Monthly Archives: September 2016

Fiend Without a Face
Directed by Arthur Crabtree
Written by Herbert J. Leder from an original story “The Thought Monster” by Amelia Reynolds Long
1958/UK
Producers Associates/Amalgamated Productions
Repeat viewing/Netflix rental

[box] Maj. Cummings: It’s as if some mental vampire were at work.[/box]

The best part of this one are the creatures.

The setting is an American military base on the border with Canada.  Nuclear power fuels its radar experiments.  The local cows are off their feed and the populace is not a fan of the base.  Then various folks are found mysteriously murdered.  Base personnel are blamed.

The audience knows better.  Invisible forces are at work.  These are the result of a professor’s research into mind control.  The forces are mortal and need to be materialized before they can be destroyed.

The creatures turn out to resemble brains with attached spinal cords.  What makes them creepy is the way they move and the sounds they make.  They are like disgusting marauding insects.  They also die in a gruesome manner.  It’s all pretty tame now but at the time this was thought to be so graphic that the filmmakers had to be concerned about the censors.  The plot is standard 50’s fare.  Worth a watch for fans of the genre.

Trailer

The Bravados
Directed by Henry King
Written by Philip Yordan from a novel by Frank O’Rourke
1958/USA
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation
First viewing/Amazon Instant

Sheriff Sanchez: Ladies and gentlemen, there’s no need for me to tell you – the emergency arose and the man appeared. Mr Douglass, it’s not often a man gets to do so much for his neighbors and do it like you did. We want you to know we’ll always be grateful… and in our hearts always.
Jim Douglass: Thank you… and in your prayers, please.

There is a certain sameness in all the 1958 Westerns so far.

Jim Douglass (Gregory Peck) rides into town hoping he is in time for a hanging.  There is an aura of mystery about the man.  He asks to see the condemned men and appears to be satisfied.  The “hangman” visits later and soon the sheriff has been stabbed and the men have escaped taking a local girl hostage.

It turns out Douglass believes these are the men that raped and murdered his wife.  He takes charge of the posse that spends the rest of the film chasing them.  With Joan Collins as a peripheral love interest and Steven Boyd, Albert Salmi, Lee Van Cleef and Henry Silva as the bad guys.

This is at least the third 1958 movie I have seen with Lee Van Cleef and/or Henry Silva as villains.  Their presence is always welcome of course.  Also we get the standard tortured hero. There is little that makes this movie special.  The church here is a grand Roman Catholic mission, though.  The moral is that vengence is a very bad thing.

Trailer

Damn Yankees!
Directed by George Abbott and Stanley Donen
Written by George Abbott and Douglass Wallop
1958/USA
Warner Bros. presents a George Abbott and Stanley Donen Production
Repeat viewing/Netflix rental

[box] Joe Boyd: One long ball hitter, that’s what we need! I’d sell my soul for one long ball hitter.[/box]

Here is another movie I remember in black-and-white.  I could still sing along with all the songs.  Love it!

Joe Boyd is a rabid fan of the Washington Senators baseball team, an affection about as fruitless as being a Chicago Cubs fan most years.  The middle-aged realtor is glued to the tube during baseball season but otherwise enjoys a loving relationship with his wife Meg. As the Senators lose yet another game, Joe offers to sell his soul for their success.

Enter Mr. Applegate (Ray Walston) who takes Joe up on his offer.  He knows Joe not only loves the Senators but has fantasized about being a baseball hero his whole life.  Joe cannot help but agree.  He is cautious enough to negotiate an escape clause and promises he will return to his wife.  He then morphs into the 22-year-old Joe Hardy (Tab Hunter).

Joe is such an outstanding hitter that he is hired directly onto the Senators despite his lack of previous experience.  He still is drawn to his wife, even renting a vacant room in their house.  Mr. Applegate retaliates by sending his acolyte Lola (Gwen Verdon) to seduce him. We follow the Senators winning season and Lola’s efforts in various directions.  With Jean Stapleton as a baseball fan and Meg’s friend.

As far as I am concerned this movie is perfect in every way.  Most of these people are reprising their Broadway performances, which had been honed to a vey fine edge.  Verdon is fantastic as is her chemistry with Walston.  I wish she had done more film work.  It may be her slightly goofy appearance that held her back, but I find even that totally endearing. Bob Fosse did the choreography and we get the joy of seeing him dance with Verdon. The staging comes off as a filmed play but I don’t mind in the least.

Damn Yankees! was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Music, Scoring of a Musical Picture.

Trailer

Clip – “Those Were the Good Old Days”