Category: Humor

“Murder by Death” (1976) written by Neil Simon, starring Peter Falk, Alec Guinness, Peter Sellers, Eileen Brennan, Truman Capote, James Coco, Elsa Lanchester,David Niven, Maggie Smith, Nancy Walker, Estelle Winwood and James Cromwell / Z-View

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Murder by Death (1976)

Director: Robert Moore

Screenplay: Neil Simon

Stars: Peter Falk, Alec Guinness, Peter Sellers, Eileen Brennan, Truman Capote, James Coco, Elsa Lanchester,
David Niven, Maggie Smith, Nancy Walker, Estelle Winwood and James Cromwell.

Tagline: By the time Eileen Brennan, Truman Capote, James Coco, Peter Falk, Alec Guinness, Elsa Lanchester, David Niven, Peter Sellers, Maggie Smith, Nancy Walker and Estelle Winwood figure out whodunnit, you’ll die laughing.

The Plot…

The eccentric and wealthy Lionel Twain (Capote) invites the five greatest detectives in the world for dinner. The guests include…

  • Sam Diamond (Falk) and his sexy assistant Tess Skeffington (Brennan)
  • Sidney Wang (Sellers) and his son Willie Wang
  • Monsieur Milo Perrier (Coco) and his chauffeur, Marcel (Cromwell)
  • Jessica Marbles (Elsa Lanchester) and her nurse, Miss Withers (Winwood)
  • Dick (Niven) & Dora Charleston (Smith) and their pet pooch, Myron

The guests arrive to Twain’s remote creepy old mansion.  They are  unaware that others were invited.  When everyone sits down for dinner, Twain pushes a button that locks all doors and windows.  He then announces that someone will be murdered at midnight.  Twain says that he will give one million dollars to the detective that solves the crime.

Slightly before midnight the butler is found dead.  Then right after midnight, Twain’s body is discovered.  He’s dead from twelve stab wounds.

Let the game begin.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

Murder by Death is a parody of the great “old dark house” and movie detective whodunits of the past.  Sam Diamond is a hardboiled dick from the mold of Sam Spade.  Sidney Wang and his son is based on Charlie Chan and his #1 son.  Monsieur Milo Perrier is modeled on Hercule Poirot.  Jessica Marbles was inspired by Miss Marple. Dick & Dora Charleston are stand-ins for Nick and Nora Charles.

The theatrical film debut of James Cromwell.  It is also the final theatrical film of Nancy Walker.

The animated cartoon drawings of the detectives at the start  of the film were created by Charles Addams, the creator of The Addams Family.

The doorbell screams are Fay Wray’s from King Kong.

If you’re a fan of the type of movies parodied, you should enjoy this.  Everyone gets a moment to shine.

Murder by Death (1976) rates 3 of 5 stars.

“What We Do In The Shadows” – The Trailer for the Final Season is Here!

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The trailer for the final season of What We Do In The Shadows is here.

I was surprised by the movie (which I enjoyed) and even more so by the tv series.  I haven’t missed an episode and it’s been a fun ride.

Deal me in.

What We Do in the Shadows, based on the feature film by Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi, documents the nightly exploits of vampire roommates Nandor (Kayvan Novak), Laszlo (Matt Berry), Nadja (Natasia Demetriou) and Colin Robinson (Mark Proksch) as they navigate the modern world of Staten Island with the help of their human familiar, Guillermo (Harvey Guillén), and their vampire bureaucrat acquaintance, The Guide (Kristen Schaal).

Your current dark purpose: Watch the OFFICIAL TRAILER for the sixth and final season of FX’s What We Do In The Shadows premieres 10.21 on FX. Stream on Hulu.

“Gilbert” (2017) starring Gilbert Gottfried / Z-View

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Gilbert (2017)

Director: Neil Berkeley

Screenplay: Neil Berkeley, James Leche

Stars: Gilbert Gottfried, Joy Behar, Richard Belzer, Lewis Black, Bill Burr, Dick Van Dyke, Jim Gaffigan, Whoopi Goldberg, Penn Jillette, Richard Kind, Artie Lang, Jay Leno, Howie Mandel, Patton Oswalt and Arsenio Hall.

Tagline: None.

The Plot…

Gilbert takes us behind the scenes to show us the quirky comedian’s lifestyle.  We learn about his family, his idiosyncrasies, the reason he busted out The Aristocrats joke a Hugh Hefner’s roast, the joke that got Aflec to fire him and more.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

I’ve always enjoyed Gilbert Gottfried in small doses.  This documentary helps fans and non-fans to better understand Gottfried’s humor.  Early in his career Gottfried didn’t work blue (use dirty words) but over the years morphed into a foul mouthed, dirty joke king.  It always amazed me that didn’t hurt the work he got for kids’ movies.

Gilbert (2017) rates 4 of 5 stars.

“Killer’s Game” (2024) starring Dave Bautista, Sofia Boutella, Terry Crews, Scott Adkins & Ben Kingsley / Z-View

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Killer’s Game (2024)

Director: J. J. Perry

Screenplay: Rand Ravich, James Coyne, based on THE KILLER’S GAME by Jay Bonansinga

Stars: Dave Bautista, Sofia Boutella, Terry Crews, Scott Adkins, Ben Kingsley, Raffaello Degruttola, Domonkos Pardanyi and Sharon Rabinowitz.

Tagline: Winning is all in the execution.

The Plot…

Joe Flood (Bautista) has made his living as a hit man.  He only takes contracts on evil men.  No women.  No children.  No civilians.

Joe meets a dancer named Maize (Boutella) and they begin dating.  It soon becomes clear that they’re falling in love.  Joe’s never been happier although his headaches have been getting worse.  When Joe goes to the doctor, results show he has a fatal disease with no cure.  The disease is fast moving and will leave Joe blind, in pain and mindless in a matter of months.

Joe decides to take matters into his own hands.  He breaks it off with Maize.  Then Joe uses his connections to put a hit on himself.  When word gets out, hit teams from around the world are determined to collect the two million dollar bounty.

The Joe gets a call from his doctor.  The test result were mixed up.  Another patient has the disease, not Joe.  Except for his headaches, Joe is perfectly healthy.  The doctor says Joe could live for years.

Of course the doc doesn’t know about the hit men and women on their way to punch Joe’s ticket.  Since there’s no calling off the hit, Joe’s only way to survive is to kill the killers.

Game on.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

This is the second time Dave Bautista and Sofia Boutella appeared together in a film.  The first was Hotel Artemis (2018) which I highly recommend.

Killer’s Game (2024) is a fun ride.  It features over the top characters, cartoonish violence, a bit of romance and a twist or two.

Killer’s Game (2024) rates 4 of 5 stars.

“Wolfs” starring George Clooney and Brad Pitt – The 2nd Trailer is Here!

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The second trailer for Wolfs starring George Clooney and Brad Pitt is here.

Deal me in.

He works alone. So does he. Wolfs is streaming September 27 on Apple TV+ https://apple.co/Wolfs_

George Clooney and Brad Pitt reunite for the action comedy WOLFS. Clooney plays a professional fixer hired to cover up a high profile crime. But when a second fixer (Pitt) shows up and the two “lone wolves” are forced to work together, they find their night spiraling out of control in ways that neither one of them expected.

“Brothers” starring Josh Brolin, Peter Dinklage, Taylour Paige, M. Emmet Walsh, Jennifer Landon, with Brendan Fraser and Glenn Close – The Poster and Trailer are Here!

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The poster and trailer for Brothers starring Josh Brolin, Peter Dinklage, Taylour Paige, M. Emmet Walsh, Jennifer Landon, with Brendan Fraser and Glenn Close are here!

Brothers tells the story of a reformed criminal (Josh Brolin) whose attempt at going straight is derailed when he reunites with his sanity-testing twin brother (Peter Dinklage) on a cross-country road trip for the score of a lifetime. Dodging bullets, the law, and an overbearing mother along the way, they must heal their severed family bond before they end up killing each other.

Family is a life sentence. Josh Brolin, Peter Dinklage, Taylour Paige, M. Emmet Walsh, Jennifer Landon, with Brendan Fraser and Glenn Close star in #BrothersMovie, streaming on Prime Video October 17th.

“Chaplin: Spirit of the Tramp” – The Teaser is Here!

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I’m a Chaplin movie fan.  So I plan to check out Chaplin: Spirit of the Tramp when it comes to streaming.  Check out the trailer and maybe you’ll be on board too.

Deal me in.

World Premiere – San Sebastian International Film Festival
Genre: Documentary
Director: Carmen Chaplin
Language: English
Countries of Production: Spain, BeNeLux, UK, France
Producers: Wave of Humanity, Basque Films, Atlantika Films, Kwanon Films, Roy Export SAS, Submarine Sublime
Running Time: 86 minutes (excluding credits)

“Killer’s Game” starring Dave Bautista, Sofia Boutella, Terry Crews, Scott Adkins, with Pom Klementieff, and Ben Kingsley – Two Posters and the Second Trailer are Here!

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TAKE YOUR BEST SHOT

We have two posters and the second trailer for Killer’s Game starring Dave Bautista, Sofia Boutella, Terry Crews, Scott Adkins, with Pom Klementieff, and Ben Kingsley

In the new action-comedy THE KILLER’S GAME, when top hitman Joe Flood (Dave Bautista) is diagnosed with a terminal illness, he decides to take matters into his own hands – by taking a hit out on himself. But when the very hitmen he hired also target his ex-girlfriend (Sofia Boutella) , he must fend off an army of assassin colleagues and win back the love of his life before it’s too late.

The Killer’s Game – in theaters September 13! Get tickets now: https://www.thekillersgame.movie/tick…
Starring Dave Bautista, Sofia Boutella, Terry Crews, Scott Adkins, with Pom Klementieff, and Ben Kingsley.

Scared Stiff (1953) starring Dean Martin & Jerry Lewis / Z-View

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Scared Stiff (1953)

Director: George Marshall

Screenplay: Herbert Baker, Walter DeLeon; based on The Ghost Breaker by Paul Dickey, Charles W. Goddard

Stars: Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis, Lizabeth Scott, Carmen Miranda, Dorothy Malone, William Ching, Jack Lambert, Leonard Strong, Henry Brandon, Chester Clute, Earl Holliman, Frank Fontaine and Bing Crosby & Bob Hope.

Tagline: They’re making a spook-tacle of themselves!

The Plot…

Mary Carroll (Scott) receives word that she has inherited an island estate.  She also receives death threats and warnings that the place is haunted.  Throwing caution to the wind Mary boards a ship to claim her inheritance.  Joining Mary on the trip is nightclub singer, Larry Todd (Martin) and his buddy Myron Mertz (Lewis).

They three arrive at Mary’s castle… cue the ghosts and zombies!

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

Scared Stiff is based on the play The Ghost Breaker.  It was previously adapted in the movie The Ghost Breakers starring Bob Hope.  George Marshall directed both Scared Stiff and The Ghost Breakers.

Scared Stiff features Carmen Miranda’s last film appearance.

Frank Fontaine has an uncredited cameo as a drunk.  I recognized him from his appearances as Crazy Guggenheim on The Jackie Gleason Show.

Bob Hope and Bing Crosby have an uncredited cameo.  The previous year, Martin & Lewis made an uncredited cameo in Hope & Cosby’s Road to Bali film.

Scared Stiff is advertised as a comedy/horror film.  It takes forever to get to the horror aspect and then it’s not that funny.  I prefer the Bob Hope version, The Ghost Breakers.

Scared Stiff (1953) rates 2 of 5 stars.

“At War with the Army” (1950) starring Dean Martin & Jerry Lewis / Z-View

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At War with the Army (1950)

Director: Hal Walker

Screenplay: Fred Finklehoffe; based on the play At War With the Army by James Allardice

Stars: Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis, Mike Kellin, Danny Dayton, Polly Bergen and Douglas Evans.

Tagline: America’s Funniest Guys Are GI’s!

The Plot…

Vic Puccinelli (Martin) and Alvin Korwin (Lewis) were nightclub performers before the war.  Now Vic is a Sergeant and Alvin a private at a stateside army base.  The change in their status has caused some problems between the two.

To complicate matters, Vic wants a transfer to active duty.  Alvin just wants a weekend pass to see his wife and new baby.  Add to the mix confusion about a woman that may be pregnant and who the father is.

Martin and Lewis are at war with the army.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

At War with the Army is in public domain.  Beware of shoddy copies.

Although Martin and Lewis had appeared together in films twice before, At War with the Army was their first starring roles as a team.

To Catch a Killer (2023) rates 5 of 5 stars.

“The Living Ghost” (1942) / Z-View

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The Living Ghost (1942)

Director: William Beaudine

Screenplay: Joseph Hoffman;  Howard Dimsdale (original story)

Stars: James Dunn, Joan Woodbury, Paul McVey, J. Farrell MacDonald.

Tagline: SPOOK CHASER… A reckless sleuth follows the trail of a white ZOMBIE!

The Plot…

When wealthy banker Walter Craig disappears, his best friend, Ed Moline (McVey) hires retired PI, Nick Trayne (Dunn) to find him.  Trayne has his hands full.  Everyone is suspect and that includes Craig’s ex-wife Helen, his daughter Tina and her fiance Arthur, his sister Delia, her husband George, Craig’s friend Tony, Craig’s secretary and even Cedric the butler

When Walter Craig turns up in a zombie-like state, the case changes from a missing person to a who dunnit.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

What could have been a fun old dark house murder mystery/comedy ends up being a lackluster affair.  The title indicates a ghost but we end up with more of a zombie.  Not that a ghost would have livened things up.

The Living Ghost (1942) rates 2 of 5 stars.

“The Ghost and the Guest” (1943) / Z-View

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The Ghost and the Guest (1943)

Director: William Nigh

Screenplay:  Morey Amsterdam; original story by Milt Gross

Stars: James Dunn, Florence Rice, Anthony Caruso and Sam McDaniel.

Tagline: None.

The Plot…

Webster Frye (Dunn) and his bride, Jackie (Rice) plan to honeymoon in the old remote house her father bought her.  When Webster and Jackie arrive they are surprised to find Ben Bowron.  Bowron says that the famous jewel thief Honeyboy left him the house in his will.

Before you know it Honeyboy’s coffin is brought to the house.  Then a bunch of criminals show up for Honeyboy’s burial service.  They are followed by some cops and a lawyer.  If this sounds like a great mix for a fun romp, it is.  Unfortunately, the movie doesn’t live up to the potential.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

Morey Amsterdam of The Dick Van Dyke Show fame wrote the screenplay.  You’d think it would be funnier.

The Ghost and the Guest (1943) rates 2 of 5 stars.

“Shadows Over Chinatown” (1946) starring Sidney Toler, Mantan Moreland & Jimmy Yung / Z-View

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Shadows Over Chinatown (1946)

Director: Terry O. Morse

Screenplay: Raymond L. Schrock; based characters created by Earl Derr Biggers

Stars: Sidney Toler, Mantan Moreland, Victor Sen Yung, John Gallaudet, Paul Bryar, Mary Gordon, Mira McKinney and Franke Fontaine.

Tagline: Chan follows the trail of a blood-chilling wave of torso slayings!

The Plot…

Charlie Chan (Toler) has been called to San Francisco to investigate a series of murders.  On the way, someone takes a shot a him. Chan is not deterred, but even agrees to help a couple looking for a missing woman.  They’re worried that she has become a victim of the serial killings.

Now that Chan, his number two son, Jimmy (Yung) and faithful assistant Birmingham Brown (Moreland) are on the case, things are about to heat up.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

Because Sidney Toler had terminal cancer, but wanted to continue the series, his character is often seated.  Also Mantan Moreland and  Victor Sen Yung were given more to do.

Frankie Fontaine has an uncredited cameo doing his bit as a drunk.  I recognized him from his appearances as Crazy Guggenheim on The Jackie Gleason Show.

Shadows Over Chinatown (1946) rates 3 of 5 stars.

CURTAIN CALL by Lupano Wilfrid & Rodolphe Guenoden / Z-View

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CURTAIN CALL by Lupano Wilfrid (writer) and Rodolphe Guenoden (artist)

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

Vinent and Gaby Rocket are unlikely partners in crime.  At least they plan to be.  Their get rich scheme is to knock over an armored truck.  The thing is neither of them are criminals.  The only reason they’d dare such an outrageous crime is they need the money.

Gaby needs the cash to get off the booze and finally live a better life.  Vincent plans to use his cut to return to Senegal, the home of his true love and their baby that he’s never seen.  Vincent also wants to give a share of the loot to armored truck’s driver.  The guy isn’t in on the robbery.  He’s just a down on his luck schmo that Vincent feels sorry for.  Gaby’s not sure he’s okay with that.

Despite the best laid plans, things go sideways in ways no once could imagine.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

Lupano Wilfrid and Rodolphe Guenoden have created an unconventional crime story.  The characters are flawed and their motivations are real.  The twists are not those expected in a crime story, but are believable thanks to the set-up of Wilfrid’s story.  Guenoden’s art is on the mark.  I love how he has just the right touch of cartoony-ness.

CURTAIN CALL by Lupano Wilfrid (writer) and Rodolphe Guenoden (artist) rates 4 of 5 stars.

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