Reviews (11)

Entertaining Movie, Bad History
Guadalcanal Diary is exactly what you'd expect to come out of Hollywood during the war--high on fluff and propaganda, low on substance. While it's true that some of the events in the film are based on real events, many are not. None of the Japanese attacks, like at the Tenaru and Bloody Ridge, are depicted though they're mentioned in the film. To have included these hair-raising night battles would've made the movie much more realistic and entertaining. With the exception of the ill-fated Goettge Patrol, what you have instead are fictional battles. For instance, the marines never did launch an offensive on the 10 November, the Marine Corps' birthday.

Guadalcanal Diary, however, does create the general feel of what it was like to fight on Guadalcanal, though nobody in this film is ever hungry, sick, or unshaven! You do find an excellent depiction of the Battleship bombardment on 13 October as well as some superb air raid scenes. This movie would have been much better if it was strictly based on the time-frame of the book (late July - 26 September). Too bad the movie didn't depict real battles and real people. It's still fun to watch, though. If you like war movies, you'll like this flick.

A well-made "flag waver", which also entertains.
Set apart by its realistic portrayal of the struggle for Guadalcanal from most other "flag-wavers" made during World War 2, this film is also most entertaining. Marines live and die in this film, and the Japanese also certainly die, as you would expect. The black and white photography and narration by Richard Tregaskis (an actor really) give the film a documentary realism. For civilian audiences, this film must have seemed absolutely real to them. However, while the Marines on the 'canal were literally starving to death for a while, the actors in this film stay remarkably healthy looking. Also, they shave every day. The cast is top notch. You'll recognize many past and future stars from it. Richard Jaeckal (the MP Sergeant in The Dirty Dozen ) started his film career in the movie. Guadalcanal Diary is a fine example of the World War 2 film, made to bolster civilian morale during the war years. It is well worth seeing and owning, as a piece of cinematic history.

"boys with a memory of death in their eyes"
Based on Richard Tregaskis' popular book of his account of the action at Guadalcanal, when the first detachment of U.S. Marines landed in the Solomon Islands in August of 1942, this is a tough and gritty war film with a sturdy ensemble cast, who do a wonderful job of recreating the diverse characters in the story, from Anthony Quinn who dreams of his señoritas, to the young Richard Jaeckel, who is always writing home to mom.
Preston Foster, William Bendix, Lloyd Nolan and Richard Conte are the other actors that contribute to make the film interesting, along with the narration by Reed Hadley which contrasts with the everyday speech of the dialogue and at times is quite poetic.

Enduring the humid jungle, often plagued with torrential rain, and at one point running out of food and needing reinforcements, the narrator says of October 10th, "...for we are tired, after days of heat and rain, dust and disease, mud and malnutrition, weeks of constant fighting...", the film depicts a lot of heroism, the caring for one another, and much patriotism.
The battle cinematography by Charles Clarke is visually exciting, though all very sanitized, as none of the intense fighting is graphic, and one must remember that this is a 1943 film, and the language used is far from politically correct; those who can't put it into historical perspective should avoid seeing it.
Total running time is 93 minutes.

Well staged war movie
This account of the struggle to retake the South Pacific island of Guadalcanal from the occupying Japanese army in World War two is marked by superbly staged battle sequences .It -uniquely for the period -eschews the standard gung ho flag waving that marked most Hollywood war movies of the era (understandably ,in my book given the circumstances)and depicts a very matter of fact view of the average soldier's life in combat situations.
The acting honours are stolen by the under-rated Richard Jaeckel but there is sterling support from reliable performers like William Bendix,Richard Conte ,Lloyd Nolan and the great Anthony Quinn.
A war movie showing rare honesty and integrity .

Just Want To Go Home.
Set in the early days of WWII in the Pacific, the film follows a unit of Marines as they battle everything from disease and treacherous terrain to just being tired of not being at home. The Marines go from one battle to another, fighting to stay alive and keep there hopes up. There is a rogue Sgt. (Lloyd Nolan), a simple cab driver from Brooklyn (William Bendix), and a troubled Marine (Anthony Quinn)! With well done battle's and a outstanding script, this film is considered to be one of the best films done during WWII! If you can put aside that it was made in 1943, and it is not as realistic as it would be today. It is sure to get the message across and deliver the goods. One of the best war films of all time!
Grade:A ... Read more

Reviews (11)

Classic Cliffhanger -- Best Jungle Serial Ever!
Despite my youthful age (over 40 / under 50), as a long-time fan of the sound motion picture serial, I've had the pleasure of seeing -- and now, thanks to video, owning -- virtually all of the greats from what was considered the "golden age" of movie serials.

From Batman to Zorro, the Lone Ranger to Flash Gordon, or Dick Tracy to Captain Marvel, they all had their own special appeal and allure. Granted, although all too often there were signficant differences in quality and production values, every fan had a favorite. And, for me and millions of other fans, no serial ever made was more exciting, entertaining, or intense as the action-packed thrills and perils found in "Jungle Girl."

Loosely based upon the Edgar Rice Burroughs novel of the same name and released in 1941 by Republic Pictures, the film starred beautiful Frances Gifford as Nyoka, the Jungle Girl. Unusal for the period, this was the first attempt (since the silent days of Pearl White) to feature a female as the lead in a movie serial.

Doubled equally by Helen Thurston and stunt ace David Sharpe, Nyoka swung through the trees with an acrobatic skill unseen in the much higher budgeted Tarzan films. Fighting diamond hunting gangsters and savage natives, she successfully endures 15-chapters of some of the best cliffhanger perils ever filmed . . . from lethal fire traps, avalanches, drownings, poison gas, falls from cliffs, and quicksand, just to name a few.

Opposed by "Slick" Latimer and Shamba, the Witch Doctor, (for me, one of the scariest villains in serial history) Nyoka barely survives to defeat her enemies and save the day. Universally considered one of the best serials ever made (and definitely the best jungle serial ever made), Jungle Girl was directed by the cream of action directors, William Witney and John English. It was so successful, the following year it spawned an even more popular sequel, "Perils of Nyoka."

For an example of the motion picture serial at its best, you can't do much better than "Jungle Girl" or its sequel. It's influence is felt to this day by modern serial fans like Steven Speilberg and George Lucas and many of their films, particularly the Star Wars and Indiana Jones series, owes a debt of gratitude to this long gone, but not forgotten, American art form.

Classic Cliffhanger!
As a long-time fan of the old motion picture serials, I've had the pleasure of seeing (and now, thanks to video, owning) many of the greats from the "golden age" of movie serials.

From Batman to Zorro, the Lone Ranger to Flash Gordon, or Dick Tracy to Captain Marvel, they all had their own special appeal and allure, although all too often there were signficant differences in quality and production values. Every fan had a favorite. However, for me and millions of other fans, no serial ever made was more exciting, entertaining, or intense as the action-packed thrills and perils found in "Jungle Girl."

Loosely based upon the Edgar Rice Burroughs novel of the same name and released in 1941 by Republic Pictures, the film starred beautiful Frances Gifford as Nyoka, the Jungle Girl. Unusal for the period, this was the first attempt (since the silent days of Pearl White) to feature a female as the lead in a movie serial.

Doubled by stunt ace David Sharpe, Nyoka swung through the trees with an acrobatic skill unseen in the much higher budgeted Tarzan films. Fighting diamond hunting gangsters and savage natives, she successfully endures 15-chapters of perils from lethal fire traps, avalanches, drownings, poison gas, falls from cliffs, and quicksand, to name a few.

Opposed by Shamba, the Witch Doctor, one of the scariest villains in serial history, Nyoka barely survives to defeat her enemies and save the day. Considered one of the best serials ever made (and definitely the best jungle serial ever made), Jungle Girl was directed by the cream of action directors, William Witney and John English. It was so successful, the following year it spawned an even more popular sequel, "Perils of Nyoka."

For an example of the motion picture serial at its best, you can't do much better than "Jungle Girl" or its sequel. It's influence is felt to this day by modern serial fans like Steven Speilberg and George Lucas and many of their films, particularly the Indiana Jones series, owes a debt of gratitude to this long gone, but not forgotten, American art form. END

Queen of serials !
I bought this DVD at amazon France. "Jungle girl" is my second serials. First one was the silent "Tarzan, the Tiger" with Frank Merrill. The jungle adventures with Frances Gifford as Nyoka are really breathtaking. She looks great and I was very sad when I read that she had in the mid-forties such a terrible car accident which injured her so much. Everyone in this cliffhanger did a fine job. Of course don't forget the vilains : Latimer (Gerald Mohr, great actor of B-movies) and Shamba (Frank Lackteen). What would have been serials without such figures ? Even, I'm a newcomer in this genre, it's obvious for everyone that serials described the eternal fight between good and evil. Another point is very interesting : Serials have sometimes female heros (think about Linda Stirling in the very masculine part of Zorro !).
The DVD quality is really good. The picture looks sharp most of the time and the sound is also OK. The trailers of other serials (in the bonus area) are very entertaining and of course interesting for someone like me who discovers this little gems from another time ! But what a great Time it must have been! William Witney and John English were real Kings of Serials. It's a pity that such artists never became an Oscar for their lifework behind the cameras. Thanks to them !

Clean Print & Hiss-Free Audio Leave Me Swingin!
VCI Video got ahold of a nice clean print from the UK/Irish distribution and really put together a crisp visual & no-hiss audio package here! One of the great Republic serials, Jungle Girl gets her due in this release... from the packaging to the super-affordable price (if you don't think so, shop around). Each episode is complete, from the opening music to the closing credits (and not abridged in from the "where we left off" recap at the beginnings). A nice job all the way from VCI. Time for me to go... now where'd I park my elephant??!! ;^)

I flip whenever Nyoka does a swinging flip on the vine.
I always view earlier films with a different mindset than when I am watching modern films. While watching Jungle Girl, I put myself back in the 1940's when I was a kid watching the Saturday matinees. I also stretched this serial out (as it was originally intended) by watching no more than one or two chapters at each viewing session.

Under those conditons, I thoroughly enjoyed this serial. The resolution of the cliffhanger at the beginning of each chapter is handled in a credible fashion and the fist fights between the heroes and villains are well choreographed. (The gun fights aren't handled as well). Nyoka manages to appear unflappable even after several instances of being dunked in the water or tied to a pole. The key to this type of movie is the performance of the villains and here they are a credit to their class. ... Read more

Reviews (17)

The End of the Road
I've had the advantage of seeing The Petrified Forest as a movie and on stage. Taking into account the fact that the stage production I saw wasn't the greatest, I still think that the movie version captured the story better. The story is dated and clearly belongs in the time period it was made, but that works in the film. The performances also work. Leslie Howard, sort of a forgotten Thirties' star these days, manages to make some difficult dialogue play well. Humphrey Bogart, in an early role as the young gangster, makes his character an interesting and sympathetic figure, despite not having many moments to really develop the character with dialogue. Bette Davis brings a lot of conviction to her role as the young, full of ideas waitress that Howard falls in love with. The Petrified Forest is a hostage drama, but it's more than that. It looks at life, growth, love, and disillusionment. It presents a nice contrast of characters, since Howard and Bogart are both at the end of their roads, having gotten there in very different ways. Bearing in mind that the film/play was written for an audience in the Thirties, today's movie fan will still find truths and entertainment in it.

Should Be on DVD!!
I taped The Petrified Forest a couple of years ago when it was shown on TCM and I thought it was a very good movie! Bette Davis plays a young woman who lives in a desert town with her father and works as a waitress in his desert cafe, she is bored and would love to leave home and go see the world! A disillusioned writer played by Leslie Howard stops at the cafe and she falls for him but when a criminal played by Humphrey Bogart and his gang are on the run from the law they hide out in the cafe and hold everyone hostage. This is a good movie and I like that Bette Davis is playing a nice girl who is sweet and compassionate when it seems that she was generally known for playing ruthless, cold and calcuating women so this is a nice change. I recommend this movie, I don't think it's been put on DVD yet but I really think it should be put on DVD!

Fascinating film debut for Humphrey Bogart
Actually, this was not quite Bogart's debut. He had been in a few utterly forgettable films in tiny roles in the early 1930s before returning to Broadway, but this is his "real" debut.

THE PETRIFIED FOREST had been a highly successful stage play starring Leslie Howard and Humphrey Bogart, and Warner Brothers wanted to do a film version of it. They therefore approached Howard with the offer, indicating that they would like to have him reprise his starring role, and have him star opposite Edward G. Robinson as Duke Mantee. Howard, however, indicated that he would only make the film if his Broadway costar, Bogart, played Duke Mantee. At this point in his career, Bogart's acting career had consisted primarily in playing juvenile parts in various plays (the famous line "Tennis anyone?" is perhaps mythically attributed to one of his roles, but sums up the spirit of onstage persona) and failed attempts to break into film. Playing Duke Mantee had been a dramatic departure for Bogart, who had never previously played a heavy. Luckily for film history, Howard insisted that he would not make THE PETRIFIED FOREST unless Bogart played Mantee.

Historically, the most important thing about this film is that it launched Bogart's film career. Although he would spend the next four years playing a huge number of gangsters, he was, nonetheless, after this film, a Hollywood mainstay, becoming the number four gangster in the Warner Brother stable after Robinson, Cagney, and Raft.

THE PETRIFIED FOREST is, however, entertaining on its own. The one great negative of the film is the fact that it is very obviously a film version of a stage play. The action of the film is limited to only a few locations, and overall the production has a very static feel. Although there are some interesting sets, with some fascinating painted backdrops of Arizona landscape (some of it was shot live, but most of it is done in a studio), the real interest in the film lies in the performances. Leslie Howard made far too few films for my taste. I know he was deeply involved in the stage, but he was both immensely talented and quite charismatic. Unfortunately, his bizarre death cut his talent off far too soon (during WW II, the Luftwaffe shot down a plane he was in, thinking that a military or political VIP was on it). Bogart is striking as Duke Mantee. Bette Davis is as enjoyable in this as any film I have seen her in. I have to confess that by and large I don't care for Bette Davis. She has a tendency to over enunciate every word in a way that is not merely unnatural but a little unnerving. She never seems at ease on screen. She always seems to be "acting." Still, she is well suited to this role.

Leslie is the star, but Humphrey's the cover guy? Strange...
I could sum this up in a very brief paragraph, and I will, because it simply did not thrill me to the depths of my soul, leaving me appropriately petrified.

Bette Davis was fine. Leslie Howard is, as usual, a watery intellectual, this time turned hitchhiker. Humphrey Bogart is the tough guy whose entire role required little more than sitting pointing a gun at people. The others were unremarkable.

This movie wants so much to live, and love, and be loved, but there is nothing to be found for it - not here nor anywhere else. It longs to be buried somewhere in the Petrified Forest, where the winds can blow over it, and perhaps - being so chocked full of dramatic, poetic statements, some will leak out from its grave, and the occasional tourist will hear the gentle whisper, "'Tis for this end that we twain are met!"

Let this movie rest in peace.

Classic Story of Good vs. Evil Battle -- One of the Best
Humphrey Bogart and Leslie Howard reprise their stage roles as "bad guy/good guy" in this ever timely tale of greed and ruthlessness vs. selfless and compassionate courage. Caught in the middle of this age old story is a young Bette Davis, who in the course of hours learns to love the "hero", never stopping to despise the evil enemy.

The setting is a diner, suddenly held-up by Bogart, who eventually shoots and kills the kindly Howard who 'dared' to stand up to the bully (mainly to protect Davis). The helpless waitress (with the universal 'dream' to get away and make a better life for herself), sees the crisis as a 'sign'. Before dying, Howard makes Davis the sole benefitiary of a modest insurance policy, which Davis tearfully accepts.

This film lives on in Cinema History as one of the true classics of all time. The transition from stage to silver screen was sucessful, especially when considering that the story was made available to a much greater audience. This is a highly recommended 5-star film!***** ... Read more

Amazon.com

By turns hard-nosed and ribald, They Drive by Night smashes through a vintage Warner Bros. yarn about truck drivers, the Depression, and one duplicitous dame. The opening reels are a forceful look at the dangerous lives of independent truckers (George Raft and Humphrey Bogart as brothers--Bogie in the supporting role, though he would soon eclipse Raft in Hollywood), battling the system and the economy. The final section veers into a less exciting murder frame-up, but Ida Lupino is so delicious as the Black Widow, it works. The robust humor of director Raoul Walsh dominates the film, with some truly hilarious double entendres aimed at outfoxing the censors. At the center of many such one-liners is Ann Sheridan, as a waitress who slings more than hash. It's close to being a classic, and the road sequences are as vital as those in The Grapes of Wrath, made the same year. --Robert Horton ... Read more

Reviews (8)

A diverging story brought together under crime...
The Fabrini brothers, Joe (George Raft) and Paul (Humphrey Bogart), are truck drivers that struggle to make it on their own as a loan shark is on their heels trying to repossess their truck . It all seems futile as Joe and Paul's competition is full of bigger companies that do not care about the smaller companies as it is a dog eat dog world. This forces the Fabrini brothers to work long hours often without adequate sleep. One night after a rough day Joe and Paul pick up a hitchhiker, Cassie Hartley (Ann Sheridan), and together the three of them witness a truck accident where some friends die as they fell asleep behind the wheel. This is a wake up call for the brothers as they have different priorities in their lives, and it brings them in different directions. They Drive By Night is an interesting film with multiple themes, which offers a good cinematic experience

"The doors made me do it! The doors made me do it!"
This awesome classic starts out as a drama about the hard lives of truckers but ends up being a sort of film noir! Ann Sheridan was perfectly cast as a sassy independant woman, & I loved seeing George Raft & Humphrey Bogart playing brothers! And of course let's not forget Ida Lupino, one of the best (& craziest) femme fatales of all time! Also there's Alan Hale, who adds a whole lot of humor to the mix! I won't go into the plot b/c other reviews have fully explained the plot, but I will say that you definitely need to add this gem to your dvd collection! Be aware that the real star of the film is George Raft, despite the misleading cover art, which tries to cash in on Bogey's fame. This wasn't disappointing to me at all, though. I thought George Raft was cool! I highly recommend this to fans of great classics.

A Hidden Gem!
They Drive by Night was so much fun to discover! Anyone who likes old movies will enjoy seeing this one. With Bogie as George Raft's little brother, working together as truckers, and the wonderfully wicked Ida Lupino married to the blissfully ignorant Alan Hale, this movie was a joy to watch from start to finish.

Dynamic Lupino!
When I first watched this movie, I was only mildly interested in the first part which shows how hard life is for two trucker brothers (Raft and Bogart). Only when Ida Lupino is introduced as the off-kilter, man-killing Lana Carlson did I really sit up and take notice. She continued to steal all her scenes as she degenerates into madness after killing her buffoon of a husband for the cold Raft character. Her gradual breakdown is something to see and electrified audiences in l940. When she begins to shriek on the witness stand: "The doors made me do it!", you freeze in amazement at her powerful acting. Her "mad" scene was phenomenal. A note: compare her portrayal of the man-crazed heroine to the way Bette Davis portrayed her in the original, the l934 "Bordertown". Davis always bragged that the quiet way she went crazy on the stand was the right way but after seeing how Lupino did it, you'll think that Davis was wrong. Sorry, Bette, but Lupino did it a l00 times better and a hell of a lot more powerful. Lana Carlson--one mixed-up, crazy dame from Warner Brother's golden days--thanks to the genius of Ida Lupino!

Watch Lupino Go
They Drive By Night has a lot going for it. It's directed by Raoul Walsh, who knew how to make a tough guy movie, yet give it some heart. It has two of the screen's great tough guys, George Raft and Humphrey Bogart. It also has two of the screen's best tough guy girlfriends, Ann Sheridan and Ida Lupino. And it has some really great dialogue that time has not dated. It's the story of two truckers who are brothers, and it looks at the difficulties facing truckers (sleeplessness that can lead to accidents, suppliers that don't pay up, etc). Bogart and Raft are good as the brothers, although Raft doesn't have much of a range as an actor. Raft hooks up with Sheridan, a woman who can hold her own with any trucker. Sheridan plays her with just the right mix of outward toughness, but decency and tenderness, too. Unfortunately, Lupino wants Raft, and she won't be denied what she wants. Lupino gives the performance that you'll remember from this film. She becomes more intense with every scene, and by her last scene, she reaches a level that is amazing to behold. With Lupino's performance and the great dialogue, They Drive By Night is a Warner Brothers' film that should be seen. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Rita Hayworth really was a screen goddess in the late 1940s--so why not cast her as Terpsichore, the goddess of dance? That's the premise of this splashy Technicolor musical, which borrows some devices (and cast members) from Here Comes Mr. Jordan. Rita descends to earth to inject authenticity into a Broadway show about Terpsichore, posing as an actress and turning the head of impresario Larry Parks (then in the brief moment between his Jolson Story smash and his blacklisting). This leads to an overblown, pretentious out-of-town tryout, an amusing sequence that predicts the highbrow disaster in The Band Wagon. In general, this film is funnier than its reputation, although it doesn't add up to anything and the song score is tepid (with one delightfully weird number where Rita considers bigamy with Parks and dancer Marc Platt). And Rita? Very creamy looking in a series of lavish gowns--and hardly down to earth. --Robert Horton ... Read more

Description

Motion picture serials from the '20s to the '50s were short adventure films that played before the feature attractions. Genres included horror, sci-fi, mystery, superhero, western and more that were played over 10-15 episodes in order to entice the audience back to the theatre the following week.Serials were known as "cliffhangers" because each episode would leave the viewer hanging, always "to be continued" until the final episode's resolution 10 or 15 weeks later.

One of the most memorable serials of the 1930's was The Phantom Creeps (1939).Bela Lugosi stars as Dr. Alex Zorka, a mad scientist, who conducts bizarre experiments in a secret laboratory with his assistant, Monk, an ex-convict.Dr. Zorka's inventions are sought after by the U.S. Government as well as hostile spies.The source of his inventions' power is a meteorite fragment he discovered in Africa, containing a source of limitless energy.Hokey, entertaining, and funny by today's standards, The Phantom Creeps is a classic example of the bygone era of Saturday matinees at the local movie house.All 12 episodes are presented here in their original unedited version.

... Read more

Reviews (5)

wacky editing mania
This tape is nuts. When it arriaved at my house I was very dissapointed to find that it was only 80minutes long. The other version said that all the twelve episodes fill about 200 minutes. So i was bummed that i only got volume one out of 3 or something. But It turns out that this tape is a compilation of the best moments throughout the serial. This procedure of turning 200 and something minutes into 80 minutes a fun and wacky ride. There are so many jambled up plot lines, people running into scenes then back out in a cut, and then peopleliving through speeding plane wrecks and car explosions (With no explination). Over all the tape is rockin and I highly recommend it. A Cheasy Good Time!

Creepy Bela
The Phantom Creeps was Bela Lugosi's last serial. Lugosi is Dr. Zorka another mad scientist looking to take over and control the world. He tries to achieve this World domination with a number of gadgets. He has built an 8-foot robot, a belt that makes him invisible, and a gas that suspends animation, which he delivers with mechanical spiders. Through the 12 episodes an Army intelligence officer and a newspaperwoman chase him.

The 12 episodes are:

1) The menacing Power
2) Death Stalks the Highway
3) Crashing Timbers
4) Invisible Terror
5) Thundering Rails
6) The Iron Monster
7) The Menacing Mist
8) Trapped in the Flames
9) Speeding Doom
10) Phantom Footprints
11) The Blast
12) To Destroy the World

I purchased this DVD because Bela Lugosi was in it. I was not disappointed - I have really enjoyed it. The quality is not bad. There are options to play each episode or play all 12 continuously.

Good Serial, Bad DVD
The Phantom Creeps, Bela Lugosi's final movie serial, holds a special place in my memories for being the first complete chapterplay I had seen. I had seen portions of others but never a complete one before this. Lugosi steals the serial as Doctor Alex Zorka, a brilliant scientist who has made a series of inventions from a meteorite he found in Africa--via footage from "The Invisible Ray" for the Africa sequence. He wants to sell his secrets to the highest bidder, but the US Government wants to stop him. What is unusual for this serial is that I feel that Zorka was initially the good guy of the story before the US and a spyring start looking for his secrets and thus hounding him into insanity. The DVD for this is painful. The print used retains the Commonwealth (TV?) logo instead of the normal Filmcraft or Universal logo. Sound is muddy at quite a few places. Picture will be dark in a few places--sometimes in a daytime scene. They use only one set of opening credits for the 12 chapters. Normally, Universal would use a opening which showed the main cast for its first 3 episodes while the remaining episodes would use an opening that merely lists who the actors were. It is this second opening that is on the DVD and is only used once for all 12 chapters. There are no extras on this disc, such as a trailer, although you can choose to play it all at once or select an individual chapter. There is an insert with information on Lugosi. There are better VHS copies out there and in my own collection at one time I had an actual film print which had the Universal logo. I can't really recommend this DVD unless you don't have a copy of this serial at all. I wouldn't buy another disc from Whirlwind Media, the releasers of the disc, unless it was an extremely rare serial that probably would not be released any other way. Now if only Universal would get off its duff and start releasing their own serials instead of letting people with Public Domain prints do it, I might be a little bit more happy.

Unfathomable phantom
I bought this DVD to replace a Beta tape version I had made several years back. I like my tape better. This is a great, campy serial, but the terrible source quality of this DVD version makes it a poor choice. The original film (16 mm.?) jumps in spots; the dark contrast makes some scenes impossible to fathom; and the soundtrack is muffled and uneven.

Lugosi Destroys the Hindenburg!
"The Phantom Creeps" (1939) is 12 chapters of Universal serial hokum. In other words, it's a lot of fun. Bela Lugosi plays Dr. Zorka to the hilt, ably assisted by Universal's vast catalog of stock footage and classic music scores. The final chapter is particularly memorable, as mad scientist Lugosi gleefully brings down the Hindenburg. Universal did not make the best serials, but "The Phantom Creeps" is one of the studio's better efforts with Lugosi in top form. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Classic Clair - Always makes me smile
In the Hollywood tradition of the 1940's feel good cinema comes a non-Hollywood production that is just as charming. I will never get bored of this film, from the comic interludes to the hokey ending that was required of all movies in that era. Why, oh why, can't someone produce movies like this anymore? At every turn I, a 21 year old boy, simply thought, "Cool". A must see for anyone who appreciates old fashioned, cheese-ball cinema.

A stinker
One wonders why UCLA spent time and money to refurbish this clunker. Young Linda Darnell, however gorgeous, can barely act. Jack Oakie plays...well, Jack Oakie. Edgar Buchanan is wasted as a cop. Dick Powell, now shedding his dumb tenor roles in those Busby Berkeley films, is competent and does his best to make this unfunny movie at least palatable.

If you're into amateur theatre, you might like this. Otherwise, save your money.

A Satyrical but Charming Fantasy-Comedy
The great french master Rene Clair directed this movie when he was in exile in Hollywood. Dick Powell (who is slightly aged at this point; his haydays as a baby face was in the thirties) plays a news paper editor to whom, by some miracle, somebody put's the next day's paper in his pocket. In stead of telling this story as a fairy tale, Clair choses to direct it as a screwball comedy. And his sense of mad-cap comedy is as zany as in his more famous French films such as in Le Million, Les Belles de Nuit, making it a quite an enjoyable comedy with certain philosophical (but never serious) undertone. The tape is made from a beautiful print restored and preserved by UCLA Film-TV Archives. The black and white cinematography and the sets depicting New York at the turn of the century is also a joy to watch. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

A Really Good Video
Bells of San Angelo is one of my favorite Roy Rogers videos. Dale and Roy have some great lines and the fight scene is really good. Dale, the writer of fanciful cowboy novels, actually helps save the day. This video is really great and I hope every one enjoys watching it as much as I did.

" 'Atta boy, Roy!"
Sturdy Grade B western fun starring Roy Rogers, Dale Evans, Trigger, and the whole gang. Gravelly voiced Andy Devine is the comedy relief sheriff. ("Aw, Roy! You didn't have to do that!"). Bob Nolan and the Sons of the Pioneers sing as they ride along the trail. I mean, what else do you want in a western movie? Roy is a border investigator, and Dale is a visiting western novelist. An inscription on the mission bells of San Angelo carries the clue to a lost silver mine. A gang of smugglers committing murder and mayhem along the Mexican-U.S. border have their own dastardly plans for the mine's valuable silver-ore.

This movie is a cut above the typical Roy Rogers western musical revue. There are occasional musical numbers, but they are not obnoxiously intrusive. Hard-riding, two-fisted action is stressed instead. In fact, the movie was criticized in 1947 for being too violent. There is one scene, for example, that shows an outnumbered Roy getting beat to a non-bloody pulp. Now, when was the last time you recall RR losing a fistfight? This movie is good fun for those raised on a steady diet of TV and movie westerns filled with black-hearted villains and roaring six-guns. The movie has one sterling example of immortal dialogue. As Roy socks one of the bad guys, Dale urges him on with the classic line, " 'Atta boy, Roy!" Probably the most succinctly cogent summary one can give of this movie. Nostalgia buffs can nestle in and enjoy this one.

Comments on Bells of San Angelo
The visual (including color) and sound quality of this video are very good. This full length color version of Bells of San Angelo, which was the second of 19 Trucolor films released by Republic, is highly recommended for Roy Rogers'collectors. It co-stars Dale Evans and Andy Devine (who took "Gabby" Hayes place in the series). This was the last appearance of Dale Evans until her return in Sussana Pass, a later entry in the Trucolor series. Jane Frazee replaced her for several Rogers' Trucolor films. In a post World War II attempt to bring more realism to the Roger's films, Bells of San Angelo includes a segment in which Roy takes a savage beating. Such scenes were a trademark of director William Witney who took over the series in mid 1946. ... Read more

Amazon.com

The beast in The Flying Serpent is Quetzalcoatl, the feathered serpent god ofthe Aztecs. Evil archaeologist George Zucco keeps this half-bird,half-reptile creature caged in a secret chamber within some New Mexico ruins,the better to guard a cache of Montezuma's hidden gold. The professor hasobviously cracked under the strain of his studies, leading his stepdaughterto deliver the immortal line, "I wish there was never any such thing as AztecIndians." (They probably feel the same way about you, honey.) The Q-monster'skillings are investigated by a radio sleuth, adding a weird wrinkle to thescenario; important revelations in the story have a funny way of happeningwhile the sleuth's show is live on the air. Two reasons for seeing this58-minute cheapie from rock-bottom PRC studio: George Zucco, the tireless, beetle-browed villain of countless '40s B movies (with the occasionalgoodie, such as Moriarty in The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, thrown in),and the campy Quetzalcoatl, a forerunner of Japanese horror-movie monsters. In this film, the Aztec deity generally resembles a poorly crafted piñataflung across a wire--he flaps his wings with that weird,aerodynamically suspect motion familiar to Rodan-watchers. For more on theadventures of Quetzalcoatl, see Larry Cohen's 1983 thriller Q: The Winged Serpent, a nutty variation on the same creature. --Robert Horton ... Read more

Reviews (5)

What an Interesting Feather...
George Zucco plays the villain in this little film. The story is very similar to Lugosi Devil Bat but more rural.

Zucco has found a Quetzalcoatl and keeps it captive. The serpent bird is very protective of its feathers. Zucco collects them and gives them to those he has a grudge against. The creature is then released which attacks the holder of the feather. Of course good triumphs over evil as it usually does in these old films.

The effects of the creature and its flights are actually quite sophisticated. Zucco does his usual good job as the villain and gets good support from the rest of the cast.

A fun old B-film that holds together well even after all these years.

Great movie, bad audio quality
A great classic PRC Pictures cheapie. The only drawback is the audio quality of the disc.

The infamous flying bird/lizard monster movie from PRC
"The Flying Serpent" terrorizing everyone in this infamous Poverty Row Company production is Quatzalcoatl, the killer bird god of Aztec legend. However, when the monstrous puppet on strings shows up it is something of a welcome relief from the overacting of George Zucco as Professor Andrew Forbes, a demented archeologist who discovers the monster really exists. When he makes the mistake of giving his wife (Hope Kramer) one of the bird's feathers, only to see the monster track her down and kill her, he decides this is a golden opportunity to take care of some of his enemies. My favorite scene is when the reporter covers a couple of the murders live on the radio. This is one of those gloriously bad horror movies from the past; you have probably seen the cheesy monster at some point, so you might as well check out the rest of the story. This 60-minute 1946 film is credited on screen to director Sherman Scott, but that is just one of the pseudonyms used by Sam Newfield (the other was Peter Stewart). Newfield needed the cover because he was turning out a dozen films a year at that point in a career where he made over 200 films including a high of 23 in 1943. The obvious double-feature choice for "The Flying Serpent" is "Q," Larry Cohen's 1982 cult classic that deals with pretty much the same story.

Somewhat passable, for a grade Z effort
THE FLYING SERPENT has no aspirations of greatness. But it does have the coolly sinister George Zucco! A bargain-basement remake of another poverty row classic THE DEVIL BAT, this film passes the hour (running time: 59 minutes) serving up mild amusement. Zucco pretends to be innocent, but we all know (and so should everyone else in the movie) that he's behind the strange killings that are always preceded by the discovery of an unusual feather. Zucco's (admittedly average) performance really is the only thing that makes it worth a view.

As a lover of old low budget horror films, I give this one a "weak but fun". I'd recommend a rent instead of a buy, though, because the DVD is not a good value for the money. The picture quality is decent but the source material's quality is not very good. There are no significant extras included. It's only an hour long. Add those facts to a too-high list price, and you're best advised to buy it only if you KNOW you must have it.

great horror film from poverty row's best studio
George Zucco is excellent(again) as a mad scientist is this adapation of PRC's earlier effort Killer Bat (starring an aged Bela Lugosi). By leaving a beautiful feather from an ancient Mayan prehistoric bird by any intended victim, the angry bird kills that person in order to retrieve it's coveted feather. Great atmosphere shots with Zucco in cave with caged bird, and cool but clumsy shots of the serpent flying and attacking. This is not a B picture, but a Z picture (my favorites)and it's tops in that catagory. The wonderfully ill finaced PRC studio(Producers Releasing Corp)also gave us the Z horror classics: Black Raven, Man made monster, the Monster maker and the above mentioned Killer Bats. If you think Blair Witch Project was done on the cheap, you ain't seen nothing yet! ... Read more

Description

As the last survivor of the Civil War, aging Joel Bentham is awarded $50,000 upon the death of his army buddy, Tom Riggins. Suddenly a wealthy man, Joel and his personal servant pack up and move into Riggins' old country house, along with a tough but beautiful tramp named Meg whom they pick up along the way. Fulfilling a promise to his departed friend, Joel contacts Riggins' estranged grandson, Ray. A brash city slicker with debts to dangerous people, Ray quickly agrees to help "look after" Joel when he learns of the money. Ray's greedy scheme becomesincreasingly apparent to everyone. Joel, however, refuses to suspect Ray of ulterior motives until he catches him cheating in a chess game. Joel decides to deposit the money in the bank, but Ray's old gang from the city shows up and insists on getting their share. Joel must now face a final battle to protect his young friends from the villains who are willing to kill for his fortune. ... Read more

Reviews (11)

Entertaining Movie, Bad History
Guadalcanal Diary is exactly what you'd expect to come out of Hollywood during the war--high on fluff and propaganda, low on substance. While it's true that some of the events in the film are based on real events, many are not. None of the Japanese attacks, like at the Tenaru and Bloody Ridge, are depicted though they're mentioned in the film. To have included these hair-raising night battles would've made the movie much more realistic and entertaining. With the exception of the ill-fated Goettge Patrol, what you have instead are fictional battles. For instance, the marines never did launch an offensive on the 10 November, the Marine Corps' birthday.

Guadalcanal Diary, however, does create the general feel of what it was like to fight on Guadalcanal, though nobody in this film is ever hungry, sick, or unshaven! You do find an excellent depiction of the Battleship bombardment on 13 October as well as some superb air raid scenes. This movie would have been much better if it was strictly based on the time-frame of the book (late July - 26 September). Too bad the movie didn't depict real battles and real people. It's still fun to watch, though. If you like war movies, you'll like this flick.

A well-made "flag waver", which also entertains.
Set apart by its realistic portrayal of the struggle for Guadalcanal from most other "flag-wavers" made during World War 2, this film is also most entertaining. Marines live and die in this film, and the Japanese also certainly die, as you would expect. The black and white photography and narration by Richard Tregaskis (an actor really) give the film a documentary realism. For civilian audiences, this film must have seemed absolutely real to them. However, while the Marines on the 'canal were literally starving to death for a while, the actors in this film stay remarkably healthy looking. Also, they shave every day. The cast is top notch. You'll recognize many past and future stars from it. Richard Jaeckal (the MP Sergeant in The Dirty Dozen ) started his film career in the movie. Guadalcanal Diary is a fine example of the World War 2 film, made to bolster civilian morale during the war years. It is well worth seeing and owning, as a piece of cinematic history.

"boys with a memory of death in their eyes"
Based on Richard Tregaskis' popular book of his account of the action at Guadalcanal, when the first detachment of U.S. Marines landed in the Solomon Islands in August of 1942, this is a tough and gritty war film with a sturdy ensemble cast, who do a wonderful job of recreating the diverse characters in the story, from Anthony Quinn who dreams of his señoritas, to the young Richard Jaeckel, who is always writing home to mom.
Preston Foster, William Bendix, Lloyd Nolan and Richard Conte are the other actors that contribute to make the film interesting, along with the narration by Reed Hadley which contrasts with the everyday speech of the dialogue and at times is quite poetic.

Enduring the humid jungle, often plagued with torrential rain, and at one point running out of food and needing reinforcements, the narrator says of October 10th, "...for we are tired, after days of heat and rain, dust and disease, mud and malnutrition, weeks of constant fighting...", the film depicts a lot of heroism, the caring for one another, and much patriotism.
The battle cinematography by Charles Clarke is visually exciting, though all very sanitized, as none of the intense fighting is graphic, and one must remember that this is a 1943 film, and the language used is far from politically correct; those who can't put it into historical perspective should avoid seeing it.
Total running time is 93 minutes.

Well staged war movie
This account of the struggle to retake the South Pacific island of Guadalcanal from the occupying Japanese army in World War two is marked by superbly staged battle sequences .It -uniquely for the period -eschews the standard gung ho flag waving that marked most Hollywood war movies of the era (understandably ,in my book given the circumstances)and depicts a very matter of fact view of the average soldier's life in combat situations.
The acting honours are stolen by the under-rated Richard Jaeckel but there is sterling support from reliable performers like William Bendix,Richard Conte ,Lloyd Nolan and the great Anthony Quinn.
A war movie showing rare honesty and integrity .

Just Want To Go Home.
Set in the early days of WWII in the Pacific, the film follows a unit of Marines as they battle everything from disease and treacherous terrain to just being tired of not being at home. The Marines go from one battle to another, fighting to stay alive and keep there hopes up. There is a rogue Sgt. (Lloyd Nolan), a simple cab driver from Brooklyn (William Bendix), and a troubled Marine (Anthony Quinn)! With well done battle's and a outstanding script, this film is considered to be one of the best films done during WWII! If you can put aside that it was made in 1943, and it is not as realistic as it would be today. It is sure to get the message across and deliver the goods. One of the best war films of all time!
Grade:A ... Read more