The Hidden Hand (1942)

This one deserves to be better known,  15 May 2020

Lorinda Channing helps her insane brother escape from an asylum.  She intends to use him to frighten her other relatives who she feels are only out to get her money.  Intending to leave the majority of her fortune to her secretary, Mary Winfield, Lorinda is convinced she’ll also need protection from her crazy family.  But can you really trust an homicidal maniac bent on killing again?  

I’m not really sure why The Hidden Hand isn’t better known.  It’s one of those Warner “B” films that seems to have unfairly dropped into relative obscurity.  I’m not sure I was even aware of its existence until last night.  Too bad, because it’s a ton of fun.  It’s got so much going for it.  First, Milton Parsons plays mad brother John perfectly.  He expertly alternates between hilarious and downright creepy.  To me, it looked as if Parsons was having the time of his life.  His name might not be familiar, but he’s a character actor that I’m sure most fans of 1940s-era films have run across.  Second is Willie Best.  I always feel it necessary to defend enjoying Best, so I’ll do so again.  While I do not appreciate the stereotypical and sometimes degrading roles he was given, he’s as good a comedian as you’ll find.  HIs timing is impeccable.  The missing sandwich bit near the beginning of the film had me just about laughing out loud.  In fact, he steals just about every scene he appears in.  Finally, as I’ve said countless times, I always enjoy an old, dark house movie.  This one comes complete with secret passages, moving panels, and other surprises.  Add to that a madcap script, dead bodies that appear and disappear, and an atmospheric thunderstorm and you’ve got a winner in my books.  

One last thing, being a Warner Brothers’ film - even a “B’ film - it all looks great.  Director Benjamin Stoloff and cinematographer Henry Sharp certainly knew what they were doing. 

7/10

The Ghost That Walks Alone (1944)

What with the title?  14 May 2020

My short and sweet plot summary:  Newlywed Eddie Grant (Arthur Lake) gets mixed up in murder and a missing body while on his honeymoon.  Much (supposed) hilarity ensues.

The Ghost That Walks Alone is billed as a comedy/mystery.  I have problems with both parts of that description.  For the comedy part, if you’re a fan of Arthur Lake’s Dagwood Bumstead, you might enjoy his antics in The Ghost That Walks Alone.  If, like me, you find his brand of comedy insufferable, you’re most likely not going to enjoy the film.  I’m sorry, but I just can’t stomach the man.  He’s so annoying.  As for the mystery elements, well, there really isn’t much of a mystery.  The film’s idiotic would-be sleuths spend more time trying to hide the body than solving the crime.  Instead, the murderer just sort of reveals himself in the finale and confesses to everything.  No real detective work needed.  That’s probably a good thing because I’m not sure any character in the film displays the intelligence or common sense you’d find in an average second-grader.  The whole thing is a disastrous mess.  

One last thing - what’s with the title?  Not only is there no ghost in The Ghost That Walks Alone, there’s not even mention of a ghost or anything remotely supernatural.  Talk about a misleading title.

3/10

Tentacles (1977)

The Octopus vs The Octogenarians,  13 May 2020

Instead of a long, drawn-out plot summary, this is all you really need to know - a giant octopus terrorizes a seaside town. 

Has there ever been a film that inspired more imitators than Jaws?  Some, like Grizzly, I genuinely enjoy.  Some, like The Last Shark, are so bad that I find them highly entertaining.  Then there are the ones like Tentacles - movies so bad, they’re just bad.  

So what makes Tentacles so bad.  Well, the list is longer than one of the film’s insufferable scuba diving scenes.  1. I’ll start with plot threads that go nowhere.  For example, throughout the entire movie, we’re treated to scene after scene of discussions regarding the construction of an underwater tunnel.  It all leads to absolutely nothing.  2. The special effects are generally horrible.  There’s a scene near the end involving killer whales.  Even considering the murky quality of the cinematography, it’s more than obvious we’re looking at hand puppets.  3. Speaking of cinematography, that brings me to my next point.  The film finale is so poorly lensed that it’s often impossible to tell what we’re watching.  4. I’ll call this one The Disappearing Stars.  The films touts John Huston, Shelley Winters (complete with comically oversized sombrero), Henry Fonda, and Claude Akins as stars of the film.  All are gone about half-way through and Tentacles turns into Bo Hopkins’ film.  Fonda’s role, in particular, is little more than a couple of cameos.  And most of the “stars” look about as excited to be in Tentacles as I was watching it.  5. The movie includes some laughable voice dubbing.  Normally, dubbing in Italian movies doesn’t bother me.  I usually consider it part of their charm.  But that’s not the case here.  I’ve heard Cesare Danova’s voice in other films. He sounds nothing in real life like he does in Tentacles.  I actually laughed-out-loud it was so ridiculous.  6. Really, I could do this all day, but what’s the point.  It’s a bad, bad movie.

There are, however, three things about Tentacles that I did like.  One, I have a soft spot for European films from the 60s and 70s and Tentacles literally reeks of Italian cinema.  Whether it’s the dubbing, the odd phrasing, the ever-present harpsichord music, or all of the supposed Califonrians with Italian accents, there’s no denying the film’s origins.  Second (and third), despite the poor quality of most of the special effects, there are two scenes that actually manage to work.  First, there’s a scene where the octopus peers into a diving bell that’s truly frightening.  Second, there’s a scene where one of the female characters (and I can’t be bothered to look up which) is lifted out of the water by an octopus’ arm.  It’s easily the film’s visual highlight.  If all the effects were as good as these two, Tentacles might have been a much better movie.  As I said before, however, it’s a bad, bad movie.

3/10

The Falcon’s Brother (1942)

The one with two Falcons,  12 May 2020

The Falcon, Gay Lawrence (George Sanders), is headed dockside to meet his brother, Tom Lawrence (Tom Conway), who is arriving from South America.  What he doesn’t know is that before the ship docks, his brother has been declared dead.  The cause of death - suicide.  Knowing that something’s up, The Falcon follows the woman who found his brother’s body to an upscale dress shop.  But before he can question the woman, she’s also killed.  After Gay is put out of commission by a hit-and-run, Tom steps out of the shadows to take over the case.

The transition from Gay to Tom is handled as smoothly and deftly as any transition I can think of.  It helps that George Sanders and Tom Lawrence were real life brothers.  Because of their familial similarities, it’s easy to believe that Gay and Tom are also brothers.  While I think I prefer George in the role, Tom more than holds his own and is about as enjoyable in this film and the Falcon films to follow.  

The plot in The Falcon’s Brother is about as good as any you’ll find in a “B” from RKO.  The mystery is a fun one with plenty of suspicious characters and interesting clues.   In fact, the magazine clues were as solid as any I’ve seen in any film of this type.  It’s quite enjoyable to watch Tom and Company go through their paces and put the pieces together. I also got a kick out of the dress designer talking about how the gowns were made in compliance with government regulations concerning the amount of material that could be used given the war time era the film was made.  It’s just a small thing, but it was an interesting insight into 1942.  My biggest complaint is the way the finale feels rushed.  It seems that a lot of these comedy/mystery films did a good job of leading you right up to the end and then blew it.  

Sanders and Conway are joined by an especially strong cast given the film’s limited budget.  Jane Randolph is a standout.  I’m glad to see she comes back in the next film.  And I thought Keye Luke was very funny as The Falcon’s butler, Jerry.  The bits where he purposefully plays up the Asian stereotypes of the era to his advantage are quite good.

6/10

Who Wants to Kill Jessie? (1966)

A really well made, clever film, 11 May 2020

I believe that Who Wants to Kill Jessie? may be the only Czechoslovakian comedy/sci-fi/fantasy film I’ve ever seen.  Who am I kidding - of course it is.  And to my surprise and delight, it’s a winner.  In the film, a research scientist, Dr Ruzenka Berankova, has developed a drug that can alter dreams.  The unknown side effect is that the dreams can leave the subject’s mind and end up in our reality.  In this case, Ruzenka’s husband, Dr Jindrich Beranek, has been dreaming about antigravity gloves that could help with a research problem he’s been having.  In his dream, however, the gloves are owned by a gorgeous blond woman, Jessie.  In the dream, she’s being chased by a Superman-like character and a cowboy who also want the gloves.  Jindrich takes Ruzenka’s drug and, viola, he wakes up to find Jessie in his bed with the two goons hot on her heels.  Much hilarity ensues.  

What an incredibly odd, absurd, and completely whacked-out film that somehow manages to work.  This is screwball comedy at its finest.  And unlike a lot of the other European comedies I’ve seen that I really can’t stand, Who Wants to Kill Jessie? remains consistently funny from start to finish.  The acting is much better than I expected.  The married scientists at the center of things, played by Dana Medricka and Jiri Sovak, are very good.  I’m not surprised to see that both had long careers.  Jessie is played by Olga Schoberova.  She fits the part of the dreamy (pun intended) Jessie perfectly.  Finally, I appreciate the way the movie blends the comic-book style dreams with real life.  I really got a kick out of the fact that the dream characters are silent, relying on speech clouds to get their thoughts across.  The funny bit is the way the other characters interact with the speech clouds.  Really clever stuff.  

If I were a much smarter person, I’m sure I could write at length on the underlying anti-communist messages found in Who Wants to Kill Jessie?  Because I’m not that smart, I’ll just say that it wasn’t lost on me.  The idea that you can do what you want to someone, but you can’t take away their dreams was loud and clear.

8/10

Tank Girl (1995)

“I have two words for you.  Brush your teeth!”  11 May 2020

I understand Tank Girl bombed at the box office back in 1995.  Well, I’m happy to report that I was one of the few who saw it in the theaters.  I’m also happy to report that I’m one of the fewer who seems to have actually enjoyed Tank Girl.  While I may not hold it in as high esteem as I once did, I had a good time last night re-watching it.  Tank Girl features a typical post-apocalyptic set-up:  A a comet has hit the Earth, creating an 11 year drought. Most of the remaining water is controlled by the Water & Power Corp and its maniacal leader, Kesslee (Malcolm McDowell).  Rebecca Buck (Lori Petty) is a member of a small commune living in the Australian outback who have illegally tapped into the water supply.  Kesslee sends in the troops to destroy the commune, making an enemy of Rebecca.  In short order, she steals a tank, befriends a Water & Power aircraft mechanic and pilot, and joins a band of mutant human/kangaroo hybrids.  Together, they join forces to take on Kesslee and his Water & Power army.

One of the things I enjoy most about Tank Girl is also one of its biggest weaknesses.  To say that Tank Girl is over-the-top would be a gross understatement.  Costuming, music, action, set-design, acting, creature effects, dialogue, visuals - it’s all larger than life and generally a lot of fun.  It would be easy to give Tank Girl a 10/10 for trying to be a surreal experience.  And while I get a kick out of most of it, there are times where I feel Tank Girl is trying too hard.  It’s pretty apparent that director Rachel Talalay was going for kitschy and off-beat.  But there are definite instances where it all feels forced.  Instead of letting things happen naturally as part of the story, some of what Talalay throws at the viewer lacks an organic feel.  The best cult movies don’t try to be cult movies - they just are.  And Tank Girl’s frantic pace doesn’t allow for much in the way of character development or plot - things Tank Girl sorely lacks.  

You can’t really talk about Tank Girl and not mention Lori Petty.  She’s the heart and soul of everything.  Given what Tank Girl is - faults and all - she’s perfect.  Her energy is as amazing and consistent as her ever-changing hair.  It’s infectious and impossible for me not to enjoy.  I also get a kick out of the contrast of Naomi Watts’ super subdued Jet Girl.  They make a good pair.  

One last thing, I really like the special effects in Tank Girl.  Whether it’s Stan Winston’s amazing Kangaroo-men, the comic book cut scenes, or the many, many explosions, it’s a real visual treat.  

6/10