Rififi Review

Rififi

Director: Jules Dassin
Stars: Jean Servais, Carl Mohner, Robert Manuel, Jules Dassin, Marie Sabouret, Magali Noel, Claude Sylvain, Janine Darcey, Pierre Grasset, Robert Hossein & Marcel Lupovici
Running Time: 112 mins
Release: April 1955

Tony le Stephanois (Servais) comes out of prison after doing five years for a jewel heist. He is greeted by his protege Jo (Mohner) and friend Mario (Manuel) try to entice Tony to do another jewel heist but he refuses. He then finds his girlfriend Mado (Sabouret) is now involved with mobster Pierre Grutter (Lupovici). This changes his mind on the heist and ambitiously decides to hit the safe rather than the window. Mario then brings in Cesar (Dassin) who's a safe cracker. The four men methodically and intrinsically plan the heist and it all goes according to the plan until Pierre Grutter finds out.

I've never heard of Jean Servais till I watched this film but is one hell of a great actor and makes one great noir character in Tony. He's intelligent, callous, tough, loyal, emotionally hardened and an absolute bad-ass (especially in one scene). You would not think that when you look at him as he's a a rather small wiry man. I have to be honest with you I didn't much like the character but he slowly grew on me and I began to like him. He's given some great pulpy noir dialog too which works really well and works for his character completely. He has a really lived in looking face showing his past and how it's taken it's toll on him and how prison broke him, He says a lot with his eyes that are full of life and show so much emotion.

Carl Mohner plays family man Jo. He is a dear friend and a protege to Tony in being a jewel thief. I should say that to me he looks a bit like Burt Lancaster and he reminds me of him a lot. He's a tough and resourceful man who's fiercely loyal to Tony. Jo even made Tony the godfather to his son. He takes part in the heist because he wants a better future for his family he's also the muscle of the gang. Jo is not as intelligent as Tony and he's a bit of a hothead. He's a fantastic actor and i'll be looking up his other works.

Robert Manuel plays Tony's fun loving pal Mario who's a bit of a kid at heart It's no surprise to me that he had a comedic background as well as a theatrical one. He's the joker of the pack and works well with the gang. He's also really loyal to Tony and he's a great joy to watch in this film. He's also sympathetic like the other members of the group. He's phenomenal in his final scene too.

Jules Dassin played Cesar under the pseudonym Perlo Vita as the original actor didn't want to play the part so Dassin took his place as they were on a tight schedule. Cesar is the safecracker and the Don Juan of the gang. He's fantastic in the role and I didn't know it was Dassin till after I watched the film he speaks French very well despite being American. I later found out that he starred in some of his films He's a great actor but an even better director.

Marie Sabouret plays Mado Tony's ex. Her first scene with Tony results in him humiliating her offscreen as she turned on him and has gotten involved with a mobster. The main reason why Tony changed his mind on the robbery is because she left him and he still loved her and had nothing more to live for aside making a score and hopefully win her back. Later on in the film she turns into a useful ally to Tony. She is the main leading lady of this film in my opinion and she's absolutely fantastic and she was very beautiful too. It's tragic her life and career was cut short as she died at the age of 36 from Leukaemia.

Magali Noel plays Viviane the glamorous singer at the nightclub who later becomes Cesar's squeeze. She's brilliant in the role and her most famous scene is singing Rififi which will be in my head for a very long time as it's very catchy and she sings it very well.I was not surprised to find out that she is a very well known actress.

Janine Darcey plays Louise Jo's wife. She's a rather pivotal character in this film. She knows all to well of her husband's unscrupulous past and does not like the idea of what he's doing. Her talk with her husband towards the end of the film is fantastic and I'm not saying much as I don't want to spoil it.

Claude Sylvain plays Ida Ferrarti, Mario's wife who does not know much of her husband's plan at the beginning of the film though she does later on in the film. It's a small role for her but she works very well in it.

Marcel Lupovici plays Pierre Grutter Tony's nemesis. He's a real piece of work. He seems charming at face though inside he's an absolute monster. He's greedy and selfish and wouldn't think of turning the money in. He's fantastic and has appeared in some of Dassin's other films.

Robert Hossein plays Remi Grutter Peirre's younger brother who's also a drug addict. His older brother is shameful of him and his addiction. His encounter with Tony is awesome.

Pierre Grasset plays the other brother Louis Grutter who is just a lapdog for Pierre Grutter he's not in much in film but he's a rather imposing figure.

George Auric does the score to this film and it's amazing and aesthetically suits the theme and atmosphere of the film completely. I was hooked as soon as I heard the intro theme. You may know George Auric from scoring The Innocents, Dead of Night, Heaven Knows Mrs Allison among many others. It's a marvellous score and one of the finest i've ever heard.

There's plenty of themes In this film and my absolute favourite is how the gang and the mobsters are not glamorized in the film. It depicts Tony and his gang as real human beings. There's also the themes of loyalty, greed, betrayal and human error. It's a fantastic noir despite not having most of the tropes of a noir. And it was well ahead of it's time in it's depiction of sex.

Dassin does a absolutely outstanding job directing this film. It's an absolute masterpiece in movie making. Of course the most famous scene is the 32 minute silent heist which is so taught and tense I was on the edge of my seat. It was a bold move to shoot it silently but It works incredibly well. The methodical planning (especially how to work around the alarm and silent it) and the aftermath are done very well too. I Love the POV shot towards the end of the film and the drive through Paris. Speaking of Paris it looks amazing in this film. It looks so gritty and beautiful at the same time. The cinematography is gorgeous and I love the use of light and shadow. It's beautiful in every sense of the word.

If your a fan of noir this is an absolute classic which some films after this have tried to intimidate but this is the original. This is my first Dassin film and I am very grateful that Arrow Films are releasing two more of his works on Blu-Ray Brute Force and The Naked City which i'm undoubtedly going to get as they have done an amazing job on this and the extras which i'm yet to see all so i'll definitely get those too. This is a really high recommend.

Lady Snowblood 1 & 2 Review

Lady Snowblood & Lady Snowblood: Love Song of Vengeance

Director: Toshiya Fajita
Stars: Meiko Kaji, Toshio Kurasawa, Noboru Nakaya, Sanae Nakahara, Eiji Okada, Hitoshi Takagi,Ko Nishimura, Yoshiko Nakada, Shin Kishida, Juzo Itami, Kazuko Yoshiyuki, Yoshio Harada & Toru Abe.
Running Time: 97&89 mins
Release: 1973&1974

In Lady Snowblood a young family are attacked by a group of criminals and they murder the father and son raping the mother though leaving her alive. She winds up in prison and purposefully attempts to get herself pregnant to create an instrument for revenge. She gives birth to Yuki and dies shortly afterwards. The child is raised as an assassin to get revenge for her family that she never knew. 20 years after her birth Yuki (Meiko Kaji) is on the hunt..

In Lady Snowblood: Love Song of Vengeance Yuki is on the run from the authorities for murdering 33 people in the original film, she is soon captured by the Secret Police and is told she must spy on a revolutionary. She then sides with the revolution after they uncover the government's insidious plan.

The second film is not as good as the first though I greatly enjoyed and the political story was brilliant.

Meiko Kaji is the lead in both films and she's brilliant in both of them and is the main attraction of the films. After watching both films I learned that she is a very famous actress in her homeland and for good reason she's terrific. Her character is like a superhero. Though Lady Snowblood is based on a manga series. On the surface Yuki appears to be a stunning, kind hearted, sweet caring young woman who is also a vengeful cold blooded assassin who was put on this earth solely to kill those who killed her family.

She's a quick thinker, methodical and very fast and deadly which makes the action scenes brilliant in the films. Her character does not express much emotion in the first but in the second she does and I put this down to fact that she's already got her revenge at that point so she can move forward and think for herself and make choices. Which I really liked as it's not a personal story.

No matter what you follow her story and feel for her and what she goes through. She is a very expressive actress especially with her eyes she could of not said a single word in these films and I could of understood her !.

It's a great role reversal film with the samurai being a woman long before the Kill Bill films which were inspired by the Snowblood films.

She is also an outcast which is more prominently shown in the first than the second film. I'm not saying anymore as I don't want to spoil the character. What I will say is Meiko is a very beautiful and brilliant actress. I'll definitely look for more of her work and I hope that Arrow Films release more of them.

Lady Snowblood Cast:

Toshio Kurasawa plays Ryurei Ashio a newspaper writer who aids Yuki on her mission to find the criminals who killed her family. He's a tough and resourceful man who goes through a lot in this film to help her. He plays the part brilliantly. It's a shame he was not in the film much.

Noboru Nakaya plays Takemura Banzo a washed up drunkard of a man and a gambling cheat and one of the men that killed Yuki's father and brother and raped her mother. Despite this I oddly felt some sympathy toward him as he looked to be a shell of a man whom he once was. I don't really know why perhaps it was performance that made me. He's fantastic in the role especially in his final moments.

Sanae Nakahara plays the evil Kitahama Okono who is the most despicable of the criminals (in my opinion) she does not have to say a word as she looks evil I think it's her face that conveys it so well. In the beginning it looks like she's the leader of them. She makes a formidable enemy for Yuki.

Eiji Okada plays the elusive Tsukamoto Gishiro who's the real villain of the piece. He's one charismatic and smarmy slick devil. Unlike the others he's rather successful in his enterprises which were an integral part of Japanese history. His scenes are awesome and his performance equals Meiko's.

Hitoshi Takagi plays Matsuemon a dishevelled clan leader who helps Yuki seek her targets. I find his character to be quite comedic and I think that's down to his appearance. His more prominent in the first half of the film than the second. He's a real leader and it shows in his introduction.

Ko Nishimura plays Priest Dokai Yuki's harsh mentor. He trained Yuki to be the assassin that she is and he was rather cruel to her to make her tough though was more warm to her as she got older. Much like a father. He's brilliant in the small role.

Yoshiko Nakada plays Kobue. Banzo's beautiful daughter. Kobue is a prostitute to help pay her father's debt. She's a rather tragic character when I come to think of it especially in her last scene. She plays the part extremely well in her few scenes.

Lady Snowblood 2: Love Song of Vengeance Cast

Shin Kishida plays Seishiro Kikui who's one of the senior head of the secret police. He's despicable and inhuman and a real nasty piece of work. He initially sends Yuki on her mission to spy on the anarchist rebels before she changes her alliance. He has some great scenes in this.

Juzo Itami plays Ransui Tokunaga the rebel that Yuki spy's on by pretending to be a maid. He's fantastic in the role and you really do feel for him and his cause. His torture scenes are real nasty.

Kazuko Yoshiyuki plays Aya Tokunaga. Ransui's wife who's concerned for her husband. She means well but is a bit of a fool and is great in her few scenes and conveys the emotions that she expresses very well.

Yoshio Harada plays Shusuke Tokunaga Ransui's Brother who does not believe in the same cause as his brother. He would use the information to bribe the government to get what he and the other people in the slum wants which makes him a Robin Hood sort of character. It's funny that the subtitle is Love Song of Vengeance yet there's no real love interest in this film though subtlety it hints at Yuki's attraction to him.

Toru Abe plays Terauchi Kendo another head of the secret police who still has some humanity in him well a little which we see towards the end of the film.

Masaaki Hirao does the beautiful score for the first film and Kenjiro Hirose scored the second film. Right off the bat I have to say the score for the first film is much better than the second and more original. I love the infusion of 70's funk incorporated into the score. I should add Meiko Kaji is also a singer so she sung the main theme to both films and she sings very beautifully.

All in all these films are very thematic with some great themes running throughout like the gradual westernisation of Japan during the period. There's also the theme of being the outcast with Yuki especially in the Ballroom scene at the end of Lady Snowblood. The political story in the second film works very well and it surprised me it was very edgy.

In some parts the films feel like Spaghetti westerns and not just in the way Yuki can hack down enemies very quickly and is sort of an anti-hero but because of the pacing of the films they are quite slow building up to a bloody climax.

Toshiya Fujita directed both films and he's done an outstanding job on both. The cinematography is beautiful to say the least especially in the action scenes. I should add that the final fight scene in Snowblood echoes that of Enter The Dragon which coincidentally came out in the same year. I love how it was filmed mostly on sets it was quite surprising and the landscape is gorgeous. I love how the snow is done in both films it looks beautiful. Fujita sure knows how to direct.

There's not many extras on the Arrow release though I found the booklet very informative and the interview with Jasper Sharp very insightful and has made me look at Japanese cinema in a new light. The visual and audio presentation on these films are fantastic and Arrow have done a marvellous job. If want to say a great kick-ass action role reversal film with a great heroine and a brilliant story to boot you can't miss this. Also if you love samurai films I highly recommend this too.

The Long Goodbye Review

The Long Goodbye
Director: Robert Altman
Stars: Elliott Gould, Nina van Pallandt, Sterling Hayden, Mark Rydell Henry Gibson, Jim Bouton, David Arkin, David Carradine, Arnold Schwarzenegger & Ken Sansom.

I

Running Time: 112 mins
Release: 7 March 1973

Detective Phillip Marlowe tries to help his old friend Terry Lennox (Bouton) clear his name of murdering his wife. The Marlowe receives a call from Eileen Wade (van Pallandt) to look for her missing husband Roger Wade (Hayden).

Elliott Gould gives an absolutely terrific and electrifying performance as Phillip Marlowe. Marlowe is a dishevelled, cat obsessed, chain smoking, mumbling, sarcastic, wry, smart mouth, outsider, chivalrous and intelligent detective who has his fare share of faults which make him human and he has a sense of morality unlike most of the characters in this film. I really do sympathise with him. He's absolutely perfect and I don't get the hate that he received I don't think any actor that has played the character has been completely faithful to Chandler's Marlowe.

With that aside he is an absolute joy to watch I love the way that he speaks to himself saying what he's thinking. And his catchphrase “That's okay with me”. Marlowe is a man out of time, he's from the 1940's and 50's it's like he's been sleeping for the last 20 years and that he is not completely attached to the world. It's like he's displaced. Just look at his neighbours and how different they are compared to Marlowe in there lifestyle and attitude and how he's not phased by them. It's very subtlety done and I really like that.

I love his dialog and sense of humour and how he gets the better of the cops and some of the other characters. He's a real smart mouth. I love the way he talks to. He has a very expressive face and it works very well for Marlowe. I noticed in the film he almost always has a cigarette in his mouth and lights up at any opportunity it's a great character tic for him. I love how he plays with his sense of identity too though I won't spoil that for you. I have to say he's my personal favourite interpretation of Marlowe.

Nina Van Pallandt plays Eileen Wade a sort of femme fatale she's a rather sympathetic character in this film who walks a very fine line. What I really was surprised with was her cut glass english accent despite the fact that in actual fact she's Danish ! It's quite amazing really. She has some great scenes in this film all of which are with Gould and Hayden. I'm surprised she has not appeared in much after The Long Goodbye.

Sterling Hayden plays Roger Wade a alcoholic writer slowly losing his mind akin to Ernest Hemingway of whom he was based on in this. He gives a brilliant storming performance in this film. The way he rambles and slips on his words looks very natural. He's a rather sympathetic character despite his behaviour and seeing him being bulled by Dr Verringer (Henry Gibson) is amazing and unexpected it's like a bull being bullied by a mouse.

Mark Rydell plays the psychopathic hoodlum Marty Augustine. He's a real nasty piece of work and his performance reminded me of Joe Pesci's psychopathic roles that were long after this film which makes me think Pesci was possibly inspired by Mark Rydell's turn as Marty. He gives a marvellous performance in this film and he's only in two scenes and his first is rather shocking especially by what he does it's completely unexpected.

Henry Gibson plays the enigmatic Dr Verringer. Throughout the film we never really know what his true intentions are but one thing for sure other characters are frightened of him well Marty and Roger. He has something over them and it appears (to me anyway) that he has some form of mental control over Roger. It's a great role and Henry Gibson gives the character a restrained menace feel to the character.

Jim Bouton plays Marlowe's long time friend Terry Lennox who's a bit of a gambling man and is in a bit of trouble and ends up being accused of killing his wife. He's only in few scenes but he's a pivotal character. He's very good in the role. I'm very surprised that he was a baseball player before he appeared in this which was his debut acting job.

David Arkin plays Marlowe's lookout and aide Henry. He's fantastic in the role and is a great memorable character he has some great lines in this.

David Carradine is uncredited in this he plays Marlowe's cellmate in the brief prison scene. His little monologue is fantastic I loved it and I didn't realise it was him till after the film.

Another uncredited role was Arnold Schwarzenegger as one of Marty's goons you can't miss him. It's a silent role and he's pretty good in it it's a bit odd seeing him before he hit the big time.

Also watch out for Ken Sansom as the Colony Guard who does some absolutely brilliant voice impressions.

What's really interesting about the score which is done by the great John Williams is that it's just different arrangements of the main theme and Williams does a great job on it. It's rather minimalist and suits the tone and atmosphere of the film completely.

Leigh Brackett wrote the screenplay to The Long Goodbye and it's a brilliant. There's somethings she's changed which I really liked. She was surely a very talented woman.

Before talking about Altman's masterful directing I have to mention Vilmos Zsigmond's beautiful cinematography. It's done using the “flashing technique” and it works incredibly well given the film a pastel like look which suits this film very well and it gives it an old school noir sort of feel which I love. After reading the booklet that came with the film it's a really hard thing to do and get right and Zsigmond executed it perfectly. I should add that he also worked on Brian De Palma's Blow Out another Arrow film that i'll be seeing & reviewing soon.

Robert Altman films with such flair and style and in typical. I noticed the camera never stood still it was constantly in motion though very subtly. A trademark or Altman is that the characters can talk other one another at times and he uses it quite a lot and I had no real problem with it though it can be hard for some. It should be noted that no sets were used for this film it was all filmed in real locations no sound stages. It really has a nitty gritty feel just like Chandler's novels and the other adaptations of his work albeit this one was updated to the 70's. It's a beautifully shot film and it's experience seeing how it was shot.

My favourite scenes would have to be the introduction scene, the interrogation-prison sequence which Marlowe encounters the store clerk he met earlier in a brief rather funny scene. To say anymore would spoil it. It was a sheer joy to watch.

There's a of themes within in this film; identity, morality, friendship, deceit, truth, corruption and justice. It's a fantastic noir film easily one of the best I have ever seen.

This film has everything that you could ask for in a classic noir in my opinion. It treads a fine line between character study,thriller (mostly) and comedy (they are some great funny bits in this). The acting is brilliant with Gould owning the film, a cracking pulpy script, fantastic cinematography and direction, an apt minimalist score and a damn fine ending.There's a lot of extras on the disc and in the booklet that is well worth a look A real American masterpiece of film and one of the finest from it's era.

Theatre of Blood Review

Theatre of Blood

Director: Douglas Hickox
Stars: Vincent Price, Diana Rigg, Ian Hendry, Harry Andrews, Coral Browne, Robert Coote, Jack Hawkins, Michael Hordern, Arthur Lowe, Robert Morley, Dennis Price, Milo O'Shea, Eric Skykes and Diana Dors.
Running Time: 104 mins
Release: May 1973

Edward Lionheart (Price) is a Shakespearian actor who takes poetic revenge on the critics who denied him the recognition that he though so rightly deserved.

Vincent Price plays Edward Lionheart and he's absolutely fantastic in the role. He makes Lionheart appear to be a over-acting hammy actor which is an absolute joy to watch. Though it's not just Lionheart that he plays. He plays the guises that Lionheart uses to get closer to his enemies to move in for the kill.

He plays them all brilliantly especially Richard the III (It's a great rendition) and Butch. The first time he used a guise I didn't realise that it was him. He's a intelligent man who thinks of himself really highly and has a god complex. You do sympathise with him and why's he's killing the critics because they never gave him credit they always panned him. In someway's I think some actors would like to kill their critics so there's some wish fulfilment with Lionheart.

As he's a Shakespearian actor and performed in Shakespeare's plays he uses the plays involving murder as an inspiration for some of his kills and there are some fantastic kills in this film. I love the one liners he says after killing a victim. They are really funny. Of the few roles that I have seen Price in this is my favourite. He's a great American Shakespearian actor.

Diana Rigg plays Edward's daughter Edwina Lionheart who works in films like her father but not in the acting department. She works in the make-up department. This is the only thing that I have seen her in aside The Avengers TV Series and Game of Thrones and she's really good in this and it's great to see her play a rather villainous but sympathetic character.

Of course like her father she wears some disguises and she has a very popular one where she dresses up as a man with a big moustache and a small afro which could only happen in the seventies. I love her scene where she's in the hair salon whilst her father is killing one of the critics with smoke everywhere and the critic screaming she's calmly reading a magazine not being phased at all !.

Ian Hendry plays Peregrine Devlin the leading film critic. Oddly I found myself sympathising with him as the film progressed as he understood Lionheart and he didn't give Lionheart a battering unlike some of the other critics in the film. He's brilliant in this and I love his fencing scene with Lionheart it's really camp and sends up all the sword fight scenes that came before. I love the part of the trampolines it got me in hysterics.

Harry Andrews plays the lecherous Trevor Dickman who uses the casting couch as per se. He's not that much different from the character that he plays in Entertaining Mr Sloane which was also directed by Hickox. Though in this he's straight. He does some great Shakespearian acting himself before the curtains close on him.

Jack Hawkins plays Solomon Psaltery a film critic who panned Lionheart. Lionheart does not kill him he hurts him by other means in one absolutely brilliant scene which I don't want to spoil. It should be noted that Hawkins does not talk that much in this film as he was suffering from throat cancer which unfortunately killed him after this film was released. He's fantastic all the same and you may recognise him from Zulu.

Diana Dors plays Maisie Psaltery Solomon's much younger wife her role is very small though her one scene is brilliant and rather comedic.

Michael Hordern plays George William Maxwell the first critic we see and is the first to die. His death scene is my favourite as it's the most gruesome though we don't see much of what's going only that he's pressed against plastic sheeting trying to get away.

Dennis Price plays Hector Snipe another unfortunate critic his death is particularly gruesome. He's rather unwise and does not have much screen time till he meets his sticky end. His final scene is really nasty.

Robert Coote plays Oliver Larding another critic who gets on the wrong side of Lionheart his death is particularly nasty and Lionheart's line afterwards is perfect.

Coral Browne plays Miss Chloe Moon. Browne is perfect in the role as a upper crust woman who thinks rather highly of herself. She is very sharp. Her death is brilliant and hilarious. I should add that Coral Browne married Vincent Price shortly after making this film

Robert Morley is Meredith Merridew a plump theatre critic who loves food though doesn't have the stomach for it when he meets his demise. He seems the most happy of the critics and doesn't take the situation as serious as the others I felt. He was great fun to watch though.

Arthur Lowe plays Horace Sprout a character not far different from Mainwaring in Dad's Army but with less warmth. He's fantastic as he always is and his death is gruesome and funny watch for the maid who screams twice she had me in stitches.

Milo O'Shea plays Inspector Boot the plodding detective who's always one step behind Lionheart. He's fantastic in the role.

Erik Sykes plays Boot's right hand man Sergeant Dogge it's a very funny role as his character is rather a bit dimwitted not his own fault mind. He's a great character actor.

The score is by Michael J.Lewis and this is his most famous piece of work and for good reason. It's magnificent and really adds atmosphere and drama to the film. The opening score is really iconic and is my favourite piece in the film.

Douglas Hickox certainly had style when it came to directing and this is beautifully filmed the cinematography is amazing. I know this is a British film but there's something quite american about it. There's not one shot out of place and his vision for the film really shows on screen.

This film is a great slightly camp comedy horror that mixes some drama elements in. There's a fantastic cast with Vincent Price stealing every single scene he's in. The dialog is great and there's some fantastic quotes in this film mostly uttered by Price. The score is perfect and it's shot beautifully with such style. The deaths are incredibly inventive and effective. I think the best way to view this film Is a black comedy and a marvellous one of that. If your a fan of Price you sure going to love this I certainly did, every single minute of it.