“Idiots Deluxe” (1945) starring The Three Stooges / Z-View

Posted on by

Idiots Deluxe (1945)

Director:  Jules White

Screenplay: Elwood Ullman

Stars: Moe Howard, Larry Fine, Curly Howard, Vernon Dent and Al Thompson

Tagline: None.

The Plot…

Moe is on trial for beating up Larry and Curly.  Moe explains that he was suffering from a bad case of nerves.  Moe’s doctor had prescribed quiet relaxation.  And Moe was trying to rest.  Then Larry and Curly started practicing their “The Original Two-Man Quartet” act!  Once Moe “kindly” explained his situation, Larry and Curly wanted to help.  So they took Moe to the woods to get away from it all.  What could go wrong?

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

Idiots Deluxe is probably my favorite Stooges short that doesn’t involve ghosts, monsters, mad scientists or gorillas.  Surprisingly (especially considering the set-up) Moe doesn’t beat up Larry and Curly as much as usual!  Every scene contains laughs and there’s more comic wordplay in this one than usual.  Sadly, this was the last Stooges short made before Curly had his stroke.

Idiots Deluxe earns 5 of 5 stars.

“Skin: A History of Nudity in the Movies” (2020) / Z-View

Posted on by

Skin: A History of Nudity in the Movies (2020)

Director:  Danny Wolf

Screenplay: Paul Fishbein, Danny Wolf

Stars: Pam Grier, Amy Heckerling, Mariel Hemingway, Camille Keaton, Diane Franklin, Malcolm McDowell, Angela Landis, Traci Lords, Martine Beswick, Linda Blair, Peter Bogdanovich, Elizabeth Daily, Sybil Danning, Joe Dante, Bruce Davison, Ken Davitian, Kristine DeBell, Sylvia Miles, Rena Riffel, Eric Roberts, Kevin Smith and Sean Young

Tagline: The definitive documentary on the history of nudity in feature films from the early silent days to the present, studying the changes in morality that led to the use of nudity in films while emphasizing the political, sociological and artistic changes that shaped that history.

The Plot…

Skin: A History of Nudity in the Movies explores, well, you guessed it, nudity in movies.  By the time the motion picture industry got started, there were already peep shows where you could crank a handle and see nudes in motion.  It was only natural that nudity would appear in mainstream films.  It’s interesting to note the changes that came in with the Hays Code and how studio’s attempted to get around it.

Skin does a good job of taking us through the changes of how film nudity was used and perceived by the public.  The producers of Skin were to smart to get the actual actors and actresses for interviews.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

I joked that I watched Skin just for the interviews.  Truthfully, I was interested in the history of nudity in movies, especially the early days.  When I was a kid there wasn’t much nudity in movies, but then in the late 60s through the 80s, there often seemed to be at least one scene (at a minimum) where a woman was topless.  Hearing from the actresses (and actors) as to how they perceived performing in the nude made everything more personal.  Oh, and if you’re just tuning in to see the nude women, be aware the guys aren’t left out.  Well, maybe left “out” wasn’t the right choice of words.

Skin: A History of Nudity in the Movies earns 4 of 5 stars.

“Booby Dupes” (1945) starring The Three Stooges / Z-View

Posted on by

Booby Dupes (1945)

Director:  Del Lord

Screenplay: Del Lord

Stars: Moe Howard, Larry Fine, Curly Howard, Vernon Dent and ‘Snub’ Pollard

Tagline: The Stooges are mixed up in some fishy business.

The Plot…

Larry, Curly and Moe are fish salesmen.  Curly gets the bright idea that if they caught their own fish, they could cut out the middlemen.  So the boys buy a boat and head out to sea.  What could go wrong?

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

Booby Dupes starts out just like the Stooges 1940 short Cookoo Cavaliers.  The boys are fish sellers and they get some business with a woman wanting to buy a fish.  Vernon Dent shows up as a ship Captain.  Curly steals his uniform and tries to make time with Dent’s girl.  There’s more hijinks repairing the boat and when the boys make it out to sea.  Booby Dupes is a solid Stooges’ short.

Booby Dupes earns 4 of 5 stars.

“The Three Troubledoers” (1946) starring The Three Stooges / Z-View

Posted on by

The Three Troubledoers (1946)

Director:  Edward Bernds

Screenplay: Jack White

Stars: Moe Howard, Larry Fine, Curly Howard, Christine McIntyre, Dick Curtis and Elmo Lincoln 

Tagline: None.

The Plot…

Larry, Curly and Moe are cowboys in the old west.  Badlands Blackie has killed every Sheriff and Deputy in Deadwood Gulch. Now there’s a new Sheriff in town… and his name is Curly!  What could go wrong?

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

Despite The Three Troubledoers being made shortly after Curly suffered a stroke, he still gets center stage.  The Three Troubledoers has less of Moe giving Larry and Curly the business.  That means there’s more time for clever sight gags.

Dick Curtis, as Badlands Blackie, looks much taller than his listed 6’3″.  Of course in cowboy boots and playing against Curly (5’5″), Larry (5’4″) and Moe (5’3″) he would.  Elmo Lincoln, the actor who first played Tarzan in the movies, has an uncredited role as Neil’s father.

The Three Troubledoers earns 4 of 5 stars.

“A Christmas Story Christmas” (2022) starring Peter Billingsley / Z-View

Posted on by

A Christmas Story Christmas (2022)

Director:  Clay Kaytis

Screenplay: Nick Schenk, Clay Kaytis based on a story by Nick Schenk, Peter Billingsley based on characters created by Jean Shepherd

Stars: Peter Billingsley, Erinn Hayes, Julie Hagerty, Scott Schwartz, R.D. Robb and Zack Ward

Tagline: Ralphie comes home.

The Plot

It’s 33 years after the events that took place in A Christmas Story.  Ralphie (Billingsley), his wife (Hayes) and their two children are returning to Ralphie’s childhood home for Christmas.  Although his father recently passed, Ralphie’s mother is still alive.  Ralphie wants to give his entire family a memorable holiday, the type of Christmas his old man would have pulled together.

The pressure on Ralphie is increased because he’s given himself until the end of the year to become a published author.  Time is running out.

Not a lot in the old neighborhood has changed.  Ralphie’s old pals, Flick and Schwartz are still around.  So is their old nemesis, Scut Farkus!

All seems to be on track until something unforeseen happens and then all bets are off.  Will Ralphie’s family Christmas come together?  Will Ralphie become a published author?  Is Farkus still a creep?  All will be known by Christmas Day!

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

It’s hard to catch lightening in a bottle twice.  A Christmas Story is such a beloved classic, that to try and replicate it, is a tall order.  While A Christmas Story Christmas doesn’t come near the bar set by the original, it does get a lot of mileage out of bringing back so many members of the original cast.

Returning cast members include Peter Billingsley (Ralphie), Scott Schwartz (Flick), R.D. Robb (Schwartz) and Zack Ward (Farkus).  Darren McGavin who played Ralphie’s father had died and incorporating his passing into the story worked.  Melinda Dillon played Ralphie’s mom, but she didn’t return for this story.  Julie Hagerty was a nice choice to replace her.  Erinn Hayes, who played Ralphie’s wife was really good.  I’m surprised we don’t see more from her.

If you enjoyed A Christmas Story and aren’t expecting another classic, then give A Christmas Story Christmas a shot,  It’s better than a bunny suit.

A Christmas Story Christmas earns 3 of 5 stars.

“Tomorrow at Seven” (1933) / Z-View

Posted on by

Tomorrow at Seven (1933)

Director:  Ray Enright

Screenplay: Ralph Spence

Stars: Chester Morris, Vivienne Osborne, Frank McHugh, Allen Jenkins, Henry Stephenson, Grant Mitchell and Charles Middleton

Tagline: HELPLESS TO DEFEND HER! The girl he loved death-marked by the unknown fiend who killed at the stoke of seven.

The Plot…

A serial killer who calls himself The Black Ace is set to murder again.  Before each murder The Black Ace sends his target a large black ace card with a message warning that he will be next!   After each kill, a black ace playing card is left on the victim’s chest. Thornton Drake (Stephenson) received a black ace with the warning, “Tomorrow at Seven“.

Thornton, his daughter Martha (Osborne), her new boyfriend Neil (Morris), along with two plainclothes detectives Clancy (McHugh) and Dugan (Jenkins), and two pilots fly to a home Thornton owns out of state.  They figure they’ll be safe there.  They figured wrong.  Now the group  have taken refuge in Thornton’s big, old house.  Someone has cut the phone lines… and it’s getting close to 7!

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

Tomorrow at 7 has the feel of a play.  Clancy and Dugan provide comic relief.  If Barney Fife had twin brothers, it’d be these guys.  Movies like Tomorrow at 7 were popular around this time period.  All you need is a killer, a remote house with plenty of rooms (and a secret passage or two), a group of potential victims and a character for laughs to break the tension and you’re good to go.  If like me, you like these types of films, you should enjoy Tomorrow at 7.  Be aware that the final kill reminded me of Enter the Dragon, which was surprising for a film made in the 1930s.

Tomorrow at Seven earns 3 of 5 stars.

“Movie Maniacs” (1936) starring The Three Stooges / Z-View

Posted on by

Movie Maniacs (1936)

Director:  Del Lord

Screenplay: Felix Adler

Stars: Moe Howard, Larry Fine, Curly Howard, Bud Jamison and Heinie Conklin

Tagline:  None.

The Plot…

Larry, Curly and Moe go to Hollywood thinking that they’ll become movie stars.  Moe believes he knows what makes a great movie.  When they sneak on to a studio lot, they are mistaken for out of town Studio Executives that were due to arrive.  The boys are given carte blanche to make any changes they want… and boy, do they!

The Three Stooges in charge of a movie studio!  What could go wrong?

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

It’s fun to see “behind the scenes” of the making of a movie and even better when the Stooges are showing actors how to act.

Movie Maniacs earns 4 of 5 stars.

“Crown Vic” (2019) starring Thomas Jane / Z-View

Posted on by

Crown Vic (2019)

Director:  Joel Souza

Screenplay: Joel Souza

Stars: Thomas Jane, Luke Kleintank, Josh Hopkins, Bridget Moynahan andScottie Thompson

Tagline:  None.

The Plot…

Ray Mandel (Jane) is a veteran LA cop. Mandel’s seen it all.  Nick Holland (Kleintank) is a naive rookie.  Mandel and Holland are partnered for a night shift.  Over the course of their patrol they will deal with domestic abuse, a car fire, an out of control fellow officer, a kidnapped little girl and more.  As the night wears on, the rookie is shocked to learn how things really work for a police officer upholding the law.  Everything come to a head when Mandel and Holland make a traffic stop on two cop killers…

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

Thomas Jane has never been better!  He disappears into his role as a cynical divorced cop who knows there’s a difference between the law and justice.

Writer/director Joe Souza has created a film that captures the slow passing of a shift broken up by moments of tension and life-threatening terror.  While some films may have focused totally on the cop killers storyline or the kidnapped little girl, Crown Vic has the events play out as part of the shift.  Thomas Jane’s performance and the ending of Crown Vic took everything up a notch.

Crown Vic earns 4 of 5 stars.

“Cookoo Cavaliers” (1940) starring The Three Stooges / Z-View

Posted on by

Cookoo Cavaliers (1940)

Director:  Jules White

Screenplay: Ewart Adamson

Stars: Moe Howard, Larry Fine, Curly Howard

Tagline:  None.

The Plot…

Larry, Curly and Moe are unsuccessful fish salesmen, so they decide to buy a saloon.  The only (well, first) problem is they bought a salon.  A hair salon in Mexico!  The boys decide that they’d make great hairdressers.  What could go wrong?

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

The boys get some laughs trying to sell their smelly old fish.  The real chuckles come when they open their hair salon.  Imagine mani/pedis, mud packs, hair creams and more administered by Larry, Curly and Moe!

Cookoo Cavaliers earns 4 of 5 stars.

“All Quiet on the Western Front” (2022) / Z-View

Posted on by

All Quiet on the Western Front (2022)

Director:  Edward Berger

Screenplay: Ian Stokell, Lesley Paterson, Edward Berger based on the novel  All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque

Stars: Felix Kammerer, Albrecht Schuch

Tagline: None.

The Plot…

Paul Bäumer (Krammerer) is about to graduate high school when he and his classmates hear a rousing patriotic speech about joining the service.  Paul and his friends enlist thinking that the war will be over soon and they’ll come back heroes.  They will learn how wrong they are… if they survive.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

All Quiet on the Western Front is based on Erich Maria Remarque’s anti-war novel of the same name.  Written in 1929, it was banned when the Nazis took over Germany.  All Quiet on the Western Front has been adapted three times.  Twice for feature films and once for television.  It’s a timeless story about the harsh realities of war.

This 2022 adaptation is excellent.  It won National Review awards as one of the Top Five Foreign Language Films and for Best Adapted Screenplay.  It won for Best Makeup and Hairstyling as well as Best Visual Effects in the European Film Awards.

All Quiet on the Western Front contains powerful, tense scenes of war that are heightened by quiet moments before and after the carnage.  There are scenes that will stay with you.  For me, one of the most telling is when the new recruits are unknowingly given uniforms taken off dead soldiers.  The bullet holes having been sewn together by scores of women at sewing machines.

It’s also a sad comment when young soldiers on both sides are in the elements with little to eat, fighting the weather as well as each other. Meanwhile diplomats and high ranking soldiers are getting the best food and amenities as they argue the terms of surrender.  Then when an agreement to end the war at 11:00 is reached, one power-hungry commander orders his soldiers to make a last minute attack that will cost many, many lives but have no positive outcome to the war.

If I was to nitpick, I might say that All Quiet on the Western Front was a bit long, but not long enough to kill my enjoyment of it.

All Quiet on the Western Front earns 4 of 5 stars.

“Punch Drunks” (1934) starring The Three Stooges / Z-View

Posted on by

Punch Drunks (1934)

Director:  Lou Breslow

Screenplay: Jack Cluett, story by Moe Howard, Larry Fine, Jerry Howard

Stars: Moe Howard, Larry Fine, Curly Howard and Dorothy Granger

Tagline:  A Columbia 2 Reel Broadway Comedy

The Plot…

Moe discovers that any time Curly hears “Pop Goes the Weasel” he gains super strength and becomes violent.  With Larry on the violin and Moe as fight manager, Curly becomes a professional boxer known as K.O. Stradivarius.  What could go wrong?

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

Punch Drunks contains several firsts…

  • Punch Drunks is the first and only Three Stooges film selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”.
  • It contains the first time Curly exclaims his famous “Woo-woo-woo!”
  • Punch Drunks also features the first time Curly used his catch-phrase he’s a “victim of soycumstance!”
  • It is the first time Larry plays the violin (which he would go on to do in 8 other shorts)
  • Punch Drunks contains an obscene gesture – during introductions for the fight, an audience member can be seen “shooting a bird”

Punch Drunks is one of the Three Stooges most beloved shorts.  Punch Drunks contains funny gags, but it doesn’t resonate with me as well as some of their other shorts.  I like Punch Drunks, but feel it lags a bit when Larry has his two “running” scenes. I expected more laughs from Curly’s big fight. I think Punch Drunks is good, but most folks feel it is one of the boys’ best.  Your mileage may vary.

Punch Drunks earns 3 of 5 stars.

“The Price We Pay” starring Emile Hirsh & Stephen Dorff – The Poster and Trailer are Here!

Posted on by

The Price We Pay trailer looked like a typical crime movie until, well, check it out and see for yourself.  I like crime and I like horror.  Deal me in.

From the director of Midnight Meat Train comes this gripping thriller starring Emile Hirsch (Into the Wild) and Stephen Dorff (Blade). After an intense holdup at a pawnshop, Grace is taken hostage by the thieves. Forced to take refuge at a remote farmhouse late at night, they discover a secret dungeon with evidence of sadistic violence—and when “Grandfather” comes home, all hell breaks loose. Can Grace muster the courage to escape the gut-wrenching fates that befall her criminal companions?

The Price We Pay – in select theaters, on digital and on demand 1/13/23! Starring Stephen Dorff (Cody), Emile Hirsch (Alex), Gigi Zumbado (Grace), Tyler Sanders (Danny), Erika Ervin (Jodi), Jesse Kinser (John), Sabina Mach (Carly), and Vernon Wells (The Doctor).

“Little Dixie” starring Frank Grillo & Eric Dane – The Poster and Trailer are Here!

Posted on by

I’m a Frank Grillo and Eric Dane fan.  The two of them in a gritty crime film has my attention and it’s directed at Little Dixie.  Deal me in.

Frank Grillo (The Purge franchise) and Eric Dane (Euphoria) star in this action-packed revenge thriller. When a deal goes wrong between a corrupt Governor and a ruthless drug lord, ex-Special Forces Operative Doc (Grillo) is caught in the crosshairs. Now, with his family in danger, Doc must take down the Mexican drug cartel and do whatever it takes to protect the one good thing in his life – his young daughter, “Little Dixie”.

Featuring: Frank Grillo, Eric Dane, Beau Knapp, Annabeth Gish, Peter Greene, Thomas Dekker, Mercedes Mason, Maurice Compte