Reviews (23)

I've been swimming in raw sewage...I LOVE IT!
I actually did like this move quite a bit, and it was amazingly funny, but it had a few too many man-gets-hit-by-something-and-falls jokes for me. This is my least favorite Naked Gun movie yet I still watch it all the time and have a good laugh. the Naked Gun movies to me are the funniest movies ever created, and this is no exception. It is great, but I think you would first want to check out the other two. My favorite scene: The one where Frank and Ed go into the sex shop while Norberg is going under all the cars. Another downer: there were too many jokes stolen from the series it was based on, Police Squad! Otherwise, very good and very very funny.

Fairly funny
This is the second film based on the short-lived TV series "Police Squad". The first is a classic. This one liberally borrows gags from the TV show that inspired it, and that sums up my problem with the film: an overall lack of inspiration.

There are some very funny segments, including director David Zucker's hilarious send-up of his brother Jerry's "Ghost". But this movie just isn't as consistently funny as it's predecessor. This is really Leslie Nielsen's last funny performance in a spoof-comedy. After this, he would resort to constant and shameless mugging. In fact, one of the faults with this second Naked Gun film is that David Zucker allows some winking at the audience to creep in. These films are much better when played completely straight.

The DVD isn't exactly packed with features. There is a funny group commentary and that's about it. Some have complained that the scenes used for the TV broadcast version aren't included. It would've been nice if Paramount had included them as Deleted Scenes (though they are NOT good enough to warrant inclusion in the actual film).

Halt! Police Squad!
Unlike most sequels, Naked Gun 2 ½ goes above and beyond the spectacular first movie. Priscilla Presley just kept getting hotter and more beautiful as the series went on. Leslie Neilson, the modern day king of physical comedy is up to his old hijinx as Lt. Frank Dremond. This time Frank is after the masterminds who wish to bury the thought of clean energy and let the oil companies continue to give us high prices and pollution.

Gags that make the whole movie worth it.....

1. The shower/assassin scene. What a beautiful duet as he adjusts his silencer!
2. The Blue lounge, to include no Black Russians!
3. The Wistler's Mother birthmark. Stays on even with a sander!
4. A dinner with President Bush (watch those doors and lobster claws)
5. The final scene with hanging Barbera!

This is entertainment folks!

Smell of Comedy
The second installment to the adventures of Frank Drebin (Leslie Nielsen) and Police Squad/Naked Gun series is just as funny as the first film (and forgotten tv show). There is an underlying theme in this comedy about environmental issues and there is a story and plot with all the pratfalls,nonsense, and hilarity. Again, the producers pick an unlikely actor to play the villian (Ricardo Montalban in the first) and this time it's Robert Goulet as Quentin Hapsburg behind a plot to deter President Bush's policy for a cleaner USA. The real treasure is everytime Frank Drebin (Nielsen) says one of his many asinine lines, the camera switches to Hapsburg (Goulet) and his look of bewilderment is worth the price of admission. The supporting roles are equally funny. O.J. Simpson as Nordberg has a more prominent role than in the first (although in the first he set up the Nordberg character beautifully). George Kennedy as Ed found a second career in comedy equal to that of Nielsen, and Priscilla Presley is up to the task of keeping up with all the hijinx. Guest roles are filled by some of Nielsen's contemporaries who have played similar type guest roles in various 60's and 70's tv shows and movies (Tim O'Conner, Lloyed Bochner etc.) The films are probably a little marred by the fact that OJ Simpson is in the cast, but his Nordberg character is hilarious as with the rest of the film. Overall a very funny film with the Zucker brand of comedy. Note: Classic Line- Commissioner Brumford (Jacqueline Brookes) after getting a call that animals escaped from the zoo as a result of a Drebin blunder... "Do you realise that this city is being overrun by baboons?" Drebin (Nielsen) "Well, isn't that the fault of the voters?". Also, a classic surprise scene: An in-joke by Lloyed Bochner (as Baggett) and a certain classic TWILIGHT ZONE episode "To Serve Man" in which he appeared in years ago.

THIS ONE IS JUST AS GOOD AS THE FIRST!!
This movie is just what my tital says!! Just as good as the first and that's because it is!! If you like the first one than you'll love this one too!! ... Read more

Description

Tony Award-winning actress, Blythe Danner, portrays the sensitive spinster Alma Winemiller in Tennessee Williams' 1948 drama. Frustrated with longing for the socially prominent young doctor next door, the eccentric, highly emotional minister's daughter decides to settle for one night with him in a rented hotel room. The Washington Post wrote: "Blythe Danner's Alma is as much of a television event as Katharine Hepburn's Amanda in The Glass Menagerie. Frank Langella is such a warm, dreamy-eyed Dr. Buchanan that the role is reimbursed for the loss of its cynical edge with a smooth romanticism that complements Danner's determined honesty splendidly." "How many different emotions do you expect in two hours?" --The New York Daily News. With Tim O'Connor, Louise Latham, and Neva Patterson. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

A Fabulous Peice of Acting
I saw this work many years ago and it has stayed with me all this time. It stands out as masterful acting by Miss Danner; her work is touching and delicate. The play is a work of genus. It is too bad that is it not known as well as some of Tennessee Williams other works.

Extremely enjoyable:)
This is a well written captivating play. I like it for several
reasons. The acting is superb. I have always been a huge
fan of Bythe Danner even though I come from her daughter's
generation. I also adore the incredibly handsome Frank
Langella--I am a huge fan of his:) Both these actors give
their characters many special emotions and by the play's
finale I felt like I knew them both or knew someone like
them:) Anyway it is so good that such theatre works are
preserved in DVD format so future generarions can appreciate the simpler and finer things of life.

Magnificent
Thank Heaven for Broadway Theatre Archive. For the past few years, the company has been releasing older television productions of great stage works, as well as a select number of theatrically staged videos (such as the Shakespeare-in-the-Park productions of "King Lear" with James Earl Jones and "The Pirates of Penzance" with Kevin Kline and Linda Ronstadt). Some of these television productions are truly legendary: Jason Robards in "The Iceman Cometh," and Robards and Colleen Dewhurst in the landmark production of "A Moon for the Misbegotten." The present DVD edition of Tennessee Williams' "Eccentricities of a Nightingale" deserves to join their ranks.

"Nightingale" is Williams' revision of 1948's "Summer and Smoke" (my favorite Williams play, incidentally). It tells essentially the same story of the spinsterish minister's daughter whose consuming love for her next-door neighbor remains unreciprocated. "Nightingale" is less allegorical than its predecessor and more tightly focused on the fascinating central character of Alma Winemiller, who Williams once claimed was his favorite character of all those that he had written.

All the roles in this production are in eminently capable hands, with particular pride of place among the supporting players going to Louise Latham as the mentally unbalanced Mrs. Winemiller, Tim O'Connor as Alma's well-intentioned but misguided father, and Neva Patterson as the two-faced Mrs. Buchanan, oozing both Southern charm and venom. As the object of Alma's affections, Frank Langella plays the most warm and romantic John Buchanan I have ever seen. Other Johns have seemed cocky or cold, but Langella seems to genuinely care about Alma rather than merely tolerating her. Played like this, it is quite easy to see how Alma could fall in love with him.

However, this is Alma's show, and in that role Blythe Danner is a raw, exposed nerve-ending, alternating between lyric melancholy and barely concealed hysteria. It is an exquisitely shaded performance, full of rich colors and nuance, and it is on a par with the sublime Geraldine Page's performance of the same role in the film version of "Summer and Smoke." Both actresses capture the character's need to burst forth from her own skin, of being strait-jacketed by the social mores of the period, and of being on the precipice of a dangerous emotional drop-off point. If Page owned the role of Alma in "Summer and Smoke," Danner clearly owns the Alma of "Eccentricities." She is simply stunning.

Don't expect stunning picture quality -- the production was filmed in 1976 on video, so it is roughly akin to watching a mid-1970's soap opera. However, the performances are what matter here, and they truly deliver. If you love Tennessee Williams, Blythe Danner, or if you simply enjoy great drama, don't let this one pass you by. ... Read more

Reviews (16)

Itssssss Fantassssstic!
Dirk Benedict was SO cute at 20! Imagine my horror when a mad scientist tells him to take off his his shirt to that he can inject him with a special "serum". Slowly Dirk's body changes until, to his horror, he is thrashing about a medical bench, covered in thick green scales and turning into a snake! It was fun to watch the bad script, servicable special effects and cute young guy combine to make for some B-movie sci-fi fun!

What You See Here, is a Failure To Communicate with Snakes!
This is a very creepy horror film from the 70's. Strother Martin (COOL HAND LUKE)as Dr. Carl Stoner plays an evil scientist who injects his lab assistant David Blake (Dirk Benedict/tv's, A-TEAM) with what he claims is an anti-venom serum. As time progresses David becomes ill and his skin starts to shed. The audience knows that he is being transformed into a snake (a king cobra). The transformation sequence from human, to half human/half-snake, and finally to full-fledged snake is a decent (and very,very disturbing) piece of film special effect for 1973 before the pre-digital age. Also, there is another repulsive scene when another character (played by Richard B Shull of tv's HOLMES AND YOYO) is oft by a snake. This too was a daring special effect for its time. Not to give any details away, but it was like watching something out of those nature shows seen on "Animal Planet" or "National Geographic". These two particular sequences will stay with you because they are that hauntingly creepy along with a climactic very unhappy ending. Furthermore, there are some scenes of a circus side-show that enhances the films' "freak-show" atmosphere. Overall, disturbing and a somewhat of a downer of a horror film and worth a look for its haunting themes. Note: Look for Heather Menzies as the daughter of Strother Martin. She's the widow of actor Robert Urich and was one of the Von Trapp children (she played Louisa) in the movie musical THE SOUND OF MUSIC with Julie Andrews.

Very Creepy Little Horror Effort From the Early 1970s
With its distinctive eye catching title "Ssssssss", is a minor horror effort that really stays in the mind after viewing it for a number of reasons. Firstly the level of acting and certainly the at times quite gruesome special effects are way above what you would expect from a supposedly "low budget", effort such as this. Secondly the many scenes involving the actors working with very deadly species of snakes such as King Cobras and Pythons are guaranteed to send shivers down your spine if like me, you are squeamish around these reptiles. Respected character actor Strother Martin still best remembered for his memorable work as the prison gang supervisor with Paul Newman in "Cool Hand Luke", plays the central character of Dr. Carl Stoner an ophiologist (expert on snakes), who has very "original", views on the future of evolution and it is he who really gives this film its chillingly memorable quality in a terrific performance.

The action opens with a strange "pick up", taking place from Dr. Stoner's lab at his isolated country property late at night. It seems that one of Dr. Stoners secret experiments has failed and the "end result", of that experiment is being farmed out to the local sideshow for a place in the freak show. Only later does the sinister cause of this experiment come to light. Later at the local school Stoner approaches rival academic Dr. Daniels (Richard B. Shull) about the possibility of getting an assistant over the summer after his former assistant had to in his words "leave at very short notice due to a family illness". David Blake (Dirk Benedict), takes the position and goes to live at Dr. Stoner's while he supposedly is to assist him into snake venom research. David however is serving a far more sinister purpose than he imagined however as the Dr. Stoner is heavily influenced by biblical readings and in the belief that mankind is headed for a fiery extinction. He in his warped mind has started to work on the task of creating a super race of snakes with great intellect by attempting to transform men into Cobras. He subjects David to a series of "immunisation shots", supposedly to safe guard him from snake bites however the shots in reality are a series of procedures that will gradually transform him into a King Cobra. David starts to notice strange bodily changes as his body temperature starts to drop, and his skin begins to shed like that of a reptlie. Also his facial appearance undergoes some slight variation. He starts a relationship with Stoner's daughter Kristina (Heather Menzies) and while at the local sideshow wanders into the freak tent and sees the widely publisized "snakeman", who in actual fact is Dr. Stoner's last assistant Tim who was the victim of Stoner's first unsuccessful attempt to create a snake out of a man. Dr. Stoner's insanity deepens when in revenge for a local boy harrassing Kristina he kills him by slipping a deadly Black Mamba snake into his shower. When Dr. Daniels becomes suspicious of what Stoner is actually involving David in he traps him in a cellar where he is strangled by a Python. David now goes into the final stages of Dr. Stoner's experiements and in an horrific scene he is injected with a high dose of snake venom that sees him transform totally into a King Cobra. With his mind completely gone now however Dr. Stoner attempts to tackle his other King Cobra which kills him just as Kristina races back to the farm after learning the truth of her father's insane scheme.

"B' grade horror nonsense perhaps but "Ssssssss", has a really potent quality to it that makes it a memorable and very scary viewing experience. The truly stunning and very horrific transformation scenes where Dirk Benedict's character literally turns into a snake before the viewers eyes is a makeup wonder and was the work created by the same team responsible for the innovative ape makeup in the earlier "Planet of the Apes" in 1968. The final stage in the cobra transformation is the one that sticks in the mind and is genuinely frightening to watch even now. The scenes incorporating the use of real live snakes which actor Strother Martin in a number of scenes handles with finesse are especially well staged and many of the venom extracting scenes will have you on the edge of your seat. The original story is in some respects quite an original one and the cast of largely at the time unknown actors supporting Strother Martin do a good job within the limitations of their roles.

I'd say for people who aren't fans of snakes to be wary of watching this film alone but it contains enough of a mystery element to be enjoyable to most people with a reasonably strong stomach. The makeup employed here along with Strother Martin's chilling lead performance are what give this film its memorable quality and rightful place in SciFi/horror folklore . Enjoy the mad doctor and his insane experiments to alter evolution with a "new " race of King Cobras in Universal's "Ssssssss".

Good Horror Film Suffers from Poor Ending
I love to read reviews of this film. They will ultimately wind up saying: "IT'S TOO UNBELIEVABLE!!!" Hey, this is a horror film! Was Frankenstein, Dracula, or the Wolfman unbelievable??
Anyway, this flick is head and shoulders above the typical fare in terms of acting, direction, dialogue and most of the effects.
The plot is simple: a mad scientist tries to turn a young man into a snake. The interesting wrinkle is that his daughter happens to be in love with the guy.
Instead of complaining about the weak ending, I've thought of a much better ending. (...)!

Fairly Good 70's Horror
This movie is typical of the early 70's horror produced by larger studios. It isn't very gory and the nudity and sex is kept to a minimum, but it has a certain appeal because of the acting and effects. (Fair warning to male viewers: there is somewhat more male nudity in this film than female nudity.)

If you like Strother Martin (and I do), you will find that this is one of his best roles. Compared to other roles in his career he underplays it here (a considerable achievement because his character is as nutty as a fruitcake). The underplaying of the mad doctor's character helps to lend credibility to the silly plot and it is easier to suspend our disbelief. I give lots of credit to the director if it was his idea to play it this way. We get to see a side of Mr. Martin's talent that we don't usually see - and his acting is very good. It looks like he really handles the snakes in this movie (although they may not really be the dangerous species that the producers would lead you to believe). Dirk Benedict and Heather Menzies give adequate performances for their characters.

The plot is silly and really unbelievable: a mad doctor wants to create a new race of intelligent snakes by transforming humans. He is certain that there is going to be a cataclysm which will destroy the human race because of our lack of responsibility with the environment. His super-snakes are supposed to be able to survive the disaster. He achieves transformation by injecting his victim with snake extract (or something like that).

The effects in this film are quite good, especially considering the time when this film was made. (The effects would be much better today, of course, with existing technology.) There are some fairly suspenseful scenes showing the handling of snakes and extraction of their venom. There is one fairly lame scene (both in technique and acting) of someone being killed by a python. There are two really yucky scenes showing one of the mad doctor's failures. The transformation scene is very good.

Overall, I would say this movie is good fun to watch if you leave your brain on the shelf. It also has some value as a nostalgic film of the 70's with dated dialogue and styles of clothing. I would recommend it for people who want a good horror film that doesn't go too far on the scares. However, because of the brief nudity, this may not be a good film for children. I gave it three stars (rather than four) because the plot is so hokey and because it is a dated film. ... Read more

Description

Eccentricities of a Nightingale
Tony Award-winning actress, Blythe Danner, portrays the sensitive spinster Alma Winemiller in Tennessee Williams' 1948 drama. Frustrated with longing for the socially prominent young doctor next door, the eccentric, highly emotional minister's daughter decides to settle for one night with him in a rented hotel room. The Washington Post wrote: "Blythe Danner's Alma is as much of a television event as Katharine Hepburn's Amanda in The Glass Menagerie. Frank Langella is such a warm, dreamy-eyed Dr. Buchanan that the role is reimbursed for the loss of its cynical edge with a smooth romanticism that complements Danner's determined honesty splendidly." "How many different emotions do you expect in two hours?" --The New York Daily News. With Tim O'Connor, Louise Latham, and Neva Patterson.

Ten Blocks on the Camino Real
Martin Sheen stars as the eternal American G.I. Kilroy, a poetic soul condemned to spiritual death, in Tennessee Williams's allegorical one-act play. In a dreamlike fictitious Latin American country, a worn-out Casanova, a Camille living on memories, a Byron pitiful in his disillusioned pride, and others less famous live out a hopeless existence. Into this world comes Kilroy, an ex-boxer and perpetual fall guy, who asks so little and always gets short-changed, but never gives up hope. He is finally conned, or almost, into despairing subjection like the rest. "An allegory about people removed from time and geography..." --The New York Times. With Lotte Lenya, Tom Aldredge, Michael Baseleon, and Albert Dekker.

Dragon Country
This production pairs together two Tennessee Williams plays, written twenty years apart, each examining the theme of isolation with searing clarity. The joint presentation features the world premiere of "I Can't Imagine Tomorrow," starring two-time Oscar nominee Kim Stanley (The Right Stuff) and William Redfield (One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest), and a much earlier work, "Talk to Me Like the Rain and Let Me Listen," starring Lois Smith (Five Easy Pieces)and Alan Mixon. Together, the dramas delve into "A land of endured but unendurable pain," said Williams, "where each one is so absorbed, deafened, blinded by his own journey across it, he sees, he looks for, no one else crawling across it with him." ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Two great & one so-so Tennessee Williams play
If you're a fan of Tennessee Williams this triptych is a great bargain. The strongest of the three is "Eccentricities of a Nightingale" (a reworking of "Summer and Smoke" and one which Williams preferred to his earlier effort). Danner and Langella are brilliant. The sexual frankness these two characters exhibit may seem implausible for their social setting and the era being depicted, but somehow it works. It's as if Williams is presenting us with a hypothetical: "What if people could be honest with one another about their sexual desires and what if they were willing to engage one another in fulfilling these desires without burdening each other with unrealistic expectations?" Watching Danner's Alma is like seeing what might have become of Blanche DuBois if she had not lost her connection to reality and if Stanley had loved her and not just used her. "Dragon Country" is two short plays about conflicted couples. The DVD is worth the purchase price just for Kim Stanley's subtle performance in part 2, "I Can't Imagine Tomorrow." It's easy to see why she was such a major stage actor; it's a pity she didn't make more films. The only disappointment in this set was "Ten Blocks on the Camino Real," which feels like an amateurish high school production. The story is told on a mythic level which makes it difficult to take any of the characters seriously--in trying to present them archetypes Williams has created wooden stereotypes. This one will probably be of interest only to the person intent upon seeing everything Williams wrote. Even so, the cost of the set is less than buynig any two of the DVDs separately. ... Read more

Reviews (23)

I've been swimming in raw sewage...I LOVE IT!
I actually did like this move quite a bit, and it was amazingly funny, but it had a few too many man-gets-hit-by-something-and-falls jokes for me. This is my least favorite Naked Gun movie yet I still watch it all the time and have a good laugh. the Naked Gun movies to me are the funniest movies ever created, and this is no exception. It is great, but I think you would first want to check out the other two. My favorite scene: The one where Frank and Ed go into the sex shop while Norberg is going under all the cars. Another downer: there were too many jokes stolen from the series it was based on, Police Squad! Otherwise, very good and very very funny.

Fairly funny
This is the second film based on the short-lived TV series "Police Squad". The first is a classic. This one liberally borrows gags from the TV show that inspired it, and that sums up my problem with the film: an overall lack of inspiration.

There are some very funny segments, including director David Zucker's hilarious send-up of his brother Jerry's "Ghost". But this movie just isn't as consistently funny as it's predecessor. This is really Leslie Nielsen's last funny performance in a spoof-comedy. After this, he would resort to constant and shameless mugging. In fact, one of the faults with this second Naked Gun film is that David Zucker allows some winking at the audience to creep in. These films are much better when played completely straight.

The DVD isn't exactly packed with features. There is a funny group commentary and that's about it. Some have complained that the scenes used for the TV broadcast version aren't included. It would've been nice if Paramount had included them as Deleted Scenes (though they are NOT good enough to warrant inclusion in the actual film).

Halt! Police Squad!
Unlike most sequels, Naked Gun 2 ½ goes above and beyond the spectacular first movie. Priscilla Presley just kept getting hotter and more beautiful as the series went on. Leslie Neilson, the modern day king of physical comedy is up to his old hijinx as Lt. Frank Dremond. This time Frank is after the masterminds who wish to bury the thought of clean energy and let the oil companies continue to give us high prices and pollution.

Gags that make the whole movie worth it.....

1. The shower/assassin scene. What a beautiful duet as he adjusts his silencer!
2. The Blue lounge, to include no Black Russians!
3. The Wistler's Mother birthmark. Stays on even with a sander!
4. A dinner with President Bush (watch those doors and lobster claws)
5. The final scene with hanging Barbera!

This is entertainment folks!

Smell of Comedy
The second installment to the adventures of Frank Drebin (Leslie Nielsen) and Police Squad/Naked Gun series is just as funny as the first film (and forgotten tv show). There is an underlying theme in this comedy about environmental issues and there is a story and plot with all the pratfalls,nonsense, and hilarity. Again, the producers pick an unlikely actor to play the villian (Ricardo Montalban in the first) and this time it's Robert Goulet as Quentin Hapsburg behind a plot to deter President Bush's policy for a cleaner USA. The real treasure is everytime Frank Drebin (Nielsen) says one of his many asinine lines, the camera switches to Hapsburg (Goulet) and his look of bewilderment is worth the price of admission. The supporting roles are equally funny. O.J. Simpson as Nordberg has a more prominent role than in the first (although in the first he set up the Nordberg character beautifully). George Kennedy as Ed found a second career in comedy equal to that of Nielsen, and Priscilla Presley is up to the task of keeping up with all the hijinx. Guest roles are filled by some of Nielsen's contemporaries who have played similar type guest roles in various 60's and 70's tv shows and movies (Tim O'Conner, Lloyed Bochner etc.) The films are probably a little marred by the fact that OJ Simpson is in the cast, but his Nordberg character is hilarious as with the rest of the film. Overall a very funny film with the Zucker brand of comedy. Note: Classic Line- Commissioner Brumford (Jacqueline Brookes) after getting a call that animals escaped from the zoo as a result of a Drebin blunder... "Do you realise that this city is being overrun by baboons?" Drebin (Nielsen) "Well, isn't that the fault of the voters?". Also, a classic surprise scene: An in-joke by Lloyed Bochner (as Baggett) and a certain classic TWILIGHT ZONE episode "To Serve Man" in which he appeared in years ago.

THIS ONE IS JUST AS GOOD AS THE FIRST!!
This movie is just what my tital says!! Just as good as the first and that's because it is!! If you like the first one than you'll love this one too!! ... Read more

Reviews (1)

The best movie about helicopters
(...)

I've seen this movie many many times, since I was a little boy. My dad is a helicopter pilot and he taped this movie on new year's eve, so he could see in the other day. Awesome, because I don't see any DVDs available so far. With it's storyline shifting between the US and Mexico, Sam Hooten (Larry Hagman) pilots a Hughes 500 series helicopter. He an ex-army pilot who now flies on his own. The story is pretty simple: Sam must protect an old girlfriend (Chris Butler, played by Susan Anspach) - who married a rich gangster - from other gangsters, flying her from USA to Mexico City. The great thing about this movie is the helicopter scenes; with amazing maneuvers and a lot of dogfighting. The movie gets to it's climax when Sam and Chris find themselves trapped by the gangsters and call Sam's old army buddies for help. This movie is worth watching because of the helicopters and planes. A real good classic. ... Read more