Operation Petticoat

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Blake Edwards's delightful 1959 comedy stars Cary Grant as a World War II submarine captain whose preference for a by-the-book command reluctantly yields to certain realities. Chief among those is that Grant's first officer (Tony Curtis, who impersonated Grant that same year in Billy Wilder's Some Like It Hot), a shameless hustler, is better than the navy at delivering whatever supplies the ship and crew need to keep going. But when Curtis sneaks a handful of Philippine refugees and several gorgeous nurses onto the all-male sub, the skipper not only has to cool down his crew but deal with an unexpected feminine influence on ship protocol. The film is a great deal of fun, sprinkled with the director's trademark sight gags (including one of Edwards's best, involving a torpedo and jeep), and graced with his unmistakable lilt. Grant is in great form, his comic brilliance almost impossibly effortless. --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews:

CLASSIC MOVIES.......2007-06-24

A FINE MOVIE IN THE STYLE OF THE GREAT ARTISTS, NOW SADLY GONE TO BE
REPLACED BY UNWHOLESOME FILTH.

Hilarious movie........2007-05-30

Ranks right up there with "Father Goose" as one of Cary Grant's funniest movies. Great family fun.

A Movie for All........2007-05-14

This is one of my favorite oldie's. I had pretty much worn my VHS out and needed another one, so the DVD had to be the new choice. Always loved Gary Grant. It's a good clean movie and very enjoyable. The type of movie I can let the grandchildren watch with no worries. I don't like most of the movies that are made today, so I still stick the good older ones. There are sooooo many laughs in this movie and yes, most of the time I watch it by myself. If you are havin or had a bad day, this movie will lift you spirit. Buy it, you wont be sorry.

Operation Petticoat.......2007-05-14

I love this movie. I like most of Cary Grant's movies. This movie is very funny and entertaining. Why can't the film industry make good movies like this anymore?

Judy.......2007-04-10

Tony Randall and Cary Grant are excellent in this flick !! This is one of my favorite movies, even if it is an "oldie". I have seen it 20 times and still laugh.

Average customer rating:

swashbuckler supreme with Flynn and de Havilland
The greatest pirate movie EVER!
One of the greatest epic films ever made!
Make Sure you Read the Book
Captain Blood

Captain Blood
Starring: Errol Flynn , Olivia de Havilland , Lionel Atwill , Basil Rathbone , and Ross Alexander
Director: Michael Curtiz , Joseph Henabery , and Lloyd French
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00005JMR7
Release Date: 2005-04-19

Amazon.com essential video

The swashbuckler had been around long before Errol Flynn drew a cutlass, but the Tasmanian-born bit player reinvigorated the genre with his mix of dashing good looks, haughty insolence, and alluring confidence. Adapted from the novel by Rafael Sabatini (who also penned The Sea Hawk), this rousing adventure chronicles the travails of Peter Blood (Flynn), a righteous doctor unjustly sold into slavery for treating the wounds of rebels, a kind of British Dr. Mudd. Sent to a Jamaican plantation where he toils under the brutal whip of Lionel Atwill and seethes with passion for his fair niece (the astonishingly beautiful Olivia de Havilland), he escapes from bondage with his fellow prisoners and becomes the gentleman rogue pirate of the Caribbean. Director Michael Curtiz builds from one set piece to another, including a nimble beachside sword fight with pirate nemesis Basil Rathbone and climaxing with a grand sea battle that belies the film's modest budget. Flynn's bravado and charisma are apparent from his entrance, but once he leaps into action he takes command of the picture, overcoming his still-green dramatic skills with sheer personality. Captain Blood made stars of Flynn and de Havilland and catapulted Curtiz to the top ranks of Warner directors. The three reunited for some of the studio's best-loved adventures: The Charge of the Light Brigade, The Adventures of Robin Hood, and Dodge City. --Sean Axmaker

Customer Reviews:

swashbuckler supreme with Flynn and de Havilland.......2007-09-17

CAPTAIN BLOOD, based on the novel by Rafael Sabatini, was the first movie to feature the successful star combination of Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland. The mix of swashbuckling thrills and breathless romance is irresistible.

In 17th century London, respected physician Peter Blood (Errol Flynn) is sold into a slave trade and subsequently escapes to become a notorious pirate king. Olivia de Havilland plays Arabella Bishop, the headstrong niece of Blood's former master (Lionel Atwill).

This was Errol Flynn's debut as a leading man at Warner Brothers. The role of Blood was originally intended for Robert Donat (star of the popular "Count of Monte Cristo") before being offered to Brian Aherne, who also passed on the project. Errol Flynn, a relatively minor contract player, was recommended for the role; CAPTAIN BLOOD launched his career and he spent the next several years as the reigning king of the swashbuckler genre.

Much of CAPTAIN BLOOD's success was due to the strong chemistry between Flynn and Olivia de Havilland. Similarly, this film helped establish de Havilland as an important new star; she had made her film debut playing Hermia in Warners' star-studded 1935 version of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" before idling in B-comedies; CAPTAIN BLOOD and the role of feisty Arabella helped endear her to the public. Errol and Olivia went on to be paired in many more wonderful movies (including "Dodge City", "The Adventures of Robin Hood" and "Santa Fe Trail"). The cast also features Basil Rathbone and Guy Kibbee.

The DVD version of CAPTAIN BLOOD also includes the trailer, Making-Of featurette "Captain Blood: A Swashbuckler is Born", Merrie Melodies cartoon "Billboard Frolics", VitaPhone short "All-American Drawback" with Charlie McCarthy, and newsreel.

The greatest pirate movie EVER!.......2007-08-09

Rafael Sabatini wrote a range of heroic characters in high adventure stories from Scaramouche to the Sea Hawk and Captain Blood. Any one of those stories are superior to the Pirates of the Carribean. The problem with remaking them is we don't have any living actor who comes close to Errol Flynn or even Stewart Granger. So, I highly recommend going retro and watching anyone of the three. I'd start with Blood first.

One of the greatest epic films ever made!.......2007-07-25

The first great feature of Errol Flynn and (at least to my mind) the role of his lifetime as well as the supreme beauty of Olivia de Havilland make of this movie a singular and reference movie in this decade.

Captain blood is one these unforgettable epic tales based on Sabatini's novel about a doctor who is forced to become a pirate. But along the story is showed, there will be many chances to know him, his real nature as human being who seriously wishes by all his means, to avoid to be considered a slave, he will the intellectual leader for the escape and will assume the authority delineated by a sort of statement of Principles among the members under his command, in order to avoid a supposed mutiny inspired by the greed or any other motive.

The admirable duel with Levesseur and his formidable audacious to undertake and even save the honor of the English Army when they are besieged in Port Royal will deserve not only a sudden achievement in his life, but besides he will find the love of his life as you and me are aware from the firsts shots.

Michael Curtiz was the same director of the charge of the light brigade so it's not unusual to think he his preferences for the epic genre.

Make Sure you Read the Book.......2007-07-20

This film, being the better part of a century old and still watched today, might technically qualify as a 'classic,' but I personally disliked it strongly. This is likely because I first read the Rafael Sabatini novel of the same title, on which the film is based, and utterly loved it. In fact, it is one of my absolute favourite books.

The novel is an emotionally gripping, powerful story populated by realistic characters, people with real feelings and personalities. This film, however, is just a quick, cheap Hollywood action flick, the 1930s version of today's flashy and mindless shoot-them-up movies. The plot of Sabatini's book has been changed and, in some scenes, totally reversed to turn Captain Blood from a realistic, passionate, deep character into a two-dimensional macho action hero. Obviously any book must be cut to be changed into a film; but Captain Blood was not merely simplified but simplified -in spirit- for this production.

The most enjoyable part of this movie, for me, was watching the old-fashioned special effects, with all the pretty model ships.

Go read the book instead -- odds are, you'll love it regardless of whether you liked or hated this movie.

Captain Blood.......2007-07-12

This is a marvelous DVD, a beautiful reproduction of a classic film with many great extra features. The documentary on the making of the film is wonderfully done, and makes the movie more memorable viewing.

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
Binding: 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:

One of the best movies ever made, with a decent DVD treatment...
All time great
This Film Is A Joy
This is not a chick flick
Not just a "kissing movie"...

The Princess Bride
Starring: Andre the Giant , Betsy Brantley , Anne Dyson , Cary Elwes , and Peter Falk
Director: Rob Reiner
Manufacturer: MGM (Video & DVD)
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

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7-9 Years | Kids & Family | Genres | DVD | Video

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ASIN: B00003CXC3
Release Date: 2000-07-18

Amazon.com essential video

Screenwriter William Goldman's novel The Princess Bride earned its own loyal audience on the strength of its narrative voice and its gently satirical, hyperbolic spin on swashbuckled adventure that seemed almost purely literary. For all its derring-do and vivid over-the-top characters, the book's joy was dictated as much by the deadpan tone of its narrator and a winking acknowledgement of the clichés being sent up. Miraculously, director Rob Reiner and Goldman himself managed to visualize this romantic fable while keeping that external voice largely intact: using a storytelling framework, avuncular Grandpa (Peter Falk) gradually seduces his skeptical grandson (Fred Savage) into the absurd, irresistible melodrama of the title story.

And what a story: a lowly stable boy, Westley (Cary Elwes), pledges his love to the beautiful Buttercup (Robin Wright), only to be abducted and reportedly killed by pirates while Buttercup is betrothed to the evil Prince Humperdinck. Even as Buttercup herself is kidnapped by a giant, a scheming criminal mastermind, and a master Spanish swordsman, a mysterious masked pirate (could it be Westley?) follows in pursuit. As they sail toward the Cliffs of Insanity...

The wild and woolly arcs of the story, the sudden twists of fate, and, above all, the cartoon-scaled characters all work because of Goldman's very funny script, Reiner's confident direction, and a terrific cast. Elwes and Wright, both sporting their best English accents, juggle romantic fervor and physical slapstick effortlessly, while supporting roles boast Mandy Patinkin (the swordsman Inigo Montoya), Wallace Shawn (the incredulous schemer Vizzini), and Christopher Guest (evil Count Rugen) with brief but funny cameos from Billy Crystal, Carol Kane, and Peter Cook. --Sam Sutherland

Customer Reviews:

One of the best movies ever made, with a decent DVD treatment..........2007-09-05

It is no exaggeration to call "The Princess Bride" one of the best movies ever made. Even though it was made on what would be considered a small budget, and had no big name actors, it became a perennial classic of young and old alike since its initial release in 1987. The first time I saw "Bride" I was four years old(1989), and ever since then it has remained one of my favorite movies of all time. It never gets boring or unfunny as many times as you view it, and I have seen it 300+ times. So, the question remains, "What makes this such a special movie?"

William Goldman wrote the screenplay in 1973, and it took 14 years to get the movie off the ground, and this movie is worth the work that it took to get it made. From beginning to end there is no boring parts. Some of the most quoted lines of all time "My name is Inigo Mantoya, you killed my father, prepare to die!" and "Love, twue love." Remain overused by people who may have never even seen the film.

There is an endearing innocence which this film portrays, that true love can and will conquer all. That real love is pure, honest, and beautiful. It is not a deep movie, but it does portray big feelings and honest emotions in all of its characters, as bizzare as some of them may be. There are no wasted lines, no filler, just pure fun.

These are the things that have made this movie stand the test of time. It can, and always will be a great film because of its carefree and fun attitude, and emotional honesty towards its most unsympathetic characters (Prince Humperdink). It doesn't try to be a great movie, but it is. It is as William Goldman says in his commentary on this disc (not verbatum), that you do not know when a movie will be a hit, there is no formula, you just have to release it and see if people like it or not... And they do! :D

I cannot say that one DVD edition is better than any other for this movie, it is up to you to decide which one you would like to purchase; either way, the movie is the centerpiece, and the rest is really just excess.

God Bless & *ENJOY* ~Amy

All time great.......2007-09-01

I was always thrown off by the title, I assumed it was a chick flick. After seeing it, it's one of my favorites.

This Film Is A Joy.......2007-08-28

When the great William Goldman wrote the screenplay for Rob Reiner's 1987 film version of his own 1973 novel, The Princess Bride, Goldman actually outdid his own original work that was itself virtually flawless!

This is a perfectly cast production filled start to finish with great lines, wonderful scenes, unforgettable characters, and moments that are fun to watch over and over. It's also a romantic tale brimming with castles, dungeons, a cheek pinching grandpa, a beautiful maiden, dashing heroes, swordfights, torture, treachery, piracy on the high seas, magic, miracles, revenge, rodents of unusual size, and True Love. It's been one of my favorite movies since I first saw it on the big screen as a child, and I'll probably still be in love with this story when I'm old and gray.

I have not one bad thing to say about this enchanting movie.

No, not one.

This is not a chick flick.......2007-08-27

It's not a chick flick. It has: a Giant, an albino, swordsmen, sword fights, fist fights, chase scenes, fire, explosions... I don't know. It's a fun, entertaining movie to watch... for men and women.

Not just a "kissing movie"..........2007-08-25

One of the most entertaining movies to come out of Hollywood, "The Princess Bride" has the rare capacity to make you laugh harder with each viewing. And I have viewed it dozens of times. It translates across generations and languages. The DVD ups the entertainment factor with interviews with the ensemble cast, Rob Reiner, and William Goldman (the author of the book upon which the movie is based.) I was especially touched by the moving tributes to the late Andre (the Giant) Roussimoff.

I have owned this movie as a VHS tape since it was introduced. It has finally worn out, so naturally, I had to buy the DVD. What a joy!

If you haven't seen the movie, buy it now. You won't regret it. The world is full of Princess bride fans. How else will you know how to respond when they say, "Hallo, my name is Inigo Montoya, you killed my father, prepare to die!"

Average customer rating:

The video features the BEST SOUNDTRACK FOR THIS FILM.
Clever
The General
An Excellent Introduction to Buster Keaton
Silent trains

The General
Starring: Richard Allen , Glen Cavender , Mike Donlin , Jim Farley , and Ronald Gilstrap
Director: Bruckman, Clyde
Manufacturer: Image Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Classics | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

Slapstick | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

Classic Comedies | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

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10-12 Years | Kids & Family | Genres | DVD | Video

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ASIN: 6305609969
Release Date: 1999-10-26

Amazon.com essential video

Buster Keaton's career reached its creative apex with this rousing comic adventure. Not merely one of the finest silent films, this remains one of the great film comedies of all time. The Great Stone Face stars as Southern railroad engineer Johnny Gray, a man with only two loves: the sweet Annabelle Lee (Marion Mack) and his trustworthy engine, the eponymous General. When Fort Sumner is fired upon he's one of the first to enlist, but when the war office rejects him (he's too valuable as a trained engineer) his sweetie rejects him as a coward. Johnny has the opportunity to prove his bravery when Yankee spies steal his engine and inadvertently kidnap Annabelle, and Johnny pursues with all the resources at his disposal: handcar, bicycle, and finally railroad engine. Keaton's love/hate relationship with technology and machinery shines as he becomes one with his beloved locomotive and wrestles with a finicky cannon that threatens to blow his engine off the tracks; with tremendous dexterity, he nails the humor with inimitably deadpan takes. Spunky Marion Mack makes a perfect partner for Keaton, not merely a foil but a gifted comedienne in her own right. Other Keaton films contain more laughs and inspired comic stunts, but none combines romance, adventure, and comedy into a solid story as seamlessly as this silent masterpiece. --Sean Axmaker

Description

Consistently ranked among the best films ever made, Keaton's "The General" (1926, 75 min., stereo) is so brilliantly conceived and executed that it continues to inspire awe and laughter with every viewing. Rejected by the Confederate Army as unfit and taken for a coward by his beloved Annabelle Lee (Marian Mack), young Johnnie Gray (Keaton) sets out to single-handedly win the war with his cherished locomotive. Also includes "The Playhouse" (1921, 23 min., mono), a technical tour-de-force in which Keaton plays every member of a stage company, the entire audience and an undisciplined chimp to boot! "Cops" (1922, 18 min., mono) is the quintessential chase film, with Buster tumbling into a series of marvelous mishaps while fleeing hundreds of uniformed policemen. Digitally mastered from archival prints, with original musical scores.

Customer Reviews:

The video features the BEST SOUNDTRACK FOR THIS FILM........2007-08-10

When will someone release the Thames Television version of this film on DVD?
It has an outstanding score by Carl Davis that really helps the movie. All other prints of this film either have soporific 'film music' or completely inappropriate tracks. Davis is the only composer who seems to know that silent film music is supposed to support the action and work with the visual rhythms of the film.The GENERAL is a brilliant movie that works even better with the right track. While this is true of all silents, it's particularly crucial for this film.

Clever.......2007-07-05

I'm surprised to see people saying, "Yeah, Keaton did his own stunts. So what? So does Jackie Chan, and they're more outrageous." People, _The General_ is EIGHTY YEARS OLD. It's not going to look like _Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon_. Moviemakers were still figuring out the basics of stunts and special effects. I guess it doesn't look like much by comparison but Chan, et. al., are simply expanding on what Keaton and Harold Lloyd started.

The General.......2007-06-20

Widely considered one of the greatest films ever made, Keaton's "The General" finds the stone-faced physical comedian at the very height of his creative powers. Wrestling with a cannon or attempting to mount a moving train, Keaton's comic timing and expressive body language rival Chaplin's, and puts to shame the funnymen of today. Mack is terrific in her own right, playing off Keaton's impassive, foolhardy bravado with sprightly charm. The nuttiest stunts and chase sequences will leave your jaw on the floor, if you can ever stop laughing.

An Excellent Introduction to Buster Keaton.......2007-05-18

Buster Keaton has been given a new lease on popularity, especially after the past decade of Jackie Chan movies (film critics have often compared the two, although I think there is too much difference), and The General is his most well-known movie.

There are better Buster Keaton movies. Saying that, of course, is like saying you like one Marx Brothers movie better than another; if you like one you like them all, and if you don't -- well, this quality is shared by Buster Keaton, which makes The General an excellent starting point, because if you don't like this movie you just don't like Buster Keaton. If you do, you should also consider Sherlock, Jr., Steamboat Bill, Jr., and many others.

Silent trains.......2007-05-07

Buster Keaton, what can you say about this actor except he is fantastic in this silent movie. A great family show with lots of laugh's.

Average customer rating:

The video features the BEST SOUNDTRACK FOR THIS FILM.
Clever
The General
An Excellent Introduction to Buster Keaton
Silent trains

The General
Starring: Richard Allen , Glen Cavender , Mike Donlin , Jim Farley , and Ronald Gilstrap
Director: Bruckman, Clyde
Manufacturer: Alpha Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Classics | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

Slapstick | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

Civil War | Military & War | Genres | DVD | Video

4-for-3 All DVDs | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

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ASIN: B00008G8WX
Release Date: 2003-03-18

Amazon.com essential video

Customer Reviews:

The video features the BEST SOUNDTRACK FOR THIS FILM........2007-08-10

Clever.......2007-07-05

The General.......2007-06-20

An Excellent Introduction to Buster Keaton.......2007-05-18

Silent trains.......2007-05-07

Buster Keaton, what can you say about this actor except he is fantastic in this silent movie. A great family show with lots of laugh's.

Average customer rating:

All civilizations based on absolute subservience are dead
Outstanding film, a classic
Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence (1983, Nagisa Oshima)

Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence
Starring: David Bowie , Tom Conti , Ryuichi Sakamoto , Takeshi Kitano , and Jack Thompson
Director: Nagisa Oshima
Manufacturer: LW Editora
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

Drama | Military & War | Genres | DVD | Video

International | Military & War | Genres | DVD | Video

World War II | Military & War | Genres | DVD | Video

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ASIN: B00008G68R
Release Date: 2002-05-14

Customer Reviews:

All civilizations based on absolute subservience are dead.......2007-04-14

This film was kind of cult when it came out. Because of David Bowie of course, but also because of the side of the Second World War it showed. In this case, the Japanese refused to apply Geneva conventions and forced onto their prisoners the code of conduct of the Samourai. The result is of course a great level of suffering, total disregard of death and dying, treating a hara-kiri execution as an honor, an honorable spectacle that any soldier should consider as a privilege to be able to watch ... For these Japanese soldiers it is a sign of a total lack of courage to accept to be the prisoners of those who defeated you. The only honorable course of action should be dying, and killing themselves in the last run. When Jack Celliers is captured, tried and sentenced to come to this prisoners' camp, he is bound to explode the whole situation because the commander of the camp, Captain Yonoi, thinks he is different and might be of the Samourai vein. In fact Celliers is a typical British officer: never yields, never accepts the unlawful rule of the enemy, resists and disturbs as long as he is alive in their hands. Yonoi decides a two day fast for everyone, prisoners included, Celliers will provide the prisoners with flowers for food. He will thus lead Yonoi to absolute mental breakdown and the final straw that will break the camel's back will be the double brotherly kiss Celliers will give him in front of everyone when condemned to die or nearly. Celliers revealed thus Yonoi was attracted, fascinated, hence in love even if only as a soldier with Celliers. So Celliers will die buried neck deep in sand and Yonoi will come and get a lock of his hair before he is dead. This lock will be brought in a locket and deposited in a shrine in Japan by Mr Lawrence, the interface between Yonoi and the prisoners, after the war and after Yonoi was executed. The film reveals thus the head-on and headlong confrontation of two military civilizations: the Samourais were obviously condemned by history, but also by life and war. They could not survive this clash. David Bowie is superb in his role and Sakamoto is just as perfect. Cult it is, but also somewhere sickening. How could such an old civilization as Japan come to such an end? We will forgive the film for the obvious fakeness of all violent acts.

Dr Jacques COULARDEAU, University Paris Dauphine & University Paris 1 Pantheon Sorbonne

Outstanding film, a classic.......2006-02-20

This film explains the difference between Western thinking and Eastern thinking. The Japanese felt contempt for anyone who surrendered, against the Japanese teaching. The Japanese seemed brutal, but that was the in their experience and training. Near the end of the film the Japanese sergeant was confused about the capital punishment he was to receive. He only did as he was told. Much of the film is about the resistance and respect between the Bowie character and the Japanese commandant. It is the most unusual war film I have seen, now I will get it on DVD. It's an outstanding film.

Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence (1983, Nagisa Oshima).......2005-07-14

A highly unusual war movie with as many detractors as fans, this English-language feature directed by Nagisa Oshima (In the Realm of the Senses) stars David Bowie as a silent, ethereal POW in a Japanese camp. Protesting--via his own enigmatic rebellion--the camp's brutal conditions and treatment of prisoners, Bowie's character earns the respect of the camp commandant (Ryuichi Sakamoto). While the two seem locked in an unspoken, spiritual understanding, another prisoner (Tom Conti) engages in a more conventional resistance against a monstrous sergeant (Takeshi). The film has a way of evoking as many questions as certainties, and it is not always easy to understand the internal logic of the characters' actions. But that's generally true of Oshima's movies, in which the power of certain relationships is almost hallucinatory in self-referential intensity. The cast is outstanding, and Bowie is particularly fascinating in his alien way.

Average customer rating:

Overlooked and weird
Good adaptation of Orwell's novel; reservations with the ending
A Merry Romp
"...cold beef and salad."
A Merry War Is A Delightful Film

A Merry War
Starring: Richard E. Grant , Helena Bonham Carter , Julian Wadham , Jim Carter , and Harriet Walter
Director: Robert Bierman
Manufacturer: DVD International
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

Satire | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

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ASIN: B00000IQUV
Release Date: 1999-06-01

Customer Reviews:

Overlooked and weird.......2007-03-08

I didn't know this existed. If you don't thats o.k. too. Take it or leave it. It has the tortured poet and love and poverty English going for it. Not great.

Good adaptation of Orwell's novel; reservations with the ending.......2007-01-31

A Merry War is based on a not very well known book by George Orwell, Keep the Aspidistra Flying (it was shown in theaters under that name in some countries). In 1930s London, Gordon Comstock (Richard E. Grant in a not very impressive performance) stars as a copy writer in an ad agency (where he is considered among the best in the trade) who leaves his job in order to pursue his vocation as a poet. That turns out to be a very bad decision, not least because his poetry doesn't arise from mediocrity. His life goes downhill after leaving the ad agency, at least from a material point of view, moving from one bad form of housing to another worse, until he finishes in what 1930s Europe would be the equivalent of a slum. His long suffering girlfriend, Helena Bonham-Carter, accompanies him, but up to a point, and in the end, it is she who makes him go back to his senses. Comstock final embracement of bourgeoisie conformism (which is in the book) leaves something of a bad taste (also, the movie is surprisingly pro life on the issue of abortion). Something I have found also surprising: It has been said that Orwell turn away from the left after his disillusionment with the Stalinist repression of the trotskyites during the Spanish civil war, but this book was written before that war, and Orwell already happily punctures more than a few of the left's sacred cows.

A Merry Romp.......2006-10-09

Gordon Comstock (Richard E. Grant), a would-be poet, having successfully sold some poems, resigns from his job as a talented and successful copywriter, to the chagrin of his boss, to devote his life as a "free man" and to write poetry. His girl friend Rosemary (Helena Bonham Carter, Ari of the 2001 "Planet of the Apes"), who can hardly be called his fiancee as she continually hopes for marriage which does not come, and who also works at his former place of employment is dismayed at his quitting. Gordon begins to waste his life and alienates Rosemary as he sinks into total ruin with wild spending and drink. Rosemary discourages Gordon from having sex with her until one day in the woods she relented but changes her mind when she found he did not bring any protection. The movie takes place sometime in the late 1930's in England. My wife and I did not think this was a superior movie and give it 4 stars only because of the superb acting of the two principal characters. This review is based on a VHS rental.

"...cold beef and salad.".......2006-07-27

1. What is the period of history in England the movie portrays?

2. Who and what were the cultural influences the screenplay is alluding to?

3. Who were their authors in that time, what did they write about?

4. What were the economic trends? What about reform movements and society?

5. What is the symbolism of the toiletries manufacturer New Albion?

6. What is the symbolism of George's nicotine addiction and chain smoking?

7. The class struggle of one man is followed, what is his main conflict?

8. How does the movie progress the resolutions to the dilemma?

9. What does that say about the objectives of the film makers and the times in which the movie was made and what markets it approached?

10. What was the artistic movement (to the film and its creators), its origins, duration, successes, and prevalence?

11. Regarding question 10, what was it attempting to influence, who were its audiences, and how did they participate in what those performers had achieved?

12. What guidelines to role taking behavior implicitly or explicitly define audience reaction and appropriate feedback?

13. Are there equivalent norms of cultural exchange, or is there indication of caste separatism putting on a display?

14. Try to estimate both sides of the previous question or arbitrate examples for both; if equal then in what way, if role taking inhibitive then for what exclusory purposes?

15. Why do those artists need America?

16. Why does America need those artists?

17. What is the tragedy or irony of appreciating artwork while realizing some inner misgivings or irreverence for its token of esteem?

18. Define the afferent ennui and the efferent ennui, (your previous answer will have to avoid use of the word `ennui').
The following questions focus on the practical reference resources to acquiring solutions to this research:

20. Here is a short reading list for this assignment. Which would be the more immediate encyclopedic routes to ascertaining the film's setting, its period and influences: The entry for...Bertrand Russell, Edward VIII, John Stewart Mill, English literature, or Communism?

21. How did you identify the film's time period?

22. What does your historic gauge say about your cultural literacy or fascinations?

23. Compare your impressions of the film, before you researched the question set, to your sense of its communication afterward.

24. What effect does cultural literacy have on determining the receptive complexity of the film viewer?

25. Do most films and movie going behavior stimulate a desire to read more and what to read?

Bonus Questions---

26. Give the title of the film starring William Defoe where he plays T. S. Elliot.

27. What did that film impress on its audience?

28. What does the incorrect modal logic of Cambridge's Andrew Wile's alleged proof of Fermat's Last Theorem say about the pretense regarding the last question?

29. Apart from `Brave New World', what did Aldous Huxley write about?

30. Combine questions 29 and 27 regarding `Brave New World', then translate your apprehensions or clues to the factual modern period. Since this is an essay question, be specific, account real history and it effects.

31. In what other film does Richard Grant play an art skeptic?

A Merry War Is A Delightful Film.......2006-01-07

This review refers to "A Merry War" (VHS)

Helena Bonham Carter will charm your socks off. Richard Grant will have a smile pasted on your face for the entire length of the film. "A Merry War" is a delightful period piece, that you may want to replay again very soon.

Gordon Comstock(Grant) is an 'international poet' wannabe in the 1930's. He has a flair for the craft, he just can't seem to catch a break. He blames his misfortune on being middle class. He becomes obsessed with wanting to rise out of his station in life and live among the elite.He even has it in his head that his girlfriend(Carter)is holding out her favors because he has no money. When he does catch a little bit of a break, he hardly knows how to conduct himself. What Comstock doesn't see, is that he has what he is looking for right in front of him. Friends who care, a boss who respects and admires his work, and a woman who loves him deeply.

Based on the novel "Keep the Aspidistra Flying"(George Orwell), it's a film that will leave you smiling and with that feel good satisfaction. Director Robert Bierman does a fine job of taking us back to this period in time, right down to the marvelous costumes.

If you haven't seen this one yet, and you love a good tongue-in-cheek, romantic comedy, or a wonderful period piece, you must check this one out. If you have already seen it, have another look and remember why you liked it so much the first time around.

Enjoy....Laurie

Average customer rating:

Willie Smith - Willie the Lion
Starring: Willie "The Lion" Smith
Manufacturer: SHANACHIE
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Jazz | Styles | Music

Stride Piano | Traditional Jazz & Ragtime | Jazz | Styles | Music

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ASIN: B00028G7CU
Release Date: 2004-08-10

Description

Willie the Lion brings to life one of the most brilliant and contradictory men of jazz. One of the creators of a new stomping piano style known as "Harlem Stride," Willie "The Lion" Smith was a true American original - a captivating showman, a decorated war hero, a cantor in a Harlem synagogue, a teacher of young musicians like Artie Shaw, Duke Ellington and Thelonious Monk, and a composer of over a hundred songs including some of the most exquisite tunes in the jazz repertoire.

Average customer rating:

Somewhat second-rate but still interesting
Elusive Film Dilutes the Stroheim Touch
A Tale of Old Vienna
Von Stroheim Goes for a Spin
Half Stroheim, strange film

Merry-Go-Round
Starring: Norman Kerry , Mary Philbin , Dale Fuller , Maude George , and Cesare Gravina
Director: Erich von Stroheim , and Rupert Julian
Manufacturer: Image Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00008H2GZ
Release Date: 2003-04-08

Amazon.com

Erich von Stroheim's credit doesn't appear on Merry-Go-Round, though he wrote the story--about a caddish Count (Norman Kerry) in Old Vienna falling in love with a virginal commoner (Mary Philbin)--and began directing the film. "Von"'s obsessive, budget-busting methods had already tried producer Irving Thalberg's patience, and after a few weeks' shooting, Stroheim became the first director in history to be fired from a picture. Some of his footage survives, including an eerie suicide leap from a bridge and the Count's introduction in his absurdly grandiose bedchamber, but Rupert Julian, the undistinguished replacement director, shot the majority of the film. It shows. Stroheim's attempts to place his story within a textured portrait of Austrian society were scrapped, as was a final, deus ex machina suicide. Still, certain grotesque details and perverse twists could only have come from Stroheim's script--e.g., the devoted friendship of a hunchback and an orangutan. --Richard T. Jameson

Description

In Vienna circa World War I, decadent Count Franz Maximillian von Hohenegg (Norman Kerry), posing as a necktie salesman, falls in love with innocent Agnes (Mary Philbin), an organ grinder in the city's pleasure zone. An edgy assortment of characters including Franz's cigar-puffing mother, a sadistic brute and rapist, a sensitive hunchback and his trained gorilla, and royalty and circus freaks populate this lavishly-produced and fascinating cinematic classic. Though his name appears nowhere on the final product, legendary director Eric von Stroheim (Greed) penned the story and script, oversaw the sets and costumes, selected the cast, and directed at least one-quarter of the film before being fired by production head Irving Thalberg and replaced by director Rupert Julian (The Phantom of the Opera).

Customer Reviews:

Somewhat second-rate but still interesting.......2007-08-27

While this film does seem a bit disjointed and not fully developed at times, that's probably more understandable than it otherwise might be due to how Erich von Stroheim was fired as director midway through and replaced by Rupert Julian. In spite of the change in directors, the film is still full of genuine vintage Stroheim touches, like the decadent Austrian royalty, the somewhat macabre carnival setting, the horrifically nasty carnival director Huber, characters such as the hunchback Bartholomew (though I agree I didn't really see any hunchback), and even Boniface the orangutan. (I was kind of pleasantly surprised to see that this animal character was played by an actual orangutan and not a person in an obvious monkey suit, the way it seems to have been done in just about every other film from this era.) Even the overall dark sinister macabre mood is pure vintage Stroheim.

It takes awhile for the plot to finally be established, although the strategy of slowing unfolding a story instead of giving it to us all at once can be very effective at drawing the viewer fully into the story and the characters. Count Franz Maximilian von Hohenegg is a decadent playboy not very happy about his upcoming marriage to Countess Gisella von Steinbruck, and one night while out playing as usual and escaping spending time with his unwanted future bride, he meets Agnes Urban, the organ-grinder for the carousel at a local carnival. It being the movies, he of course falls in love with her at first sight, not really caring about the fact that she's far below his station. He lies to her that he's a necktie salesman, knowing full well that she wouldn't like him nearly as much nor feel she had a realistic chance with him if she knew the truth. Schani Huber, the inhuman brute who runs the carnival, doesn't take very well to this new development (he has a rather sadistic attraction to Agnes himself). He already does everything in his power to make her life, and the life of her puppeteer father Sylvester, miserable, and his treatment of the Urban family only gets even worse from this point on. Amidst a bunch of typical macabre Stroheim plot developments, World War I breaks out and Agnes comes to discover Franz's true identity. Now, in the middle of world war and some other tumultuous developments in her own personal life, she must decide if she can forgive Franz and if she will ultimately choose him, the man who seems to genuinely love her but did lie to her in such a big way, or Bartholomew, the kindly humble friend who has always loved her no matter what. All in all, a satisfying film, even in spite of a couple of rather convenient and implausible plot developments and an ending that I was actually kind of disappointed by. It's not exactly pretending to be the typical Hollywood fairytale romance story, though, so it shouldn't be castigated for not meeting the viewer's conventional expectations.

Elusive Film Dilutes the Stroheim Touch.......2003-07-17

I'd say the previous reviews covered the various aspects of MERRY-GO-ROUND quite well, but I think there's a few comments worth making on Erich von Stroheim himself that explain why his being fired from this film wasn't as terrible as it sounds. I have tried to read about everything there is on "Von" and especially enlightening are accounts written by people who actually worked on his films. No doubt he was a genius but he's usually depicted as a martyr for his art, crucified by the mercenary Hollywood bosses. The fact is that Hollywood is the only place in the world that could afford Stroheim and virtually every studio gave him a chance to direct. Despite the many years that he lived, worked, and was lionized in Europe during his later life, nobody ever entrusted him with directing a film there.

I'm no psychoanalyst, but something seems to have happened to him when he began directing a film. Read Gloria Swanson's account in her autobiography where she discusses the film, Queen Kelly. Von was perfectly reasonable until filming began, then he lost it. Perhaps Louis B. Mayer, of all people, summed it up best when he said in his later years that had Stroheim been just ten percent more reasonable, they would still be making films together. Everybody knew he was a genius, but even geniuses have to be a little reasonable. Personally, I could never understand why he insisted on making films much too long for commercial release. He understood the limitations very well but Hollywood always gets the blame!

MERRY-GO-ROUND was an attempt to separate Von Stroheim the director and actor from Von Stroheim the writer and producer. Not surprisingly, the results are mixed and film seems like imitation Stroheim. After he left Universal, he managed to direct films for all the major studios (MGM, Paramount, United Artists, Fox) except Warners, and even they discussed a possible film with him. In 1930, Universal hired him back, the first time he worked there since MERRY-GO-ROUND, to make a talkie remake of his first directing film, BLIND HUSBANDS. Again, he seemed reasonable until filming began. Universal fired him when he refused to use a stock recording of church bells but wanted a special crew to record bells as they sound when heard across a lake! Can you really blame the studio?

Viewed most charitably, Stroheim was a genuine film artist born out his time. Today he would be in his element directing controversial mini-series for HBO.

A Tale of Old Vienna.......2003-04-22

Merry-Go-Round begins in pre First World War Vienna. It is the story of Count Hohenegg (Norman Kerry) who, while pretending to be a necktie salesman, falls in love with a barrel organ grinder Agnes (Mary Philbin). However, he fails to tell her that the Emperor has commanded that he marry a Countess he does not love. It is immediately apparent from even the briefest of outlines of the story that this film bears the imprint of Erich von Stroheim. He wrote the story and began directing the film until he was replaced by Rupert Julian. It may well have been a better film if Stroheim had been allowed to continue, then again it may never have been finished. What can be said is that the troubled production of Merry-Go-Round is evident in the finished product. It is fascinating film with many good scenes, but it is no masterpiece.

Mary Philbin does well in the role of Agnes, particularly in one scene where she is menaced by her brutal boss. Norman Kerry is less effective. The role he plays requires him to be both sympathetic and something of a cad, but his performance lacks any sense of danger. He is far too nice to be a seducer. Von Stroheim would go on to play a similar character in The Wedding March and his performance in that film has just the right mix of dissolute charm and attractiveness. No one has been able to play the debauched aristocratic scoundrel like Von Stroheim. His acting is missed in Merry-Go-Round just as much as his direction.

Merry-Go-Round has good production values with convincing sets and fine costumes. The film is often quite beautiful to look at. According to notes on the DVD, the film we see is derived from two 16mm prints. The resulting print is quite pleasing to look at. It includes the original colour tints and has exquisite picture titles. At times there is quite a lot of print damage and the image is sometimes rather soft and lacking in sharp focus. But for the most part the print looks pretty good. It seems complete and has none of the breaks in continuity which mar some silent film prints. The scratches which appear, from time to time, are never really distracting. The music, which accompanies the film, is derived from the original cue sheet. It follows the action and the mood of the film well. Merry-Go-Round may not be a great film, but it is entertaining and well worth seeing.

Von Stroheim Goes for a Spin.......2003-04-17

Film historians generally-and in my opinion, rightly-consider Erich von Stroheim to have been among the greatest directors in movie history. But none of Stroheim's major works, starting with Foolish Wives, survives today in the form he intended. Of his mutilated masterpieces, The Wedding March probably comes closest to realizing his intentions. The picture was edited by another "von," Josef von Sternberg, who probably understood as well as any outsider could have what its creator had set out to do, and who gave the movie a compulsively vibrant intensity, as if Maurice Ravel's La Valse had been transferred to celluloid. But Stroheim never forgave him this act of lese majesty.
Merry-Go-Round was commenced after Stroheim had finished Foolish Wives at Universal, but Irving Thalberg, appalled by the director's contempt for budgets and refusal to knuckle under to the studio's demands, fired him and handed over the picture to the hack Rupert Julian, who got sole credit for the direction. Nevertheless, at least the first half of the movie shows the influence of Stroheim. Thalberg may have wanted to show Stroheim who was boss, but he by no means had a low opinion of the latter's abilities and would hardly have scrapped the footage that had already been shot out of spite (but see the note below).
Anyone familiar with The Wedding March will have no difficulty in recognizing in Merry-Go-Round a preliminary sketch for the later film. In Vienna just before the outbreak of World War I, an aristocratic but impoverished roué, Franz Maxmillian von Hohenegg (Norman Kerry) meets a poor girl, Agnes Urban (Mary Philbin) who works at a concession in the Prater. The girl herself is being hotly pursued by the brutal Schani (George Siegmann), owner of the concession, but is also the object of affection of the pathetic hunchback Bartholomew Gruber (George Hackathorne), whose pet orangutan eventually metes out Schani's just deserts.
Kerry and Philbin were stars of the period probably best remembered for playing opposite Lon Chaney in The Phantom of the Opera. They give adequate performances, although they pale in comparison to the trio of von Stroheim himself, Zasu Pitts, and Fay Wray in The Wedding March. Cognoscenti will also be able to easily spot such Stroheim regulars as Dale Fuller, who plays Schani's wife, and Cesare Gravina as the father of Agnes, performers whom Stroheim cast in similar roles in The Wedding March. Nor would they be likely to overlook the appearance of a truly legendary name among the technical credits: that of the great cinematographer William Daniels, the co-photographer of Merry-Go-Round, who went on to shoot Greed and The Merry Widow.
Von Stroheim's early works like Foolish Wives and this film were lurid melodramas that hovered between Griffith at his most sensationalistic and what might have resulted had someone let loose R. Crumb amid the ruins of the Hapsburg empire. Merry-Go-Round is emphatically not "Vienna, City of My Dreams"! But Stroheim was not interested in stripping bare the vices of the upper class just for whatever malicious pleasure it might have afforded him. Owing to repression, the vice which avows itself frankly in the lower classes takes on more extravagant, more refined, more perverse-and thus more aesthetically interesting-forms in the upper reaches of society. Here, but far more impressively in The Wedding March and Queen Kelly, Stroheim observes the antics of such etiolated specimens of a once powerful aristocracy with the rapt fascination of a zoologist studying the death throes of a species facing imminent extinction.
It may come as a surprise to younger movie buffs to find out that Stroheim was esteemed in his heyday as a "realist." Certainly from a present day perspective Stroheim's great films come across as the product of a highly idiosyncratic imagination-and seem about as realistic as a gargoyle on a Gothic cathedral. Yet starting with his next production, Greed, Stroheim's pictures not only became more technically audacious-especially in his use of tightly intercut close-ups-but also moved away from caricature into far more probing analyses of human behavior. While only a minor part of the von Stroheim corpus, Merry-Go-Round supplies a link between the earlier and later works, making it indispensable viewing for anyone who wants to study the surviving evidence of this astonishing director's career.
It is always worth keeping in mind that Stroheim had worked under D.W. Griffith, and evidently absorbed Griffith's visionary approach to film art-not to mention his preference for shooting movies on an epic scale. But von Stroheim's unremitting gaze exchanged Griffith's heliotropic apocalypses-Intolerance fittingly bears the subtitle "A Sun Play of the Ages"-for cosmic dramas of entropy. However, Stroheim was no cynic. His fascination with depravity sprang from a sense of outrage at the injustice of the universe and a desire to peel back the excrescence of centuries of civilized hypocrisy in order to show the truth of the human condition as he saw it. Stroheim's preferred terrain was Central Europe in its last throes of decadence, but when he cast his eye on the New World in Greed and Hello, Sister, it didn't look any more promising, just cruder.
David Shepherd has been responsible for a number of valuable restorations of important older films on DVD. Combining-and digitally remastering-two 16mm prints, he has done an impressive job with Merry-Go-Round. We all owe him a debt of gratitude for this outstanding DVD. This version preserves the original tinting and also boasts a stereo musical track based upon the score for the silent film.
New note: The excellent Kino Video DVD of Queen Kelly contains the sequences from Merry-Go-Round thought to have been shot by Stroheim as well as supplementary materials relating to the production of the film.

Half Stroheim, strange film.......2003-04-16

We will never know what would have become of this film if Erich von Stroheim hadn't been fired half-way through and been replaced by the merely competent Rupert Julian. The script is pure Stroheim and a complete rip-off of "The Wedding March." A rich Viennese (What else? This is Stroheim) prince is engaged to a royal woman but falls for a poor organ grinder in the local amusement park. An assortment of carnival types (including a hunchback whose hunchback is so small I could never see it - hardly the physical deformity that one might be self-conscious about) populate the film, along with Stroheim's usual re