The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas

Amazon.com

This is an energetic, but ultimately mediocre adaptation of the play, directed on Broadway by Tommy Tune. Burt Reynolds is the town sheriff and a regular patron of a local bordello. He wages a public battle to keep it open after it is targeted as the devil's den by a television minister. Charles Durning was nominated for a Oscar for Best Supporting Actor, and there are some lively song and dance numbers featuring Dolly Parton as the madame of the Chicken Ranch. However, this becomes bogged down in too many serious moments for it to be more than a lightweight musical comedy. --Rochelle O'Gorman

Customer Reviews:

Jolly good 80's musical comedy.......2007-08-15

This has been a favorite of mine since I first saw it around 1986/87, and it still holds it's ground. Not the deepest of movies, but it's very entertaining, with a great cast, and of course it has an happy ending. ;-)

Best Lil Whorehouse In Texas.......2007-06-12

Loved the movie..brought back some great memories from watching it from way back..lol. I even bought it for a friend as a gift.

doesnt work.......2007-05-30

i bought this tried to send it back as doesnt work but they would not accept

A Surprise from my past.........2007-05-14

I ordered this for my wife, but I knew of it as a kid. I was surprised how entertaining it ended up being. Burt and Dolly really have a chemistry, and for a real church-going country girl, she seems to have an open mind for taking such a risque role. Moments that harken to "true" women's rights, the safety of a whorehouse opposed to the street walker/pimp scenario, even a quip on how un Christian most Christians are. (When Burt is asked why more people are not forgiving like God is, he replies,"Well, I guess most people aren't very God-like." So damned true. I dig this film.

Classic Dolly & Burt.......2007-05-08

Very good adaptation of a musical, and Dolly & Burt are great. Don't think I have ever heard Burt sing before (is it dubbed?).

Average customer rating:

The best, most sensual movie I have ever seen
Romantic and Accurate
Fabulous!
Not what I expected
Terrific

Dangerous Beauty
Starring: Catherine McCormack , Rufus Sewell , Oliver Platt , Fred Ward , and Naomi Watts
Director: Marshall Herskovitz
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
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ASIN: 6305078319
Release Date: 1998-10-27

Amazon.com

Although it was unfortunately ignored during its brief theatrical release, this sumptuously seductive production is that rarest of cinematic breeds, the (barely) respectable guilty pleasure. Combining historical fact with hysterical anachronisms of language and mannerism, it's been tailored for maximum contemporary appeal but maintains a lush, romantic feel for its factual 16th-century tale of Venetian love, lust, and political repression. Catherine McCormack (Mel Gibson's ill-fated bride in Braveheart) delivers a star-making performance as the "dangerous beauty" who becomes a skillful courtesan to pursue her forbidden love for a dashing Venetian senator (Rufus Sewell). It's all rather silly in a high-toned fashion, and the film turns dour when the church intervenes with a Scarlet Letter-like papal inquest. But the movie's joyously ribald vitality is utterly irresistible, and the casting of McCormack with Jaqueline Bisset (as her mother and courtesan mentor) is a stroke of pure genius. Merchant-Ivory would've made a smarter film from this material, but it probably wouldn't be nearly as entertaining. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews:

The best, most sensual movie I have ever seen.......2007-08-05

I love this movie, it is one of my top three favorite movies of all time. Catherine McCormack as Veronica Franco is totally credible as the envy of all Venetian courtesans and the love of many, many powerful men . I have seen Dangerous Beauty 14 times and I cry in the potent courtroom scene every single time. She is passionate, beautiful, brilliant, witty, playful and sensual. I thought her huge wardrobe of gowns were gorgeous. Rufus Sewell does an equally fabulous job as Marco and is the perfect match for Veronica. I own the soundtrack as well, it's mesmerizing.

Romantic and Accurate.......2007-07-25

I first watched this movie in my university Italian Renaissance class, highlighting the importance and power women held as courtesans in Venice. Not only is this movie brilliantly acted, with gorgeous sets and costuming, but historically accurate. Veronica Franco (Catherine McCormack) indeed existed and was not only a prominent courtesan, but a published poet and influential political figure in Venice. The movie follows her transformation from a stubborn, free willed young woman with no dowry to a strong-minded provider for her family. The options facing Veronica are bleak--go to a convent, or provide income for the family as a courtesan. The movie dramatizes her relationship with the politically prominent Marco, whose contractual marriage for wealth fuels Veronica's desire to become a courtesan (as her ex-courtesan mother, portrayed by the brilliant Jaqueline Bisset, tells her "you can still have him"). Veronica becomes the most desired courtesan in Venice, and amasses political power as well as wealth, becoming a published author and a "national treasure".

The most unbelievable part of this movie, which the editorial review scoffs at above, is actually fact. Veronica Franco was persecuted by the Holy Inquisition, but was able to free herself from imprisonment, torture and death with the help of her clientele, the most influential men of Venice.

Katherine McCormack gives a flawless performance as the intelligent and beautiful Veronica Franco. Her somewhat less than worthy lover Marco is played by Rufus Sewell, who also does a solid job.

This is a great movie--daring romance, a strong willed charismatic heroine, and certainly worth having in your dvd collection.

Fabulous!.......2007-07-20

One of my all time favorite movies. If you like historical fiction, this is a must!

Not what I expected.......2007-06-12

I orginally watched this movie on my computer through netflix and decided I loved the movie so much I needed to purchase it, which I did through Amazon. It took me several weeks to actually watch the movie as I would constantly browse by the movie, read what it was about and then move on. Finally I decided to watch the movie and was pleasantly surprised. What I watched was not what I expected to see. The movie not only caught my attention from the beginning but kept it through the end. I experienced several emotions while watching it and would recommend it to anyone and in fact have recommended it to several people already. This is the type of movie that even if you don't understand everything that is said, as there are several parts in which they speak slightly like Shakespear, you still understand the meaning/emotions which are being portrayed. Catherine McCormack definately out did herself in this movie.

Terrific.......2007-06-08

Don't let the title and DVD cover fool you into thinking it's a fluff film. It's a much better film than what's implied. Good acting and absorbing story.

Average customer rating:

A reverse hero quest
The Beatles in their psychedellic colorful animated best!
A Unique Contribution To The World Of Animation
Animated Beatles is Timeless.
Apple and the out of print UA films.

Yellow Submarine
Starring: George Dunning (II) , John Clive , Paul McCartney , Geoffrey Hughes , and Ringo Starr
Director: George Harrison
Manufacturer: MGM (Video & DVD)
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B00000JRUQ
Release Date: 1999-09-14

Amazon.com essential video

This restored, animated valentine to the Beatles offers viewers the rare chance to see a work that's been substantially improved by its technical facelift, not just supersized with extra footage. Recognizing that its song-studded soundtrack alone makes Yellow Submarine a video annuity, United Artists has lavished a frame-by-frame refurbishment of the original feature, while replacing its original monaural audio tracks with a meticulously reconstructed stereo mix that actually refines legendary original album versions.

What emerges is a vivid time capsule of the late '60s and a minor milestone in animation. The music represents the quartet's zenith--Rubber Soul, Revolver, and Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. The story line, cobbled together by producer Al Brodax and a committee of writers, is a broad, feather-light allegory set in idyllic Pepperland, where the gentle citizens are threatened by the nasty, music-hating Blue Meanies and their surreal arsenal of henchmen, with the Beatles enlisted to thwart the bad guys. Visually, designer Heinz Edelmann mixes the biomorphic squiggles, day-glo palette, and Beardsley-esque portraits of Peter Max with rotoscoped still photographs and film; Edelmann's animated collages also nod to Andy Warhol and Magritte in properly psychedelic fashion, which works wonderfully with such terrific songs.

High orthodox Beatlemaniacs can still grouse that the animated Fab Four are (literally) flat archetypes, but that's missing the sheer bloom of the music or the giddy, campy fun of the visuals. Making sense of the story is second to submerging blissfully in the sights and sounds of this video treat. --Sam Sutherland

Customer Reviews:

A reverse hero quest.......2007-08-31

When this film first came out in '68 I found it unwatchable. I thought that it was mind-less, plot-less eye candy. Now, after nearly four decades I finally get it- this is a reverse hero quest.

You have old/young Fred, captain of his magical vessel, voyaging to our world in a desperate search for help. He comes from the unearthly paradise of Pepperland (the paradise of the Devas) which has been treacherously conquered by the Blue Meanies (Asuras.) He finds the earthly manifestations of the champions of his realm (Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band) on our earth in the form of...the Beatles. Together they voyage back across the seas that separate the two planes (including the Sea of Monsters.) Once they have won their way back, they use the power of music to restore the land through joy and love. That's the twist- in a traditional tale it would be a hero from earth who traveled to the supernatural realms to win a boon for mankind, while here it is a hero from the otherworld that traveled here for help. That's also kind of neat- the angelic coming to us for help for a change.

Perhaps now that our own world is so completely overrun with Blue Meanies Pepperland might send us help in our time of need. It would make an interesting sequel.

The restoration of this film is incredible. It is a visual feast for the eyes with its vivid, intricate, original artwork- and the sound could not be better. Together they make perfect alchemy.

The Beatles in their psychedellic colorful animated best!.......2007-08-25

I saw this movie for the first time when it came out as I was growing up. So I decdided to plunk down my money to purchase my copy. It was great to relive the animated treasure that Yellow Submarine was known for nearly 40 years ago. The music, and those sinister Blue Meanies!!! Enjoyed every minute of it! I think you already know the voices in the movie are NOT the Beatles but the Fab Four are featured in the closing minutes! I just wish the animated Beatles TV series was on DVD! You will enjoy Yellow Submarine and watch out for the Meanies!!

A Unique Contribution To The World Of Animation.......2007-08-18

I remember seeing this movie when it first came out, when I was eight. I had seen part of it on network TV in the mid-seventies, and again at a college film night in '77. I figured it was a time to step into the time machine.

Actually, the animation is what earned this five stars. The plot rambles, and at times seems to be a showcase for either the creative animation or the Beatles music. For example, where did an animated video of "Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds" fit in the story?

Additionally, it gave opportunity to introduce children to the themes of drugs and eastern mysticism, with some possible sexual references (was the finger of the flying hand getting stuck in the letter "o" several times just humorous cartooning, or was it an entendre, as my dad suggested?). Thus, even a G-rating doesn't mean it's wholesome for children.

There is a lot of good quality English humor in here. The video added the segment with the song "Hey, Bulldog" (my all-time favorite Beatles song, by the way), which seems like it was cut from the movie. Again, the animation was unique and creative. Kids would like it, though as I always say, parents need to be present.

Unfortunately, even 90 minutes seemed too long with the plot (and implausibilities) in this movie.

Animated Beatles is Timeless........2007-07-24

Although the animation is old style, the whole movie makes me feel great. Especially the ending. I saw the movie when it first came out, and people were leaving the theatre singing "All Together Now." -- Sam Yulish, author of "Where Have All the Hippies Gone" and "The Hesitant Psychic and Other Starnge Stories."

Apple and the out of print UA films........2007-07-21

Why Yellow Submarine is out of print is anyones guess.
Can you say AL BRODAX?
It's not particularly entertaining but my seven year old son loves it
and best yet is that he learned several Beatle songs from it.
Besides, the trailer is worth the asking price.
The 5.1 mix is very good as is the film transfer.
Go ahead and buy it already.
You know you want to.

Average customer rating:

Three-and-a-half stars for this very fine John Wayne WWII pic, 50th anniversary at that.
wayne shines in this grim war thriller made during the war
Great Chemistry
Navy Heritage - US Navy Seabees
Susan and the Duke.

The Fighting Seabees
Starring: John Wayne , Susan Hayward , Dennis O'Keefe , William Frawley , and Leonid Kinskey
Director: Edward Ludwig
Manufacturer: Republic Pictures
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: 0782011284
Release Date: 2000-05-16

Description

All-American hero John Wayne takes a crew of construction workers and turns them into one of WWII's toughest fighting forces in this action-packed war classic. But first he has to convince the army brass to let his civilians bear arms, and then he's got to whip them into combat shape. Now Wayne is fighting for his life on a different battlefield when he's brought up on court-martial charges for leading his troops in an all-out assault against the Japanese. It's Wayne at his best, playing the kind of rough-and-tumble man of honor that made him a legend and Hollywood's biggest star. An entertaining combination of strong supporting performances by Daniel O'Keefe and ravishing, about-to-be superstar Susan Hayward.

Customer Reviews:

Three-and-a-half stars for this very fine John Wayne WWII pic, 50th anniversary at that........2006-06-15

John Wayne plays Wedge Donovan (a
character name he would use 19 yrs.,
later in 1963's Donovan's Reef), a
construction Engineering magnate who
ends up selling the US Navy on arming
civilian personnel in hot LZs! He does
get killed in here (like in 'The Cow-
boys' - **.5)but his movie was way bet-
ter! Enough referrences to'japs', 'mon-
kies', et, al and other racial epithe-
ts to turn off the 'politically stupid'
types. Well, that was the terms used at
the times. [to cross referrence, see J.
Garner's fine 'Grand Prix' movie to see
how attitudes changed by 1966!]

wayne shines in this grim war thriller made during the war.......2006-06-06

john wayne and susan hayward star in this great war movie about the seabees,the construction branch of the navy that was set up as world war II started. wayne is the leader of a construction gang sent to build airstrips and other things for the army and navy in the pacific as war starts out. not being soldiers they can't carry guns and must take cover when shooting starts(useing guns would get them shot as spies). well wayne doesn't like to hide so he pushes the navy to arm and train his men so they can build and fight when needed! this is of of his best early war movies and it even has a shocking twist at the end!! a must for wayne fans.

Great Chemistry.......2005-11-20

There is great chemistry between Susan Hayward and John Wayne! Even though he plays someone tough, you can feel the romance growing between John and Susan. Great piece of work!

Navy Heritage - US Navy Seabees.......2004-07-16

This movie has become a part of lore among the men and women of the finest combat contstruction organizations of the US military. It is a nice Hollywood adaptation of the creation of the US Navy Seabees. And who can forget the best character in the movie -- Natasha! It's not often that you see JW's character make the ultimate sacrifice. I watch this and see the beginning of some traditions and attitudes still in practice today. "With Compassion for Others, We Build - We Fight, for Peace with Freedom," from the Seabee Museum. Remember their montra: Seabee Can-Do.

Susan and the Duke........2003-07-03

This is probably only a 2 star movie, but I rounded up because susan Hayward was my fav actress of that era, and JW was my fav actor period.

For Love or Country - The Arturo Sandoval Story

Average customer rating:

Flawless
for the love of country
Terrific movie
Emotional journey
worth it for the hotties!

For Love or Country - The Arturo Sandoval Story
Starring: Andy Garcia , Mía Maestro , Gloria Estefan , David Paymer , and Charles S. Dutton
Director: Joseph Sargent
Manufacturer: Hbo Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B00005ALS5
Release Date: 2001-04-17

Amazon.com

For Love or Country: The Arturo Sandoval Story chronicles the life of a man torn between his home and his devotion to his music. In a Golden Globe-nominated performance, Andy Garcia portrays the gregarious, passionate, and obstinate Arturo Sandoval, the Grammy-winning Cuban trumpet player.

This HBO film shows how Sandoval's life in revolutionary Cuba is affected--beginning in the early 1970s--by his zeal for his music and by the limits placed on him by his homeland. Representing his torn loyalties are Dizzy Gillespie (the enigmatic jazz musician played by Charles S. Dutton) and Sandoval's wife, Marianela (played by the beautiful Mia Maestro). Gillespie embodies the freedom to follow one's dream, while Marianela represents family loyalty and the ideals of the Castro revolution. Yet, the same regime his wife embraces forces Arturo to play government-imposed music instead of the jazz that he loves. Sandoval travels the world, and while the Cuban government profits from his success, he is exposed to a freedom that eventually draws him to the difficult and life-changing decision he and his family feel compelled to make.

Against a backdrop of beautiful scenery and exceptional music, For Love or Country provides a harsh depiction of revolutionary Cuba, its outmoded lifestyle, and the restrictions placed on its people. --Mindy Ruehmann

Customer Reviews:

Flawless.......2007-08-22

A great movie to be seen time and time again. One of the best you'll ever see.

for the love of country.......2007-04-12

This is a very touching true story played beautifully by Andy Garcia.
If you are cuban, you will have a special interest in this film.

Terrific movie.......2007-01-18

This movie reveals a poignant love story as developed under the repressive regime of Fidel Castro. The music and development of characters provides excellent entertainment as well as education
into the worlds of music and Communist politics. Andy Garcia is
not only a talented actor but an excellent trumpet player as well.

Emotional journey.......2005-10-30

Since I have been unable to locate an address in which to write Mr. Garcia to explain how this film touched me, I thought this might be the next best thing. As a "natural born" citizen of the United States, I often feel overwhelming guilt for the suffering of the people who live in countries ruled by dictatorships and tyranny, while I enjoy innumerable freedoms here. Mr. Garcia has brought us a film that inspires hope, courage of conviction, and raises our awareness of the suffering still going on in his birthplace without bringing the stinging guilt that such a movie usually instills in me. I cried, then paced my apartment, then searched the Web for hours trying to find a way to contact Mr. Garcia to tell him that his message is received and appreciated.
The story is so amazing, it is almost difficult to believe that Mr. Sandavol not only lived it, but managed to see his whole family emigrate to the U.S. Thank you, HBO and Mr. Garcia, for telling a story that deserved to be told.

worth it for the hotties!.......2005-05-22

This movie deals with the fascinating subject of Cuba-US relations. Like Navratilova (sp?) and Baryshnikov (sp again?), Sandoval is a star from a Communist country who defected to the US. But more importantly, this film has the following hot actors of color in it: Charles Dutton, Stephen Bauer, Miguel Sandoval, and Andy Garcia.

Average customer rating:

Isn't mainstream enough.
For a movie about sex, it sure is boring.
Hmm
Kinsey
fascinating research by a very strange guy

Kinsey
Starring: Liam Neeson , Laura Linney , Chris O'Donnell , Peter Sarsgaard , and Timothy Hutton
Director: Bill Condon
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
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ASIN: B0007PALGG
Release Date: 2005-05-17

Product Description

Liam Neeson stars as Alfred Kinsey, a man driven by scientific passion and personal demons to investigate the elusive mystery of human sexuality. Laura Linney garnered a Best Actress Oscar® nomination for her compelling performance as Kinsey s free-thinking wife. This provocative drama dares to lift the veil of shame from a society in which sex was hidden, knowledge was dangerous and talking about it was the ultimate taboo.

Bonus Features:
Full-length Feature - Widescreen.
Searchlight Sizzle trailer
Inside Look: Kingdom of Heaven (2:39)
Commentary with writer/director Bill Condon

System Requirements:

Running Time 118 Min

Format: DVD MOVIE

Amazon.com

One of the best films of 2004, Kinsey pays tribute to the flawed but honorable man who revolutionized our understanding of human sexuality. As played by Liam Neeson in writer-director Bill Condon's excellent film biography, Indiana University researcher Alfred Kinsey was so consumed by statistical measurements of human sexual activity that he almost completely overlooked the substantial role of emotions and their effect on human behavior. This made him an ideal researcher and science celebrity who revealed that sexual behaviors previously considered deviant and even harmful (homosexuality, oral sex, etc.) are in fact common and essentially normal in the realm of human experience, but whose obsession with scientific method frequently placed him at odds with his understanding wife (superbly played by Laura Linney) and research assistants. In presenting Kinsey as a driven social misfit, Condon's film gives Neeson one of his finest roles while revealing the depth of Kinsey's own humanity, and the incalculable benefit his research had on our collective sexual enlightenment. With humor, charm, and intelligence, Kinsey shines a light where darkness once prevailed. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews:

Isn't mainstream enough........2007-08-19

Kinsey starring Liam Neeson is the story and evolution of zoologist Alfred Kinsey. Kinsey is known for his books about female and male persectives on sexuality. In the film, he is married to a plain Jane played by Laura Linney, it is shown that Kinsey was also bisexual and his wife also had an affair with his male lover, strange huh? Anyways the film is not too graphic, they could have pushed the envelope a bit more I thought, Neeson is brilliant as always and Linney's character well you just wanted to punch her in the face, not sure why? Chris O'Donnell is ok, haven't seen him in awhile but overall Kinsey is pretty tame and a tad disappointing. It's a hit or miss, good luck!

For a movie about sex, it sure is boring........2007-03-14

This movie was long, drawn out and slow. If you want to know about the personal life of Alfred Kinsey, just read an article about him on an online encyclopedia.
The worst part of the movie was the horrible makeup job done to make Liam Neeson look like he was in his 20's. In fact, it was pretty disturbing.

Hmm.......2007-02-20

I'm not sure what I think. I definitely agree that much of our sexual hangups and perhaps darker eccentricities are the direct result of puritanical repression. Seeing so many of the clichés pulled together in one place made me wonder how any of us in the west (or anywhere?) manage a healthy sexual expression. It also indicates how much of repression and poorly expressed desires are widely cultural and not the result of personal accounts of sexual abuse. But it raised some really uncomfortable questions, even for the most open-minded, and presented some really painful moments just about anyone who's ever had sex can relate to. All-in-all, the film was well done.

Kinsey.......2007-02-12

Ok, so I bought this movie because I saw an HBO special on the making of Kinsey. When I actually got to see the movie I was hideously surprised. I saw this with a group of my college friends. Oh man. This movie is definitely not for the family. Extremely graphic. EXTREMELY GRAPHIC. Rating for this movie should be NC-17, not R. That's how graphic. There are certain scenes that are controversial, if you've seen this movie I'm sure you know what scenes. Watch this movie away from children. Good for adult viewing. Overall movie was funny and interesting. Not For Children.

fascinating research by a very strange guy.......2007-01-25

In 1938 Alfred Kinsey, a young Harvard-trained zoologist whose speciality was the gall wasp, took over a course on "marriage" at Indiana University and, based upon his relentless curiosity and unapologetically scientific treatment of the subject, turned the class into something akin to sexology. He subsequently published Sexual Behavior in the Human Male (1948) and Sexual Behavior in the Human Female (1953), based upon 18,000 sexual histories he and his staff collected. For the first time ever, sex was scientifically-situated. This biographical dramatization reminded me of Ray, in the sense of an overwhelming human force who grappled with a perennial subject and in the process shaped American culture. The main message of the film, if it has one, seems to be that repression and taboo melt in the light of frankness and tolerance of difference, no matter how quirky: "We are the recorders and reporters of facts--not the judges of the behaviors we describe," insisted Kinsey. But the film is careful to show in some deeply painful moments like pedophilia, sex encouraged among staff members, Kinsey's bi-sexual experimentation, and broken marriages that human sexuality is far more, and more complex, than the mere scientific documentation of its parts. Fidelity, intimacy, integrity and love define sexuality as much as our habits. Kinsey died in 1956 at the age of 62, although the Kinsey Institute continues today.

WR: Mysteries of the Organism (Criterion Collection)

Average customer rating:

Organization and sponteneity
A thouroughly strange and interesting experience in film
very weird.
Of course it's a distortion
A Total Distortion of Reich's Work

WR: Mysteries of the Organism (Criterion Collection)
Starring: Milena Dravic , Ivica Vidovic , Jagoda Kaloper , Tuli Kupferberg , and Zoran Radmilovic
Director: Dusan Makavejev
Manufacturer: Criterion Collection
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000OPPAEC
Release Date: 2007-06-19

Description

What does the energy harnessed through orgasm have to do with the state of Communist Yugoslavia circa 1971? Only counterculture filmmaker extraordinaire Duan Makavejev has the answers (or the questions). His surreal documentary-fiction collision WR: Mysteries of the Organism begins as an investigation of the life and work of controversial psychologist and philosopher Wilhelm Reich and then explodes into a free-form narrative of a beautiful young Slavic girl's sexual liberation. Banned upon its release in the director's homeland, the art-house smash WR is both whimsical and bold in its blending of politics and sexuality.

Customer Reviews:

Organization and sponteneity.......2007-09-11

This is the best subversive political film I've ever seen. It is the only film that puts sexuality in the political equation, much like Reich himself.
Throw surrealism, chaos, comedy into the mix and you have one hell of an experience.
The film starts out as a semi-documentry concerning the suppression of the life and works of Herr Reich, here in America, mostly, where he died in an American prison. It might be me, but it never really tells what his conviction was. Maybe, I'll watch it again. Obviously, because of his radical ideas and his past association with communism. The land of the free and the home of the brave, I guess.
There are many more sub-plots and characters dispersed throughout, but the film leaves the viewer with the impression that our society will never be truly free, and yes, Communism is held in as much contempt as Capitalism. Especially when tyrants are in power.
If you are a fan of artsy cinema off of the beaten path, you owe it to yourself to own this movie.
Features are wonderful and so is the film transfer and cleanup. Documentry and interview focus is on the director, as it should be. Highly recommended viewing experiece for discriminating adults

A thouroughly strange and interesting experience in film.......2007-08-13

wr: mysteries of the organism is above all else something of an experiment in narrative structure.. the movie begins curiously as a pseudo-documentary and ends as an absurd fictional account of a relationship in a communist country (hard to describe actually)... The film is also to my way of thinking highly comic.. there is a certain bunuel like surrealism particularly in the last scenes which almost explodes accross the screen in high contrast with the first part of the movie..
Criticisms abound for this film.. one being that it is a gross distortion of the theories of wilhelm reich.. My reaction to this is.. so what?? It is clear that this is going on and that this is a juxtaposition done for a larger purpose.. I mean do you think he structured the film the way he did for his own ideas of wilhelm reich? - perhaps - and is this subjective rendering artfully done - absolutely.. I see this as being a very thought provoking approach to making a movie.. and please do not discount the comic elements of the picture..

very weird........2007-07-20

This review is for the Criterion Collection DVD edition of the film.

WR: Mysteries of the Organism made in Yugoslavia as W.R. - Misterije organizma is documentary film about sex and how it relates to the Austrian psychaiatrist Wilhelm Reich whose initials are the basis for the film's title.

The film is a mixture of Soviet bloc politics and sex. It contains dialogue in both Serbocroatian and English and was filmed in Europe and America.

The special features are interviews with the film's director Dusan Makavejev, Makavejev's autobiographical film, Hole in the Soul, and audio commentary.

The film has graphic sexual content and is inappropriate for minors

Of course it's a distortion.......2005-01-09

It's the heart-breaking narrative of Reich's persecution interwoven with moments that highlight the absurdity of sex that make this work so powerful. I saw it first in 1980 in the UK and that screening still reverberates.

Nothing against Mr. DeMeo, who's posted a comment complaining that the film is not historically accurate. I used to subscribe to DeMeo's mailing list and found him a bit humorless. I think the whole *point* of this is that it's a work of art, not a documentarian's take on Reich's work.

Say what you will about Makaveyev's work as a whole, this one is a winner.

A Total Distortion of Reich's Work.......2004-02-02

This video was undertaken by Dusan Makavajev, who according to a 1971 film review article in the Journal of Orgonomy, obtained original footage of Reich from the Reich Museum, and interviews with various individuals who knew Reich and who had followed up on his research, by posturing as a "friend of Reich". He then proceeded to mix that original footage with pornographic images designed to plunge a knife into the heart of everything Reich argued about, and stood for. Only a few of Reich's genuine friends had the forethought to grant permissions based upon their approval of the final film - and they promptly refused such permission. It caused an uproar among those who knew and understood Reich, but Makavajev got his footage and danced away a laughing man. This film has done more damage to Reich's name and legacy than any single item one might point to, by distorting Reich's excellent and important biophysical work on the "Function of the Orgasm" (see book of this title) into a malignant advocacy of "free sex for all". Reich would puke forever if he saw how his life's work was so badly twisted. "F--- Freely" announces one of the heroes of this film, in a plot about an ice-skater who seduces, but then murders and decapitates one of the "revolutionary proletariat" female characters. A weak "plot" indeed, interspliced with porno images from the plaster-casters, the first male erection to appear on a US film, masturbation images, and people group-fornicating to cartoon music -- Makavajev's apparent idea of the "sexual revolution" -- all under a smiling wall portrait of Reich. "Freedom Peddling" is what comes to mind, and I can say with confidence that there is nothing of accuracy or authenticity about Reich in this film, aside from the interviews and short seconds of film from Reich's original archives, which were obtained by fraudulent means. Reich's work informs us, that the pornographic character is a sexually-frustrated character, no less than the sex-negative moralist of the organized church, and that they are in fact mirror images of each other, flip sides of the same coin. "Brothels are built from bricks of religion" as the poet William Blake once said -- and Reich's clinical work put substance to this idea. And so when this film was shown at my university years ago, the theatre was flooded with all the frustrated fraternity boys, come to hoot and ogle at the images of naked people. They learned nothing. Neither will anyone viewing this film, except perhaps how deceptive some Hollywood-types can be, even if they come from Yugoslavia.

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (Special Edition)

Average customer rating:

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
A Brilliant Tale of the Wild Frontier
Entertaining Story, but not the best Western ever made
Butch and Sundance Ride into Film History
Rain please go away

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (Special Edition)
Starring: Paul Newman , Robert Redford , Katharine Ross , Strother Martin , and Henry Jones
Director: George Roy Hill , and Robert Crawford (IV)
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B00003RQNJ
Release Date: 2000-05-16

Customer Reviews:

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.......2007-05-14

It's great to order from Amazon. I don't have to waste gas going all over town looking for a rare movie that most stores don't have in stock.
Thank you.

A Brilliant Tale of the Wild Frontier.......2007-04-14

Probably one of the best westerns ever made, this movie mixes the elements of laughter and tragedy just as real life deals them to almost all of us. the result: a story we all can relate to...one that inspires our imagination and puts us right there with the two young men who just can't play the game of life the way that society demands. Made at the height of the Age of Aquarius, this movie works a major miracle of those times: it manages to tell an authentic tale of two buddies thumbing their nose at society without making their natural enemies cardboard stereotypes that so abounded in the cinema of those days. Absolutely first rate performances are turned in by Newman and Redford, while the supporting cast of gang members, a loyal harriman clerk, a Bolivan mine paymaster, an understanding sheriff [whose dialogue nicely calibrates for anyone not otherwise picking it up how far the loveable villians' conduct is strayng from expected social norms] and a girlfriend never lets them down. For fellow Aquarians there is a delightful Vietnamesque sequence where the sheriff is trying to raise a posse. [Remember we Aquarians were raised on cowboy shows where the whole town rushed to volunteer...for us this sequence brought our own life experences with that war into a very familiar western sequence and we gave it appreciative, hearty laughter in the theaters]. terrific humor, magnificent scenery, nailbiting action and the inevitable Age of Aquarius social commentary all combine to give this movie five stars in any era! See what some of the audience was up to in the year this was made.Crossroads: 1969The Brothers K

Entertaining Story, but not the best Western ever made.......2007-02-26

It has been years since I saw this movie, but I recently ordered it on Netflix. Butch Cassiday and the Sundance Kid is an entertaining story, but I do not think it as great as many reviewers give it credit. The cast is strong with Paul Newman and Robert Redford, but the story drags along. A classic Western does not need as much dialogue as this one to tell the story. Maybe that is its appeal to some. While the interaction between Butch and Sundance is appealing, it gets tiring at times. Personally, I like more chase scenes and gun fights in Westerns. This movie is definitely worth seeing, just not a classic in my mind. I would pick something else.

Butch and Sundance Ride into Film History.......2006-07-07

Butch and Sundance is an amazing wonderful film: in this ultimate collectors edition it sparkles like a beautiful jewel. The package is complete (I always thought the 1997 version was missing William Goldman's commentary - this one has it!): if you were a fan of this terrific western when it first appeared in the first flush of 1969-70 you will not be disappointed to revisit with Butch and Sundance and their hole in the wall gang. Its also a great chance to listen in again as 3 beautiful stars and countless other key personnel recount what it was like to put this wonderful film together.
God bless Geo. Roy Hill et al for making this western and changing many of our lives in the process. For this formerly 11 year old boy, I left the theater determined to be a film director. I studied writing by reading and re-reading Goldman's original screenplay over 40 times. When I finally got a chance to shoot film, of course I experimented with sepia tones!
This is not the most coherent review I've ever slapped together but it makes up for coherence by being heartfelt. If you haven't seen Butch (and I know a lot of film scholars who haven't) you really don't know film.
This is a classic film from several key players who have made their share of immortal classics. And the best part is, its not a bitter pill to swallow. This one tastes good going down!

note: this review is for the 2 disc version, although the special edition released a few years back is also a wonderful buy. no matter how much Butch you want in your life, they are both worthy editions. In general, anything by Redford or Newman is well worth watching (when its penned by Bill Goldman, you're in for a special treat!) .

Rain please go away.......2006-04-16

If you are a Robert Redford fan this movie is by far his best. It's not Paul Newman's best work, but he is good. Katherine Ross is one of the sexiest actresses of the time. This movie starts fast and never stops. Also Jeff Corey keeps it real.

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Allegheny Uprising
All men were brave!
Wayne at his BEST!
allegheny uprising
We enjoyed this movie, but...

Allegheny Uprising
Starring: Claire Trevor , John Wayne , George Sanders , Brian Donlevy , and Wilfrid Lawson
Director: William A. Seiter
Manufacturer: Turner Home Ent
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000O599LW
Release Date: 2007-05-22

Amazon.com

Allegheny Uprising is an engaging blend of historical fiction, boisterous backwoods comedy, and pretty much nonstop rowdydow that qualifies as one of John Wayne's more offbeat vehicles. Made half a year after his stellar breakout in Stagecoach, the picture re-teams Wayne with Claire Trevor as a frontier tomboy who supplies feisty love interest. A decade and a half before the Revolutionary War, a community in south-central Pennsylvania (apparently Chambersburg) stages a principled rebellion against King George III's forces that's more social protest than full-fledged revolt. Wayne plays a thoughtful fellow named Jim Smith who, with his "men of the Conococheague," demonstrates to the Crown that it's bad faith to lend military protection to unscrupulous traders (cue Brian Donlevy) clandestinely peddling firearms and English-made weaponry to the Indians.

Now, there just aren't that many "Westerns" set in Pennsylvania, so Allegheny Uprising gets points for freshness. It also falls into a limbo between A and B movies, coming in at a trim 80 minutes but boasting larger action set-pieces (shot on location in credibly Pennsylvanian pockets of California) than was customary for RKO, a studio that tended toward in-house miniatures; Nicholas Musuraca, a future Val Lewton and film noir mainstay, proves himself a master of sunlit cinematography as well. Director William A. Seiter (with a string of Shirley Temple movies behind him) never finds a satisfying overall rhythm, and there are odd scraps of unrealized intentions in producer P.J. Wolfson's script (e.g., the sudden murder of a captured Indian raider at knifepoint, whereupon Smith ruefully observes, "We teach 'em everything, don't we?"). The most interesting element of the film is George Sanders' performance as an intransigent Brit officer who causes much of the strife with the Colonials, yet discloses unexpected vulnerability in private moments. --Richard T. Jameson

Customer Reviews:

Allegheny Uprising.......2007-08-23

THis was a ecellant movie of the duke in his prime. I would highly recommend this movie to not jus John Wayne collectors, but anyone who likes the movie of the old frontier.

All men were brave!.......2007-08-03

John Wayne leads a bunch of brave men disposed to avoid by all their means the mockeries and corruption of a crooked, ruthless and tyrannical British officer who deals leaving aside pacts and rules in times of Pre-revolutionary colonies.

Wayne's acting is natural, and riveting but Claire Trevor steals the show as an Iris pretty girl who demonstrates more than once to be in love with his male angel, and makes her own epic battle too in order to conquer him.

Go for this one!

Wayne at his BEST!.......2007-07-08

I have to admit it. John Wayne made a LOT of "generic" westerns.

This hides the fact that he really DID provide some STELLAR performances.
And this is one of them.

ALLEGHENY UPRISING, Stagecoach, The Searchers, Back To Bataan and True Grit are ALL John Wayne at his best.

He got the Oscar for Best Actor in "True Grit" but he deserved it more for his performance in "The Searchers." a movie in which he portrays a man dead-set on EVIL revenge.

Allegheny Uprising presents John as an early colonist (before the American Revolution). It tells a fascinating tale of when we were all proud to call ourselves "British" citizens.

No cheesy shootouts or costumes...but an intricate portrayal of the building of our Nation.

Newly out on DVD...it's well worth a watch!

allegheny uprising.......2007-07-08

I had this title on vhs and was up grading to dvd because this is an excelant movie

We enjoyed this movie, but..........2006-11-03

We enjoyed our copy of Allegheny Uprising that was recently purchased on Amazon. We are history buffs, so picking up a few more facts about about US history pleased us. However, the Claire Trevor character was totally un-necessary! We wondered what movie she was acting in because her part didn't fit in at all. Here were these colonial characters talking and then Trevor starts talking a la 1930s movie style. Great for 1939, but not for the 1700s! Kinda reminds one of the bouffant hairdos on the 1960s tv shows like "The Big Valley"! Anyway, if you want something with a plot and is interesting, buy it. Especially if you want to just relax and not worry about something distasteful popping up on the screen -- it won't. Just phase out the Trevor character!

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classic
Birdman of Alcatraz
oh if i had the wings of a canary over these prison walls i would fly ...
Etched in my mind
Birdman of Alcatraz

Birdman of Alcatraz
Starring: Burt Lancaster , Karl Malden , Thelma Ritter , Neville Brand , and Betty Field
Director: John Frankenheimer
Manufacturer: MGM (Video & DVD)
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B000056HED
Release Date: 2001-03-06

Amazon.com essential video

John Frankenheimer scored his first success with this, his third theatrical feature and his second collaboration with producer-star Burt Lancaster (they would make five films together all told). Lancaster delivers an angry, brooding performance as real-life criminal Robert Stroud, a violent killer who, while in solitary confinement, became an internationally recognized authority on birds and their diseases. Based on the book by Thomas E. Gaddis, Frankenheimer creates a portrait of a withdrawn, antisocial prisoner who discovers his own potential after reluctantly rescuing a wounded sparrow from a storm and nursing it back to health. Lancaster's quiet portrayal comes from his eyes and restrained body language, earning him his second Oscar nomination. Costars Telly Savalas (as the talkative "neighbor" from the cell next door) and Thelma Ritter (as his controlling mother) were also nominated, but Frankenheimer's sensitive direction draws equally fine performances from Neville Brand, playing against type as the prison guard who slowly befriends Stroud, and Karl Malden as the tough warden whose ideas of confinement and punishment prompted Stroud to follow-up his studies of birds with a treatise on prison reform. This somber, subdued tale offers no truly happy ending, but it does present a powerful portrait of one man's efforts to earn back his dignity and respect in the worst of conditions. --Sean Axmaker

Description

How does bitter convict Robert Stroud cope with a lifetime of solitary confinement? The answer, in a sense, comes from abovein the form of a feeble sparrow he finds in the isolation yard. Stroud brings this newfound companion to his cell, nurses it to health and, from that point on, there's no turning back. Despite having only a third-grade education, and no hope of parole, Stroud becomes a renowned ornithologistand achieves a greater sense of freedom and purpose behind prison walls than many in the outside world will ever know. The "finest prison picture ever made" (Variety), this inspirational and compelling classic stars Burt Lancaster in an OscarÂ(r)-nominated* performance as Stroudthe convict who, in his power to heal birds, finds the power to heal himself. *1962: Actor

Customer Reviews:

classic.......2007-07-10

2.5 hours flies by when you watch this movie. It really keeps your attention. Good actors, good acting and a true story to boot. Well worth the $ and the time to watch

Birdman of Alcatraz.......2007-06-27

Based on the book by Tom Gaddis, who first told Stroud's remarkable story to the world, this involving tale of a caustic, antisocial man whose prison cell becomes a veritable bird sanctuary is beautifully directed by Frankenheimer. Lancaster's brooding, restrained performance steers clear of gushing sentiment, earning him an Oscar nod. Malden is excellent, too, as the peeved warden who makes it his duty to "punish" Stroud--and who gets his chance when the birdman gets transferred to "the Rock." Oscar nominees Thelma Ritter (as Harvey's mom) and Telly Savalas (as fellow inmate Feto Gomez) raise the film a notch with colorful supporting work. This "Birdman" flies high.

oh if i had the wings of a canary over these prison walls i would fly ..........2007-03-30

poor burt lancaster had just won an oscar 2 years before, and he was running up against gregory peck, peter o'toole, marcello mastroianni, and jack lemmon (robert preston in "music man" wasnt even nominated!) so truth be told he really had no chance of winning in this marvelous semi-accurate biopic of murderer-turned-ornithologist robert stroud. while the movie takes considerable liberties with the facts (stroud was much more an SOB than the sympathetic character lancaster portrays) it is on its own terms an eloquent argument for fairness -- even for those barely meriting same. strong supporting performances from karl malden, thelma ritter, and the still-hairy-headed telly savalas. good picture.

Etched in my mind.......2007-02-04

This is one of those movies that I first saw as a boy in the '60's and would watch every chance I got, which was 2-3 times. It's on PBS tonight so I'm excited to see it again.

Birdman of Alcatraz.......2007-01-10

I purchased the DVD for my brother, as a Christmas present. It has been many years since I have seen it, but remember that it was a very good movie. My brother whom I bought the DVD for, raves about the movie.

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