was sucessful in America, but we hardly ever saw him in England. I think he had a cameo in Route 66 and something where he played a Jonas in a naval comedy, but that was about it. Looking at Soupy, you cant help but smile, he is a natural comedian, like Jerry Lewis without the muggging to the camera. Given his sucess on American TV he had a chance to make this film, but here is the point, its a bit of a one trick pony, to the point is that it gets boring. The bit about flying is stretched to breaking point that you wish the film had ended half an hour ago. Hmm, bah humbug, not recommended.
Hadleigh: The Dinner Party (1969)
Wordy and not as good as you would think.
I can never understand why people want to throw a dinner party and then complaine before the guests arrive that they dont want to go through with it. Even worse is the guests that dont want to go but still feel they have to? Whats the point.?
This episode is a bit like that, and is supposed to be the high light of season one, but in my opinion there are better episodes with better ideas and better scripts.
Penelope Keith plays a small role as one of the guests, but the DVD has her picture all over as if she is playing a starring role. And any minute, you expect her to quote a line from The Good Life...
My main grouch is that the nasty lady suddenly becomes the nice lady at the end? Wha? How did that happen?
Watch it as part of the series, but if watching the series again, pass. Recommended with reservations, but definately not the best in the series.
Hadleigh: Exposure (1971)
A major turn off for the series
I seem to spend most of my time watching TV shows from the late 60's and early 70's and Hadleigh is on my DVD player at the moment. After a slow start, the series really developed into something that would become must see TV, and is still worth watching after all these years given the quality of the story lines and scripts. However, this is a clunker of an episode concerning a cave explorer having a nasty accident down a cave. Most of the viewing time is Hadleigh talking to a delirious caver remembering a previous mountain climb. To be honest, although the producers thought it was a good idea, but it just comes across as boring. Factor in that most of its shot in the dark and you cant tell what Hadleigh is saying some of the time, I can imagine that on its original showing people would have changed station after about 10 minutes. Not recommended!
The Swinger (1966)
If you like mid 60's Elvis films you will love this
I am a great fan of mid 60's American films by the likes of Elvis and Jerry Lewis and was surprised that I had missed this gem. It almost felt like sequel to an Elvis film and the eye candy of Ann-Margret draws you in. You could almost take this as a serious film at the start, but it soon becomes toungue in cheek.
What becomes a good plot rapidly goes weird in the final reel. Its as if the director had run out of ideas and decided to make the final part of the film as some mad wacky chase scene. Fine, thats the way a lot of films end, but in this instance you are left wondering what's going on and how did we get there?
Brilliant 60's decor, but silly ending lets it down.
Recommended you watch it once, just to say you have seen it, but I will stick to my Elvis films ongoing.
Hadleigh (1969)
Stick with it, it gets better as it goes along
I dont recall this being shown when first transmitted, and its no cult classic, but if you are a fan of whats left of early 70's drama its worth watching. This was a sequel to an earlier show called Gazette, but I dont remember that either. The initial problem with this series is that the pilot is rather lacklustre and I didnt really think I would stick with it. I am guessing that if you saw the Gazette series, it would naturally follow on from that. However, I continued to watch and found it to be more entertaining, and I will stick with it til the end, which will taking a lot of watching as they made a lot of series. Ignore the false painted backgrounds, and sit and be entertained by some clever stories and clever writing. Recommended.
Two a Penny (1967)
Enjoyable but an oddity
When I was a child in the 70's, there were lots of Cliff Richard films on like "Summer Holiday", "The Young Ones " and "Wonderful Life" full of the same supporting actors singing songs for mums and dads making him an "alrounder entertainer". Then the 60's moved on and these films went out of fashion and Cliff made the bizarre "Finders Keepers" about a discarded bomb, that was probably only on TV once on a Bank Holiday in 1972. "Two a Penny" is an oddity, that I dont think was ever on TV and features Cliff Richard playing a bad guy for once. His girlfriend attends a Billy Graham convention and finds God, but the character Cliff plays is not convinced. Hers is the problem with the film, is it a film to promote Billy Graham, or is it an chance for Cliff to play a bag guy? The whole thing comes across as a script for the TV show "Budgie", with Cliff Richard playing the Adam Faith part. I enjoyed it, dont get me wrong, but was confused why they made it in the first place? Recommended, but it remains an oddity!
Planet of the Apes (1968)
After 2001, the best sci fi film ever
After 2001, this must be the best sci fi film ever. You are drawn in right from the start as the plot is explained to fly near the speed of light to prove time dilation. After a while in suspended animation the space craft lands in a river and our heroes make there escape
Then breath taking scenes in the desert and they are caught by the apes. We all know the story by now, but can you imagine seeing this in the cinema when it first came out. And that ending still gives me goosebumps even though I have seen it hundreds of time. Now here is my problem. There has to be a way for the crew to get into the future for the story, but in reality, a mission like that would never have happened. No one is going to fund a one way space trip to prove a point, knowing there would be no way to get the results back to earth. And they spend years out in space, travelling away from earth, to land back on it again? There has been a notable edit in some versions of this film. When the space craft lands on the earth in the future one of the crew doesnt survive due to a leak in her pod., Some prints show the dead crew mate, Some dont.
This is a film that I could watch again and again, more than could be said for some of the sequels.
Recommended and then some.
A perfect ten.