The Big Heat

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There's a satisfying sense of closure to the definitive noir kick achieved in The Big Heat: its director, Fritz Lang, had forged early links from German expressionism to the emergence of film noir, so it's entirely logical that the expatriate director would help codify the genre with this brutal 1953 film. Visually, his scenes exemplify the bold contrasts, deep shadows, and heightened compositions that define the look of noir, and he matches that success with the darkly pessimistic themes of this revenge melodrama.

The story coheres around the suicide of a crooked cop, and the subsequent struggle of an honest detective, Dave Bannion (Glenn Ford), to navigate between a corrupt city government and a ruthless mobster to uncover the truth. Initially, the violence here seems almost timid by comparison to the more explicit carnage now commonplace in films, yet the story accelerates as its plot arcs toward Bannion's showdown with kingpin Lagana (Alexander Scourby) and his psychotic henchman, the sadistic Vince Stone, given an indelible nastiness by Lee Marvin. When Bannion's wife is killed by a car bomb intended for the detective, both the hero and the story go ballistic: suspended from the force, he embarks on a crusade of revenge that suggests a template for Charles Bronson's Death Wish films, each step pushing Lagana and Stone toward a showdown. Bodies drop, dominoes tumbled by the escalating war between the obsessed Bannion and his increasingly vicious adversaries.

Lang's disciplined visual design and the performances (especially those of Ford, Marvin, Jeanette Nolan as the dead cop's scheming widow, and Gloria Grahame as Marvin's girlfriend) enable the film to transcend formula, as do several memorable action scenes--when an enraged Marvin hurls scalding coffee at the feisty Debby (Grahame), we're both shattered by the violence of his attack, and aware that he's shifted the balance of power. --Sam Sutherland

Customer Reviews:

A classic from the master.......2007-08-23

A great but disturbing film noir from the master, Fritz Lang. Especially for the Vince Stone character (Lee Marvin), who seems to enjoy torturing and killing women--a remarkable character for a fifties movie--reminds me of the Dennis Hopper character in David Lynch's BLUE VELVET 30 years later. Very violent. Fast-moving plot. Great performances from all, especially Glen Ford, Lee Marvin, and Gloria Grahame, perhaps the greatest role of her career. Ford is a homicide detective investigating the murder of a prostitute that no one wants him to investigate, because of corruption in high places. The organized crime syndicate has his wife killed, and him taken off the force, so he is forced to seek revenge on his own, even though he resists the urge to kill. When Stone's girlfriend, Gloria Grahame, talks to Ford, Stone throws a pot of hot coffee on her face. She then befriends Ford, and helps him achieve his revenge. I guess she is the femme fatale character, but she's fatal for the bad guys, not Ford. The corruption is finally cleansed and Ford returned to his position, but his wife is still dead, and the violence lingers hauntingly in our minds. Visually, this is classic film noir, with lots of menacing shadows.

The Big Heat.......2007-06-26

This brutal, in-your-face noir thriller about organized crime and political graft by German ex-pat Lang is about as hardboiled as they come. For starters, the dialogue is sharp and blunt, like a smack in the jaw, and Ford's portrayal of the obsessed Bannion is downright fearsome. "Heat" is particularly memorable for two performances: Lee Marvin, as psychotic henchman Vince Stone, and the peerless Gloria Grahame, as a sultry moll whose face Marvin cruelly disfigures--with a cup of coffee! Crisply paced and unrelentingly fierce, "The Big Heat" is one steamy ride.

It's on DVD? Wow!!.......2007-05-28

I've had this title on VHS for many years. Found the DVD (I love film noirs) on Amazon & it arrived quickly. Is the film an enjoyable classic? You bet! One of my favorites. I could go on & on but get this DVD and see for yourself. I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

By the way my commercial VHS looks great but the picture & sound quality of the DVD version is fantastic.....

Good Fun.......2007-03-24

The Big Heat was an enjoyable film with excellent performances from Glenn Ford and a very creepy Lee Marvin. This film is a classis good guy vs. bad guy film, with a steady amount of violence and suspense. Ford's Sgt. Bannion is a tough cop that is not afraid to step on toes to do the right thing. The actresses in this movie are very good, and really bring the movie to the 4 star level.

Noir "De Luxe".......2007-02-23

This film is definitely one of the best Film Noirs I've ever seen. This tale of corruption, greed and revenge is packed with action galore and all kinds of plot twists and surprises, until the very end...and I won't spoil anybody's fun by giving away any of it.

Fritz Lang's deft direction is impeccable; the pacing is fast and keeps your attention all the time, and the cast is full of excellent actors.

Glenn Ford is magnificent as the embittered policeman; charged with hatred and revenge in his veins. Gloria Grahame is excellent, as always, as the apparently air-headed gangster's moll, with a "hidden ace in her sleeve". Jocelyn Brando (Marlon's older sister) is very fine as Ford's down-to-earth and strong-tempered wife. Lee Marvin excels in one of his first tough roles as a psychopathic hit man.

Others in this excellent cast are: Jeanette Nolan (who played Lady Mac Beth opposite Orson Welles in the latter's rendition of Shakespeare's Classic), as a hard-as-nails, ambitious, no-holds barred woman; Carolyn Jones in a small role as a gangster's moll (victimized by Lee Marvin); and Edith Evanson, a very active character actress, plays a crippled secretary, who's a pivotal circumstantial witness of some shady-doings that occur during the film's course.

Also, look for Celia Lovsky, a prolific character actress and Peter Lorre's first wife and who (reputedly) was responsible for his casting in the title role of Fritz Lang's 1931 German masterpiece "M", featured as (mobster) Lagana's mother on a painted portrait he has in his study.

There's a nice vignette during the film; when Glenn Ford's character enters "The Retreat Club" and meets Lee Marvin's character face-to-face, "Put the Blame on Mame" ( Gilda's famous song) is playing on the background.

This one's not to be missed!

The Wrath Of God - Fire Under The Big Top (History Channel)

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The Wrath Of God - Fire Under The Big Top (History Channel)

Manufacturer: A&E Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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The Greatest Show on Earth

ASIN: B000FKP0OQ
Release Date: 2006-05-02

Description

When Ringling Brothers traveled to Hartford, Connecticut, in 1944, patrons were unaware that the circus tent had been waterproofed with a highly flammable substance. We'll review rare footage that captured the pandemonium that ensued when the tent erupted in flames, killing 168 people, including an unidentified young girl.

Night Of The Big Heat [ NON-USA FORMAT, PAL, Reg. 2 Import - Spain ]

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Vintage British sci-fi/horror, good fun

Night Of The Big Heat [ NON-USA FORMAT, PAL, Reg. 2 Import - Spain ]
Director: Terence Fisher
Manufacturer: VellaVision
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000E9UFXE

Product Description

Spain released, PAL/Region 2 DVD: it WILL NOT play on standard US DVD player. You need multi-region PAL/NTSC DVD player to view it in USA/Canada. Languages: English (Subtitles) English (Dolby Digital 2.0) Spanish (Subtitles) Spanish (Dolby Digital 5.1) Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0) Synopsis: The famed British horror trio of Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing, and director Terence Fisher brought John Lymington's sci-fi novel Night of the Big Heat to the screen in this slow-moving shocker. The plot concerns a small British island where alien protoplasm creatures are attempting to raise the temperatures to match those of their home planet. The result is a winter heat-wave so intense that most of the island's residents go up in flames. Lee and Cushing are among the few survivors able to battle the malignant extraterrestrial scourge. Fisher proves once again that his deliberately paced directorial style is better suited to Gothic horror than to what should be fast-moving sci-fi. While mainland Britain shivers in deepest winter, the northern island of Fara bakes in the nineties. The boys at the Met station have no more idea what is going on than the regulars at the Swan. Only a stand-offish visting scientist suspects aliens are to blame. Meanwhile the new secretary to the local best-selling author is raising the temperature in her own way. Special Features: Biographies Filmographies Interactive Menu Photo Gallery Scene Access Trailer(s)

Customer Reviews:

Vintage British sci-fi/horror, good fun.......2006-11-21

Die-hard fans of vintage British science-fiction and horror will enjoy this low-budget yarn. There's a great cast including Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing (not seen enough, though) and Patrick Allen, the king of voiceovers who sadly died recently. It's all pretty silly, but entertaining. The director is the great Terence Fisher.

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Standard cops vs bad guys movie, but well made
Great movie, but terrible DVD!
Violent hard-edged police thriller from Hong Kong
Good Thriller With Waise Lee at his best!

The Big Heat
Starring: Ken Boyle , Roy Cheung , Michael Chow Man-Kin , Kong Chu , and Philip Kwok
Director: Hark Tsui , and Johnny To
Manufacturer: Tai Seng
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00004YS9E
Release Date: 2000-11-14

Customer Reviews:

Standard cops vs bad guys movie, but well made.......2007-07-24

Waise Lee stars as a cop who is investigating his friend's murder, and he will do whatever it takes to catch the killer. The killer is a very rich man and wants to kill the cops before they get a chance to arrest him.

Waise Lee is a good actor, but he just doesn't bring anything special to this role. Him and his fellow cops going after the bad guys should be more exciting. Lee just plays his character the same all the way through.

The script is pretty good, but the graphic violence is what stands out the most. Shown in a flashback at the start of the movie, Waise Lee's character was once tortured and had a power drill put through his hand. He plans to retire because he has nerve damage, but he has to solve his friend's murder first. I liked how he has to overcome his immobilized hand at times, but that is where the originality stops in this movie. It is an average entry into the herioc bloodshed genre, except bloodier than most, and the directing is above average. Not a bad movie, just not one I would spend time watching again.

3.5/5

Picture and sound quality on the Megastar DVD are good. Subtitles have a few errors, but overall they are well written.

Great movie, but terrible DVD!.......2001-07-17

The picture quality is sooo bad! Wait for a remaster!

Violent hard-edged police thriller from Hong Kong.......2001-05-15

THE BIG HEAT (1988) is a fast-paced, gritty, down-and-dirty crime thriller shot in the streets and urban spaces of Hong Kong as it follows a group of cops in a life-or-death struggle with a gang of thugs employed by a corrupt businessman doing some high-level smuggling. Every scene is pitched around a confrontation that leads in every case to a shootout, car chase, foot chase, explosion or attempted assassination. Although none of the action scenes boasts the spectacle of a John Woo thriller (HARD-BOILED, THE KILLER), the action is consistently exciting, well-crafted, suspenseful and, up until the final showdown, fairly believable. One superb setpiece involves a face-off between the cops and an assassin in a hospital elevator shaft that serves as a model of how to stage action scenes in tight spaces.

The film was co-directed by Andrew Kam and Johnny To and produced by Tsui Hark. It was part of a wave of top-ranked HK urban thrillers led by Woo's A BETTER TOMORROW (also produced by Hark) and Ringo Lam's CITY ON FIRE. The cast of THE BIG HEAT includes Waise Lee (A BULLET IN THE HEAD), Joey Wong (A CHINESE GHOST STORY), Chu Kong (THE KILLER) and, in an ingenious bit of casting, Philip Kwok, formerly one of Shaw Bros.' FIVE DEADLY VENOMS, who, in the interest of greater realism here, refrains from kung fu, but does his share of shooting, punching, running, leaping, and driving at high speeds. The film features much brutal violence, with some particularly gruesome bits (as in that hospital elevator scene). But if you're a fan of hard-edged crime thrillers, this film is for you.

Good Thriller With Waise Lee at his best!.......2000-09-03

Unfortunately, many remember Waise Lee as simply a villain because of his roles in ABT and BITH. But he plays a hardened cop with a bad hand, pursuing a crime boss(The Killer's Chu Kong) and working with a young idealistic cop, who buys it at the end. Dont expect the best film Hong Kong has ever put out, but expect a good cop thriller. Waise Lee is good, but is still pretty calm. Chu Kong is slimy as hell, and it is a little gory. Good final scene with Tsui Hark will have you rolling on the floor. This film is widely available on DVD on several web sites, so check it out. By the way: excellent music from The Killer's Lowell Lo.

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Where Big Bucks Go When the Heats On
Starring: Roger Raglin
Manufacturer: Stoney-Wolf Prod.
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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The Legacy of a Whitetail Deer Hunter

ASIN: B0001JXP0M
Release Date: 2004-02-09

Product Description

If you're a serious whitetail hunter this is a DVD you absolutely must see. Ever wonder where the big bucks disappear to under hunting pressure? Filmed in 7 states over a 3-year period, Roger deals with every aspect of hunting pressure right down to the smallest detail. Includes 8 on-camera kill scenes with bow, black powder and rifle weaponry: Approximate length: 100 minutes.

THE FOUR HORSEMEN OF THE APOCALYPSE with Glenn Ford and Charles Boyer (Import Edition) (NTSC format, Region 1, Playable in North America)

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THE FOUR HORSEMEN OF THE APOCALYPSE with Glenn Ford and Charles Boyer (Import Edition) (NTSC format, Region 1, Playable in North America)
Director: Vincent Minnelli
Manufacturer: Castaways
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

ASIN: B000MX6HP2

Product Description

Brand new, factory sealed, 2 DVD edition manufactured in Hong Kong. Full screen color image. Original English dialog with optional subtitles in Chinese and English which do not appear unless you go to the subtitles menu and turn them on. On screen menus are in English and are easy to use. Cast includes Glenn Ford, Charles Boyer, Ingrid Thulin and Yvette Mimieux. Directed by Vincent Minelli. The following review appears in the Internet Movie Database: "I just caught this on TCM and it's the first time I've seen it since my teens. Either my maturity has given me a better appreciation for it or it has gotten better over the years, now that we're bombarded with so much garbage. I've carefully read all the comments here, and there's a common thread. Most take exception to the casting of Glenn Ford and classify the film as one of Minnelli's lesser efforts. It's not that I'm Glenn Ford's greatest fan, but I think he gives one of his finest performances here and is one of the movie's strengths. One doesn't have to be 21 to be a playboy; what he portrays, quite convincingly, is a mature dilletante. Minnelli's direction is typical of his late melodrama period that started with The Bad and the Beautiful. His style is jittery, baroque, and light years away from his airy musicals. The Four Horseman ranks right up there with some of his best later work, like Home From the Hill, Some Came Running, and The Cobweb. He has a particular flair for car scenes which started with his first Gothic, Undercurrent, in 1946. He gets one of the finest performances I've ever seen out of that limited actor, Charles Boyer. His scene with the gifted Paul Lukas where they mourn the deaths of their children is powerful and touching beyond words. My recommendation: SEE THIS GOOD, OLD FASHIONED, REALLY BIG MOVIE. P.S. Check out the magnificent, huge Andre Previn score."

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Why I Didn't Get It

Why We Bang
Director: Clifford "Big Heat" Jordan
Manufacturer: G Logik
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Documentary | Genres | DVD | Video
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Product Features:

REAL GANGBANGERS, KNOWN HOODS AND TRUE ACCOUNTS
MOTHERS WHO LOST KIDS TO GANG VIOLENCE
ACTUAL FOOTAGE SHOOT EXCLUSIVELY FOR THIS DOCUMENTARY
GIVES A REALISTIC ACCOUNT OF GANG LIFE, NOT A GLORIFICATION
ASK ANY REAL GANG MEMEBER AND THEY WILL TELL YOU, THAT THEY WISH IT WOULD ALL STOP.

ASIN: B000ML5BNI

Product Description

The film, "Why We Bang," produced and directed by Orlando Myricks, Cecil Holmes and Clifford Jordan for Ghetto Logik Entertainment is an independent film that documents the historical background of LA's Bloods and Crips gangs, then transitions into several interviews of current and former members of the Bloods and Crips of Los Angeles. Ghetto Logik, a Film Company based in South Los Angeles offers their first urban documentary as a result of being disappointed in seeing outsiders far too often portray the stories of ghetto residents. "We just got tired of seeing people, not from our community making so called "Hood movies" that did not really depict what our community was all about, our goal is to bring real images and real stories about real people to the big screen." Their first effort, "Why We Bang" is an in-depth look into Gang Culture in Los Angeles that shows up-close, the life in South Los Angeles, talking and walking with real gang members first hand. Their approach was to show the gangs, their motivations and deadliness and to capture the voices of the mothers who have lost children to the violence that gangs bring. Their story, through several narratives will inform you Why We Bang. Directed: Clifford "Big Heat" Jordan Produced: Ghetto Logik Running Time: 75 minutesPrice:

Customer Reviews:

Why I Didn't Get It.......2007-02-14

I ordered this DVD on April 13 of last year from the "Why We Bang" website. Never got it. It might be a good documentary. I don't know.

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Heat Big Celebrity Quiz
Starring: Heat Big Celebrity Quiz
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000HD1CP2
Release Date: 2006-11-28

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